“You haven’t mentioned Dominic,” she asks, looking between Cecelia and me, “where is he now?”
I stop the glass halfway to my mouth as Cecelia’s expression falls, and she turns questioning eyes to mine. We’ve never been faced with the question together, and try as I might, it’s clear on both our faces.
Diane looks between us, her eyes budding with fear. “Please tell me he’s okay,” she pleads with me as Tim grips her hand in his.
“He died six years ago,” Cecelia speaks at the same time I do.
“I think it’s time you know the truth.” Cecelia’s gaze locks on mine as I finish. “The whole truth.”
“Tobias—”
“It’s time,” I stress softly before staring into the campfire.
“Tobias,” Cecelia urges my eyes her way, and I gaze back at her, the fire lifting some of the red tint in her chestnut hair as she quietly assesses me.
“It’s time.”
After a few tense moments, Cecelia nods somberly. For the next few hours, we take turns talking, and I reveal a lot of my story, of the moments I’ve been reliving since I’ve been in Virginia, taking the opportunity to come a bit cleaner with Cecelia.
I leave out my history with Antoine, a secret I’ve kept for twenty years. As Cecelia and I recall the details of our sordid past together, Diane’s eyes dart wildly between us while Timothy speaks up every so often with a question or a ‘holy shit.’
At one point, too much truth sends Diane into a tailspin, her emotions getting the best of her, especially when we relay the events of the night Dom died and the aftermath. Thankfully, she maintains enough composure to make it through the recall of Cecelia’s return to Triple Falls leading up to me coming for her three weeks ago.
“And so now…” Diane eyes me, her voice hoarse. “What will you do?”
“I’m leaving that up to your daughter,” I say honestly. “She’ll be the one to decide.”
Fear shudders through her physically as Cecelia swallows, refusing to answer her mother’s question. It’s clear she’s raw and exhausted from a day of hashing out our past, and for the first time ever, speaking her full story. The sad part is, I still have too much to tell.
I’m not at all worried about hood secrets or any of our secrets being spilled, for that matter. For the most part, Diane has been looking out for the both of us since we were children. I feel safe in that knowledge and better for her knowing the truth of our reality.
“Is this the life you want?” She asks Cecelia. “Even after all that’s happened, as dangerous as it is?”
He is, is what she wanted to say, but I can’t fault her for it.
“It’s my decision, and I’ve made it.”
Diane bites her lip for several seconds before lifting her eyes to mine. Timothy clears his throat. “I’m in awe, man. Truly. This is…what a fucking amazing story.” He shakes his head and glances over at me. “I’m still amazed you went to prep school with the President, and you planned it,” he sips his beer, “too fucking cool.”
“We’ve hit quite a few bumps in the road.”
“I never knew that part, either,” Cecelia says, her voice filled with hurt and underlying anger.
“You don’t know a lot of the details,” I admit softly, knowing I’m in for it.
“No, I don’t,” she redirects, anger simmering in her voice.
“Ask me anything,” I remind her of the times I’ve tried to reveal myself to her in degrees over the last few weeks. Her eyes flare before she darts them away.