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http://www.amazzon.com/dp/B07JMHYR9Z
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Category:
Action/Thriller
Publisher: Amazon
ISBN-10: 9781938037
Type: Fiction
Pages: 343
Copyright: 7/2018
ISBN-13: 9781938037771
Price: $2.99 (eBook)
One accident will change the lives of five people forever…
Officer Adayna Moore arrived at the scene of the accident on the Ohio Turnpike on a rainy Friday morning, unaware that saving one man from the wreckage would alter her life and the past she had tried so hard to leave behind.
Leah James started her day the same way every day at Franklin Hospital, but on the morning of the accident, Leah’s life took on a different path. The questions of her childhood that have haunted her are answered when she goes searching for the family of a brain-dead man from the accident.
Kaitlyn Gordon had lost the love of her life, Adam Tucker, when he left and went to war in Afghanistan, never to hear from him again. A year later, she met Ben Gordon and thought life had given her a second chance at love. After they graduated from college Kaitlyn and Ben were married. But, after three months of marriage, she wanted nothing more than to escape from her abusive husband, who has threatened to kill her if she ever left him.
Excerpt
1
The Morning of the Accident
The roads and highways were left wet and slick from the rain that had come and gone just hours ago. The sun played a game of peek-a-boo through the wispy layers of clouds, shining rays of sunlight down to the ground. The light from the sky created a beautiful prism effect atop the vehicles stopped on the Ohio Turnpike. The view on the ground compared to the sky wasn’t as attractive as the people sat inside their cars staring at the horrifying scene around them. No one left their vehicle to help the injured, most likely afraid they would get hurt if they got out of their cars, although with all the vehicles already piled up on the highway, there wouldn’t be anywhere for an oncoming car to go.
The phones at Franklin and Edon Police Stations rang off the hook after the accident occurred on the Ohio Turnpike. Officer Adanya Moore from Edon arrived at the scene moments after the calls came pouring through. She and a few others jumped in their vehicles and raced to the accident with lights flashing and sirens blaring as they ran through stoplights to get there. Officer Moore and the others from her district weren’t the first to arrive at the scene. There were already fire trucks and the state highway patrol surrounding the accident.
Adanya Moore cautiously drove her way around the parked cars congested on the highway with nowhere to go. She stopped when she found a clearing near the accident. She put the truck in park and stared out the windshield with her mouth agape. It was the kind of jaw-dropping reaction you’d have if you walked in on your boyfriend or husband sleeping with another woman and that woman was your sister or best friend. She was in a state of utter shock. The highway looked like a mass murderer went on a shopping spree. Some vehicles were flipped over; others were smashed with their engines sweltering and smoking. Oil and gas leaked from the vehicles, mixing on the black pavement. The mess would take half the day to clean up, and still, there would probably be pieces left on the side of the road.
As Moore scanned the scenery, her eyes stopped on two motorcycles, but no bodies lying nearby. The thought of them being buried under all those vehicles made her feel sick to her stomach. The drivers of the motorcycles didn’t have the protection a car or truck had. The chances of them being alive were slim to none.
The scent of gasoline hit her nose the moment she opened the door of her truck and stepped out. Glass crunched under her combat boots as she exited the police SUV. She took in the sight of broken glass scattered on the road; it was everywhere. Her eyes skimmed over the scene, counting the vehicles. There were at least ten.
A fire ignited at the rear of a black sedan. Moore watched as a firefighter raced over with an extinguisher and put it out. She watched as other police officers parked their cars around the accident with their lights strobing to keep out other cars and to direct traffic off the highway to nearby streets. People who were waiting to get off the highway sat in their vehicles and stared at the gruesome scene around them. Some of them were on their cell phones, either filming the accident or calling their loved ones to tell them what had happened and that they were okay. After 9/11 this seemed to be the first thing people did, always filming things that were happening around them.
Helicopters from news stations all around the area hovered above, recording the scene from both eastbound and westbound. The state police were able to get the traffic moving on the eastbound side of the highway, which was stopped due to a male body in the road. Officer Moore overheard two firefighters, standing twenty feet in front of her, talking about the man on the other side of the highway. Their theories were that the man had been ejected from his vehicle on the westbound side where Moore stood and flew into the grille of a semi-truck on the eastbound side.
