While I Breathe: The Veiðimenn Mob, Book One

Twenty-Five

He looked up at the door only to see his father observing him carefully. “You told her everything, didn’t you, Dad?”

“Would you rather I lied to her?” Hans ran a hand through his hair, frustrated with his son. "Yes, I told her everything. She deserved to know the truth, Cal. Declan was the one who managed to convince her to move half-way across the damn country.”

“Dad,” Callum began, but the other man cut him off with a menacing glower.

His father snapped, livid with the younger man for the first time in a long time. “That poor girl disowned her mother for you, Callum. I watched her worked herself to exhaustion taking care of you these last few days while I spent time with my grandson and his uncle.”

His father stared out the window, sighing heavily as he stared at the river below. “I know you thought I cared for her, but I didn’t. Not at first. I assumed she and her brother would be just like their parents, and it’s refreshing to know they’re not. I was blocking you from finding her for a while, but it was because I didn’t want her to be your ultimate ending. Now that I’ve come to know them a little better, I know my methods caused more harm than good.”

Taking in all the information his father had just shovelled down his throat, Callum realized he had probably moved a little too fast for her. Spotting his neatly-folded clothes, he started dressing for the day. Suddenly, he asked, “What’s he like?”

Hans jerked his head around, amusement flickering in his eyes. “Who?”

“What’s my son like?” Callum asked again.

His father chuckled, “He reminds me of how you were as a child.”

Nostalgia hung thick in the air while Callum came to grips with the information. “He reminds you… of me?”

Hans laughed. Knowing that his normally ruthless child was actually worried warmed his heart. He smiled, “I’ve spent a lot of time with the three of them over the last few days. Ambrosia has proven herself to be a decent young woman, and she’s accepted my offer to move to Ontario. She’s giving you a chance to be a father, so be grateful to the woman for holding out just for you when she could have moved one at any time.”

Callum leaned over, his forearms resting heavily on his legs. “What about Declan? You’ve mentioned him a few times, and never said anything when you saw him earlier.”

“He's a force to be reckoned with in the right circumstances. I like that he's especially protective of his sister and nephew,” Hans replied.

Callum barked a laugh, “That guy is her brother and best friend. If he gets hurt in any way because of the asshole who fathered them, she’s not going to be happy about it."

Hans turned back to the window as his lips curved into a slow smile. “I know. Ambrosia already gave me that lecture.”

Two days later, Ambrosia turned in her resignation letter to the Board and left the hospital with a letter of recommendation from the Chairwoman herself. The offer was to work as Hans' private physician, but she wanted more than just being a mob doctor. However, wanting more out of her occupation, she spoke ot her supervisors. When she explained the situation, they were all too happy to put in a good word for her and provided a comprehensive reference letter to Toronto General.

While she was in the kitchen making dinner, the doorbell rang. Wiping her hands on the dish towel as she walked out to answer it, Ambrosia started cursing when she saw her mother through the peephole. Silently moving back to the kitchen, she said: “Ross? Can you and David take Nix to his room for me? Declan, be ready just in case I need backup.”

Nix’s eyes darkened slightly as he caught the sudden urgency in his mothers voice. “It’s her, isn’t it, Mom?”

“Who?” Ross and David asked in unison.

“Our mother,” Declan replied through clenched teeth. He was less than pleased about the surprise intrusion, but he knew Ambrosia wasn’t going to play nice.

“I thought you told her not to come back until she grew up?" Ross grunted.

Declan nodded, "We did. Dad usually gives us a warning call, but I didn’t even get a text. Did you Am?”

Ambrosia shook her head, “No, nothing. I don’t know why she's here, but I’m going to find out. Ross, please? I don’t want her around my son. She’s far too toxic."

Once the men had Phoenix safely out of sight, Ambrosia mentally braced herself for the coming storm. Opening the door, she let her mother into the apartment.

