Chapter 5

Nora sat quietly in the armchair replaying all the moments she had just shared with Hayden over and over in her mind. Her whole face was red hot and the tingles up and down her spine were nonstop. She tried her best to hide her face with her hair and be discreet, but no matter what she did, Hayden was constantly on her mind.

The feel of his hands on her, his lips kissing her, his hard body rocking against her....it all made Nora's stomach tighten and toes curl up.

"Nora," Birdie said from where she sat on the sofa beside her cousin, Issac. "Relax. Hayden will be fine. This is routine."

"I'm okay," Nora lowered her hand from her neck and cleared her throat.

"Save the lies for someone else," Birdie laughed. "Look at your face. I should take a video and send it to Hayden."

"No!" Nora protested.

"He'll die seeing you so worried about him," Birdie sighed with her hand over her heart. "He's so in love with you."

"Um...no," Nora laughed awkwardly. "It's not like that."

"Stop making shit uncomfortable," Issac complained, looking up from the book he was reading.

"Shut up, Radacovick," Birdie turned away. "Listen, Nora. Hayden is fine. This is nothing new to my family."

"I know," Nora nodded, feeling her physical need for Hayden disappear as her worries for him started to settle. "It's just....there so much going on. I can't help but be worried. And their mind-link is close. What if something happened?"

"There's always something going on with our families," Isaac said, closing his book and sitting up. "Birdie's right. You don't need to worry. We're born with built in chaos control."

"That's not very comforting," Nora confessed.

"What's the worst that could happen?" Birdie tried. "They fight some people, or get into some other form of conflict."

"Even if they die, we can handle that," Issac shrugged.

"What?" Nora's eyes snapped up.

"I'm not saying Hayden will die," Isaac held up his hand. "But like...it won't be a first for our family."

"Dying and then coming back to life?" Nora narrowed her eyes.

"Everyone in this family has died at least once," Birdie muttered.

"Not everyone," Issac corrected her.

"Who's been dead?" Birdie asked. "Mimzy, Owen, Eden, Maksim. Does Gemma count?"

"She was in Pandora's box," Isaac pondered. "That is in the underworld....so I guess, yes?"

"Wait, hold on," Nora sat up. "King Maksim, your dad....he was dead?"

"Yeah," Isaac nodded. "For days. My mom was pregnant with Annabelle and Elian at the time."

"Technically, Eden doesn't count," Birdie calculated. "Because she's still dead, no?"

"I don't know how that works actually," Issac shrugged.

"How can you two talk about all this so casually?" Nora asked. "This is all so....morbid."

"No for us," Birdie laughed. "This is normal for our family."

"Like I said," Isaac chimed in. "Born with chaos control."

"Well, I wasn't," Nora swallowed the pressure in her chest. "This is all very very very new to me. In my world people who die stay dead."

"You didn't," Birdie pointed out.

"What?" Nora paled.

"Birdie," Isaac flinched. "A little empathy, please."

"Sorry, sorry," Birdie laughed. "What I mean to say was that technically you died too....kind of. Or you were almost there. But Hayden saved you."

"Right...." Nora's head began to spin.

She stared at Isaac and Birdie as they carried on their conversation about god knows what. They were just kids. Yet, they were sitting around discussing death, curses, and war as if planning for the next family reunion.

Nora suddenly began to feel very out of place. She started to long for her apartment with Lidia in the bath and her music on blast. Everything was set. There was a plan and a routine for everything. When was the last time Nora went to work?

Sitting there on the armchair, Nora's breathing labored. Her head started to spin as she tried to find some kind of link between the life she knew and the life she was being dragged into. Was she really the girl who stayed awake for days doing data entries and running updates for the palace? Where ahd all that gone? Where was her laptop? What on Earth was she doing sitting with a jinn who looked like a fey and a werewolf prince?

