Page 49 of Burning Daylight
“Tell me,” she says casually. “Does Juliette Calloway know whoyouare?”
My jaw tightens. “Ma, I just said…”
I freeze.
Juliette Calloway.
Realization settles in like a slap to my face. Shedoesknow who my little rose is, and she just proved my suspicions right. SheisJuliette Calloway.
My mother’s watching me like a cat with a caged mouse.
“Oh my God.” She leans forward with a glint in her eye. “You didn’t even know.”
I swallow, not responding. But that’s answer enough for her.
“You let her into your home and you didn’teven know?” she repeats, her voice shocked.
“This is none of your business.”
Ma hums. “Well, I sure hope that anonymity went both ways, because if she knows who you are, then believe me when I say she’s about to run home to her daddy and tell him.”
I scoff. “That’s a little dramatic.”
“She’s your enemy.”
“Notmyenemy,” I snap. “Just because Marcus hates the Calloways doesn’t mean I have to. They’ve never done anything to me, and I have no loyalty to the man you used to fuck.”
Her eyes narrow, but she doesn’t react to my hurled insult. She just tilts her head and lowers her voice. “Call it whatever you want, but this is all the more reason to get in touch with your father.”
I stare at her. “What the hell does Juliette Calloway have to do with me reaching out to Marcus?”
She shrugs. “Craig’s been trying to get rid of Marcus for years.” She scrunches her nose. “He’s a nasty piece of work. If he finds out you’re alive, you better believe he’ll be here in a heartbeat making sure you don’t stay that way.”
My mouth drops open. “You’re saying Craig Calloway would what…come here tokillme?”
“Don’t be stupid,” she spits, like she’s at the end of her rope. “Why do you think we’re here with different names and living a life we were never meant to live?”
I laugh, because she’s so goddamn delusional. “You actually believe that? You think Craig Calloway orchestrated an assassination attempt on a kid?”
She doesn’t blink. “The brakes failed, Ry. On arentalthat his company owned. You think that’s just bad luck?”
My head shakes slowly, but doubt starts to gnaw at my edges, her words sticking. “That’s what accidentsare, Ma. That’s why they’re calledaccidents.”
“You’re the last Montgomery,” she says like it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “All of Marcus’s power and wealth… If you’re gone? There’s no legacy left. No heir. Get rid of you, then you get rid ofhim.”
“This isn’t some fucking mafia movie,” I mutter.
She gives me a long look. “Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction.”
I study her, searching for a crack. For something that tells me this is just another one of her drug-induced conspiracies, but the only thing humming is her certainty.
“Yeah, well, there’s a flaw in your logic,” I point out. “If I’m so necessary to his legacy, how come I’m a dead guy with a fake name who he turns away every time he sees me?”
“Because you weren’t ready,” she replies. “And neither was your father. So he buried you—buriedus—to keep you safe until people forgot.”
I roll my eyes, frustration bleeding into the moment.Not this again.She’s had some version of this story for years—of my dad secretly wanting me but just needing to bide his time—only, this is the first time she’s brought in things like murder and an over-the-top bad guy to sell the tale.
“Right, because Marcus Montgomery has always been such a thoughtful father.”
