Dom released a sigh and looked like the reply he wanted to give he refrained in doing so, obviously knowing that I was a King on the edge and thought to give me a reprieve.
“I wanted your permission to have the map copied once more.” I frowned back at him and commented,
“I am surprised that you would even need to as I believe I made enough copies for all of the Kings, something that was agreed between us would be the only copies made…although, that seems pointless now seeing as the Witch made off with the fucking original,” I added but still, I wondered at his request.
“I gave my personal copy to Vincent before he left to conduct his own investigation, as there wasn’t a spare for him the day we had the meeting of the Kings, as I was under the impression one was made for Amelia, which she left, did she not?” I frowned as I started to work through that meeting. Had Vincent not taken one that day?
“Yes, I had one made for her, which she left and is now in my possession,” I told him but still a nagging feeling started to rise.
“And you’re sure that Vincent didn’t take one?” I asked again.
“He simply believed that due to his absence at the beginning of the meeting that his copy was held back, but I take it from the looks of things that this wasn’t the case.” I didn’t answer him, but instead I started to work through my memories and then yes, I saw it. I saw the way he had taken the map from Theo at one point to look at it, before he then gave it back to him.
But Amelia had taken one. I remember seeing her eagerly grabbing one and being forced to hide my smirk at the sight. And this was the one I had assumed she had left in her room. I’d thought by doing this she was making a point to show that she no longer cared to pursue the answers. I had picked it up and kept it with me. Which now had me questioning, what if she had fooled me yet again?
“Luc, what are you thinking?” I looked back up at Dom to find his arms folded, a questioning look on his face, as he tried to follow my racing thoughts.
“I am thinking that our little lost princess might not be quite as lost as she has allowed us all to think,” I told him before holding out my hand and requesting,
“Give me your phone.” My demand made him pull it from his suit jacket, unlock the security feature with his thumbprint and hand it to me. I scoffed at the picture of Keira and himself on the front making me roll my eyes without comment, making him mutter,
“Just you wait, asshole.”
I ignored him, mainly because he was right. Amelia and I didn’t have a single photograph together and the ones I had of her were all from afar and taken without her knowledge. Making me envious that he had that and what I wouldn’t have given to have been granted a picture of her smile to obsess over.
“Adam, no it’s me Luc, listen I need to know, exactly how many copies of the map did you find on my desk before we left for Afterlife?” I asked knowing that if anyone would remember it would be Adam, he was meticulous about the details.
“Six, why?” I looked up at Dom as I answered Adam’s question,
“Because I had seven copies made.” Dom raised a brow understanding where my thoughts were headed.
“So, you’re sure?” I had to ask.
“I think you get that I don’t make mistakes, Luc,” Adam responded making me reply with a grin,
“Oh, I know you don’t.”
“You think someone stole one when they were still in your office?” he asked slamming me back to a memory. It had been shortly after our argument, Amelia and me. It was also one she had sheepishly come to my office to apologize for, after once again taking my meaning and twisting it into something dark and untrue. A common trait with my girl, so it would seem.
But then after that, Amelia had made a note of seeing them on the desk. She asked me about them, making some funny comment about planning a lame treasure hunt or something to that effect. Then, after spending time going over the map together, there had been a phone call from Dom demanding once more to speak with his daughter.
Shortly after which, we had left my office only when doing so, we had barely rounded a corner when she told me she’d forgotten her sweater, running back for it.
The seven copies of the map had still been on my desk waiting for Adam to retrieve.
“Oh, we had a thief alright, and I think I have a pretty good idea who,” I told Adam who laughed once and said,
“And let me guess, a troublesome little princess now going by the name Lia Earhart.” I didn’t answer him, as I didn’t need to. No, instead he added,
“Keep us posted.” Then I ended the call.
“I must say, Dom, but that daughter of yours is becoming quite the thief these days.”
“You think she stole a copy of the map from you?” My look echoed the words that followed,
“No, I know she did, which means that she left a copy in her room on purpose to throw us off the fact that she was still pursuing it,” I said leaving now to go to my office to retrieve that same copy. Dom followed and quickly made the point,
“But even if she did, we all agreed the maps are useless, so how would she know where to go?” I stopped in my tracks, giving thought to his comment before I then turned back to face him.
“What if she found a way?” I asked.
“Luc, I am fully aware of my daughter’s intelligence, and speak very highly of it in fact, despite where it has gotten her right now…that being said, we have had all our people working on cracking that fucking map, all of the Kings have also had their own people on it and nothing!” I dragged a hand at the back of my neck thinking about all he’d said and knowing it to be true.
But then, this was Amelia we were talking about, which meant I knew anything was possible.
“I think you’re forgetting that she was the one who cracked the box and discovered how to open it.”
“Yes, but are you really telling me that my daughter has somehow now deciphered what seems to be the biggest fucking puzzle on Earth right now and maybe as we speak is at its destination?” I gave a him a knowing grin just thinking about my girl and said firmly,
“Yes, Dom, that is what I am fucking telling you.”
“But that is…” I quickly ended up cutting him off,
“Fuck! Gods be damned!” I suddenly shouted stopping once more and raking a hand through my hair near yanking it from my scalp for being so clueless!
“What! What is it?”
“I have been so fucking blind, that’s what!” I snapped.
“Luc, I have little patience for this.”
“That day in the library, she had the box with her…” I reminded him.
“Yes, we know, the witch lured her to my vault, we discovered that, what is your point?”
“Yes, we did, but after she discovered what she thought had happened between Keira and me she gave me the box back, made a point of it actually by forcing it into my chest,” I told him but he still didn’t see the connection I was trying to make to the big bastard.
“And?”
“And ask yourself, why would she do that? Why, if she already knew that she would take her secret copy of the map and go on the run to try and discover its secrets…especially knowing that she may need the box to do so. Why not take it with her?” I pointed out making him now see where my train of thoughts were headed.