Page 20 of Twisted Trust (Mafia Lords of Sin #10)

MAEVE

“ I s Scott mine ?”

Really? He wants to talk about that now ?

I almost died and he wants to talk about this?

Given his dedication to saving me, maybe I should be more grateful and just tell him the truth.

But I already look like an unfit mother and if Hillary finds out about this, then it’s all over.

What’s to stop her from taking Scott away from me now, or worse, Levi when he learns I lied and hid his son from him?

A son, up until recently, I thought he wanted to kill?

I can’t risk it.

“No, Scott isn’t yours.”

“Are you sure?” His accusation sounds gentle at first, but it hits me like a siren and my already frayed nerves amplify the surging fear inside me.

“Of course I’m sure! Are you accusing me of sleeping around so much that I can’t be sure?”

“No,” Levi says calmly. “I’m not saying that at all.”

“Well good, because that’s fucked up.” Crossing my arms over my chest, I glare at him while praying Scott quickly comes back from the bathroom. “I had a one-night stand and the guy got hit by a car like two weeks later. He died, and I had my baby all by myself, understand?”

Levi doesn’t look like he entirely believes me. In fact, he almost looks a little sad, which just infuriates me further. How dare he feel anything for my son?

“And why does it even matter?” Once I’ve started, I can’t stop. It’s like all the anxious, scared energy inside me has latched onto the outlet of arguing with Levi, and it’s almost calming. “I almost died because of you !”

Levi’s brows shoot to his hairline. “Excuse me?”

“Why else would someone come to your penthouse? Huh? I'm nobody, Levi. I’m just a person, and you were the worst thing that ever happened to me. Then suddenly I’m being drugged and kidnapped and the only people that kind of shit happens to are people in your world!”

“How do I know it’s because of me and not you?” Levi snaps suddenly, and he pushes off the door frame where he was resting. “Maybe your past affiliations are finally catching up with you. Did you ever think about that?”

“What? My only past affiliations are with you!”

“We both know that’s not true.” An edge of accusation cuts into Levi’s tone. “Let’s drop the pretenses and put it all out on the table, shall we? I’m not the only one with a past, Maeve, and it’s time you owned up to yours before it gets you hurt, or worse, something happens to Scott!”

What the hell is he talking about?

There’s insinuation in his words, but whatever he’s alluding to is beyond me completely.

He must be trying to project his fault onto me, and I won’t stand for it.

Before I can snap my rebuttal, though, Scott wanders back from the bathroom with none other than Elio in tow.

My mouth snaps shut and Levi straightens up slightly.

“Dad. I didn’t know you were here.”

“I came as soon as I knew you were settled. I want to go over the security with you so nothing like tonight ever happens again.”

“Right now?” Levi glances at me with a lick of anger in his eyes. He clearly wants to continue the conversation, but with his father here, there’s no window for it.

“You should go,” I say tightly. “Make sure we’re safe .”

He told me the penthouse was safe, and look how that turned out. Holding out my hand, I coax Scott toward me and he hurries over after flashing a shy smile at Levi. Taking a deep breath, Levi relents.

“Fine. Let’s go over the security of the complex.” He waves his father away and follows after a long glance back at me.

How dare he accuse me of my past being the cause of all of this?

He is my past, which places him right in the middle of everything.

It’s his fault I was heartbroken, his fault I had to flee to Vegas, and now it’s his fault that once again, my son has been through hell.

Drawing Scott into my lap, I bury my face in his hair and breathe him in, then wince.

“Oh, baby, you’re stinky.”

“Am I?” He gazes up at me with wide, tired eyes.

“Bath and bed for you, I think.”

Scott grumbles about it, but he doesn’t fight me as I take him to the bathroom, run a warm, bubbly bath for him, and plop him inside. We play with the bubbles and I wash him down until suddenly, tears fill his eyes and he sniffles while staring up at me.

“Oh, honey, what’s wrong?”

“Is Levi mad at us?”

“No! Why do you think that?”

Scott shrugs and the tears continue to roll down his cheeks. “I was really scared I made a mess on his couch.”

“Levi won’t care about that,” I reassure him, leaning far over the edge of the tub so I can hug him properly. “He’s just glad you’re safe.”

“I was scared, Mommy,” he sobs, and something about how quiet his tears are cuts me deeper than any of his loud sobbing ever has. “I’m glad Levi saved us from the bad men. He killed them, didn’t he? Like Batman?”

I wince inwardly. Hoping he’d never understood what Levi was doing was a weak dream, but if he’s relating it to his cartoons, then maybe it will help him. I just wish I could explain that Levi is the bad man we should be scared of.

But he’d never believe me. He’d never understand that despite Levi’s faults and darkness, it’s still safer being near him than away from him. And he clearly already views Levi as some kind of hero, which makes the truth even harder to swallow.

“Yes, sweetie,” I say while kissing the top of his head. “He’s kind of like Batman.”

“Is he going to keep us safe?”

“Yes. He’s going to help me keep you so very safe, I promise.”

A promise I’ve broken before but I swear I won’t break again. Scott struggles to get his tears under control, but I let him cry for as long as he needs to. After his bath, he falls asleep in my arms while I dwell on what I’m supposed to do next.

Is marrying Levi really the right way to do this? It’s not worth putting my son in danger, but what else can I do? How long until Hillary drops her case and I can move on? I will do everything I can to protect my baby, but there has to be something better than this.

The next week passes in a blur.

After a brief conversation with Levi, I secure a therapist specializing in children to come and talk to Scott.

As much as I provide an open space, giving him a professional to talk to who can ask the right questions and evaluate him feels like the best move to ensure he’s truly doing okay.

The therapist tells me children are resilient, but I ask her to come back every week just to be sure.

Part of keeping Scott safe involves homeschooling him, which takes up a lot of time.

Between that and planning the engagement event to impress Marcella, I don’t have a lot of time to see Levi, so we don’t have a chance to continue our conversation.

Thankfully, caring for Scott, his education, and all the planning keep me busy enough that I don’t realize things have started to calm down until I sleep through the night and don’t wake once.

Life is finally settling.

The next morning, I send Scott into the lounge to spend time with his therapist and I’m busy making myself lunch when I get a phone call. Assuming it’s one of the various vendors for my party, I answer without a thought.

“Hello?”

“Good afternoon, I’m looking to speak to Maeve Jackson?”

“This is her.”

“Hello Maeve, I’m Detective Andrew Hogg. We’ve been trying to get in touch with you for some time but you’re a hard woman to track down. I need you to come down to the station.”

My phone almost slips from my shoulder in shock as a tight ball of nerves forms in my gut. “Why? I haven’t done anything wrong.”

“You can come voluntarily, Miss Jackson, or I can send someone to pick you up.”

Is this about Cameron? Or what happened at the hotel? “Can you tell me what this is regarding?”

“Not over the phone.”

“When do I need to come?”

“Whenever is convenient, but sooner rather than later.”