With trembling legs, Nora pushed herself out of her seat. The massive library suddenly began to feel crowded as she tried to fill her lungs. Isaac was the first to notice Nora's state.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

Nora nodded.

"You don't look okay," Birdie frowned. "Should I call Hayden?"

"No," Nora shook her head. "I just....I just need some air."

"I'll come with you," Birdie began to rise.

"No, please," Nora shook her head once more. "I'll just be on the balcony."

Birdie looked towards the balcony, "Okay....but I'll be right here. Call me if you need anything."

Nora nodded and began to make her way around the coffee table. She stumbled into the fresh air and leaned over the railing, taking long deep breaths in with her nose and out with her mouth. The restlessness she felt inside of her made her cranky. She wanted to burst into tears and stomp her feet like a child.

When had everything gone so wrong, Nora wondered. Was this something she stumbled into unintentionally or was this always written for her?

Nothing made sense. There were too many questions and not enough answers. Nora wished she could at least find one problem she could tackle on her own. Having to wait around for others to fill in the gaps was aggravating. She despised being so dependent on others. But not being able to do anything one her was worse.

As Nora stood shaking in the dark, there was a light knock on the glass doors behind her. She looked over her shoulder and found the fifteen year old prince holding out a shawl.

"It's a bit cold," Isaac said. "I thought you might need it."

"Thank you," Nora sighed. She took the wool and wrapped it around her shoulder. "Where's Birdie?"

Isaac walked onto the balcony and turned to the left. Nora followed his finger as he pointed to a room in the west wing of the palace. She squinted her eyes to catch glimpses of Annabelle and Birdie sitting on a bed as the King and Queen hovered around them.

"My sister has an anxiety disorder," Isaac said slowly. "She doesn't like being in the palace."

"Is she okay?" Nora frowned. "What's wrong?"

"She wants to go stay with our grandparents in Juniper but we have responsibilities here," Isaac sighed.

"Why don't your grandparents come stay here with her?"

"It's not the people," Isaac said. "It's the place. Annabelle hates it here. She always has....and ever since that day with Kiara and you in the foyer...."

"I don't blame her," Nora bit down on her bottom lip. "This place....this palace.....a lot has happened here. And I'm pretty sure the public doesn't even know half of it."

"No," Isaac laughed. "They certainly do not."

"Do you like it here?" Nora looked at the young body.

She could see why so many girls had his poster on their walls. He was just as dashing and handsome as his brother and father. Dark wavy hair, soft warm eyes, charming smile. Nora was pretty sure Disney modeled their princes after the Radacovicks.

"It's home," Isaac sighed.

"Hmm," Nora felt a tightness in her chest she couldn't avoid. "Are you happy here, Isaac?"

Isaac looked up as if Nora's question had caught him off guard. He laughed and looked over to his sister's window once more.

"Yeah...." he shrugged. "Of course."

"I'm sorry, I don't know why I asked that," Nora shook her head.

"Are you happy here, Nora?"

Nora's chest contracted as if her ribs were shifting to protect her. She stared at Isaac as he turned to look at her in the dark.

"Birdie told me Hayden really likes you," he said. "You like him too, right?"

Nora gave a breathless laugh, trying to release some of the pressure in her chest, "I don't think it's that easy."

"Adults make everything too complicated," Isaac rolled his eyes.

"Because things are complicated!" Nora laughed.

"Doesn't mean they have to be."

"How old are you?" Nora asked. "You're not a pixie, are you?"

"No," Isaac laughed, shaking his head. "My dad says I just have an old soul. I don't know if that's a good thing or not."

"Better than having no soul," Nora said before she could stop herself.

"Everyone has a soul," Isaac said.

"No," Nora shook her head. "Not everyone."

"If you have a conscience, then you have a soul," Isaac said, rising from the railing where he had been leaning against.

"I'm not so sure it works li-"

"Nora?" Hayden's voice came from inside the library.

