Chapter 7.7: Dear Diary, All Roads Lead to Rosetta

58

Content Warning: Some swearing.

Part 1: A Reunion

Dear Diary, after we fled the Seaforth Mansion, we headed straight to my parents’ house. Mom and Perry were beside themselves when they saw the bruises on my neck where I’d been choked.

“I knew no good would come from being involved with those people,” Mom kept saying. “How many times did I tell you Otto Seaforth is in charge of The Inheritance now and to stay away from him?”

Bram, who was sitting next to me, went pale, his fingers spreading out like a fan against his heart.

His reaction could only mean one thing. He knew about The Inheritance, and he agreed the secret society was dangerous.

Perry leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. “Yes, you told her many times, Bea. But that’s neither here nor there now. We need to focus on what to do because that crazed moron almost killed our daughter!”

“We need to report this to the police right away and have him locked up,” Mom said.

I shook my head. “While I would love to do that, what are we going to tell them exactly? I can’t prove it was Otto who tried to strangle me.”

“But you know it was him,” Mom said.

“I’m positive it was him… I smelled stale tobacco, and Wild Turkey on his breath. But he had a mask on, and it was very dark.”

“So, you can’t prove who it is,” Perry said, “but the police need to know this happened. You were assaulted in that house and could have been killed.”

So, it was decided. In the early hours of the morning, we arrived at the police station to make a statement. Afterward, they interviewed Jarah, and Bram. When asked why anyone would attack me, I hesitated. Bram was there, and I didn’t want him to hear. Seeing no other way out, though, I finally admitted Otto had assaulted me before.

After describing the details, Bram was quiet… distant. It was all I could do to look at him because now I realized, way too late, I should have told him what his father did to me.

I know what you’re thinking, Diary. You’re wondering why I didn’t tell the police about the flash drive. At the time, I thought the file was most likely a part of The Inheritance, and we’d all be in bigger danger if that came to light. Otto’s branch of the organization was only a small part of the world-wide whole. What if there was something on there that brought the entire association after us?

Even though the police didn’t know about The Inheritance, they knew about the company fronting it. Otto also ran the Neptune Foundation, and the police understood how powerful he was. It was their suggestion we lie low while they conducted their investigation.

By early afternoon, the lot of us arrived at my brother Andrew’s house. Well, a house he was renovating. He followed Perry into the real estate/land development career and was making his way flipping houses.

“This place looks ghastly,” Sloan said. “Zayday and I will wait in the car with Jarah.”

As soon as Bram and I entered, Andrew had me in a tight embrace. Over his shoulder, I saw Teagan was there, too.

“I’ve missed you so much,” I told him.

“Your neck, Sis. Are you sure you’re okay?”

I nodded even though my throat still hurt, and my voice was raspy.

“I’ll be better once I know we’re out of Otto Seaforth’s way.”

“Yeah, Mom told me what was going on. So, Teagan and I found the perfect place you can hide out for a while. We bought it some time ago and fixed some of it up. But, we decided to hang onto it.”

“You and Teagan?”

His face flushed red, and there was a liveliness in his eyes I hadn’t noticed before.

The couple smiled at each other, their fingers interlacing.

“I asked Teagan to marry me.”

I hugged them both, forgetting the matter at hand, if even for just a few minutes.

“That makes me so happy!”

Teagan had finally snagged her man.

Part 2: The Lonely Lighthouse

Our hiding place was an old lighthouse that had been out of commission for half a century. A new lighthouse was a few miles away and visible from the beaches surrounding the old one.

It was small for how many people we had, but it was the best option we had. There were no neighbors. In fact, there was nothing nearby. The nearest grocer was at least twenty miles away along winding dirt roads.

“Thank you for this, Andrew,” Bram said in the kitchen of our temporary home.

“It’s no trouble. I just hope nothing happens.”

“Me, too,” I said.

“How long do you think you’ll need the place? I mean, it’s no problem, I’m just wondering about bringing in groceries, and other things you might need.”

