It was so hard not to reply to Maddox. Jada knew he’d picked up his brother today, understood it had to have been difficult and worried about what, exactly, had made him send his latest text. She wished she could ask. But cutting him off now might give her a second chance to be smarter and wiser where he was concerned. She was trying so hard to put the needs of her daughter and her family above her own. After all, she and her mother were just starting to get along.
When her phone rang as she was working late in her bedroom that night, she startled and then stared over at it with some trepidation. Could that be him? Was Maddox calling because she hadn’t answered his text?
Maya was asleep beside her but, fortunately, the noise didn’t even cause her to roll over.
Being careful not to shake the bed too much as she got out of it, Jada crossed to where she’d plugged her phone in to charge and was relieved to find Tiffany’s picture on her screen.
“Hey, what’s up?” she said, speaking low.
“I’m on break at the hospital, but I wanted to catch you if you were up. I just got a text from Tobias.”
“You gave him your number, Tiff?”
“No, Maddox must’ve given it to him so he could thank me.”
She remembered warning Tiffany that it might not be safe to associate with Maddox’s brother, but Tiffany didn’t seem concerned. “And did he—thank you, I mean?”
“He did. He said...” She put her phone on speaker and read the next part. “‘Thank you for the letter you sent. And the money. Both mean a great deal to me.’”
Jada checked to make sure her daughter was still sleeping. “He was released today. You know that, right?”
“I figured he must be out.”
“Did he say anything else?”
“Not until I responded. I told him that I hoped it helped and I wished him well, and he asked me if I would thank you for him. He said to tell you he was going to pay us both back when he gets a job.”
Would he be able to find work? Jada was afraid it might be as difficult for him to enter the workforce as Atticus. “I hope he won’t reach out to me—or, God forbid, send a check to my house.”
“I doubt he will. He didn’t ask for your number or anything.”
“I’m living where I was before he went to prison.”
“I’m sure he knows better.”
“I wonder how it went when Maddox picked him up this morning.”
“Maybe Maddox will tell you when he gets a chance.”
Jada felt her face flush hot as she remembered the phone sex she’d had with Maddox last night. She’d been so bold, thinking he didn’t know who she was—but the joke had been on her. “We’re not talking anymore.”
“What happened?”
She hesitated to tell Tiffany he found out who she was, but she figured she’d end up doing it eventually, so she lowered her voice even further and turned away from the bed, just in case Maya was anywhere close to consciousness. “He found out I was MysteryWoman23.”
“He what?”
“You heard me.”
“Holy shit! How?”
“I have no idea.”
“He told you he knew it was you?”
“Essentially. And asked me to come over.”
“To which you said...”
“No, of course.” She’d been so shocked that what she’d done in that moment had been fairly easy. But it wasn’t so easy anymore. Since he’d figured out it was her, she couldn’t see how one night in his arms would matter. Why couldn’t they have that much before going their separate ways?
“That’s good at least. But will he leave it there?”
She decided not to mention his latest text. She didn’t know why he’d sent it, and she hadn’t responded to it, so there wasn’t much they could gather from it. “Yeah.”
“And? How do you feel?”
Like she was missing out. “Unbelievably torn,” she admitted.
“I’m sorry, Jada.”
“So am I, but there’s nothing anyone can do to change the situation. I just need to let go of him and move on, right?”
“I guess. Listen, I have to get back to work. I’ll stop by the store tomorrow, though, okay? If you’re alone, we can talk.”
“Okay.” Jada disconnected and tried to return to her work on the computer. She was right in the middle of scheduling Facebook posts for each of her clients. But her mind reverted to Tobias and how grateful he’d seemed for the money. It wasn’t much, but when she wasn’t thinking about how angry her brother or mother would be over her actions, she was glad she’d sent it. She kept pondering Maddox’s latest text, too. She wanted to write him back to see if he was okay.
The only way she was able to stop herself was by sliding down next to Maya and holding her daughter close. Think of what you stand to lose, she ordered herself and, finally, nodded off.
