Déjà Vu

Chapter Twelve

"And now," Max said, pausing shortly to take a breath, "I'm worried about Mom. I still can't get ahold of her and she must have turned off her location because I can't see it anymore."

Victoria sat in stunned silence. Max didn't blame her, it was a lot to take in. He had spent the last thirty minutes telling her about it, and even he realized how crazy it still sounded.

"So we have a sister..." whispered Victoria to no one in particular. "I can't believe this is happening, Maxie."

He sat down next to her, putting an arm around her shoulder. "Me either, Vic, but it does seem rather on-brand for Dad to hide something like this, no?"

She rewarded him with a derisive laugh. "Very on-brand indeed." Letting go of him she stood up and paced around the room for a few minutes before turning to stand resolutely in front of him, her hands on her hips. "I want to meet her."

Max rubbed the back of his neck and averted his eyes, looking nervous. "Are you sure that's a good idea, sis?"

"Max, what the hell is wrong with you? Of course I want to meet her! You can't beg me to come all the way to Monaco, telling me you have some big secret to tell me, and then act surprised when I actually want to do something about it! You were right, I do need a little break from Tom and the boys, but not in the sit-back-and-do-nothing kind of way. I need to get out and have an adventure, and what better way to do that then by meeting our long lost sister?"

She was actually gesturing with her hands at this point and Max could only smile. His sister had always looked hilarious when she was upset, but he didn't dare tell her that at the present moment. "Okay, okay, you can meet her," he conceded, putting his hands up in surrender. "I was only worried that it would put you in more danger and that's the last thing she wants."

"Well how noble of her to worry about me but it's high time someone worried about her for once. She sounds like a badass, but she didn't grow up with Jos either. I doubt she knows just how vindictive he can be."

Max shrugged. "Maybe, but I think she's probably a bit more tough than you think." He shuddered at the hazy memory of the night at the club, when he had seen Mackenzie jab her stiletto in his father's chest and issue him some sort of a warning.

"Either way," he said, changing the subject as Victoria was shooting him a look, "I'll text Lando and see if we can drop by this afternoon so you can meet her."

                                         • • • •

Mackenzie paced the length of Lando's office, anxiously awaiting the phone call she knew she would be receiving any moment now. They were currently at Quadrant headquarters and Lando was in a meeting with Max and Ria, which was just as well because she didn't think she could stand to be around him any longer at the moment; he was driving her insane.

For whatever reason, he had been giving her the cold shoulder since the night she had cooked dinner and showed him the letter and she didn't know why. He had been very distant and only spoke to her about work-related matters. He had also not been home for several nights and she was starting to get worried. She knew that her housing accommodations were taking longer than expected due to unexpected technicalities in Monegasque real estate law, but her apartment should be finished any day now, and he hadn't had an issue living in the same space with her before. Just then, the phone rang, snapping her out of her worried daze, and she quickly picked up, relieved.

"Becs! It's so good to hear your voice! How are you?"

"I could be better, honestly. Carlos and I got into a huge fight last night."

"Oh dear, what happened? What did you fight about?"

Rebecca laughed but it sounded a bit hollow. "Ironically, we argued about Lando. Or actually, how Carlos never gets to see him anymore. Apparently he's too busy spending all his free time with me and never gets to hang out with his bros. He called me clingy."

"Ok, first of all, that is so not fair! Maybe you are a little clingy sometimes, but that's only because you love him so much and have trauma from your asshole ex who never spent any time with you. Secondly, if he hasn't said anything before now, that's on him. How are you supposed to read his mind?"

"That's what I said! But he says he has tried telling me. I don't know what to do, Kenz." Her voice broke. "I can't lose him."

"I know, babe, I know. I have an idea. Why don't we surprise them with a boys weekend? They can go golfing and hang out, and we can stay home and do a spa weekend or something. Lando could definitely use it! He's been weird lately himself and very tightly wound. He hasn't spoken a non-work-related word to me in days now."

"Reallllyyyy?"

Mackenzie could hear the inflection in Rebecca's tone and decided to cut it off before the conversation went somewhere it didn't need to go. "Relax Becs, don't get your knickers in a wad. I'm sure he's just stressed with everything he's juggling at the moment."

Just then the door burst open and Lando's head popped around the door. "Kenz?"

"I've got to go Becs, I'll call you later with the details."

She hung up the call and turned to face her boss. Lando raised his eyebrows but did not comment on her previous conversation.

"I just got off the phone with Max and-"

"I thought you were just in a meeting with him?"

He let out a little laugh and she was happier than she should have been at the sound. "No, the other Max. Verstappen. I guess he told his sister about everything; she's in town and she wants to meet you. He asked if they could swing by the apartment this afternoon."

"Oh, well I don't see why not if you're ok with it."

"Of course I'm ok with it. She is your sister after all." He tossed her the keys to his McLaren.

"Unfortunately I have more work to do and won't be able to join you, but please give them my greetings."

And with that, he was out the door once more and she was left to wonder for the umpteenth time what she had done to elicit this kind of behavior from the man who used to smile every time he caught a glimpse of her.