Jimmie and I talked for the next couple of hours. Ryan called me on the landline, after trying my cell phone several times, which reminded me I desperately needed to get a new cell phone since mine was probably shattered beyond use in my office...old office. I also needed to ask Chase if he would pick up the box of my personal belongings that I had left behind in my hasty exit. Ryan asked if Jimmie was still there and when I told him yes, he said he was going to hit the simulator for additional practice since Richmond was not one of his best tracks, which meant that he would be a while longer. That was fine with me. There was still so much more I wanted to talk to Jimmie about. So many questions I had now that my eyes were fully opened about my grandfather.

After Jimmie asked about the journal, I pulled it from my bag and showed it to him. He got a flash of recognition when he saw it.

"Erika always carried this around with her. I thought it was some kind of planner or something. I had no idea she kept a journal." He said.

"I'm lucky I got this back." I shook my head. "I thought for sure my grandfather would have destroyed it, knowing what was in it."

Although Jimmie had seen some of the entries thanks to the article that had been released, there were other entries that had not been published. I guess whoever leaked it had only submitted the ones that revealed Jimmie as my father. A lot of the entries were about him, like how she had discovered him on a girls trip to California and brought him into the race team.

As we were flipping through the pages, I found something I had not noticed before...and apparently the journal thief had not caught either...there were a couple of pages that were stuck together. After carefully prying them apart, a newspaper clipping fell out. It was an obituary.

"Jimmie, do you know who this Natalie Payton is? Why does she look like my mother?" I asked, the newspaper clipping was shaking in my hand.

Jimmie took the clipping from me and looked at the journal pages, where all that was written was:

I finally found her and it's too late. She's gone.

The date of death was approximately twenty two years ago. Who was this person?

"She does look a lot like your mother. Enough so that they could be sisters." He suddenly looked as if he had gotten an aha moment as his eyes widened with some unspoken realization. "There were rumors going around that your grandfather had another daughter and a mistress, but I always thought it was just a rumor." Jimmie said, his voice dropping lower.

"Maybe it wasn't a rumor after all. I've been turning a blind eye to several rumors over the years thanks to my blind loyalty and absolute trust in my grandfather but now I'm thinking I really should have paid more attention to them." Now my head was spinning in a thousand different directions. I never have thought of myself as naive...far from it, but now I'm not so sure. Did my grandfather have another family that he had kept hidden all those years?

"I guess I can understand that, you dismissing all of the talk. You had no reason to believe any of it. The secrets surrounding everything are pretty intimidating and I'm sure you have heard all of the supposed rumors and conspiracy theories that may not be rumors or theories. I've tried to ignore all of them as well, because like you, I was loyal to your grandfather. I didn't think anything was amiss and I know how people like to talk and how easily rumors get spread, but I would not allow myself to believe he was anything but honorable." Jimmie was now shaking his head, which made me feel a little better about my own ignorance.

"You're talking about my grandfather's leukemia right? Do you know if it's true that he faked it, or did he really have it?" I asked the first supposed rumor that popped into my head.

"I honestly don't know. All of that happened right after I joined the team. Your mother was in charge because your grandfather was placed on house arrest and wasn't allowed to have any dealings with the company. I had only met him briefly just before his sentencing and shortly after that, I learned of the leukemia. Later on, I did hear people were suspicious of it, but I never thought to question any of it." Jimmie replied.

"What are some of the other secrets and conspiracies you were alluding to?" I asked, my curiosity getting the best of me.

"Nothing that has been confirmed, some of it's crazy, some kind of makes sense. I heard a rumor a few years ago that William was adopted, I later learned it was true, although it's never been discussed openly. I only found out when William and I swapped crew chiefs and he let something slip to Chad." Jimmie said cautiously, choosing his words carefully.

"Wait...what? William is adopted? I never knew that." I was in awe.

"Like I said, It's not public knowledge, but there are also some crazy rumblings that William is Jeff's son. Some even claim that he is Rick's grandson." Jimmie shook his head yet again, as if to dismiss the whole idea.

I literally snorted over the last one. "I wouldn't be surprised if he's Jeff's son. They are both little bitches. But the grandson is a little far-fetched. He and I are only a few months apart so basic math will tell you that's impossible." But then I had another thought. "Unless the rumor of my grandfather having another daughter is true, and William is her son." I said the last part almost to myself, but apparently loud enough for Jimmie to hear. That was almost too crazy to even wrap my head around, and I certainly didn't even want to consider that William and I could actually be related. Just....no.

"I guess it could be possible but we are pretty much grasping at straws here. We don't have any proof and I probably shouldn't even be filling your head with all of this probable nonsense. It's all over the internet as far as conspiracy theories go, but contrary to popular belief, not everything you read on the internet is true. I'm afraid the only person who can really confirm any of this is your grandfather." Jimmie said, and I could tell he was becoming uncomfortable with the topic. I probably needed to do my own research, and if necessary, hire a private investigator to do some digging.

"You're probably right." I sighed, but what if?

"Do you have any idea who could have leaked the journal?" Jimmie asked me.

I shook my head. "I have my theories. I know it's someone at Hendrick Motorsports. Someone who had access to my grandfather's office, which is where the journal was left. I've narrowed it down to Kyle, William or Jeff. I'm leaning more towards Jeff. He has the most to gain by getting me out of the company. Although if any of what we have discussed today is true, that would give William more incentive. Maybe they were working together."

"I think anything is possible at this point. Just be careful Mia. These secrets are secrets for a reason. I understand how angry you are at your grandfather, but uncovering the truth may cause more harm than good, and the last thing I want is for you to get hurt more than you already have been." Jimmie warned me, although there was nothing ominous about his warning, I understood what he was implying. He was trying to protect me.

"I will Jimmie. I promise." I replied. "But there's something else I need to think about. All of this has just been so much to sort through and I've been so absorbed in avoiding what comes next, but I know that I can't avoid the media forever. I need to get my life back. I need my peace and security back. We both need to get that back. What are we supposed to do now?"

Jimmie looked thoughtful for a moment. "We can schedule a press conference whenever you are ready and address the media. We can do it together. If you want to do it this weekend, I'll be in Richmond." He suggested.

"Do you really think we need to address it? Maybe they will find something more interesting to talk about." I groaned.

"Maybe so, but it's not going to go away. If you want to get your life back, sadly the only way that's going to happen is for you to give them what they want. It doesn't have to be now. You can wait until you're ready, but trust me Mia, they are not going to forget no matter what other news comes their way." He said gently.

"Okay. You're right. There's no putting it off. Let's do it tomorrow afternoon. We are heading there in the morning. Get it out of the way early if we can get it set up." I replied.

"Let me make a few phone calls and I will let you know. I'm proud of you honey. This has been a challenge but you're not backing down." Jimmie said with a big smile.

"Yeah well, you didn't see me yesterday. I was a basket case. All I wanted to do was hide." I groaned.

"And no one would blame you if you still wanted to hide." Jimmie reassured me.

For some reason, his praise made me feel a little embarrassed. This affected him as much as me. I needed to stop being such a drama queen.

"So about our little project. What do you think of Legacy Motorsports? I think it has a nice ring to it." I offered, partly as a way to change the subject.

"I couldn't think of a better name." He replied.

Legacy Motorsports. I could wait to get started on this. First things first, I have to reclaim my life.