Chapter 24
24
RAINN
“Bakersfield,” I say, my voice flat.
“Yes.”
“California.”
Mac shakes his head, reminding me we’ve had this conversation about twenty times over the last hour. Ever since Belinda reluctantly gave us Mom’s address.
I can’t wrap my head around it. “Why?”
Mac sighs and squeezes my hand. “I still don’t know.”
I catch his eyes, letting him see the storm of cascading emotions. Confusion. Fear. Hope. “Bakersfield.”
“Nope,” he says, shaking his head. “Not going through this glitch in the space-time continuum again.” He grabs my face and presses our lips together. I lean into the kiss, soaking up his goodness. His sweet comfort. And it somehow breaks the loop I’ve been stuck in.
And I’m not sure that’s better. “What do I do now?” I sound like that fifteen-year-old boy my mom left behind. Mac wraps his arms around me.
“What do you want to do?” he asks, resting his head against mine. “You can go see her. Or not. But knowing she’s alive and not dead is something, right?”
I laugh at that. But my real fear is there, and I can’t keep it in. “I have to tell Zye.”
“Yes.” He says it like there’s no other choice. And I know that. But still.
“He’s happy now, Mac. His business is taking off. He’s getting married. Which is something I didn’t think would ever happen. This could destroy that.”
“Yes.” And his eyes say it probably will. “But he’s an adult now, Rainn. Not that little boy you’ve always tried to protect. He deserves to know.”
I swallow my fear that it will all go sideways. “Will you come with me?”
He smiles. “Absolutely.”
I wait a couple of days. Trying to gather as much information as I can. Google is no help. I use the Live Earth app to see the place. It’s nice and big. Almost too big to be one residence. Is it a group home or a rehab? Maybe mom still struggles with substance abuse. Is that why she’s been gone? There are other options, but her living in a big place with a whole new family is not something I want to consider. Googling every version of Olivia Danica Jaine that I can think of gives me nothing.
“At least she’s not been arrested or made headlines, right?”
Mac shrugs like my logic is faulty, but he doesn’t want to point that out.
Finally, I’m as ready as I can get. The Tuesday after Thanksgiving, we drive to Mule Creek. I can’t put this off any longer.
Mule Creek is about an hour from the Kansas City metro area, but it’s like a small town in every way. It’s mostly farms with mom-and-pop stores, a diner, and one or two stoplights. My brother’s shop, Zyetastic Weddings, is located in a strip mall between a nail salon and a Chinese restaurant.
There’s an expensive SUV parked in front of the shop.
Mac lets out a low whistle. “Wow. Business must be good if Zye can afford that.”
I study the vehicle. “It isn’t Zye’s.” I point to the same car he had last time we were here. Was that really five months ago? “Isaac is dating a prince or something. Must be his.”
“Guess you’ll find out.”
My head jerks over to him. “Aren’t you coming in?”
“I think you need to do this part alone. But I’ll be here. Just text me if you need me.”
I don’t like the idea, but I know he’s right. “Wish me luck.”
“You don’t need luck, sweetheart,” he says, warming my heart. His tender kiss is way too short. “But just to be on the safe side, you might want to confiscate his gel pen.”
The bell jingles when I walk in, and I stop, not expecting the number of people in the lobby. Zye and his fiancé. Does Miles ever work, or does he just hang out with Zye all day? Isaac and a guy who looks familiar. Not surprising since he’s been all over the news and social media: the prince of Lutiana. Huh . Cher was right. Another guy is off to the side. He’s tall, bald, and regal-looking. And are those bodyguards?
A noise like a honk comes from the chairs. An emu. Of course.
Comfortable chairs are lined against the wall. The place is decorated with wedding pictures. A few more than the last time I was here. When we were planning my wedding to Cher.
Isaac’s desk is well-organized, with a Star Trek cup and a giraffe pen holder. Boxes litter the desk and the floor around it.
Is it too late to leave? To beg Mac to come in?
“Rainn?” Zye stares at me. His eyes are like lasers. He has spiky white-blond hair and blue eyes, and today, he’s wearing purple eyeshadow. I almost smile. I miss him so much. Hopefully, he doesn’t throw me out.
He stomps toward me in his sparkly shoes, and I brace myself for his anger. Anger I more than deserve.
“Hey, Zye.” I smile, but he’s already on the attack.
