Heir of Shadows (The Shadowborne Legacy Book 1)

by Emma Harley

  “So, the business is under Kalen Blanchard’s name, nothing to show any sign of his parents. Logan and Elias can be found with a little bit of digging, it seems he gave them both a good amount of work too, but with a lot of digging, I found the sister.” Raina’s eyes widened as she leaned in close to read over the information. “Coralynn Blanchard, last appeared on any records about six years ago, after that she dropped off the face of the earth, not as much as a credit card purchase to her name.” Raina dropped back, her mind swirling as she clutched onto the armchair for support.

  “When exactly six years ago?” JJ asked quietly. Nick’s excited demeanour dropped flat as a tense mood filled the room.

  “The day after Raina’s mother was killed. She withdrew almost a million marks from her account and disappeared.”

  “So is it possible Coralynn Blanchard is the Raven?” Alicia muttered softly. Davin nodded, a grim expression on his face.

  “If the Raven knew Raina’s family before our mission, it’s possible she could have been keeping tabs on her without her ever knowing. We can also assume one, if not all three, of the Blanchard brothers were involved in tracking Raina down until their sister got to her family.”

  Raina’s brain was swimming as everything began to fall into place. Kalen had been holding her hostage and she hadn’t even realised it. He was using her to help his sister get her revenge and kill Raina’s family because she had been ordered to kill Brent. Logan had begged her to stay when she wanted to quit, but there was one thing just didn’t make sense to her.

  “Why would they make up a fake child? They had a month before he was expected to appear. If they knew who I was wouldn’t they have been worried I would figure it out before then? They would have been risking their lives to keep me there, if I worked it out I would have killed them. On the other hand, if they knew who I was and thought that I knew the Raven’s identity, they thought I took the job so I could find her,” she enquired, jiggling her leg anxiously. Alicia shrugged.

  “The presence of a child changes things, you’d be less likely to kill them if you knew you were leaving a kid without a family,” she theorised, wrapping her hands around a fresh mug of coffee. Raina snorted.

  Child or not, she would happily butcher whoever was involved in her mother’s death. JJ shook his head and went over to the makeshift board.

  “If we assume they knew her identity as Ironwood’s killer, then they are already aware that Coralynn retaliated by killing her mother. They lured her to their manor using the job as a ruse, but that’s where it gets confusing for me too. Phoenix you said she left a message for you?” he demanded, rearranging the strings and photographs on the wall.

  Raina nodded. “A revolver with a single bullet in the chamber.” JJ stroked his stubbled chin thoughtfully as she stood to join him at the board.

  “Logan claimed he found the gun on my bed after we fought and I left, I didn’t believe him at first but now I can see my gut was right. I went to Captain Green’s office, Kalen and Logan had a meeting with him that day so he brought the gun with him.”

  “Did you go back to the house and check around your room?”

  “No, I had packed all my belongings. I had everything I needed in the holdall I brought with me, everything else was in boxes to be shipped home.” Davin appeared behind them and handed Raina a fresh cup of coffee.

  “Why would she have left the message in your room if she knew you weren’t coming back to get it?”

  “Maybe she didn’t, if Logan Blanchard brought it to Raina he probably made the story up as an excuse,” Izak butted in from his spot on the sofa, where he was sloughed back with his hat over his eyes. Raina’s face scrunched up as she remembered Logan entering the captain’s lounge.

  “Except Logan didn’t know I was with the captain. He was surprised when he seen me, and his whole attitude shifted. And I tackled him when I realised he was armed, that was when he said it was mine, he thought I’d been careless and left it behind,” she countered.

  Davin frowned at her before turning to Nick.

  “You found anything else to help us out here?” Nick grimaced as he shrugged in response.

  “I’ve been looking into their business, but all I can find is funding information. I don’t even know what it is they do, but right now it looks suspiciously like money laundering. They receive massive amounts of money, but I can’t find what the money is going towards,” he answered grumpily.