“I wish I knew,” I said. “The police didn’t say how long they expected their investigation to go. They only said they would let us know.”

“Well, I need to call my soon to be ex-husband,” Sloan said. “Maybe Zayday and I can come home for a little while until this is sorted.”

“If you don’t call Daddy, I will,” Zayday claimed.

I smiled at Miss Thang. In every situation, she was full of spunk.

“We should go,” Andrew said. “Teagan and I will be in close touch.”

“Thank you,” I said, meaning it with all my heart.

Part 3: Is This Forever?

“I can’t believe you kept that to yourself!” Bram yelled.

We were in the heat of an argument, all right. Our first real fight. As it continued, I dreaded it might be our last fight, too. His mood was not helped by being in unfamiliar surroundings either. Every time he moved, he bumped into something.

“I didn’t want to upset you. Why can’t you understand that? You were working so hard on your cookbook, and it’s not like you could do anything about it.”

“Couldn’t do-” he stammered, his face contorted, and red, “Don’t you realize this could have been the thing that finally got him out of our lives? He always does this, walks a thin line between what’s legal and what isn’t. The things he does are bad, but never to the point anyone can do anything about it.”

“But that’s just it. I might have something now that can put him away. We won’t know, though, until Jarah cracks the code.”

“OMG, Kara! What are you saying?”

I told him about the flash drive, how I’d gotten it, and how Otto probably attacked me because of it.

“He tried to kill me, so I’m sure I have something big on him.”

“You’re so stupid!” He yelled. “How could you drag my little brother who is mentally unstable into this? He’s just a kid!”

“Okay, you’re right, that wasn’t the best thing to do. But he was the only one I knew that might be able to deal with the encryption.”

“You know who else can deal with encrypted files? The fucking police!”

I bit my lower lip until I tasted blood. The severity of what I’d done, who I’d endangered hit me all at once and I felt nausea roil in my stomach. Still, I wasn’t ready to admit I was wrong.

“How could I give the flash drive to the police when it probably reveals details of The Inheritance? And don’t pretend you don’t know about it. I saw how you reacted when Mom mentioned it.”

His lips quivered, and he opened his mouth as if to say something, then changed his mind. I stood there without a sound, afraid he might not continue if I interrupted.

“My mother,” he began, “died working for The Inheritance. They were on a case of some kind. She and two other team members died. They never gave me details, but I’m sure it was Otto’s fault. Later, after she was buried, Otto mistook my grief for fear. He told me I didn’t have to work for The Inheritance because I was blind and useless to him. He said he’d have another son someday who could.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“When Jarah was born, he seemed like just the son Otto wanted. But he’s cruel.”

“What did he do?” I asked, my voice a whisper.

Bram sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, but the fury was not expelled yet. “He was hard on Jarah, didn’t want him to be what he called coddled. Otto practically drove his wife, Jarah’s mom, off. There was no affection except for the limited time I spent with him. When Jarah didn’t measure up to Otto’s standards, he was punished severely. After a time, he came to believe Jarah would never meet his standards. So, he shipped him off to live with his mother. She’s getting married, and now, he’s back, worse than ever.”

“That’s awful.”

“Yeah, it’s terrible. That’s why I’m having a hard time believing you would take that broken kid and make him a part of your little mystery!”

“I’m… I’m sorry,” I said. “I really messed this up. I could feel how evil the contents of the box were, yet I pursued it anyway. And, I’m sorry about Jarah. You’re right that I should not have asked for his help with the flash drive.”

“There’s a lot you shouldn’t have done.”

“I see that now. I can’t tell you how sorry I am. Please, Bram, don’t be angry.”

He drew in a few slow, steady breaths before he answered me. When he spoke, he was no longer yelling. Instead, he said in a controlled tone, “I’m beyond angry, Kara, and to be honest, I don’t know if we can even fix this. You were careless, acting without thinking.”

“Y-yes,” I said, “I was. You’re right. Please don’t say we can’t fix this, though. What does that even mean?”

I held my breath as I waited for him to answer.

