A Son’s Version of Mercy
Chapter 06 - A Son’s Version of Mercy
At Bellweather, Damian sat beside his mother’s bed and watched a nurse adjust the medication in her IV.
Eleanor’s room had no flowers, no family photographs, and no telephone. The window opened only three inches.
“You embarrassed me,” Damian said.
Eleanor’s speech was slower under the medication, but her eyes remained clear. “You embarrassed yourself.”
He leaned back. “Do you think that biker cares about you? He saw a camera and found a cause.”
“He saw me.”
“I built a company from nothing.”
“You built it from your father’s land and my signature.”
Damian’s face hardened. “That house was rotting. The taxes were overdue. You could not manage your own finances.”
“I asked to see the accounts.”
“You accused me in front of the board.”
“I asked where my pension went.”
He stood and looked through the narrow window. Outside, sprinklers watered a perfect lawn no residents were permitted to walk on without supervision.
“When Dad died,” Damian said, “you gave Mara every excuse and gave me every responsibility. I was twenty-six. I handled the debts. I saved the property. I saved you.”
“You sold me.”
His hand closed around the windowsill.
For years, Damian had called his actions sacrifice. He had moved money, rewritten documents, and separated his mother from everyone who challenged him. Each decision had been explained as necessary. Necessary for the company. Necessary for the family. Necessary for Eleanor’s safety.
Mercy, in Damian’s world, meant removing a person’s choices before they could interfere with his plans.
He turned toward the nurse. “Increase the nighttime dose.”
Eleanor heard him.
The nurse hesitated. “The physician did not authorize—”
“I fund this wing.”
The nurse lowered her eyes.
Damian bent close to his mother. “The court hearing will confirm everything. After that, no one will listen to you again.”
Eleanor’s fingers moved beneath the blanket, searching for the apple Jake had given her. Bellweather staff had taken it away when she arrived.
Damian noticed the motion.
“What did you give him on the sidewalk?”
She said nothing.
He pulled open the bedside drawer. Empty.
“Was it a key?”
Eleanor closed her eyes.
Damian’s fear showed for the first time.
He left the room and called his security chief.
“Go to Cypress Street,” he said. “Open the blue room before Sullivan does.”
From the hallway, Eleanor heard every word.
She waited until the nurse returned, then whispered one name.
“Mara.”
May you like
The nurse looked toward the door.
Eleanor opened her eyes. “Please find my daughter before my son finds the letters.”
