AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I entered the room first, the others following close behind. My mother was sitting up in bed, a bandage on her shoulder and another on her head, but her face had more color in it. A mix of emotions ran through her gaze as she looked at us. I saw pain and guilt, but also a steely resolve. She'd clearly been mentally preparing herself for this moment.
Before any of us could speak, the door opened once more, and a nurse wheeled Rachel into the room. A thick bandage was visible on her shoulder, and she looked tired but also resigned.
"I asked the nurse to tell me when you got here," Rachel said. "I thought we should all be together."
"How are you feeling?" I asked.
"I'm fine," Rachel said, with a dismissive shake of her head. "And that's not what you came here to talk about, so let's get down to it."
My gaze moved from Rachel to my mom. "What do you know about what happened yesterday?"
"Rachel filled me in earlier," she replied. "I'm so sorry you and Dani went through all that. I never thought you would ever have to face that evil man."
"That evil man is our biological father," Dani said, a hard note in her voice. "Isn't that right?"
My mother gave a regretful nod. "Yes. Unfortunately, that is true."
"Let's back up," I said. "I want to know how we got here. What are your real names? The names you were given when you were born?"
"We were born Claire and Elaine Thompson," my mother said. "We lived in Chicago. Our father was never in our lives. Our mother had problems with substance abuse. She was in and out of rehabs. We lived with a neighbor when she would disappear. Mrs. Hursh saved us for as long as she could. She taught me how to play music. It was my escape."
I could relate to that. "So you lied about your parents dying young."
"It was simpler that way," my mom said. "It wasn't a complete lie. They were pretty much dead to us. Mrs. Hursh made sure we had food and a place to sleep. We were safe with her until our mom came back one day with a new boyfriend. She demanded that we go with her, and we couldn't say no." My mom's voice faltered. "We'd only been there a day when the worst happened." My mom drew in a breath and reached out her hand to Rachel.
Rachel squeezed my mom's fingers, reminding me of how many times Dani and I had done the same thing.
"What happened?" Dani asked impatiently. "It was something bad, wasn't it?"
When my mother didn't answer, Rachel said stoically, "I was raped by my mother's boyfriend, while my mother was passed out. I was fourteen."
"Oh, my God!" I murmured. "I'm so sorry."
"It was my fault. I shouldn't have left her," my mother interrupted, guilt and pain in her eyes. "But I didn't want to miss my music recital. I had been practicing for weeks. I was selfish."
"You didn't know what was going to happen," Rachel said.
"I should have." My mother drew in a deep breath. "When I got back to the house, I took Rachel to Mrs. Hursh's, and she called 911. We thought they'd let us stay with her, but they said she wasn't an approved home. The social worker split us up and put us into foster care." She paused, more guilt running through her eyes. "My situation was better than Rachel's. I had foster parents who made sure I got to school and helped me pursue my music. I tried to convince them to take her in, but they said they weren't licensed for another child."
My gaze moved to Rachel. "What happened to you?"
She shrugged. "I was in a group home. It was survival of the fittest and a lot of manual labor for people who didn't give a shit. They'd lock us in the basement when we created problems for them. I ran away a bunch of times, and tried to report them, but I was always sent back or sent somewhere else. Finally, when I was seventeen, I found my sister again."
"I was a few weeks short of high school graduation when she showed up," my mom continued. "I hid her away for a couple of days and then talked my foster parents into not turning her in. Since I was moving out soon, they agreed. I had a scholarship to NYU, so we went to New York. I started school and my sister got a job as a nanny."
"One of my many jobs," Rachel said. "I couldn't settle into my life. I took classes at the community college, but I was a terrible student. I didn't have a talent for anything except getting into trouble, and the older we got, the more I envied my sister's life. Laura was doing exceptionally well. She had so much to brag about. It was probably the first time in our lives we were at odds. And that was on me. I felt like I was falling behind, and I was. I dropped out of school. I started looking for jobs that were more exciting, more money. Eventually I began waitressing at a bar in Brooklyn."
"We already know what happened there," I said. "You hooked up with Max and got swept up in his criminal activities. I know you ran away after he killed Kade's father, but I don't know what happened after you changed your identities. Where did you go?"
"We took a bus to Atlanta," Rachel said. "We became Kim and Megan Cooper. And eight months later, Kim Cooper had two little girls."
"And you were Kim Cooper?" I asked, even more confused. "But Mom's name was Kim."
"She had to become Kim because I went into the hospital as Kim. When I left her with you and your sister, we switched IDs, so hers would match the birth certificate."
"I can't keep track of all your names," I said in exasperation. "What should I even call you now?"
They exchanged a quick look and then my mom said, "You can call us Laura and Rachel if you want. That’s who we've been for the last twenty years."
