“Darkness is light and light is dark. One cannot live if they do not have both. Don’t be afraid, my child, your guardians will show you.” The woman with amber eyes fades into the background as the same man that haunts my dreams steps from it, striding straight to me. I back away, landing against the wall as he gets to me, his lips claiming mine. There’s an eagerness to his kiss that has me moaning in response. He pulls away with a smirk. “I’ll be seeing you soon, love.”

 

I jolt awake at a sudden movement and groggily look around me to see I’m in a car. Holy hell, what happened? How did I get here?

My dad is in the driver’s seat and I look in the back to see it piled with luggage. “Dad? What happened?”

“You fainted, honey. Your mother said some things that upset you, I think.”

I look down at myself and notice I’m in different clothes. “Ah, Dad? Did you change me?”

“Ha! No, Sally and Jessica did. They also packed up your stuff for you. They said if they missed anything important that they’ll send it once we get settled in.”

Thank god for that. It would be awkward as hell if Dad had changed me. At least the girls would have changed me quickly.

“Oh, before I forget, the purple backpack on top has something in it for you. The girls found it and thought you’d want it.”

I reach back and pull the bag towards me. Opening up the zip I’m surprised to see a sparkly, wrapped package on top. Frowning, I open it up and gasp. Inside is a beautiful gold locket. An inscription on the outside reads, ‘When life gives you lemons, throw them at every motherfucker in your way.’

I laugh and open the locket, a sob breaking free at the picture. The picture is of Natalie and I when we celebrated her eighteenth birthday. She had a superhero themed party, wanting all of our friends to dress up as famous superheroes. We both dressed up as Wonder Woman. We laughed because we had both neglected to talk to each other about our costumes. Neither one of us changed, and so we spent the night each dressed as the same superhero. It was one of our best nights together.

“Valerie, are you listening to me?”

I turn to meet my dad’s green eyes. “Sorry, Dad, I was just lost in a memory.”

“Well, I was just asking how much you remember about the place we’re going. I know your mom told you a bit about my home, but I don’t know if you remember?”

“Oh, well, the only thing I really remember is that you live secluded or something. Mom said your whole town was locked away or something?”

“Yes, we live in a gated community. It’s isolated to encourage people to stay out. We have our own shopping malls, our own school and our own policing system. It’s one of the reasons the DA was willing to let you come with me. He knew the community was close enough to a prison that you couldn’t hurt anyone else.”

“Jeez, thanks, Dad.”

“No, I didn’t mean it like you are a criminal. I mean, you will have a small amount of freedom, but there’s a guard on each exit, so I will be notified if you try to leave. Not that you should be leaving, because it will violate your probation,” he reminds me sternly.

I sigh in defeat. “I know, Dad. I don’t plan on leaving. Where would I go? It’s not like I want to go back to Mom. Not after finding out she tried to kill me,” I admit bitterly. I’m still angry that he would leave me there knowing what she had tried to do. Why wasn’t he worried she’d do it again? “Besides, I doubt I want all the people in your ‘community’ to whisper about me, so I’ll probably just lock myself inside all day.”

There’s probably nothing much to do anyway. Maybe go to the mall? Or I could get a job? Then again, who’d hire someone who is guilty of manslaughter?

Dad reaches over and grabs my hand. “You won’t be at home, Val. Well, you will, but not during the day. I organized the college in the community to accept your late transcripts.”

What? Why would he do that? “I figured you didn’t care if I went or not.”

“Valerie, I don’t know what kind of crazy lies your mother has filled your head with, but I would never want you to miss out on going to college.” He sighs, looking a bit tired. “As it is, you owe me an explanation. Why didn’t you tell me she used your college money? I would have gladly replaced it for you.”

My eyes well with tears at his heated declarations, and I lean my head back on the headrest, my eyes focused on the road as he drives. “I’m sorry, Dad. Mom said some pretty horrible things after you left. It didn’t help that you barely called or visited. I started to feel like she was telling the truth, and that you loved your new family more than me.”

He lets me cry out my frustration before speaking. “I meant what I said in that courtroom, Valerie. You are my daughter, regardless of who your biological parents are. I will always be here for you. I didn’t mean to abandon you. I should have fought harder for you to come with me, but you seemed happy with your mother. If I had any clue that you weren’t I would have taken you from her when you were in the accident.”

His admission eases some of the pain I’ve been feeling, but I still have a long way to go to trust him fully. There’s so much I don’t know, and until I have answers there’s always going to be this rift between us. I only hope that living with him will repair some of it. I’d like to have family I can rely on.