Nora turned on her heels and ran into the room, leaving Isaac on the balcony. Her eyes landed on Hayden standing by the piano and her heart leaped up. Her heart started to beat faster as she ran into his arms and threw her arms around his neck.

"Hi," Hayden smiled into her hair, catching her with ease. His arms wrapped around her as he lifted her off the ground.

"What happened?" Nora asked, her voice muffled by the tight embrace. "Is everyone okay? Who was it?"

"It's fine, everything's okay," Hayden ran his nose along her ear. "Let's go home?"

"Birdie is with Annabelle," Nora pulled back to look at the half jinn.

"I'll tell her to meet us back home," Hayden replied. "Did she leave you here alone?"

"No, Isaac is here," Nora looked back. "He's on the balcony."

"Isaac?" Hayden called to the young boy.

"Yeah?"Isaac called back. "I'm here."

"I'm taking Nora home," Hayden said. "Tell Birdie to come home."

"Will do," Isaac said.

"Ready?" Hayden looked down at Nora.

"Yeah," Nora nodded.

"What's wrong?" Hayden frowned, stepping back into the portal behind him with Nora in his arms. "You look pale."

"I just...there's just...." Nora began to feel the tightness return to her chest. Her throat closed up and her mind jumbled.

Hayden was waiting patiently for Nora to continue when Heyder's voice startled them both back to reality.

"Come downstairs, you two," the jinn called up. "We have to talk."

"That can't be good," Nora looked at Hayden.

"He's a bit dramatic," Hayden smiled.

"I heard that," Heyder hollered. "Hurry up! I don't have all night. I would like to get some sleep."

Nora looked to the left to see the woods were still drenched in darkness. She had completely forgotten they were still living through just one night. It all seemed to take a lifetime.

"Coming," Hayden sighed, taking Nora's hand.

Together, the pair made their way downstairs just as Birdie portaled back. They all made their way into the family room and settled around. Nora slipped her hand out of Hayden's and made her way over to where Birdie sat. She avoided looking up at him because she knew he would immediately ask her why she had done that and Nora didn't have an answer.

"Are you girls okay?" Maya asked, walking into the room and kissing Birdie's head as she passed them.

"Yes," the two nodded.

"Good," Maya patted Nora's shoulder and made her way to where her husband sat. "Okay, let's start."

"Who was your mother, sweet pea," Heyder looked at Nora.

"My mom?" Nora looked around.

"Yes, everyone has one," Heyder nodded. "Who was she? Name, birthdate, birthplace, occupation, everything."

"What is this about?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out."

"Baba," Hayden looked at his father. "Relax."

"I haven't slept in days," Heyder rolled his eyes. "I'll relax when I'm dead."

"We met more guardians today," Maya spoke up, smacking her husband's chest. "They wanted to know where you were."

"Why?" Nora looked at the witch.

"What's what we want to know too," Heyder said. "Apparently your mother promised you to them."

"What?" Nora felt her insides disappear. A heavy sense of dread descended upon her, clouding her vision and making everything feel rushed. "Wh-what do you mean?"

"There is some kind of connection between you and these guardians," Maya said. "Something your mother knew about. We asked many times, but they won't speak to us."

"Why not?"

"Because we're moors," Heyder rolled his eyes. "They don't associate with jinns."

"And they want you away from us because they don't think you should be with jinns either," Maya explained.

"I...I don't understand any of this," Nora shook her head. "My mom...she was a housewife. We lived in the suburbs. We knew all our neighbors...this makes no sense. How can my mom be connected to these people?"

"Was Nana one of your neighbors?" Hayden asked.

"Yes!" Nora ran a hand through her hair. "I just.....I don't get....."

"Maybe we should pay a visit to this suburb," Heyder looked at his son. "Look around. See what we find."

"Worth a shot," Hayden nodded.

"I'm coming with you," Nora jumped in.

"No," Hayden said immediately.

"You have to take her," Heyder said from his seat.

"I don't have to do anything," Hayden tried not to snap at his father.

