My mother stands speechless for some time before finally looking up at me and then back down at Nicky, “Who are you?” she asks looking back up at me and shaking her head. “Nicholas?” I nod following her eyes down to Nicky. “Who is this? Why are you here? Why I am I …”
“Mom, do you remember me?”
“You are my son,” she says, looking away from me. “Dante’s son, Nicholas.”
“Yes, and do you remember what happened to him?” She looks up at me with tears in her eyes. I give her some time to deal with her sudden understanding before I speak again.
“Nicholas?” she says again looking me over more closely. I nod, speechless myself. “Oh, you have grown so much. And this is your … your son? He looks so much like you. Oh my, how much time has gone?” Looking brutally saddened, she returns to her chair.
I sit down in front of her as she looks upon both Nicky and me. “Mom, I need your help. I need to know where Dad’s place was, where it is that this key fits.” I hold up the my father’s key again and she instantly reaches for it.
“Dante, my love, always the secret one. Always determined to find a way,” she says looking off into nowhere.
“Find a way to do what, Mom?” I ask, wondering if she knows more than I thought.
“Do you know he would sit with me for hours working out numbers and formulas and even more formulas? I am good at that you know? Dante, he is gone now?”
I am not sure what to say to her. I am unsure if she is finally grieving or grieving for him again. “Yes, he is, but Mom, about the key?”
“He only took me there until he was ready to endure that machine. He didn’t want me to see.” My confusion only grows, but I stay quiet feeling as if she is trying to tell me something more. Reaching out, she grabs my hand and smiles. “We conceived you there one night, he was so irresistible. But he was a man on a mission, determined especially when you were born. He was so protective of you. He knew he would find you. I hated that man. The others were safe, but you, you were too strong. Scared me, I was sure you were going to be taken and killed. So sure.” She tears up. Nicky gets up and hugs her before I can stop him, and shockingly, she hugs him back.
“Where is this place, Mom? I have to find it because he did, he found me. He wants me to work with him.”
She looks at me straight away and then stares up at the ceiling humming, “It was outside of the city a bunker of some sort, in a farmhouse. I don’t remember exactly the road names, but I remember the scenery.” Shivering, she searches around her.
“Are you cold? Let me get you a sweater.” Rummaging through her drawer, I finally find something for her, but in the process I pull out a scarf I know well. “Mom, where did you get this scarf?”
“That’s mine,” she says defensively as she grabs it out of my hand.
“Okay, it’s yours, but who gave it to you?” I ask looking it over to be sure.
Wrapping the scarf around herself, she sits much calmer. “My doctor, I told her how much I liked it, and she said I could have it.”
“Okay.” I put her sweater around her shoulders and kiss the top of her head. The scarf is odd, but it has to be a duplicate somehow. Shaking off the strange coincidence, I put the damn scarf to the back of my mind, I have more important things to worry about right now. “I am going to take you out of here for the day, Mom.” She instantly smiles again. “Help me find Dad’s workplace, and then I will take you wherever you want to go. I will even take you to my home to meet the rest of my family.”
My mother somehow shows life like I have never seen from her. I am not sure how that is possible. Perhaps a jog in her memory jumped her forward again. Whatever the reason, I am going to take advantage of it as much as I can before she reverts back. Before I leave, the facility, I search for her doctor to make sure I get permission to take my mother out of care for awhile and to see where this doctor got Franky’s scarf I left on her grave. One nurse after another tries to direct me to find this doctor until I get a feeling and rush into an empty patient’s room, the moment the door swings open. My jaw drops. “Franky?”
“Hi, Nick.” She sets her iPad down, and walks towards me, and attempts to hug me.
“What are you doing here?” I ask, standing back from her trying to comprehend what is going on.
“Working,” she says, trying to smile while all I can do is stare at her in amazement.
“What? How? I …” I stumble over my words not believing what I am seeing.
I start to leave, but Franky grabs my arm and pulls me back to her. “It was all to keep your brother from coming after me again. Who thought I could testify against him at some point, but they wanted more than just my testimony. Unfortunately they could never get anything else on him until … well, you know. Once Connor was killed, they let me move closer and do as I please. I would have contacted you, but I was so nervous to see you again.”
“Now you are running from me?” I ask shaking my head.
“No! Oh, no, I am still so very nervous. I am dressed in this horrible mess, and my hair and I only wanted everything to be perfect when I saw you again. I have missed you so much.”
“Franky, why here, how did you … did you know she is my mother?” I ask watching her carefully.
She looks down at her feet and back up again. “My father followed you that night you put her in here, he wanted to kill you.”
“So why didn’t he?”
“He said he saw how much pain you were in and preferred you to live with that, than to put you out of your misery.”
I can’t help, but laugh about that bastard wanting me to suffer. “That sounds like him.”
“Oh, Nick, I have missed you so much.” She tears up and wraps her arms around my neck.
“Daddy, can we go now?” Nicky asks gripping my hand a little harder to get my attention.
Franky lets go of my neck and looks down at him, “Your son?” I nod simply and pick him up. “Wow, I had no idea, your mother only has pictures of you as a child, she doesn’t have any of her, grandchildren.”
