Stop lying to yourself

"Is something wrong with your face, bud? It looks like you've seen a ghost or something." Fredrick teased me with a grin.

"Oh, it's nothing. Just thinking about the last time I saw a gadget like this." I replied dryly, looking away from Lianne.

Her innocent gaze lingered on mine, asking questions she couldn't understand.

How could he place a tracking device on a child without telling her?

If Fredrick and I were going to iron things out, it would be when we were alone.

That was the best time for us to talk about our differences.

"Uncle Ally?" Lianne said it hesitantly, her voice full of concern.

I turned towards her slowly, unsure of where the conversation was going.

"Did I hurt you? Did I say something bad?" Her face was full of worry.

I needed to put Lianne's mind at ease.

"Hey, you can take it off whenever you want. If you ever feel uncomfortable wearing it, then take it off, okay?"

Lianne nodded excitedly.

I slipped the bracelet back onto her wrist.

A tracking device isn't so bad, and I feel like if Fredrick had done it in case there was ever an emergency that separated us, it would be easier to find Lianne.

"See? That wasn't so scary now, was it?" Fredrick joked, walking past me to pat my shoulder.

I shrugged him off playfully. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

As soon as I did, the room went quiet again. Everyone stared at me expectantly.

I glanced over at Lianne, who looked down at the bracelet on her wrist. She was smiling happily at the new addition.

I sighed internally. 'You have no idea how difficult this is.'

Her expression shifted quickly, and she smiled back at me happily.

"Thank you, Uncle Ally! Thank you sooo much!"

She hugged me tightly, making me blush.

"Thank you, Rick!" She giggled.

I couldn't help but grin like an idiot at her reaction.

Then I remembered where we were standing. The others were looking at me strangely.

"You have such a lovely girl with you, Allen." Thomas spoke up suddenly. He sounded more amused than anything else.

"Oh, uhm, thanks." I mumbled.

"So, tell me about her. How old is she? And how did you meet?" Thomas continued, ignoring my awkwardness completely.

"She's six years old," I answered hesitantly.

'How we met? Nah, I'm not ready to be a clown just yet,' I thought to myself, trying to find an excuse to avoid answering his question.

"Well then, how about if I give you some advice on raising children in this world? There are many things I wish I knew when I had my own kids." Thomas offered, smiling kindly at me.

I nodded slowly.

"I appreciate it," I replied.

"And I wouldn't worry too much about her age. Kids adapt to situations easily these days. I bet you'll get along fine." He reassured me.

I nodded again.

Ruff was pleasantly distracting Lianne, so Thomas gestured to her.

"That wolf cub sure seems to enjoy her company, huh?" He remarked, pointing to Ruff.

"Yeah, I guess. She really does seem to love him." I agreed.

Ruff snorted happily, nuzzling Lianne affectionately.

Thomas laughed softly. "Having a child in here isn't half bad. With the constant threat of death hanging over our heads, it can be quite refreshing to have a little one that has no worries."

Uhh... about that.

'She has no worries because I made sure to lie and pretend we're in a movie.' I thought sourly.

"Allen has been such a supportive and TRUSTWORTHY companion anyone could ever have." Fredrick's sarcastic voice interrupted my thoughts.

'Not now, Fred!'

I groaned inwardly at the reminder.

"If I hadn't known better, I'd say he doesn't need a truth serum to make him talk, even about his relationship with others. This guy, my best friend..." Fredrick trailed off, shaking his head.

My glare didn't seem to bother him, though. Instead, he gave me a wink before speaking up again. "Speaking of which, I think Allen and I need to discuss privately something very important."

Fredrick turned his attention to Lianne, who was busy playing with Ruff, still unaware of our conversation.

Thomas narrowed his eyes at us suspiciously, obviously sensing something weird going on between us.

"I hope you two settle your differences soon, at least before Akemi returns with the ladies to serve our dinner." He muttered, walking away without another word.

The others dispersed after seeing Thomas leave as well. They seemed relieved that the drama was over.

I sighed heavily, turning to Fredrick.

"What do you want from me?" I hissed through gritted teeth.

"Can we speak in private for a moment?" He asked me quietly.

We both walked away from the group to a small alcove near the window, far enough from everyone else to avoid being overheard.

"It's about time you didn't keep me in the dark." He demanded angrily, grabbing me by the shoulders and staring into my eyes.

He shook me lightly until I responded. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Bullshit! You know exactly what I mean!" He hissed back at me.

I stared at him silently.

"Are you going to continue lying to me, or are you going to stop keeping secrets?" He demanded, letting go of my shoulders. "You already know all about me, even at my weakest, you fucker!"

"That was because I saved you from Dru all those years ago; of course you would spill your guts if I asked you to." I pointed it out.

His expression darkened.

"Then why haven't you told me any of the rest?! About your sister's true whereabouts, about you suddenly having a kid with us even if you know how dangerous this is, about what happened to your sister?!" He shouted, shouting loud enough for other people to hear.

"Here, I thought you didn't want us to be heard," I said sarcastically.

He glared at me, clenching his fists.

"So what do you have to say for yourself?" I taunted.

"I'm so sick of you hiding shit from me! Why can't you trust me? You always have a reason behind everything, and I just can't figure out what they are!" He raged.

I frowned at him. "Because there's nothing to tell."

"But you have something to hide from me! You've been doing it since the start, but not anymore, right? Right?" He repeated.

"There's nothing to tell."

"You're lying!" He yelled at me.

"No, I am telling you the truth." I insisted, looking straight into his eyes.

He took a deep breath and exhaled loudly.

"Is Mia de—"