Page 116 of Hidden Justice
She smiles at me, then nods. The further we get from the shock of it, the more she’s able to talk about what happened.
I like that she trusts me with her memories of her brother, as well as her regrets, but I’m still worried about her cutting herself off from the rest of the family.
At least, she asks questions now, because she doesn’t remember a lot about our escape from Mexico. Shock and grief can do that to a person. I have to admit, for a long time, everything felt unreal to me, too, especially the memories of how Tony died.
The escape from the compound was rushed and damned awful. Justice was rocking, sobbing over Tony’s body, when Gracie returned.
Gracie had taken in the scene and had totally lost it. Her screams…
It’d been all Dusty and I could do to organize them and carry out Victor, who’d passed out. Dusty had turned out to be a good man. He stayed behind to take care of Tony’s body. To this day, we have no idea what happened to Tony’s body or to Dusty, who went underground.
“Sandy!” My mother’s voice whoops through the hallway, startling me from my thoughts.
Justice pulls her hand away, and I feel the loss, though I get why she did it. Best not to confuse Mom with our relationship until we get a sense of how she’s going to react.
I grin wide as my mom shuffles down the hall with a fist full of balloons bobbing above her head. In one hand she clutches the string, in her other, she holds a stuffed teddy bear. My heart is as light as air. I bend and greet her with a gentle hug. “You look great, Lina.”
She kisses my cheek in turn. “Did you see my balloons?”
“I did.” I step to the side. “Did you see my friend?”
Mom lets out a delighted squeal and tosses up her hands. The balloons fly into the air.
Justice grabs the string, bringing the balloons down with a flourish.
Mom claps her hands as Justice hands the balloons back to her. Yanking the strings away, Mom says, “The balloons are mine.”
Justice nods her understanding and Mom’s face becomes sly, almost predatory.
“So is that young man. You better treat him right.”
I move to intercept the awkward moment and guide the conversation, but Justice cuts me off.
“I will, Lina. Promise.”
Mom smiles wide. “He’s very handsome, isn’t he?”
Smiling back, Justice gently kisses her cheek. “Yes, he is.”
And my mother, the woman who has been lost to me off and on for five years, flushes. Her eyes grow slightly more aware. “What’s your name, dear?”
“Justice Ramona Parish.”
She nods. “Justice Ramona Parish.” She repeats it as if chewing on it, tasting it, savoring it. “See, Sandesh?” she says. “I always told you there was justice in the world.”
My eyebrows must shoot up to my forehead. I can’t help but laugh—hard. She has. Repeatedly.
Reaching out, Justice hugs my mom, laughing softly. Mom laughs along with her, and the two of them…
I have to tell my heart to settle, and then tell it twice more. It doesn’t work. There’s too much fullness in my chest to feel anything but joy.
How did this happen? How did a gun-wielding assassin, a smart-ass vigilante with a nose for trouble and a yearning for intrigue, capture my heart so completely?
Maybe that’s just the way blessings work.
Mysteriously.
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