Rise of the Oni (Book 8 of the Köhler Series)

ᖴIᖴTY-ᖴOᑌᖇ | 54

"Elijah, sweetheart, can I talk to you?" Adele asked her son as he walked by the living room. He had to be searching for his father, who was gone at the time. Luca was needed at the fashion house something about a design that the sewing department couldn't get right.

"I wasn't expecting you to be home. Where's Dad?"

"No, hey Ma, how are you doing? Or love you, Ma?" Dele glared as Eli smiled, sitting down beside her, hugging and kissing the side of her face. Adele smiled, kissing him back as he rested his head on her shoulder.

"Sorry, Ma, but how are you doing today? And love you."

"That is better. I'm doing fine... I'm glad to see my baby looking like himself again, but I need to speak to you about Brianna." She said, making Elijah sit up, looking at her hard. Dele couldn't tell was he confused or surprised.

"What about Bri?"

"I think we need to do...."

"Naw... I'm going to stop you there. I know Brianna isn't mine. I don't need a blood test to tell me so. I've known from the day she was born. Yeah, she looks a little like me, which had me wondering which one of my cousins she slept with. Then again, I didn't want to know. I don't know. Maybe I'm just tripping, thinking she looks like me to mask the fact that she isn't. I do know I don't care because she's mine either way." He says, making his mother nod rubbing his back.

"I hate she did this to you. I loved Riah... hell still do. She knew that all she had to say she wasn't happy."

"That's what I kept telling myself, Ma, but I think it was the thrill for her. Mariah liked to get a rise out of me. Doing shit that she knew would piss me off. Then she figured out that she could do something and get away with it...."

"But cheating. She could have done anything but that. Obviously, she didn't know that it kills one of the parties was going to get jealous. I can't say that's what happened, but it could have been the reason they came after us. Since he couldn't have Riah, he killed her." Adele said as Elijah nodded calmly.

"Maybe or maybe not, it could have been the fucking enemy looking for a way in. There are so many questions. Too many to ask. Really Ma, I just want to move forward with my life. Be a good father to my babies, and maybe I will find that special person one day. Right now, they are all that matter to me. So, no DNA test. She's mine at heart. That's all that matters."

"You're right, and I don't care either if you are happy with that." Adele said, watching as Emiko was about to walk past the door.

"Miko, how was school today?" She asked, causing the girl to stop dead in her tracks, turning to them with a smile. She was a good girl after they had to get it through her head that they didn't work the same way as Yamato and his mafia did. The girl's mind was set on pleasing Xerxes because he was the one that saved her, and Riley was ready to kill the poor girl.

"It was good today, Mama Adele. Oh... Oh... Oh, I made a 100 on a test! I'm proud of myself because I thought I would fail!" She said excitedly. Adele laughed so did Elijah shaking his head while his little sister tried to sneak past the three.

"ADALYNN! WHERE YOU THINK YOU ARE GOING?!"

"Shit...."

"Girl, I'm about to beat your fucking ass! Get in here NOW!" Adele yelled, making her widen her blue eyes, staring at Elijah shrugging. He wasn't about to get in the middle of it. The last time he tried to save Adalynn, he got beat too.

"Sorry, Mama. I just had homework to do, and I saw talking to Emiko. I didn't mean to curse." She pouted.

"Sure you didn't. Why did you get sent to Father Thomas's office today?" Adele asked. Adalynn stood there staring, not saying a word. Yeah, the girl looked sweet and innocent but was a demon in disguise.