Now that Nat is no longer in my life I need someone I can trust. Well, not completely, because he can’t know that I’m looking into Nat’s murder or disappearance. I need to know what happened to her. I won’t just let her be pushed to the side and forgotten. She deserves more. I’m sure Sally and Jess will help me. They loved her just as much as I did. I know they won’t let it go easily. 

“So, tell me about your new wife? What’s she like?” I ask, breaking the silence in the car.

He smiles over at me. “Let’s see. Cassandra is one of a kind. She was it for me. Your mother and I had already been fighting a lot by then, and we had separated. While I was going through the divorce proceedings she was there when I needed someone to talk to.”

“Wait, so you didn’t cheat on Mom?” I ask, seeking clarification.

“Oh, baby girl, no. I would never cheat. Your mother and I had been separated for well over a year before I even met Cass. Your mother and I lived together for you. I didn’t want to leave you, but life with your mother just got too much for me. I had to leave.”

He pauses, as if reliving the trauma of living with my mother. At least, that’s how I imagine it. My mother is a demanding woman who thinks the world should be handed to her on a silver platter. I have to admit, being away from her is the happiest I’ve felt in the past few years. While I feel guilty for feeling that way, I’d be lying if I said I felt nothing from her absence.

Dad finally continues. “With Cassandra it’s completely different. She loves her family with a passion and makes sure each of her children has what they need, despite the fact they’re all adults. She even tried to talk your mother into letting you stay with us on holidays, but your mother would have none of it. If either of us had known half the shit your mother did, we would have fought harder. We just thought you were happy and didn’t want to go to college.” He goes silent and I stare out the window of the car.

When they told me of the divorce I wasn’t really surprised, because I had heard how often they fought. Then, when Dad came to visit me a year after he left, he invited me to come and live with him and his fiancé. I got angry because it felt like he had replaced me with a wife and new stepsons. Why did he need me anymore?

We approach a large forested area and Dad takes a right turn onto a road that goes through the forest. It's gravel and I hear the distinct dings as rocks fly up and hit the side of my dad’s SUV.

We drive an hour through the dark cover of the trees growing up on either side of the road when I see a giant fence up ahead. I straighten in my seat, not quite believing my eyes. When he said it was gated I was expecting a six-foot fence surrounding the town, but no. This fence has to be twenty feet easily. How on earth could they build a fence that high? And what material is it? It looks like wood but there’s something … off.

As we get closer Dad starts to fidget. “Valerie, there’s something else you should know. Cassandra is very protective of her sons, and we’ll all be living under the same roof.” He says it quickly, as if he doesn’t know how to tell me. Is he saying that Cassandra would think I’m going to hurt her sons?

“Wait, all of her sons still live with you guys? You have money, why haven’t any of them moved out and gone away to other colleges?” I ask, bewildered.

“We live in a community, Valerie. They chose to stay close to their mom while they went to college, so they stuck with the college here rather than move away.”

Oh, I guess that makes sense. Besides, if they were used to it, they may not want to move.

“What are my new ‘brothers’ like? You haven’t really said much about them apart from us attending college together, so I assume that means they’re in the same age range as me,” I prod, hoping to suss them out before we get there.

It’s bad enough that I’ll be meeting them for the first time, but it is after being convicted of manslaughter. I’m sure that won’t be a good first impression. ‘Hi, I’m Valerie. Everyone thinks I killed my best friend, but I don’t remember it. How are you?’

I’m sure Dad has told them what happened by now. Even if he only told his wife, I’m sure she would warn her sons of me. I know I would.

“Let’s see, where to start? Hmm, how about — not all of them are the same age as you. Jax is the oldest at twenty-five. He isn’t actually enrolled in any classes, having finished a year ago. Now he stays on as a teaching assistant. He’s also the quiet one of the bunch. He prefers to keep to himself unless he has something to say.”

Huh, kinda sounds like me. Guess I’ll find out when I meet him.

“Then there’s Zane. He’s, um, how do I put this nicely? He’s very blunt. He says what’s on his mind without thinking about those it will affect. The first time I met him, he told me flat out I was too old and ugly to be dating his mother,” he says with a laugh. “He’s two years younger than Jax.”

We drive through the gate and Dad pauses in his description of my new family members to talk to a couple who are milling about near the gate.

“Hey, Joe. Come here and meet my daughter.”