He shook his head, his mouth a thin line. “I don’t know, but for now, we’re over.”

Turning to leave, he ran right into the coffee table with his shin. I wanted to help him, but he waved me away and continued out.

Sinking onto the couch, tears ran down my face, and I sobbed.

There was too much for my brain to grasp… Bram breaking up with me, putting my entire family and Bram’s entire family in danger, and Otto trying to kill me.

In that moment, I wished he had.

Part 4: Jarah Breaks the Code!

I don’t know how long I sat there like that, but it was long enough that my tears had dried on my face. My heart ached and felt empty at the same time.

Jarah jumped over the back of the couch, plopping down next to me, and dropping a file folder on the coffee table.

“I cracked it!”

New tears formed in my eyes as I thought about Bram and everything he said.

“I owe you an apology, Jarah. I never should have involved you in this. It’s dangerous. I had no right to ask you to deal with the encryption.”

“You’ve been crying,” he said, looking at me closer. “What happened? Is it because of Otto trying to kill you?”

“It’s about a lot of things. I’ve made so many mistakes.”

“You did some good things,” he ventured. “You reunited your mom and her brother. They never met before you made it happen. And, I helped you then.”

“Yes, you did. There was no danger in that as far as I can tell. Everyone who was ever involved in covering that up is dead now. It’s this thing with the flash drive and your father. I never should have let you help me because now I don’t know what’ll happen.”

Despite what I said, there was a twinkle in his eye. “I’ve had so much fun working on it, though. And, did you hear me? I cracked the code!”

Moving in slow motion, I glanced at the open file on the coffee table. “Is this from the flash drive?”

“Yeah. I didn’t print everything because it’s too big-there were lots of files, but these are some things I thought might interest you.”

I was exhausted, but wanted to know what it contained, so I looked through some of it.

“This page… it looks like money transfers from the Neptune Foundation.”

Jarah nodded, a wide grin on his face. “Yes! Look here,” and he pointed to something else, “you see? The money was transferred to a guy called The Oddfather.”

The Oddfather? What kind of name is that?”

“It’s either a handle or just what Otto calls him. But that’s not the point. Look.”

My eyes drifted to where Jarah was pointing. “Wait a minute. These are reports on Rosetta’s whereabouts. He was having this Oddfather guy follow her everywhere!”

Jarah nodded, his eyes gleaming, his cheeks ruddy. “Yes! He was keeping close tabs on her. And, he was using the Neptune Foundation’s funds to do it! I bet he knew all about Aleks Kotek being your mom’s long, lost half-brother.”

“Which means he must’ve known she was keeping it a secret. Do you think he was blackmailing her?”

“Maybe he tried, and that’s why there’re files on Rosetta’s father Xalen Sprague in there, too.”

“Remember when we found the old chess table in that house?” I asked him. “You found that piece of paper with Xalen’s name on it. Grayson Preminger was probably trying to find the connection there.”

“Yes,” Jarah said. “I think if Otto tried to blackmail her, she may have gone to her father. He was the head of The Inheritance and the Neptune Foundation, and Otto worked for him as a member of the team. Xalen would have been super old, then, though.”

“So, you know about The Inheritance, too?” He nodded and shrugged as if it was no big deal. All at once, I thought of something else. “Oh, wow.”

“What?” he asked.

“Rosetta was desperate to keep that secret in order to protect her twin brother. Otto was blackmailing her, or trying to. She was also next in line after her father Xalen to take the reins of The Inheritance. In one of the letters I found in the box, Rosetta’s handwriting was suddenly cut off.” I shuddered as my mind went to the inevitable conclusion.

“There may be a money transfer for a hit,” Jarah said, his mind going to the same place. “I looked up the date of her assassination out of curiosity, and it wasn’t long after that Otto was named head of the Neptune Foundation.”

I sat silent, thinking about the web Otto and Rosetta weaved around one another. It was staggering.

“What do we do now?” Jarah asked.

“We turn all of this over to the police and hope they can sort it out and put Otto away for good.”

