AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“No. Not me. I couldn’t provide her with the truth, but I sent her in the right direction.”
“Will the truth hurt you?”
“It already has,” I say, acknowledging that I’ll never see Chosen again.
Mom’s soft, gentle hands touch mine. “Everything will be alright,” she says.
She said the same thing the night she shot my father…Everything is going to be alright, and I believed her.
I look down. She pulls away, and the image of her shaking hand holding a gun flashes in my mind. It haunts me—the start to the end of my childhood.
“Sometimes,” she says, drawing my eyes back to hers, “not knowing the truth is better.”
“Sometimes?” I raise my eyebrows. “We met Lucy Deetman, Mom. She told us everything. About why you married him. She told us about Zach.”
She leans back in the chair, the color draining from her face.
“I get it. I’d do anything for my brothers.Anything.” I press my lips together. “Why didn’t you tell us?”
“This doesn’t change anything, Felix.”
“Mom, it changes everything.” I lean in closer. “It wasn’t premeditated. You have a good chance of getting out early. Brett’s working on it—”
“No. It’s best if you boys let this go. You’re all in such a good place. I’ll finish out my time.”
“Mom—”
“Felix.” She cuts me off. “I need you boys to let this go. What happened all those years ago, keep it where it belongs in the past. I don’t want to drag it back into your lives. All I want is for you all to be happy.”
“But you could get out of here.” I’m failing. Brett is going to be pissed.
“Honey, I need you to promise me you’ll let this go. I don’t want you thinking about what happened, the past, not your father, or that night. I want you to keep moving forward, find a nice girl like your brothers, and be happy. Please, do this for me.”
I stare at her, confused and hurt. I’ve waited all this time to see her and don’t want to spend it arguing. Fuck it. I’ll let Brett fight this battle.
“Okay, Mom,” I say with a forced smile.
Chapter 20
“You didn’t need to come with me.”
“Yeah.” Selina looks down the alley. I see her cop instincts kicking into overdrive. “I wasn’t going to let you do this alone.”
“I’ll be fine.” I yank my purse up on my shoulder.
A man in a dark hoodie walks toward us with his hands in his pockets.
I squint against the darkness. “Finch?”
His beady eyes shift between Selina and me like he’s in the back alley searching for his next fix. “Yeah.” He sweeps the surroundings once more. “You bring the money?”
I pull the envelope from my purse and hold it up, understanding it will pay for his next fix. I don’t care. I need answers, and the previously MIA Vinny Fincher might have them.
“Okay,” he says, shifting his feet and touching his face. “But I’ll only talk to you. That’s it.”
“Sure.” Selina plucks the envelope from my fingers. “You two go talk. You’ll get this when you’re done.” She smirks at Finch.
He glances to the left, then back at the money. “Yeah. Aight.” He nudges his head to the left. “Over there.”