Maddox had a stiff neck when he woke up. He’d crashed on his mother’s couch. He’d arrived to find her in bed, which was where he’d expected her to be. But she’d been in a stupor. When he roused her enough to get her to mumble a few words to him, she’d told him she’d only taken the pain pills the doctor had prescribed, but he was worried she might’ve taken those pills in combination with something else, and since her roommate had left to visit family in Virginia after dropping her at the ER, he didn’t dare leave her alone. He’d stayed over to make sure she didn’t need to go back to the hospital.
It had been a long night of checking on her periodically, but finally he could see the sun slanting through the crack in the drapes that hung, lopsided, from the front window. Sitting up, he kicked off the blanket he’d gotten out of the hall closet and covered a yawn. He felt like shit, but at least his mother looked like she’d be okay as far as her physical injuries went. She had a cut above her eyebrow, with a couple of stitches through it, a fat lip and a bruised cheek, but she’d been exaggerating when she said he’d broken her nose.
Intending to check on her again, he got up and knocked softly on the walls as he moved down the hall so she’d hear him coming. “Mom?” he said through the door to her bedroom. “You awake?”
No answer.
He knocked louder. “Mom? Can I come in?”
Still no answer.
He poked his head into the room, but he couldn’t see much. She had shades as well as drapes back here, and both were drawn tight.
His stomach muscles tightened as he approached the bed. Since he was a little boy, he’d worried that he’d find her dead one day, and seeing her lying there unresponsive brought back the old helplessness as well as the current futility of trying to get her to change her life. “Mom?” When he touched her arm, she finally stirred.
“Maddox? Is that you?”
Her words were thick and clumsy, but any drugs she’d taken should’ve worn off, so he was hoping that was just from sleep. “Yeah, it’s me. How do you feel?”
“Okay.”
“Good.”
She fumbled around to find his hand. “What are you doing here?”
She didn’t even remember that he’d spoken to her last night.
“I came by to see how you’re doing.”
Her free hand went to her head as if it ached, and it probably did. “Did I tell you I was robbed?”
“Yeah. You said a friend forced his way into the house and took all the money from your purse. When you tried to stop him, he knocked you around a bit. Is that what happened?”
“Basically.”
“Which friend was it? When I asked for his name, you said you couldn’t remember it.”
She let go of him to right the covers. “I still can’t remember it.”
That was a lie. He could tell by the lack of authority in her voice. She just didn’t want him to go after the guy, and if that was the case, there had to be a reason. “Because...”
“Because he’s more of an acquaintance.”
Maddox pinched his neck, trying to ease some of the stiffness. “Was it because you took the money from him first?”
“Meaning what?”
“Did you borrow money from a friend that you didn’t pay back?”
“No!”
“Then...did you owe him the money for drugs or something else?”
“What makes you ask that?” She sounded indignant.
“The TV, phone and computer I gave you are all still here.”
“Which means what?”
“It wasn’t the kind of robbery I at first thought.”
“Aren’t you the smart one!” she muttered.
He ignored her sarcasm, refused to let her make this conversation about him. “But am I right? If not, give me his name, and I’ll find the bastard and get your money back.”
She hesitated, seemingly in indecision.
“Mom?”
“I don’t want you to get into trouble like your brother.”
“Then tell me the truth. Did you owe this man for drugs?”
She didn’t answer the question, just asked one of her own. “Where’s Tobias?”
“He’s where he’s supposed to be—at his girlfriend’s.”
“Did you meet her?”
“I did.”
“What’s she like?”
Tonya hadn’t made the best first impression, but Maddox didn’t want to speak poorly of someone he didn’t know, especially when it might prejudice his mother’s opinion. Tobias needed all the support he could get, especially right now. “She seemed...very excited to see Tobias.” That was truthful at least.
“Was he excited to see her?”
“He hasn’t been with a woman in thirteen years. I think he was, yeah.”
