The boy, holding on to my mom like she’s the only life jacket in a churning sea, is.
Is he lying?
My gut believes him.
My mind wants to stab him and drag him away from my mother before the kid can do any damage to my family.
Mom takes a small step back, searching his face. “Why don’t we get you fixed up?”
That’s a good idea. I can drive him to the hospital and pump him for information.
“Max, go get my bag from the closet.”
Her bag? Does she want to go with the kid? It’s not like he’s bleeding to death…That thought in this room brings images of blood, fear, pain, and joy to mind. My gut wrenches.
It’s not the time to think about that.
Focus on the now.
Keep Mom safe.
“No, I’ll take him to the hospital or to the clinic on Willow Street if he prefers.” Anywhere that’s far away from here.
“He doesn’t need a hospital. The cuts aren’t deep. He just needs to be cleaned up, a few butterflies, and a bandage or three. Now go get my bag.”
Does she really think I’m going to leave her alone with the crazy boy? Or is she trying to get a private word in with him? It doesn’t matter which is the right answer. I’m not leaving Everett’s side.
“Overprotective men.” Mom glares at me, warning clear in her eyes.
Like I’m going to kill my possible brother.
“I’ll be right back.” She pats Everett’s arm.
His body moves to follow her, and I step in between them. “Mom will be right back.” Time to find out some details. “What name did you know her by?”
“Who?”
Time to pander to his psychosis a bit. “Our mother.”
“Our what?” Everett stares at me like I’m the one who lost their mind.
“Our mother,” I repeat.
Everett looks from me to the door Mom just walked out, like he hadn’t already made the connection. “Her name was—” He snaps his mouth shut like he almost gave away a state secret and not a simple name.
I lean back against the bar and study him. This kid makes no sense. “Where were you born?”
His mouth stays firmly shut.
“You know you’re supposed to be convincing me that we’re related if you wanna get your hands on my money.”
“Massimo Rage Vincenti, how dare you say something like that?”
And now I’m in trouble. “All I was trying to do was—”
She holds a finger up.
It’s my turn to snap my mouth shut. It seems I’ve reached my limit for talking back to my mother today.
