“That’s unbelievable. How did you—”
“When Ginnie and I were young we sent each other secret notes in school. Sometimes we used code, but mostly we wrote with invisible ink. Code was fine for typical schoolgirl notes, such as ‘I really like so and so, what do you think of him?’ However, if we had to communicate information of great importance, we would write in invisible ink.”
“But how did you know there was writing in this?”
“That little flower by her signature. Of course, there had to be a sign so we could let each other know when a note contained a hidden message.”
“The flower.”
“Yes, the moment I saw it, I knew what to look for.”
She pulled a lamp close and shone it on the faded brown letters.
Dearest Alan,
How I hope and pray I am beside you as you are reading this—otherwise, I suppose I must be dead. For only death could keep me apart from you any longer. If only… I dare not indulge the luxury of those thoughts… or I shall cry enough tears to make all the deserts of Venus bloom.
Don’t be angry with me. I did what needed to be done.
Ed had been pressuring me for months for information about you. He suspected we’d been meeting secretly. If he’d discovered I was pregnant… I’m sure you can imagine the consequence of that. Nina needed me, our unborn child needed me, and the Resistance (and humanity) needed you. It was a small sacrifice—to let him think Dee was his.
In these pages are the good times with our children. I had to share them with you, to let you see them through my eyes. I know you will cherish them, as I have.
All my love to you, forever and always, dearest, dearest husband.
Below that was a P.S. dated a week before she died.
I’ve tried to leave Ed many times, but he continually threatens to choose Nina for FeLS if I do. I finally have the credits to buy out her contract. When I get it, I will send it to your mother. I have been stealing evidence from Ed’s files, collecting the proof we need to show what the FeLS organization really is. If anything happens to me, it’s hidden in our secret place.
My cheeks were hot with tears. Mrs. Jenkins put her arms around me and I sobbed until there were no tears left to cry.
I reread the letter—three times. “Alan is Dee’s father, too. Did you know that?”
Mrs. Jenkins shook her head. “After Ginnie became pregnant, she cut off all communication with everyone—except, apparently, Rita. It is possible that Rita knew.”
“Then why didn’t she…”
“For your sake, Nina. It wouldn’t be difficult for the Bureau of Safety and Security to get information from a child.”
“But I didn’t know anything! What would I have known?”
“Are you sure? There must be something. Think back, dear.”
I went through the people in Ginnie’s life. “No one but Ed ever came to our modular. When we lived on Wrightwood, before Ed, there was Gran and Pops. Ginnie also had a couple of girlfriends from her work.” I sighed, and then it hit me. “There was a homeless man who made me clover chains, who we saw at the park…” Then it hit me. “That was my father, wasn’t it?”
Mrs. Jenkins nodded.
I couldn’t take my eyes off my mom’s writing. Dee was my full sister. There wasn’t any connection to Ed at all. My father was her father. The family I thought I’d lost when my mother died… it was still there. We would all, somehow, be together again. In a very few minutes, though, those good feelings turned to ice.
Ed. He was still out there, still thinking that Dee was his daughter. I shuddered to think what he might do if he ever found out the truth. I wondered if he suspected anything, since he was obsessed with finding my father.
“Do you know where Ginnie would have hidden this evidence?” Mrs. Jenkins asked.
“No.” Something horrible was going to come from this. I knew it. “I need to go home.”
“First we must take care of the message.” She opened the second bottle and brushed over the page again. In moments, the writing disappeared. “There is probably more written throughout the pages. It is best if I don’t let you take the solutions back with you. Too much temptation. You can’t risk this falling into the wrong hands.”
I nodded—my mind was numb with dread.
“Do you want me to keep the book here? I can lock it up.”
“No.” I took it from her. I couldn’t bear to know someone else held my family’s secrets. “Ginnie entrusted it to me. I have to get it to my father. If you or Mr. Jenkins hear anything, please let him know I have to see him. Tell him how important it is.”
“I will. Be careful, Nina.”
I retrieved my jacket from downstairs, stuck the book back in my waistband, and left. I didn’t even say good-bye to Wei.
Thankfully, the trip back was uneventful. When I got home, Dee met me at the door.
“Whatcha got under your coat?”
“Nothing.”
“You’re lying. You’re hiding something.”
She tried to unzip my jacket and I pushed her away.
“Quit being a jerk,” she said. “I was just fooling around. But since you’re being that way, I won’t tell you about Ed.” She flounced off and headed to her room.
Racing after her, I spun her around. “Dee! What about him? Tell me now!”
“What’s all the commotion?” Gran called from the kitchen.
“Nothing,” I called back while dragging Dee into my room. “Now, what about Ed?”
“You’re hurting me!” She struggled to get away.
“Dee. This isn’t a game.” I pulled her down on the bed next to me. The book dug into my gut, but I didn’t dare remove it or she’d start questioning me. “I’m sorry. Just tell me about Ed. Please. I’m afraid he’ll try to take you away, or maybe even hurt you.”
“Nina, he won’t hurt me. He’s my dad.”
I had to stop myself from blurting out the truth. If Dee knew she wasn’t Ed’s daughter, she’d act differently around him, or worse, she might slip and tell him. I couldn’t put her at more risk. I couldn’t tell anyone. “Dee, what exactly happened?”
“He called me. He said he missed me and he wants to see me. Maybe even go to the zoo with me, like fathers and daughters do.” She smiled. “He said since Mom’s gone, I need a father.”
I couldn’t breathe. My whole body shook and fear overwhelmed me. The edge of the book dug into my leg, and I grabbed my blanket pulling it tightly around me, keeping the book hidden away. “When, Dee. When did Ed say he wanted to see you?”
“He said he wanted to talk to you first. He tried to call you, but you must have been in a dead zone since you didn’t pick up.”
I stopped and focused for a moment, controlling my breath, trying to act casual. “Yeah, I must’ve been. There’s dead zones everywhere. I guess he’ll call me again. Hey…” I stood up, still wrapped in the blanket. “Promise me you won’t talk to him again until I do, okay? For Mom’s sake?” I was pulling out everything I could to keep things under control. I could hardly believe I’d said that—that I’d use Ginnie’s memory to manipulate my little sister. But it got the desired result. Dee promised and sulked off to her own room.
Dropping the blanket, I pulled the book out of my jeans and stared at the cover. Ginnie’d been right about it containing answers. But the answers were far more dangerous than the questions. At least I’d moved closer to finding out all kinds of truths. Now, if I could only figure out where Ginnie and my father’s “secret place” was…
My PAV beeped. For a moment, I thought it might be Ed, but it was Sandy. Her shrieks were deafening. “He chose me! I’m in! I’m going to be a FeLS! Can you believe it?! Of course you can. Ed was the Chooser. I knew that he’d choose me because of your mother. He came and I reminded him that you and I were the best of friends. I hope that doesn’t bother you, Nina.”