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was surprised a servant wasn’t on the other side. My mom stood still, looking thinner than I’d ever seen her. She didn’t recognize me for a moment. After an instant of staring, recognition flashed in her eyes. “Sean?”
    “Hey, Mom.” I tried to act like I was happy to see her even though I pretty much despised her.
    “Oh. What are you doing here…?”
    Even her voice sounded different. Her hair wasn’t styled like it usually was. She was wearing glasses even though she always wore contacts anytime she left her room. “I wanted to see you.”
    Man, this was awkward. I felt like I hardly knew her. I bit my tongue then gave her a hug. “You doing okay?”
    She pulled away. “You don’t love me, Sean. Don’t act like you do.” The hurt was in her eyes.
    I wasn’t expecting her to say that. “Would I be here if I didn’t care?”
    “I’m sure your father made you.”
    He did but I wouldn’t admit it. “I was passing through and I thought we could get dinner together or something.”
    “Scarlet didn’t come with you?”
    If she said a single bad thing about my wife, I’d turn my back on her and never look back. “No. She had plans.”
    “Oh.” She seemed sad.
    “Why?”
    S he shrugged. “I was hoping she’d come back.  I enjoyed talking to her. She listened to me. She understood.”
    Because Scarlet was the only one capable of forgiveness and empathy. “I’m sure she’ll stop by when she has time. Her brother is getting married so she’s busy with that.”
    “Ryan is engaged?” she asked in surprise.
    I nodded. “To Janice.”
    “Oh. That’s wonderful.”
    “So…can I come in?”
    “Oh. Sure.” She stepped inside so I could enter.
    The house was totally different. All the expensive decorations were gone, and the house had been stripped to the bare essentials. “Mom, where is everything?”
    She shrugged. “I gave it to charity.”
    What the fuck did she just say? “Sorry?”
    “I don’t need any of that. I sold it and gave the revenue to charity.”
    My mom never gave a penny to charity, and every time my dad gave a donation to a college or church, she was livid with him. “Why…?”
    “Like I said, I don’t need any of that.”
    Was this the same woman that raised me? “Oh. Why the change of heart?”
    She shrugged. “Andrew taught me money wasn’t important. I just didn’t learn that lesson until I lost him.” The sadness was in her voice. “All the people I thought were my friends abandoned me because my husband left me. I’m just a crazy woman who only cares about the gems in her vault. No one loves me for me. No one cares. I chased my kids away with my paranoia, and my best friend in the world doesn’t love me anymore. Having a mansion with expensive crap brings me no happiness, no joy.”
    Wow. She was a completely different person than I used to know.
    “I’m selling the house too.”
    “What? Why?”
    “I don’t want to live in this mansion if I’m the only one here. I’m going to get something smaller, and give the rest to charity.”
    “Mom, are you okay?”
    “Yes.” She stared at the wall and wouldn’t look at me.
    “You’ve had this house since you got married. I grew up here… Maybe you should think about this.”
    “This place is full of happy memories, Sean. But that’s why I can’t live here anymore.” She moved to the couch and sat down.
    I came beside her. “Mom, I know you’re hurting right now, but don’t resort to anything you can’t take back.”
    “I have nothing left to lose.” She adjusted her glasses then sighed. “How’s Mike? I haven’t seen him…”
    “He’s…going through a hard time. He hasn’t been himself lately.”
    Her eyes widened. “Is he okay?”
    “ He and Cassandra broke up.”
    “Oh.” My mom clutched her chest. “I thought he was serious about that girl.”
    “He was. She told him she never wanted to get married.”
    “Why?” she said loudly. “Why wouldn’t she want to marry my