-HIATUS- ᴏɴᴇ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇᴍ - ᴛʜᴇ ʜᴀᴡᴛʜᴏʀɴᴇ ʟᴇɢᴀᴄʏ (ꜱᴇQᴜᴇʟ ᴛᴏ ᴀɴᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ɢʀᴀᴍʙꜱ?) -HIATUS-

Chapter 6

While Avery was with Landon I was waiting in my bedroom. I lay flat on the bed. I heard a knock. A little irritating knock coming from the cupboard.

"Come in" Jameson opened the cupboard and crawled out. "What do you want?" I said still lying down and looking at the ceiling.

"Nothing in particular."

"Ok. We're not blood-related. You are my cousin through adoption. Who is Toby's family? Who am I?"

"We will find out who Toby is. You on the other hand are Amber Hawthorne. My cousin and Toby's daughter. Avery's half-sister." He stopped before continuing. "You are your mother's daughter."

I was eight and I was walking to the cafe mum worked in for lunch. Avery had gone to a playdate with her best friend Max. I walked in. Mum sat me down at a table close to the window and she went inside. I waited for a few minutes and when I did a man walked past me. He stops and looks at me. 'Hello, little girl' he says. 'Mummy says don't talk to strangers' I say. 'Your mother taught you well' he says looking at me with a sweet smile. 'Of course, she did she is mummy' I say. Mum approaches with the food and looks at the man. She smiles. I can't help but stare at the food she is holding. They talk. Boring grown-up talk. The man turns to me before leaving 'You are your mother's daughter' he says walking away. Mum sets the food down on the table and we dine.

"Amber? Earth to Amber?" Jameson says coming up to my bed. I sit up straight in a second surprised that I just remembered such a thing. I want to remember the man's face. Who was he?

My eyes lit up. Could it be Toby? I needed a picture. "Thank you!" I jump up and squeeze Jameson before I ran out of the room.

"You're welcome?" He says confused running after me. I run into the Oval room. 

"Sorry to interrupt but Avery I just need  a picture of Harry real quick!"

"There is one in my room? Why?" I ran off to her room and ran to her desk Jameson was behind me. I opened the file. There was a picture of Toby. I tried to re-remember. 

A man stops and looks at me. I look at him. Who is he? He is blonde. He has light blue eyes. He looks dirty. His clothes are worn.

"Amber? What do you remember?"

"I-I-I... I don't how to say it."

"Say it."

"I think I met Toby when I was young. I just needed to clear it up."

"When did you meet him?"

"Umm... I was eight and went to the cafe with mum. I sat down a stranger walked up to me and says Hello little girl I say Mummy says don't talk to strangers then he says your mummy taught you well I say Of course she did she is mummy then my mother arrives and starts talking to him and he leaves but before he does he says You are your mother's daughter. That is why I thanked you."

"Mummy?"

"Don't judge I was eight."

"Anyways, you are sixteen now turning seventeen soon. Eight years almost nine." Avery walked into the room.

"Who is almost nine?"

"It was almost nine years ago when I met Toby excluding the times at the park."

"How do you know?"

"I remembered something. Don't we have somewhere to go?"

"Yes, we do," Jameson said.

---

We made it to McNamara, Ortega, and Jones and we found Xander there at the front. 

"Did you tell him we were coming?" Avery asked.

"I didn't," Jameson said looking at me then Avery did as well.

"I didn't either. I haven't seen him since this morning."

"He is Hawthorne" We climbed out of the car. "And he'd better not have me bugged."

"Xan Deer!" I said, "What are you doing here? Sorry for not telling you we were coming here though."

"It's a wonderful day for looking at legal documents Amy Bear how could I not be here? Don't worry about it."

"Are you guys a couple or something?" Jameson asked staring us down.

"No," I said making a face at him "We are just best friends"

"Yes, we are," Xander said looking at me his eyes sparkling. I had never called him a best friend before. Once I said it Xander was happy. He wanted the same thing but he didn't want to say it. He didn't know how I felt about our friendship.

We all walked into the building and Alisa led us to a small office and gestured for a table with a document on it.

"I'll leave the door open," Alisa said.

"Would you close the door if I promised very sincerely not to ravish your client?" He said looking at me. My jaw dropped.

"Jameson" Avery hissed at him.

"I've literally known you since you were in diapers, and you have always been trouble" Alisa replied.

Jameson looked at Avery and then at me. "Guilty as charged" 

Xander grabbed my hand and pulled me to the table that the will lay on. It was similar to the original will but there were some different things. The money was going to be left to charity. Did the charities have meaning? Why those charities? Why did he choose those to give away his billions? Who knows about charities? Who works at the foundation? Grayson.

"We need Grayson," I said. Jameson looked at me as if I read his mind.

(894 words)