The sound of her voice made my stomach plummet to the floor. There was something about it that sounded strange, alien – almost removed from grief.
“Sure,” I said uneasily. “What’s up?”
Mom cleared her throat. “I have some bad news, honey.”
“What is it?” My heart was beating like a jackhammer against my ribs and I couldn’t stand the thought of hearing more bad news. What was she going to say? Had she been in a car accident?
Mom didn’t reply.
“Mom, are you okay?” I asked frantically. “Tell me what’s going on, please!” The suspense was making it hard to breathe.
“I’m fine, honey,” Mom said softly. “But I don’t know how much longer I can say that.”
My jaw dropped. “Are you hurt? Were you in some kind of accident? Mom, what happened? Are you— “
“I heard from Mitchell’s estate lawyer,” Mom said heavily. “About the will.”
For a moment, I couldn’t breathe. My chest ached tightly and my lungs pleaded for air but I couldn’t make them work.
“What happened?”
“He’s left all the money to Jackson, Belle. He didn’t leave me anything. Not a cent.”
A cold, numb chill spread through my limbs. I felt like I’d fallen into a frozen lake and now I was trapped beneath the ice, searching desperately for warmth and oxygen.
“Why?” I asked slowly. “Why would Mitchell do a thing like that?”
Mom’s sobs broke the silence and I felt tears well up in my eyes.
“I don’t know, honey,” Mom said. “But you’ve got to help me.”
“Mom, I don’t know what I can do— “
“Belle, you have to talk to Jackson,” Mom said heavily. “I don’t know why Mitchell did this. He knew I didn’t have anything saved, that I wouldn’t be able to live on my own.”
“That has to be a mistake,” I said. “There’s no way he would’ve left you out of his will, Mom!”
“Well, he did,” Mom said heavily. “And now I need your help, honey. Please,” she added, in a pathetic tone of voice that made me want to cry. “Please, Belle. Please try to help me. Do you think you can do that?”
I sighed softly. “What do you want me to do?” I raked a hand through my hair. “I haven’t graduated yet, Mom. I can’t get a job – at least, not a job that will pay any kind of money. And I don’t have any savings – and I have all those loans from school!”
The sobs on the other line of the phone were the hardest things I’d ever had to hear.
“Just please talk to Jackson, Belle,” Mom said. “He won’t take my calls, but I don’t know if he’s heard the news. Please, tell him. Please ask him if he’d be willing to help me.” She paused and made a soft sound like she was being strangled. “Please, Belle. This is my only hope.”
Talking to Jackson was the last thing I wanted to do in the world, but I knew I didn’t have any other choice. This was coming down to the wire, and I was going to have to help my mother if my life depended on it. Rapidly, my mind kicked into gear and started spinning. I tried thinking about things I could sell – what little jewellery I had, my laptop, maybe some of my old clothes and shoes. Sure, there wouldn’t be much, but it had to be enough to help.
“Belle? Are you still there?”
“I’m here,” I said. “Mom, I don’t know. What about if you move out here, and live with me and Alexa?”
“Honey, please, just talk to Jackson,” Mom said heavily. “He’s our only chance.”
After I got off the phone with Mom, I sprang into action. I torpedoed through my room, looking for anything of monetary value that might fetch a sum. In the end, I didn’t have much. There was a pair of half-carat diamond earrings that Mitchell and Mom had given me when I’d graduated from high school, as well as an amethyst pendant in the shape of a heart. I didn’t think that either would sell for much, but I pocketed both anyway.
At the bottom of my jewellery box, there was two hundred and fifty bucks in cash. I’d started saving up when I’d first gotten to college, and I knew that it didn’t look like much, but I hadn’t ever thought about having to support my mother. I’d started putting away cash for stuff like emergency pizza runs, or maybe even renting a car for a weekend trip.
This was a whole new ballgame.