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“Hi.” I leave out ‘mom’ or ‘Rose’ because I’m not sure what frame of mind she’s in today. Until I figure that out, I’ll keep my answers short.

“Brother,” Rhea grumbles.

“I’m glad you’re here,” Rose says.

“Why is that?”

“Well, I think it’s time I tell you about your father.”

“I’m going to get going,” Rhea says as she gets out of the chair that's placed next to Rose’s bed. Her feet get twisted, and she stumbles, almost crashing into the side table before she catches herself.

“Oh my, Rhea?”

“It’s okay, Mom. I’m not feeling well today.”

I watch as Rose eyes her daughter with pursed lips. She’s not buying it. “Here.” I reach into my pocket and pull out some money. “Go get something to drink. I hear their coffee isn’t so bad.” I give her a pointed look, hoping she gets my drift. “Don’t go anywhere because I want to talk to you before I leave.”

“Where are you going?”

I glance at Rose who is listening intently to the conversation. “Nowhere, I mean before I leave here.”

Rhea takes the money and jerks her head before striding towards the door and closing it behind her. “She is completely my fault,” Rose sighs behind me.

“Why do you think that?” I ask as I pull the chair away from her bed and take a seat.

“She’s a drunk already, and she’s not even of the age to drink yet. She’s ruining her entire life because she’s had me as a mother.” Her chest rises again with another sigh. “I’m shocked that Loa is turning out as well as she is.”

“Why haven’t I seen her around?”

“She’s ashamed of me. I don’t blame her. Look at me.” She waves her hands around. “I would be ashamed if I were her.” She rubs her lips together as she stares out of the window. I want to comfort her, but I’m not sure if that’s what she needs. “So.” She clears her throat and looks at me. “Where should I start?”

“I’m not sure. I’d say from the beginning, but I’m not sure we have that much time.”

She laughs a little. “You aren’t wrong about that my boy.” She adjusts the blanket that covers her lap, and with a deep breath, she starts. “I loved your father, and it had nothing to do with the club. I loved that man before there was ever a club. He was everything I ever wanted. The club became like an obsession for him. When I found out I was pregnant with you, I thought maybe he would turn his focus on us as a family. Even before we were married, we always talked about having a family.” Her confession makes my stomach dip.

“After you were born he was so attentive to us both. He put us first and the club second. Devin didn’t have an issue about that because he loved his family. But then the Diablos thought having both Devin and your father so family focused made the Fury weak. When word got out that the Diablos were planning a territory invasion, things changed. He became focused on the club, on strengthening it.”

She told me of a man who changed from a loving man to one who wanted more power than what he was granted. She revealed nights where he would come home drunk and rage about being second and never being able to be first because everyone respected Devin more than him. He was full of jealousy, tired of living in the shadows of his president. He wanted to live in the light. He wanted what he couldn’t have, so he thought he’d be able to prove his loyalty someplace else.

The Diablos.

“There was a traitor in the Diablos. Someone who wanted the same thing that your father wanted. Your father told me of this plan. The start of a partnership, the start of a great MC that would rule in both gun and drugs. In that, to prove to himself, he’d have to give them his most prized possession. This was the only way they would be able to work together.” My stomach rolls because I’m sure I know where this is going.

“When he came to me about it I told him he was crazy. The plan wouldn’t work. That he would ruin his life, our life if he went along with it. But there was no stopping him.” She stops and takes a deep breath. My heart is hammering in my chest.

When she looks at me, her blue eyes shimmer with tears. “I loved him,” she chokes out. “I was stupid in love with that man, so I gave him what he asked.”

She told me about being passed around from man to man. The plaything of the up and coming MC that would rule the state. Thoughts of Tessa flash in my mind. Tessa being held down on the filthy cement, crying out as she was forced to give them something that no person should be forced to provide. Then my mind roams to visions of my mother, younger than what she is now, loving a man who didn’t deserve her. Who didn’t deserve to breathe the same air she breathed, let alone have her heart.

“It went on for months. The man who he made a deal with was found dead, throat slashed. To this day, I don’t understand how Devin never found out what your father was up to, but that was the same time when Devin’s paranoia about keeping his family safe grew. He didn’t allow Bianca out without the protection of the club. I know for a fact that if anyone caught word as to what your father was up to, they would have killed him. It didn’t matter that he was VP.” She takes another shuddering breath. “Then I found out I was pregnant.”

Her confession was almost a whisper. When she doesn’t say thing else, my mind starts to work out the timeline. Loa, is older than Rhea, but is she old enough? I’m not sure since I haven’t been able to hold a decent conversation with my little sister long enough to get out the information that I need.

“When I told your father, he blew up at me. I’m not sure what he expected, he was basically whoring his wife out to a rival MC, and yet he was surprised when I came up pregnant.”

“Is Loa my father’s daughter?” I ask the question even though I didn’t want to know the answer. Tessa and Sam come to my mind again.

“No.” She looks away again. “Your father took me to a clinic. I fought him–crying. I didn’t want to get rid of my baby.” She wipes the tears from her face with gentle swipes. “I pleaded with him, asking if he would risk the fact that it could be his, but he didn’t want to hear it. He said he couldn’t take that chance because if this came to light, he knew it would destroy his reputation and his relationship with Devin. He thought it was a sign that the man was killed, that his place was where he’s always been—Fury. The only way to erase his mistake was to get rid of the baby.” She chokes back a sob. “That it was my duty as his wife to stand by his side.”