An older man comes over, his dark eyes scrutinising me in the passenger seat as he leans against the driver’s side door to talk to my father. “Hello, dear. I’m Joe.” He holds his hand through my father’s window and I lean over to shake it, trying to be polite.

My father smiles as I extract my hand. “Joe is the head honcho around here. He is basically the sheriff, but he will also be the person you report to for your monthly meetings.”

Joe nods at my father, turning to me. “It all went well then?” he asks, a note of concern obvious.

“Yeah, just house arrest until the trial. Hopefully they find the real killer soon, though. I don’t like the idea of my daughter being locked away, even if it is here with us.”

He nods sadly. “Alright then, I’ll keep an eye out. Go show her around.” Joe turns from my father to me. “I hope you feel welcome here, Valerie. If you need anything, you just ask.” He tips his head and backs away from the car as Dad keeps driving.

“That was the sentry post. We have three of them set up at the gates. It’s to make sure outsiders don’t come in without us knowing, and to monitor who leaves. We’ve had people get lost in the forest, so it helps to have people keeping track of who comes and goes,” Dad explains as he drives us further into this new place.

It feels … off. There’s something about it that has me both curious and nervous, though that could just be the feeling of moving to a new place. I’ve never had to move before, so I wouldn’t know.

We drive through the middle of town and I notice a few small shops as well as a small shopping mall. Huh, didn’t think they’d actually have a mall, I expected just a strip of shops. They must have more people here than what my mother made out. She always explained it like he was in a small country town with barely anything. This is better than my home. I actually look forward to exploring the community.

Watching the people mill about, I remember Dad hadn’t finished telling me about my new housemates.

“Dad, what about the other two guys? You kind of got distracted by Joe. Or are there only the two of them?” I ask, turning my attention back to Dad as he drives us out of town.

He turns us down a main road before going onto a dirt road. “No, there are also the twins. They’re actually your age. Cooper and Carter. They’re the more laid back of the boys. Doesn’t mean they’re not destructive as hell, but they mean well, I think.”

Cassandra, Jax, Zane, Cooper, and Carter. I repeat their names over and over in my mind, hoping to burn their names into my memory. The last thing I want is to embarrass myself by not remembering their names.

As we drive I notice there are actually two campuses that look like colleges instead of one. The first one I saw on the way past the gate, and the other is huge and coming up on my side of the road. “Hey, Dad? Are there two colleges in the community? Which one am I going to?.”

“The one near the gate is Dark Shadows. You won’t be going to that one. Only the poorer families attend there, and even if we were poor, I’d prefer you stay away.”

He slows the car outside the second school as we drive by and smiles. “You will be going here.” It’s pretty huge for a college campus. And, it looks as if it’s separated into three buildings. One large building is on one side of the road and two other buildings are on the opposite side. Kind of like one building has been segregated. The largest of the three backs onto the forest and the two buildings across the road seem to be designed for school children.

“Uh, Dad? Why are those little kids playing at the college?”

He laughs. “That’s their school. The lone building on the other side of the road — the one that backs onto the forest — is the college campus. It made sense to build the schools and the college campus within walking distance since most of the students have siblings at one school or another.”

“Oh, cool.”

As we leave the parking lot I see the sign that advertises the school’s name, and I can’t help but chuckle. The two schools are called Dark Shadows and Light Shadows.

We drive on in silence for another twenty minutes until Dad pulls up to a gated property. Why does a property in a gated community need to be fenced? I don’t get it. A huge, ten-foot iron fence surrounds it as far as the eye can see, and I lean forward in anticipation. What on earth do they need such a huge fucking fence for? Is the crime here bad or something? Or is this a place specifically for me, to ensure I don’t hurt anyone. No, it can’t be. They wouldn’t have enough time to build something that elaborate.

There’s an intercom system set up a few feet away from the gate, but thankfully it’s already open, so Dad just drives on in.

As we drive through the trees the area feels dark. As they clear I get my first look at the elaborate house that sits in front of me. It’s painted black with white trim and in the dark shadows of the forest it looks absolutely morbid. Maybe they’re trying to keep people away by blending into the dark forest?

We pull up by the stone front steps, and I get a closer look at what I had assumed would be a house. I was wrong, it’s not a house. This is a fucking mansion! No, ‘mansion’ is still too underwhelming of a word to describe the huge building in front of me.

The massive wooden front door opens easily at my father’s touch, and he drags my bags into the house behind him while I follow, my eyes absorbing everything.

