“Thank you for joining us on such short notice,” my mother starts, her voice shaky and weak. “I know the wedding isaround the corner, but if I don’t share this information now, I might explode. I’m sure some of you have noticed my unusual behaviour today, and I promise there’s a reason for it. I’m not losing my mind; I’m just…” She stops briefly, holding her breath for a few seconds before releasing it with a large huff that makes her cheeks puff out.
Glancing down at my father, she shakes her head, her eyes welling with tears.
It’s definitely a death in the family. Is it a cousin? An aunt or uncle? The way she keeps us in suspense is killing me.
Rising from his seat, my father pulls my mother close, burying her head into the nook of his neck. “This is an emotional time for us; please excuse her reactions to the matters at hand.” He places a comforting hand on her head, his thumb stroking through her hair. “It seems we’re not as old as we thought we were. While there’s still many things we’re unable to do that you younger ones can do without hesitation, apparently parenthood will always prevail for us.”
“You’re pregnant?” The words fall from my lips like an accusation, and my father darts his eyes to me, a sense of warning within them.
“Yes, your mother is pregnant, Dario. I’m sure you’ll all agree that it’s an unexpected situation for us, but it’s happening. Now, it is a high-risk pregnancy because of your mother’s age, but they’re both healthy thus far.”
“How far along?” Kat asks, smiling and moving to the edge of her seat.
“That’s the strange part,” he answers, complete confusion lacing his tone. “She’s roughly sixteen weeks along.”
“How could you not know?” Silas chimes in, his question also coming off accusatory, which, coming from him, probably is an accusation. “You’d feel something, wouldn’t you? A kick, morning sickness, weird cravings. You’re trying to tell us you didn’t know about this?”
“Watch your tone, Silas,” he warns. “When she was pregnant with the twins, both sets, her bump wasn’t prominent, and with twins, you’d think it would be. She has experienced no signs of pregnancy so far and it’s expected she won’t because we’re in our fourth month already.”
“This is great news,” Kat cheers. “Two new babies in the family! They’ll be so close growing up; I just know it.”
“It’s twins, actually, and you seem to be the only one that feels that way,” my mother says, her words soft and roped in sadness. “This wasn’t planned, I can assure you of that fact. With the girls, there were many difficulties and the doctor said I wouldn’t be able to conceive again. These babies are miracles and I don’t care if you boys have a problem with it. I’ll be following through with this pregnancy and you will not treat it as a mistake.”
“We’re happy for you, Mama, only worried about what it means for you and your health,” Maze adds. “You’re forty-four and, like you said, you’re in the ‘high-risk’ category with twins. Not to mention the stress we go through every day—that can’t be healthy for you.”
“You might not agree with it and that’s fine, but this is my choice. You will all treat them both with the love and respect you show each other. They’re not replacing your sisters in any way, shape or form, and if you can’t get on board with that, you all know where the fucking door is.”
Shouldering past my father, her short legs stride rapidly to the door as she pushes it open and disappears into the hall. A fewseconds later, the front door slams shut, the sound echoing through the dining room.
“You’re all free to have dinner amongst yourselves, but I won’t be here to enjoy it with you. Your mother needs me as much as she needs all of you, now more than ever. If you can all push aside your stubbornness for two seconds, I’d appreciate it becauseshe’sgoing through this, not any of you. She knows and understands the risks, and is willing to see it through because she already loves these girls with everything she has.” He steps aside, pushing his chair in. “There are going to be new additions to the family and you have to accept that, and if you can’t, like your mother said, you all know where the door is.”
As my father makes his way to the door, I stop him in his tracks with the sound of my chair scraping across the floor. “You said ‘these girls,’” I say through gritted teeth. “They’re both girls? Are you sure?”
He releases an audible sigh, as he spins around. “Yes.” I watch as his chin begins to tremble; he’s trying his best to keep his emotions in check, but I can’t say the same for myself.
Without saying anything more, I leave the room, anger radiating off me until it’s overridden with sadness.
They’ve finally done it. They’ve managed to replace the only irreplaceable roles in our family. They might have moved on from it, but I certainly haven’t. And they’re fools if they think I’m okay with it.
—————
I’ve been locked in my office since the big dinner fail, refusing to answer the knocks at my door. I’m afraid I’ll lash out again; and with my gun within reach, I know there’ll be flying bullets.
Knocking sounds at my door again, I can hear Cassian’s muffled voice on the other side. He’s desperate, resorting to such measures to unlock my door. After two hours, he’s finally acquired the brains to pick the lock—a late-bloomer genius.
Revealing himself in the doorway as the door flies open, my hand instinctively finds my gun and I lift it, cocking it back and aiming at his leg. “Get out, Cass.”
“I’m not here to talk to you about that,” he says, closing the door. “I need to show you something, something Liana achieved during training today.”
I lower my weapon, roughly rubbing my forehead as if to rid it of the headache that is him. “Can’t you show me later? I really can’t do this right now.”
“We both lost people that day, Dario. You aren’t the only one who lost them.”
“They were my sisters, Cassian.”
“They were mine, too, and don’t you fucking insinuate otherwise. I might not be your blood brother, but I’m your brother, nonetheless. Don’t make me out to be the black sheep here. I loved them as much as you did.”
“I had more time with them.”
