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Terry stood along with me, obviously unsure of what to do as I turned my back on him and strode to the door. I gripped the handle, but before I swung it open, I turned back. “I don’t suppose you know where my grandmother is right now?”
After one more stop to a less fancy but still nice enough bathroom to dry heave, I gathered my fresh outrage and betrayal and combined them with every feeling I’d been forced to suppress over the last eleven years of my existence, creating a volatile, potent cocktail of audacity.
I took in nothing during the walk to Grandmother, easily filtering out the sounds, sights, smells, and people of the casino while somewhere in the back of my mind acknowledging that it may be the last time I walked these floors. I came to a halt when I found her at the end of a row of slots, her gaze fixed on the $1 hot peppers machine.
“Grandmother.”
Her eyes flicked to me, but she didn’t respond, instead slapping the spin button again, the chili peppers spinning repeatedly on the reel more important than anything I had to offer.
I didn’t bother calling her name again, but I reached out and touched her shoulder. She jerked violently, snapping her head toward me, causing me to jump in turn.
“Heavens above! What has gotten into you, grabbing me like that?” she reprimanded, eyes flicking down my outfit—and my entire being—in judgment.
“I need to speak with you.”
She reared back in surprise, probably having expected an apology. “Well, young lady, it must be important if you’re here speaking like this and dressed like that.” She glanced around the room, probably scanning to see how much privacy we had. It wasn’t much, so she turned back to her machine, giving it one more spin and smiling when she got a favorable payout. “My charm,” she drawled as she cashed out of the machine.
The nausea raced back, and I glanced around for the nearest bathroom—just in case. She situated the voucher in her purse and zipped the bag up tightly, then threw it over her shoulder before slowly getting to her feet.
“Would you like to go to your room to talk or the café?”
My audacity concerning my grandmother only went so far, apparently, because instead of asking her directly, I casually slipped in that I knew about the full nature of her room.
My gaze caught on her signature black cat Halloween brooch that was glimmering on her lapel as she fussed with her bag, making no move to answer my question.
I pressed on but kept my voice low. “I know about the contract.” When she didn’t respond, I carried on but was unable to keep pleading tone out of my voice. “Tell me you didn’t do that. Tell me you didn’t negotiate a Lady Luck contract with the Junos and forge my signature.”
She frowned at me, the wrinkled creases of her face seeming more pronounced than the last time I’d seen her. “What on Earth are you talking about?”
“Just tell me. Please. Tell me you didn’t negotiate a permanent room for yourself at the casino. Tell me you didn’t….” I paused, waffling on lodging the next accusation her way. The one that had weighed on my mind the heaviest. “Grandmother,” I whispered, “tell me you didn’t move me out of your house as a way to push me toward needing more money.”
She smoothed imaginary lines out of her clothes. “Everything I do is for you.”
I dropped my head back and closed my eyes, the tears that had been on deck all day finally coming up to bat.
“Tell me how this was for me,” I whispered, my voice cracking.
“My charm, you’ve changed recently and not for the better. Ever since you’ve been hanging around those boys.”
My gaze sharpened on her, and she laughed quietly. “Oh, yes. I know about them. People talk. You should never forget that.”
I considered how she could know about either Vinh or Liem, but then it hit me. “You mean AJ talks.”
Her expression remained unaffected. “Well, how else was I to know what was going on with you? You’ve barely been around, and it has been noticed.”
“And what about you, Grandmother? When was the last time you were actually at your home?”
Her eyes darkened. “Don’t you speak to me with that disrespectful tone. That is exactly the kind of behavior I would have never expected from you. It’s the influence of those boys—I guarantee it. But not to worry. I saw what was happening and have worked to set you right.”
“Grandmother,” I snapped, losing any semblance of patience. “I know this won’t be heard, but ‘those boys’ and the family they belong to are some of the best and kindest people that I’ve ever met.”
She sneered. “You cannot trust anyone but blood, Felicity.”
“My name is Bree, and I am not my mother,” I gritted out, my hands clenching into fists at my side.
She looked down her nose at me. “No, you certainly are not, though you seem determined to make the same mistakes that she did.”
I blew out an exasperated breath and forcibly relaxed my hands. “Okay. Well. I guess I’ll follow in her footsteps and let you know that I’m moving off your property. I’ll have my stuff gone by the end of the day.”