With her head held high, Hannah sneered. She ran a finger over the hall mirror, a look of disgust on her face. “What took you so long?”

“I was busy being a mother,” Ambrosia said blandly.

Glancing into the next room, she spotted the labelled boxes in the corner. Giving her a confused look, she asked, "Have you finally decided to get over that good-for-nothing boy to move in with a real man?"

Seething at the barb, Ambrosia bit back her rising anger. She shook her head, “I got offered a better-paying job in another province. We fly out tomorrow afternoon.”

“Why?! Why would you do that without talking to me first? You’re taking my grandbaby from me like this without consideration for me?” The older woman lamented pitifully.

Ambrosia rolled her eyes at her mother as she watched, unaffected by her mother's obviously fake waterworks. She ground her teeth as she fumed as her mother mentioned that she was taking her grandson from her. “Are you forgetting that you lost all rights to my son when you decided to badmouth his father and try to force an adoption the way you did?”

"How dare you talk to me like that!" Her mother snapped testily. “I have Grandparent’s Rights, you know!”

The younger woman scoffed. “You absolutely do not have any rights to my son. It’s time you understood that the world does not revolve around you, and you are not entitled to anything just because you want it. You’re forty-five, not five, so grow the hell up and get your head out of your ass.”

Hannah glared at her daughter. She hated it when anyone called her on her faults, but there was one other who would side with her. “Where’s your brother?”

“I’m here, Mother,” Declan came around the corner with an agitated Mafia Kingpin close on his heels.

Hannah looked to the blond man who stood behind her son. Fear flashed in her eyes, but she masked it quickly. “What the hell are you doing here? This is no place for your kind. Declan, what did you do?”

“I was graciously invited by Ambrosia to come meet my grandson, after my son’s health took a spill,” Hans replied smoothly. “As for your son, why, he hasn’t done a damn thing. I’m truly grateful to him for protecting Ambrosia and Phoenix in mine and my son’s absence.”

Ambrosia cast a sideways look in her brother’s direction, and he nodded wordlessly.

“Hans is Phoenix’s grandfather whether you like it or not. A week ago, we had an unexpected visitor, who ended up sick for a while. As a doctor, Amber was obligated to contact Callum’s next of kin to gain permission to care for him. Discussions were had, and she made the decision to let him meet the child he didn’t even know existed until that day,” Declan declared.

Ambrosia murmured her agreements She sighed, “I’ve accepted a job in Ontario, which was also deeply discussed by all necessary parties, and the decision to move closer to them was made. I want them to know him, Declan wants to continue teaching Phoenix while looking for options not available here, and my career is growing in leaps and bounds. That said, we all agreed the move would be in all our best interests.”

“Just put the child in school, Amber. The doctors know what they are talking about, so let them do their jobs.” Hannah said.

“I’m a doctor, too, or did that slip your mind? Besides, I’m not putting my kid on Ritalin, Mother. I’m not snuffing out his abilities just because no one else saw that he wasn’t getting the academic challenge he needed by sticking to his peer group,” Ambrosia growled out.

Her twin laughed evilly, the sound making their mother tremble slightly. “Hey, sis? You can always pay me in chocolate.”

Ambrosia scowled at him as she crossed her arms. “I can pay you, sure, but go buy your own damn chocolate, you addict.”

Hans leaned lazily against the wall, fighting a smile. He realized a few minutes in that they started pretending Hannah wasn't there, and it was interesting to watch them mess with the older woman's head as if they’d been doing it for ages. They seemed like they worked well together, often holding complete conversations with one a few words or looks. He grinned as the front door slammed with enough force to shake the framework. “Is that a twin thing?”

Ambrosia turned the lock on the door. “What do you mean, Hans?”

“You two seem like you have your own secret methods of communication, and it made me curious. So, is it a twin thing or something you developed over the years?” He replied.

Declan laughed softly, “Most of it is just how Am and I get along, but the rest was developed as a defense mech to keep our mother out of the loop.”