The radio secured to Moore’s shoulder chirped as one of the other police officers from the scene started talking. She bent her neck so that her ear was pressed against the speaker part of the radio and listened to the conversation.
The male officer stated, “The truck driver said that he had been driving at the speed of 75 mph and didn’t have time to stop when the man came headfirst into the grille of his truck. He said he could see the man’s eyes watching him as if pleading for his life, before the impact. The driver said that it happened so fast there was nothing he could do. He couldn’t stop the truck in time.”
The image of the scene made Moore’s stomach turn. What a horrible thing to witness, she thought. The poor man wouldn’t be able to un-see the accident that had unfolded in front of his eyes. She shook her head in disgust.
Moore drew in a breath as she focused back on the scene at hand. She knew by everyone standing around talking that it would be hours before the chunks of twisted metal and plastic were removed from the scene, allowing traffic on the westbound side to move. The turnpike would be closed until the horrific accident was cleaned up and all the survivors were taken to the hospital, which from the look of things would be multiple hospitals in the area.
Edon Hospital was older by twenty years and had fewer rooms available, especially in the ER. Franklin Hospital, on the other hand, was newer and had three times the rooms, but there would be no doubt that both hospitals would accommodate all the people from the accident.
Nearly two hours had passed as Officer Moore stood near the overturned vehicles with her hands on her hips, watching several firefighters move pieces of car parts away, looking for anyone that might be buried underneath. She was told that there were twelve people injured in the wreck. So far, only two of the twelve were pronounced dead at the scene. Officer Moore wasn’t sure how the accident happened, but she knew there had to be someone who saw something and maybe even filmed it. Other officers, including herself, would later be sent to the hospitals to talk to the victims once the highway was clean.
After the firefighters cleared the area and were packing up their things, Officer Moore decided her work here was done too, not that she’d done much with the State Police taking over the highway. They always seemed to take jurisdiction when it came to the turnpike. Granted, she was a local cop in Edon where nothing ever happened, but they called her station out here, not the other way around.
She scanned the scenery one last time; she was sure every officer in both Franklin and Edon was here along with the State Police. “Tax dollars at work,” she mumbled. She was about to turn and walk back to her patrol car when she heard a faint cry for help thirty to forty feet in front of her. She held a hand on the duty belt wrapped around her pear-shaped waist as she semi-jogged toward the sound.
She stopped when she came to what once looked like a red crotch rocket, now mangled and torn into pieces from the other vehicles smashing into it. She looked past the motorcycle and saw a dark blue car lying on its hood. The scene looked different from afar, but now that she was up close, she felt queasy. She swallowed as the acidic taste of bile rose up and into her mouth. She pinched her nose and took in another breath. Her heart pounded as panic flowed through her body. “Come on Moore; you can do this. Don’t show those guys your weakness,” she mumbled to herself.
She blocked the thoughts from her mind and moved around the vehicles. She stopped when she came to the side of a blue Ford Focus flipped upside down. She had seen with her own eyes that the firefighters had already removed the male driver from the vehicle. She scanned the area, looking for any signs of a body or body parts just in case someone was trying to wave but saw no one. Maybe she had imagined the sound of a person yelling; with all the commotion around her, she couldn’t be sure if it were real or not.
She stepped back and was about to head to her car when she heard the cry for help again. It was more of a moan than a yell coming from in front of her, but where? All these cars had been checked and evacuated, hadn’t they? She was sure the firemen had just been in this area and had even taken a person to the hospital. She heard one of the firefighters yell, “All clear.” Had they missed someone? Surely, they had, otherwise she wouldn’t be hearing someone call out for help.
She moved closer to the wreckage. The smell of gasoline became stronger; this wasn’t a good sign. Twenty feet to her right, a car ignited. Flames shot several feet into the air. She knew once it hit the gasoline leaking out from the cars, wherever the gas was, there’d be an explosion. An enormous explosion and she didn’t have much time to waste. She had to act fast and find this person before it was too late.
“Hello,” Officer Moore yelled. “Is anyone there?”
“Help,” a voice said, sounding muffled by the helicopters still circling above.
