Phoenix Heart: The Last Heir

CHAPTER 8: The Butler's Search

Alfred Whitmore sat in his study, polishing the silver watch that had belonged to Thomas Hale.

Even after nineteen years, he still performed this ritual every night before bed because it was the only thing he had left of the man who had been more than just his employer.

The mansion was quiet around him. Most of the staff had gone home hours ago and Alfred preferred it this way because the silence let him think, remember and hope that maybe tonight would be different from all the other nights.

Then the devices started beeping.

Alfred looked up from the watch and saw the sensor array on his desk lighting up like a Christmas tree.

His heart jumped into his throat because these devices had been silent for nineteen years. He had almost given up hope that they would ever make a sound again.

He dropped the watch, rushing to the desk and staring at the screens and the numbers which were climbing.

The energy signature was unmistakable. Alfred felt tears spring to his eyes because this was it. After all these years of searching, he had finally found what he was looking for.

The Phoenix Heart.

Alfred grabbed the portable scanner and his coat before running for the garage. His hands were shaking so badly he could barely get the key in the ignition, but he managed.

The car roared to life and he was speeding out of the driveway before the garage door had fully opened.

The scanner sat on the passenger seat, beeping steadily as Alfred followed the signal through the city.

His mind was racing because if the Phoenix Heart was active, then that meant someone had bonded with it.

There was only one bloodline that could do that. Thomas and Elizabeth were dead which meant somehow impossibly their son had survived.

Gabriel. Little Gabriel who had been three years old the last time Alfred saw him.

Little Gabriel who had loved chocolate milk and toy cars and who called him Uncle Freddy because he couldn't say Alfred properly.

Alfred wiped his eyes and focused on driving. The signal was getting stronger, leading him toward the east side where the motels were cheap and the neighborhood was rough.

This was no place for a Hale to be. If Gabriel had been lost all these years, then maybe he had ended up here like so many other forgotten children.

The scanner started beeping faster as Alfred turned onto a street lined with rundown buildings. The motel at the end had a flickering neon sign that said vacancy and the parking lot was mostly empty except for a few old cars.

He pulled in and parked, looking at the scanner. The signal was so strong now that the device was practically screaming.

The energy was coming from inside one of the rooms, and Alfred's hands wouldn't stop shaking.

He sat there for a moment and tried to calm down because he needed to be composed and professional.

He didn’t want to fall apart the second he saw the boy, but it was hard because he had promised Thomas that he would protect his son, but he had failed.

That failure had haunted him every single day for nineteen years.

Movement caught his eye, and Alfred looked up and saw a young man walking out of one of the rooms. Even from this distance, Alfred could see the resemblance, making his heart stop.

Dark hair like Thomas. Strong jaw like Elizabeth. Green eyes that even in the dim parking lot light seemed to glow with something that wasn't quite natural.

The scanner went completely crazy and the readings spiked higher than Alfred had ever seen. There was no doubt anymore and no room for questions.

This was Gabriel Hale and somehow against all odds, he had not only survived but had bonded with the Phoenix Heart.

Alfred instantly rolled down the window, his eyes brimming with tears as he croaked out before he could stop himself.

"Master Gabriel. I've been searching for you for nineteen years."

The young man instantly stopped, turning with his eyes meeting Alfred’s. His expression was cold and wary like a cornered animal as his eyes changed from green to bright amber.

Smoke began rising from his fingertips, curling into the air. Alfred realized with a shock that Gabriel thought he was a threat and was about to attack. He needed to fix this right now.

"Wait!" He exclaimed, holding up his hands and stepping away from the car. "I mean you no harm. Please. I'm not your enemy."

Gabriel's eyes were still glowing and the smoke was getting thicker. Alfred could feel heat radiating from him even from twenty feet away.

"Who are you?" Gabriel asked, his voice sounding rough like he had been screaming.

"My name is Alfred Whitmore," He kept his hands visible and non threatening. "I was your father's butler and I have been looking for you since the night your parents died."

Gabriel's eyes flickered and Alfred could see confusion warring with suspicion on his face.

"My father's butler?"

"Thomas Hale," Alfred said. "Your father. I served him for fifteen years and I was with him the day you were born. I watched you grow up until the night everything was taken from us."

The smoke was fading now and Gabriel's eyes were returning to normal, but he still looked ready to run or fight.

Alfred couldn't blame him because who knew what this boy had been through.

"I don't remember you." Gabriel shot out, his lips forming a thin line.

"You were only three years old," He continued, taking a careful step forward.

"But I remember you. You had a stuffed rabbit named Mr Floppy and you refused to go to sleep without it. You loved when your mother sang to you and your father used to carry you on his shoulders through the garden."

Gabriel's face crumpled for just a second and Alfred saw pain flash across it before the walls came back up.

"How do I know you're telling the truth?"

Alfred reached into his jacket slowly and pulled out the silver watch, holding it up.

"This was your father's watch. He wore it every day. On the back there's an inscription. To Thomas with all my love Elizabeth. It was a wedding gift."

Gabriel stared at the watch and something in his expression shifted. Alfred knew he was remembering things that the Phoenix Heart had shown him.

"Why weren't you there?" Gabriel asked, his voice cracking. "The night they died. Why weren't you there to stop it?"

The question hit Alfred like a knife and he had asked himself the same thing a thousand times. The answer never got easier.

"Your father sent me on a trip," Alfred whispered, his hands clenching into fists.

"To London to handle some business matters. I was gone for two weeks and when I came back, the house had burned down and the police told me everyone was dead.I tried to find you but there was nothing left. No trace of where you had gone."

Alfred's voice broke and he couldn't help the tears which trickled down his cheeks.

"I've been searching ever since," He continued. "I hired investigators and private detectives. I followed every lead and every rumor but you had vanished. I thought I had failed you and failed your father's memory,"

Gabriel was quiet for a long moment and just stood there in the parking lot. Alfred could see him processing everything and trying to decide if this was real or another trap.

"Get in the car," Alfred said. "Please. Let me explain everything and if you still want to leave, then I won't stop you, but you deserve to know the truth about who you are and what you're meant to be."

Gabriel looked at the car and then back at Alfred and finally after what felt like an eternity, he nodded. He walked over and got in the passenger seat.

Alfred got behind the wheel, his hands still shaking, but this time it was from relief, joy and the overwhelming feeling that maybe just maybe he could finally make things right.

They sat in silence for a moment and Alfred didn't know where to start. Gabriel was staring out the window, looking lost.

"I remember them now," Gabriel finally said. "My parents. The Phoenix Heart showed me everything. I saw Siegel kill them. I saw him order his men to dump me in the streets."

Alfred's hands tightened on the steering wheel and rage burned through him. He had suspected Ian Siegel all along but could never prove it.

"Ian Siegel stole everything. Your father's company. His fortune. His legacy. I've been gathering evidence for years, but he's too well protected and too powerful."

"Not anymore," Gabriel’s voice was ice cold as he held up his hand, flames danced across his palm. "I have the Phoenix Heart now. I can make him pay."

"Yes," Alfred said quickly.

"But you need to understand what the Phoenix Heart is and what it means that you've bonded with it. Your father spent years searching for it because it was meant to protect our family and now that you have it, everything changes."

Gabriel turned to look at him, his eyes sharp and focused.

"Tell me about the Phoenix Heart. Tell me everything.”