Cruel Kings by Skye Knight

10

Camilla

The party happening outside was still rocking when I left the kitchen. Wyatt and Julie weren’t in the backyard, so I started walking toward the front lawn of the massive frat house.

My phone vibrated against my thigh. Taking it out of my jeans pocket, I glanced at it and found Mom was calling me. Shifting to a quieter corner of the vast backyard, I picked up the call.

“Hey, Mom,” I said while my gaze searched for my friends among a crowded beer pong table.

“Where were you? I’ve been calling you for the last half an hour,” said Mom, sounding worried.

I was still half-dazed from my kiss with Noah. Before that, I’d been sandwiched between Corey and Caleb, trying to battle the conflicting feelings rising inside me while I enjoyed their kisses and touches on my body.

“I was distracted,” I said, trying to be as honest as possible with my mom. “I’m at a party.”

“Oh? Really?”

“Yeah. Wyatt and Julie are here too.”

“That’s great, sweetheart,” Mom gushed in an overly excited voice that made me roll my eyes. “I’m glad you’re enjoying the last semester of school. You need to take the time to enjoy college. It’s not all about assignments and work.”

“Why’d you call, Mom?” I asked before she could lament over my pathetically boring life.

“Here’s the thing, honey...” She went silent, clearly hesitating on what to say next.

“Mom?” I urged.

“Brian and I got married at the courthouse today,” she blurted in one single breath.

“What?” I gasped.

“We didn’t want to wait anymore,” she said quickly. “I don’t care for a big wedding and all, especially at my age.”

“That’s not fair, Mom! You deserve something special on your wedding day. And you’re not that old! I can’t believe Brian agreed to this at all!”

“It was his idea,” she confessed with a giggle.

My fingers raked through the long strands of my hair. I was torn between surprise and anger. She sounded so happy though and I couldn’t bring myself to throw a tantrum about their secret wedding at a lousy courthouse.

“Honey?”

“Yeah, I’m still here,” I muttered, pouting.

“You’re going to have to cancel a few classes tomorrow.”

“Why?”

“We’re meeting Brian’s family at his home for brunch,” she explained. “He wants us to live with him. I know I’m being selfish but would you do this for me?”

Everything was moving too fast. It’d barely been a week since they announced their engagement. How could she already be married to him and wanting to live in his house?

“What’s all the rush about?” I slowly asked. Mom wasn’t the kind of woman who expected much from life. She was content with what she already had. This sudden impatience in her was starting to make me feel uncomfortable.

“There’s something I need to talk to you about,” Mom said in a soft voice. “I’ll come to your apartment early morning. We’ll talk and then we’ll go meet Brian’s family.”

“Mom...”

“We’ll talk tomorrow.”

She switched off the call. The gesture worried me more than any of the news she sprung on me. She never cut off a call without telling me she loved me at least a couple of times and then hearing it back.

***

I blinked through a haze of sleep, wondering who could be at the door so early. The sky visible through the light curtains was still gray. Glancing at the bedside clock, I saw the time was close to seven A.M.

Throwing the quilt away, I moved toward the tiny living room area. My hands rubbed against my arms, trying to drive away the chill of the morning.

I peeked through the peephole and saw my Mom standing in the hallway outside. She told me she was coming over today but I didn’t expect her to be this early.

I opened the door.

“Hey, sweetheart,” Mom said, moving forward to hug me with a single arm. Her other hand carried a few big bags. “Were you sleeping?”

“Yeah,” I said, stepping back and letting her come inside. “You didn’t say you’d come this early.”

“I couldn’t sleep the whole night,” she said in a somber tone and walked inside my bedroom.

Closing the door, I followed her into my room.

“Is Kendra home?” she asked.

“Nah,” I said. “She’s visiting NYU with a group of friends. I think she’ll be applying for a master’s course there.”

“Good, good...”

Mom looked super nervous. She was wearing a beautiful white dress printed with gorgeous lavender-shaded roses. The fit was perfect and the fabric was luxurious. I didn’t have to be an expert to know that the dress came from an exclusive boutique store.

Brian, I thought immediately, knowing he must have bought it for her.

“You look great, Mom,” I said with a smile.

She returned my smile but within seconds, went back to looking glum.

“Do you want some coffee?” I asked, wondering what was making her so anxious.

“Sure, honey.”

I gave a nod and went out into the tiny kitchen I shared with my flatmate. Mom’s nervousness and hesitation were starting to worry me too.

She was happy about being with Brian. They were married. What else could be worrying her? I wondered, waiting for the coffee to be ready.

When the flask was full, I poured coffee into two mugs and mixed sugar and milk in them. That was the way Mom and I loved our morning coffees.

I took the mugs and went to my room.

In the short time it took to make coffee, Mom had already made my bed and was fluffing my pillow.

