Aggro - CoraLee June Page 0,97
cried into his chest. I didn’t want to break away from the safety of Kai’s arms. I didn’t want to go inside the hospital and tell my mom what we had just discovered. But I had to, she had to hear it from me. This was going to break her, and I couldn’t handle it if she found out from someone else.
I lifted my head from Kai’s shoulder and dug my palms into my eyes in an effort to stop the tears. My eyes stung, and I could feel how puffy they were. I opened the door to the truck and got out, letting the fresh air settle around me. The brightness of the sun felt obscene given what we were about to do.
Kai appeared at my side, weaving his fingers into mine. “Are you ready, Little Whisper? I’ve got you.”
I nodded, even though this was something I could never be ready for.
We walked into the hospital hand in hand. Rachel, one of the older nurses, who was standing at the nurses’ station, recognized me and waved. I could see the concern in her eyes as we got closer and she saw my face. “Are you okay, dear?”
“Is my mom around?” I managed to squeak out.
“Yes, come on back to the break room. I’ll get her for you,” Rachel said and hurried off.
I walked back to the familiar room where Mom and I had shared many meals over the years. I thought back to Christmases spent with my parents holding my hand. My mom’s diamond ring glimmering in the sunlight as we ate lunch on the patio. Birthday parties at the bowling alley. Surfing. Mom kissing Dad on the forehead and making our favorite breakfast after the night shift. Our perfect home had cracks in the walls.
“Baby? You okay? Rachel said you’d been crying?” Mom rushed out as she entered the room. I looked up at her with tears in my eyes. How could I possibly say this? How could I voice what I’d found? Kai seemed to sense the turmoil in my soul.
“Do you want me to?” Kai asked.
“Do you want him to what? What’s going on, Breeze? You’re scaring me.” Mom crouched down beside me. I couldn’t let Kai say this. Mom needed to hear it from me.
“Do you know where Dad is?” I asked.
Mom shrugged. “At the surf shop? I don’t know, we haven’t really seen a lot of each other lately. Did he forget to wish you a happy birthday? Dammit, I reminded him yesterday.” I grabbed my mom’s hand.
“No. It’s not that.” Although he had forgotten. I didn’t care anymore. I wanted nothing to do with him.
I looked at my mother’s crouching form. “Mom. You need to sit down.”
“Is something wrong with Brian? A surfing accident?” Mom made her way to a seat, and I kept our hands firmly clasped together.
“We found Violet’s phone in Dad’s office,” I began. My voice was choked up, and Mom squinted in confusion.
“Her phone?” she asked.
“I plugged it in and found messages between them. Dad and Violet were having an affair. He was there the night Violet died.”
Mom’s mouth dropped open in shock. First, she shook her head, then she stared at our hands in disbelief. I waited for it to hit her. I waited for the realization to wrap around her body and drown her in the disaster I was feeling. “I knew he was seeing someone,” she whispered.
“What?” I asked.
“I saw the signs. He stopped...wanting me months ago. I ignored it because…” her voice trailed off, and she swatted at her eyes. Her cheeks were red with anger, and I watched her shoulders slump in defeat. “It makes sense. He hasn’t been the same since she died. I just thought he was grieving. Oh my God.” Mom stood up and started pacing the floors, with her fists clenched at her side. I couldn’t stand watching her fall apart like this. I glanced at Kai and could tell he didn’t want to witness this pain. I was so thankful he decided to stay with me for this. I was barely hanging on. “He killed Violet,” she whispered. “Brian killed Violet. Brian killed Violet. Brian killed Violet,” she murmured over and over again, obviously in shock.
“Chase took the phone to the police. Mom. Do you know what this means?” I asked.
She started shaking violently, her legs a jumble of nerves. Kai briefly left me to guide her back to the hard plastic chair. It was wrong to tear apart