"Good luck getting Nana to speak to you without her," Heyder snorted. "Let me know how it goes when she slams the door in your face."

Hayden looked at his mother.

"Your baba is right," Maya said. "You have to take Nora with you. She knows the palace and the people. They won't speak to you without her."

"Thank you," Nora turned to the half jinn.

"Hayden," Heyder said as he picked at something on his ring. "Your mother and I do everything together. It has to be a partnership."

"We're not you guys," Hayden shook his head. "Nora is not mom. She's human."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Nora asked.

"Means your breakable, peanut," Heyder cut in before turning to his son. "And no, she's not a human. She's a vestal with your energy running through her veins. So, not so breakable."

"How do we even know she's stable?" Hayden asked.

Heyder turned to Nora, "Are you stable? Are you having through of committing murder any time soon?"

Nora looked at Hayden, "Kind of."

"See," Heyder smiled. "She's fine."

"This is ridiculous," Hayden looked around.

"I can go on my own," Nora pushed. "I can get on a plane and make my way back home and do this alone."

"Also a great plan," Heyder nodded.

"No," Hayden said to his father first before turning to Nora. "No."

"Then we're going together?" Nora arched her brow.

Hayden glared.

"Yes or no," Nora snapped her fingers. "With you or without you."

"I kind of like her," Heyder whispered to Maya. "She's snappy."

Hayden's jaw clenched as he ignored his parents. He shut his eyes briefly to contain his anger and took in a deep breath.

"With me," he said.

"Damn girl," Birdie leaned over and held up her hand to congratulate Nora. "Your first win."

"Let's toast to many more," Heyder laughed.

Nora didn't jump into the celebration as she watched Hayden. He wouldn't meet her eyes as he sat sulking. She wanted to reach out and take his hand but at the same time she was furious with him for thinking she would just sit around and wait for everyone else to handle the situation.

"You two can leave in the morning," Maya said. "Now everyone go get some rest. We all need it."

Hayden was the first to rise. He walked towards the door, leaving Nora on the sofa staring after him. She was sure he was going to leave her but at the last second he stopped at the door and looked towards her.

Nora slowly rose from the sofa and tightly wrapped the shawl around her shoulder. She tucked her hair behind her ear and made her way over to where Hayden waited. Neither one said a word as they walked out into the hall and headed for the stairs. Nora could feel Hayden's eyes on her as she carried on before him, not looking at him. When they passed his room, she kept walking until she felt Hayden reach out and grab the edge of her shawl.

"Where are you going?" He asked.

"To the guest room," Nora turned around slowly.

"Why?" Hayden asked, confused. "You're staying with me."

"Did you just assume that?" Nora narrowed her eyes.

"Did I just assume we would be staying in the same room two hours after we made each other finish in the dark?" Hayden asked. "Yes, I assumed."

Nora hated the way his words made her tummy clench and her spine tingle. There was no way she would be staying with him right after he tried to push her away from actually doing something to help....again!

"Nora," Hayden sighed as Nora turned on her heels and walked away, yanking her shawl out of his hand. "I'm sorry."

"You don't even know what you're sorry for," Nora snorted.

"For assuming you would be staying with me," Hayden went after her.

His words only made her laugh. She walked into the guest room and turned to look at the half jinn standing outside.

"Good night, Hayden," she said.

"No, liste-"

Nora didn't let him finish as she closed the door in his face.

________________________

The next morning, Nora found a set of new clothes waiting for her on the bench by the end of the bed. She quickly washed up and dressed, eager to get started with the day. As she walked past Hayden's door, she wondered if he was still inside. Her hand raised to knock but she decided against it.

"Good morning," Maya said cheerfully from the kitchen as Nora entered.

"Good morning," Nora looked at the empty seats. "Where is everyone?"

"Heyder had to go back to court last night and Birdie is back at school."

"Right, it's Monday," Nora nodded. "I've lost track of time."

