Page 83 of Some Like It Fox

Mindy smirks. “We turned out great. We’re only slightly demented and trauma-ridden.”

Jake leans his hip against the table. “My therapist says you’re awesome. It’s Mom who fucked us all up.”

Mindy elbows me and clears her throat.

“I can’t now.” I mouth at her, gesturing with my hands.

“Can’t what now?” Jake picks up his pie plate, shoving a giant forkful into his mouth.

My eyes dart to his in surprise.

“You’re the loudest whisperer ever, Tay.”

I shift on my feet. “Fine. I have something I need to tell you all too, but maybe we should wait until another time.”

Mindy cocks her head to one side. “If not now, when?”

I blow out a breath. “Fine. Let’s do it now. It tracks that we need to find some way to ruin a happy family moment I guess.”

Mindy moves to step past me. “Do you want me to get the box?”

I nod.

Jake perks up. “A box? More pie?”

I grimace. “Sorry, Jake. It’s not pie.”

“Cake then? Donuts?”

“It’s not food, Jake.” Mindy squeezes my shoulder and then jogs up the stairs to grab Mom’s stuff from under my bed.

Jake grumbles.

I sit back down and gesture, then wait for Finley, Piper, and Jake to take their seats. Mindy comes back downstairs, setting the box at the end of the table.

Might as well put it out there, like ripping off a Band-Aid. “Mom’s dead.”

Piper’s jaw drops.

Finley’s face goes slack. “How do you know?”

“I hired a PI to find her, and well, I did. At least, I found where she was living when she passed.”

Jake rocks back in his chair. “It’s not her in the box, is it?”

“Jake!” Piper smacks him on the shoulder.

He flinches. “What?”

She rolls her eyes and turns to me. “How? When?”

I take a deep breath and blow it out. “Two years ago. She had dementia.”

Mindy returns, setting the boxes in the middle of the table. “These are her things. We haven’t looked through them.”

Finley’s head whips toward Mindy. “You knew?”

“Only recently.”

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