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I tense for a moment before hugging her back. Steve steps out of the house, looking around, a gun in his hands. “How did you get here?” he asks me.
“He’s not here,” I explain. “So, you can put your gun away.” I turn to Mom. “Who is this guy?”
“We hired him as a guard after you were kidnapped to prevent the same thing from happening to the other kids. But enough talk. Come in, come in.” She ushers me inside, Steve following, a hard look in his eye.
Stepping inside my home is like wrapping a warm blanket around myself. I’ve missed this.
Mom makes me sit down on the couch and explain everything. “How did you escape? I saw you yesterday at Coney Island. You were hurt. Gemma—”
I hold up my hand. “I’ll tell you everything. But where is everybody else?”
“At school right now. They each have a guard with them. I wasn’t taking chances.”
“And Franco?”
“He’s … at work.”
“I take it the police didn’t detain him for long.”
Mom sits down next to me, grabbing my hand. “I don’t want to talk about Franco. I want to know how you are. Did that man hurt you? Are you ok?”
I’ve never seen my mom this frantic over me. It’s overwhelming. “Mom, slow down. I’m ok. I’m fine, truly. Viktor didn’t … hurt me.”
“Thank god for that. Oh, thank god for that.” She pulls me back into her arms, squeezing me tightly. “I’ve been so scared.”
“You told me on the phone you’ve been crying every day. Is that true?”
“Yes. I haven’t stopped.” She sniffles. “See? I’m still crying.”
“I didn’t know you cared that much about me.”
Mom gives me a look like I’m truly insane. “Gemma, how could you say that? You’re my daughter. Of course, I care what happens to you. Why do you think I was trying to so hard to find you a good match? I know you’d never settle down for just any man. I’ve only wanted you to be happy.”
“Really? I thought you were trying to marry me off to get me off your hands. You told me it was my duty to marry well and make this family proud.”
She rubs her eyes. “I did, didn’t I? Yes. I wanted you to make us proud, but I also wanted you to be happy. That’s why I gave you the choice of who to marry. I knew you’d never agree to marriage otherwise. You’re too stubborn.”
I guess I had my mom all wrong. She could be cold at times, but my kidnapping has really taken a toll on her. She loves me, and I don’t know why it took me this long to realize it. I have a bad habit of being stuck on my own problems instead of focusing on other people.
“Mom, you’re really happy I’m back home?”
“Oh, Gemma.” Her hands fall into her lap. “I’m so happy you’re home. I’ve wished for nothing else these past weeks.”
I pull my knees into my chest, feeling the need to protect myself. “But I saw you guys at Coney Island yesterday. You were having a family day. How could you have a family day knowing I was missing?”
“Because I wanted your siblings to have a nice day out. They’ve been so stressed lately. They’ve all been missing you. I just wanted to see them smile for once. None of them have since you were taken.”
“Really?”
“Yes.” She grabs my hands. “But, Gemma, what were you doing there yesterday? That monster let you out finally? Why didn’t you try to escape. I saw you. You ran away with him.”
“Uh, because Franco was shooting at us.”
She waves a dismissive hand. “That’s not what I mean. I don’t understand.”
“Viktor … Well, he can be a monster. I won’t deny that. But … he’s not a monster to me. We went out yesterday on a … date.” I swallow hard, staring into the confused eyes of my mother.
“A date? That doesn’t make sense.”
