She Lied She Died by Carissa Lynch (books to read for teens TXT) 📗

a reason to visit family. In fact, I really wish you came around more often, Natalie.”

“How did he seem while he was here?” I asked, skirting around her scolding words.

“He seemed okay. I think he was as okay as any boy at that age could be. He was caught in that limbo, you know? Stuck between being a child and a man. I think he wanted to get away from the farm for a few days.”

“What time did he come that night? I’m impressed by your memory, auntie.”

“Oh, don’t patronize me, dear! I know about that awful woman getting out of prison, and I saw what’s happening in the news. She’s not innocent. You’d be a fool to believe that! And, frankly, coming around here, asking me all these weird questions about your brother … what is this nonsense about? I might be daft, but I’m not dumb. I know there’s a reason or you wouldn’t be asking. I don’t think you’d be here at all if you didn’t need something,” she said with a sniff.

And there it is. That look of disdain. I do remind her of my mother.

No one was ever good enough for her precious nephew—my father—and for many years, she had snubbed my mother and me. And with Jack, she always thought he was better than the rest of us too…

“I’m just trying to get the details straight for the book, Lane. I want to explain how it seemed, from my perspective, that day. And I want to make sure I have the facts straight. If Jack wasn’t there, then I don’t want to mess up and put that in the book.” I was patronizing her now, but I needed to stay on her good side to get more information.

“Well, your brother wasn’t there when that girl was killed. He was with me, staying the night. Your mother brought him late that night, but that’s because she was working that new job of hers and she got off late. And she had to pick you up from somewhere too…”

“I thought you said it was my father who brought him,” I said, quietly, unsure.

Lane narrowed her eyes. “Well, I can’t remember every detail. That’s right … it wasn’t either or. It was both of them that brought him. And he stayed here for two days. We had a lovely time, playing pinochle and singing Dolly Parton songs, if you must know.”

I sipped the bitter tea some more, trying to work out the details. If my brother didn’t go over there until late, before my mom picked me up … then he would have had time to do it.

Chrissy’s story could possibly be true.

“When’s the last time you saw my mother?” I asked, staring into my tea.

Lane sighed. “It’s been years, honey. The last I knew she was living in Chicago with a new boyfriend. Or maybe it was Atlanta, I don’t know … she wasn’t forthright with the details. And it’s been years since she bothered writing.”

“Does she have a new family now?” I asked, tentatively. I never asked, my own personal rule. If she didn’t care about my life, why should I care about hers?! But, suddenly, I felt the urge to know everything … to face it all head-on.

For that first year after my mother left, I asked about her all the time.

But then my sadness over her absence eventually hardened, evolving into rage then fizzling into adult disappointment. And after she didn’t come to my dad or brother’s funerals, I decided she was dead to me too. She’s not my mother no more. I mourned her “death” years ago.

“No, I don’t think so. She has a new man, but no new kids, if that’s what you mean,” Lane said, stiffly.

“When was the last time she wrote?” I asked.

Lane shook her head, then sighed. “It’s been so long, honey. I think the last time I got a card from her was in 2014. There was no return address. I don’t think she wants us to know where she is. She’s moved on with her life, Natalie. I don’t think she ever wanted to be a Breyas in the first place.”

But that wasn’t true … I had memories of my mother, smiling and happy. Not just with us, but Dad too. Her shiny locket swinging back and forth as she ran from me to my brother, pushing us on the swings. We fought for her love at one time … who got to sit beside her, who got to sleep in her bed, who got to ride up front with her in the car … who got to brush her shiny hair, “silver like the moon,” I called it. But then we moved on, just like she did. We let her go. And Dad had let her go too … she gave us no other choice.

“Thanks for the time and the tea,” I said, softly.

“So, that’s it then? No more to say?” Lane huffed.

“I’m sorry. I have an appointment later,” I lied.

As she walked me to the door, I could tell she was pissed at me. But that was Lane’s way … always upset with something I said or did. The only ones who got a free pass when it came to Lane were Dad and Jack. Now they were gone, and I was all she had left…

However, I had a feeling that I wouldn’t be seeing her much, if at all, anymore.

Chapter Twenty-Four

All I wanted to do when I got back to Austin was take a hot shower and sleep. I’d been wrestling with my own thoughts the entire drive, the radio knob turned all the way down to silent. What does it matter if I never know the truth? Will the world crumble if I don’t? This incident with Chrissy has put my job in jeopardy, and my sanity too. With Jack gone, I’ll never know for certain if there’s any truth to it … it’s not like I can dig him