"Breakfast?"

"No, thank you," Nora shook her head. "I don't really eat in the morning."

"You have a big day ahead," Maya said. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," Nora nodded.

"Maybe Hayden wants breakfast. Is he up yet? I've been calling him but he's not answering."

"His door was closed," Nora frowned. "Is he not here....in the house?"

"I don't sense him," Maya looked up. "Hayden?"

Nora's pulse started to pick up, "You don't think he left without me, right?"

"I wouldn't put it past him," Maya mumbled, walking around the counter and going towards the stairs. "He's just like his baba. Hayden?"

"I'll run upstairs and check," Nora got up from her seat.

Maya stepped aside as the girl ran up. Nora had to stop herself from stomping her feet all the way up. Her hands balled into fists as she turned the knob and pushed the door to Hayden's room open.

"Hayden?"

No answer.

"You have got to be kidding me," Nora gave up and stomped her feet.

She whirled around and was about to run to the other room to grab her phone when she caught a glimpse of a portal in the yard. Walking closer to the window, Nora looked down just as Hayden walked out. His eyes lifted and he found her standing in his room with fury in her eyes.

What? He asked her through their link.

Nora turned on and ran downstairs. She slid the glassdoors open and walked out into the patio just as Hayden walked up the stairs.

"Good morning," he smiled.

"Did you leave without me?" Nora asked in disbelief.

"Yes and no," Hayden held up his hand. "Let me finish!"

"I can't believe you!" Nora yelled.

"Nora, listen," Hayden tried again.

"You always do this! You always undermine me! Even after helping you so many times you still think I can't do it!"

"I don't think that," Hayden shook his head. "I know you're more than capable of gathering intel on your own."

"Bullshit," Nora snapped. "Actions speak louder than words, Hayden!"

"Will you let me finish?"

"This was important to me!" Nora felt her eyes fill up with angry tears. "I had a chance to go back home and figure out this mess. But you just cu-"

"I only went to make sure no one was waiting for us with pitchforks!" Hayden took hold of Nora's shoulders and shook her gently so she would listen for once. "That's it. I didn't speak to anyone. I didn't knock on any doors. Nothing."

"I don't believe you," Nora narrowed her eyes. "You're just saying that to save yourself now."

"I'm not a liar, Nora," Hayden frowned. "If I did something, I would tell you."

Nora pondered his words for a second. She felt him release her shoulders as she began to realize he had no choice but to take her. No guardian would speak to him without her.

"Are we satisfied now?" Hayden asked. "Or do you want to yell at me some more?"

"You will have to hear me yell more if you keep pushing me away from things," Nora sassed.

"I'm trying to do th-"

"Last night?" Nora stopped him. "What was that?"

"That was to keep you out of harm's way."

"If there was any kind of danger, your parents would have advised against it."

"I don't run your safety by my parents' advice," Hayden's eyes darkened. "You're very important to me, Nora. And I protect what's important to me at all costs."

As Nora stood there listening to him, her breath caught in her chest. She stared as Hayden took a step forward and placed his hand against the edge of her face. Her chest began to tighten, her emotions running all over the place.

"We should get going," Nora spoke up just as Hayden started to lean forward.

"We can spare a minute," the half jinn smiled, looking down at her lips.

"No," Nora lowered her head and looked down at the ground. "We shouldn't be wasting time."

Hayden sighed and let his hand fall to his side, "Okay."

Nora cleared her throat just as a portal began to open in front of her. Hayden took her hand and laced their fingers together before pulling her closer and lifting her over the threshold of the portal.

The sleepy town of Northriver off the mainland of Road Island was always cold and damp during the months of October and November. Nora felt a rush of memories come back to her as the familiar air of the sea and the woods hit her and the chilly wind blew her hair out of her face. She dropped Hayden's hand and walked forward, ready to cry as her eyes landed on the tiny one family house that sat before her.

