Zach wasn’t amused. He gauged Liam’s expression and concluded that the man believed what he was saying. “If you have proof, bring it out. I don’t have the patience for the tit for tat. As far as I know, I was born in R country and haven’t lived anywhere else. You can check with Tynan. I didn’t have a passport when we met.”

That wasn’t the reaction Liam was expecting. He pulled a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it over. “This is from V Country. That is the city your mother was born. I didn’t have any luck tracking you down, but there are people keeping track of your mother’s movements.” If this was fake, he was a better actor than Rain.

Zach unfolded the paper. It was identical to the birth certificate he was used to, except it didn’t say R Country, and the section for his father had a name. Lance Castor. “My mother doesn’t like to talk about her past.”

“You didn’t know?”

It took a moment before it registered that he was being asked a question. “Huh, what did you say?” He couldn’t look away from the document. His mother never told him about his father. No matter what he asked, she refused to speak about her past.

“Zach.”

He felt a touch on his shoulder. He looked up to see Theo giving him a concerned look. He never learned the name of his father. He never met him. “My mother said her family and her had a falling out.”

Zach did his best to research himself, but he hadn’t found any information. He tried hard in his last life, but since he didn’t get any results, he didn’t bother trying when he was reborn. It wasn’t that he couldn’t find any information. They buried the information after his mother died.

“Someone call Tynan.”

Zach opened his mouth to tell them not to bother Tynan at work, but he wanted to see Tynan. He didn’t know what to do. He wanted to know more about himself and his relatives, but looking into it might hurt his mother.

A firm hand held his arm and brought him to a sofa. Someone pushed a glass of water into his hand. On reflex, Zach took a sip. He could hear arguing in the background, but other thoughts occupied his mind. He couldn’t focus on what they were saying.

He tried to sort through the information in his mind to see if his life intersected with members of his family. It was vague, but he had a memory about someone mentioning Castor. Zach held his head as the thought in his mind swirled, threatening to drown him.

Zach took a deep breath in an attempt to calm his emotions. He could handle this. His situation hadn’t changed other than having family members he didn’t know about. They were monitoring his mother and didn’t reach out to him in the past. He would consider them as an antagonistic force for the moment. He should be careful while investigating.

It would be best to speak to his mother; she was his best source of information. If she pointed him in the right direction, he wouldn’t muddle the situation. Zach’s head snapped up, and he focused on Liam.

He was worried about breaking the balance that his mother had with her family, but it might already be too late. “How did you get this?” Zach rose from his seat and stalked towards Liam.

Theo stepped between them. “Tynan is on his way.”

Zach wanted to laugh. Did they think Tynan was chamomile tea, able to calm him whenever he lost his temper? Out of respect, he took a step back. He would find a different occasion to bash in Liam’s face.

“You aren’t the first person to investigate me. How did you find this when no one else did?” Zach wanted to burn the piece of paper and forget about all the problems it would bring into his life.

“I looked into you mother….”

“Bullshit.” He didn’t let him continue. Zach buried his mother’s information even deeper than his own. “Don’t let me have to ask again. How did you get this?”

Liam’s eyes shifted around the room, looking to the others for support. Ron went to stand beside Liam.

Zach’s eyes narrowed.

“You need to tell him.” Ron held onto Liam’s forearm and turned him around so that they were eye to eye. “He is asking as a courtesy. You don’t want him to go looking for that information on his own.” It was bigger than just Zach. Their friend group was already divided and being reshuffled. It wasn’t hard to know whose side Tynan would pick, and Cain would get caught in the middle. Theo and Zach were different sides of the same coin. It was a lose-lose situation.

Liam’s eyes flashed with hurt. “Ron.”

Ron’s eyes darted to Zach. The calmer Zach became, the more the hair on his body stood on end. Liam was underestimating him because of his age, but Ron remembered the detachment and apathy Zach used when dealing with Rain.

“Fucking listen.” Ron pulled Liam closer and dropped his voice. “Zach is dangerous.”

Liam scoffed and moved to step away until he saw how serious Ron was being. “He is a child.”

“Don’t be arrogant. It will get you killed.” Tynan entered the room and made a beeline for Zach. He tugged on his lover's arm, pulling him into a hug.

“Are you threatening me for your little lover now?” Liam didn’t know what Zach had done to charm Tynan and weasel his way in, but he wasn’t fooled.

Those who can’t listen must feel. If the situation was different, he would have used a softer approach. However, this involved his mother. He would cut out his heart for her, much less to destroy someone like Liam Granger. It might cost him a few people he was starting to consider as friends, but so be it.

Zach took out his phone. Tynan grabbed his hand. Zach stared at those strong fingers. He took a moment to savor the heat against his skin. His mother came before Tynan too. His eyes moved up from Tynan’s hand until their gazes collided.

“Liam, don’t fuck around.” Cain joined the conversation.

Zach noticed Theo walking in behind him. It was then he noticed that Theo had left the room. He was too comfortable around these people. He needed to be more aware of his situation going forward. He moved to step out of Tynan’s arms, but they turned into bands of steel locking him in place.

“I won’t let you.” Tynan refused to let go of Zach. Their relationship was new and fragile. It was an instinct, but he knew that if he let go of Zach, their relationship would end.

“Are you picking up for him too? You’ve learned how to rebel against your family.” Liam pointed a finger at Cain.

“He is better than me. As my brother, you know what I am capable of on a computer. It is why you and our whole fucking family tried to force me into the military and tried to get me to do things I didn’t want to. Zach is better than me. Think about what those words mean.”

Liam paused. He looked at Ron’s imploring eyes. Theo’s calm judgment. Tynan’s single-minded focus. Cain’s contempt. This situation might have gotten out of his control without him realizing it.

He knew there were geniuses in the world. Cain had hacked into the space program at twelve because he wanted the blueprints as a poster on the wall of his bedroom. What he didn’t believe was that a nineteen-year-old with a clean history would be as dangerous as they were implying.

Zach was out of patience. He wanted to get on the first plane to Jell City. His mother might already be a target.

Liam relented. He didn’t believe what they were saying, but on the off chance Zach Mallory was as dangerous as they were implying, it was better to be safe than sorry. “It was a coincidence. While I was looking into it, a friend of mine, Cassidy Paige, and her sister Nina were visiting. They saw a picture of your mother and recognized her.”

Zach paused before starting to laugh. He leaned into Tynan and broke down. He could contain himself. It was hard to process the hilarity of his situation.

Wasn’t that the name of his darling wife?