Sins of the Past

"But mothers lie. It's in the job description." -John Green

Chapter One

Mothers and Other Strangers

Location: The Langdon Arms Apartments, Washington DC.

Date: May 1st.

Time: Just past midnight.

"Dammit to hell, mother!"

A heavy box slammed to the ground, shaking the ground slightly as it made contact. Dust rose into the air, bringing with it a string of curses from the elderly woman that lived below. She must have awoken one of the woman's many, many cats, as the siren of distressed cries eclipsed the sounds of her ranting within moments. It was something she would have to deal with, as the girl making all that racket was in a frenzy.

It has to be in this box, she told herself, as she tore through bills, old children's magazines that surprisingly made it through several moves, and even the occasional old pictures of herself smiled up at her as she scattered items across the floor as she panicked. Every few envelopes she went through were addressed to a different woman, a different alias her mother was forced to take on to keep them safe. And if she didn't find what she was looking for soon, it would all be for nothing.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

"Shit!" The banging on the door snaps her back to reality. "What do you want?"

"You shouldn't be home," The ancient voice of the crotchety woman downstairs reminded her that she was on borrowed time. "I'll call the police!"

"And I'll call the ASPCA on your fifty cats, Mona!" She could almost picture the withered old slumlord grabbing one of her fur balls, hugging it close to her chest as it screeched to be let go. "The hammer goes both ways."

As the crotchety old woman shuffled away, she sighs in relief and continues on her quest. She takes in the items that she scattered across the floor; an electric bill to Nancy Kendrick, an old elementary school notice sent to the parent or guardian of Delaney Calhoun, a current report from Galen Hall Private Academy warning of Felicity Gillian's beloved daughter's flippant attitude and lack of care for school policy, none of it of is important at the moment. She should have left earlier, the moment she had an inkling that something was wrong. Maybe then she would be able to find the clues her mother left behind. Instead, she gave her mother the benefit of the doubt, that she knew what she was doing. After all, there was nothing that could keep that woman down.

"Think, Laney, think!"

The last time she spoke with her mother, she told her not to trust anyone from their past. Somehow her cover was compromised and they would have to run again, leaving behind the longest stretch of stability they had known since she was four years old. Her usually stoic mother was agitated, her voice trembling as she prepared her daughter for what was to come. However, that call was cut short, thanks to a power issue in the venerable, castle-like dormitory that she had called home for the past year and a half, leaving her with little knowledge of what to do once she was able to sneak out off school property and make it home. All she knew what that she needed to find the envelope that contained everything she needed to know in case the worst happened.

"Where could it be?"

She plopped down on the black leather sofa, sliding a little as she let herself relax. It had been less than twelve hours since that conversation, but it wasn't the first time she thought something was wrong. During her Spring Break, her mother seemed distracted; her nails chewed and frayed, at times refusing to fully meet her gaze. Delaney wanted to stay with her, even going as far as to suggest going to public school for the first time in her life. But alas, mother told her everything was fine and if she even thought for a moment that there was trouble, she would be the first to know.

But, sometimes mothers can lie…

They had spent her whole life on the run. Always changing her last name, but always keeping her first to keep it simple for her, having to remember a new name for her mother, a different life story to tell the masses. Bouncing between private schools and even a few months of homeschooling, never forging friendships out of fear of getting too close; instead, she found companionship with those she met online. There, it was easier to keep up a persona, hiding behind a handle and disappearing when the mood suited her and not when their lives were at stake.

She let out a sigh, rubbing her temples.

In her quieter times, she resented her mother for this. It was her past that kept them on the move, it was her past that had robbed her of a regular childhood; a sense of normalcy. She didn't even give her the common courtesy of an explanation, outside of her motherly staples 'you'll understand when you're older' and 'it's complicated, Mhuirnin'. It was all well and good that she was trained in combat since she was old enough to hold a bowie knife properly and how to survive off the grid if need be, but she was never old enough to know what they were running from.

"Crap..."

Her mother had a contingency plan in place, a way out if they were ever found out. There was no way the woman had become complacent in these past few months, no, she had something planned for the two of them and it didn't evolve any of her old contacts. That was risky, for sure, but she wouldn't do that unless things got bad…

The phone call...was the power outage at the school a coincidence? How could she be so naive…

"They got to her," the words barely escaped her lips as tears ran down her face. Whomever it was that they were running from, they got her mother and she was probably dead. Dead...and she was next.

She kicked the box across the floor, sending it flying into the wall and knocking an old picture off of the wall, shattering the glass into tiny pieces. It was her mother's favorite picture, taken outside of the first place they ever called home, a small flat in the heart of London. She was no more than three in the picture, hiding most of her squishy face behind a giant ice cream cone while her mother placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, her smile shinning from behind her dark locks. A simpler time, before the names changes and new schools, when mother was God in her eyes and she trusted without question...

Bile rises, taking refuge in her throat, threatening to spill out as her head goes foggy. She needed to stop and think, relax, collect her thoughts, but instead she bursts into the bathroom and just barely makes it to the toilet. Tears cloud her vision as she slumps to the floor. She was taught to be independent, to know what to do if the worst happens, and now...her mother would be disappointed in her.

Get it together, Delaney!

Before she has a chance to second guess herself, she is back to her feet and splashing water on her face. Her usually freckled face is now puffy and crimson, nothing like the wild child she was used to seeing smirking back at her. For a second, she checks to make sure she is all there, that it's still her under the mop of choppy, dark locks and light blue eyes, and when she's satisfied with the answer, she goes back to work. Her bedroom is next, same as she left, is plain and without much flair; no need to personalize a place she is rarely in. A bag is swiftly packed, just the essentials, and the basics of a plan is slowly formed.

"SHIT!"

Two steps outside of her bedroom door and she plants herself face first on the floor, slipping on the glass she had so carelessly broken less than twenty minutes earlier. The once happy photo was now completely out of the frame and the once beautiful frame now thoroughly destroyed. At a second glance, however, the picture is thicker than she once thought.

And there it was. Inside was the plan her mother had, still here in all its glory. She could have kissed it, if it wouldn't have sliced up her lips. Money, a bus ticket to Augusta, Maine set for just a few hours from now, and a smaller envelope addressed to someone named Bannon. It wasn't much, but it was a start.

As she shoved the envelope into her bag, the sound of heavy footsteps echoed from the hallway outside her front door, reminded her that it was time to go. From below, she could feel the old bat's broom as she slammed it onto her ceiling and cackled.

"Now you're in trouble!"

She wasn't kidding, but Mona had no idea how right she truly was. With that heads up, Delaney headed back into her bedroom and frantically threw open the window as the front door came crashing in. She put the hood up on her black hoodie, tightened the bag on her bag, and grabbed her skateboard...and jumped.

Keeping her hood up and off the main streets, she made it to Union Bus Station before sunrise. The woman at the front desk barely batted an eye when the teenage girl, all alone and walking with a slight limp, turned in her ticket, which was all the better for her. The quicker she got to this Bannon person, the quicker she could get some answers on who had her mother.


A/N:

After three years of zero updates, I am back! I've had this story sitting in my head, muddling around as life did everything it could to keep me off of Fanfiction. Between the pandemic, my husband moving jobs and living apart from us for over a year and a half, to moving about two hours away to live as a family again, to breaking in the new house and making it a home, it's been A LOT. Not making excuses, just stating facts. Not sure if anyone really cares about this story anymore, but I will be doing my best to keep up with it, now that summer break is over and the kiddos head back to school.

Until next time...courage...