"That's my house," she said, turning back to look at Hayden. "And that's Stephny's house."

Hayden followed her fingers to the house next door.

"Aaron B. used to live in that house over there and Aunt Lidia dated the man who owned that house," Nora spun in a circle in the middle of the street, explaining everything. "We used to ride our bikes here and the ice cream truck would stop in front of that house."

Hayden wanted to be happy for her. He really did. But the way Nora's eyes were watering made his insides feel uneasy. Her eyes bounced around as if she couldn't believe where she was.

"When was the last time you visited?" He asked.

"Never," Nora shook her head. "We never came back."

"Maybe we should start with your house," Hayden motioned to the house in front of them. "Look through what we find out about your mo-"

"We sold everything," Nora stopped him. "After my mom died, my dad sold everything we owned to pay off his debt. I'm pretty sure there's a new family living there now."

Hayden paused and nodded, "Then let's try Nana?"

"She lived down the street," Nora turned.

Hayden walked to the spot beside her and together they sat off towards the white house with the porch running all around it. The street was deserted, cars asleep along with all the families inside. A light morning dew fell over everything. Even the birds as they sang on the tree tops. Nora pulled her jacket tightly around herself and tried to shake off the strange feeling of deja-vu.

"How does it feel coming back here?" Hayden asked.

"Strange," Nora admitted. "Like it all belongs to me, but not really."

Hayden didn't reply as they walked up the steps of Nana's house and rang the doorbell.

"It's so early," Nora said, checking Hayden's watch. "It's a bit rude to come this early."

"It's also a bit rude to stab people and carry daggers," Hayden shrugged as he pounded his fist on the door.

"Hayden," Nora pulled his hand down as she spotted the next door neighbor peeking through her shades.

"I don't think anyone is home," Hayden looked down at the pile of newspapers by the door. "No one collected these. And look at the mail."

"What should we do?" Nora asked.

"Go in from the back."

"What? No."

"Or from the front," Hayden flickered his hand and the door unlocked. "Stay behind me."

"Why? I thought you already checked for pitchforks."

Hayden deadpanned and stopped, "Not inside a guardian's house. Just stay behind me, please."

Nora nodded as she grabbed the back of his jacket and followed him inside. Her eyes flickered to the house next door and prayed the old lady didn't call the cops or something.

"Hello?" Hayden called out as they walked in. "Nana?"

No answer.

"Nana, it's me. Nora," Nora leaned around Hayden's shoulder.

Still no answer.

"Stay here," Hayden reached back and touched Nora's hand.

"What are you going to do?"

"Flash around the house to make sure no one is lurking."

Nora nodded. Before she could say another word, Hayden flashed forward, leaving a gust of hot air blowing around. He zapped around the house like a blue comet as Nora stood by the door, waiting for him to finish. She turned her head and found framed photos of her and her mother hanging in the living room along with Nana and a few of the other people from the neighborhood.

Nora quietly walked inside and stared at the photo, wondering how many of the people beside her were not who they said they were.

"Is that your mom?" Hayden asked as he appeared beside her.

"Yeah," Nora nodded.

"You look like her."

"That's a very generous compliment," Nora laughed.

"It's true."

"Did you find anyone?"

"Nope," Hayden shook his head. "The upstairs is completely empty. Like not even a cookie for a mouse was left behind."

"What?" Nora frowned. "I mean I never went upstairs as a kid but I assumed that's where Nana slept..."

"Unless this whole place was a base and there was no real reason for a living situation to be set up."

"I don't want to think about that," Nora shook her head. "This town was my home. Not some kind of secret military base designed to keep my mom and me here."

"Did your mom grow up here too?"

"Both my parents did," Nora stopped. "Actually, no. My mom did. My dad and Aunt Lidia came when they were in middle school."

"Outsiders," Hayden nodded. "Could explain why you guys were the only ones who moved out."

"But why now?" Nora asked. "Why come looking for me after so long?"

