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“What’s going on, Decker?” Cedric’s voice comes through the speakers almost immediately. There’s some urgency in his voice. Maybe he’s about to go out for the night or something like that.
“So many things,” Gabe starts, his eyes flickering to the rearview mirror before returning to the road. “I’m surprised you haven’t come down to visit your sister yet.”
There’s a pause on the other end. “How do you know Izzy is in the hospital?”
“Ameline,” Gabe responds succinctly, his grip on the steering wheel tightening just a fraction.
“Ameline is there? You saw her?” Cedric asks incredulously. “What the fuck is going on? Why is she even there?” His voice rises.
“She’s checking on Izzy,” Gabe responds with a tone that almost sounds as if he’s saying, ‘isn’t that obvious?’
“Is—is Ameline okay?” he asks, concerned.
The irony of his sudden worry for me isn’t lost. “Oh, now you’re concerned about me? How sweet,” I snap back, unable to hide my bitterness. “The last time I was in trouble and begged you not to abandon me, you didn’t give two fucks. It feels like you’re doing the same to Izzy. I wonder why.”
“You wouldn’t understand,” Cedric dismisses, his voice distant and detached over the speaker.
“It’s impossible to understand how you abandoned your niece and nephew.” My voice is sharp, slicing through the tense air in the car.
“No one said they needed me,” Cedric dares to say. “Earlier today I got a call from the hospital telling me she had a stroke and was in a coma. She’s not going anywhere. I’ll be there when she’s awake.”
His response is infuriating. I want to yell at him, shake him for being so inconsiderate and cold with his sister, but I have to focus on Cora and Caleb.
“Where do you think the kids are right now?” I press him, anger boiling in my veins.
“Not sure, but I certainly can’t look after them,” Cedric responds, his voice casual, almost dismissive, over the speakerphone. “Dad’s got Alzheimer’s, and I’m the one looking after him. You should help me with that.”
“Why don’t you send your father to a care facility for Alzheimer’s patients?” I ask, frustration coloring my tone as I fiddle with the hem of my shirt, trying to process this information.
“We can’t afford it,” he replies flatly. “But you’re welcome to pay for it.”
I want to argue that Richard is his father, but a part of me knows it’s not worth it to argue with him about the past. “So, you’re saying you won’t help with Izzy’s kids at all?”
“They’re not my problem. I told her to stop drinking and popping pills, but she never listened,” Cedric says matter-of-factly. Maybe I should tell him that’s not how addiction works but I don’t see the point to correct him and just keep listening to him. “Then she goes and fucks one of her students. That’s why she got fired, you know.”
“You know who Caleb’s father is?” I ask incredulously, meeting Gabe’s equally shocked gaze. I point at the road, reminding him to focus on driving.
“Not exactly, but you could check with her former students,” Cedric suggests nonchalantly. “She was probably too inebriated to know who she fucked.”
“You knew about her problems and didn’t help her?” I ask, my voice rising, incredulous.
“She didn’t help me when I needed her. Why would I give two fucks about her?” Cedric’s voice is loud, angry.
“When exactly did you need Izzy’s help?” I lean forward closer to the speaker, despite the confines of the car seat, waiting for his answer. “And how bad was it that now, when she and the kids desperately need you, you don’t give any fucks about her?”
“I only give the fucks I have to spare, which aren’t many,” he says defensively. “And if you must know, I needed her when Dad was married to Karla.”
“So, you didn’t get along with one of your father’s wives, and that is reason enough to ignore her?” I ask, anger boiling hot in my veins.
I clench my jaw, nostrils flaring as I glare at the phone, fury coursing through every fiber of my being. The callousness of his words leaves me absolutely enraged on Izzy’s behalf.
“Karla molested me up until I went to college,” Cedric says bluntly. “I asked Izzy for help, but she didn’t care. I dealt with it alone.”
I suck in a sharp breath, outrage and dismay swirling inside me. She didn’t believe her own brother? Just left him to suffer years of sexual abuse?
“Cee,” I sigh, my heart breaking for my big brother. The one who used to love me and protect me. “You should’ve told me.”
“You were just a kid,” he snaps. There’s noise on his end, then he adds, “Listen, I honestly don’t have time for them. It was . . . nice speaking to you. We’ll make sure to pray for her.”
