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“Did ye ever see her?” Jackson asked softly. “Raphael never said.”
“She’s alive. She married a Mafia man who was a rival to the people Dad worked for. She upped and left, turning her back on us completely and never called after. It was no big loss. We were only ever accessories to her.”
The picture in my head was vivid as it was stark. Mom in a pretty dress, her dark hair tied up, her eyes dry, and suitcases around her. She’d fled without saying goodbye, so it was a made-up image, but one my childish mind had created to mark the separation.
A newer memory struck me.
I frowned.
At the same moment, Jackson tilted his head. “Your da mentioned her on the call.”
“I just remembered that. He said what I’d asked him was a question for my mother, not my father.”
“Do ye think that was meaningful?”
“Everything he says is. At the point Larson assaulted me, she was gone and we were not in contact. There’s no reason for him to suggest asking her.”
“Would he have told her what happened to ye?”
“Dad never mentioned her apart from being disparaging. He used to talk about our stepmother’s body and say how sexy she was compared to his saggy ex-wife. That kind of thing.”
“Unlikely they were chatting regularly about family matters, then.” Jackson exhaled, his intelligent gaze still fixed on me. “Ye said ye didn’t talk to her. Was it not allowed?”
“She never tried.”
“Did ye?”
I wrinkled my nose. “Why would I? She left me. Not the other way around. I doubt she even cared that we left the US, if she even knew.”
“I’m not saying ye owe her anything. I thought ye might have needed closure. That kind of thing.”
“Is that why you haven’t blocked your mom?” I pushed back.
Jackson shrugged. “I’m naw challenging ye. I’m curious over whether there’s any path of contact and why your da mentioned her.”
He’d sidestepped the question about his family and left me pondering my own. Just like I didn’t want that connection, I hadn’t meant to turn into a mournful little soul and spill my heart out either.
“I guess we’ll never know.” I shook my head, tossed the pad to the coffee table, and replaced the bracelet in its box.
“I can swap out the fox for something else,” Jackson said.
“No need. I’ll wear it. Can you fit it to me now?”
“We’ll do it at the hangar tomorrow. Need a welding kit.”
I set it aside, shrugging off the weight that had come with talking about family history. I didn’t dwell on the past. There was no point.
“Sorry, I didnae mean to bring ye down,” he said.
“If I’m sad, will you make me feel better like you did earlier?”
Fire blazed in his eyes, but he looked away, hiding a smile. “No, Ariel.”
“So what do we do all evening?”
Jackson sighed, reclining. “I brought my laptop to do some work. I still have some avenues to explore in building up a profile of Larson and I want to check in on that stolen car. Why don’t ye get familiar with that phone and find your group chats?”
He fetched the laptop and dragged the coffee table closer, setting up to work. He could’ve taken it to the kitchen table and been more comfortable, but he stayed near me.