From the entrance there is a massive staircase that looks as if it leads up three floors. Dad walks ahead of me, “Come on, Val. You can explore later,” he says, noticing me stopping to stare. I quickly follow after him down a narrow corridor. He stops by a door and opens it, practically throwing his bag into the room, shutting it firmly before I even get a chance to glimpse what’s inside. 

He grabs my bag and walks into a room opposite the one he just threw his own bag in. “Keep going down that way to the kitchen. I’ll be there in a sec, I’m just going to take your bags to the pool house.”

He leaves me and I freeze, unsure if I should just be gallivanting around in the house without even meeting its occupants.

I slowly make my way to the kitchen and as I get closer the sound of shouting reaches me.

“I don’t fucking care! You get rid of her or I will!”  The stranger’s voice fills with hatred and I instantly shrink away. I’m obviously not wanted here.

“Watch your tone and language with me, young man. I don’t care how grown you get, Zane, I am your mother and you will respect me as such.” She has such authority in her voice that I can imagine Zane hanging his head after being chastised in such a way. The woman’s voice softens “Besides, there is nothing I can do. Troy will be here with her any moment. I’m not asking you to be her friend. Just show her around the school for her first few days. After she’s settled you’re free to ignore her. We’ve told everyone who she is, so they know to keep their mouths shut.”

“No. You screwed up by inviting her here. She’s not one of us!” he shouts angrily, surprising me. He hasn’t even met me, but apparently that doesn’t matter.

I take a step away to wait for my father when he calls out from behind me. “Cass, we’re here.” He pushes me ahead and I walk into a massive kitchen designed to cater for large numbers of people by the look of things. Turning, I see the backs of people I assume are Zane and Cassie. Zane doesn’t bother turning to face me, he just storms from the room, slamming the door behind him and causing me to flinch. Maybe prison wouldn’t be such a bad option after all. I hear Cassie sigh. She turns to face me as I try to pull myself back from my wayward thoughts. I see her face and, for all of a second, I forget to breathe.

Cassandra is astonishingly beautiful. Actually, beautiful is an understatement. Blond hair runs down her back like a golden waterfall and gray eyes sparkle in her face, holding a wealth of knowledge. She looks to be just over six-foot tall, easily matching my dad.

He reaches her for a kiss and it almost makes me swoon seeing the love they have for each other. Dad never looked at Mom that way. I’m glad he’s happy. Plus, they look like yin and yang as they stand side-by-side.

Cassie seems to gain herself first, stepping forward to greet me, “Welcome to our home, Valerie. I’m sorry if you heard any of that. Just ignore Zane, he doesn’t like change,” she says softly with a kind smile.

Her eyes immediately set me at ease. I smile back and relax into her hug. “Thank you for letting me stay with you. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Of course, I don’t. My family is your family, so I want you to feel at home here. However, while you’re here, I hope you will respect my rules. If you do then we’ll get along perfectly fine. If not … well, you know what happens if you can’t stay here,” she threatens, her eyes going hard.

Okay then …

She smiles, erasing the hard look from her face and giving me whiplash. If her mood swings stay this unpredictable the whole time I’m here, then the next few months are going to be agonizingly painful.

“Now then, let’s show you where you’re staying. I thought you may not like living in a house with the boys so I gave you the pool house. There’s nothing in it, but you can decorate it any way you wish. For now, though, it should do.”

“I’m sure it will be great,” I offer with a smile. She watches me and shakes her head before taking off the way we came in and ducking through the door Dad went through with my bags.

I hurry to follow, then stare at my surroundings as they give me a quick rundown of the house, telling me that the first floor is for my dad and Cassandra. It has the kitchen, the ballroom, and a grand living room. The second floor is where the boys each stay. All of their rooms are up there, and while there’s a spare room on their floor, they gave me my privacy.

The third floor is attic space. Cassandra and Dad have both warned me against going up there as it’s storage and it may not be safe. Well, that’s not exactly comforting, but it does make me curious.

Inside the pool house is quite cozy. It’s the size of an apartment and has its own bathroom, kitchen area, bedroom, and living/dining room. It’s homey.

They leave me to own devices and I sink to the floor, the enormity of the situation hitting me. I’m not longer at home. My friends are gone, one is possibly dead. My dad has isolated me out here as far from his new family as he can get me without making me camp in the woods.

Then Zane’s words spin in my mind. I guess I just have to prove to all of them that I’m awesome and most definitely not a murderer.