Chapter Thirty-Three
F inn and I picked up Aislinn’s mother at the airport a week after Finn arrived in New York.
The woman remained stubborn. She had taken my money to pay for the flight but had insisted it was only a loan that she wanted to pay back with interest. Considering that she already owed the clan money, she knew how high our interest rates were.
Maybe she’d change her mind once she met me.
Finn bounced excitedly on his heels as we waited for his grandmother in the airport hall.
When she came through the sliding doors, I recognized her at once.
Not just because Aislinn had shown me a photo but she had an uncanny resemblance to Aislinn and Imogen, apart from her dyed brown hair.
She was only seven years older than me, since she’d had her daughters so early in life.
It was a bit strange and would certainly make Father drop the occasional comment if there was ever a Killeen and Devaney family meetup, which was unlikely.
Aoife gave me a very cold look as she approached.
With her darker hair and the black leather jacket and faded black jeans, she looked like the black sheep of the Killeens, which made me smirk.
Aoife’s eyes narrowed but then she dropped her gaze to Finn who’d ripped from my hold and was running toward her.
She dropped her travel bag, got down on her haunches, and hugged him. They talked for a while, and I stayed put. She was probably questioning Finn about me. I doubted he had anything bad to say. Finally, they headed my way.
“Lorcan,” she said coolly. If she weren’t family, I wouldn’t have appreciated her disrespectful attitude. But I was used to the rough charm—or rudeness as some might call it—of the Killeen women so it only amused me.
I smirked. “Aoife. Or should I call you Mum?” I couldn’t resist the jab.
“Aoife.” She cleared her throat. “Where’s Aislinn?”
“At the hospital with a friend.”
Aoife nodded, briefly glancing at Finn.
“When will I see her?”
“Finn and I have plans to meet a few New York Giants players so I’ll drop you off at the hospital to see her right away.”
“Sorry, Gran,” Finn said with a sheepish smile.
Aoife laughed. “Don’t worry. I’m glad you’re having fun. But be careful. New York is a big city.” She gave me a suspicious look.
“He’s been to New York before. He and I can handle the big city, right, buddy?” I held out my hand, palm up.
“Right!” Finn high-fived me. I could tell that Aoife was trying to hide her surprise, but failed.
We headed toward my car, and Aoife strapped Finn in, as if I couldn’t do it. Who did she think had strapped him into the car seat before? But I didn’t get in her way. She’d lost a lot in the last few months.
She closed the door but didn’t get into the car herself.
Instead, she faced me. I smiled knowingly.
She was about to say what she couldn’t say with Finn around.
“I don’t trust you. I don’t know why Aislinn suddenly changed her mind.
I can’t change the fact that she’s your wife, but I don’t see us as family.
The money I owe you, I’ll pay it back like any other debtor would. I don’t want a family discount.”
“I’ll hand this off to Aran then. He takes care of our debtors in Ireland. I’m sure they’ll send over one of our money collectors for an introduction to give you the details of our new business arrangement.”
Of course, Aoife would still get special treatment.
I wouldn’t allow her to get hurt, even if she was acting like a bitch.
But maybe one of Aran’s men could scare her on occasion so she’d feel like a real debtor.
I was sure she wouldn’t be able to pay our rates on time, and Aran wouldn’t mind playing this game.
My stomach was in knots as I waited for Mum to arrive. Mum liked to play tough, but seeing Imogen like this would really hurt her.
“Mum will be here soon,” I told Imogen probably for the thousandth time that day. I never received the slightest reaction from her, but at least she’d been stable the last few days. No more scary incidents. Maybe with Mum being here, Imogen would finally improve.
The door opened and Mum poked her head in. Our eyes met and mine filled with tears right away. I’d been overly emotional all day. She gave me a small smile and stepped inside then froze upon seeing Imogen. Her face was completely stiff, and she slowly closed the door but didn’t come closer.
She’d lost weight. Her jeans and leather jacket hung from her body. She swallowed, squared her shoulders, and strode over to me. I stood and half fell into her arms. I started sobbing, unable to restrain myself. Mum patted my back.
“It’ll be all right, Aislinn. I’m here now. We’ll handle this like we’ve handled all the shit thrown at us over the years.”
I pulled away, nodded, and wiped away my tears. Mum bent over Imogen and stroked her cheek with her knuckles. “You have a bright future ahead of you, Imogen. I can feel it. You just have to find the strength within yourself.”
