Chapter 40

Chapter 40
Mason POV

I walked out of my plane in Italy. On the flight here, I was stuck on the fact that I had been here a thousand times. For two years straight, I have been here once a month without knowing that my mother is in the same town as me.

I took the car keys that were handed to me. Usually, I hire a sports car, but this time I went with something a little more inconspicuous.

I made my way to the address that Jamy provided. Lucky for me, I have a GPS built into the car.

It didn't take me that long to arrive at the house. I expected a mansion, but what struck me was that the house was just a usual house. She didn't live in the rich part of Italy.

The house looked like it belonged to an average middle-class family. There was no six-foot high fence, only a white picket fence. It was the type of house that all girls dream of.

The house was well-kept, and so was the garden.

I sat in front of the house until all the lights went out. My nerves got the better of me. I decided to run away like a chump. Perhaps it will be better for me to come back tomorrow.

...........................................................

I have been in Italy for five days now. I have not dared to knock on the door.

I picked a spot where I could see their house, but they wouldn't be able to see me.

Every morning I see my mother say goodbye to her husband and then leave to drop off my half-sister.

I see the pure happiness on her face while she works in the garden once my half-sister gets home from school.

Today is the day. I need to get this over with. I am leaving in two days. If I do not do this now, I will never do it.

I watch as my mother's car comes back and stops in the driveway.

I drive closer to the house. I feel my heart start to race in my chest.

I walk closer as slowly as possible. I did not want to startle my mother.

When she finally spots me at the end of the driveway a look of pure excitement crosses her face.

I see the tears well up in her eyes. She dropped everything in her hands and ran towards me. She grabbed me and pulled me closer.

"O, my baby. You came back to me." She was full-on sobbing now. She held me tighter, and I felt myself melt into her embrace.

I feel the motherly love radiating off her. I wrap my arms tightly around her. I feel the tears running down my face.

"Why did you abandon us?" I ask while sobbing. My mothers sobbing stopped as she pulled away from me. I look at her. My mother is staring at me. She looks confused.

"I never abandoned you. Is that what your father said? Somewhere is a misunderstanding. Let's go inside."

My mother turned around and quickly to picked up everything that she dropped.

Together we walked into the house. She led me to the living room and told me to wait there.

My eyes roam around. I see pictures, of me and Jason in various stages of our lives.

Absolutely nothing of the past twenty years makes remote sense. Where did my mother get all these pictures from?

My mother came in, holding a tray in her hands. She sits down and hands me a cup.

"Let's start from the beginning. Why do you think I abandoned you and your brother." She gave me an encouraging smile.

"Well, you left, didn't you? We never heard from you again." She gave me 'the mother' look. You know the one a mother gives you if you did something naughty.

"That just isn't true Mase. I will tell you the whole story from the beginning, but you have to promise me you won't interrupt me." I nod my head.

"Your father and I met in college. You can say it was love at first sight. We were inseparable. You need to understand that I came from a poor family. One day your father came to me and told me that your grandfather is trying to force him into an arranged marriage. We eloped the same day. That is how much we loved each other. That is also the day that everything changed between us." She stood up and went to stand in front of the windows. I can hear the pain in her voice.

"Your father became possessive. I couldn't leave the house without his permission. He never abused me physically, but he did abuse me mentally. The night I left wasn't because I wanted to, it is because I had a mental breakdown. Your father sent me to a mental institution. After I got better I tried to get you and Jason back. Your father used the fact that I was institutionalized against me in court. He told them that I was a danger to you and your brother. Your father promised me that if I wrote a letter to you and your brother that he make sure that he gave them to you. From that moment on I wrote to you every month. You never wrote back. Your father told me that you made it clear that you want nothing to do with me, but I still wrote."

"That is not what my father told us. From the beginning, my father told us that you left never to look back. He told us that you never loved us. We never received any letter from you. Until two weeks ago I was still under the impression that you and my father were still married. He told me that he couldn't find you. That is the reason why Jason isn't here. He didn't want to come. He even told me that you didn't bother to reach out in 20 years so why should he?"

That is how my mother and I sat and went over every single lie that my father told me.

How will I ever believe another word that my father tells me.