Page 5 of Deadly Little Hearts

She nods.“For Alec,” she says, and I squeeze her hand.I want to believe her, I really do, but I’m just not sure I can.She’s got to want this more than she wants to get high.

Her arms wrap around me, and I freeze.My breathing picks up, and I have no idea what to do.I can’t even remember the last time my mother hugged me.The last time I felt her warm body against mine.When she presses a kiss into my hair, I’m done for.Tears stream down my cheeks again and soak into her T-shirt.

I move so I’m lying on the couch in front of her.She holds me and I never want her to stop.She may have gone off the rails, but she’s all I have left now—and if she does want to change ...that could mean everything.

She’s my mom, and she’ll always be my family.

Chapter 3

Freya

IntheweekI’vebeen back home, I’ve been helping Mom through her withdrawals, in between the odd shift I’ve picked up at the diner.It’s been hell—watching her as pale as a ghost, her body trembling, and her begging me to give her drugs to help her take the pain away.

My arms are covered in bruises from her assaults, but it’s a small price to pay.If Alec was here, he’d be helping me—this is all he ever wanted.For Mom to recover and be her usual self again.For us to have a fresh start.I don’t know what the future holds for us, but this is something.I’m praying with everything I’ve got that she can get through this.

I flip over the eggs, then the bacon sizzling in the pan.Mom’s singing nursery rhymes, and the sound makes my ears bleed, but I don’t tell her to stop, because it’s nice to see her like this.

She hasn’t vomited once today, and last night, she slept for five hours straight without waking in a panicked fever.

Day seven, and she’s turning a corner, and I couldn’t be happier.She’s folding our clothes, fresh from the wash, humming along to the radio.I dish up our breakfast and pour us both a cup of coffee.

“Let’s eat out front today.The sun’s out,” she says, taking her mug and plate.

I follow her out the front and fall into one of the chairs on the small patch of dead grass.The crisp, early morning air sends shivers down my arms.

The familiar buzz of my phone breaks through the silence.I pull my cell out and stare at the screen.It’s Hazen again.All week, he, Gage, and Amirah have been bombarding my phone with messages.They’re begging me to come back, but I’ve been too focused on Mom to leave.I’ve been enjoying her company for the first time in years.

Still, I miss the guys.And I hope I get to see them soon.

We eat in silence, watching the sun peek over the trailers.

“Are those boys still calling you?”Mom asks, eyeing me with a raised eyebrow.

“Yeah, they want me to visit.So does Amirah.Is it okay if I go?Will you be okay without me?”

Mom clicks her tongue and doesn’t say anything for several seconds.“You’re a grown-ass woman, so I’m not going to tell you what you can and can’t do.”She lets out a heavy breath, placing her plate on the little table between us, and I wait for thebutbecause I know it’s coming.“But The Brotherhood is dangerous.They want everyone to drop to their knees, to obey their every rule, and if you don’t, we know better than anyone what those consequences are.”

“I know, Mom, but Lucas, Gage, and Hazen?They’re different.Now that they’re in charge, things will change in Daringhood.We’ll have more freedom and peace.Hazen has always said he’s not as against the Hood as his father was,” I reply, and Mom snorts.

“Honey, you’re beautiful, there’s no doubt about that—you get your good looks from your mama—but it won’t be enough to convince them to make that kind of change.They’ve been brainwashed since they were little kids to follow The Brotherhood’s guild, and there’s no undoing that.”

I lean back in my chair, bringing the mug to my lips.I don’t want to change the guys.They are who they are.But I want more unity between the two towns, and I’m going to try to convince them of the same.

Dominic may have raised them, but they aren’t like him.I wouldn’t have fallen for them if they were.

“Why didn’t you tell us about Alec’s father?”The words fall from my lips before I have a chance to overthink them.It’s been on my mind since Nadine dropped the bomb that night a week ago.

Mom says nothing for several long seconds.The air around us tightens and my shoulders tense as I wait for her to flip her shit.Anytime I used to bring up personal things with her, she’d rip my head off.

She exhales, placing her mug down on the table between us.“How’d you find out?”she asks, and I turn to face her.She stares blankly out into the trailer park.

Do I tell her everything that happened that night, or will it just make her worry even more?She’s got enough going on with getting clean, and I don’t want her spiraling because of this.

“Nadine told me,” I declare, giving her a crumb of what happened that night, and Mom grips the arms of her chair.

“That fucking bitch—I hate her.It wasn’t her place to tell you that,” she hisses.

“Well, you never told me or Alec,” I huff.

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