She leaned down and kissed Imogen’s temple, and I had to wipe my eyes again.
Mum sank down onto the chair I’d set up beside mine and took my sister’s hand.
For a while we sat in silence. Mum needed to get a grip.
I could see it in the tight set of her jaw.
She didn’t want to cry. “This wasn’t an accident, was it? ”
I shook my head. With Mum looking directly into my eyes, I couldn’t lie anymore. She deserved the truth no matter how painful.
“Do they know who did this to her?”
I assumed she was referring to Lorcan but I wasn’t sure. The answer was the same either way. I shook my head. “Probably someone with connections to the Russian mafia, but Imogen got on the person’s yacht in the Caribbean on a whim. It’s difficult to get information. Lorcan is trying his best.”
“I assume he has more effective ways to gather information than the police.”
“He’s doing what he can. I know you don’t like me being back with him, but you should see him with Finn. I’ve never seen Finn so happy and carefree.”
Mum narrowed her eyes in consideration. “So this is about Finn. Do you feel responsible to give him a father figure? That isn’t your job, Aislinn.”
“I know, and it’s not the only reason why I changed my mind about Lorcan. But him being good with Finn shows me that he isn’t just a bad guy, at least not with family.”
“What is it about him then?”
I liked being around Lorcan. He made me feel like not all responsibility rested on my shoulders. I knew he had my back. He had a dark sense of humor that I appreciated. I liked his thoughts about family and marriage. And the sex …it was absolutely mind-blowing.
“If this is just about scratching an itch after Patrick cheated on you, then there are easier ways to get laid, Aislinn.”
My eyes grew wide. Mum had never talked this openly to me. I knew she could be like that because customers in Merchant’s Arch had told me, but around Imogen and me, she’d always been a strict Mum.
“That’s not why I changed my mind about Lorcan.” I had no plans of discussing my sex life with Mum now. Just the idea made me feel like throwing up.
Mum sighed. “You’re an adult. You have to make your own decisions, even if I want to protect you. We all have to learn from our mistakes.”
“Did you?” I asked, then bit my lip in guilt.
Mum was still bitter about the past and that bitterness stopped her from enjoying the present. She looked at Imogen, avoiding my gaze.
“I didn’t want you and Imogen to meet a new father-figure every other year. That’s why I never dated. I wanted to give you consistency.”
“But Imogen and I have been old enough to handle a man at your side for a while now.”
Mum shrugged. “I guess I’m too jaded.”
“That’s what I thought about myself. ”
Mum snorted. “You’re just a babe.”
“And you’re not an old hawk so stop acting like one.”
Mum stroked Imogen’s hand. “Now isn’t the time.”
Mum stayed in New York for ten days but Imogen’s state hadn’t changed in the slightest, and the doctors gave us little hope that it would be any different in the foreseeable future.
Mum had bills to pay and wanted to resume working, so she couldn’t stay any longer.
Not to mention she wanted to avoid being around Lorcan as much as possible, and with Finn being Lorcan’s biggest fan that proved really difficult.
The night before Mum’s return flight, I visited her at Gulliver’s to talk to her about Lorcan’s and my plans to have Finn stay with us indefinitely.
Due to her lack of money, she decided to stay with her brother despite their problems. In her mind, Gulliver seemed to be the lesser evil compared to Lorcan.
Mum was silent for a long time when I told her our plans, fingers wrapped tightly around her glass of Guinness. “You have always been Finn’s maternal figure. If anyone should take care of him, then it’s you, but I don’t know how I feel about Lorcan being so close to him.”
“Finn loves him and Lorcan is so good with him. Finn needs structure. Imogen probably won’t wake.” It was the first time I admitted it to myself. I didn’t want to believe it, but for Finn’s sake I had to be honest. “And I know she would be thrilled.”
Mum nodded slowly. “This world is a cruel one, especially for a kid like Finn, so I suppose becoming a Devaney will give him a real fighting chance to succeed.”
If he lived with us, he’d be well protected, it was true, but that wasn’t even the main reason why I knew Finn would thrive living with us.
Maybe one day we could even adopt him. Imogen wouldn’t mind.
It was one of the things I never understood and one thing I really disliked her for.
“We’ll visit you and you can visit too, so you’ll see us often.
I know it’s a huge change for you, living alone all of a sudden. ”