My heart warmed at the endearment. It reminded me that no matter how old I got, I was alwaysher childand she loved me, even though we didn’t always see eye-to-eye on everything.
“I just saw the news. Karim’s office burned down, and they’re saying he’s missing! Why didn’t you tell me?"
"I’m fine, Maa. I wasn’t there. I’m sorry you had to find out online. I didn’t know how to tell you. I know you liked Karim so much.”
That was an understatement. Maa had practically thrown me at him. And she was so excited to plan our wedding.
I couldn’t help but notice Graham, who’d just come out of his suite, frowning.
“I thought I could take a few days to organize my thoughts before I told you the engagement was off. And I wasn’t supposed to tell anyone details yet.” That part was true, but she probably thought I was talking about the fire when I actually meant the murder.
How could I explain to my mother that I was afraid to disappoint her because she was excited about the wedding? Having run off with my father when she was young, she knew better than to restrict my freedom, though she’d always insisted on vetting the men I dated. Karim had been the only man that she approved of.
“And plus, I was still processing everything. I didn’t want to disappoint you too.”
She sighed loudly. “But you should still tell me, Meera. I’m your mother. I should be the first to know. How long have you suspected him of cheating? Who was it? Was it thatrandiwho works in his office?”
“Maa!” I flinched at the harsh word, something I rarely heard out of my mother’s mouth. That was like calling someone a slut.
“If she’s a whore, we’ll call her a whore,” she said, doubling down. “She has no shame, but my daughter does.”
I sighed. Of course she’d blame the woman.
“Karim’s just as guilty. Focus on him?”
“Okay, okay,beta. But where are you?”
“I’m safe. I’m with…” I looked around. “I’m with friends.” I didn’t know what to tell her, and my confusion must’ve shown because Graham was typing furiously into his phone.
“Friends?” She sounded incredulous, like she didn’t think I had friends. And she’d be right.
Graham handed me his phone. There was a long paragraph, and the wordsRead this to herat the top. The words didn’t sound like me, so I ad-libbed a little.
“I’m with Redrock Protective Services. Don’t worry about me. These guys are trained to deal with stuff like this. I’m as safe as houses.”
Graham sent me a thumbs-up.
"Houses?" Maa asked.
"It means I'm as safe as I can be."
Maa seemed happy with the response. “Redrock. I’ve heard of them. The authorities have put you somewhere safe. Good. Good. I’m glad.”
She thought the police set me up at Redrock, and I let her believe it. I didn’t want to explain now.
“I know it’s hard to talk to your Maa sometimes but never be afraid to call.”
“Thanks, Maa.”
“The madam is coming by,” Maa whispered. “I have to look busy.”
I chuckled, and we hung up after our goodbyes. That had gone a whole lot better than I’d imagined, all thanks to the fire. She was worried about me and not focused on the fact that I was single again. And she didn’t even need to know about the murder or the stolen dragon egg.
I found Graham watching me with an unreadable look on his face.
“What?” I asked, sharper than I meant to.
“You were nervous talking to your mother.”
