** REBEL SIMMONS POV **

"You, young man, need to take some driving lessons." My mother scolded Dante as she opened the passenger door. Dante chuckled as he opened the door for me and grabbed my hand to help me out of the ambulance. I quickly walked around to my mother and grabbed her arm to help her out of the car.

"I can still walk you know." She laughed as she let go of my arm and stretched her legs. Dante quickly came to my side and interlocked our fingers as we walked up to a sleek all black jet.

"Wow. It's beautiful." My mom said as she walked up the steps to the jet, admiring every little detail of the luxurious aircraft.

"Have you ever been on a jet before?" I asked her curiously as we walked inside.

"I've never even been on a plane." My mother said, as her eyes took everything in like a kid on Christmas. My heart stung at her words.

The jet took off like a rocket, my mother laughing the entire take off at the G-forces affecting her body. She looked out the window and marveled at how the world appeared so small from such a high altitude. I laughed at her reaction and even saw a smirk appear on Dante's face. A nurse walked out and cleared her throat, and my mother looked at her and tilted her head.

"So I have good news and bad news. Which would you like to hear first?" My mother asked, looking back at Dante and I.

"Good news please." I said laughing. It felt good to have my mother with me and not chained to a hospital bed.

"I probably should have told you this before you went through all the trouble to get a specialized plane, but the surgery was a success." She said as she smiled over at me. "I'm in remission." My eyes started to tear up at her words as I ran over and hugged her tightly.

"Oh my god mom. That's amazing!" I cried out as I held her. My heart felt overwhelmed with relief knowing that my mother was going to be okay. That she was going to make it. Everything I've done for her, the crimes, the heist, everything was so worth it to hear those words. After a few moments, I sat back down next to Dante, who placed his calloused hand on my thigh.

"Now for the bad news." My mother's expression turned into a worried one as she looked out the window for a moment, her eyebrows furrowing.

"I messed up. Big time." She said looking down at her hospital gown. We waited patiently for her to collect her thoughts.

"After you left for your job, men broke into my room in the middle of the night. They were armed, and held me at gun point. They threatened and forced me to call you and tell you to visit on Christmas. They said if I didn't comply, they'd... they'd kill you." My mother said as she closed her eyes. Dante tensed up at her words and leaned forward, anticipating her next words. 

"That's why you sounded nervous on the phone. It wasn't about the surgery, but it was about the threat." I recalled. That was the same phone call where the twins overheard me.

"Yes." My mother said somberly. "They... they gave me... Johnny's old rifle." She said as she looked up at me.

"So they were in the apartment." I said coldly. After Johnny died, we moved. My mother couldn't bear to live in the old beaten down apartment that held so many horrific memories.

"Seems like it." My mother stated. My mind began racing at all the information she just told me as tension grew thick in the air. 

"They told me about you." My mother finally said as she looked at Dante with her eyebrows furrowed. "They said that if you joined her, that I would have to kill you onsite. Or they'd kill all of us." She said as she stared at Dante.

"But I couldn't do it... I just couldn't." She said to Dante as if they had some sort of unspoken agreement.

"Do you know who these men were?" Dante asked seriously as his thumb traced circles on my thigh.

"No. They had thick Russian accents, covered in tattoos and... didn't say anything else besides what I was to do." She said sitting up straight and looking at me as if she was nervous.

My mind was running with the information she just told me. If the Russians were after Dante and the Vino family, then why would they fly to the States just to threaten my own mother? Part of me thinks that they are trying to get to Dante by using me... but even that wouldn't make any sense. 

They said that if you joined her, that I would have to kill you onsite. 

Based off that information, they aren't after Dante. 

They're after me...  

I looked over at Dante to see that he was staring at me with his eyebrows slightly furrowed, as if he was deep in thought. His tense body and worried eyes gave me the assumption that he was arriving at the same conclusion.

"I'm sorry I betrayed you honey. I'm sorry I put our lives at risk, but I would do anything to protect you." My mom said as she started to tear up, pulling me out of my own thoughts.

"I'm sorry mom. This... this is all my fault." I said going over and hugging her. She was in this mess because of me, and I had to make it right.

"How could it be your fault darling, you were in Italy?" She said sweetly as she pulled me back to look at me.

"Mom... promise you won't be mad?" I said hesitantly. She nodded curiously as I took a deep breath.