She wished the helicopters would leave so she could hear the person calling for help. Moore moved around the pulverized vehicles. She couldn’t run like she used to if this place decided to blow. Now that she reached the ripe age of forty-five, not that she was old, but her body would tell you otherwise. Besides, running wasn’t her forte. Never was much of a runner in school and wasn’t one to take it up when she got older. She wasn’t sure why people enjoyed the sport. Too much impact on the knees and feet. Her feet and knees hurt enough just walking these days, but she was sure that was due to the weight she’d put on these past couple of years since her dad died.
Officer Moore was careful not to snag her clothes on the sharp metal sticking out from the wrecked cars or to slip on the oil that leaked out from under them. She needed to find the person trapped and get them help. “Whoever you are, keep talking to me if you can!” she yelled over the noise.
“I’m under here,” the voice replied. “It’s dark, and I think I smell gas. I…I think my leg is caught on something.”
She was sure the voice was male. “I’m coming!” Moore shouted as she peered inside the cars that were empty just in case they had missed someone. Maybe they were pinned in the back seat? She knelt to the ground, looking between two vehicles, a Chevy Malibu and a Dodge pickup when she saw him. The door to the Chevy had been torn off, but she wasn’t sure if it was due to the crash or the firemen. But wouldn’t they have seen the man stuck under the truck? This she didn’t know. Maybe it had been too dark, and they just hadn’t seen him. Perhaps he was unconscious at the time and couldn’t holler for help? These were things she didn’t know but also didn’t have time to contemplate.
She stood and yelled, waving to one of the firemen ten yards away. “Over here. I found someone. He’s trapped under this truck,” Moore said, pointing down at her feet. “Hurry, I smell gas!” she yelled, cupping her hands around her mouth. She had to shout louder than the noise around her.
Two firefighters raced over to where Officer Moore stood and looked under the capsized vehicle. “We need a hydraulic ram to lift the truck up and try to slide him out,” one of the firemen ordered. “Get the fire extinguisher too. We need to stop this fire before it spreads.”
A short and stocky firefighter ran back toward the firetruck and shouted orders to a couple of other firefighters, telling them what was needed. Three firefighters ran back and began working on lifting the vehicle. Within minutes, they had the truck raised high enough to drag the man out from underneath. His clothes were saturated and reeked of gasoline. They had to get him away from the fire spreading toward them.
“Put that fire out!” one of the firemen yelled as he pointed to the flames coming their way.
Officer Moore stood back, watching the firefighters work fast and efficiently. The hydraulic ram gave out and the truck fell to the ground, nearly missing the already injured man’s leg. A firefighter signaled to an EMT that he needed their help and ran over to them, carrying an emergency bag.
The paramedic dropped to the ground and checked the man’s airways and placed a brace around his neck. “Can you tell me your name?” the female EMT asked.
“I…,” the man croaked, fading in and out. Blood covered half his face, making it impossible to identify him.
“Stay with me, sir. You’ve been in a serious accident and may be suffering from head trauma. We’ll get you to the hospital and get you some help.” The female paramedic radioed for her partner to bring a stretcher. They carefully lifted the man and loaded him onto the stretcher and into the back of the ambulance. The ambulance lurched forward before speeding away from the scene with its lights flashing and sirens blaring. Another ambulance drove off behind the one that had just left, both going to the hospital.
Officer Moore placed a hand on her stomach; she still couldn’t shake the nausea she had been feeling all morning, along with a few sharp pains in her abdomen and lower back. But that had nothing to do with the accident here today.
In all her years as a police officer, she’d never seen this many people in an accident at one time, especially as bad as this one. There were so many casualties with head traumas, broken limbs, and external bleeding. These images were never going to leave her mind for as long as she lived.
Moore closed her eyes, clearing her mind of the memories of her past that came rushing in and reminding her of what she had left behind. The past was always a reminder of what she did back then, but today it hit her harder than before. She had always wanted to become a police officer just like her dad, and she wasn’t going to let anything change that. Change the dreams she dreamt of her whole life. Only she alone had to make the choices she made so many years ago, and every day she regretted what she did. That year was nothing but pain and regret; things she couldn’t take back or change once she had walked away. She wasn’t sure why this accident reminded her of that moment she tried so hard to forget or at least put in the back of her mind. Maybe it was because life was a mystery. No one knew when their time was up. How it could all vanish in the blink of an eye.
