“What exactly am I supposed to do with this information?”
“There’s a little more to it,” I say. I take a deep breath. “You see, Janez was my father, too.”
The silence on the other end lasts far too long. For a moment, I think he’s hung up on me, but my phone says we’re still connected.
“Bastian?”
“Are you fucking serious?”
“Yeah, I am.”
“When did you find this out?”
I consider telling him the truth but decide against it. It might be easier for him to accept it if I don’t reveal that I had known about our relationship the whole time we were fighting for our lives.
“Just recently.” The phrase is innocuous enough. “I didn’t know what you’d think. I wasn’t sure if I should tell you at all, but Rinaldo thought it was a good idea.”
“Holy fuck. You’re sure?”
“Positive.”
“It kinda makes sense,” Bastian says. “The timing is about right. You were born in Chicago, too?”
“I was.”
“Did…did he raise you?”
“No,” I say. “I don’t think he was interested in parenting. Hell, we could have a dozen siblings out there.”
“Fuck. You really think so?”
“I don’t have any idea.”
“What about…what about my mother?”
“I have her name,” I tell him, “but that’s it. I can give you the information, but I don’t know anything else about her. Your mother is not the same as mine.”
“Half brothers,” Bastian
says quietly. “I don’t know what the fuck to think.”
The man does like his f-bombs.
“Are you good with this?” I ask.
“Yeah,” Bastian replies. “Yeah, I’m good with it. It’s going to take a little time to get used to the idea.”
“I just wanted you to know.”
“Yeah, I’m glad you told me. I don’t know what this means, but it’s good to know.”
“I’ve never had someone I could call family,” I say with a chuckle. “It’s kinda weird.”
“Yeah.” Bastian laughs, too. “It is weird. We probably have the market cornered on sibling rivalry.”
“Hey, I didn’t kill ya.”
“You mean I didn’t kill you.”