“Can you tell me about our parents?” My real parents. The idea still seemed strange. Mom said they died a long time ago. I’d never get the chance to meet the people who created me.
“They were the scum of the earth,” Elyse said, scorn filling her voice.
That wasn’t what I expected, though by Elyse’s actions I wasn’t totally surprised. “What do you mean?”
“Do you want to know the truth?”
“Yes,” I said, desperate for it.
“I won’t gild it for you.” She continued to watch the water as she spoke.
I wasn’t sure whether it was difficult for her to talk about or she needed to pay attention to driving the boat. But she didn’t look at me again while she spoke.
“I was raised in a slum house in Tennessee. Our mother would do anything for her fix, including spending the money for our survival on her habit. From a young age, I knew I wasn’t wanted. I wasn’t the only kid in the neighborhood, but I was the youngest, so I grew up quickly. When I was five, you came along.”
The shift from disgust to reverence was like night and day. I’d witnessed how quickly her emotions shifted after she let Madison go. I’d have to pay attention to that if I was ever going to get away from her.
“I didn’t want the same life for you,” she continued. “I cared for you more than anyone in the world had ever cared for a child. I did everything for you. I stole from the dealers in the neighborhood to buy you formula . . .” She trailed off and her expression shifted again. “I was quite good at it, until I wasn’t.”
“What happened?” I asked, riveted to my spot.
She sighed, falling back into the story. “One particular dealer would fight dogs. It was a challenge to steal from him but he had more cash than most. I’d taken from him once before and was able to provide for you for six months. That was the night our lives changed forever.”
I didn’t need to be a genius to put two and two together. “You were attacked.”
She nodded slowly; her eyes were far away, remembering that night.
My stomach churned, thinking about a five-year-old kid mauled by dogs. “I’m so sorry.”
“I’m not looking for pity,” she snarled.
My mouth clamped shut and I had a clearer picture of the person who murdered Joe. Especially since she knew of his habits. Had he reminded her of our tragic childhood?
“When I returned home after my stint in the hospital,” she said, “you were gone. The degenerate who birthed us said someone from the state had taken you after my incident. She was relieved. I could have killed her right there. Then, after she saw my damaged body, she claimed she wouldn’t pay any of my medical bills. Said it was my fault I went to play with the ‘puppies.’”
There was a moment of silence, thin enough to shatter with a strong breeze. I said nothing, waiting for her to speak first. My heart broke for her. I lived in the moment with her, knowing how an innocent child would be shaped by this tragedy.
Elyse cleared her throat and continued. “Luckily, my caseworker had already placed me into the foster system. I had only returned home to get my measly possessions.”
“Was that the last time you saw her? Our mother?”
“No. The last time I saw her was about five years later. It was also the last day of her life.”
“What happened?”
Elyse turned and looked me straight in the eyes. “Let’s just say I took care of her.”
The sway of the boat added to the rolling nausea in my stomach.
“I was eleven when I ran away from my foster family,” Elyse said, beginning the next part of her story. Her words were quicker now, as if she were excited to share. “As long as they saw the check every month they didn’t notice my absence. I went back to the trash bin of a dwelling where I’d been raised. I wanted to see if another innocent child was born from that whore. Thankfully, there wasn’t. And the dealer she slept with had been taken out by a rival, which was lucky for him.”
I swallowed hard before speaking. “What did you do?”
“She had his terrible habit of falling asleep while smoking. I only moved her hand closer to the couch.”
My heart raced. “Oh, my god!”
Elyse sighed. “I did what I had to do to close that chapter of our lives.”
Elyse had killed someone when she was just a kid. With the deformities under her mask and her tendency toward murder, I began to regret not jumping from the boat when I had the chance. She was a troubled woman, and how long would it be before someone made her angry enough to kill again?
“I did it for us,” she said. She discussed murder as though she were talking about the weather, brushing it off as if it weren’t a big deal.
“I never asked for this,” I said. “You didn’t have to hurt anyone.”
“I’ve done everything to protect your innocence.”
“I’m not innocent. I knew about Joe and his habits.”
“He forced you to stay with him.”
“It was my choice, too. I wanted to fit in.” The worries of the past two years seemed so petty and childish now. It really was my fault that Joe was dead. If I’d let go when I wanted to I might be a loser but at least Joe would be alive. And Ryan wouldn’t be in the hospital.
Fate gave me a heaped dose of karma. And there was nothing I could do about it now.
Elyse appeared to consider my confession. “Fitting in is overrated. People are cruel and the only ones you can count on are family.”
My situation was bleak. My thirst for information was the only thing to keep me from truly falling into despair. “If we’re going to be a family, I want to see you. The real you.”
“This mask is the real me. What’s concealed underneath is a monster created by other monsters. It’s not necessary to dwell on the past, only our future.”
I guessed that was the most I would get from her on that subject. I decided to shift to the future she imagined. Maybe that would give me enough time to come up with an alternate escape plan, though the further we moved away from shore, the further my hopes went with it. “Tell me about your adoptive father.”
Elyse smirked. “Nolan Richards. He and his wife were my last foster family.”
“They know about you coming to Chester Bay?”
Her smirk faded into a grimace. “Sandra, his wife, passed a year after I came to live with them. But Nolen, yes, he knows you’re coming to stay with us.”
I noticed she evaded my question. “You’ve been with him all of this time?”
“Yes. I work for him too. From home, of course. It was his idea to reconnect with you.”
Either this guy was just as crazy as she was or she hadn’t explained her twisted idea of a reunion. The way she spoke about him, Elyse put Nolan on a pedestal. It was obvious that she didn’t think much of our biological father, so that spot in her heart needed to be filled. I knew what that felt like.
“When did you move in with them?” I asked.
“I was sixteen.”
I didn’t know much about how I came to live with my family but I couldn’t imagine jumping from home to home while growing up. And, with the deformities under her mask, I was sure it wasn’t easy.
“Don’t pity me,” she said.
I didn’t realize I’d flitted off into my own world until I met her cold stare. “I don’t.”
“Good. I’m able to take care of myself. I have been for a long time.”
I sensed her attitude bordering on anger again, so I decided to drop the subject for the moment. I had no idea what my future held but, as far as I knew, I wouldn’t be able to escape her. Maybe Nolan would be able to shed more light on her. Unless he was as crazy as she was.
“I’m hungry,” I said, changing the subject. She’d mentioned food and I needed to digest everything she’d said.
She shook her head. “Yes, of course.” She knelt down and retrieved a plastic bag filled with various items. “It’s not much but it will tide you over until we get there.”
I went to her and our eyes met. They were the same color, almost exactly. What other similarities did we have?
I took the bag from her gloved hand. With the way she covered herself, I wondered about the extent of her injuries. I took a granola bar and a bottle of water and moved back to my place at the side of the boat. I sat and my legs ached as if I’d run ten miles. I massaged my tight muscles with one hand while I ate the bar with the other.
“Are you going to eat?” I asked.
“I’ll eat later when you’re sleeping.” I wasn’t sure about the secrecy with eating but I didn’t question her.
“How far is Nolan’s place?” I asked.
“We will arrive tomorrow afternoon.”
I had no idea how far down the coast that would bring us. My mind wandered to cases I’d seen on the news where girls had been kidnapped and brainwashed for years in someone’s basement. I could easily become another statistic. I had no way of contacting my family and, after Madison got home, my parents would be frantic.
I chewed on my granola bar. The chocolate and oats didn’t satisfy me. I took a gulp of the water and started to think of a plan.