The sirens around her sounded near and loud, causing her to snap out of her thoughts. She took a step backward, looking down at the ground, almost tripping. She noticed something under the debris at her feet and bent down to get it. It was a black leather wallet. She wiped it off and opened it. Inside was a driver’s license, money, and a couple of credit cards. She slid out the driver’s license and looked at the picture. It looked exactly like the guy they had just taken away.
2
Two Weeks Earlier
“Kaitlyn, get back here!” Ben yelled from the bedroom, his temper rising. He did not have time for her bullshit this morning. Why of all days did she have to start a fight when he had to be at work? Couldn’t she wait until the fucking weekend? He’d make her pay for walking away from him during a discussion; he always made her pay. Why did she insist on pissing him off? What was the purpose of arguing over something he had no control over? Or did he? His job at work was to travel from state to state each week. He had been doing it since he graduated from college and it was only for a day, sometimes two at the most. It all depended on where he had to go. He never flew, always drove to Indiana, Iowa, or Ohio. Those were the main states, but on occasion, he’d have to go to New York.
When Ben stomped out of the bedroom, Kaitlyn was standing near the far corner of the kitchen by the patio door. Ben didn’t walk toward her; instead, he got another cup of coffee, always keeping his composure. He’d make her think that she was going to get away with it and then pounce on her like a cat on a mouse. “Seriously, why do you start something when you know I have to get ready for work? You know how irritating that is to me!” he growled. “Do you know how disrespectful that is? Do you think that the world revolves around you, my dear sweet, Kaitlyn?”
“I also know that you’ll follow me,” she mumbled under her breath, too low for him to hear.
He tilted his head toward her to hear what she said, but he hadn’t caught the words. “I have to leave for work so standing here discussing my traveling for work isn’t going to get me dressed and out of the house,” he said. Ben removed his cup and placed another ceramic cup in its place for Kaitlyn. He added two sugars, stirred, and held it out to her as if they hadn’t been arguing. As if he were going to let her off the fucking hook. This thought made him chuckle inside. Kaitlyn didn’t deserve to be let off the hook. No, she needed to learn to watch her mouth before speaking. Hasn’t she learned a fucking thing these past four years? Apparently not! he thought.
He watched as her shoulders fell back, her face relaxing, which told him that she thought he wouldn’t hurt her for causing this argument first thing in the morning and on a weekday, making him late for work. He hoped that she was done nagging him about when he was going on the road again. What did it matter to her?
She stepped forward, reached out a shaky hand, and took the coffee cup from him. He watched as she hesitated before bringing it up to her lips. In one swift move, Ben swung his arm in the air, knocking the coffee cup from her hands. The ceramic cup flew into the air, then fell to the floor, shattering into numerous small and large pieces and spraying coffee everywhere. He grabbed her by the neck and pushed her up against the cabinets. His hand squeezed her throat, cutting off all oxygen from entering her body.
He felt satisfaction as he watched her struggle to breathe. Her hands grabbed at his, but he clutched harder, making it more difficult for her to suspire. Her body went limp and she started to melt to the ground. He pulled her back up to a standing position.
“Don’t you ever fucking start shit when I have to leave for work!” he spat in her face. “Now I’m going to be late. I hate being late! Next time I won’t be so kind. Actually, there better not be a next time, do you hear me, bitch?” He flung her head back, slamming it hard into the cabinet door, and then released his hand from around her neck. “Now clean up this fucking mess!” Ben turned and walked into the bedroom, slamming the door behind him.
Fifteen minutes later, he came back out dressed in a polo shirt and khakis. He walked up to Kaitlyn, who was wiping off the counter, and whispered in her ear, “I love you.” He placed both hands on her hips, feeling her tremble beneath them; this made him feel warm all over. He turned her around, kissing her lips. “Have a nice day, honey,” he smiled. He loved knowing that she was afraid of him.
She smiled back at him.