“It’s been four months.” He pokes his finger at me. “What the hell, Rainn?”
“It’s not like we haven’t texted. And I had school.” But my excuse is weak, and we both know it.
“We…? Right,” Zye says with a scoff. “I’ve texted. You’ve given me one-word answers. Fine. Everything is fine.”
And then it’s all too much. “Everything was fine.” I get louder, gesturing wildly. And the gleam of my ring catches my eye. The ring I forgot to take off. I’m not explaining that right now. I stuff my hands in my pockets. Lowering my voice, I nod at the prince. “Besides, you guys have been busy.”
Zye huffs but then introduces us. Prince Adrian of Lutiana is regal with green eyes and a European accent. He looks rich and his cologne smells expensive. The man with him is Reginald, his steward. The way he’s built, I could almost believe he was a bodyguard. He’s around forty or forty-five, maybe older. And his head is completely shaved. He doesn’t introduce the guards in the background. I greet everyone, and now I have to rip off the Band-Aid. Mac is in the car waiting. But I watch the emu—Justine—because I don’t know how to start.
“What’s going on, Rainn?” Zye puts his hands on his hips as if preparing for a fight.
“I—need to tell you something.” I smile again. Zye used to forgive me when I gave him that smile. But it hasn’t worked for about ten years now. “I’m not sure how you’re going to react, to be honest. Miles?” The muscled guy with long hair and tattoos who definitely hates me raises a brow in question. “Does he have his sparkly gel pen?”
“Nope. It’s in his office.”
Zye gives his boyfriend a dirty look.
“Isaac, can you move the giraffe pen holder?”
He nods and moves it just out of Zye’s reach.
Zye makes a frustrated sound. “I can be calm.” But his voice gets louder, and he stomps a foot. The light catches on his shiny silver-and-gray shoes. God, I missed my brother. I shouldn’t have waited so long. “Is this about your time in Vegas?” he asks with a challenging look. “Everyone has been acting strange, and no one’s talking.”
Right. This is why I didn’t contact him. Zye would have the story in no time, and I wasn’t ready. I’m still not ready. “Sort of,” I hedge, keeping my hands in my pockets. How can I get the ring off without anyone noticing? “While we were in Vegas, something happened?—”
“Oh my gosh.” Zye covers his mouth with his hands. “Did you and Cher get married?”
“Better not have,” Miles mumbles.
Heat floods my face. Zye’s too close to the truth. “No—God, no.”
“I was joking. Mostly. Just tell us.”
“Fine,” Rainn says, ready to be done with this. Let the chips fall where they may. I again brace myself for his reaction. “I found Mom.”
Zye stares at me as if I have two heads. “What? You found Mom? Where is she?”
I laugh even though it’s not funny. “Bakersfield, California.”
“I don’t understand.” So I tell him. Not everything, but about Belinda and the letters. He doesn’t break down. Or cry. But his eyes shine, and his chin raises a bit. “You said it had something to do with Vegas.”
“I said sort of.” My eyes drift to the door. Is Mac okay? It seems wrong to leave him out there. And then my mind finishes that thought. Out there when I want him in here. With me.
“Why do you keep glancing at the door. Are you going to bail on me?” I hear the again even though he doesn’t say it.
“No…Mac is in the car.”
Miles smirks. “Is he afraid of us?”
I glare at the guy. Why is he such a jerk? “No.”
Zye heads for the door, and I grab him. “Hold on. I’ll get him.” I open the door and wave for Mac to join us. I stand there while Mac gets out of the truck and ambles—because Mac ambles—to the door. He looks me over, and I wonder if he’s looking for damage by gel pen.
“Mac,” Zye says as he steps inside. Then, he introduces him to everyone in the room. Only Mac has more manners than I do. Or maybe he doesn’t remember. But he nods his head to the prince in an almost bow and holds out his hand to Reginald. Before they can shake, Zye grabs his hand and holds it up so the ring shines in the light. He gasps and shoots us both a look. “Did Mac marry Cher in Vegas?”
Miles shrugs. “It wasn’t on her Insta.”
“I was joking.” He releases Mac and studies me, and I try not to squirm. “Let’s see your hands, Rainn.”
I huff and hold out my hands where my ring is clearly visible. “Mac and I got married. In Vegas. Happy now?”