“She wouldn’t know my family, anyway, so why confuse her. I am married, with another son at home.” Franky, takes several step back from me with a heartbreaking expression. Nicky lays his head on my shoulder with heavy eyes. “I need to get my son home. It has been a long day for him.”
“He is adorable, he looks so much like you,” she says admiring Nicky. “So will you be coming back soon?”
“Yes, I need to get permission to take my mother out for the day.”
“I don’t think that is a good idea Nick, she is making some progress but …”
“It isn’t really your choice. I put her in here and I can easily take her out. I am only asking to make things simpler for everyone.”
“She doesn’t even know you Nick, she still thinks her husband is alive.” Franky insists.
“She did today. She knew who I was and remembered things.”
Franky looks me over in disbelief. “Well, I will look her over, and if that is true, then maybe I will release her for a few hours.”
“I will be back here to pick her up in the morning no matter what your decision is.” I am not sure what else to say to her right now. “It was good … I’m glad you are doing well, Franky.”
“Nick.” She grabs me with pleading eyes. “Please don’t be mad at me, I have missed you so much.” She looks into my eyes and crashes into my chest crying. “I have wanted nothing more than to get back to you again.” Reaching out I put an arm around her and she instantly sighs in relief and looks up at me with a smile. A feeling rushes through me that forces a sigh from my own lips.
Seeing her again reminds of so many memories of my past, good and bad. “I am not mad at you, I understand that you did what was best. My brother would have killed you eventually, otherwise.” She nods looking at me with her weepy eyes, reminding me of more than memories. “I have to go, Franky, I will talk to you tomorrow.”
~
Kayla was
nervous when I left her. Having to explain to her about my mother being alive was not easy when I was supposed to have no hidden secrets from her. She yells at me for hours, but it wasn’t about not trusting her to know, it was about the embarrassment of my mother. She was mentally gone. She had no idea about her life or who I was. How can I explain that to my wife, to anyone? How can I explain that my mother seemed to want to forget me? So I remind her of her mother, and I didn’t need to say anything else, Kayla understood perfectly. Once I finally calmed her down I told her why I hid my mother, and how I kept her from being found. I explain to her that now I need to know who I am and for the sake of our family she needs to know too. Kayla wraps her arms around me and tells me she loves me and then I tell her the rest. Franky is alive. Then the questions become more demanding, and I have even less answers. Franky was my first love, but Kayla is the one that truly loves me, the one my heart beats in rhythm with hers and hers alone. She doesn’t want to let me go alone, but I don’t know where we are going to end up, and I am not putting her at risk.
My mother is dressed and ready to go when I show up to take her out for the day. She is so excited and eager to leave with Franky’s scarf wrapped around her neck. We don’t get two steps out of her room before Franky greets us with her own coat on. I eye her carefully, “Going somewhere?” I ask.
“I am going with you. If you want your mother to leave here, then you are going to have to take me with you so I can be assured she will be okay. I don’t want you pushing her too hard, Nick. If she is starting to remember things, she could be at a fragile state right now. She is not as young as she used to be,” Franky says standing her ground with me.
I search her over before looking back at my mother. “Fine, but you’re only going to go where I say, and you are only going to do as I say. No arguments, or I will bring you right back here and check my mother right out,” I demand, receiving a timid nod in response.
With everyone in agreement, I escort them both to my car. “Nice car, Nick. You really have moved up since we were together,” Franky says.
“You were together?” my mother asked with a hopeful tone.
“A long time ago, Mom. I am married now, happily married,” I emphasize to Franky who smiles for some reason. My mother sits up front next to me, while Franky sits in back exchanging uncomfortable glances with me as I drive.
My mother directs me to take the Interstate. It seems forever before she directs me to turn off an exit.
“It was a small road, named … Shadow Mark.” We search and search, but the road never appears, and my mother cannot recall any of the area around us. It’s the middle of nowhere, there are only a few gas stations, and even less that I feel comfortable stopping at, but I have little choice if I want to find this place.
“Stay in the car,” I say stepping out and locking it behind me. Walking into the store, I am immediately sized up by the clerk and two others sitting near the counter. As the outsider, I ask for a local road map and try to ask for some directions.
“That is a nice car you have,” the disgusting gentleman behind me said
“I need to find a particular road?” I tell the clerk, ignoring the comment.
“How much does it mean to you?” the clerk asks laughing with his buddies.
I pay for the map. “Thank you for the map,” I say walking out and listening carefully. The scrambling around behind me is instant. Before I reach my car, I am jumped from behind. The moron on my back goes flying into the nearby wall, while I grab the other one by the throat and force him back and look down into his eyes. “Where is Shadow Mark?” Trembling, he tells me exactly what I want to know. “I was never here,” I say, kicking the other one in the head as he tries to get up. I leave them and slide back into my car.
“Are you okay?” Franky asks with her phone in hand. I nod driving away to my goal.
“I told you he didn’t need any help,” My mother says calmly. “He is so much like his father.” I look over at her suddenly and watch her nod at me. When I find the road, the overgrowth makes it difficult to maneuver, but eventually, “There! Turn there!” my mother shouts. We pull off onto a small, unnamed road, and drive over a bridge into a clearing where a small farmhouse sits as if it hasn’t been touched in more than a decade, which I guess is about right.
