Page 66 of Falcon

We closed the gap to the small porch, but I stopped short at the steps. I shielded my eyes from the sun and looked up at her. Her features were so much like mine, but years of hard living aged her. She was still petite but had grown thinner and frailer. She wasn’t old, having birthed me at the young age of sixteen, but she looked older than I thought she should. Maybe I just remembered her differently.

“I was in town and heard about what happened. I guess I wanted to see for myself that you’re alright.” I worried my lip. Falcon brought me here, but I probably would have regretted it if we hadn’t come.

She gave a slight nod then waved us up. “Well, c’mon. I don’t need the whole fucking neighborhood in my business.”

I glanced around, not seeing anyone around. Still, gossip always ran rampant here. Everyone was in each other’s business, but never bothered to help out.

Walking inside, it wasn’t much different than I remembered, although it seemed tidier than I recalled. She sat in the worn brown chair that we’d dragged home after a neighbor had been evicted and all their things were put on the lawn. I led Falcon to the red sofa that was probably on its last leg. His weight sent him sinking low when he sat, and her brows shot up as she checked him out.

“So, who’s this?” she asked.

“Falcon. He’s my boyf–well…man,” I said as I shrugged at him. I wasn’t sure calling him my biker would make sense to her, but ‘boyfriend’ didn’t suit him.

He grinned. “For now.”

“So, you just gonna toss her away then? Is that it?”

“Mom!”

“He just said it. Hell, I know they don’t stay, but they usually at least try to make me feel special ‘til they decide to leave. They don’t advertise it in advance,” she said as she crossed her arms over her chest again and scowled at Falcon.

“Don’t act protective now,” I shot back at her.

Falcon gripped my thigh, so I ran my hand over his. He cleared his throat and said, “I meant just her man for now. I hope to upgrade that really soon, ma’am.”

Mom’s mouth quirked and she raised a brow. “We’ll see.” It was silent for a few beats before she spoke again. “What brings you to town?”

Sighing, I said, “I lost all my IDs so I had to come back to get replacements. We’re heading back after this, I think.” My eyes shot over to Falcon. I didn’t know we had any stops at all. Certainly not this one.

“How’d that happen?”

I wasn’t sure what I wanted to share. But she was nosy like me, so I figured I could give her some bits and pieces to satisfy her curiosity. “After I left town, I found a little trouble, but Falcon helped me out. I’m staying with him now but want to be able to do normal stuff like get a job and open a bank account.”

She scoffed. “Why? So the government can take all your money?”

“Better than depending on them and whatever asshole who comes around.”

Her blue eyes whipped at me. “If you came here to show me how much better your life is than mine, you can leave the way you came.”

I stood up and pulled at Falcon’s hand. “Let’s go. This was a mistake.”

“Dropping in to say hey after I got my shit rocked isn’t gonna change our relationship, Daisy. I haven’t seen you in years and you waltz in here with your big tough man and your snotty attitude–”

“I came to be sure you’re alright and see if you needed anything. I’m not being snotty, but I’m done.”

She stood up and walked behind us as we headed to the door. “Why? Feeling guilty? Did you know those fuckers?”

Falcon stopped and turned. “Who hurt you?”

Her scowl fell into a frown. “I don’t know. Never seem ‘em before. They asked about her, though. I tried telling ‘em I hadn’t seen or heard from her in years, but they called me a liar. Don’t remember much after that.” Her hand went to her head, gently pressing like it suddenly hurt her.

“Did you see their faces? Can you describe them?” he asked.

She shook her head. “No. They had on masks. And it was late. They were all in black.”

“Did they have an accent? Or say anything that stood out?”

Shrugging, she answered, “Sounded like they may be New Yorkers or something. Definitely not midwestern. But besides asking about her, they didn’t say much.”

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