Chapter 5
CASSIA
I wasn’t sleeping when my bedroom door slowly opened, but I was surprised to see Iliana silhouetted in the dim light from the hall. When she lifted the covers and crawled into bed beside me, I remembered all the times she’d done this before.
After Iliana came to live with us, she snuck into my bedroom almost every night for at least a year.
Now, she did it occasionally when she’d had a rough day or was having trouble sleeping.
She didn’t snuggle with me like she had as a small child, but she did wiggle closer before she sighed and whispered, “You’re not asleep, are you? ”
“Nope.”
“I know you could never hate me, but it kind of feels like you do.” I didn’t say anything because she was right. I could never hate her, but I could be really pissed. “What would you give to have Mom and Dad back with us?”
Iliana knew the answer because she felt the same. I would give almost anything to hear Dad’s voice again or feel Mama’s soft touch as she tucked a lock of my hair behind my ear.
“What does that have to do with anything right now, Iliana?”
“Ivy has a chance to know her father now.”
“A chance? You took ‘chance’ out of the equation when you went behind my back.”
“I researched the entire family before I even considered going to Rojo. I even . . . well, I sort of stalked them for a while.”
“You stalked them?”
“Not in a creepy way.”
“Is there another kind of way?” I asked honestly. “What did you do?”
“I went to the garage his family owns and said that my car was making a weird noise. The men inside were really helpful, and they let me sit in the office while I waited. There was this man there . . . the man from the television . . . and I struck up a conversation with him just to feel him out.”
I couldn’t resist asking, “How did he act?”
“He was really nice. He offered to get me something to drink, and when I asked if they had a vending machine, he suggested I walk across the street to a little cafe. I told him I wasn’t comfortable eating alone, and he laughed.
He said he’d go with me because he was enough like his mama that he couldn’t stand to see someone hungry. ”
“You ate with Ivy’s grandfather?”
“Yeah. His wife . . . Ivy’s grandmother .
. . she came too. They don’t work there anymore, but they go to the shop a lot.
I just happened to catch them on the right day.
” In the dim light, I could see the hesitation on her face before Iliana cleared her throat and admitted, “Okay, that’s a lie.
I kept going there until they showed up. ”
“You drove six hours each way to watch people go in and out of a garage on the off chance that you might be able to tell what kind of person they are from a five-minute conversation?” I asked in shock. “How many times have you been to Rojo, Iliana?”
“A lot.”
“What the fuck? Have you been skipping classes to stalk strangers?” I wondered if I needed to call the doctor.
Erisa had personality changes, and Iliana seemed to be exhibiting signs of the same thing.
The old Iliana was flighty and never would have been able to maintain the kind of focus it took to track people.
Even if it wasn’t a side effect of the poisoning, grief could do weird things to the psyche.
I had to ask, “Do we need to get you some help, sweetie?”
“I’m not crazy, Cassia,” Iliana scoffed. “I want Mom and Dad back. It’s so unfair that we had to lose them when they were such a gift.”
I didn’t want to talk about my parents anymore, because my grief would rear its ugly head and I’d never sleep. “What else did you find out about this family?”
“There are a lot of them. Memphis and Scarlet are in the band, and the rest of the members are their cousins, except for Lucky Marks, whose parents are childhood friends with the Forresters.”
“So, they have extended family in town.”
“That’s not all. It’s not just Memphis and Scarlet; their parents have nine kids, Cassia. Nine!”
“That’s a lot.”
“I know, right? In my research, I found that Memphis has at least twenty first cousins, maybe more.”
“Good grief.”
“But that’s not all! His parents belong to a club, and everyone in it is like family. There are over a hundred people he considers family, Cassia. I know it sounds like an exaggeration, and he’s probably not that close to all of them, but there are still too many to count.”
“What kind of club is it?”
“It’s a biker club. Memphis is part of it, just like his dad. His sister belongs to one for women only.”
“Like that television show you and Erisa were obsessed with?” I asked in horror.
