by Willow Rose
I bit my lip, knowing she wasn't actually talking about plates anymore. This was about something else. I knew she blamed me for Chad leaving us. Of course, she did. Why wouldn't she? She had never approved of me working and having a career.
"Yeah, well, you can't really control everything in life, can you? Sometimes you have to improvise, work with what you've got," I said, then walked to the counter and poured myself a glass of wine.
Chapter 3
Dinner went decent. My mom tried hard not to criticize me too much in front of the kids, which I could tell took quite an effort. Meanwhile, my dad hung out with Alex, and they talked about fire trucks, which was Alex's favorite subject to discuss. During the conversation, Alex got really loud and was almost yelling. My mom sent me a look.
"Alex, sweetie, remember to use your inside voice," I said, then added, "Grandma has a hangover and doesn’t like loud noises."
"What's a hangover, Grandma?" Alex asked while my mom hissed at me.
"Eva Rae Thomas…" she turned and looked at my dad. "Jon, did you hear what she said?"
My dad and I locked eyes, and he struggled not to laugh. I chuckled, then grabbed another piece of pepperoni pizza. My mom gave me a disapproving look, but I ignored her. No one had touched her casserole except for herself. Even my dad had thrown himself at the pizza, and I was just happy that I had ordered the family size, so there was enough for everyone.
Alex grabbed my dad by the hand and pulled him up to his room to show him all his books on fire trucks. I loved seeing the two of them together. It was great for Alex to have a male role model these days, and not many understood him. I had enrolled him in my old elementary school, Theodore Roosevelt Elementary School, as soon as we got here, but almost every day he had come home with notes from the teacher about his bad behavior. He was loud and refused to sit still, she said. It was never a problem before, so I told her it was probably all the new things going on in his life, plus the fact that his dad wasn't with him anymore. But as I said that to his teacher, I realized I actually didn't even know if it had been an issue earlier in his life. Chad and I had drifted apart over the past several years and hadn't talked much about those things. And the last thing I wanted was to call him in Greece and ask. I was determined to do this myself without his help. He was the one who had decided to pick up and leave. I was these children's mother. Of course, I could take care of them, even if it had to be alone.
"He's very loud, isn't he?" my mom said in almost a whisper. "And wild. Keep an eye on him all the time. You heard about that girl who was kidnapped recently, right?"
I had. How could I not? It was everywhere. It was all over the news constantly; they had put up posters downtown, and it was on the lips of everyone I met. A young girl, twelve years old, and a local surf-idol, the new Kelly Slater, if there ever was one, had gone missing from a Girl Scout camp three months ago. They had made several arrests but not found who took her yet, nor had they found her. As every day passed, it became less and less likely they'd find her alive. From my experience, it was very improbable that she would show up alive after so long. Still, the locals kept up their hope. Some even believed her father had taken her since there had been a dispute between the parents during their divorce. But her dad had been questioned, and there had been no sign that he might have taken her. Personally, I thought the local police seemed to have let him off a little easy since I would have gone harder on him, knowing kidnappings were most often done by family members, but it wasn't my case, and I was done with that part of my life.
"You need to keep him home till it's safe to go out," my mom continued. "Till they catch this guy. Especially with that wild nature of his. He might get himself in trouble, you know. He's trouble waiting to happen. I see it in his eyes. He's got that crazy look. I don't see it in other children. Lord knows, I never saw it in mine."
I shrugged. My mom never had boys; how would she know if he was wilder than others?
"He's a boy," I said. "They get wild sometimes. There's nothing wrong with him. He's just been through a lot lately."
"He sure has," she said and gave me another look.
"Okay, just say it, will you?" I said, sensing I had to stop with the wine now before I said something I would regret later on.
But my mom didn't. She never said anything directly to me. It was all between the lines and in her looks. I felt like screaming at her to just speak out. Just be honest.
"Say what?" she asked.
"You blame me for Chad leaving, don't you?" I swallowed the lump that was growing in my throat. "Because, of course, it’s my fault, just like everything else in life. Ever since…that day. Was it also my fault dad got an infected colon, huh?"
