Dad reached out and tried to latch onto Mom’s arm. She’d moved to stand next to me on the opposite side from Reign. Dad didn’t succeed. And it wasn’t because Reign, Mom, or I prevented it. Instead, it was due to Poe.
In a flash, he’d gently tugged Mom backward and placed his body between her and my dad. The incredulous expression on my dad’s face almost made me laugh. Poe had his arms crossed over his chest, glaring.
“She’s not going anywhere that she doesn’t want to,” Poe stated.
The sound of more footsteps hurrying across the cement drew our attention to my sidewalk. Barreling toward us were my brother and Sam. They must’ve parked down the street. Werethose two joined at the hip? I never saw one without the other anymore.
“Dad, what’s going on? Why is Mom here? Your message said something about she left,” Arish called as the two men came up onto my small stoop. It was too small in my book to be a porch.
“Good, you’re here. These men are preventing your mother from returning home with me. Your sister and that man have been filling her head with nonsense. And this bastard thinks he can keep me from my wife,” Dad spat as he first gestured to Reign and me, then to Poe.
“Savar, you will stop this nonsense this instant. No one is filling my head with anything. I have a brain. I can think for myself. I’m here because I want to be,” Mom said firmly. She was standing so she could see around Poe.
“You left our home, packed your bags, and removed things. That isn’t the actions of someone in control of themselves,” Dad countered.
“Yes, it is,” Mom shot back.
“Mom, what has gotten into you? You say it isn’t anything Stasia said or did, or anything that man said or did, but your actions say otherwise. Although truthfully, it’s all Caldwell’s fault. He has Stasia acting outside the norm, too,” Arish said, glaring at Reign.
“I’m here because I will no longer live with a man who dictates to his family and treats his wife and daughter as second-class citizens while he, our son, and others try to tell us what to do. I’ve allowed you to call the shots for years, Savar, because I loved you. However, I see now that was a mistake. You’re trying to ruin our daughter’s chance at happiness by forcing her to marry someone you approve of, but she doesn’t want. Luckily, Stasia is smarter than I was. I left because I’m done,” Mom said calmly yet firmly.
I saw surprise enter Dad’s expression. Arish was looking confused.
“Done? What does that mean?” My brother asked. Dad appeared speechless for once in his life.
“It means that I’m staying here. I don’t want to see or hear from any of you. I have a decision to make. I can’t do that in that house with any of you around. Any attempts to contact me or force me to interact with you or others in the family will settle the matter,” was her reply.
Mom moved to stand beside Poe. He gave her an encouraging smile, which she returned.
“What kind of decision?” Dad asked, eyeing Poe and Mom. His eyes were narrowed on them.
“To proceed with filing for a divorce. At the moment, I’m holding onto a slim hope that you and our son will come to your senses. However, if you don't, I won’t be part of this anymore. I’ll file and see if there’s any life left out there for a woman my age.”
Poe snorted. “Kathlyn, there is plenty of life out there for you and men who’ll be forever grateful to have you as theirs. He’s not the only man in the world.”
“Who the fuck is this man? How do you know him?” Dad roared.
“His name is Poe, and he’s a friend. You met him before. That’s all you need to know. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we were just finishing dessert. Then we plan to relax for a while. Remember what I said, Savar. Stay away from Stasia and me. Don’t push. She can choose her own man, and I can decide my future,” Mom said.
As she turned her back on them, Dad tried to dart forward to grab her again, but Poe pushed between them and placed his hand on her lower back to steer Mom toward the dining table.
Dad let out a yell, while my brother and Sam, who’d remained suspiciously quiet the entire time, protested. Reign,Chad, and I blocked the doorway, though the two of them did most of the blocking. In fact, they followed my dad, Sam, and Arish down the sidewalk, with me trailing behind. Arish and Dad’s cars were parked down the street.
Arish and Dad were in Chad and Reign’s faces, arguing that they’d call the cops and report that they were holding Mom against her will. It was then that Sam made his move. He darted over to me and pushed an envelope into my hands.
“What?” I asked, dumbfounded.
“Here, you need to read this. I expect to hear from you within forty-eight hours. If you don’t come to your senses, you leave me no choice but to file it,” Sam told me.
“Get the fuck away from her,” Reign barked as he charged toward us.
Sam was smart for once, and he veered away from Reign and got his ass into Arish’s car. My brother followed, and Dad slid into his car, still scowling. We stood there until they had driven off. Then, Reign turned to me.
“What did he give you?” he asked.
“I don’t know. Let’s go inside and find out,” I said as I took his hand.
In the house, we found Poe and Mom at the table, drinking coffee. The rest of us got a cup and sat down.
