Saving The Pirate (Book Two)

37. Mama's Letter

I gritted my teeth and clenched my hands at the cold tension in the room. I wasn't sure what to do, so I stared dumbly past Lord Taylor at his collection of liquor glasses behind him. It amazed me how much these two drank. I mean, honestly.

"How did I get that letter, Father," Christopher repeated, tightly. There was a silence in Lord Taylor's direction, and it was hard to decipher what he was going to do.

And if I should be there for it.

"I've been gone for almost half a decade, out at sea in different continents, different countries, different places. I've been all over the world, so how the bloody hell did you find me?"

I took a glance at Lord Taylor. His face was frozen, but at last, he unclenched his jaw and moved his lips. "You may find this hard to believe, son, but I love you. You are my son, my flesh, and my blood, and I would be a fool if I didn't keep track of you. I promised your mother that I would."

"My mother is dead," Christopher hissed. "She's been dead for years, and she would be disappointed with how we turned out. She told me right from the beginning that it was my life, that I got to choose how I wanted to live it, and this is it, this right here, standing before you is the way I want to spend my life. You say that you love me, but you're only doing this for her, out of guilt. I love her just as much as you do, but my mother would be furious if she saw the way this played out between us."

I glanced at Christopher and watched as his body became tense. It was hard to tell that not long ago, this man was drinking, but I knew despite how I felt about him, he needed to get that off his chest.

And here I was, standing beside him while he did it, awkwardly watching him threaten to kill his powerful father with his eyes.

"Anne." I whipped my head around so fast that my hair slapped the other side of my face. Lord Taylor's eyes softened when he turned his attention towards me. "You may leave the room." I wasn't sure if that was an order or not, but I took it as one anyway and turned around.

"Stay!"

I paused out of hearing my new boss's command, and slowly, I turned back around. Still, neither one of the men's eyes were on me, so I just stood there, trying to comprehend what I was supposed to do without making a big deal about it, but that was easier said than done when they weren't even looking at me!

"My life is mine and mine alone. I saw the world, I've seen things, I felt things that not everyone gets to experience," Christopher said, striding up to his father's desk, forgetting that I was even there. Both of them forgot about me, and so, because of that, I quietly shuffled to the nearest chair and took my time easing into it, trying to be as quiet and unnoticeable as possible.

I had a feeling that I was going to be here for a while.

"I've been everywhere, Father, and I don't regret it, but you don't care, do you?" Christopher half laughed. "I guess I just seem like an ignorant child in your eyes, don't I?"

Christopher waited for his father to speak, but Lord Taylor didn't say anything, just studied his son silently, his hands clasped together, and his eyes sharp. I bit the inside of my cheek.

"Maybe you don't understand. I don't expect you too, but my mother would. You know she would."

Suddenly, Lord Taylor leaned back against his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. He looked relaxed, almost like he was comfortable with the situation. He sighed.

"You're just like her," he said. "It's hard to even look at you when you are so much like your mother." Christopher stilled.

The Lord smiled. "You're not the only one who is clever in this family, my boy. I tracked you within a few months you were gone. It wasn't easy, but I found you, and here you are." He stood up, placing his hands in his pockets, and took his time walking around to the other side of his desk. He leaned against it. "I brought you here to apologize, Christopher. You may think of me as a malicious man, and I probably am, but know that I love you. I...only did what I thought was right as your father. But there is something you must know." Christopher turned to his father, standing straighter than ever.

"Your mother is alive."

If the room wasn't silent before, it sure as hell was now. Time seemed to freeze in place. I clenched my dress in my hands, feeling the sweat rub off on the cloth, and stared in wonder at Christopher's paling face.

"I don't understand," he said. "Is this some joke?"

"I'm afraid not." Lord Taylor rounded his desk again and pulled out a drawer. There, he pulled out a small envelope, similar to what Daniel gave me. "I didn't just ask you back here to tell you how I feel. Your mother wrote to you, and I've been dishonest to keep this from you, and for that, I am truly sorry." He handed the envelope to Christopher, who grabbed it furiously, ripping it open. He dropped the envelope on the floor and scanned the one-page letter.

"This is dated back to when I was seven, the day she died." Christopher looked up at his father. "You've been keeping this from me. Why were you keeping this from me?" Christopher said.

"Because I didn't want to lose you too," said Lord Taylor. "I already lost my wife, and I didn't need to lose my son too."

Christopher's eyes were back on the letter, gripping the thin sheet of paper. I stood up and strode to stand by Christopher, looking at the letter in his hands. The handwriting was messy like his mother was in a rush to write it. It was only a short paragraph.

"Dear my darling boy," the letter said. "I'm sorry it had to be this way, but you must understand that I had to leave. I know you don't understand, but you will when your father gives this letter to you. You're a traveler, Christopher. I have taught you to be that way, so I hope you can forgive me and maybe empathize with me when I say that I needed to go. Come find me. Love, your Mama." Christopher turned the page over and there, printed in bold black letters were map coordinates. We looked up at Lord Taylor who had a pipe in his mouth. He pulled a match from his pocket, struck it, and lit his pipe.

"What is this?" Christopher asked, showing his father the coordinates.

"That's where your mother is, son. That's what she left us for."

***

Tristan wasn't there in the hallway when Christopher and I came out, and I would be lying if I said I didn't want to follow him elsewhere to get away from the tense Christopher who listened to his father speak of his mother and her plan to fake her death and leave everything she loved behind.

As I listened, I almost couldn't believe it myself and instantly, I hated his mother. I hated that she left her husband and her son, and I hated that she even thought that they would understand. Though I felt these things, I didn't dare share them in front of Christopher and his father and I wasn't going to share them now that I was alone with Christopher.

Christopher shut the door behind us and for a second or two, there was nothing but complete silence. Just the two of us out in the hallway, until Christopher turned to me. I searched his face, trying to find the man that I used to know, the one that I was in love with and the one that broke my heart. All of that changed the moment we stepped out of that room and it was like Christopher was a different person.

"Go change. We leave in an hour," he ordered and walked past me. I turned and watched him go, silently hoping to myself that maybe he'll turn around.

He didn't.