Page 16

Fury

Driving past the New York state line sign and into Pennsylvania, I looked over at Carly and asked, “How did you meet him?”

“Who?”

“Drew’s father.”

Closing her eyes, she whispered, “We met by chance in the city. I was here doing some research, and he was meeting with an art promoter. I knew of him, but had never officially met him before. We started talking and the next thing I knew, we spent the next few days together, forgetting about everything and everyone. For a brief moment in time, we were free. Free to be ourselves and be who we wanted to be. But like most things, life got in the way. When we said goodbye, we promised each other we would keep in touch, only that never happened.”

Looking in my rearview mirror at Drew, I knew why.

He was about the right age.

“Did you love him?”

She smirked. “Let me put it this way. If I wasn’t who I was and he was just some random man, I would have lived a happy life with him. So yes. In my own way, I loved him. Because of him, I have Drew, and every time I see my son, I see his father in him.”

“He was a good man. I liked him.”

“How did you know him?”

“He would accompany his family into the city occasionally for a meeting or some gala event. We would talk and found out we had a lot in common. We became friends. I was sad to hear he died. My condolences.”

“Thank you.”

“Carly, why did you let the world believe that Drew belonged to your parents?”

“Because Mother threatened to send him to Italy and me to the Trick Pony if I refused. She hated that I sullied her reputation. If it weren’t for Issac, she probably would have killed me. Appearances meant everything to Mother. I either did as she requested, or she made my life a living hell. Once, when I was a young girl, I made a friend at a summer camp. I was so excited to tell Mother everything, but when I started talking about traveling around the world with my new best friend, Mother had her killed.”

“Jesus.”

“So, when she learned I was pregnant and threatened me, I believed her. Other than Drew’s birth, my happiest day was when someone in the Golden Skulls killed her because I knew my torment was finally over. I was free.”

“Do you know who fired the shot?”

“No, and I don’t care,” she stated, then smirked. “What about you? You and Davina Duchene, huh?”

Chuckling, I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling my skin heat. “Yeah. I guess, in a way, it was the same for us, too. She came to see me regarding some investments and shit, and one thing led to another. I knew she was married, but fuck me, she was something special. Before I knew it, she would pop into town, and I would drop everything to see her.”

“She was an amazing woman. Your girls are very lucky to have had her for a mother.”

“Thank you for that. I miss her.”

“Yeah, I miss him too,” she whispered, leaning her head against the window.

I really didn’t know what to make of Carly Mitchell. She wasn’t anything like I expected. She was so down-to-earth, so comfortable in her own skin. Yet, she had a strength about her that reminded me of Davina. Fate dealt both women a bad hand, but they made the best of it. The two women shared a similar plight, each bound to a life they despised, weighed down by unbearable burdens and lacking any viable means of escape.

My mind wandered to the possibilities of their lives had they only been given the liberty to forge their own destinies, unshackled by the constraints imposed upon them by their unfortunate circumstances. Would Davina have married me? Would Carly and Drew’s father have had that happy life they both desperately wanted? So many lives changed because of the Society and those who were loyal. Women like Carly and Davina were treated like pawns on a chessboard, and neither woman stood a chance. Just the thought of someone doing that to my girls had my blood boiling.

Taking a deep breath, I looked over at Carly and made a promise.

She would have that happy life she dreamed about if it was the last thing I did.

I couldn’t save Davina, but I could save Carly.

“What’s all that?” I asked, leaning against the door, watching while she unpacked her laptop and several files. With four young kids, we knew we couldn’t just drive straight from the city to Tennessee, so we stopped outside of Scranton, Pennsylvania shortly before dinner, and got a hotel room. It was nothing fancy, just a conjoined suite big enough for all of us, with two separate rooms and a small living room.

“It’s my research.”

“About?”

“William Doherty and the history of the Golden Skulls.”

“Why are you researching him? He was a dick.”

She smirked. “No, he was a right nasty bastard and a rapist, but that’s not what I’m concentrating on. My obsession with him started after the Golden Skulls killed Mother and I stayed with Salvatore Valentinetti for a short time. Something about the man always bugged me. I couldn’t wrap my head around the coincidence of it all. William, the Original Seven, Mother’s hatred for the Golden Skulls, everything.”

“William was sick, Carly. Even I knew that. You can’t justify what he did.”

“I’m not, but there is a reason, a motive, behind it all. That’s what I’m looking for. Take this, for example,” she said, handing me a folder and adding, “William was raised in a loving family. Got decent grades, even had a high school sweetheart before the government shipped him off to Vietnam.”

“War changes men.”

Shaking her head, she groaned. “Not to this extreme. Shame told me once that everything was connected, and I think he was right.”

Handing her back the file, I asked, “How so?”

Sighing, she sat on the bed. “I’m not sure, but I’m close. I can feel it. Before we left the city, I was on the cusp of something big. I know the answer to everything is in these files, but I haven’t had time to go through them all, and honestly, it’s a lot to take in.”

“You told me in the car that you were in the city doing research when you met Drew’s father. Is that what you do for a living, research?”

Smirking, she shook her head. “No. It’s a hobby of mine. I enjoy putting puzzles together and this mess is a big puzzle. As for a job, the only thing I’m really trained in is running the Society . I didn’t have the normal upbringing like most kids did. I never went to school.”

“Hold up,” I said, walking over to sit next to her. “What do you mean, you never went to school?”

“Not in the conventional sense. Mother told me public or private education was for the bottom feeders and tantamount to government brainwashing. Instead, I had specialized tutors she brought in who taught me other things like etiquette or how to persuade, blackmail, seduce, even kill. I know how to properly present myself to several government officials. I can command a room with one look or look like a meek, unassuming woman. I can speak several languages, and I can easily blend into any situation.”

“What about the other things like math, science or English?”

Slowly shaking her head, she replied, “No. I don’t even have a high school diploma. I never went to college. Never played sports, but I can throw a dinner party like a pro. I always wanted to go to school. I would see kids running toward school buses and thought how fun it would be it be like them. To be around kids my age, to make friends, to laugh, to play.”

“What about Drew?”

She smiled. “I homeschool Drew. After Mother died, I knew I couldn’t just enroll Drew in regular school. So, I researched homeschooling. I started him early, and over the years, we have slowly learned everything together. I find math and science fascinating. I can’t wait till he starts his next set of courses. Did you know a potato can power a light bulb?”

Laughing, I nodded. “Yep, I sure did.”

I marveled at how stunningly innocent she was. She had lived a completely sheltered life, denied the normal things children took for granted, yet it didn’t bother her. With every new thing she learned, she marveled at its genius, wanting to know more. It was as if the death of her mother opened her eyes to an entirely new world. She couldn’t wait to learn everything about it.

Though entirely innocent of everything around her, she was cunningly smart, perceptive, and very knowledgeable about matters that most took for granted.

She was an enigma.

An innocent spectator in a world that was hell-bent on destroying her.