Chapter 5

I politely reminded mom that dad is dead. She smiled, "He is your father's identical twin brother. I sometimes mistake him for your dad." I understood that man mom was talking about uncle Jonas. He is literally dad's clone and I used to call him that. He used to get a kick out of it. It continued till mom found out. She showed me that identical twins exist. I was so impressed that I wanted a twin but that was proven to be impossible. So I gave up on it.

He is a kind sweet man. He always helped mom whenever she asked him without asking for anything in return. Mom expressed her concern to everyone and it was her partner Batou that recommended this. Now he was about to put an end to a nightmare that mom's been having since she became the lead detective on the latest series of homicides. Some involved the murder cops and their families. I was going to live with him as his adopted daughter. She won't have to worry about her work getting me killed and I won't have to worry about my brother breathing down my neck telling me that all of his ideas are superior. He will be staying with his mom or at his own place. Knowing how Shaw is. I am sure that he will stay anywhere as long as it is for free.

I think I mentioned that he is my half brother. Mom was married to his dad straight out of high school. This guy was abusive till my maternal grandpa walked in. He was so pissed that he called his friend. The man arrived with a few police officers. Grandpa and his friend kicked him out. He made sure to get a restraining order against the creep. He made sure that they got divorced. To hurt mom her abusive ex-husband made sure she lost custody of my brother. Since his dad was in prison her brother-in-law got custody of my brother. She was denied visitation rights too.

Mom spent years trying to get better. One of her attempts at rehabilitation landed her in the police academy and she started to recover. She met my dad during a police bust where he was a hostage. They got married a month later. He made sure mom had visitation rights so my brother won't forget who his mom is. Mom says her life turned out for the best when he walked in. She said the day that I was born was the day her life was meaningful again. He didn't live that long. He was sick too. He died of cancer and it was painful for her. But she had me. It broke her heart that I used to spend most of my time in the hospital with tubes poking me all over my body. The discovery that I have a rare blood disorder was a shock. The meds didn't come cheap so my uncle helped her financially. He was upset that he was absent when my dad was ill. He helped us in so many ways including purchasing this house for us. I remember the first I came here. Mom and I were speechless when we saw the view. This was one of many times he had above and beyond for us.

These days she was dealing with a lot of serious cases and she is concerned that she could die and there will be nobody to care for her. This living arrangement will ensure that I am safe and cared for. She will visit me as much as possible. I made a request that my brother does not accompany her. She understood that he has a bit of arrogance that he inherited from his dad. She smiled, "I promise" I hugged her and went upstairs to pack my belongings. That took only five seconds to do.

My brother arrived an hour later and he looked around to see that we were packing up everything. It took him a moment to remember what was going on. He asked us to unpack but we kept going. He tried to reason with mom but since she married my dad she has learned to be headstrong. He said a really bad word. Mom jumped up slapped him across his face and told him to get out of her house. He froze for a moment. He realized that he is fighting a losing battle. He started with intense anger and finally got up. He quickly went upstairs to pack his stuff. He walked downstairs in a few minutes. He sat down on the couch looking angry. I thought that he would spontaneously combust. When the people in cleaners' outfits arrived. They explained that they paid to pack the belongings and sort them to assist with the move. She explained what goes where. Some went to charity, some to storage, some to the trash and the rest to her new apartment.

Uncle Jonas arrived to take me and he made sure that all of my belongings were transported to my new room before I even mom's house. My brother was staring as I was escorted to a limo. There was a man wearing a suit with an earpiece. He gave me a curt nod and opened the door for me. Shaw tried to follow me in but uncle Jonas made it clear Shaw will stay with our mother. He had an encounter with Shaw's uncle. So he wasn't happy that my brother had the nerve to decide that he will join us. He made it clear that Shaw and his family are permanently unwelcome. Shaw tried to protest. He tried to push Uncle J. So Uncle waved his hands. The guys in security uniforms walked toward Shaw. He knew he was in trouble when they surrounded him. He raised his hands to pacify the situation. He stomped off to call a cab and waited on the porch till it arrived. Mom was signing documents to ensure that I would be safe. While simultaneously directing the people to what pile that box should be. I was awed by her organizational skills. I am pretty decent but she was better than me.

The cab arrived and Shaw stomped his way toward it. He mentioned a nearby military base with a growl. The driver gave him a funny look as he drove away. My uncle hopped into the limo and sat next to me. The lawyers knocked on the window and gave uncle J the papers. Behind him was a group of men that were stuffing boxes into the trunk. I realized that it was my medical file. I waved at mom one last time. She was on the verge of tears as she waved back at me but she held them back. I got out of the car and mom hugged me. She reminded me that I was her brave little girl. I was her Apex predator. She promised to visit me on Friday nights for dinner. I slowly walked back to the limo and sat down.

The driver took off smoothly. I kept an eye on where we were going. We seemed to be heading to the city center. We passed the mayor's office. We drove passed the police station where mom works. We drove past a lot of apartments, demolished buildings, some schools, hospitals, a dairy farm, a few broken old barns, and a lot of rundown properties. We started seeing trees. I got so bored that I almost passed out. His assistant tapped me on the shoulder and I looked to see that he was smiling, "We are here" I looked at the window and was shocked. It looked less like a mansion and more like a palace. I nicknamed it the Citadel. He laughed at my declaration. He thought it looked like a haphazard mess but loved that I was enjoying the appearance of the structure.