  Raina barely turned her head from the board. “The captain told me they do genetics research. They supply their own teams and the work, Kalen had been trying to get a deal with Green’s company for years, apparently their labs have state-of-the-art machines.” Nick typed furiously and bowed his head to concentrate. The rest of the team silently scoured through files to look for connections before Izak piped up.

  “Phoenix, what was it about the gun that made you realise it was a message?” he huffed, clearly desperate to go to sleep. A small shudder ran down Raina’s spine and lingered. She took a sip of coffee before answering.

  “Because my mother was tortured before she was killed. A revolver was found with her body, only one shot had been fired from it. I wasn’t told much else, they were too busy grilling me on what information my mother held to make a criminal torture it out of her,” her voice cracked as she shoved back the memories of her mother’s death.

  She took a wobbly breath before opening the file she had been avoiding. It was everything documented about her mother’s death. Her team mates had gone still, as though waiting for her to explode.

  There was little details about her mother, except for whatever was recorded about her death. Raina skipped over the details of the torture. That was information she didn’t ever need to know, it would haunt her as long as she lived to know what had happened to her. Nothing seemed out of place until Raina reached the pages about the investigation into her mother’s background. No birth certificate, unidentified parents. Her heart stopped dead in her chest as she read the next line.

  No living blood relatives.

  Raina knew Thea had been questioned after her death, and both of them were asked to give a DNA swab to confirm her mother’s body, since she couldn’t be identified visually due to the torture.

  Raina had assumed it was verified, since nothing further had come of it and the body had been released back to them to be buried. The swab results were documented in the file. Neither Thea, nor Raina were related to her mother. Raina’s hand was shaking as she handed the file over to Davin. The room was spinning and she barely had time to clutch her hair back before she dropped to her knees on the kitchen floor and vomited.

  Eliza Phoenix wasn’t her birth mother. Thea wasn’t her aunt. She had no idea who she was.

  The records claimed Raina was found abandoned as a child, and her mother adopted her. Whatever Thea had told investigators had been blacked out with thick marker. Raina knew nothing, and the only person with definite answers was dead. Her last chance was Thea, who was likely dead or dying.

  A warm hand rubbed her back, gently pulling her to her feet. JJ held her upright while Alicia tipped a glass of water to her lips. They led her to the sofa and sat her down while Izak took a very old mop to the puddle of bile she had left behind.

  “This is a lot to go through Phoenix. You need rest,” Izak called from the kitchen. She shook her head softly. “I need answers. All I’m finding are more questions,” she croaked, each word struggling on her burning throat. Davin nodded and knelt down in front of her.

  “If you want to work until you pass out on a file, then we’ll work with you. But you need rest. We’re not going to quit on this you know. Just take a break for now,” he pleaded. Raina almost forgot about the trauma that was plaguing her as Davin spoke so gently to her. The rest of the team paused and stared at him blankly.

  “Give over,” he sighed. “Mullins take her upstairs for a rest. Everyone just take a break, we need to look at this with fresh eyes.”

  The o
rder was clear, and Raina didn’t object as Alicia pulled her towards the worn carpeted stairs after grabbing her holdall and a backpack. They took the attic room, and Raina barely acknowledged anything around her as she flopped onto one of the creaky wooden beds that inhabited the furthest wall and stared at the ancient TV. It was barely wider than she was, and had a built in video player. They had been advertised as portable when they first appeared on shelves, however they must have weighed as much as a grown teenager. Alicia dumped the holdall at the foot of her bed and bounced back onto the adjacent bed.

  “Let’s take our mind off the darker stuff for a while,” she whispered loudly, sliding a large bag of jelly sweets out of her backpack and tossing it to Raina.

  Raina reached into her holdall for something comfortable to sleep in, pulling out a crop top and a pair of sweatpants, before sliding out the big box of chocolates Logan had bought her. Alicia clapped her hands giddily and stripped down to her underwear, sliding into a pair of leggings and a yellow camisole. She darted around the room like a pixie, poking through the various cupboards and drawers until she found a selection of old videos. Raina smirked as Alicia set a pile down on a discoloured beanbag chair designed like a burger, releasing a puff of dust in her face.

