All the Lies (Lies & Truths 1)

Oh. Okay.

“Then that should mean Asher and I aren’t engaged.” I couldn’t hold in the smile in my voice even if I tried.

It was a nightmare.

“Yes, you are, Rei.”

My good mood falls like an atomic bomb. “I can’t be engaged to my foster brother.”

He smiles in a reassuring kind of way, like the nurse. “I became your legal guardian your senior year of high school, but you and Asher were engaged long before that. Besides, you never really lived together. Asher has been studying at Oxford for the past three years.”

Oxford. That’s in England. Phew. So he’ll go back there and leave me here in peace.

Problem solved.

I focus back on Asher’s father with newfound interest. Unlike Asher’s, his eyes are a lighter green with a meaner shape. His lips are thinner, too. It’s a profile of a man in power, I don’t know how I know it, but I do.

“You said you became my legal guardian my senior year?”

He passes me a glass of water, and I drink even though I’m not thirsty. “Correct.”

“W-what happened to my parents?” My heartbeat skyrockets and I grip the glass tight as I wait for his reply. Something tells me I won’t like it.

A sheen of sadness covers his features. “Your mother died during childbirth and you lost your father in an accident. Gareth was my best friend and partner. He named me as your guardian in his will.”

Oh.

Pressure builds behind my eyes and a strange sense of grief hits me. It’s not only because of my parents’ deaths, but also because I don’t remember any of it.

How could I forget my own parents?

No.

I have parents. Deep down, I think I do have parents somewhere.

Alexander pats my hand with deep sympathy that touches my heart. His attitude is a million times different from that of his devil son. If it weren’t for the uncanny physical resemblance, I would’ve never linked the two together.

“One step at a time, Rei.” He offers a reassuring look. “We’ve got this.”

A wave of tears assaults me, welling in my eyes.

Those are the words I’ve yearned to hear the most since I woke up with my head wiped clean. I wanted someone to console me and tell me everything will be okay. Instead, I had my freaking fiancé calling me a monster and threaten to break me.

I swallow back the need to cry. “Thank you, Mr. Carson.”

“It’s Uncle Alex to you, or just Alex if you don’t feel the familiarity yet.” He pats my hand once more before standing. “You should freshen up. The police are here for you. Remember, don’t answer anything you don’t feel like answering. I’ve already informed them about your memory loss. They’re well aware your testimony won’t be much, but

they’ll try to push anyway.”

I nod slowly.

The nurse from yesterday comes inside, wearing a serene, welcoming expression.

I can’t help searching behind her, expecting the nightmare from yesterday to show up with the intention of harvesting my soul.

Oxford, remember? Our engagement can’t even be real if we’ve lived apart for more than three years. Long-distance relationships aren’t known to work—not that I had any relationship with that psycho.

The nurse, Erika, exchanges some pleasantries with me as she helps me into a wheelchair.