She swatted his leg. “That’s not telling me what I want to know. I’m asking if they’ll be good together in the long run.”
“I wasn’t there for more than thirty minutes, Mom. I have no way of judging their chances for a long-term relationship.”
“You don’t like her.”
“Don’t put words in my mouth.”
“If you thought she was special, you’d be singing her praises right now, because you know I’m just as worried about Tobias as you are.”
She had no idea that he was equally worried about her—or she chose to overlook it so she wouldn’t have to address her own issues. “We need to give her a chance, okay? Anyway, quit trying to change the subject. Was it your supplier who took your money? Is that how you got hurt, trying to stop him?” It didn’t escape Maddox that whoever it was probably could’ve done a lot more damage than he did, which was why he didn’t think it was a concerted “beating” as she’d first described it.
“Life isn’t always as easy as you seem to think.”
Maddox nearly cursed but managed to refrain. “So it was your supplier.”
Although he couldn’t see her clearly in the dim room, he could tell she was glaring at him.
“Mom?”
“Fine. I owed him the money, but I told him I’d pay him next week and the bastard wouldn’t wait.”
Maddox could see why the dude wouldn’t allow her to put him off. Chances weren’t good his mother would have the money then, either. Her response told him what he’d begun to suspect—that what’d happened wasn’t entirely the other person’s fault. “That’s what I thought. And yet you lied to me.”
“Only because I didn’t want to upset you, especially because I’m going to quit using,” she said as she gingerly explored her bruised cheek. “This woke me up. I swear it.”
“No, it didn’t. You were on something last night.”
“Just pain meds!”
He didn’t believe that was all, but until she was willing to be honest, there wasn’t anything he could do. “I’m missing another day of work. I’m going to make you breakfast and head back to Silver Springs so I can at least make it in to my office by this afternoon.”
“When will I see Tobias?” she asked as he stood.
“Hopefully not until after you’ve healed. I didn’t tell him about this latest problem, and I’m hoping you won’t, either. Especially now that I know you caused it.”
“Okay, I won’t. But what am I supposed to do about the money I lost? I needed it for food, rent.”
Maddox chuckled without mirth. Here they went again. If he gave it to her, it would mean he’d essentially paid for the drugs she’d taken. If he didn’t give it to her, she’d be kicked out of her apartment and would have nowhere else to go, wouldn’t even be able to work.
“What you do to me is such bullshit.” He got the money he had out of his wallet—two hundred and thirty-four dollars—and tossed it on her nightstand. “That’s all I got on me.”
“It’ll help,” she said. “Thank you.”
He tried to search her expression for any hint of remorse, regret or even embarrassment, but it wasn’t easy to see in the murky shadows of the room. He highly doubted he’d find what he was looking for, anyway. “Don’t thank me. And don’t count on me bailing you out again. I’m getting sick of it, which means, one day, I’ll say no. Understand?”
She didn’t respond. She was too busy trying to get the money hidden in a jewelry case in her nightstand. That seemed to be all she cared about, which was why he didn’t stay to cook breakfast for her. “On second thought, you seem capable of making your own food. I’ve got to get back to my life.”
Stunned, Maya sank slowly onto the edge of Annie’s bed. Her grandmother had given her a ride over to her friend’s house first thing in the morning, on her way to open the store. She’d been excited to spend another fun-filled day with Annie, but she’d been greeted almost immediately by terrible news. “So you’re not going to Topatopa Junior High?”
Annie frowned. “No. Can you believe it?”
“I can’t. I thought we’d be going there together. We’ve talked about it all summer.”
“I know, but my mother really wants me to go to the girls’ school at New Horizons.”
Maya could tell Annie wasn’t happy about the change, but that didn’t make it any easier. “Why would you go there? You get good grades. You don’t need to go to a school like that.”
“My mom’s friends with Aiyana Turner, who’s in charge of the place. She wants to help get the new school off the ground, and she wants me to help other girls who aren’t doing as well as I am. She says it’s an opportunity to make a difference.”