  “Damn this thing hasn’t been touched in years,” she laughed, swatting the dust away. She glanced between two videos before thrusting them into Raina’s view.

  “Choose one,” she commanded. Raina raised an eyebrow and scowled.

  “Is there anything that isn’t a soppy love movie?” she moaned, popping a gummy turtle into her mouth. Alicia frowned.

  “We’re taking our minds off things, and what better way to do that than a romantic movie?”

  Raina sighed and pointed at one of the videos, not even caring which one she had picked. Alicia flicked the light off and slid the video into the TV as the black and white static screen lit up the room, illuminating the flaming auburn curls on her head as she bounced back towards Raina. She leapt onto her bed and reached for a chocolate Raina offered. The girls jumped as the sound of a horn blared loudly through the TV. They both shrieked and Raina leapt to turn down the volume.

  Izak and JJ came smashing into the room to see what the source of the commotion was.

  “Calm down, geez it was just the TV,” Alicia mumbled through a mouthful of chocolate truffle. Izak grabbed a handful of gummy sweets and sprawled along the foot of Raina’s bed.

  “So what are we watching?”

  Raina butted in before Alicia could say anything.

  “Mullins wants to watch 90’s romcoms,” she teased, winking at Alicia as JJ planted himself beside her. She blushed furiously as the boys began to taunt her, thumping JJ with the flattened pillow before tucking it behind her, fuming silently.

  The film started and Raina struggled to keep her focus. So much was on her mind, even minor distractions weren’t helping much. Logan had been using her. Taking her on walks, trying to get to know her, begging her to stay, kissing her, holding her. Raina shook her head and rubbed the looming tears viciously from her eyes. Izak turned to her.

  “You’re not getting slushy over an old romcom are you?” he peeked into her face as she lobbed a sweet at him.

  “PHOENIX IS GETTING SOPPY!” he squealed, diving off the bed to avoid the incoming fist Raina had thrown. JJ and Alicia roared with laughter, and even Raina couldn’t help but chuckle at their infectious giggles and Izak’s playful taunts. Nick poked his head around the door with a smile.

  “I heard Phoenix was crying at a movie,” he jeered, ducking behind the door to avoid getting hit by a gummy missile. He waved a bag of ready-made popcorn in the air as surrender and Davin slid into the room behind him with six bottles of beer.

  “May as well make a night of it,” he smirked, catching Raina’s grateful eye. Izak’s keys jingled as he opened the bottles and passed them around. Davin brought one over to Raina and squished onto the bed beside her.

  “We’re always going to have your back Phoenix. And we’ll check you when you get out of hand. But you can rely on us, we’re going to take this bitch down or die trying,” he swore, tipping his bottle towards her.

  A small smile crept across her face as they clinked the neck and bottom of their bottles together as though sealing a pact. Alicia had completely abandoned the movie, instead she and JJ had begun tallying how many bits of popcorn they could catch in their mouth without dropping one. Izak was going out of his way to try and distract them while his partner tossed the popcorn to ensure neither of them could cheat.

  This team could have chosen to hide away safe and sound while the government investigated, but instead they were sitting in an attic room of an abandoned farmhouse, taking a rest from hunting down a criminal who threatened their team leader. They didn’t know if their loved ones were safe. They didn’t know where they were or who was taking care of them. Each one of them had put their trust in complete strangers purely to come to her aid.

  Raina spent the night distracted by the childish rivalry, even finding herself shocked when Davin challenged Izak to a popcorn-catching extravaganza, leading Alicia and JJ to run downstairs and microwave extra bags of the buttery snack. Raina took over from Nick, tossing the popcorn into the air for them to catch in their mouths, and when Davin won for a second time, Izak found himself being pelted with popcorn for being a sore loser.