"Do you think it had something to do with your aunt passing away?"

"You think Aunt Lidia knew about this?"

"Some one had to," Hayden shrugged. "You get your vestal blood from your mother. Lidia would have survived if she was a vestal. We just need to know more about your mom and her family."

"Her parents died when she was in college," Nora looked back at the picture frame. "Boating accident."

"Is their house here?"

"Our house was their house," Nora sighed.

"And your father sold everything," Hayden sighed.

"We should look around," Nora said, eyeing the living room.

"Yeah," Hayden nodded. "You start there and I'll go check the kitchen."

Nora didn't want him to leave, but she didn't know how to tell him. She watched him walk out of the room and head for the kitchen as she began to look through the pile of mail on the coffee table. When nothing caught her attention, she moved on to the writing desk by the window.

Stacks of paper lined the table, leaving little to no room to actually write. Nora caught sight of deep knife marks on the wood as if someone had been sticking their dagger into it as a holder. She moved aside some of the folders and opened a drawer. Her hands moved over more piles of paper, just scraps of recipes and grocery lists.

After several minutes of searching the desk, Nora turned her eyes on the files she had removed earlier. Picking one up, she began to flip through it and realized it was some kind of a daily report on....her.

"Hayden," Nora called to the boy.

"Yeah," Hayden called from the kitchen.

"Look at this," Nora ran with the file in her hand. "They've been watching me."

Hayden's anger flared up as Nora sat down the file and he caught glimpses of her in some of the photographs.

"What the hell?" He muttered, flipping through the pages.

"Nora is moving to Romania to start her new job at the palace. She is staying in East Downton Street with Lidia in a two bedroom complex with a garage and doorman. Her new work schedule is expected to change. Her flight is on the 23rd of this month. She will be traveling alone," Nora read the notes aloud, her insides shaking. "They knew everything."

"Are there more?" Hayden asked.

"Yeah," Nora nodded. "In the living room."

Hayden walked away from the counter and headed for the living room. Nora heard him move around as he checked the writing desks and flipped through the files she had left behind. She knew she should go back and help, but she was too caught up by the amount of intel gathered on her in the files.

Her phone number, her work ID number, her arrival and departure time. And the photos....The photos got to Nora the most.

How had they managed to take so many pictures of her without her ever realizing what was going on?

"Nora?" Hayden called to her as he walked back into the room.

"Yeah?" Nora didn't look up from the photos.

"You might want to look at this," Hayden held out a small phone.

"Where did you get this?" Nora frowned.

"It was in between the pillows on the couch," Hayden said, handing her the phone.

"What am I looking at?" Nora asked, taking the phone.

Hayden waited until Nora read some of the text messages on the little screen. He felt a ping of sadness wash over his heart as Nora's face fell reading the messages.

"Lidia..." Nora looked up. "She...."

"She was in contact with Nana," Hayden wished he had better news for her.

"I don't understand," Nora shook her head. "She said she lost contact with everyone here. And what does this mean?"

Nora scrolled through the hundreds of texts.

"It means she knew you were a vestal," Hayden frowned. "And she was feeding Nana information about you."

"No," Nora shook her head. "I don't believe that. Aunt Lidia would never do something like that. She raised me, she took care of me, she kept me safe. All that does not equate to this."

"We still don't know much," Hayden tried to soothe her. "We have to speak to Nana first."

"How do we find h-," Nora stilled.

"What?" Hayden asked, slightly alarmed.

"I'm going to find her," Nora said, rushing back to the living room.

"How?" Hayden asked, following her.

"These!" Nora said, picking up the pile of mail on the coffee table.

Hayden arched a brow, not understanding her grand plan.

"Credit card bills," Nora said. "I found out you were a hitman by following your money....I can do the same for Nana."

"Smart," Hayden smiled.

"Unless she lives off the grid, which I highly doubt, I will find her."   

Any theories?