I’d fallen asleep early, exhausted from a long shift at work. I don’t know what time it was when I felt someone shaking my shoulder. When I opened my eyes, Amelia was standing beside the bed looking like she’d seen a ghost.
“Oliver,” she whispered. “You need to wake up right now.”
Fear shot through me. “What happened? Is Leo okay?”
Amelia was standing beside the bed
looking like she’d seen a ghost.
She didn’t answer immediately. She just stood there, wringing her hands, looking at me with wide, frightened eyes.
“I went to fix his bunny,” she said softly. “The stuffed one he carries everywhere… and never lets anyone touch. It had a rip in the seam. I thought I’d sew it while he was asleep.”
“I found something inside, Ollie. A flash drive. Hidden in the stuffing.” Her voice broke. “I watched what was on it. All of it.”
My heart stopped beating for a second.
My heart stopped beating for a second.
“Leo’s been hiding something from you for years,” Amelia added, tears streaming down her face. “Something about his father. About his past. And Ollie, I’m scared. I don’t know if we can… if we should…”