The argument was dissolved just like that. He knew she’d get over it and forgive him. That’s what she did after he taught her not to ever talk back to him. At least for another week or two. She’d fuck up like she always did and say something she shouldn’t, and he’d have to show her another lesson. When was she ever going to learn?
Kaitlyn was the world to him and he wanted nothing more than to make her happy. She had been his life since the day he’d met her in college, but it was her fault that he must hurt her like this. If she’d just keep her fucking mouth shut and do as she was told then none of this would happen. He wouldn’t have to hurt her. Did she think he liked doing this to her? Did she think he loved damaging her body and marking it with bruises?
For once he was glad that she didn’t bring up wanting children again, something he didn’t want. Children were like leeches that sucked the fucking life out of you until you were dried up old prunes. When they became adults, they would still live with you, sucking money from your pockets because they were too lazy to work. He saw other people’s kids. He watched them on their phones instead of socializing with other kids their age. He wanted to snatch the phone right out of their precious little hands and make them talk like normal people. Besides, he knew what children did to women’s bodies and there was no way his Kaitlyn would look like a fat and hideous cow with saggy boobs and a belly that hung over her pants. He kissed her one more time, turned and walked out the front door.
~ ~ ~
Since Ben had left later than usual, the traffic on I-55 was bumper to bumper. He glanced at the clock on the radio, 8:31 a.m. He’d probably be late, which was something he never was, and it infuriated him. He was an on-time kind of person. He never cared for the people who had no sense of time or direction. He told people that if he were late, then something must have happened to him, and as usual, it was Kaitlyn. He didn’t need to think about her right now and listened to his music.
Twenty minutes later, he was driving through the streets of downtown Chicago with taxi drivers who had no respect for other drivers on the road. He wanted to fucking hit them because they sure didn’t care if they cut you off, making you stomp on your brakes and almost hit another car. He honestly hated the city. He was only here because Kaitlyn wanted to live in Illinois. She wanted to be close to her family and friends. Although he made sure he was in control of what they did, he on occasion let her have her way. But not always.
He entered the parking lot near Willis Tower where he worked and parked the car. The drive exhausted him more each day, but he’d never admit that to anyone. It was probably from the argument this morning or just a cold coming on, making his head feel dizzy and his eyes blurry. He took in a deep breath and grabbed the steering wheel, squeezing until his knuckles turned white and let go. It was his way of releasing the remaining anger that brewed deep inside of him like a ferocious monster, which seemed to get worse over the last few years.
Once in the elevator, he rode to the fiftieth floor. He hated elevators too, and how they shook and sometimes jerked, making you think that the cables were going to snap, and you would plummet to your death, but he had no control over what the elevator was going to do, and there was no way he was taking the stairs. The moment the elevator doors opened, he immediately stepped out, his ears filling with the sounds of people talking and phones ringing. It wasn’t music to his ears; maybe that’s why he loved being on the road so much. It gave him a chance to get away from the noise of the office. No, mostly he liked traveling because he honestly hated people. He hated being around them. They made him sick the way they talked and acted, thinking they were always better than everyone else. Talking about their stupid lives that he could give two shits about. He didn’t come here to listen to why their cat puked on their brand-new rug or that their teenage daughter was seeing a guy in college. There always seemed to be competitions between all the women too. Couldn’t everyone just live their own lives and stay the fuck out of everyone else’s? An image came to him. He saw himself walking out of the elevator with a rifle and shooting every one of them—now that would make his day.
He walked past several of the cubicles and stopped when he came to his. He set his briefcase beside the desk and sat down. He placed his head in his hands, pressing his palms into his eye sockets to help relieve the discomfort. God, his head fucking hurt. He opened the drawer next to him and pulled out a bottle of Advil, shaking four into his palm. He hated taking pills, but he hated pain more. He never let Kaitlyn see that he was in pain. He hid it from her the best he could. He hated doctors as much as he hated people, and if he could help it, he wouldn’t go see one. He’d try to do the best he could to make the pain go away on his own.
“Hey Ben,” Jerry said, as he peered around the side of the next cubicle. “Running a little late this morning?” he snickered. “That’s not like you. Everything oookaay?”
