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I think of Zaja’s cries of pain during her final few days. The woman was fundamentally broken, yet Todd allowed her to take their daughter. I hate that old bastard. Meanwhile, Fiona is forced to kiss up to Todd, his gold digger, and those two vile sons to survive.
While texting Fiona to see if she’s okay, I ask Wynonna, “How would you handle Eagle’s sisters if you were me?”
Wynonna’s brown eyes light up. “Well, don’t you dare be nice to them. Just act bored, as if you’re above them. They’re like high school mean girls. If you show even a hint of concern over their opinion, they’ll give you hell. Act haughty, and they’ll behave.”
“I’m good at seeming cold.”
“Not really,” Wynonna states. “You seem sad whenever I look at you.”
“Really?”
Glancing around the room, I notice the others watching me. Landry’s big brown eyes hold such emotion. I suddenly realize they know about Owen and the baby.
“Do I look sad, or do you just assume I should?”
Shaking her head, Wynonna insists, “Whenever you’re not directly focused on a person, you look like someone ripped out your heart and is currently showing it to you.”
On the spot, I lower my gaze. “Well, that’s not how I feel.”
“Once pain settles into your bones,” Landry says in a hushed voice, “you don’t feel it anymore.”
The room goes still. Even the woman trimming my toenails pauses before returning to her task.
Exhaling uneasily, I shrug. “I was still young when my heart broke. I guess it became part of me without me noticing.”
Wynonna looks around before inhaling sharply. “Well, don’t show your heart to Eagle’s sisters, especially June. That bitch has been banned from like six local places for flipping out on staff or other customers. She was in a viral video years ago where she got in a food fight at a McDonald’s. You can’t even imagine how proud she was of that fact.”
“Her poor kids,” Callie says, shaking her head. “Standing there cheering on their mom like she wasn’t a fucking loser. Those boys are already doomed.”
“Poor Eagle,” I mumble. “The one person he loved is gone, yet he’s stuck with his terrible stepfather and those sisters.”
Wynonna sighs deeply. “I know Eagle feels like he needs to help his nieces and nephews, but they’re mostly evil little shits. He could just send a damn check monthly to each idiot sister without seeing them.”
“So why doesn’t he?”
“They remind him of his mom,” Wynonna explains, and her words ring true. “One of his nieces looks a lot like Jillian. His sister Harper has his mom’s eyes. That’s why he endures them up close.”
Working up my courage, I ask, “What was his mom like?”
“She was no saint,” Wynonna mutters before shrugging. “But she wasn’t a monster, either. I mean, fuck her, right? She married that dickhead and put her son aside.”
Everyone gets quiet again.
Callie shakes her head. “You don’t know what goes on in people’s hearts, Wynonna Macready.”
“I’m married now. Use my last name.”
“No.”
“I’m telling my dad on you.”
“He’ll care so little that he might take a nap.”
Wynonna rolls her eyes and sighs. “I mean, yeah, Jillian could be cool. She totally caught us a few times partying down in the basement. We weren’t supposed to be over there. That dickhead Lloyd once caught Hoyt and Nash in his backyard and yelled at them. He even threatened to call the cops. I heard Dad and Uncle Glenn had a talk with Lloyd afterward. I bet that went well.”
Wynonna and Callie share a snicker. Apparently, Ed Macready and Glenn Childs were tough guys back in the day. Based on the latter’s willingness to kill Marky at the park, I assume the men haven’t changed much.
“Jillian was young when she had Eagle,” I say, wanting to protect a woman I’ll never know. “And Lloyd sounds like a bully.”