Notes:

I would like to thank Bee (Stories by BeePoses by Bee), for the emotions poses I used in this chapter. You can find them HERE.

In other news, I’m hoping you’re all getting notifications now. 😀 Thank you to everyone who told me there was a problem. I really appreciate it. Unfortunately it was an issue with the Comment Luv plugin. I really loved that plugin, too, because I often followed the links you left to do some reading. Maybe someday, they will update it and it will work better. 🙂 Thanks so much for your patience, and please let me know if you’re still having trouble.

Thank you for your support,


Discover more from Story Spinner

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

58 COMMENTS

  1. Love that Andrew and Teagan got together. 🙂

    Kind of shocked that Bram is that mad that Kara didn’t tell him about her assault. It’s a very personal and scary thing that happened to her, and she shouldn’t be yelled at for it. And Bram himself was still keeping secrets.

    I see where he’s coming from when talking about his brother, but calling him broken is going way too far. No one should be thought of as broken.

    • Thank you so much, Heather 🙂 I couldn’t wait to show how Teagan and Andrew turned out. lol

      Yeah, I think Bram was hypocritical in this situation. And, I don’t think he understands how she might feel after what happened to her.

      I like what you said there about not calling someone broken. I agree.

  2. Um excuse you!! HOw dare you rip out my still beating heart like this?!
    I have to say though, the argument was understandable. I can totally see where Bram is coming from, though of course from our perspective we can see how well Jarah is doing and how happy he was to help – that probably helped him a lot in his healing. But yes… it was dangerous. And Kara may not have made the best choices. I wonder how things will develop for them now…

    • Oooooh, I’m sorry. ❤❤ I’m glad you thought it was understandable. Bram may have been acting hastily, but that is his brother. From this point on, things might be a little messy.

  3. Oh, wow! The story gets more and more interesting as it develops – and I bet there are a lot of things concerning Rosetta and Otto’s involvement with each other that haven’t been addressed yet…
    Nooooo why did Bram have to break up with Kara?? She was careless, sure, but she didn’t deserve that 😭 I really hope they can fix their relationship before it’s too late..!
    This was awesome!! *hurries to next chapter*

    • Thank you ❤ You are right about that! lol

      I think the situation with Bram and Kara is tricky. And, you never know, maybe he’s more like his father than he’d like to think.

    • Thank you, Lisa. ❤ Xalen was one of my favs, too. I think Xalen would be so devastated to see how The Inheritance has been corrupted.

      I thought those builds were great, too! 🙂

    • Thank you so much, Violincat. Bram’s really protective, and it probably wasn’t the best idea for Kara to involve his brother. We’ll have to see where they go from here.

  4. Aww Teagan’s getting married!!
    That’s a gorgeous hiding place by the lighthouse, what a serene place. I’d love somewhere like that to go, to get away from the world for a bit.
    I feel so bad for Kara getting yelled at by Bram though. I know he’s worried for his little brother and for Kara, but he’s taking it out on her. He must feel so helpless being kept out of the loop and knowing how dangerous Otto and The Inheritance can be. But breaking up with her? Nooooo, I hope that’s just a knee-jerk reaction that he doesn’t mean! Hopefully, now they have the files and some evidence, the police can do something about it. Fingers crossed, though I have a feeling it won’t go smoothly.. Waaaah you’re keeping us in too much suspense! 😂 Love it!
    Caz xx

    • Thank you, Caz. Yes! Andrew finally noticed Teagan, and it’s official. 😀

      I would totally love living at that lighthouse. Or vacationing there.

      I feel bad for Kara, too. She’s been through a lot recently, and Bram overreacted. He’s got some emotional wounds that he needs to deal with. Hopefully, you’re right, that it was a knee-jerk reaction, and they can patch this up somehow.