Ben hated how Jerry always stretched the last word he said out like he was singing a song. Ben tossed the pills in his mouth and washed them down with a bottle of water on his desk that had been sitting there for two days. He was never a big water drinker, mostly Vodka or Gin, but he couldn’t have that here at work. Though it’d probably make the day more interesting. He chuckled inside at the thought.
Ben didn’t look up at Jerry. He didn’t feel like talking to him, but he had to acknowledge the man or Jerry would keep bothering him. He just lifted his achy head nodded and smiled. “I’m fine.” Then he turned his chair away from the guy and clicked on his computer. He knew that Jerry would get the hint because it was what all the people around the office did when Jerry was around. Jerry would be at the top of his list if he were to ever go postal on this place.
Ben wasn’t in the office five minutes when his boss, Tom Butka, called his desk phone to tell him that he needed to talk to him in his office pronto. It was as if he knew telepathically that Ben was in the building. Ben stood and walked to the far side of the room, looking straight ahead at his boss’s office. There was no way for Tom to know that Ben was here because all the blinds were closed, and the door was shut.
“Don’t overthink it,” Ben mumbled to himself as he walked. “Tom won’t fire you for being late one time.” He raised his hand to knock on the door, but Tom had somehow known he was already there before he had the chance to touch the door.
“Come in, Ben,” Tom shouted through the closed door.
Ben opened the door and went inside.
“You feeling all right? You look a little ill, my friend,” Tom said, looking up and then back down at the papers on his desk before Ben had a chance to enter the room.
Ben waved a hand in the air “I’m fine, really.” No, he wasn’t fine, but confiding in Tom wasn’t something he did. Besides, Tom didn’t give a crap how you felt as long as your work got done.
“Great,” Tom replied without giving it another thought. “I need you on the road tomorrow morning.”
Ben let out a breath of relief. “Where am I going?” It hit him at that moment. He would rather be out on the road than in this place. He had the freedom to do what he wanted, go where he wanted, and no one would know. No one would be there to annoy him, even his wife. He felt like his own boss being out on the road, though he hated being away from Kaitlyn. He couldn’t watch her like he wanted to and make sure that she was obeying his every wish, but that was why he had cameras and trackers placed around the house. All he had to do was go onto the app on his phone and see what she was doing and where she was. She might think she was smart and could hide things from him, but she couldn’t. He knew everything.
“I need you to drive to Iowa and talk to the bosses over at the central bank. They’re hiring some new people to help run the Loans Department and I need you to be there for two days. Make sure they’re well cared for,” Tom said.
Ben nodded. He knew the routine. Make sure that they were up and running with no flaws. He also knew that Kaitlyn wasn’t going to be happy when he told her tonight that he had to leave again. She would miss him, that’s for sure. She always told him when he arrived home or on the phone that she wished he was home. Maybe it was time that he stayed in the office and went home every evening. Maybe it would make her a better wife? For one he could control her better and keep her in line if he were home every night. But as the seconds ticked by, his chance was slipping out the door and poof, it was gone. He didn’t know what to do. Make his wife happy or himself? Would he be considered a bad husband if he chose to travel?
“Great! Here’s some things you’ll need to read up on and I’ll see you on Thursday,” Tom said and went back to work.
Ben grabbed the folder, turned, and walked to the door. He stopped and did a half-turn, looking at his boss who didn’t even seem to notice that he was still in the room. He opened his mouth to say something, but stopped himself and left the office, closing the door behind him. He wasn’t feeling in the mood to talk to his boss about it yet. Besides, he needed to think about things and decide what was best for him, not Kaitlyn.
Instead of heading back to his desk, Ben walked down the hall and into the restroom. The dizziness was coming back, and he felt as if he might fall over. Maybe he should tell Tom he didn’t feel up to the drive and to find someone else this time. Or maybe he should collapse and be taken to the hospital, so Tom wouldn’t think that he was faking it. No, he hated hospitals just as much as doctors and people.
Tom didn’t like excuses and certainly wouldn’t take No for an answer so what other choice did he have? Ben had to go to Iowa, sick or not. He threw some cold water on his face and dried it with a paper towel. Then left the restroom and went back to work.
