I smiled back and looked down. “I didn’t really do anything. Just helped find you.”
“Always so modest,” Charlie teased.
“Wait, what do you mean about stalking?” Something clicked in my mind as I remembered what Alec had told me about the year I spent in Idaho. I pushed the residual hurt down as Alec ran his hand over his buzzed hair.
“How you gonna throw me into it like that, man?”
“I told you. I’m on her side now. Besides, what difference does it make? She already knows most of it.”
“Yeah, well, maybe it’s better not to rehash old—”
“It was you?” I cut Alec off, staring at Charlie. “That year I lived in Nampa? You were the one blocking me from finding Alec.”
It made sense now that I knew how Alec’s mind worked. He wouldn’t have wanted it to be easily traced by Melior Group, nor would he have wanted to justify the use of resources, but he would’ve needed someone he trusted to do it. Charlie was the obvious choice.
“Yep. Kept you well away from this asshole but kept him informed of your every damn move. Made a good amount of money that year. He really wanted to keep you a secret, and he was willing to pay well.”
I smacked him on the shoulder too. “Charlie!”
“But!” He leaned out of my reach. “In my defense, I put a stop to it.”
“What?” Alec and I both said.
“Why do you think you were offered a scholarship here?”
“I’m gonna fucking kill you,” Alec growled, but I was pretty sure he wasn’t serious. “I want my money back.”
I just gaped, a smile tugging on my lips as Charlie argued, “Technically, you paid me to block her from finding you and to report on her movements and ‘anything suspicious.’” He used air quotes. “You never expressly said I couldn’t do anything to help her out a little.”
“Wait.” I finally found my voice. “So I didn’t actually earn my scholarship? You just . . . hacked me into the system?”
“Oh, Eve, no!” Charlie waved his hand. “All I did was bring you and your brilliant science mind to the attention of the admissions board, nudge them to get in contact with your school. The rest was all you, babe!”
I let out a relieved sigh. Of course I belonged here. The idea that I didn’t get into Bradford Hills Institute on merit should’ve never crossed my mind. If there was one thing about myself I was sure of, it was my intelligence. I was excelling in all my classes, even despite the constant disruptions and catastrophic, traumatizing events.
I pulled Charlie into a tight hug. My gratitude was threatening to burst out of me—pop open my seams and pour out like the stuffing in a teddy bear. “Thank you, Charlie. You changed my life.”
“Well, you saved mine, so we’ll call it even.”
I chuckled and pulled away, taking a deep breath to ease the persistent pressure of tears behind my eyes. Charlie’s eyes looked a bit misty too.
“Are you two crying?” Alec sounded perplexed, and we both burst into quiet laughter.
I cleared my throat. “I really appreciate it, Charlie, but why?”
“I didn’t know you were Evelyn Maynard, or Alec’s Vital, but I knew you were damn important to him. For him to spend that kind of money and insist I keep it confidential under threat of excruciating pain, not to mention that he went out there every chance he got to keep an eye on you himself . . . I knew you were something special. Secrets never last long, and the sooner they come out the less damage they do.”
“I was handling it,” Alec grumbled.
“No, you were sticking your head in the sand while developing an obsession. I know I meddled, but I did what I thought was best for everyone. I did it because I love you.” Alec just grunted, but Charlie kept speaking. “When I saw you two meet for the first time in the square that day, I knew who and what you were.”
“Holy shit.” Charlie knew I was a Vital before I did. He knew my true identity and kept it to himself. “You knew the whole time? But Dot said she told you.”
He chuckled. “She did when she figured it out, but I already knew.”
“Oh man, don’t tell her she was actually the last one to figure it out. She’ll hate that.”
Charlie cringed. “Yeah, good point.”
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
“I was a virtual stranger. I may have known a lot about you, but you’d