Silent Killer Page 0,143
me, she thought for sure y’all believed Missy was the Fire and Brimstone Killer.”
“Go home with your mom,” Jack said. “The three of us will talk later. Okay?”
“Okay.”
Jack squeezed Seth’s shoulder as he looked at his son. Cathy knew that he wanted to grab Seth and hug him. But he didn’t. He released his hold on Seth and then turned and walked back into Mike’s office.
He had all but ignored her.
As soon as his mother took him to his grandparents’ home and his grandfather met them at the door with a reprimand, Seth knew what he had to do. He’d been thinking about it for a while now and had already pretty much made up his mind. After the way his mom had responded to his hysteria about Missy this morning, he felt certain he was making the right decision. His grandparents loved him and needed him, but his mother understood him. She didn’t expect him to be perfect. She just wanted him to do the very best he could.
He’d been putting this off, not wanting to upset his grandparents, but after his mom left, he told Nana and Granddad that they needed to have a serious talk.
“It’s not as if y’all won’t see a lot of me,” Seth tried to explain. “I’ll be over here all the time. It’s just I think it’s time for me to move back in with Mom now. I should be with her.”
“I won’t hear of it,” Granddad said. “You’re just a boy and certainly not old enough to make this type of decision for yourself. Wait another month or two. Please. Your mother isn’t the best influence on you and—”
“I’ll soon be sixteen. I’m old enough to know what’s right for me.”
“Seth, sweetheart, are you sure?” his nana asked.
“Yes, ma’am, I’m sure.”
“I do not want you living with your mother and being exposed to her fornicating with that man.” Granddad’s face turned red as he balled his hands into tight fists. “She is setting a bad example for you.”
Seth knew it would be futile to argue with his grandfather, a man who could see only one side of any issue—his own side. “I think Mom and Jack will probably get married.”
His granddad huffed.
“You could wait awhile, at least until school starts, and give us time to adjust to the idea that you’re leaving us,” Nana suggested.
“He’s not leaving now and that’s final!” Granddad stormed out of the room.
Nana patted his arm. “Give him a little time, please.”
“I will. He didn’t give me a chance to say that I’ll think about waiting until school starts to move in with Mom.”
“That’s good, that’s good. Thank you, dear.”
He could see the sadness in Nana’s eyes and hated that he had put it there. “I love you, and that won’t change just because I’m living with Mom. I hope you can persuade Granddad not to take Mom to court over this. He’s got to know that, at sixteen, the judge will allow me to choose who I want to live with.”
After he and Nana talked for a while, he felt better about the entire situation. Nana had a way of counteracting Granddad’s negativism with her positive attitude.
“I think I should spend some time with Mom today,” Seth said. “I want to explain things, to tell her that we’ve talked and—”
The doorbell rang, but before Nana could respond, someone pounded on the door. “Mona? Mona, let me in. It’s Elaine.”
“That was certainly fast,” Nana said.
“What’s she doing here?” Seth asked.
Nana rolled her eyes and sighed. “I have a feeling that your grandfather called in reinforcements.” She walked to the door, opened it and barely had time to move out of the way before his other grandmother stormed into the living room.
Grandmother pinned him with her sharp, narrowed gaze. “What is this I hear about your wanting to move in with your mother?”
“J.B. certainly didn’t waste any time,” Nana said.
“J.B. is worried, as well he should be,” Grandmother replied, never taking her eyes off Seth.
“I’ll leave you two alone to talk,” Nana told them. “I imagine I’ll find J.B. piddling in the garage.”
As soon as Nana left, Grandmother glowered at him. “You will not move in with your mother. Do you hear me? She isn’t a suitable role model for any young person. She is living in sin with that Perdue man!”
“I like Jack,” Seth said. “I think my mom loves him, and he loves her. I hope they get married. Mom deserves to be happy.”
“She’ll never be happy