“Stay here,” I say getting out of the car, and roaming around the house before attempting to go in. The doors are locked so I try to force my way in that is until my mother taps me on the shoulder. “What are you doing out here? I told you …” She points to the engraved ‘J’ on the wall. Reaching up I feel around the edges and pull out a small piece of the wall and find the key attached to the back. “Thank you.” I say earning an obnoxious smile from my mother. Sighing, I walk into the house to find it untouched since my father was here last. There are pictures on the walls, of me, Lena, and of Ryan. Even a single photo of Connor sits on a table. The whole place feels like any other home, except for the dust and the time that has passed. I can find nothing to help me until I see the painting of the angel with its charred wings and smoked filled, churning eyes. Hanging from its neck is a key, a key that matches mine exactly. “You were always about your riddles weren’t you Dad?” Feeling along its edges, I find the locks for the painting and undo them. I lift the painting easily from its inset, and behind it, I find the lock that fits my key perfectly. With a single inhale, I open the door to my father’s world. The mystery lights up in front of me instantly. The room is covered in notes and boxes of more notes. There are pictures and equipment with one single chair hooked up to a large machine with gauges of all kinds.
“What is this?” I snap my head around to see Franky wandering in.
“I thought I said wait outside?” I yell.
“Actually you said stay here, but your mother came in and I wasn’t going to sit out there alone. So what is this room?” She wanders in even farther in and looks at the chair and its gauges. “It looks like some kind of electrocution chair. What would your father be doing with this?”
“Strengthening his heart.” She looks at me puzzled. “He was trying to make himself stronger. He must have found a formula that would work or that he thought would work.”
“You’re not going to do this, are you?” Franky asks.
“I don’t know yet. I don’t even know if it works.”
“Oh it works,” my mother says, flipping on the switch and causing the loud roaring machine to come alive. “And the formulas work too,” she insists, taking hold of some photographs of my father and quickly stashing them into her bag.
I decide to photograph all of my father’s notes and forward them to Eddy to help me decipher them. My mother’s days of formulas are not as trustworthy to me right now. After I have what I need, I make notes of the location and lock up. Now to introduce my mother to my wife and I guess my ex-girlfriend too.
~
The gates open to my home, and my mother sits forward while Franky meets my eyes within the rearview mirror. Nicky runs up to greet me the moment, I open the door while Kayla walks casually towards us with my youngest son, Brayden in her arms. The moment Brayden sees me, he squeals and reaches his tiny hands out to me. “Mom, you remember Nicky, and this is Brayden,” I say kissing his little hands to make him giggle. Taking Kayla’s hand, I bring her closer, “And this is my wife, Kayla.”
“Nice to meet you,” Kayla says as my Mom shakes her hand shyly.
“This is more than I thought for you, Nicholas. A family and a beautiful wife, I never … well I am happy that you are so happy,” my mother says already beginning to retreat again, which frustrates me, but Kayla takes my hand and squeezes, easing my nerves. With a short sigh I turn to Franky. “And, Kayla, this is Franky an … old friend,” I say as the two women greet each other respectfully, but awkwardly.
“Well, please come in. Dinner is almost ready,” Kayla says, leading the way to the back of our home. Elijah steps out of my office smiling wide and already carrying a drink.
/>
“What the hell are you doing here?” I ask him.
“I stopped by to drop off some things to you, but then I heard about dinner. No way was I going to miss this. Hi, Franky, it has been a long time,” Elijah says.
Franky runs up to him and hugs him, “Oh, Elijah, it is so good to see you.” Kayla stands back and stares at her while Elijah smiles fully at everyone. Idiot is enjoying this too much.
“Let’s all go sit down for dinner,” Kayla says.
Dinner is good but the rest of the evening is terribly awkward, and I want nothing more than to end the night as soon as possible. Franky eyes Kayla, my mother eye my sons, and Kayla switches between them all while Elijah enjoys the whole mess. I try to find a conversation that doesn’t lead to my past with Franky or my future with Kayla. Trying to appease everyone is impossible, especially when your best friend finds it fun to bring up all the wrong things. The opportunity to take my mother back and end our night is to welcoming, and I eagerly do just that, except Franky desires more than to simply say goodbye. She calls me into her office on the pretense to discuss my mother, but I know better. I eye her for some time while she fumbles through some folders. “Franky! You always do this.” I say stopping myself when she looks at me funny and I realize. “You know what I mean, stop wasting time. What do you want to ask me?”
She finally jumps up and looks at me, “Do you still have any feelings for me at all?”
“I’m married Franky, happily. I love Kayla, I love my children. We were kids, and …”
“And what? And now you feel nothing for me at all?”
“I didn’t say that, but no matter my feelings for you, they don’t change the way things are now.” I stand up and look at her, and tears fill eyes. “Franky, please, I cannot do this with you. It just isn’t possible for us anymore, so why does it matter what my feelings are?”
“It matters to me. I want to know that I wasn’t just another girl to you,” she cries.