  ∞∞∞

  Raina awoke the next morning to an empty room. For the first night in a while she had slept soundly, instead of jolting awake every hour thinking someone was in her room. She could tell it was still daylight out by the glow around the edges of the wooden boards hammered up around the windows. The junk food and beer from last night was leaving her feeling nauseated, but a good breakfast would clear that up. Alicia wasn’t in her bed, and she could hear voices floating up from downstairs. Not bothering to change out of the clothes she had slept in, she slipped on her fluffy house-boots and plodded downstairs.

  The smell of frying bacon and fresh coffee lured her into the kitchen, where Davin and JJ stood by the cooker. JJ gave her a tired smile as he noticed her.

  “Coffee?” he yawned as he reached up to grab mugs. She nodded and thanked him before leaning over the worktop that separated the living room and kitchen.

  “Well this is a first,” she taunted, as Alicia and Izak waved absent-mindedly in her direction, “you two have started before the rest of the team.” Izak continued reading through the files as he responded.

  “Well Davin woke us up early and promised us breakfast if we would get downstairs and begin work. I asked him to wear an apron while he did it and we had a deal. He then threatened to fry my favourite body part so here I am.”

  Alicia darted into the kitchen to pour herself orange juice, giving Raina a loud smacking kiss on her head.

  “We have your back Ray-Ray, now get in here and let’s get this nightmare over with.” Raina trudged solemnly into the living room and located the file about her mother. JJ leaned in to interrupt.

  “Here’s your coffee Phoenix, don’t you think you should eat before we start?” he offered kindly, earning himself a strange look from Alicia. Raina just brushed him off.

  “If I vomit again I’d rather not throw up my breakfast,” she called back to him as Nick entered the room and flopped down in front of his laptop. JJ offered him a coffee and he nodded while yawning.

  “Give me something to start on,” he called to no one in particular. Raina turned to him and forced herself to say the words she was thinking.

  “Dig up whatever you can find about my mother. I know I’m adopted now, but she’s involved in this somehow. Maybe my adoption was a part of it,” she breathed. She took a sip of coffee and flipped through the pile of folders for her personnel file and handed it to Nick.

  “Everything should be in there.” He thanked her and put his head down, typing furiously.

  “Grub’s ready!” Davin called from the kitchen.

  Raina grabbed a few slices o
f back bacon and a fried egg and slapped them between two slices of buttered bread before darting back into the living room. Izak scrunched his nose at the bacon and piled eggs and toast onto a plate while Davin muttered under his breath about “picky eaters” and “all his hard work.” Alicia tossed some food onto a plate and brought it to Nick before plopping down beside JJ to devour her own breakfast. Izak scrunched his nose at JJ when he dumped his bacon rinds onto his toast with a squirt of ketchup.

  “You know, its nasty habits like yours that make me glad I’m a vegetarian,” he scowled, moving to the other side of the room. JJ stuck his middle finger in the air and swore at him. Raina tossed her empty plate into the sink and poured herself a fresh coffee.

  “You ready?” a voice from the doorway made her jump and almost spill hot coffee on herself. JJ stood in the doorway watching her milling about, his black t-shirt straining impressively against well-defined muscles. He and Davin were definitely the muscle of the squad. Izak was incredibly slim, but what he lacked in brute strength he made up for in speed, agility and an aim that impressed even Raina. Nick was shorter with a muscular build, but his technological talent was undoubtedly the lifeblood of the squad. A mission that would normally have taken them a month, became a few days with him on their side. Alicia was the true marvel however. The petite redhead was deceptively strong, and her glittering aura lured victims into a sense of false safety. She was by far the most dangerous member of the squad to come across.

  The team had gone abnormally quiet, even their chewing had slowed down so they could overhear the conversation in the kitchen. Raina shrugged and stirred sugar into her mug.

  “I don’t think I can ever be ready to see pictures of my mother’s death after finding out she’s not actually my mother, my aunt isn’t my aunt, and at some point I’ll probably find out my name isn’t Raina or something. But I’ll be fine, let’s just get this over with,” she breathed heavily, swallowing a mouthful of coffee. He grabbed her bicep gently before she passed him, speaking low enough so as not to be overheard by the others.