Studying the man, I wonder, if Edward trusts him so much, then why the hell haven’t I met him before? After some time, when I still haven’t spoken, Edward continues, answering that very question. “You’ve never met him because, for the last twenty years, he has been paid to watch over something of mine. Someone who happens to be very important to me. Very important to you too, I might add.”
My eyes leave the man at Edward’s side and lock on the man who raised me.
“That’s right,” he says, confirming what I hoped he was suggesting. “Rochelle may have not been a part of the original deal with Margaret, but I’d be damned if I was going to leave anything of mine behind and not make completely sure she was safe, cared for, loved the way Sylvia and I wanted and would have cared and loved her, if only she had come home with Victoria. Jackson stepped in many times over the years and put Margaret in her place. Even when they moved West, he kept a close watch, but maintained his distance, too. Scared to spook Margaret again.”
“Does Rochelle know?” I stammer. I’m not exactly sure what to make of the information Edward is feeding me, but I need to make sure, even if she doesn’t want to speak to me ever again, that she is aware of the fact that even if her father had to leave her, he made sure to watch over her from afar the best way he knew how.
“No, not yet,” Edward sighs. “With what happened with Margaret…” He trails off and I shake my head, knowing all too well why he’s not approached the topic with Rochelle. “With Victoria still in the ICU, I didn’t want to spring this on her. You are the only one who knows. You and Sylvia. I was hopeful that maybe you would be there when I tell her.”
A spiteful chuckle leaves my lips. Both men in front of me take a step back.
“Good luck with that, Old Man. Rochelle wouldn’t talk to me if I was the last man on earth.”
I swing back around and pick up my glove. Shoving my ball cap on my head, I start to walk to the exit. Before I take my leave, I turn back around and meet both men’s dumbfounded stares.
“You see, she wouldn’t believe me. Not even from the start. I love that girl more than I love myself.” Tears prick the back of my eyes. I beat my glove against my chest and take a step backward. “But all she sees is lies. The lies the world has told her. The lies you all have told her. You want to know the fucked-up truth about all of this, I didn’t lie to her. Not once.”
Turning, I stalk out of the locker room and make my way to the dugout. I have no clue how I am supposed to play this game, or how I am supposed to pretend that I even care about a contract, most only dream of, when my head is in the clouds, wrapped around an Angel I might never get the chance to hold in my arms again.
My only chance at heaven on earth won’t even speak to me. Going through life without her is going to be a living hell.
Chapter Forty
Rochelle
“When I was five, I fell out of a tree in our front yard and broke my arm. Momma scolded me for all of five minutes before cradling me in her embrace and telling me if I wanted to fly in life, I had to do better than that. But then she said, I better never do that again or I’d be better off if I didn’t survive the fall at all.”
Victoria’s light laugh rings through the hospital room and I chuckle sadly with her.
“I wish I would have known her,” she whispers. “At least I wish I would have met her while I could.”
My face lowers. My eyes meet the floor. I take a deep breath, letting it out slowly, hoping I don’t break.
“If I know Momma, she would have loved to have seen us both together. But I guess the good Lord had other plans.”
“Did you get back the results of how she died yet?” my sister asks, making me think back to that day a week ago now when I left the hospital determined to get answers only to find her lifeless and beyond reviving. I shudder, thinking back on that dark day. My heart breaks. It’s been a week since I last saw Hunter. Since I last spoke to Hunter. My life has been hell without him.
“No, they said it could take up to six weeks,” I whisper.
I’ve decided to cremate Momma, and Victoria said she’d come with me to Savannah when she is feeling better to spread her ashes. Even though my heart knows the truth about how she died, something in me still needs to hear it from the test results. Waiting is going to be agony.
“I wish the results didn’t take that long, especially since…” I trail off. Victoria’s hand slowly slides over to mine and grabs hold, making me look up and meet her stare.
“Since what?” she asks quietly.
“Since Hunter told me.. told me something that I can’t believe, no matter if it is the truth or not. Not until I find out for certain. And even then…”
“It will be too hard to believe the truth,” Victoria finishes for me. A habit we have come accustomed to the last few days since she woke up. Must be the twin thing.
“Rochelle,” she says, attempting to sit up straighter in bed. “I know Hunter. Growing up he was like a brother to me. He wouldn’t lie about anything. Especially when it is something as important as how our mother could have died.” She studies my face for a moment. When I don’t respond, she continues. “But something tells me that you already know that, yet you’re scared to believe the truth. Why?”
I swallow hard, and worry my bottom lip between my teeth.
“I’m scared,” I whisper. “Scared one day, he’ll let me down. Just like I let him down. Just like I let down Momma. Just like I let down myself.”
The newfound confidence I found a few weeks ago is now shattered.
“I never let anyone close because I learned early on that eventually they always walk away,” I explain. “Kids at school. My father. My Uncle Jackson, who I recently learned wasn’t really my uncle,” I try and laugh but it just comes out as forced. “And Momma,” I whisper, remembering the last time we spoke and how we left everything forever. “I learned, it’s always been easier to walk away first. Before they could hurt or leave me. At least I always had Momma. But now, I have no one.”