“No! Sort of! I mean, I’m sure they don’t do all of those things, but they ride motorcycles and they’re really hot, so there are similarities.”
“Telling me this is not helping your case, babe.”
“Shit. I’m just trying to say that Ivy will never be alone. No matter what happens, she’ll always have somewhere to go and people she can trust won’t hurt her.”
“She’s not going to be vulnerable like we were, sweetie,” I whispered as I found Iliana’s hand on top of the covers. I squeezed it gently and said, “She won’t have any of the memories that we do.”
“But think of the wonderful ones she could have.”
“I can’t lose her.”
“I read the papers.”
“What is wrong with you? Are you training to be a fucking spy? Jeez, Iliana,” I said, rolling over.
“I didn’t get all the details,” Iliana admitted, probably just trying to lessen my anger.
“I didn’t read them. Tell me what they said,” Erisa said as she appeared in the doorway.
“Jeez Louise, I’m glad my bed is so big,” I said as Erisa lifted the covers and scooted in. “I thought we were done with this. If Ivy ends up in bed with us, I’m going to the couch.”
“Remember when we were little and came to your room almost every night?” Erisa asked. “My dreams were so vivid that I felt like I could sleep better with you beside me.”
“And you understood the dreams better than anyone,” Iliana whispered.
“Tell me what the papers said,” Erisa ordered. “I’ve been dying to know.”
I sighed. It wasn’t like me to hide anything from my sisters. “He listed out a few options, and I have to decide.”
“Is he willing to share custody?” Erisa asked.
“That was one of his suggestions.” I laughed bitterly. “Let me rephrase that. He gave me a few options and said he’s not leaving town until I decide. Basically, he isn’t giving me a choice in how we proceed with this . . . situation.”
“What were the suggestions?” Erisa asked.
“What were the suggestions, Iliana?” I asked snidely. I sighed before I said, “I’m sorry. I’m just a little on edge. I do want you to know that I’m very upset that you went behind my back.”
“I’m not sorry I found him, I’m just sorry that you’re so angry.”
“Why would you do that?” I asked in exasperation.
“Because you never would have.”
Iliana was probably right. I loved my life with Ivy and felt like she was the last connection I had to my brother. Knowing she wasn’t his biological daughter–which had been nagging at me–I still loved her as my own child. As a part of my brother I would never see again.
“Tell us what the papers said,” Erisa encouraged.
“I can move with Ivy to Rojo and share custody, or he can drag me through the court system, prove he’s the father, and take her away.”
“Would the court do that?” Iliana asked in disbelief.
“After I got Ivy to bed, I did some research online. Yes, the courts would definitely do that.”
“We’ve got the money to fight him,” Iliana said quietly.
“No, it’s about what’s best for Ivy. I can share her, or I can lose her completely. At this age, she might not even remember me in a year.”
“I remember lots of things from when I was her age,” Iliana whispered.
I didn’t doubt that, but her memories were horrible–the kind that stick with you forever no matter what. Ivy had good memories and no trauma. She could very well forget all of us if given enough time. I would never be the same if I lost her.
“You have to share Ivy with him,” Erisa said firmly. “He looked at her like Ivan used to, Cassia. It broke my heart and mended it at the same time.”
“I saw that too,” I admitted.
“Are we not even going to talk about how much like his family she is?” Iliana asked.
“I’m sure it’s just a coincidence.” I sighed deeply. “Okay, it’s more than a coincidence. You know I’ve always thought it was weird how she focused on cars and trucks, even before we found that show.”
“She thrives on noise and chaos. She’s the only child I’ve ever known who can’t sleep when it’s too quiet,” Erisa mused. “What’s up with that?”
“Could it be genetic?” Iliana asked.
“That’s a good question.”
“What is?”
“What sort of people are always surrounded by noise and chaos?”
◆◆◆
MEMPHIS
I could hear Ivy giggling through the front door as I stepped onto the porch. I smiled when I heard her start making engine noises. She’d done that over and over last night while I sat on the couch and she showed me her toys.
