My hands shake as I walk past my own apartment door and take the stairs to Michael's. I am so nervous, and I can't exactly pinpoint why. Mostly because of Ashton. I seem to be the only one who trusts him at all, but that trust might be misplaced. I don't know him. Still, I believe that the sincerity in his eyes can't be fabricated.
I take a deep breath before knocking on the door. It opens less than a second later; they've been waiting on me. Michael's arm snakes around my waist immediately, but I separate myself from him. This group of people has a lot of problems, the least being this odd love triangle thing we've got going on, but I've made my choice.
Although I find him unpleasant, I sit next to Calum on the couch. I don't want to be left with the choice between Michael and Luke. Again.
Ashton sits across from us, his disposition incredibly calm and collected. Is that a good sign, or a bad one? No one speaks, and the tension of the silence seems to be pressing on my eardrums. So I am the one to break it.
"Please talk," I say desperately to Ashton.
"What do you want me to say?" He asks coolly.
"Tell us what you know," Calum says coldly.
"You first," Ashton challenges.
"Like hell I'm going-"
"Tell him," Michael interrupts.
"What?" Calum seems to be utterly shocked by Michael's willingness to divulge secrets.
"Tell him," Michael shrugs. "I'm tired of waiting, we're getting nowhere. If we want answers we've never gotten, we have to take risks we've never taken. We have to tell him."
Calum regards Michael appraisingly, clearly disagreeing. I begin to wonder if maybe he is obsessively engaged in this mystery. It has nothing to do with him, so why is he so concerned? He seems to have taken it as his responsibility to find answers.
After several moments of silence, just as I am about to give up and tell Ashton myself, Calum launches into the story. I listen again to the story that Michael told me out at the air field. The envelopes with the money, the secrets, the men who followed him. Ashton's face does not change the entire time; he listens intently, nodding now and then.
Calum finishes and silence falls, and I become suddenly afraid of what Ashton might say. I've been so focused on getting answers that I haven't thought about what those answers might mean.
"Wow," Ashton murmurs, running his hands over his hair.
"Do you know anything about any of that?" Luke asks.
Ashton shakes his head. "Are you saying that my parents... that my parents are... what are you saying?" He finishes lamely.
"We don't know anything," Luke says kindly, reassuring. "But Calum did what he could to track the money, and it led us to that house. Your parents' house, I guess."
"So what does that mean?" Ashton asks.
"Not a fucking clue," Michael chimes in. Silence falls again and we all shift awkwardly, deep in thought.
"So what's your side?" Calum suddenly asks Ashton.
"What?" Ashton asks.
"Come on. It's not just a coincidence that your parents are sending Michael money and you just happen to take up work for his company."
"My dad knows his dad," Ashton explains, confused. "It might not be a coincidence, but if it's a conspiracy, I'm not in on it."
"How did you know Kate?" Michael cuts in sharply. Four pairs of eyes flick to me and I flush.