“You didn’t have to do that,” I said, placing Mom’s cup on the bedside table. “Anyway, cough it up now. What’s bothering you?”

She looked up at me with wide eyes like she’d been caught.

I kept my gaze on her. “Tell me, Mom.”

She lowered her lashes and stared at her knees. “I’m sorry, kiddo,” she said, placing a hand on my knee. “Life’s never been fair to you and I just keep making things worse.”

“What are you talking about?” I asked. “You getting married to Brian doesn’t affect me at all.”

“It’s not about him, honey.” She let out a heavy breath and added, “Not directly, at least.”

I put my mug down and shifted on the bed so I could look at her properly. Tears were gathering in her soft brown eyes.

“I’m sick,” she said in a quiet voice.

Mom was a tough woman. She’d never cry over being sick. Silence fell between us as she let her tears roll down her cheeks while I watched her closely, looking for a sign she was sick.

She seemed to have lost weight. There was heavy makeup on her face but I’d thought it was because she decided to dress up. What else had she let me miss over the past couple of weeks?

“What happened?” I finally asked.

“Cancer,” she breathed.

Cold washed over me at the mention of that single word.

“It’s spread into my stomach,” Mom continued. “At first, I ignored it thinking I was having gastric troubles. The stomach aches weren’t that bad, after all. A month ago, things suddenly got worse. Brian took me to a doctor and we ran tests after tests. They finally told me I was past the stage of treatment.”

“You knew about this a month ago?” I said in a hollow voice. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Anger and frustration surged through me but some things were starting to make sense. This was probably the reason Mom and Brian rushed to get engaged and married without even involving me.

“I didn’t want to worry you, kiddo,” Mom said in a low voice. She placed her hand over mine and squeezed hard. “You’re my joy and pride. There’s nothing in this world I want more than to see you succeed.”

I shook my head, the anger giving way to pain. “What’s the point of all that if you won’t be around to see any of that?”

Mom wiped my tears while she was crying herself. “I’ll always be watching over you. Besides, it’s not like I’m dropping dead tomorrow.”

“How long do you have?” The words felt like ashes in my mouth.

“I won’t answer that,” she said, wrapping her arms around me. “Nobody can predict the exact date and time, so I’m not going to let you keep thinking about that. We’re going to live each day expecting nothing but the best.”

It was stupid how I was bawling against my mother’s chest when she was the one who was in pain and dying.

“It’ll be okay, sweetheart,” she said gently. “Brian will take care of you. That’s the reason he married me. You won’t be alone when I’m gone. You’ll have a family to protect you.”

“I don’t want anyone.”

Her hands rubbed my back soothingly. “You’re like a daughter to Brian,” she said gently. “Can you look after him for me?”

I shifted away from Mom and brushed away my tears. “If you didn’t get diagnosed, would you guys have married at all?”

She chuckled. “Probably not. I’ve never believed in marriage. Love is all that matters to me.” She let out a sigh. “But marriage provides a safety net. I want that for you, honey. There’s nothing like having a family to support you.”

“Brian isn’t really my family.”

A grim expression settled on her face. “Don’t say that. Ever.”

“But, he’s not. You’re all that I have.”

She shook her head. “You will be in a lot of pain when I’m gone. I know that, sweetheart. But, promise me one thing. No matter how much you’re hurting, you won’t say anything hurtful to him. He’ll be devastated too. Be there for him.”

“I’m hating this conversation,” I said through a choked throat. “Just hate it!”

“Then, we’ll stop here. I don’t want to bring it up again either.”

“Are you sure there’s no way to treat it? There are advanced treatments now, chemotherapy...I can ask someone at the university—”

“I want to spend the rest of my time being with the people I love,” she said. “Treatments may delay the inevitable but they can also worsen my health. I’d rather see you graduate with honors than being stuck in a hospital ward.”

We sat huddled together on my bed for a long time. My mind still couldn’t accept the things my mother told me. I desperately wanted the whole thing to be a nightmare.

The sky outside my window gradually turned blue.

“I don’t think I can go anywhere today,” I muttered, shifting over to the pillows. “I want to stay in bed, Mom.”

“No way,” she said in an authoritative voice at once. “Stop moping and get dressed.”

“I don’t feel good. There’s no way I can meet three strangers and smile at them like nothing’s wrong.”

“That’s exactly what you’ll do.”

“Mom!”

“Go take a shower,” she commanded. The hardened look on her face was always a cue for me to do what she demanded. “I have a new dress for you too. It’ll look amazing on you.”

Part of me wanted to protest but that familiar glint in her eyes told me there’d be hell to pay if I didn’t obey her. I was fucking twenty-two already but still a child before her.

Half-moaning, half-weeping, I grabbed my towel and headed to the bathroom.