It was certainly going to make a difference to Maya—but not in a good way. “That’s nice, but what about all of our plans?” Maya had had fun going to school with Annie the last few months of seventh grade. Leaving the friends she’d had in LA—even her cat, which Eric kept because her grandmother was allergic to pet hair—would’ve been so much harder had she not met Annie right away. Maya had been looking forward to starting school with her new friend in the fall. How could that have changed even though neither one of them were moving?
Annie plopped down next to her. “I know. I’ve begged and begged for her to let me decide, but she won’t. She says I have to at least try it.” Annie sent her a conciliatory glance. “She did promise that we’d still get to see each other a lot, though.”
Maya shook her head. “It won’t be the same.”
A knock sounded at the bedroom door. “Annie?”
It was Annie’s mother. Maya turned away so that she wouldn’t have to look at her right now. She didn’t think she could smile.
“Come in.” Annie sounded almost as glum as Maya felt.
The door opened and Mrs. Coates stuck her head through the crack. “Did you tell her?”
Annie stared at her shoes. “Yeah.”
Maya forced herself to look over and found Mrs. Coates wearing a sympathetic expression. “I’m sorry. I know you must be disappointed, but I wanted to assure you, as I’ve assured Annie, that you’ll still get to see each other all the time.”
Maya wanted to say what she’d said to Annie—that it wouldn’t be the same—but as soon as she opened her mouth to reply, tears welled up. “Sorry, I don’t mean to be a big baby.” She wiped her cheeks. “I’ve got to go. I’ll call you later,” she told Annie and scooted around her mom before any more tears could fall.
“I thought you were staying through lunch,” Mrs. Coates said. “Do you even have a ride?”
“No, but my mom will come get me. I’m just going to wait for her out front.” She started hurrying down the stairs, but Mrs. Coates called after her again.
“What if you went to New Horizons, too, Maya? Do you think you’d be interested in doing that?”
Annie appeared at the banister above. “Yes, Maya! Come with me! That’d be so fun!”
Burgeoning hope made it much easier not to cry. Maya couldn’t imagine her mother would have any problem with her transferring so long as it was a good school, and Mrs. Coates wouldn’t be sending Annie to New Horizons if it wasn’t. Mrs. Coates researched everything. “I’d be fine with switching.”
“There you go,” Mrs. Coates said. “All is not lost quite yet. Let me talk to Aiyana and then we’ll approach your mother.”
The relief that’d flooded over Maya was suddenly tempered with the realization that changing schools might cost money—money her mother didn’t have. “But it’s a private school, right? Don’t private schools cost a lot?”
“Since this is the first year it’ll be open, there might be a slot that won’t cost much, if anything. I’ll see what I can work out with Aiyana.”
If the amount was small enough, Jada might go for it. But Maya knew it’d have to be really small. They were already worried about how they were going to keep Sugar Mama open. “Okay. I guess it doesn’t hurt to see what Mrs. Turner has to say. Maybe when you talk to her, you could tell her I’ll work off my tuition by helping the other girls with homework or something.”
“It’s sweet of you to even think of that,” Annie’s mother said. “I’ll let you know what I find out.”
Maya managed a wobbly smile as Annie came down the stairs. “So don’t leave. We were going to make cotton candy this morning, remember?”
They were also going to ride bikes down to the barbershop. Annie had said that a lot of older men went there, and maybe one of them would remember someone named Madsen or a motorcycle accident that’d killed someone twelve and a half years ago. They hadn’t been able to find out anything at the high school or the library. No one seemed to know who Madsen was or even remember a motorcycle accident where a young man from Silver Springs lost his life. Maya had had to keep bugging Jada to check old newspapers, but she’d finally said she hadn’t been able to find anything.
“I wasn’t leaving because I was mad,” Maya said, now embarrassed by her reaction.
“I know. You were sad, and so was I. But my mom will fix everything. Won’t you, Mom?”
Her mother laughed when they both turned to look up at her. “I’ll do my best.”