Famke woke Christmas morning to the sound of giggling. She could hear Cliff and Nyx whispering encouragingly to Precious and she wondered what the heck was going on. Instead of sitting up and interrupting their plot though, she laid there quietly, waiting for whatever mayhem they were ready to unleash on her and Royal.
The night before, Royal, Famke, Bram, Nyx and Precious had packed up to go to Cliff and Imani’s house for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and it had been a fun-filled, happy affair. The adults had all agreed to take a break from the sadness and drama and intended to honor Prince’s love of his favorite holiday by refusing to be sad. They had toasted him once and vowed to speak only of the good memories they had of him.
It had been a wonderful evening. Cliff had taken one look at Nyx on Christmas Eve, declared her part of the Robinson family and then roped her into as many silly antics as he could. Between trapping people under the mistletoe an
Chapter 53Royal watched with his heart in his throat as Famke rose from the sofa and put the book, he’d had made for her on the side table, and walked out of the room. He looked to his mother who gave him a gentle smile.“Did I screw up?” he asked Nyx quietly.“I don’t think so,” she gave him a pat on the knee. “I think she’s having some big feelings.”“Excuse me a minute,” he looked around the room, squeezing Bram’s shoulder as he walked past him. He could tell the young man was worried for his sister.He knocked once on the door to the room, “Famke, baby girl, are you okay?”She pulled the door open, tears streaming down her flushed face and hauled him into the bathroom and closed the door. She flung her arms around his neck and sobbed pitifully against him.He groaned and wrapped his arms around her middle and held her to his chest, “shh, I&r
Famke was feeling overwhelmed. There had to be fifty people in the Robinson house now and all of them were loud, overbearing, and in-your-face. There were constant jokes at each other’s expenses and teasing and she had a very real understanding of why Mindy would have felt out of place. Famke had grown up with Nyx for a best friend and while the sarcasm and tormenting was not unfamiliar to her it was difficult to navigate.However, it was the number of people which was making her wish she could run and hide and was the reason she was currently sitting with several kids at the kids’ table coloring. She looked up when Jubi sat down beside her.“You know it’s saying something about the Robinson’s when you prefer the kids to the adults,” Jubi joked.She chuckled, “it’s saying the kids are less loud.”Jubi giggled at the comment, her nose scrunching up. “Royal, Bram and a bunch of my cousins are in th
“Yes, she’s your mother and she never wanted you. She’s only using you to get your uncle’s money.”Ambrosia’s harshly spoken words to the teary child made the frozen state Famke felt she was in, immediately thaw. Without a second thought she pulled back her fist and punched the woman square in the nose earning a collective gasp from the group before she shoved Ambrosia hard, causing her to trip in her stilettos and fall on her ass. Famke rushed over her and swooped Precious up in her arms and ignored the rest of the crowd.“You bitch, my nose is bleeding. It’s probably broken!” She screamed from her spot on the floor.She paid her no mind and stared into the dark eyes of the little one she had set on the counter, “You listen to me, Precious. Listen to me. I love you. I love you very much. You are the most incredible person I have ever met. You do not listen to the words of Ambrosia. Do you remember when
Famke watched wiping a tear off her cheek as Kara got off the floor and stood up.Kara glared at Famke, “everything was fine until you came along.”“Pretty sure Keshaun just made it really clear it wasn’t.” Royal corrected her with a grunt. “Get out.”“You could have simply told the truth,” Kara said as she looked around the room. “You kept this secret from everyone.”“I kept my brother’s secret. It wasn’t mine to share.”“It was hers.”“Leave.” Jubi interrupted this time. “Before I make you leave.”“You must be celebrating. I know how much you love my husband.”“Are you kidding me? He’s devastated Kara. He’s hurting and he’s devastated, and he is my friend. He’s watched me grow up like a third brother. I’m not celebrating his pain you stupid bitch. I mourn
Bram helped her out of the car when they got to Royal’s house, and they were surprised to see Keshaun in the driveway.“Hey, what are you doing?”“I was going to crash here,” he rubbed his head with embarrassment, “but Kara went to my parents to look for me and then told them she was going to the hotel. She knows this would be my next stop if I’m not there and I can’t deal with her drama right now. I need space from her. I’m going to head back to Pittsburgh. If I leave now, I can get there by nine with a rest stop or two.” He looked at Famke. “Why aren’t you at the house?”“Precious is terrified of her,” Nyx explained. “Mindy had the kid convinced Famke is an evil witch and Ambrosia’s bullshit has her in a panic. The Robinson crew immediately jumped all over Famke demanding explanations because neither Royal nor his parents stayed to explain.”&ldqu
Famke was in her bed in her apartment staring at the ceiling unable to sleep. Nyx was on the sofa and Bram was in his own room. Both of them were as mentally drained as she was. She wished she wasn’t feeling so heart sick, but she was. All she wanted was to hear from Royal to know Precious was settled down for now, but it was coming on eleven and there was no word from him.She could have stayed in New York, but the truth was, she wasn’t sure how long Precious would need time to recover and the thought of sitting in a hotel room waiting by the phone instead of at her own home surrounded by her own comfort items felt necessary. She was currently wrapped up in the blanket her mother had made for her when she was a teenager.She willed herself to sleep but it was not working and after a full hour of tossing and turning she sat up in the bed frustratedly. Normally when she was upset, she would putter around the house but with Nyx on the sofa she was stuck in he
Famke was standing at the counter of the local police precinct and gave a polite smile to the man standing behind it. She looked around noting for the Boxing Day holiday it was busy. The place was hopping.“Hi. My name is Famke Noor. NYPD asked me to turn myself in this morning.”The man lifted an eyebrow. “It’s Boxing Day. It couldn’t wait until after the holiday. Did you kill someone?”“Nope. Punched an influencer in the face.”“You did it.”“Yes. Do you need to arrest me?”He typed on the keyboard in front of him. “Name?”“Famke Noor.” She tapped her foot worriedly as he searched his data base.“We were asked to take your statement and to have a discussion with you. I’ll have one of our detectives come meet with you. You can take a seat there.” He motioned to a row of wooden chairs against a wall.She sat
Royal sat with his niece in the psychiatrist’s office, his hands trembling with rage as he read the reports coming to him from Rico’s team. They were known to get information no matter the methods, but he didn’t care.Mindy had been incredibly ill. The lovers Mindy took were on a rotation as Jubi had found out. Mindy doctor shopped and had multiple physicians in New York, New Jersey, Pittsburgh and even in Boston. Rico’s men had managed to even get copies of clinical notes and there was evidence confirming Famke’s theory was plausible. At an appointment in January of this year, Mindy had told a psychologist she was certain her husband was having an affair with the woman they’d used as a surrogate. The clinical notes indicated Prince was part of the session and he’d denied it vehemently, but Mindy hadn’t been able to be discouraged. The doctor had recommended a seventy-two hour hold for her when Mindy also described a witch hexin