My mother slapped her cheeks and gave some anyway. “Oh, honey. You don’t even know the man. Why would you do that?”
“Because it’s the right thing to do. Willa needs a man in her life. Kevin’s busy in Baltimore with his career and family. Uncle Bob’s got his own grandkids. Stan checked up on Richard—that’s his name—and he’s a decent, lonely man. He was lovely about it. Even offered to help with child support after he learned about what Lyle has done.”
“You told him everything?” My mother pounded on the table before standing to pace, casting me furious glances. “What if he warns Lyle?”
“Mom, take a breath,” Erin began, leading me to believe she supported my decision. Then she asked me, “Do you trust him?”
Her expression suggested she did not.
“They haven’t spoken in more than three years. If push came to shove, I trust him to put Willa’s needs ahead of Lyle’s.” Strangely, I smiled at the affirmation that Lyle hadn’t completely killed my ability to trust someone—or at least not someone I’d had checked out by a PI.
“All righty, then,” Erin said with a nod.
Mom cast her an irritated glance while muttering, “At least he’s in Michigan. And he shouldn’t want to spread the word about his son’s criminal behavior any more than we do.” She rubbed her temples so forcefully they might bruise. “But what good can come of inviting a stranger into our lives? That man raised Lyle, and look how he turned out. What makes you think he’ll be a good influence on Willa?”
As a teacher, I’d seen good parents with troubled kids and troubled parents with wonderful kids. “Don’t blame Richard. Lyle was born manipulative and made worse by a mother who enabled his entitled narcissism. I can’t see the future, but we have to do what’s right.”
Erin smiled. “I’m proud of you.”
I narrowed my gaze, searching for hints of sarcasm. “You make it sound like I don’t usually do the right thing.”
“But this time you didn’t wait for approval. Maybe that’s the silver lining in this whole situation.” She opened the refrigerator, grabbed the OJ, and finished it straight from the bottle. Her chipper mood didn’t make that compliment less backhanded.
“What’s that mean?” I asked.
She shrugged one shoulder. “You don’t usually do things without a consensus, but now you’re making your own decisions, for better or worse. Backbone is a good thing.”
“Meaning I’m normally weak?”
Erin grimaced. “‘Weak’ is harsh. Let’s go with ‘indecisive.’”
The fact that my mother failed to jump in or roll her eyes suggested my new “backbone” rattled her.
Was that how everyone saw me—a weak and indecisive person rather than a conscientious and cautious one? “It’s hurtful when you paint me that way, you know.”
“Oh for God’s sake, Amanda. You and Mom are always pointing out things you’d like to change about me. Don’t live in a glass house. Can’t we learn to say what we feel and be okay with it? Otherwise this new living arrangement will result in one of us ending up in jail before Lyle.”
She had a point.
Time to go all in and drop the next bombshell. “Well, if that’s how you feel, you’ll be thrilled to hear what else I’ve decided.”
“Oh bother,” my mother moaned, hanging her head. “What now?”
“Mom, keep an open mind. Stan found a legal way to get the boat. It’s called an OIA operation—an otherwise illegal activity. Basically, the FBI can deputize me to help carry out a sting.” I then explained the details as I understood them. “Obviously, it won’t settle custody or give me control over my house, but if successful, we’d get the boat to sell, so you’d get paid back quickly. Plus Lyle will get a real comeuppance, and if Ebba’s an accomplice, she’ll land in jail, too. This is our best chance for real justice.”
My mother covered her face with her hands, shaking her head. “So you don’t care if our family loses all respect, or that your father’s name will be remembered this way? You’d have Willa’s life begin under a cloud of salacious gossip, and make me face the children I’ve taught and their kids, and my neighbors, as an idiot? I can’t bear it, Amanda. Please. Don’t make me uproot my life at sixty-two.”
“Mom, it’s terrifying and difficult, but it’s not about only us. I’ve given this a lot of thought. I told you, if I confront Lyle with no backup, he’ll probably laugh in my face and take off. So in the bigger scheme of things, this is our best chance of getting you your money back and of keeping Lyle from hurting another woman.”
“This is a mistake you can’t undo. It will take on a life of its own, and with the internet, it will never die!” Mom looked up, wild-eyed. I stood, arrested by her accusatory gaze, unaccustomed to being the disappointing child. Was this how Erin felt all the time? I guessed I ought to get used to it, because I had to have a “backbone” for Willa. She begged, “Let’s try it ourselves, and then, if we fail, we go to the cops—”
Erin interrupted. “If you do that, Lyle has time to get away. Worse, if the authorities do catch up to him, he could squeal on Amanda for extortion.”
“Damn it! Damn all of it.” Mom waved her fists around before grabbing her car keys from the hook.
“Where are you going?” I asked.
“Somewhere to think.” She glared at us both, although Erin brushed off Mom’s outrage like she’d shoo a mosquito.
“Mom!” I called as she slammed the door to the garage in our faces. I whirled on Erin. “Should we stop her?”
“Nah.” She inspected the bananas before choosing one to peel, calm as ever. “I don’t want to give her the chance to wear down your resolve. You’ve made the right call. I can’t wait to see Lyle’s smug face when the cops raid his boat.”
“Mom’s not all wrong. This might not work out the way we hope. Kevin and Stan haven’t gotten back to me yet about if the FBI will take this case and do the OIA. If not, we end up with all the negative publicity and none of the upside. Mom will never forgive me.”
“I bet they’ll go for the sting. If you can get a confession, it makes their case a slam dunk.” Erin tossed the peel in the trash. “I know it’s hard, but it’s okay to stand up to Mom. Somewhere Dad is cheering.”
That perked me up, having rarely been the one to surprise Dad with an act of courage. “I hope you’re right.”
“I am.” She gave me a brief hug.
“Thanks for being supportive, and for not grousing about my moving in. I know it isn’t what you expected when you agreed to keep an eye on Mom.”
“You won’t hear me complain about a free maid.” She winked. “Seriously, it’s good for us to hunker down together until things with Lyle get settled.”
“Who would’ve thought we’d both be home again?”
The corners of her mouth drooped with her shoulders. “Fair warning, living here will make you miss Dad more. I ‘see’ him everywhere. On the other hand, Mom and I are getting along better.”