Her Lost Father

Chapter 6: A Truth Revealed and a Triangle Resolved

"Killian Jones is my step brother. His father married my mother back in the Enchanted Forest. His dad and my mom had a kid together, they named him Liam? Did that book tell you about him?"

"Yes, Killian's half brother. But it's never mentioned a 'Lucas'. Why?" Henry asked.

"I ran away when I was just 5 years old. When Hook killed his father- my step father- after my mother had already died, I came back for my half brother Liam. I was only 8 years old, and he was 6. Someone has to keep him safe. We lived safely until I was 14. We realized that we were beginning to grow up, but we wanted to keep our youth. So we stole ambrosia from the god Dionysus, and how ambrosia works is that if a mortal drinks it, they stay young until they let go of their heaviest burden. My brother and I were safe, until we were separated from each other when bandits burnt our village to the ground. I haven't seen him since. I traded all of our personal belongings that I could salvage, except the clothes on my back, for a magic bean, and I went to the world without magic. I was adopted by a lovely couple in Texas, and they've been my parents ever since. They know my story, and now you do, but no one else does. No one knows of my older step brother Killian and my younger half brother Liam."

Henry stood in stunned silence for a moment.

"It sounds crazy, I know." Lucas said, hand drifting up to the back of his own neck in embarrassment.

"Oh please. That's not at all weird compared to the kind of stuff I deal with on a daily basis. My family tree is already so messed up, why not add in another weird plot twist that no one saw coming?" Henry said, sarcasm dripping from his voice. Then the boy spoke again,"Hey, can we be normal teenage boys for a second?" Lucas nodded, eyebrow raised. "Riley's pretty cute. Is she single?" When he saw Lucas's appalled face, he quickly asked, "Oh I'm sorry. Are you two dating?" Lucas's eyes drifted to the ground. "No... Yes? I guess? I don't think so."

Henry chuckled, "A little confused, are we?" He met Lucas's eyes, "No but seriously. You wouldn't mind if I... Maybe asked her out?"

For a moment, Lucas felt something wrench at his heart at the thought of Riley being with someone else. She was supposed to be his. They had the perfect love story, with nothing but smooth sailing. But his mind wavered over Maya. The blonde made his breath quicken. She made him strive to not only be himself, but to be something better. She was not as easily impressed as Riley. Maya also needed as many good people in her life as possible. As many people as it took to keep a beautiful, headstrong girl from going completely wild. He loved the sweet, caring, and compassionate Riley, but they were too alike. There was no spark. He couldn't have both girls, and he knew that. So right there, in that moment, he made his choice. Lucas smiled, and then gave Henry his answer: "Go ahead. You'd be good for Riley. But speaking of my friends, please don't tell them about the whole step brother thing. I don't want them to know just yet."

"The truth always has a way of coming out, my friend." Henry said with a wink.