Secrets Worth Keeping (Finding my Home #2)- Nikita Parmenter Page 0,165

the back before pulling him in for a hug.

“Right, enough of that. What do you need?” Jenny says getting down to business. “The detective said a school, do you have enough supplies or do you want to go to the store?” she asks and before we can answer starts again, “although that’s probably not safe now is it?” she finishes frowning.

“Mom we’re all good, don’t worry. We are pretty hungry though?” Trick says despite the fact that we literally just ate. It instantly distracts Jenny from her spiralling emotions though and I think all of us are grateful for that.

Rob grins at him.

“Good idea, you kids go and pack and I’ll make dinner” she says, squeezing us both tightly before walking into the kitchen.

“Well distracted” Rob chuckles as he follows her.

“We’d better get packing” I say despite the fact that the situation is less than Ideal and lets be honest pretty damn scary, there’s a small part of me that’s looking forward to the adventure, at least we are going to be together.

Chapter Forty

The next couple of hours are a manic mix of packing, checking in and fielding Jenny’s twenty million questions. Questions that we don’t have the answers to despite how many times she gives us the classic mom tell the truth look. The parents surprisingly all took the news fairly well. I think it helped that the place we are going to be relocated to is a school and after some serious grilling from Kat the detective admitted it was a prestigious place and we’d still get a good education. In fact we will be getting a better education than we would have if we stayed where we are.

Considering we’ve got less than a year left of high school, I did wonder what difference it would make but it pacified them all a small amount which made it easier for all of us.

Standing in my room and looking at the first safe space I’ve had for a long time, I feel the tell-tale sting of tears. I don’t want to leave this home or Rob and Jenny. In such a short time they have completely changed my life and shown me what parents are supposed to be like. I have never been able to rely on an adult before, not since I left. I don’t think I could ever show them exactly how much that means to me no matter how many times I could tell them.

I shake myself free of my soon to be consuming thoughts. I don’t have time to get emotional about it now. I need to pack and prepare. What I’m preparing for though, I’m not certain. This whole situation is somewhat obscure and I definitely think there’s more going on here than meets the eye. As I’m finishing packing I suddenly get a totally inappropriate and irrational wave of new school jitters come over me before promptly laughing and dismissing them.

“You ok, laughing to yourself in here, Sweetheart?” Trick chuckles coming up behind me and wrapping his arms around my waist, I lean back into his chest.

“Yeah I’m good. I wish we had more information” I say and he makes a sound of agreement.

“Me too, Dragonfly, we’ll get it though. Are you done packing?” he asks and I nod.

“Good, mom sent me up to grab you because dinners ready. She’s gone a bit overboard with it” he chuckles.

“I’m going to miss this” I say.

“We’ll be back, Ever. This isn’t goodbye forever. We’ll get this shit figured out and then we can come back” he reassures me as we walk down the stairs.

It doesn’t escape my notice that he said we will get this shit figured not that the cops will. I feel like I’m right on the edge of something truly monumental and that when I finally fall, it will be into something I could never have predicted.

Something that changes my life forever.

“There you are, I was just about to come and find you” Jenny says as we enter the kitchen.

My eyes widen as I see not only the sheer amount of food but the number of different choices that she’s prepared, it’s pretty damn impressive. I don’t comment as I sit down sensing that although she thinks us going is the right thing to do for our safety and theirs, any small thing will send her over the edge right now.

Dinner is spent steadfastly ignoring what’s going to be happening in the morning and we all spend far longer than usual sat