She shook her head, then looked away.
I felt tears pressing behind my eyes and couldn't really hold them back anymore. A couple rolled down my cheeks. I felt so helpless, so lost. I had rented this strange house and had no idea if I would be able to afford to live in it. I didn't even know how to buy enough milk for my kids.
I stared at my mother, secretly praying she would stretch out her arms and just hold me. But she didn't. She spotted the tears, then sat there like she was paralyzed and looked at me before she finally rose to her feet.
"It's late. We should probably get home. Your dad needs his rest. Eight hours every night, per doctor’s orders."
I can't even remember the last time you touched me, Mom. Can't you just give me a hug? Can't you just put your arm around me and tell me it'll be all right? That I am going to make it?
I looked after my mom as she walked up to Alex's room to get my dad. Seconds later, they had both left, and I was once again alone with my thoughts, the smell of vegan casserole lingering in my nostrils.
I wiped away my tears and finished my glass of wine, reminding myself I had decided not to feel sorry for myself in this, when Alex climbed into my lap and attacked me with a toy fire truck, making me laugh. I rustled his hair and kissed his forehead with a sniffle.
"We're going to be fine, aren't we?" I asked the child like he understood.
He gave me one of his endearing smiles. "I like it better here, Mom. You're home a lot more, and you don't yell as loud as Dad. Besides, you smell better."
"I sure do," I said, chuckling, hugging my son closer.
End of excerpt.
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About the Author
Willow Rose is a multi-million-copy best-selling Author and an Amazon ALL-star Author of more than 80 novels.
Several of her books have reached the top 10 of ALL books on Amazon in the US, UK, and Canada. She has sold more than six million books all over the world.
She writes Mystery, Thriller, Paranormal, Romance, Suspense, Horror, Supernatural thrillers, and Fantasy.
Willow's books are fast-paced, nail-biting pageturners with twists you won't see coming. That's why her fans call her The Queen of Plot Twists.
Willow lives on Florida's Space Coast with her husband and two daughters. When she is not writing or reading, you will find her surfing and watching the dolphins play in the waves of the Atlantic Ocean.
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Books by the Author
MYSTERY NOVELS
Don’t Lie To Me (Eva Rae Thomas Mystery #1) - Click here
What You Did (Eva
Rae Thomas Mystery #2) - Click here
Never ever (Eva Rae Thomas Mystery #3) - Click here
Say you love me (Eva Rae Thomas Mystery #4) - Click here
Let Me Go (Eva Rae Thomas Mystery #5) - Click here
It’s Not Over (Eva Rae Thomas Mystery #6) - Click here
Not Dead Yet (Eva Rae Thomas Mystery #7) - Click here
All The Good Girls (Harry Hunter Mystery #1) - Click here
Run Girl Run (Harry Hunter Mystery #2) - Click here
No Other Way (Harry Hunter Mystery #3) - Click here
Never Walk Alone (Harry Hunter Mystery #4) - Click here
What Hurts the Host (Mary Mills Mystery #1) - Click here
You Can Run (Mary Mills Mystery #2) - Click here
You Can’t Hide (Mary Mills Mystery #3) - Click here
Carefull Little Eyes (Mary Mills Mystery #4) - Click here
Hit the Road Jack (Jack Ryder #1) - Click here
Slip Out the Back Jack (Jack Ryder #2) - Click here
The House that Jack Built (Jack Ryder #3) - Click here
Black Jack (Jack Ryder #4) - Click here
Girl next door (Jack Ryder #5) - Click here
Her final word (Jack Ryder #6) - Click here
Don’t Tell (Jack Ryder #7) - Click here
Itsy Bitsy Spider (Emma Frost #1) - Click here
Miss Polly had a Dolly (Emma Frost #2)- Click here
Run, Run, as Fast as you Can (Emma Frost #3) - Click here
Cross your Heart and Hope to Die (Emma Frost #4) - Click here
Peek A Boo I See You (Emma Frost #5) - Click here