      I think lives are going to change in the next chapter. lol

      xo

  5. This man needs to be taken down ASAP! It’s disgusting that he’s been mistreating people for this long without any consequences. Hopefully the police and Jarah+Kara’s info will help. I wish Bram hadn’t reacted so strongly to Kara’s actions. Yes, she was wrong to put others in danger, but Jarah was not coerced into helping in any way. He chose to involve himself. And Bram can’t possibly blame her for not telling him about the sexual assault….. Especially right away, those kind of things are difficult to face and talk about. I feel like Bram could’ve been much more understanding.

    • Thank you, Raymond. You are so right! ASAP isn’t soon enough! I know what you mean about mistreating people without consequence. I think his consequences are about to hit him. lol I think Bram overreacted as well. He should have been more sensitive to what she’s been through. He’s got some emotional damage we’ll be dealing with soon.

  6. Heart was still pounding during this read thru, the same as the first time I read this chapter. So well done! I know what is going to happen next but still, Bram being that angry still worries me some. CAN NOT believe Otto is so confident in his power, that he would try to kill Kara himself! There are no words to describe that guy! It means he is scared and running stupid. Take him down!!

    • Thank you, Bee. I can see why Bram being that worried is concerning you. He’s got a lot of unresolved anger. Otto is such a narcissist. They’re always unbelievably confident in their power. But you’re right, he is scared and running stupid.

  7. Great chapter! But dang. Heartbreaking. I can understand Bram I think. He finally opened up then felt betrayed, lied to and used. He’s so protective of Jarah and felt like he was also put in danger. Probably embarrassed it was his father. His first instinct was to put back up his walls. Did he overreact? Absolutely. So I think he’ll come around. But still. Poor Kara.😭😭😭. But at least progress.

    • Thank you, Audrey. I think you may be on to something with your comment. Maybe it’s not all as bad or dismal as it seems right now. Well, it is, but perhaps it can still end well. Next week will be a defining chapter.

  8. The Lonely Lighthouse looks really cool it a really nice picture and i love the title of this chapter All Roads Lead to Rosetta

    it makes think of classic bob hope films 🙂

    I don’t know how you keep this up every week,but it’s another very well written chapter once again Kymber 🙂

    • Thank you, Darren. I’m so glad you liked the title of the chapter, and the lighthouse pic as well. I had to place that lot several times before it looked right. Then, I had to angle the camera because some of the lot edges wouldn’t smooth out as much as I wanted them, too. You know how it is. lol

      I love classic films, and I love Bob Hope being in them. 😀

      Thank you again. I think if I didn’t have myself on a strict schedule, I would procrastinate and never publish anything. I work best under deadlines.

      • the Lighthouse looks perfect, I bet it would look good in the dark to with lots of fog as well. but I do really like it as it is 🙂 its shame it not a real place. it looks so serene.

        you and I are very different, well with story time keeping any way, I never been able to keep to a schedule, it put me under to much pressure :/

        but I wish I was more like you in that way…

        there is always someone on each site that kind of takes on the roll as mother hen and look after everyone on their site they have chosen and you are the best one I’ve had the pleasure of calling a friend 🙂

        I just wanted to thank you for all your kindness that you always show us and to tell you it doesn’t go unnoticed, Kymber 🙂

        all the encouragement you give is really appreciated, and am sure every feel the same way 🙂

        thank you so much Kymber, this site wouldn’t be the same without you 🙂

        • Oh, yes, I agree about the lighthouse and the fog in the dark. You are amazingly creative. I agree it’s a shame it’s not a real place. I would live there.

          I can understand why a schedule puts too much pressure on you. You’re definitely not alone in that as I think a lot of people feel that way. Perhaps the way I am with deadlines is why I was so suited to being a nurse. It’s very high pressure, but I loved it.

          You are so sweet with your kind words. 🙂 Thank you for telling me this. It means a lot.

  9. It’s sad to me that Xalen’s organization would become so twisted and evil, as if the evil of the cases they studied crept in and corrupted it. Could this be the end of The Inheritance?

    I feel Kara did the right thing. She wasn’t careless. She was following her inner guidance.

    • Thank you, CT. I know what you mean about The Inheritance. Xalen and his team, and his ancestors before him, wanted the society to help people. Otto has definitely corrupted it. You’re right to question whether this will be the end of The Inheritance.

