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“I’d heard some cities could be that way,” she says. “I used to take Jillian to malls in bigger towns when we lived in Fallen Pines, but we never made it to an actual city. What was it like to live there?”
It’s something I’d like to forget about, but my mate should know where I came from.
“It was kind of crazy,” I admit. “I mean when I was a kid, it was fun. Before I knew my dad wasn’t like all the other businessmen. I didn’t see the dirty side of his work. I knew he was rich and powerful. People respected him. I had no damn idea he was a mob boss. But, by the time he wanted me to join the family business, I knew exactly what he was, and I wanted no part of it.”
“Oh, my Goddess,” she murmurs. “That’s why you came to Wolf Creek, to the academy?”
I nod. “Yeah. I told him I couldn’t do what he was doing. He was disappointed, but he told me he understood. He gave me the credit card I still use. Told me he could never see me again. His men wouldn’t stand for me being around without being a part of his business. I can visit the city, but I’m not permitted to live there.”
“That’s awful,” she says. “I’m glad you ended up in Wolf Creek.”
“That was fated,” I tell her. “I knew it when I met Sean. I wasn’t sure about Dante, but if we hadn’t been waiting around for him to finish up at the academy we wouldn’t have been here when you showed up. I’d call that destiny.”
“This is the path you’re meant to be walking,” she says.
“My mom told me I had to find my path. I’ve definitely done that.”
“She sounds like a smart woman.”
“She was. She would have loved you.”
“I’m sure I would have loved her, too.”
I made the right choice. There was no real question. It wasn’t a difficult decision.
I know for sure if I’d stayed in the city, it would have been the worst mistake of my life. I would have ended up like my father, a cold-hearted old man with no idea what it means to be a decent person.
If something isn’t profitable, he has no real use for it.
After Mom died, I could tell he was applying that logic to me.
His ultimatum was simple and clearcut: I had to take over parts of his drug empire, or I had to leave.
Walking away was my only shot at a real life.
I tried not to use the credit card, but it was all he’d left me with.
My mom raised me. He was barely around. It used to upset Mom when he bought me dumb presents to make up for being away all the time and I broke them into pieces the second he left again. I learned to stop doing that to keep her happy.
I know she would want me to take whatever he offered, because it’s all he’s capable of giving and she saw that as his way of showing he cared. I’m not so sure the card is his way to show he cares, but I’ve been using it sporadically since he gave me it, and he’s never cut me off.
He probably doesn’t even look at the statements, just pays the balance automatically every month. I could never spend more in a month than he has in his pockets on a normal day.
“Are you okay, Parker?” Amanda asks.
I glance at her and catch her watching me with concern in her bright green eyes.
I clear my throat as I look back at the road. “Yeah, sorry. I just got a little lost in thought for a second.”
“Are you sure it’s okay if we head into the city?” she asks.
“It’s fine,” I assure her. “Sean knows all this stuff. I’ve been into Nightshade dozens of times before now. My father’s been true to his word. He doesn’t care if I come back for a night. He just doesn’t want me to stick around.”
“I’d better let Sean know we’re on our way,” she tells me.
“Right,” I mutter, nodding.
“You’re sure you’re okay?” she asks.
