Chapter 30
Chapter Thirty
ALICE
T oday, Cindy and Colt would finally return to school. We had been home for a week straight. Colt's night terrors have seemed to have simmered down. He has been sleeping in his bed for the past two nights with no issues.
We know they still have a long road to recovery, so we’ve been watching them intently. Red has also been looking into therapy for them. What Chloe put them through would probably haunt them for the rest of their lives.
I don’t know the details of what happened the night Red left. All I know is that when he came home, he told me it was over.
I didn’t have to guess what he meant.
Under different circumstances, I wouldn’t agree with killing someone. But I know for a fact Declan and Vincent wouldn’t have ever stopped. And Chloe really tried pawning Cindy off to Jefferey.
In my eyes, they got exactly what they deserved.
Yesterday, I went to visit my father's grave, and the moment felt bittersweet. I was finally in a healthy, loving relationship with a baby on the way, but he wasn’t here to see it. And I was partially to blame.
At the end of the day, Declan would have never been a threat had I listened to my father from the beginning. All I can do now is live to make my father proud and know that he’s looking down on me every step of the way.
A soft knock on our bedroom door snaps me out of my thoughts. I had been standing in front of the mirror in our room, gazing at the pudge that has formed in my stomach. The roundness is gone, and now a slight bump showcases my pregnancy.
Before I can pull my shirt down, Cindy enters the room. Her eyes widen, and her jaw goes slack.
“Mom, you’re pregnant?!”
God, that never gets old. Whenever she or Colt calls me mom, I want to cry from happiness.
Maybe it’s the hormones.
Colt runs into our room after hearing what Cindy said. He pauses for just a moment before a huge grin spreads across his face. He and his sister begin cheering and bouncing in excitement. Red comes out of our bathroom, confusion written all over his face.
“What’s going on?”
“Why didn’t you tell us Mom was pregnant?” Cindy frowns at him.
“Why are you just mad at me? Alice didn’t tell you either.” He crosses his arms while throwing me under the bus with him.
Both Cindy and Colt turn to me, awaiting my answer.
“I didn’t want to overwhelm you two with the information. We were going through so much. My focus was making sure you two were okay.”
Their faces soften. They approach me with a hand hovering over my belly, silently asking for permission to touch it. I nod, and they place their hands on my belly.
“I hope you’re a girl. Lord knows we don’t need another Colt around here,” Cindy coos.
Colt's smile is wiped right off his face. “What’s that supposed to mean? Don’t hate because you’re not as awesome as me. I can’t help it if I’m the more good-looking and approachable sibling, and you’re the ninja assassin attacking everybody,” he rants, walking out of the room with Cindy trailing behind him.
I listen to those two going at it until they reach their rooms. Red is doubled over with laughter, and so am I.
They fight like cats and dogs, but when the time comes, they will go against an army for each other. Just as it’s supposed to be.
After everyone gets dressed for the day, we go to the clubhouse for breakfast. Marco and Hannah are out of their seats the second Cindy and Colt enter the dining hall. They are all talking a mile a minute. You would think Cindy and Colt were away at boarding school the way they were acting.
Once breakfast is over, the kids go with Crystal so she can drop them off at school. As Red and I are about to leave to head to the shop, Viper calls his name. Cara is right behind him with a worried expression.
“What’s going on?” Red asks.
Viper scratches the side of his face before sighing. “Paula is at the gate. She said she won't leave until she talks to you.”
Hearing Red’s mother’s name, I gasp. He clenches his teeth and shakes his head. “Tell me you’re joking.”
“I wish I was, brother. Look, if you don’t want to speak to her, I can have Chief come out here and escort her off the property, but I didn’t wan?—”
“It's fine, Prez. Send her in.”
Viper nods and walks away, hand in hand with Cara. Red leads me into the common room, which is surprisingly empty outside of Mouse, who is wiping down the bar.
A few minutes after sitting, Paula walks into the room. She watches Red with a shaky smile before taking a seat across from us.
