Fallen Crest Family (13 page)

Well, he might've, but that wasn't the situation at that time. My situation was at my house, where I needed to get. Now.

My hands lifted in the air in a rolling motion. I needed this to hurry along. "So can you do me a favor?"

"Ugh." A beat passed as he struggled to comprehend the sudden turn of events, but then he shot up from the counter. "Yeah, I uh, yeah." He raked a hand through his hair and looked around, then felt his pockets. "My keys…"

He lost his keys in this house? With this amount of people? Panic started to rise up again…

"Oh, wait!" He patted his back pockets and pulled them out. He gestured to the door. "Lead the way."

When he pulled into the driveway, I couldn't move. I had convinced myself that Adam could lie for me again. He would say that I fell asleep at his friend's house, where there were only Academy students at. But I couldn't bring myself to ask him to do that. I couldn't owe him any more, not after Mason almost beat him up.

But the problem would still exist.

Mason said there was a seven year limit. She could file charges within the next seven years and have that over our heads long into our adulthood. Then I remembered his other words—she didn't want to lose me. When an image of the blood flashed in my head, I pushed it away. I couldn't keep going forward if I remained in the past. This wasn't then. This was now. Things were different.

And, not really feeling the bravery that I was trying to convince myself I was, I thanked Adam for the ride.

I felt like I was going to throw up.

He frowned. "You okay?"

No. "Yes."

His frown deepened. "Are you sure?"

No. "Yes."

"Oookay. Uh." He was at a loss for words. "Well, I guess I'll see you later? What are you doing tonight?"

I jerked back in my seat as I saw the front door open. My mom poked her head out as she lifted a hand to shade her eyes. I knew the exact second she saw me in the car and when she saw who was with me. Her shoulders visibly dropped two inches, and then she gave me a small wave before she went back inside.

I let out the breath I'd been holding.

"Sam." Adam touched my arm. He had turned to face me completely. "Are you sure everything's alright? You said things weren't good with your mom and your relationship with Mason. Is there more to it? Things seemed heated in the room last night. I don't think I'm overstepping my role as your friend by being worried here." He stopped, then slumped back in his seat. "I'd really just like to help."

"No, I'm sorry." I tried to give him a reassuring smile. "I've gotta take care of something right now, but hey, I'm working at Manny's now if you ever want to come for food or something."

"That bar I picked you up from last night? You work there?"

I nodded, but shrunk back. I hadn't explained that to Mason yet either. He still thought I'd been alone at a bar before. Ugh. A headache was threatening to come, but I pressed my hands to my temples. It couldn't, not now.

"I'll see you later, Adam." As I shut the door, I gave him a small wave.

I didn't wait for him to leave; I turned around and regarded the mansion. It was as intimidating as it had been the first day we moved in, but this time it was from my family inside, not the Kades. When I went inside, I saw the green light on the security system and figured Analise had turned it off for the day. It'd been red when I headed out for the second run/two hour walk.

"Hi, honey."

I stiffened in the doorway, but went further towards the kitchen. Her tone was cheery, too cheery. When I rounded the corner there was a pile of mail in front of her. She was sorting through it as the coffee was brewing behind her.

What the hell?

My mom was the epitome of the perfect housewife, make-up all done, hair sprayed into place, and a sexy white robe that showed off the lacy nightgown underneath. There was a good hello peek at her cleavage.

I narrowed my eyes. Then I realized that she thought I had been with Adam all night. Anger rushed through me. Adam was okay, but Mason wasn't? Why was that? But I kept it from boiling out as I asked, in a controlled voice, "What are you doing?"

"Oh, nothing. You want some coffee?" She turned for the cups.

"No."

Nothing. She didn't pause. She only grabbed one for herself and then added some creamer to it.

I waited as she rested on one of the stools, and then went back to looking through the mail. A big fat envelope was plopped on the table. She pushed it towards me.

"What's that?"

She shrugged. Drops of the sun could've dripped from her voice. "Oh, nothing. I think that's a college application."

"What?"

It said Columbia University, with a New York address in the top corner. What the hell? "I never requested an application from them."

"Maybe I did."

Her head came up now and there was an underlying message there. Our gazes caught and held. I found myself unable to breathe as I tried to sort through what she was doing. Then it clicked. And I couldn't believe it.

My voice was soft, so soft, "You're going to pay for my college tuition there?"

She picked up the coffee mug, smooth and smug now. "Maybe." Then she took a sip. Her eyes never wavered.

Bitch.

I drew in another breath. I couldn't believe this was happening. "You're bribing me?"

Her eyes narrowed to slits. Her hand tightened on the handle, but she didn't stutter. "Yes."

"Because?"

My heart started to pound now. The thumping sounded closer together, harder against my chest.

"I know where you were last night, Samantha. Do you think I'm an idiot?"

A choked laugh ripped from me. "Things would be a lot easier if you were."

She drew in a soft breath. Her knuckles were now white as she gripped the mug. It started to shake from her hold. "Are you fucking with me?"

Something shifted in her gaze and the wall fell down. Malice and meanness shone through and that was the mom I remembered six years ago. She was the one I heard as she destroyed our entire house. My gut shifted at the reminder.

"It's your fault!" she screeched with wild eyes before she lunged at me. Her finger had pointed at me, but then it turned into a fist. I closed my eyes as I braced for the impact—

I spat out now, "You heard me."

The mug shattered on the floor. She never moved, not an inch, as her eyes were glued to mine. Outrage poured in them, but then the fury gurgled up. A strangled scream started from the base of her throat—

"Honey?" James appeared from around the corner.

