that you came all the way to Georgia just to get us because you wanted to meet us. That makes no sense.”
“You’re right. I have ulterior motives, but my main focus was Ayo. I had to know him. When I first saw pictures of him, I fell completely in love. He’s gorgeous and looks just like my son. How could I not love something that came from me? I know Demoto told you a lot of stuff about me, which I’m sure was all bad, but I love my kids. Ayo’s birth just continues the Youngblood legacy, and since it’s clear that his father doesn’t want it, he will inherit it all.”
“I don’t even know what to say to that.” Taryn looked away.
“Just say you’ll let me know him. I promise that’s all I want. When Demoto comes, because I know my son and he’s coming, then you two can go home.”
Taryn didn’t really believe her, but she nodded anyway. It was something about Ornella that just wasn’t sitting right with her. She was being entirely too nice for one, and her flying all the way back to Georgia was too much for something as simple as wanting to be a grandma. She had something up her sleeve, and Taryn was going to watch her until she revealed it.
They sat in the kitchen for another few hours, cooking and eating, before Taryn and Ayo were shown to their room. Ornella said she had some business to handle and for them to get some rest. After letting Taryn know she would be back to check on them later, she left. Taryn looked around the large room that once again alerted her that this trip was planned and sighed.
The toddler Ninja Turtle bed in the corner with the toy box full of toys entertained Ayo, but not Taryn. She had other stuff on her mind, such as the closet full of clothing in her and Ayo’s size. Ornella might have been a mass murderer, a horrible mother and wife, but she was one hell of a host. She had cooked for them and given them everything they would need for their stay.
As much as Taryn wanted to stay up and look around, she was dog tired, and judging by the way Ayo was sitting on the side of the small bed looking at her, so was he. She stretched out her arms for him to walk to her and he did. With the clothes she’d gathered them from the closet, she walked into the bathroom and ran them a bath.
Before undressing either of them and getting in, she made sure the doors were locked to her room and the bathroom. She didn’t trust any of Ornella’s people. They had been ogling her since she’d gotten there. When she was satisfied enough to gain a little piece of mind, she undressed Ayo first, then herself, before picking him up and sliding into the bubble bath filled tub.
“You okay, Yo-Yo?”
“Yes. I want to go to my room.”
Taryn leaned her head to the side and poked her bottom lip out. She wanted to go to her own room too, but for now, they didn’t have that option. Taryn played with him for a little while, trying to make him feel better, before washing them both and getting out. Once they were dressed, she laid him in the massive sized bed and climbed in behind him.
It was still light outside but they were both dog tired. Taryn looked around the room as she hummed to Ayo. He fell asleep almost instantly with her right behind him.
Taryn didn’t know how long it had been since she’d fallen asleep, but it was now dark outside and she couldn’t really see anything. There were no street lights and no lights on in her room. Had she not seen light seeping from beneath the door, it would have been completely dark in her room. She looked over at Ayo who was still soundly asleep and slid out of the bed.
Dressed in a pair of teal yoga pants and a white tank top, Taryn padded across the floor. Her hair was up in a wild ponytail on the top of her head, flowing down her back and around her shoulders. The footie socks she was wearing protected her feet from the bare floor as she made it to the door. Even though she didn’t want to leave her baby, she needed to try to find a phone.
If
Learning to Kill: Stories