      You’re right that Kara was following her inner guidance. I like what you said about that.

  10. Okay, so I get that Bram wants to protect his little brother, but he totally overreacted. He blames Kara for her “mistake,” but he’s not a candidate for sainthood either. He deliberately kept things from Kara, who was totally understanding about it – too much so, IMO. But then he breaks it off with her because she offended his tender sensitivities. You can’t have it both ways, Bram. Grow up and put on your big boy pants. Jarah, for a “broken little kid” is acting far more mature than Bram is right now.

    Hahaha. As you can see, one of my biggest pet peeves is coddling someone with a disability and treating them like they’re helpless. It’s happened to me many times over, and it grates on my every nerve.

    Anyway, let’s hope they got enough dirt to put Otto away for good. I have no doubt now that he had Rosetta killed. As I said before, this guy needs to totally be boiled in oil. LMAO!

    • Thank you, Sharon. I think you and pretty everyone else thinks Bram overreacted. And, I can see why you would think that. He’s a bit hypocritical, demanding she tell him everything, but he gets to keep secrets like what happened to his mother. We’ll see if Bram takes your advice about the big boy pants. haha

      I think you’re right about Jarah, too. 😀

      I can see why that would grate on your nerves.

      I think the next chapter will change all their lives. Hopefully, for the better. But, we will see.

      Boiled in oil. LOLOL I don’t think I have a pose set for that.

  11. Oh no. 🙁 I’m so sad that Bram broke it off with Kara. I understand why he’s mad about involving Jarah, but it’s also the only thing that got the kid to open up so far. Also, breaking up with Kara right after a sexual assault AND an almost-murder… that’s harsh. She should have told him about the assault, yes, but there are many, many reasons why victims don’t come forward about that kind of thing. So yeah – it’s understandable that he’s reacting this way, but I think it’s a little bit of an over-reaction.
    Otto really, really is vile. Seems like he might be the one who had Rosetta killed. Hopefully, they manage to take him down soon.
    Great chapter, Kym! 😀

    • Thank you, Louise. I’m sad about Bram breaking it off, too. I agree it was a harsh thing to do. Kara’s been through a lot recently. Not only that, it was his own father that did it to her. I like what you said about how there are many reasons a victim might not come forward after an assault. That’s so true.

      I agree with you about Otto. You are probably right about that. I think the next chapter will be life-changing for them all.

  12. Sloan? What’s she doing there? I didn’t realize she ran away with them.

    Awww, I knew Andy and Teagan would end up together. She looks pregnant? It’s also cool one of the boys carried on the “family trade.”

    The Oddfather LOL. Geez, this whole thing is a mess, but it makes so much sense.

    • Thank you, Jess. Sloan and Zayday left with them, but that happened “off screen,” if you will. lol

      I haven’t checked Teagan to see if she is pregnant, but that would not surprise me. lol I’ll let you know after I go in game. About Andy, he followed in his father’s footsteps while Joey went into sports.

      The Oddfather. hahaha. I thought that might make you laugh. It’s a mess all right, but I am glad it makes sense.

  13. I’m so sad for Kara and Bram. It is upsetting that they broke up just after he had finally told her about his mother. Also, I’m scared for what Otto might do, and do hope that they manage to get him put in prison as he deserves.

    • Thank you, Jowita 🙂 I can see why you’re upset. Kara and Bram have something special. Hopefully, things will still work out somehow. You’re right to be scared of what Otto might do, too. The next chapter will be critical in all of this.

  14. Oh wow, things are heating up! i agree with Bram, Cara shouldn’t have involved his little brother – though he’s proving to be smarter than people give him credit, it seems. Still, I think Bram overreacted there.

    • Thank you, Jina 🙂 Yeah, Bram has a point, but like you said, he’s gone overboard. Jarah is definitely proving to be a lot more than he’s given credit for.

Don't be shy! Give commenting a try! 🩷🌷Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Exit mobile version