Page 46 of Saving the Last Heir
Tormynd departed, and I dressed as quickly as I could, then hurried down to the den where Carson sat with several of thejournals spread around him. The man looked like a mad scientist with his hair standing up at all ends.
“How’s it going?” I asked.
Carson’s head snapped up, his eyes bloodshot. “Like shit. Glad you asked.”
My stomach sank. “Still no luck?”
Carson tossed his pencil down and ran his fingers through his hair, which only made him look more chaotic.
“None. These ciphers are like nothing I’ve ever seen. All of us have given it a shot. I’ve even used some fairly expensive code-breaking software on them, but this isn’t a normal code.” He grabbed a journal and shook it at me. “Some of these characters he wrote are enchanted. They change every few seconds. I don’t know if we’ll ever get it solved.”
“Damn,” I muttered. The threat of hopelessness tried to take over, but I tamped it down and forced a smile.
“Don’t give up,” I said. “You never know what might happen.”
Carson nodded and did his best to return my smile. “Yeah. I suppose. We’ll keep trying. I’ll see if Tormynd wants to have another go at it.”
“Great,” I said. “You’re doing a good job, Carson. I want you to know that.”
This time the smile was genuine when he grinned. “I appreciate that.”
“It’s true. I’ve got to go see Mom. Do you need anything?”
He pulled the journal back in front of him. “All good. Thanks.”
I left him there. If I was honest, I thought there was almost no chance we could decode them without Ayumundi, but we had to keep trying. Instead of stewing on it, I hurried along to find Mom.
My mother was sitting at the table in the kitchen with Savannah and Silvia. Tiana was at the stove, stirring eggs in a pan. Mom’s hair was a mess, and it looked like she hadn’t showered in days.
I caught Tiana’s eye and tilted my head toward the door. She nodded as she plated the eggs and handed it to me.
“Girls?” she said. “Let’s go get ready for the day.”
The two young ladies gave my mother a sad look before following their own mother from the room, leaving me with her.
Setting the plate and a fork down before her, I sat.
“Hey, Mom. How are you?” I asked, unsure what to say.
For a few seconds, she looked at the eggs as though she had no idea what they were. Horrified, I realized Tiana had made the very thing that had caused this. An egg. Was my mother visualizing my sister’s egg being shattered and ripped apart like this chicken egg?
I was about to pull the plate away, when she picked up the fork and shoveled bites into her mouth. I was shocked at how ravenously she ate, finishing it all in less than thirty seconds. When she was done, she put the fork down and finally looked at me.
“I’m sorry,” she said.
“Sorry? About what?” I said, brows furrowed in confusion. “There’s nothing for you to be sorry about, Mom.”
“I’ve fallen apart when you needed me most. That’s awful. I’m not the only one who lost something, and all I’ve done is sit in the dark and pity myself.” She turned tear-reddened eyes on me. “That’s not what a mother does.”
I took her hand. “You lost yourdaughter,” I said, emphasizing the last word. “If anyone should apologize, it’s me. I’ve been gone a lot the last two days. I should have been here with you.”
I’d chosen not to tell my mother or anyone other than Christian that the Anitolis had my sister. There was nothing any of them could do about the situation, and if they accidentally mentioned it to someone, Anitoli might catch wind and destroy my sister’s egg as punishment. Also, it might have actually made Mom’s anxiety and depression worse if she knew who had her. I didn’t feel good about keeping the secret, but it was the best way to keep my sister safe. If I pulled off getting the car to him, then perhaps I’d get her back. Once the egg was in its nest again, I could tell Mom exactly what happened.
“A mother’s job is her children,” Mom argued, her face contorting in sadness and anger.
“Mom, I’m not a child. I can take care of myself. You should worry aboutyou.”
“When you are ninety years old, you willstillbe my baby,” Mom said as she cupped my cheek. “A mother’s children never stop being her children. I’m back now.” She wiped her eyes.
