“Shit,” I hiss, grabbing his inhaler from my purse, then rushing to my son’s side to help him through an attack.
Margot stills, having just noticed Matty on the bench. She remains quiet, watching as I coach Matty through the drill, gently stroking his hair and listening for his breathing until it returns to a semblance of normal.
“It’s okay, baby, you’re okay,” I tell him.
“Who’s that?” Matty points at Margot.
Margot sucks in a deep breath. “What’s wrong with him?” she asks.
“There’s nothing wrong with him,” I snap. “He just has a heart condition. I suggest you leave. We’re done arguing about who belongs here anyway, and I’m too damn tired to fight.”
Margot takes a step closer, not taking her eyes off my boy.
Shivers run down my spine as I worry that she might notice the resemblance, that she might ask the same questions that Carter asked. I hated lying to him. I don’t want to have to lie to her, too. There’s already so much pain, grief, and resentmentbetween us. Dammit, I should’ve asked Jodie to stay with Matty.
“Are you my mommy’s friend?” Matty asks Margot.
She smiles softly. “We used to be friends.”
“In another life,” I quickly add. Before she and my brother got involved and dragged Bill Lockwood and Margot’s husband into the mess. Before Bill and Emmanuel killed my brother. “We haven’t seen each other in a long time. Matty, this is Margot.”
“Nice to meet you, Matty,” she replies, remarkably calm and composed all of a sudden. At least she’s respectful of the child’s presence. Yet when she looks at me, I still see it. The spite. The anger. “He’s got a heart condition, you said?”
“He was born with an underdeveloped valve, and it can affect his lungs. We’re handling it.”
“He needs surgery,” she surmises.
I nod. “And soon, he’ll get it. Stephan left us money in a trust fund. I had no idea until his lawyer called me. It’s why I came back, Margot. And I would really appreciate it if you would just leave us alone.”
Margot sighs heavily, then walks away without another word.
I don’t know what she’s thinking or what she’s up to, but I do know that this encounter will make my stay in Blackthorn Falls even more difficult. With Bill in town, it’s only a matter of time before the threat returns to my door and I’m forced to do the unthinkable.
“Momma, I’m hungry,” Matty says, handing me back the inhaler.
I kiss his tiny, warm hands and check his pulse. “Let’s make sure you’re fit for travel, little man.”
“I think I’m okay. It wasn’t that bad.” My heart swells as he tries to stay upbeat about it.
Truth be told, Matty’s gotten more used to his asthma attacks than I ever will. I plant a kiss on the top of his head and put the inhaler back into my purse.
“You’re right, you only needed a few puffs of the good stuff this time to turn pink from blue,” I giggle, making light of an otherwise unpleasant situation because it’s how we’ve learned to cope together. “Alright, then, let’s go get something to eat. There’s a waffle place not far from here that I know you’re going to love.”
“Waffles? With syrup? Yes!”
He’s as excited as I knew he’d be.
“All kinds of syrup. And ice cream on top. You’ve earned a scoop,” I reply with a wink, then glance back at Stephan’s grave.
I wish my brother could be here to see Matty, to understand why I chose to run away that night instead of doing everything in my power to avenge his death and get the justice he deserves.
I’ve yet to forgive myself, so how can I ask Stephan to forgive me?
15
CLARA
The main thing I wanted to avoid since Bill Lockwood’s return were town functions. However, a small fundraiser for the local library was not something I could skip, especially not when Jodie was the one organizing it. She is raising funds to buy new books and to open an after-school program with live readings from children’s favorites.