"I paid for your treatments because I stole $5 Million dollars from the Italian Mafia. I'm working for them to repay my debt." I said slowly. I expected her to freak out, to start crying... something. But she just looked at me with soft eyes and a bright smile.

"Oh come on Rebel. I may be old but I'm not dumb." She said as she smiled.

"You knew?" I asked as I sat back down next to Dante.

"Of course Honey. I knew you were never suited for a traditional life. You're a genius with a wild heart. It was only a matter of time before you started to use your intellect and skills illegally." She said laughing.

"I know that you stole that Raptor when you were 16, and hacked into AT&T to get that phone you hid underneath your pillow at night. That you programmed the schools fire alarms to go off on in 6th grade all day so you wouldn't have to go on your birthday, and you prepaid the apartment we were living in all these years. After what happened with Johnny..." she said and looked out the window for a few moments.

"I knew what you were doing wasn't legal, but you are so gifted, and I didn't want to hinder that talent by putting a cap or restrictions on you. I will love you no matter what you do Rebel, but you already know that." My mother said smiling. I was speechless. She knew all along. Everything I've done. Everything I was becoming. Yet she loved me unconditionally anyway.

"I know mom." I said smiling.

"So... boyfriend huh?" She said raising an eyebrow at Dante. He placed his hand back on my thigh and nodded, making my heart flutter at his little displays of affection.

"You know, you're going down a path similar to mine." She chuckled looking at me as if she was remembering a memory locked away in her mind.

"What do you mean?" I asked her as I tilted my head.

"I wasn't always the saint I am now." She shrugged. "I know this may be hard to believe, but just hear me out." She laughed again lightly. I nodded, waiting for an explanation. 

"Before I tell you this, I just want you to know, that I'm sorry for keeping this from you. I just wanted to keep you safe, give you the best life possible, and I'm sorry that your childhood turned out the way it did." She said as she looked down and furrowed he eyebrows. 

"As you know, I didn't know my parents. I was left at an orphanage in Maine as a baby. The orphanage itself was terrible, they could barely afford to put food on the table for all of us, so most nights, we were eating scraps. When I finally had enough, I packed up and left on my 18th birthday. I wanted a new start, and a better life, so I moved to New York with the little savings I had." She started. My mother never shared anything about her past, so I leaned in eagerly.

"I imagined my days would be filled with excitement and adventure, but it was worse than I could have imagined. When I got to New York, I struggled everyday. I was barely making ends meat working at a diner. My boss at the time would attempt to sexually assault me everyday, I absolutely loathed and despised him." My mother said, her face morphing into a scowl.

"I was working a double one day, when two men came into the diner. My boss said something that they didn't like, and they drew their guns at him. My boss brought out his shot gun, and hit one of the men in the face with it, making his gun fall to where I was standing... and without a second thought, I killed him. I killed my nightmare of a boss instead of the two men threatening him." My mother said completely emotionless. 

"They tried to leave, but I was desperate. I begged for them to take me with them, to take me away from my disappointing life, and they agreed. They went by code names: Cobra and Jay. They took me in, taught me everything they knew. They introduced me to a live of crime, and treated me well. We dealt drugs, committed murders, heists, everything you can think of. We took New York by storm, and I've never felt more alive." My mother beamed at the fond memories.

"After some time, Jay and I fell in, what I thought, was love. We started dating, and things were going well." She said sadly. "When he hit me for the first time, I was devastated. He left for the night just to get away and clear his mind. During that night, Cobra was there for me. He comforted me, and admitted he had feelings for me. One thing lead to another and... you know." She said looking down and blushing.

"I got pregnant that night, and not knowing what to do, I lied and told Jay it was his. Cobra started to get suspicious, and started to act quite irrationally. Threatening that if I didn't leave with him he'd kill me and my baby. So Jay and I left in the middle of the night and drove across the country, boosting cars along the way to remain untraceable." She said emotionless as she looked out the window. I processed her words, trying to piece together the puzzle that is her past.

"We hid in fear for months, awaiting the day that Cobra would find us, but he never did. Once my baby was born, Jay became irate when he noticed that the baby had Cobras eyes. He went ballistic, drinking every night and abusing me more and more." She spoke before she turned her attention to me.

"I never knew Cobras real name, but Jay... Jay was Johnny Simmons." She said as my head started to spin.

"Rebel, Johnny wasn't your real father."