Page 24 of Poisoned Promise
“Are you going on another date?”
“No, nothing like that. Well, maybe like that. Someone found me.”
Mary’s face falls. “Oh sweetheart.”
“This is… insane, actually. I don’t regret what I did but I left that life behind. I’m not that person anymore. Hell, I moisturise and exfoliate, I buy anti-wrinkle cream and worry about taxes instead of spending my hours trying to get blood out of my clothes or training until my knuckles bleed or beating my time at gun disarmament. This is… it’s all getting out of control.”
Pacing away from her, I force a few deep breaths and Mary patiently waits for me to return to her side.
“Did I do the wrong thing?” I ask. “I didn’t see any other way but now…”
“No,” Mary says firmly. “Look. I don’t know much about the world you came from but what I do know is that your motherly instinct? That’s the strongest gift you have. Protecting your family is what any mother does; you just had to use a…rareform of protection to keep your son safe. And that’s why you did it, isn’t it? To protect Alex?”
I nod firmly.
“Then I know you have done the right thing and you will continue to do that as long as your heart stays true and focused.”
“Mary…”
“The person who found you, are they a danger?”
“I don’t know.” My cheeks puff out. “They were back then but I can’t tell now. I have to meet them.”
“When?”
“Tonight. Dinner.”
“I suppose it won’t be in a public place?”
“No,” I chuckle dryly. “It won’t be.”
“Will you be safe?”
My heart tightens. In all my years, no one has been more motherly to me than Mary has.
Even my own family barely knew anything about affection.
She barely knew me when she took me in and helped me work out what formulae to buy for Alex when my milk dried up,cheaper ways to deal with diaper rash and more, and then gave me a job and paid me long before I was able to leave Alex.
I want to tell her the truth but something stops me.
“Yes,” I lie. “I will be safe.”
“Good. Let me take care of Alex. You go and do what you need to do.”
Two hours after my shift ends, Alex goes home with Mary.
I return to my apartment and raid my closet for anything good enough to keep Felix subdued for the entire night.
A lot can change in fifteen years but just thinking of the way he looked at me when he was standing in my lounge is enough to send hot shivers down my arms.
In the end, I settle for a simple black dress that stops just above my knee, sheer stockings that rise up to my thigh and clip onto a garter, and burgundy heels the same shade as the dark lip I swipe across my mouth.
A couple of sparkling gems to complete the outfit and I’m happy.
Almost.
Standing in front of the mirror, I stare at myself for a few long minutes trying to work out what isn’t clicking.
