“Used to. He was amazing, but he’s not really into music anymore.”
A frown crossed my face. King Williams was the CEO of Mongo Records. How could henotbe into music? “How come?”
Alec’s entire body tensed, and his lips remained clenched for so long that I was afraid my question had offended him. But finally he said, “My dad lost sight of why he started the label in the first place. All he cares about now is making money. Music has nothing to do with it.”
“Is that why your relationship with him is complicated?” I asked. “Because of music?” It was hard to imagine that the main source of joy in Alec’s life also doubled as the strain between him and his father.
“In part,” he said, his voice taking on a sudden edge.
The fire was dying down, and I watched as one of the logs broke apart, collapsing the pile. “And the other part?”
He sighed and raked a hand through his hair, disheveling his always-perfect bangs. “It’s not a big deal.”
Why don’t I believe you?The question must have been visible in my expression because Alec’s face softened and he smiled at me.
“Seriously, Felicity. Don’t worry about it. The only thing you should concentrate on right now is your sister. Do you know what you’re going to say to her?”
It was an obvious subject change, but one with a solid point. Tomorrow I was hopefully—no,finally—going to see Rose. The realization made my chest hurt, and I couldn’t tell if that pressure was the result of anxiety, elation, or pure terror. Probably a combination of all three.
“I’m not sure.” What did one say when they located a long-lost relative? I’ve missed you? What’s up? Where the hell have you been?
None of those seemed eloquent to me.
“Why don’t you sleep on it?” He stood before helping me up. “Come on. We should go to bed. You’ll have time to think about it in the car tomorrow.”
Chapter 16
The next morning, my phone buzzed violently on the bedside table, and I jolted awake. I’d forgotten to pull the curtains shut, and although it wasn’t California sunny, the natural light filtering in through the window made me blink and rub my eyes. I glanced at my watch. It wasn’t even seven.
Ugh. Why is anyone calling this early?
Alec and I had stayed up talking until two, and my body felt drained after such a late night. Still half-asleep, I stretched across the bed toward the nightstand. Right as my fingers brushed against my cell, the buzzing stopped.
Much better.
I burrowed back into the blankets. My alarm wasn’t set to go off for another two hours, and I didn’t want to waste another minute of my allotted sleep time. But before I could fade back into unconsciousness, the buzzing started again.
“Seriously?” I groaned, throwing off the covers and snatching my cell. What could be so important that someone needed to get ahold of meright now? I looked down at the caller ID and my heart sunk into my stomach.
It was my mom.
I’d expected a call from her today, but not this early. She hadn’t planned to be home until late. When Asha, Boomer, and Alec convinced me to push on to Seattle, I knew I’d have to tell her I’d left LA. But I’d been hoping to put that off until Monday. My plan had been to say I was sleeping at Asha’s tonight, then call her tomorrow after I found Rose. Looked like I’d have to fess up now.
I sucked in a small breath and pressed the talk button. “Mom, hi.”
“Hey, baby!” She was unusually upbeat, which I took as a positive sign. Maybe she wouldn’t get too upset about my road trip if she was in a good mood. “Your room’s empty. Are you at Asha’s? I know I wasn’t supposed to get back from Dave’s until after dinner, but we have some exciting news that I couldn’t wait to share.”
My shoulders slumped. “So you’re at home?”
“Yup. Dave’s making breakfast for us. Why don’t you have Mr. Van de Berg drive you home, and I’ll tell you all about it over bacon and pancakes.”
“I’m not at Asha’s,” I told her.
“Are you working a shift at the diner?” she asked. Then, “Do you want the Italian roast or the French?”
I frowned, unsure why the subject had suddenly changed to coffee, but then I realized she was talking to Dave and not me. I sighed and switched the phone to my other ear. It was time to get this over with, to face the truth whether I was ready to hear it or not. “I found the letters, Mom.”
There was a long pause on her end. My pulse picked up, and I pressed my hand to my heart as if it could slow the pounding.