Red's mother is beautiful. He looks a lot like her. They have the same hazel eyes and raven-black hair. She has a few strands of gray, but she doesn’t look a day over forty.
And Red is thirty-two!
Clearly, despite being with Senior, he couldn’t do anything to take away from her beauty.
Red watches her closely, not bothering to speak. It is so awkward.
“What is it that you want, Paula?” Red finally speaks up.
Paula nods somberly. “I guess I deserve that. I’ve been a horrible mother to you.” She looks at Red just as a lone tear travels down her cheek. “I’m so sorry, Cliff.”
Red looks taken aback by her admission. Before he can say anything, she continues.
“I should have protected you, but I was weak. The day I saw you and your children in that grocery store, I felt like the biggest failure. The day Senior kicked you out, a little piece of me died. You were my baby. I should have chosen you. You didn’t deserve to have me turn my back on you.”
Paula begins to cry and so do I. I wish my mother would have come and apologized for abandoning me. Instead, the day I tracked her down, she told me the day she left me on my father’s porch, she didn’t have a daughter.
I was broken-hearted and distraught.
Red opens his mouth, and I can tell by his expression, he is going to let his anger speak for him. I place my hand on his shoulder and shake my head. He huffs before taking a deep breath to calm down.
“You should have. But you didn’t.” He shrugs before turning away.
“You’re right. And that’s why the day that I saw you, I went home and packed my bags. I didn’t want to keep living a life that didn’t involve my son. I filed for divorce and started therapy. I needed to figure out why, no matter how unhappy I was, I couldn’t leave Senior. After a few sessions of therapy, I learned that due to things that happened to Senior and me as kids, we were trauma-bonded. I’ve been working on myself, trying to be a better person.”
“You left Senior?” Red asks in disbelief.
She nods vigorously. “Yes. I had to file a restraining order, but we are in the process of a divorce. I know I did a lot of wrong in the past, but I just wanted to see if maybe we could start over. You don’t have to introduce me to your kids if you don’t want to. I… I just want my son back.”
These damn hormones have me bawling like a big-ass baby. Paula and I sit there waiting on pins and needles to see what Red would say. After a minute of silence, Paula sighs dejectedly. I want to interfere and tell Red to give it a chance, but I have no right to tell him how to feel.
This was his past and I have nothing to do with it. Whatever he chooses to do, I will stand behind him one hundred percent.
“W-well, I guess I should go. Again, I’m so sorry for not being the mother you deserved, Cliff. I wish you nothing but happiness. If you ever change your mind, just give me a call. I’ll be waiting.”
Paula grabs her purse and begins to walk away. I grab Red’s hand because I see it shaking. He appears to be deep in thought. I give his hand a light squeeze. His gaze snaps to me before moving over to Paula, who is almost out the door.
“Mom,” he calls out just above a whisper.
Paula whirls around with a gasp as she places a shaky hand over her gaping mouth. “Y-yo-you called me mom?” she sobs.
Red gets up and walks over to her before wrapping her in his arms. Paula breaks down as she returns his hug. Red’s eyes are shut tight as he rests his head on top of his mother’s while holding her close.
“I don’t know where we go from here, but we can take it one day at a time.”
Paula nods eagerly. “Whatever you want, son.”
After she calms down, Red walks her back over to me as I stand. “Mom, this is my fiancée, Alice.”
“Oh my God, it’s so nice to meet you.” Paula hugs me, rocking me from side to side.
We sit down and talk with his mom for over an hour before Red tells her we need to leave for work. Before she can leave, Red calls Cara into the room. He asks her to install a security system around his mother's apartment. Cara lets him know it will be done by the end of the day. Paula tries objecting, but Red tells her to let him finally protect her like he always tried. She doesn’t give any further argument.
I am so happy to see everything falling into place for Red and me. When I came here, I only wanted to escape the clutches of Declan, and I gained so much more.
My father always used to say there was always light after the dark.
I guess he was right.