Thrill Me

“What do you know?” he asked.

“I have a good idea where she is. Come on.”

Before he could ask what she was talking about, she started walking. She circled the building to the side, then opened a door leading to a staircase.

Del glanced at the mailboxes on the wall, the open entryway. There were apartments above the retail businesses on the street. Small places that were often summer rentals. Why would his mother be here? Unease tugged at him as he followed Maya up the stairs.

When they reached the second floor, Maya led the way to a door at the end of the hall. She knocked once, then used a key to let herself in.

Del followed, along with his brothers and father. He didn’t know what they were thinking, but he could only stand in the middle of a small studio apartment and wonder what the hell was going on.

There were two large windows overlooking the park, a small kitchenette, a TV and a door leading to what he would guess was the bathroom. His mother lay asleep on a daybed, Sophie stretched out next to her. There were fresh flowers in a vase, a couple of his father’s smaller pieces of glass on the table by the bed and jazz softly playing from an ancient clock radio.

Maya knelt by his mother and gently shook her shoulder. “Elaine, honey, you have to wake up.”

His mother stirred, then opened her eyes. “Did I over—” She looked past Maya and saw the four of them, staring at her. Her mouth formed an O.

“Mom!” Nick hurried to her side. “What’s going on? We were so worried. Dad said you were missing and you weren’t answering your cell.”

“I’m sorry,” Maya murmured. “They were frantic. I didn’t know what to do. I tried to call from the car, but you didn’t pick up.”

Elaine swung her legs to the floor and blinked several times. “My cell phone should be in my bag. Unless it fell out in the car. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to sleep so long. You were looking for me?”

Ceallach took a single step toward her. “I thought you’d gone.”

“Where would I go?”

Maya rose and moved toward the window. Del watched her, wondering what she knew that the rest of them didn’t. Maya didn’t look relieved, nor had she been concerned before. Worry began to bend toward anger.

“Mom, is this your apartment?” he asked, his voice too loud for the small space. “And how did Maya know about it?”

Maya paled, but didn’t speak. His mother twisted her hands together.

“This isn’t how I wanted to tell you all. I was going to explain everything in the morning. When you boys came over for breakfast.”

“This apartment is why you invited us over?” Nick asked. “Mom, what’s going on?”

She drew in a breath and gave them a smile. “Everything is fine. You’re not to worry.” She turned to her husband. “A few months ago I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I had a lumpectomy and then radiation. My doctor told me that if I had to get breast cancer, this is the one to have.”

Del saw his brothers’ expressions of shock and had a feeling he looked just as stunned. Thoughts crowded his brain, stupid factoids and snippets from news stories. Cancer? His mother?

“After I healed, I started on radiation. I’ve been getting treatments every day for a few weeks. I’m fine, but it makes me tired. I didn’t want to worry anyone.” She smiled at Ceallach. “You had your big commission and this would have been a distraction.”

She looked at her sons. “You’re all so busy with your lives. So I kept it to myself and I got this place so I could rest in the afternoon without having to explain what was wrong. And if I’d remembered to set the alarm, I would have been awake on time and no one would have known until I told you in the morning. I’m sorry I worried you.”

Del got that his mother apologizing was wrong on every possible level, but he couldn’t seem to speak. He was still dealing with the news. Cancer? His mother had cancer.

Involuntarily, he looked at Maya. She was watching his mom but not speaking. Then all the pieces clicked into place.

Maya was his mother’s friend. Maya had known about the apartment. Maya had known a lot of things.

“You knew,” he said, his voice low. “You knew about this and didn’t tell me.”

Betrayal slammed into him with the force of a tornado. She’d worked with him, laughed with him, made love with him, all the while knowing his mother was sick, possibly dying, and she hadn’t said a word. She’d lied. Every single day, for weeks. He’d been right not to trust. He could never trust her.

“Del,” she began, but he shook his head and pointed to the door.

“This is a family matter. You need to get the hell out.”

CHAPTER NINETEEN

“YOU HAVE CANCER and you didn’t tell me?”

Del wasn’t sure if his father meant the words as a question or a statement, but as it was the fifth time he was saying them, he wasn’t sure it mattered anymore. Everyone had left the mystery apartment and returned to the family home. As expected, his mother’s cell phone had been on the front seat of her car. He couldn’t begin to comprehend how different everything would have been if the stupid thing hadn’t fallen out of her purse.

Now his mother sat in a chair in the living room, Sophie stretched out next to her. The beagle watched them all with a combination of worry and defiance, as if prepared to take on all comers. Sophie might love the whole family, but Elaine was her person. Ceallach paced, and Del and his brothers claimed the sofa and one of the chairs.