Married to my suspect

JONATHAN'S POV

I opened the door to the master's bedroom and turned on the light, my eyes burning, both with weariness and tears. I'd come to this room more often than I'd been in the office. Once upon a time, when we'd still been trying to make our name known, we'd lived here together, or rather, he'd put up with me here since his parents had specifically bought the apartment for him. And being the thoughtless person he'd been, he had insisted I use the Masters while he used the guest room. We'd lived with that arrangement for about six months before I'd finally moved out to a much smaller place when I could no longer stand the clutters.

I walked in further, surprised at the state of the room. The room was much cleaner than I'd assumed it would be. Aside from the wardrobes that were overflowing with clothes and random items that filled his bedside table and night stand, the room was spotless. I'd already checked the guest room and there was nothing of importance there so whatever else he had kept; this was the where I was going to find it

I started in the wardrobe, using my phone's flashlight to see better, knowing his inclination to hide things in the wardrobe and just as I'd thought, barely twenty minutes after searching, I found a file that was different from the ones in the office. I tried to open it and met resistance which made me take it closer to the light. On seeing it closely, I realized this file had been intentionally sealed to keep people away from it so I dropped it.

I continued searching, bringing out clothes from seemingly deep in the wardrobe when my hand hit the edge of something hard, sharply. I didn't bother nursing my hurt hand and brought out what looked like a safe. I frowned and studied the odd-looking contraption. It was locked with both a padlock that looked like it had existed in the early nineties and separately had a combination lock. I picked it up to take it somewhere I could figure out a way to open it without further straining my back. It felt like I'd been bending all night, when I hit a box causing its contents to fall out. I sighed and walked past the spilled content to drop the box on the bed. The last thing I needed to do was leave this place messier than I'd found it, which was why I'd spent the last hour in the office organizing it.

I went back to the box and froze as I recognized what I'd just passed. I picked up the package with trembling hands and opened it, my eyes filling with tears I'd held in since I'd stepped into the house. I could tell what it was even before seeing it. Inside the package was a miniature of the exact image of our company right now. I gently ran my fingers through the model, tracing the tiny walls and windows we'd built together in our memories. I put it down gently and picked up the letter that had also come out of the box.

'Hey. You just lost the bet, you know?

I told you we were going to get here and look where we are now. By the way, this was prepared a month after signing the papers just to prove you wrong.

This model is what I always pictured for us. I know it's just wood and glue, but when I built it, I kept imagining the real thing. And I imagined you in it, your over tidy office, your frown terrifying our staff, your name on the door next to mine.

I don't know where the road will lead us after this but I need you to remember one thing. You're the best decision I ever made. Not the company, You.

Swear to burn this letter immediately you read this. I promise I'm writing this drunk.'

I sniffed, smiling and refolded the letter and kept it in my pocket, knowing as I did so, that letter was always going to be with me. I repackaged the miniature building and placed it gently on the table after making space for it by pushing some of the items to the floor.

I carried the safe and shook it, trying to see if I could tell what was in it, I couldn't. I shifted my attention to the file and took it to the bathroom. I turned on the tap, thinking of ruining the file to open it but changed my mind, it could possibly ruin what was inside if it was also paper.

I changed course and headed to the kitchen to get a pocket knife which I used to tear the paper. It took some straining and I had to switch to a proper knife, an item I was surprised to see in Ethan's kitchen, to get the paper to cut even with the pocket knife. The paper was even harder than that of a laminated paper even though it looked ordinary.

I finally cut open the file and frowned as I brought out the papers in it. My eyes took in the title and I scanned the document quickly with my eyes. My legs went weak and I slid to the floor as I took in what I was seeing.

I'd been eight when Camille had found me but I couldn't forget my parents names and that information along with their faces, I could guess, was the only thing in the page I was currently reading. I turned the next page and realized I was looking at my adoption papers. Same as the picture I'd found earlier, I didn't think these records were meant for public consumption which meant Ethan had gone through some troubles before he'd found the records.

I turned the page and realizing it was a background check for my parents, took a deep breath before reading it. My memory with them was unfortunately still vivid even though I'd completely forgotten their faces. I'd been told by the first therapist I'd met with that it was my brain's way of protecting me from my memories since I'd lied about not remembering them. I think I'd just intentionally forgotten their faces but there were some things that couldn't be forgotten. I could remember the stench that was always in the house.

Not rundown as you may imagine, we'd lived in a storey building in one of the fanciest neighborhoods in Oregon yet the stench of alcohol and cigarette had always filled the house. My parents had been complete by themselves, I was the odd one out, and they hadn't hesitated to remind me whenever they got the chance. They'd been two happy people enjoying life together and the fact that I'd come into their lives didn't mean they had to stop their enjoyment of life, which meant I'd practically grown up by myself. I'd gotten little to no attention but I'd always known my parents were wealthy. They had never hesitated to throw money around during their daylight gamblings in the house. I could still remember the feeling of surety I'd felt when I'd been told they were travelling to Florida and someone else would be house-sitting so all I had to do was stay put and wait for them. I'd felt for weeks before the event that my time with them had come to an end. According to the words my mother had always thrown at my father, they could only endure so much.

I sighed and started reading the background check, there was nothing memorable about either of them, just the usual traces of wealthy, comfortable lives. Business trips abroad, a summer house registered in their name, memberships at country clubs, smooth credit history. Everything in order, everything too perfect, like a glossy brochure of a family that had never once stumbled. Whoever had compiled that record had probably forgotten the child they once had.

I stood up and went back to the bedroom with the files, questions filling my head. Why had Ethan had my records and those of my parents? What had he been searching for and why were those records sealed like they weren't meant to be breached? Was he planning to mention to me that he was doing a background check on my parents? But why? We'd never spoken about my life before he'd met me since it was obvious I didn't want it mentioned.

I rubbed my eyes and checked my watch, it was already past dawn. I tried the combination on the safe again, guessing at numbers between 0 and 10 until my fingers cramped. After an hour and nothing but brightening light, I gave up.

I rearranged the room, went to the office to find an empty folder to put the documents in, carried the safe and headed downstairs after locking the door. Hopefully, the security man would have gone on a short break or something since I didn't think I would be allowed to go with the safe without wanting to know what was in it. And what was I going to say, I found it in my dead brother's things and just want to find what it was?