Chapter 4: Tail Of A Secret
1204 Words
Ashton POV
I let out a shaky laugh as I kept driving straight ahead.
I glanced at the time on my dashboard—8:12 a.m.
Fuck. I’m late.
My mind drifted back to the weird girl, and I laughed again.
What a truly strange human.
At first, I’d noticed her hair from a distance—an oddly attractive blue color, even with how messy it was.
But the closer I got, the more I realized she was a mess everywhere… including her brain.
Didn’t she realize that was a police station?
Or did she not even know what a police station looked like?
Well, not my problem anymore.
The cops would handle it.
I exhaled deeply.
Honestly, I didn’t know what possessed me to buy her food. I’d never done that before—not even for someone I knew.
Why was she different?
My thoughts battled each other until I waved them all away.
This sudden family meetup at the big house definitely wasn’t how I planned to start my morning. Mom had called and said it was urgent.
I really hoped it wasn’t what I was thinking.
I sighed and sped up. Thirty minutes later, I pulled into the driveway of the big house.
I stepped out—and froze.
That was Adrian’s SUV.
I stared at it for a moment.
What were these people trying to pull?
I bit my bottom lip and raked a hand through my hair in frustration before exhaling sharply and heading inside.
And just like that, there he was—seated with Mom in the grand dining room, the table already dressed with a variety of expensive delicacies.
They noticed me immediately.
“Oh my goodness, you made it!” Mom exclaimed, rushing over. She cupped my face in her hands, smiling brightly, then whispered,
“I know you don’t want to be here, but for the sake of your already old mother, please just smile and let this pass peacefully, alright?”
I squeezed my eyes shut, then opened them slowly.
“Ashton?” she called gently.
“If he does anything crazy, I’m leaving,” I warned.
“Absolutely,” she replied, grabbing my hand and leading me to the chair opposite Adrian, who was casually sipping his wine like we didn’t exist.
I sat. Mom returned to her seat, smiling.
“I’m so happy my two handsome sons are here with me,” she began.
Neither of us responded—except Adrian, who flashed her a smile.
So fake.
I rolled my eyes.
“So,” Mom continued, “Adrian told me you two are getting along pretty well.”
I snorted.
I was not ready for this.
“Yeah, apparently we are,” Adrian said smoothly. “You don’t need to worry about us, Mom. We’re catching up real fast. Isn’t that right, Ash?” He shot me that same fake smile.
I nearly punched him.
But—anything for Mom.
“Yeah,” I said calmly. “In fact, he even invited me to his annual celebration gala. Isn’t that wonderful?”
His smile vanished instantly, replaced with a glare.
Bingo.
“Oh my! That’s wonderful!” Mom clapped her hands excitedly. “Adrian, it’s good of you to trust your brother again after what happened last time.”
She turned to me.
“And you—please behave yourself and support your brother. I don’t want to hear about any silly stunts at that party, Ashton.”
“Of course, Mom,” I said sweetly. “I’ve changed. I really want to get along with my twin brother.”
I smirked at Adrian.
His jaw clenched.
“Mom, wouldn’t it be better to catch up at another event?” Adrian tried. “That celebration is pretty important to me.”
“But Ashton said you invited him,” Mom replied firmly.
Adrian glared at me. I smirked harder and took a bite of my steak.
“Yeah, an invitation I have no memory of,” he muttered.
“Adrian, drop it,” Mom said. “Take your brother with you. What happened between you two was ages ago. I want to see my sons getting along.”
Adrian inhaled deeply.
“Alright,” he said stiffly. “Anything for you, Mom.”
“Enough talk. Let’s eat,” she said.
We ate in silence.
Once we were done, I was almost out the door when Adrian suddenly grabbed me and slammed me against the entrance wall.
He glanced around, checking for Mom. When he was sure she was gone, he turned back to me.
“I don’t want to see you anywhere near my party,” he snarled. “Make up an excuse right now and tell Mom you’re not going.”
I snorted, shoving his hand off my shirt.
“Honestly, I never wanted to go anywhere you’d be,” I said. “But with that attitude? Now I’d love to show up.”
I smirked as I gave him a mock wave.
“See you at the party, Ad.”
I walked out straight to my car.
As I drove away, bitterness settled deep in my chest.
All I ever wanted was an apology.
Fiona wasn’t the only thing he took from me.
Carrington Dynamics should’ve been mine—but he stole it and changed the name to Ad & Motors Technology. Every single thing. And Dad let him.
I hated how everything always worked out for him and never for me.
I hissed, gripping the steering wheel so hard my knuckles turned white. My breath trembled.
Then—my mind snapped back to the weird girl.
What if she was demented?
Wait.
That would explain everything.
The hospital gown.
Bare feet.
The confusion.
She didn’t know anything.
Oh no.
What had I done?
I’d left a demented girl in a police station.
I slammed my foot on the accelerator and sped back toward the station.
When I arrived, I rushed inside and went straight to the front desk.
“Officer Jerry,” I called out.
“Oh! Hey, Mr. Carrington,” he said.
“Mr. Carrington is my father,” I corrected quickly. “Call me Ashton.”
“Alright, Mr Ashton. What brings you here?”
I scanned the room. She wasn’t there.
“Uh… was there a strange blue-haired girl here?” I asked.
“Oh yeah,” he said casually. “She was saying weird things, so we put her in the detention room.”
I bit my lip as guilt washed over me.
“Do you know her?” he asked.
“No—uh—actually yes,” I lied. “She’s a friend. She’s demented. Can you please let her out?”
“Ohhh,” he said. “That explains the crazy talk.”
He stood and walked off. A moment later, he returned with her.
She looked even more pitiful than before.
And then for a brief second—while staring at her—
I swore I saw something like a blue fur behind her that vanished in an instant.
My eyes widened.
I couldn’t blink.
Couldn’t look away.
My gaze was glued to that spot.
What the hell was that?
- Writer
