Reminisce With Me

Chapter 30: Lust for Power

Helen pushed the files to one side before hopping onto Carrington's desk. Her and Aiden exchanged glances and she nodded as though she heard his thoughts. "This may be a surprise to you, but Aiden and Micah used to be best friends. Closer than him and Collin," she began and my jaw dropped.

"Wait, Micah and Aiden? But, he dated Faye and treated Aiden like dirt," I rushed out in disbelief.

Aiden laughed under his breath. "I guess you met Faye back in Black Onyx," he mumbled and my cheeks flushed, remembering how heated the conversation went at the Gala back in the past.

"Touchy subject, sorry," I said, which only made him grin.

"Micah and I were drunk one night after killing our very first target," Aiden now continued and I couldn't help but flinch at the thought. "We were standing outside a local bar in Manhattan and joked about how easy it was to kill someone. Being the dumb fourteen-year-old I was, I dared Micah to pull the trigger at the next car that drove by. I didn't think he would actually do it, but he ended up shooting a teenage girl. Her boyfriend had taken a picture of Micah's back before we hopped onto the bus. It was all over the news, but without facial recognition, the boyfriend couldn't use it to track us."

My mind played the images as Aiden told the story. He took a deep breath, the memory taking him back to that night. "Why would you joke about that?" I whispered.

Aiden shrugged. "I don't know. I was young and stupid."

"Aiden, teenagers who are young and stupid don't kill others. They get high, they make out with random people at the club, they shop lift."

Aiden suddenly stood up. "Forget it Aubrey."

Helen and I watched Aiden as he stormed out of the room.

"I didn't mean to upset him," I told Helen and she joined me on the ground. "I just can't believe it."

"He didn't kill his mother," Helen said, playing with her sleeve. "Micah and Aiden promised each other they wouldn't tell anyone what happened. But, word got out at Black Onyx and when Ryder confronted Micah, he put all the blame on Aiden. Black Onyx doesn't tolerate recklessness and Aiden should have been punished, but Ryder didn't address the issue. He brushed it under the rug."

I never took Ryder to be kind. He was the head of the firm for a reason and I was sure his warmth and affection did not help him rise to the top.

"How generous of Ryder," I said, hearing the doubt in my voice.

"One would think," Helen said before taking a deep breath. "It wasn't Ryder's kindness that spared Aiden's life. It was his love for Aiden's mom. They were having an affair for years."

My jaw dropped, but Helen did not notice. I needed to see Aiden and apologize at once for throwing judgement his way. "Helen, I'll be back," I rushed before dashing out of the room. I stepped outside through a side door and found Aiden leaning against the brick wall, playing with an unlit cigarette between his fingers. He noticed me by the door and put the cigarette in his jacket pocket.

"I'm sorry," I said, walking up to him. "You don't have to accept it or even care, but I need you to know how sorry I am."

Aiden nodded. "It's fine."

"Ryder loved her," I said and his eyes dropped to the ground. "And he killed her. He's so cruel."

"Ryder didn't kill my mom," Aiden suddenly said. "He let me live because he loved her. But, when the partners realized that my mom was his weakness, they killed her without telling him. When he found out about what they did, he was furious. The partners told him that she was preventing him from becoming head of the firm. She was blinding him from the goal. Ryder was once kind, but after my mom's death, he became greedy and ruthless. His humanity no longer existed. He fell in love with the firm and that's been his only love since."