All of her toys.
It was obvious that she lacked for nothing, including attention. She had plenty to play with, and every time she walked up to talk to Cassia or her sisters, they stopped what they were doing and chatted with her until she moved on.
Ivy had charmed me instantly. By the time we left last night, Scarlet and Xavier were just as infatuated. Every time she smiled, her cute little dimples deepened, and when she laughed, her entire body shook with her joy.
I had been around children my whole life.
As I grew up, kids were born to members of my family and even more to my extended club family; toddlers were common for all of us.
My knowledge of taking care of kids had come in handy over the years.
I was happy to see that Cassia and her sisters worked together to care for Ivy exactly like my family did.
It seemed that Ivy depended on each woman for different things, which made sense.
She went to Cassia for all things mom-related, like food and comfort.
She went to Erisa to show off or demonstrate something, and she went to Iliana for laughs.
I had the same dynamic with my uncles, who each filled different roles in my life according to their personalities.
Uncle Bird was the one I went to for serious things–questions I wanted answers to that I wasn’t comfortable asking my parents, or insight and advice when I needed it.
Uncle Kale was the one I went to when I needed support in a sticky situation, and Uncle Clem was the fun uncle, always up for a practical joke or a laugh.
Obviously, Ivy was experiencing the same sort of dynamic with her aunts that I had with my uncles and their wives. I loved that for her. I knew that when she came to Rojo, she’d develop many more relationships like that–not only my aunts and uncles, but with all my cousins too.
And, of course, there were my parents and other siblings, who still had no idea Ivy even existed. That was something I’d have to remedy as soon as I got back. I hadn’t wanted to tell anyone until I had a plan for the future, which was something that was going to happen today.
I’d given Cassia a few options, none of which she seemed happy about last night, but that was to be expected.
I could tell she was a strong-willed woman, even when she didn’t want to be.
The last couple of years had probably tested her strength to the breaking point; I’d seen that last night when she broke down in my arms. But now, she wouldn’t have to raise Ivy alone. I would be right beside her.
Of course, if she didn’t choose that option, I’d be across from her, fighting tooth and nail for my daughter.
I really hoped that wasn’t the option that Cassia had chosen.
As I rang the doorbell, I kept my fingers crossed.
I was still nervous until Cassia opened the door and frowned at me.
“Fine! You win, but I need a few weeks.” When I slowly shook my head, Cassia frowned deeper.
“Am I supposed to just leave all of my stuff here? Surely you know how ridiculous that sounds, Memphis.”
“I’m not usually one to throw it around all willy-nilly, but money talks, Cassia. We can hire a team and have you out of this house within two days.”
“That’s ridiculous. Give me one week.”
I thought about it for a second. “On one condition.”
“What’s that?”
“I want your passports.”
“What?”
“Yours and your sisters’. I’ll keep them safe until you’re settled in Rojo.”
“You’re kidding me!”
“Are we going to stand here in the doorway and have this discussion, or are you going to invite me in while you go get them?” I asked.
“I should leave you on the porch and pray that lightning strikes you dead!”
I looked out at the clear blue sky and said, “Sorry, hon. Not today.”
“You’re infuriating.”
“I’ve heard that before.”
“I want you to know that I’m not going to let you bully me or keep me hostage, Memphis.”
“I’m not trying to keep you hostage.”
“Really? So you’re going to take my identification away? Isn’t that illegal? I’m pretty sure it’s illegal!”
“I know that all of you have traveled all over the world, so it wouldn’t be hard for you to pick a spot where I can’t reach you.
Tell me you haven’t considered packing Ivy up and taking her somewhere far away.
” I could tell by the look on her face that she had, so I gave her a bitter smile. “That’s why I want the passports.”
“I wouldn’t have done it,” Cassia said softly.
“You don’t trust me yet, and I get that. And as sad as it seems–considering you’ve taken such good care of Ivy so far–I don’t trust you either.”
“I guess that’s something we’re going to have to work on, isn’t it?”
“I look forward to it.”