By the time lunch came around he was feeling better. It must have been his nerves from this morning. He hated when Kaitlyn picked a fight during the week. He decided he’d take the trip and come up with a plan to talk to Tom when he got back—that was, if he decided to stop traveling. Ben would tell his boss that he wouldn’t take No for an answer. He wished that he could show everyone here that he was in charge like he did at home.
But it was better to hide behind this person he had become since he was young. This person that had control of his wife. The people here needed to see him as a kind and thoughtful person, especially if Kaitlyn needed to be put in her place. He couldn’t lose everything he had worked so hard to achieve these past eight years.
If Kaitlyn ever found out about what he had done nine years ago, he knew she’d be furious with him and he couldn’t have her finding out the truth. He’d need to hide the envelope in a safer place, maybe at the bank or in a safe. He couldn’t take the chance of losing her. Losing his Kaitlyn. Maybe he would try and have a baby with her. The thought made his insides turn. Hell no! He would not cave into having a child. He couldn’t even picture himself holding one and the baby crying. God, it made his head hurt worse than it already was. He’d make sure that she never had one of those because then there would be another him and he couldn’t let that happen.
What if Kaitlyn decided to leave him because she wanted to have a child? He doubted this would ever happen.
She was afraid of him…
He controlled her…
He owned her…
She’d never be that stupid because he’d find her…
3
Adam sat up in bed and like he did every morning and every night, he looked at the woman in the photo sitting on the nightstand. He loved her so much and missed having her next to him.
He raked a hand through his hair, something he had always done when he was having one of his headaches. Not that he had headaches all the time, just the last couple of months, along with some dizziness. He figured that the headaches were from the war and the explosion he’d been in back when he was in the Army, but that was years ago. The doctor had told him it might take months, even years before side effects show after a head injury. Or, he might not have any at all. He wasn’t so lucky.
He climbed out of bed and walked to the bathroom, closing the door behind him. After a quick shower, he felt like himself again. He got dressed and went into the kitchen. The coffee pot that was set on a timer sputtered, bursting steam from the top before coming to a stop. He grabbed a coffee mug and poured himself a cup, his black chrome ring hitting the side of the cup and echoing through the room. The ring was a gift from an old girlfriend that he refused to let go of. The same one from the photo. He loved her more than anything and wished she hadn’t said goodbye.
He went to the fridge and took out eggs and bacon. Although he preferred the bacon cooked on the stove in a frying pan like his mom had always done, he didn’t have the patience for that and bought the microwavable kind.
Today, he made two eggs over-easy with a slice of toast and three slices of bacon. He placed the plate on the table and grabbed his coffee cup before sitting down at the kitchen dinette, a table he’d found at a consignment store here in the town of Edon. Actually, he’d found most of his furniture at the consignment store. They were practically brand new, which surprised him because someone else had owned them before him and had taken great care of the furniture.
One thing about Edon, it wasn’t an overly populated town. There weren’t many stores aside from the ones people needed to survive in this town. A small grocery store and gas station were all they had, and a few other small stores, like the consignment store where he’d bought his furniture. If you needed more than a few groceries, then you would need to drive into Franklin, where there was a Walmart, Target, Home Depot, and a Best Buy, etc.
He’d grown up here and had decided to stay and call it home. Besides, his mother lived close by and he wanted to be near her. His father, on the other hand, had left after Adam graduated high school. Neither Adam nor his mom had known that Adam’s father was cheating on his mother—some younger woman from the office where Adam’s father worked. Said he didn’t love Adam’s mom anymore and it was time to move on. His father moved to North Carolina and Adam hadn’t seen him since. That was nine years ago.
Adam cleaned his plate and silverware and placed them in the strainer to dry. He was never one to leave dirty dishes lying around the house. His mother had taught him better than that. For a man, his home was neat and clean. Not a thing out of place and he would know if it were; the Army had taught him that.
He poured another cup and went outside and stood on the back porch that overlooked Lake Erie. He loved the breeze that came off the lake in the mornings but come wintertime when the snow fell, it was a bitch to get around in this part of town. Lake effect, they called it. Would throw over four feet or more at your doorstep and you’d be trapped for a day or two. Most people around this area closed their homes and went south for the winter or someplace away from the lake. But Adam stayed because this was his home and would always be his home.
