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“I lived with my grandmother. But she passed away when I was nineteen, and her house was sold off. I took my inheritance, and it paid for my education.”
I could tell she didn’t want to talk about her parents, so I avoided pressing her for more information.
She pulls up to the house, and some of our family’s staff members come outside to greet us and to take our luggage.
“This place reminds me of Biltmore,” she says.
I nod. “It’s similar for sure. Just a bit older.”
“Wow.”
She climbs out, and one of the newer staff members comes up to us and offers to park the car for her.
I haven’t been here in years. It’s strange to come back after all this time. After what happened, I’ve avoided this place. Too many memories. But my mom needs me, so here I am. Everything looks the same for the most part. My mom has changed up the landscaping a bit, but other than that, it’s just like it’s been for almost two centuries.
“Let’s go see my mom,” I say.
Ariana gives a small nod and follows me in through the front door.
The head housekeeper greets us in the foyer. A grand staircase twists up to a platform. The floors, stairs, and banister are white Georgia marble, the same found in many famous U.S. landmarks. “Ms. Hashemi, I’m Mrs. Hunt. Welcome to Keith Manor. You will be staying in the red room. I’ve taken the liberty of having your bags sent up there. Please let me know if you need anything.” She hands her a card. “You can find my phone number on this card. All you need to do is call or text me with any of your needs, and I’ll make sure it’s done.”
That was new. Usually, we just had to use the intercom system. But that was kind of old school. It was a lot nicer to be able to just text her.
“Thank you.”
“Your mother is home from the hospital and is settled in her room. I’m sure you’ll be wanting to see her.”
“Thank you. I am. I’ve been worried sick about her.” Although it was nice to drive up with Ariana. She’d mostly kept me distracted from worrying about my mom on the way up. The drive up was surprisingly beautiful once we’d passed the worst of the Atlanta traffic. It was almost enough to entice me to drive up again. Almost.
“I’m going to go find my room,” Ariana says. “I’ll give you some privacy to go see your mom.” She turns to Mrs. Hunt. “Would you mind showing me to my room?”
I head down the hall to my parents’ bedroom. My mom is propped up on the couch with her leg elevated. There’s a towel with ice packs covering her knee. The TV is on, and she grabs the remote and pauses it when she sees me.
“Kaison.” She reaches her hands out to me. “Come give your mama a big hug.”
I cross the room and take a seat next to her and melt into her embrace. “You look like you’re doing better this morning than you were last night.”
“Oh, I was loopy last night, from what I hear.”
I laugh. “Yeah, you were asking to see the cows and pigs.”
“What in the world?”
“That’s not the best part,” I say. “You were also hitting on your male nurse.”
She smacks my arm. “Oh, phooey. I was not.”
“Yes, you were. I’m not making this up.”
“You’re a big fat liar, Kaison Keith.”
“It’s the truth. You were quite enamored.” I rub my chin. “I think you said something about him having nice biceps.”
She gasps. “I did not!”
“Yes, you did. You were trying to get him to let you squeeze his muscles to see how hard they were, but he rushed out of the room pretty quickly after that.”
“I don’t believe a word you’re saying.”