Bo came to Lucky’s rescue. “Ma’am, with all due respect, your son put a lot of criminals in prison. They don’t take too kindly to his testifying against them. The bureau faked his death and gave him a new identity for his own protection. He stayed on.”
No need to tell Mama the real reason Lucky stayed with the bureau stood three feet from her, resting the finest ass this side of the Mississippi against the wall. He’d once been close with his mother, but some things he didn’t need to share.
“I read about how he’d died saving another agent and all. Most of the family said there’d been a mistake, but I knew my boy.” She wiped at her eyes again and sniffled.
Bo handed her another tissue from the box on the counter. “He got hurt pretty bad, spent time in the hospital. Hel… Um… Even I believed he’d died.”
Slowly bewilderment turned to understanding on Mom’s face. “Charlotte knew the truth.”
“Not at first. But yeah, she figured it out.” Bo left out the part about Charlotte pulling a gun on him, trying to protect Lucky.
Mama’s sniffles became sobs. “She didn’t tell me!”
Time for Lucky to step in and save Bo. Besides, narcotics dulled his self-preservation instincts. “I asked her not to.”
“Why ever not! I’m your mother!”
“Y’all weren’t speaking to me at the time, but also, there’s some folks out there who might’ve used my family to get to me. I’ve made a lot of powerful enemies over the years.” The orange blossoms in a vase on the side cart caught his attention. Some powerful friends, too, but still. “Being associated with me isn’t exactly safe.”
Bo snorted and coughed into his hand, “Understatement.”
True.
What could Lucky possibly say to make things right?
Mama blew her nose.
Bo passed over the tissue box. “You’ll be happy to know your son is the department’s best undercover agent.”
Just until Bo officially claimed the title, which would probably happen once he’d fully recovered from too much time spent in someone else’s head.
Had the nurse given Lucky too many drugs or did Mom widen her eyes?
Lila’s outraged face remained frozen on the TV screen. At some point Bo must have paused the show.
Mama followed Lucky’s line of sight. “Is thatSouth Bend Springs? You used to watch it with me when you were little, remember?”
Bo gave Lucky his best,oh, really?brow-lift and smirk combo.
Time to stop looking at Bo for a while. Lucky grabbed the remote off the side table and turned off the TV to say the words he’d longed to. “I’m making an honest living now. I did my time.”
“He’s now training leader.” If they ever had kids, Bo would probably hang every single childish doodle on the refrigerator door. He got too proud of the littlest things.
“Really?” Mama didn’t have to act so amazed.
He might only have her here for a few minutes. No telling what would happen once she walked out the door. She couldn’t leave without knowing as much of the truth as Lucky did. “Did y’all really disown me ‘cause you assumed I sent Daytona drugs?”
Mama’s gasp nearly sucked all the air from the room. “Why would you do such a thing? You know how hard he struggled.”
“I didn’t.”
“But the card came from you.”
Bo stepped in. “By ‘vice’ Lucky meant a video game.”
“A video game.” Mama wobbled, face pale. If Lucky could’ve moved, he’d have inched closer to catch her if she fell again.
“Yes, Mama. I sent him a video game for his birthday, to the farm, since I didn’t know he’d left for college yet, and figured it best if you and daddy knew what he was getting. Someone must’ve gotten the package, traded the game for drugs, and sent them to his dorm.” And if Lucky ever found the sorry bastard who’d nearly killed Daytona…