The scream stopped short and she blanched. She fell back two steps as everything was stuffed back into place. The warm and sunny façade she had when I got home was back in full force. She was sugary sweet again. "Honey! Good morning."

I felt punched in the stomach. I stumbled backwards.

"Sam?" James sent me a frown. "Are you okay?"

With a hand over me, as if she really had kicked me, I couldn't look away. I was disgusted. This was my mother. This was the woman that gave birth to me, tried to use me to keep Garrett, and then found another man to raise me as his own. Had she ever loved David?

I saw her now with James and I thought she really loved him. I thought that was why she left David for him, but now I wondered. Did she even love James? She couldn't have, not if she was going to turn Mason in for statutory rape. She had to know that he would be irate with her. She would've ruined Mason's life. That was his son. I didn't know James that well, but I knew he loved Mason and Logan. I knew he would do what was right, what he thought was right. That was why he supported her and sent his sons away. He thought he was doing the right thing for her relationship with her daughter, because he understood from his own point of view of being a father.

My mouth fell open as I studied her.

She frowned at me, behind James.

Oh god.

I gasped and I knew what she'd been planning on doing. It couldn't wait, not when he was there. I had to do what I could to foil her plan. I blurted out, "She's going to press charges against Mason!"

A fierce frown flared over James. He turned, slightly to Analise, who paled at my words.

I pointed a finger at her. My voice rose because I was so sure of it now. "You were going to press charges against him and then you were going to try and take it back, weren't you? When he found out, you knew he would've been furious so you would pretend that you hadn't thought." I could hear it now. She would cry, acting desperate and so despondent. My voice hardened, "You would've told him that you hadn't thought it through, that you were so desperate to keep me from him. You were, weren't you? That was your plan. And you were going to go and try to drop the charges, but you know they can't do that. I bet that once you make a claim like that, they can't drop it. They have to pursue it and you wouldn't be blamed for it at all."

I felt sick.

From the rage in her eyes, I knew that had been her plan. My mother was sick, she was not right. Oh god. How could she have done that?

James whirled around to her. His back was to me now, but I staggered to the table behind me and sat down. I couldn't move; I could only sit as he drew to his fullest height. But he didn't say anything, not a thing. The room was so tense, my heart continued to race.

"Honey—" She tried, but she stopped.

Slowly, so slowly, he turned and left the room. And that was enough.

I'd just broken what love he had for her.

"Get. Out."

I fell off the chair. Her tone was ferocious, and as I saw the enraged eyes, the fisted hands, I knew she was close again. The robe fell open, and she was braced in front of me. The nightgown was white, like the one from that night, except this one wasn't drenched in blood. A part of me fell away and slipped back to the memory. She'd been so quiet, almost dead, in the bathroom with the pool of blood beneath her. Her eyes had been murderous days later.

My mother took a step towards me. She drew in her breath, as the veins on her neck stood out. One of her hands started to shake back and forth, but it wasn't from fear. I stood now, numb suddenly, and looked at my mother.

"OUT!"

I flinched, but I couldn't move. She wanted me to leave? But—

"GET OUT! NOOOOW!"

"Analise!" James rushed back into the room. "Do not speak to her like that!"

My heart picked up again, I couldn't breathe once more, and I fell against the wall behind me. It was all closing in around me. This wasn't how I thought it was going to be. She wanted me gone, actually gone… I cared. I hadn't known that I cared.

When I heard a thump, she was on the floor. A hand was to her chest and she was out cold.

"Oh my god." James dropped to his knees beside her. He skimmed his hands over her body, checking for anything wrong with her. When there was nothing, he pressed his fingers to her neck and felt her pulse.

She was breathing. I watched as her chest moved up and down, but I saw it from the distance. I had detached from myself. I was floating away, to somewhere safer than in that room.

"…911 now!..."

"Huh?" I looked at him through a fog now.

"911, Samantha!"

I frowned. 911? She was faking, didn't he know that? But I couldn't speak. The words never came as he rushed past me for the phone. It was attached to the wall behind me, and as he grabbed and lifted it to his ear, his accidentally pushed me backwards.

I reached out for something to hold onto, but there wasn't anything. It was just wall and then I fell to the floor. I scooted up against the wall and sat there as he spoke on the phone.

Everything happened in slow motion. It was surreal. I was watching a movie played out in front of me. The ambulance hadn't taken long. Two EMTs checked her vitals and interrogated James with questions. When they couldn't find anything wrong, they loaded her onto a stretcher and left.

James went with them. He glanced back at me once and asked me a question, but I couldn't make sense of it. I saw his mouth moving, but I couldn't hear him. There was a buzzing sound in my head, it drowned out everything else. When I only looked at him, he gave me a small frown, but grabbed a set of keys from a drawer. He left after that.

I was like that when I heard pounding on the door.

I couldn't move. I knew I should get up to see who that was, but I couldn't. But then—no. I had to get up. She'd been faking it. Why was I in shock about that? So, slowly, I pushed myself up and then went to the door.

I turned the lock the whole way and the door was shoved open. My hands braced against it, and I was thrown against the wall. Before I could fall or steady myself, Mason grabbed me. He hauled me close.

I gasped, everything came flooding back.

God, the buzzing sound was still there. It felt like someone was stomping their foot on my head.

"Where'd they go?"

Logan rushed past Mason into the kitchen. He came back a second later and lifted his hands. "They're gone." He looked at me. "Did they go to the hospital already?"