I shrugged. “Too soon to say.” I decided not to tell her the play-by-play on what had happened in the delivery room. She didn’t need to take on more regret. None of us did. But after what she’d done last night, I needed to take her temperature. She’d walked in happy, and maybe I didn’t need to worry about her. Just the same, it was the appropriate moment to broach the topic of her psychological well-being.
Rubbing my lips together, I asked, “Jordyn, are you okay? I’ve been concerned about you for the last few months. I know you were struggling with the car accident, but where’s your head at?”
She twisted wet strands of her hair around her fingers—a habit she had when she was nervous or deep in thought. “Sam and I had a heart-to-heart. I know what I did was stupid. It won’t happen again. We don’t need to rehash it. But I am still upset with myself that you almost died because of me.”
“Nonsense, Jordyn. Don’t you dare blame yourself. Dr. Martin and Dr. Vieira had warned me that my body might not be able to sustain the fast growth of the babies. Plus, I was close to delivering them since I was only a week away from the C-section.”
“But if Dr. Martin wouldn’t—”
“Stop, Jordyn.” My tone was hard. “You can’t keep blaming yourself for Junior’s death or what happened to me. Yes, pulling the fire alarm was not your best decision, but I’m here, and the babies are healthy.”
She gnawed on her bottom lip.
I wasn’t ready to explain that I’d seen our mother, but if it helped her overcome the remorse stamped on her face and in her voice, then so be it. “There’s always a brighter side. When I died, I got to see Mom.”
She levered back. “For real? And you remember that?”
I shivered. “Every detail. You know how some people describe their brush with death as seeing a white light? That’s true. It’s warm and beautiful and wraps around you, making you wish you were really dead. I didn’t want to wake up. I felt free, really free from the bad shit in my life.” I stared at my waffle-woven textured robe. “I was in a sea of wildflowers in Montana. Remember the fields around our farmhouse?” I sighed. “The mountain range and horse barn. Anyway, Mom kept urging me to return to the living. But I couldn’t, especially when I saw her. She was more beautiful than ever. Her dark, wavy hair was silky. Her brown eyes were bright and full of love, and she had this ethereal glow surrounding her.”
Jordyn cried, breaking my trance. “I want to see her. I need her, Layla. We need her.”
Tears began trickling out and sliding down my cheeks. “I know. But sheiswatching over us.”
“What did she say? Was Dad there too?”
I frowned. “Dad wasn’t.” I dashed a tear away with my fingers. “When Mom was on her deathbed, she had visions of us at the nightclub, Jordyn, when we met Sam. And she saw Sam telling me he loved me.” I was still grappling with seeing my mom.
Whether or not it was a dream, the state of mind between life and death, or if I’d been truly dead, I wouldn’t discount the words she’d spoken. On more than one occasion, I’d been advised to pay attention to my dreams. Steven Mason had even counseled me on that very thing.If you know what’s coming, you might be able to stop it.Yet I couldn’t prevent something from happening if I didn’t have the whole story, and my mother’s message about the prophecy was obscure at best.
Jordyn, on the other hand, was completely engrossed and in awe—eyes wide, mouth ajar, and shoulders stiff.
So I continued. “She’d worked hard since she was a teenager to make sure no one knew about her supernatural past. She hated bloodsuckers as much as our Aberdeen family does. Apparently, Mom witnessed a group of vampires killing humans one night after a school dance. Since then, she made it her mission to hunt and kill them.”
“Why did she wait until she was dying to tell Dad about her family?” Jordyn asked.
“She never planned to tell him. But after her dreams about Sam, she was afraid for me. Dad didn’t believe her though. He thought she was not in her right mind because she was dying and due to the drugs she’d been taking for the pain.”
Jordyn rubbed the screen of her phone as though she was doodling.
A murky silence filled every corner of the room.
“I know it’s a lot to take in.” I was still trying to understand the entire experience myself.
Jordyn continued fiddling with her phone. “Was that all she told you?”
I stared at my leg, theboom, boom, boomof my heart resounding in my ears as I debated whether or not I should tell her about the prophecy, afraid if I did, the damn thing would come true. How could a child upset the balance of the world? Until I understood the meaning behind that, I wouldn’t tell anyone except Sam—and maybe Jo or Steven. They believed dreams were the windows into the future. Besides, my sister had enough on her plate. I needed her focused on helping me with feedings, diaper changes, and being there to protect her nieces and nephew, if need be.
Jordyn snapped her fingers. “Layla, she told you more. Didn’t she?”
I rubbed a corner of my eye. “You know that vampire Kendra? Well, she didn’t kill Dad.”
She angled her head, giving me a knowing look. “Fred Emery did.”
Anger, hot and fast, seared my veins as my eyebrows scrunched together. “Come again?”
She clutched her phone, her knuckles turning white. “Fuck. I didn’t want to have this conversation now. Not today anyway. But before you jump down my throat, I was going to tell you later.”
I laughed nervously. “Do I really want to hear this?” I asked myself more than her.
