Read Online Truth Be Told by Victoria Christopher Murray - Free Book Online

never get anything around here.”
    â€œJayde, I am not in the mood.”
    â€œBut I was home first and …”
    Grace held her hands to her head. “Jayde, go to your room,” she yelled.
    Jayde’s eyes widened. “I didn’t do anything.”
    â€œI said …” Her expression completed her sentence.
    Jayde picked up her backpack and CD player and stomped up the stairs.
    Grace took a deep breath and walked into the kitchen. She opened the refrigerator and took out a package of chicken wings. “Now, Amber, what do you want?” Amber stood in the doorway with her hands clasped behind her back. She pressed her lips together and looked away from her mother. Grace sighed. “Come here,” she said in a softer voice, and sat at the dinette table.
    Amber followed her mother’s command.
    â€œYou wanted something.” Grace took Amber’s hand.
    Amber nodded, but kept her eyes lowered. “Can I go to the museum with Nicole on Saturday?” she whispered. “Her mom said it was okay and that you could come too.”
    â€œI think it’ll be fine, but let’s check with your dad.”
    â€œOkay,” Amber agreed weakly.
    Grace lifted her daughter’s chin with her fingers. “I want to make sure that your father didn’t make any weekend plans. He could have something fabulous planned, and I wouldn’t want you to miss it.”
    â€œWhat are we going to do?” Amber asked, now meeting her mother’s gaze.
    Grace smiled and shrugged. “I don’t know. Let’s just check and see, okay?”
    Amber hugged Grace. “Okay, Daddy is the best.” She kissed Grace’s cheek. “And you are too, Mommy.”
    Grace laughed. “Go upstairs and change for dinner.”
    Amber ran toward the stairs, then turned back to the kitchen. “Mommy, do you want me to tell Jayde that you’re sorry?”
    Grace pressed her palm against Amber’s cheek. “Thank you, but I should do that.”
    Grace waited until she no longer heard Amber’s footsteps before she looked at the clock. It was almost six. A plethora of scenarios paraded through her mind, none of which stopped her heart from sinking. She shook her head, ridding the images from her mind, and then stood and trotted up the stairs. She knocked on Jayde’s door and opened it. “Can I come in?”
    Jayde continued shifting the electronic solitaire cards across the computer screen.
    Grace sat on the edge of the bed. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have yelled at you.”
    Jayde clicked the mouse again, moving the ten of spades beneath the jack of hearts.
    Grace continued, speaking to her daughter’s back. “I know you’ll forgive me because you’ve had bad days.”
    Jayde faced her mother. “Why are you having a bad day?” She sounded astonished. “You just won an election.” She sat next to Grace.
    Grace took her daughter’s hand. “I should be happy, huh?”
    Jayde nodded. “You were happy yesterday, but today you seem mad.”
    Grace shook her head. “I’m not mad, sweetie.” She paused as the image of Conner and Pilar flashed behind her eyes.
    Jayde smiled. “I understand, Mom. You have a lot of people depending on you.”
    She nodded. “But none are as important as you and Amber … and your father.” She kissed her forehead. “Dinner will be ready in thirty minutes.”
    â€œOkay.” Jayde wrapped her arms around her mother. “I love you, Mommy.”
    Grace closed her eyes and held onto Jayde. She couldn’t think of anything that she needed more at that moment. It seemed that Jayde knew everything without knowing anything. Grace kissed Jayde, then rushed from the room, not wanting her daughter to see tears that she thought might come.
    Forty minutes later, she called the girls to a dinner of grilled chicken and cucumber salad. As