THE CHAMELEON Read Online Free
Author: Kelly Ilebode
week preparing for the trip, Sakis’s words kept repeating over and over in my head about work. You know, Alicia, I have been working nonstop since I started here. With no complaints,” he added quickly. “I am honestly not even sure I even know how to have down time, or who I am, for that matter, besides being Stephanous the bodyguard.”
Alicia knew there was more. “And Greece?”
“I never had an issue going back when Sakis had business to attend to. The travel was very much part of my job.” Shrugging, he locked eyes with her. “To go for vacation? That I have no desire for.” Stephan hesitated before he opened up even more. “I was abandoned as a baby. Left like garbage on the steps of an orphanage. My birth mother had not even cared enough to give me a name. One of the nuns, Sister Katherine, named me Stephanous because of a unique birthmark, in the shape of a crown on my body, or so she told me, during a period of my life when I had become curious about my parents.”
Stephan held back the rest of the story, choosing not to share that when Stephan reached his teenage years, he rebelled big time, working for the underground, where he had become street wise. When he was hungry, he learned to feed himself; when faced with danger, learned to think quickly on his feet. He wanted to tell her, but couldn’t quite manage opening up every wound. “Greece is the place I was born, Alicia. Where I grew from a child into a man. My home is Boston. Here, with you, and Sakis. This opportunity to spend eight weeks free of work is a curious notion I have never even contemplated. Yes, I find myself wanting to take the time off. I want to find out who my birth parents are.”
Catching the tears that glistened behind Alicia’s eyes, Stephan grimaced, embarrassed he had shared too much. “Do not feel sorry for me, please. I am not sure why I am even sharing this all with you right now, except that maybe it is time to let some of the past go. I thought I had accepted my fate years ago. Maybe I haven’t.”
Touching Stephan’s arm gently, she patted him before she moved back to the front of the desk and slid on her jacket. Her heart broke for him. She knew he would not want to see that pain from her but she also knew she couldn’t leave him like this. He seemed so lost.
“I was unable to have children. My tears are only a reflection of regret with fate’s choices. If you had been my son, Stephan, I would be so proud of who you are and everything you have accomplished. That being said, you do not know the circumstance of your birth. There has to be more to the story of Stephanous Petros that is unsaid. Maybe this is the perfect time to figure out who you were in the past. Learn the story of where you came from, find the answers to your questions if you feel you have to, and maybe it will even make you stronger for your future. As far as Sakis and I go, we are your family and proudly so. For us, and I know I can speak for Sakis in this, the man who stands in front of me tonight is enough.”
Stephan turned back to stare out of the window, surprised that she understood so quickly, with the small amount that he told her. His throat tightened at not only her words but also the sincerity behind them. A lightness rose inside he had never felt before.
“Maybe. Good night, Alicia.”
CHAPTER 3
(Stephanous: five years old) The young nun walked toward the rose garden quickly, knowing in her heart she would find him there, while the others searched frantically throughout the rest of the orphanage for the small boy. Her favorite orphan was a creature of habit. Moments later, she saw the small figure hunched over on the stone bench, hands clasped between his knees, head bowed. Anyone else would have thought he was praying, but she knew better. Her steps slowed with relief, catching sight of him, his hair a mass of curls that lent him an unkempt look even though he valiantly tried to keep it neat. Her habit swished slightly as
Alicia knew there was more. “And Greece?”
“I never had an issue going back when Sakis had business to attend to. The travel was very much part of my job.” Shrugging, he locked eyes with her. “To go for vacation? That I have no desire for.” Stephan hesitated before he opened up even more. “I was abandoned as a baby. Left like garbage on the steps of an orphanage. My birth mother had not even cared enough to give me a name. One of the nuns, Sister Katherine, named me Stephanous because of a unique birthmark, in the shape of a crown on my body, or so she told me, during a period of my life when I had become curious about my parents.”
Stephan held back the rest of the story, choosing not to share that when Stephan reached his teenage years, he rebelled big time, working for the underground, where he had become street wise. When he was hungry, he learned to feed himself; when faced with danger, learned to think quickly on his feet. He wanted to tell her, but couldn’t quite manage opening up every wound. “Greece is the place I was born, Alicia. Where I grew from a child into a man. My home is Boston. Here, with you, and Sakis. This opportunity to spend eight weeks free of work is a curious notion I have never even contemplated. Yes, I find myself wanting to take the time off. I want to find out who my birth parents are.”
Catching the tears that glistened behind Alicia’s eyes, Stephan grimaced, embarrassed he had shared too much. “Do not feel sorry for me, please. I am not sure why I am even sharing this all with you right now, except that maybe it is time to let some of the past go. I thought I had accepted my fate years ago. Maybe I haven’t.”
Touching Stephan’s arm gently, she patted him before she moved back to the front of the desk and slid on her jacket. Her heart broke for him. She knew he would not want to see that pain from her but she also knew she couldn’t leave him like this. He seemed so lost.
“I was unable to have children. My tears are only a reflection of regret with fate’s choices. If you had been my son, Stephan, I would be so proud of who you are and everything you have accomplished. That being said, you do not know the circumstance of your birth. There has to be more to the story of Stephanous Petros that is unsaid. Maybe this is the perfect time to figure out who you were in the past. Learn the story of where you came from, find the answers to your questions if you feel you have to, and maybe it will even make you stronger for your future. As far as Sakis and I go, we are your family and proudly so. For us, and I know I can speak for Sakis in this, the man who stands in front of me tonight is enough.”
Stephan turned back to stare out of the window, surprised that she understood so quickly, with the small amount that he told her. His throat tightened at not only her words but also the sincerity behind them. A lightness rose inside he had never felt before.
“Maybe. Good night, Alicia.”
CHAPTER 3
(Stephanous: five years old) The young nun walked toward the rose garden quickly, knowing in her heart she would find him there, while the others searched frantically throughout the rest of the orphanage for the small boy. Her favorite orphan was a creature of habit. Moments later, she saw the small figure hunched over on the stone bench, hands clasped between his knees, head bowed. Anyone else would have thought he was praying, but she knew better. Her steps slowed with relief, catching sight of him, his hair a mass of curls that lent him an unkempt look even though he valiantly tried to keep it neat. Her habit swished slightly as
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