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Julia’s face turned a dark shade of red. I put my hand on her shoulder, but she didn’t look at me. “Excuse me?”
Victoria turned partially to look at Julia. She blinked innocently. “What? I think it’s past time for Alexi to come back for a visit, don’t you? She hasn’t been on Arcadia Prime since you joined IPF.”
“What makes you think you can come in here like this and whisk Alexi away?” Julia planted her feet, an obvious sign she was preparing for a fight.
Alexi glared at her sister, moving around her mother. “Chill out, Julia. I can go see Mom if I want to. What’s wrong with me going to Arcadia Prime?”
“You have school, for one.”
“It’s on the net. I can do that anywhere.”
Julia’s look didn’t change. “I’m working on a dangerous case, was just kidnapped, and you’re not going without me.”
Alexi stamped her feet. “You’re being ridiculous! She’s my mother!”
Victoria put her hand on Alexi’s shoulder, but also gave Julia a hard look. “Alexi’s right. If she wants to visit me then she should be able to. Her life can’t revolve around your work, Julia. That isn’t fair to her.”
There was a manipulative tone in her voice that made me fold my arms. Julia obviously caught it, too. “Legally, you’re not her mother. You haven’t been her mother foryears. You don’t get to come in here whenever you please and try and act like a mother. I’m her guardian and I will do what’s best for her.”
“Just because I made a few mistakes does not mean I am not her mother.”
“A few…mistakes?” Julia’s voice shook. Her hands clamped into fists, and I could feel the rage emanating from her.
Alexi looked like she was going to cry. Jordan stepped in and took her by the shoulders. “Come on, kid. Let’s let these guys talk for a minute.”
Although she didn’t seem to want to, she allowed Jordan to lead her from the room. Victoria didn’t even wait until she was out of sight before folding her arms and adopting a self-righteous tone. “You think just because everyone isn’t perfect like you that you’re better than everyone else. Well, honey, that’s not how it works in the real world.”
Julia didn’t seem to be listening. Her mind seemed to be stuck on her mother’s earlier comment. “Mistakes?” She snapped. “Getting high every night is just amistake? Spending all your money on drugs so I have to go and beg the neighbors for food for me and Alexi is amistake? Shacking up with one of your dealers to get free drugs is amistake?” Her voice rose in pitch. “Let me tell you something about mistakes. A mistake is forgetting to pay for a parking ticket. A mistake is forgetting when trash day is or filling out the wrong paper at work. Those are mistakes. What you’ve done, those aren’t mistakes; those are serious life choices.”
Victoria rolled her eyes. “Getting addicted to drugs was a mistake, I know that and I’m in rehab. Four months clean.”
Julia clapped mockingly. “A new record! Bet you won’t make it to six.”
Victoria glared. “A little bit of support would help. My counselors say addicts have a much better recovery rate when their families support them.”
“You’ve lost your right to call me family, Victoria. You haven’t acted like a mother to me since Dad died.”
“That’s not fair.” Victoria looked like Julia had slapped her in the face.
Julia took a deep breath, trying to rein in her anger. “Dad dying wasn’t fair, but what you did was abandon your kids to your grief. All the horrible choices you made affected the both of us! How do you expect me not to be angry at you?”
“I did the best I could.” Victoria lifted her chin, still refusing to back down. “And if Alexi wants to pursue a relationship with me then who are you to refuse?”
Julia stuck her finger in her mother’s face. “I’m the one who has taken care of her! I’ve tried so hard to keep her from knowing about all the awful things you’ve done so the two of you could one day have a relationship if you ever actually manage to get sober. I haven’t told her about the arrests or the beatings or the time you tried to sell her for drugs. Do you even remember that? She was three, and you tried to pawn her off to your drug dealer for more drugs!”
Victoria had the decency to look ashamed. “I’m not proud of the things I did.”
Julia yanked at her hair, the frustration obvious. “Do you have any idea what happened to us in the foster homes? I took the beatings, did whatever I needed to do to keep anyone from laying hands on her. I made sure she had food and clothes and that none of our foster parents or foster siblings touched her. Not one.” Tears were welling in her eyes. “It was horrible. I never had a childhood. I gave up everything so Alexi could be a kid. And so long as I am breathing, I will not let you pull her into your destructive vortex. You said you were clean, so many times. And yet you would run right back to the drugs. Even at my graduation, in a room filled to the brim with cops, you were higher than a kite. You can’t screw up her life like you did mine.”
Victoria’s lip trembled, the first sign that Julia’s words hurt her. Julia kept going. “When Alexi is eighteen, if she decides she wants to pursue a relationship with you, then I won’t be able to stop her. But until then, she isn’t going to go anywhere alone with you. If you want to spend time with her then you need to prove you mean it. One-year sober, steady job, a place to live, routine drug tests, and if you have another man, I have to approve of him. Background check, drug test, the whole nine yards. Clear?”
Silence blanketed the room for several moments. Victoria shook her head. “There’s no way I’ll ever make you happy, is there? No matter what I do, you’ll never forgive me.”
“You haven’t earned my forgiveness yet.”
“Then what can I do?” Victoria’s voice rose in anger. “What will make you happy? What do you want from me? I’m trying my hardest here.”
“I want you to love your daughters more than you love drugs!” A tear ran down her face, and she swiped it with the back of her hand. I wrapped an arm around her waist, quietly offering what support I could. “That’s all I’ve ever wanted. You’ve never loved us enough to break your addiction. We were never important enough. We were your daughters! You would have done anything to get high. Getting your fix was more important to you than making sure we had food in our mouths and clothes on our backs!”
