"Can you see the future young one?" the old man asks me.
I shake my head, "No, sir."
He throws his hands in the air, "By the lords grace, help me! She isn't the one!'' he says, going around me in a circle.
"What do you mean I'm not the one? What are you talking about?"
"Winry Pandora Shade. Do you know who I am?" the old man asks.
I shake my head again, "No,sir."
"I am your great great great great Grandfather! Garrett said you'd be here one day..."
My head snaps up, "You knew my father?"
"Yes, of course I do! I trained him, didn't I?" the old man tells me.
"Sir, you," I struggle to find the right words, "You-um- what do you mean, trained him?"
His eyes get wide, "He's a Traveler dear! Didn't you know?"
I shake my head once again, "No, sir."
The old man laughs, "Well- I guess Garrett hasn't told you anything at all then."
"I haven't seen my father since I was thirteen. And now my mother's getting married, I need to stop her, bring her a reason. I need to find him." I tell him, looking out of the old window, watching the rain fall.
Pitter...patter...
Pitter...patter...
"Winry. You're father- I'm afraid, has made a great mistake." he says.
"And what would that be, sir?"
The old man chuckles, "He's hidden you from your rightful path for far to long. If you wish to save him from his doom with the Empire, I suggest you pick a path."
"What path?!" I yell.
"The one that calls to you every night, dear."
My eyes widen, "The door."
"Good, now tell Evangeline I wish to see her soon." he says.
"Who's Evangeline?" I ask.
He takes a step back, "Your mother dear, who else?"
"My mother's name is Kimberly Ambrose, sir." I say.
The old man sucks in a deep breath, "Oh dear lord."
That response did it. My whole life has been a lie. What about my friends? What about Kimberly Ambrose...my pretend mother, the one I've called Mommy since I can remember?
Is everything just coming back to hit me?
I might as well just be falling in reverse.
WATTPAD ORIGINAL EDITION
Seven letters, seven confessions, seven clues. Elliot Parker has what he needs to find out who killed his best friend... But is he hunting down the killer? Or is the killer hunting him?
*****
When Colton Crest returns, unharmed, to his small town after mysteriously disappearing for two months, his best friend Elliot Parker breathes a sigh of relief. But days later, on the night before graduation, Elliot finds Colton in the lake. Dead. And on the day of his funeral, Elliot finds a letter in his jacket pocket with four words that send him spiralling: I killed Colton Crest. There are six more letters to find, six more confessions about Colton, six more clues to uncover why he was murdered. Elliot has no choice but to play this sick scavenger hunt, and with each new revelation, he begins to question whether he really knew Colton - or anyone else in that little town of dark secrets.
[[word count: 100,000-150,000 words]]