Adam inhaled the fresh, warm air. He was thankful for the long weekend. Adam loved his job as a teacher. Ninth graders were at times hard to teach as they entered teenage life. This was what he loved the most about his life. Teaching was something he had dreamed of since he was a teenager, although his father thought that it was a stupid career to have. “There’s no money in teaching,” his father had once told Adam. But Adam didn’t teach for the money, he taught because it filled his heart with joy. Besides, his father wasn’t around and didn’t get a say in what Adam did with his life, and that was just fine with Adam.
He didn’t have any plans, except to see his mom on Labor Day that Monday. Maybe he’d go for a ride on his motorcycle before the weather got too cold. He remembered the weatherman saying that September was looking to stay in the low eighties to high seventies. Great riding weather, Adam thought.
Adam went back inside, washed out his cup, and grabbed his keys, sitting next to his wallet. He was out the door and on his motorcycle within five minutes. He went slowly through the streets around his neighborhood, careful to watch for children who might be playing near the road, something he’d never let his kid do if or when he had one. Adam had time to have a family, but he’d have to be in a relationship first and that was something he wasn’t ready for.
Once he passed the stop sign, Adam turned and drove toward the highway where he could ride fast and feel the wind through his hair. He wasn’t one to wear a helmet. Never felt comfortable with something pressing against his head. At least not since he had fought in the war and the explosion had knocked off his helmet and embedded metal fragments into his skull.
Most times he rode with his best friend Scott, but today he wanted time to himself. His mind was on the woman he once knew and loved with all his heart. He shifted into third gear and accelerated, speeding onto the ramp. He passed several cars and rode in the middle lane until he entered Indiana. He took the second exit and drove through the country roads, his mind feeling at peace as the wind ruffled through his brown hair that looked lighter in the sunlight. He needed this escape—to clear his mind and not think about her.
~ ~ ~
When Monday arrived, Adam stopped at the grocery store, picked up a few things to throw on the grill and drove over to his mother’s house. He wasn’t there five minutes when she started asking if he was seeing anyone special. He wasn’t. It wasn’t like he didn’t have the time to go out on dates, but more like he just hadn’t met the right woman. Well, he had, but that was nine years ago when he was in the Army. She had captured his heart the second he’d seen her, and he had never forgotten about her. He had looked her up after he left the Army and came home. She probably thought he had died over in Afghanistan after he stopped writing her. Well, actually she had sent him a Dear John letter, ending it with him. He knew that she wasn’t single anymore and positive that he never crossed her mind like she did his. He came out of his thoughts when his mother snapped her fingers in front of his face.
“What are you thinking about?” his mother asked.
“Nothing, just a lot on my mind lately,” he replied, taking a sip of lemonade that his mother freshly squeezed this morning. His mother Rose was an old-fashioned kind of lady, sweet to everyone she met. Never once had he seen her raise her voice—well, only if Adam disobeyed her. She was a stern woman with high expectations for her son, and he was okay with that. It just meant that she loved him even more.
“I was asking you about dating, and you zoned out.”
He nodded. “I will date, just busy right now that school started up again.”
“Maybe someone at the school?” she asked.
He shook his head. Never date someone you work with, just in case it doesn’t work out. Though his father had done just the opposite and see how that ended? Granted, he would have to go out on dates to meet a woman, but when it was the right time, he’d do it. There was just too much going on right now. “What about you?” Adam asked, changing the subject. “When will you start dating again? It’s been almost nine years.” Nine years since they both lost the love of their lives. Adam knew what her answer was before she even said it.
“Why waste my time on men when they’ll only hurt me in the end?”
“But you can’t think like that,” Adam replied. “They’re not all like Dad, you know. They won’t hurt you like he did.”
She nodded.
“Does that mean you agree with me?” Adam asked.
“How about this—if you start dating, then I’ll put myself out there. I’ll go to singles clubs or maybe I’ll join some of the events around town,” she said.
He knew what she was doing. If he expected his mom to get out of the house and meet men then he should take his own advice and do the same, but he wasn’t in any hurry. There wasn’t any rush to settle down. He had his whole life in front of him.
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