Page 61 of Timeless: Encore

I text her instead and wait for her reply.

By the time I get back, we’re all set up. Jace clacks his drum sticks together. Connor plays the opening toDown.I jump onstage just in time to plug in my Gibson and play my part. Minutes of chaos give way to that magic moment the music clicks.

Ty watches all of us lock into the pocket then grabs his mic. “We’re fucking back, my brothers.”

“Feckin right we are,” Connor’s low voice resonates throughout the club.

Before I know it, we’ve gone through our entire set without stopping. I’m flying. I gesture for the guys to bow at the front of the stage just for grins. The foundation kids stare at us slack-jawed, they came here for sound-check and just had a full-length private LTZ show. My dad beams. I’m psyched we haven’t lost a beat over the past year and a half.

I’ve never felt so exhilarated, I swear.

Well, no. The definition of feeling exhilarated is this morning when I was balls deep inside Fee. Then again, it’s not fair to compare.

Carter approaches the stage where Ty’s texting someone. Probably Zoey. I decide to join them. “We sounded dope, man.”

“You did. How does it feel to be back on stage?” My dad pats me on my back.

I cannot contain myself. “Amazing. The show’s going to be perfect. As excited as I am to play, I’m so proud of Fee. She’s worked so hard for tonight to go smoothly.”

Carter and Ty both look at me, amused.

“Can I talk to the two of you about something?” Ty seems a little nervous.

Carter seems surprised. “Anytime. What’s up?”

“It’s kind of private, but I’d love to get your advice.” Ty points to the green room. I’m intrigued. The three of us head back to where we had the band meeting. Once inside, Carter and I take seats. Ty locks the door and sits across from me. He fidgets. Glances around the room. Seems nervous.

Carter’s oblivious. He scans the entire room. “I can’t get over how high-tech this is. It’s nothing like the old Mission, that’s for damn sure.”

“Well, it’s thirty years later, Carter.” Even though I always seek his approval musically, I’m still slightly annoyed with my dad about my mom. It’s probably time for he and I to hash things out months after mom and I had the talk. “Okay, Ty. What the hell is up?”

Ty tells us an unbelievably insane story about a meeting he had with an estate attorney. Carter and I sit in utter shock when we learn about his mother’s family, apparently one of the wealthiest in all of Seattle. “I’ve inherited some money. Apparently, my grandparents left it in trust for Jada if she ever got clean. Obviously, she didn’t. Now it’s mine.”

“Holy shit, Ty. That’s fucking nuts. All that time you struggled, and your grandparents were rich?” I slug him in the arm. While I’m confused why he’s picked now to tell us, it does explain his great mood. Not that he’s hurting for cash.

Ty nods. Punches his palm with his fist. “Yep. And I’m going to do great things with their stupid money.”

“Is that what you wanted to talk to us about?” Carter asks the exact question I had swirling around in my head.

Ty swallows. His entire demeanor changes. It’s hard to pinpoint. Detachment? No. Embarrassment. “Uh, no.” He reaches in his pocket and pulls out the envelope I saw him looking at earlier. “Apparently, the grandparents also had my mother followed by a PI for most of her life. I learned she ran away from home when she was fifteen. Hung out on The Ave. Slept with all of Seattle and got pregnant with me. She never knew who my father was, but my grandparents did. They kept it secret from her. But, these are the paternity results.”

“Whoa.“ Every single hair on my body stands on end. My stomach fills with acid.

Ty casts his eyes to the ground. Looks up at the two of us. “Yeah. Whoa.”

“Did you open it?” Carter leans forward to get a better look at the plain envelope.

He shakes his head. “Nah. But I’ve seen some pictures of her when I was a baby.” Hands a photo to Carter. “I got a package of her stuff over Christmas from her sister. Fucked me up for a while. Brought back shitty memories. The estate woman’s card was with her shit. So was a Limelight flyer for one of your shows at The Mission. Zoey convinced me to meet with her so we could try and put my past behind us. “

A light flashes behind my eyes. Nothing good is going to come of this, somehow I just know. I don’t want to be here.

“Holy shit.” Carter scans the photo. Squints. Holds it closer to his face. “She looks really familiar. Maybe she hung out at The Junkyard back in the day. Shit, Ty. When I went to see Jada when you started hanging around, I never put two and two together. They don’t even look like the same person.”

Wait, what? Carter saw Ty’s mom? Why didn’t I know this? I’m trying to stay cool but I’m ready to explode.

I’m not cool. Not at all.

“Well, that makes sense. She was a junkie. Only sixteen when she had me and a little worse for wear by the time I was in high school.” Ty shrugs like this information is NBD.

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