Tweedledum and Tweedledee (Emma Frost #6) - Click here
Easy as One Two Three (Emma Frost #7) - Click here
There's No Place like Home (Emma Frost #8) - Click here
Slenderman (Emma Frost #9) - Click here
Where the Wild Roses Grow (Emma Frost #10) - Click here
Waltzing Mathilda (Emma Frost #11) - Click here
Drip Drop Dead (Emma Frost #12) - Click here
Black Frost (Emma Frost #13) - Click here
One, Two... He is Coming for You (Rebekka Franck #1) - Click here
Three, Four ... Better Lock your Door (Rebekka Franck #2) - Click here
Five, Six ... Grab your Crucifix (Rebekka Franck #3) - Click here
Seven, Eight... Gonna Stay up Late (Rebekka Franck #4) - Click here
Nine, Ten... Never Sleep Again (Rebekka Franck #5) - Click here
Eleven, Twelve... Dig and Delve (Rebekka Franck #6) - Click here
Thirteen, Fourteen... Little Boy Unseen (Rebekka Franck #7) - Click here
Better not cry (Rebekka Franck #8) - Click here
Ten little Girls (Rebekka Franck #9) - Click here
It Ends Here (Rebekka Franck #10) - Click here
Edwina - Click here
To Hell in A Handbasket - Click here
Umbrella Man - Click here
Black Bird Fly - Click here
HORROR SHORT STORIES
Eenie, Meenie - Click here
Rock-A-Bye Baby - Click here
Nibble, Nibble, Crunch - Click here
Humpty, Dumpty - Click here
Chain Letter - Click here
Better Watch Out - Click here
Mommy Dearest - Click here
The Bird- Click here
FANTASY AND PARANORMAL ROMANCE/SUSPENSE
Flesh and Blood - Click here
Blood and Fire - Click here
Fire and Beauty - Click here
Beauty and Beasts - Click here
Beasts and Magic - Click here
Magic and Witchcraft - Click here
Witchcraft and War - Click here
War and Order - Click here
Order and Chaos- Click here
Chaos and Courage - Click here
The Surge - Click here
Girl Divided - Click here
Beyond (Afterlife #1) - Click here
Serenity (Afterlife #2) - Click here
Endurance (Afterlife #3) - Click here
Courageous (Afterlife #4) - Click here
Savage (Daughters of the Jaguar #1) - Click here
Broken (Daughters of the Jaguar #2) - Click here
Song for a Gypsy (The Eye of the Crystal Ball -The Wolfboy Chronicles) - Click here
I am WOLF (The Wolfboy Chronicles) - Click here
BOX SETS
Eva Rae Thomas Mystery Series: Book 1-3 - Click here
Jack Ryder Mystery Series Box Set: Vol 1-3 - Click here
Jack Ryder Mystery Series Box Set: Vol 4–6 - Click here
Mary Mills Mystery Series Box Set: Vol 1-2 - Click here
Mary Mills Mystery Series Box Set: Vol 1-3 - Click here
Rebekka Franck Series Vol 1-3 - Click here
Rebekka Franck Series Vol 4-6 - Click here
Rebekka Franck Series Vol 1-5 - Click here
Emma Frost Mystery Series Vol 1-3 - Click here
Emma Frost Mystery Series Vol 4-6 - Click here
Emma Frost Mystery Series Vol 7-9 - Click here
Emma Frost Mystery Series Vol 1-5 - Click here
Daughters of the Jaguar Box Set - Click here
The Vampires of Shadow Hills: Books 1-3 - Click here
The Vampires of Shadow Hills: Books 4–6 - Click here
The Vampires of Shadow Hills: Books 6–9 - Click here
The Afterlife Series (Books 1-3)- Click here
Horror Stories from Denmark - Click here
The Wolfboy Chronicles - Click here
Copyright Willow Rose 2020
Published by BUOY MEDIA LLC
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission from the author.
This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance of characters to actual persons, living or dead is purely coincidental. The Author holds exclusive rights to this work. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited.
Cover design by Juan Villar Padron,
https://www.juanjpadron.com
Special thanks to my editor Janell Parque
http://janellparque.blogspot.com/
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Contents
Part I
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Part II
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Part III
Chapter
29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Part IV
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57