Keifer's POV
The world tilted.
Her face — older than the video, etched with lines time and hiding had carved, but unmistakable. Same eyes. Same soft tilt to her mouth when she smiled. The mango tree's shadow stretched between us like years lost.
"Mom?" My voice cracked, barely a whisper. I took a step forward, fists unclenching. Every buried memory screamed home.
She didn't move. Just watched me, tears glistening. "Kei. My boy. You're so tall now."
"How?" The word tore out of me. "Dad said the accident. The grave. He showed me—"
"Lies," she said softly, pain flashing across her face. "All of it. Kaizer staged it. Needed me gone so he could control you. The car wreck? Empty. The body? Not mine."
I shook my head, but hope flickered. "Papers. Police reports. I saw the casket."
"Forged. Paid off." Her voice steadied, warm. "I ran to protect you. Hid. Waited for you to be old enough to choose your own path."
"Why now?" I asked, shock turning to wonder. "After everything? Yuri? The lists? Jay?"
"Because he's falling," she said gently. "Arrested. And I saw the video — you and your friends standing up to him. Proud of you, Kei. You're free."
My chest tightened. Jay's face flashed — fierce, unbreaking. Section E behind her. "You watched us?"
"From afar. Always." She stepped closer, pulling something from her pocket — a thin bracelet, faded blue beads. "Remember this? You made it for me. Eighth birthday."
The memory hit like sunlight — tiny hands stringing beads, her laughing as I fumbled the knot. "Yeah… I do."
Tears spilled down her cheeks, but her smile shone. "I never stopped loving you, Kei. Or your brothers. Leaving was the hardest thing, but staying meant losing you to him forever."
"Keiren. Keigan," I choked out. "They'll be so happy."
"They will. We'll tell them together."
The air felt light now. Real. I closed the distance, pulling her into a hug. She smelled like faint jasmine and rain — home. Her arms wrapped around me, strong and sure.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. "For every day you spent without me."
We stood like that under the mango tree, wind whispering through leaves that had shaded our childhood games. Time blurred into peace.
My phone buzzed — Jay. "45 minutes. You okay?"
I pulled back, wiping my face, grinning. "Mom… what now?"
"We start over," she said, fierce and joyful. "You, me, your brothers. And your Jay — she sounds strong. I want to meet her."
"Yeah?" Relief flooded me.
She nodded, eyes sparkling. "Love like that? It's what saved you. Bring her. Bring everyone."
Headlights cut through the dark — Angelo's car, slowing at the lot's edge. Jay's silhouette in the passenger seat, scanning worriedly.
Mom smiled softly. "Go. I'll contact you tomorrow. Clean number."
"Wait—"
She pressed the bracelet into my hand. "Trust builds here. See you soon, son. I love you."
She stepped back into shadows, waving once. Gone — but coming back.
I stood beaming as Angelo pulled up. Jay jumped out first, eyes wide. "Keifer! What happened? You okay?"
I opened my palm. The beads glinted.
"Yeah," I said, voice thick with joy. "More than okay. She's real. She's good. And she's coming home."
Jay's face lit up, pulling me into a hug. Mom alive. Kaizer's lies gone.
A new beginning.
Finally true.