Running into the house, I grabbed my cell phone and called for a cab. I was going to get answers today. The only place that was going to give me the answers I needed was to get home to my mother. She wasn’t going to look for what I wanted, I knew her well enough to know that. She hardly even managed me during my career.

I didn’t even bother to see if Zaden was still home as I walked out of the front door. Instead I grabbed my mask and put it on before entering the cab the moment it pulled up. As I closed the door, I told them where to drop me off. Too busy with my phone, booking the earliest flight I could. Kind of grateful that my mother decided to stay in the ranch home she built in Oklahoma.

That place was built when I had just graduated high school. Walls surrounded the property and you needed to know the code to get in. The code was hard to figure out because it was a date that belonged to someone I didn’t talk about much. It was the birthday of the little boy who saved me back at Garden Grove. You could say he was my first love and probably the only one I’d ever have.

The sound of my cell phone ringing made me check to see who it was. Zaden’s name appeared on the screen, but I ignored it. I had just assumed that he was getting called in for an emergency surgery, but it could have just been a consultation as well. It was either that or he was watching my every move in that house. I wasn’t sure which one I felt more comfortable with. But something told me that I was missing the obvious and it was my mission to find out what.

My phone continued to ring as I rode the cab to the airport. I didn’t bother to see who it was calling me. Right now I just wanted to go home. My main focus was to get to a familiar surrounding and look for the answers I wanted. No, needed. Find the answers I needed.

My mother wasn’t surprised as I pulled up the long driveway towards her home. She just continued to watch me from the small table on the wrap around porch as she drank a glass of wine. My mother and I had a pretty tense relationship because of me making things hard for her. You could say that we never saw eye to eye.

“Zaden warned me that you were probably on your way here,” she said before taking a sip of her wine, “Getting cold feet?”

“Where’s the yearbook?” I asked her. Making her roll her eyes.

Placing down her glass, she answered, “I haven’t had a chance to look for it. It’s probably in the storage building in town. We’ll look for it tomorrow.”

Something told me that my mother was avoiding something, but it also could be the fact that I lost my trust in everyone. Especially after the whole Jax Moon thing taking place. But I also had to put into account that my mother did in fact make plans to save my career. For that I was grateful.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Admitting defeat, I headed inside the house. I was tired from the trip, even though it wasn’t that long. A four hour flight was hardly anything to brag about. But knowing my mother, she would try to make me rest anyways. Even if I wasn’t tired. For some reason I feel like she would do anything to make sure that I don’t see that yearbook as well. Something felt off and it was bugging me to not know what.

Once I was inside, I took in the house. It still looked the same as the day I left when I was old enough to live on my own responsibly. The light gray walls complemented the white crown molding and white furniture. It amazed me that my mother went for such a color for anything, but she was pleased with it. But in all honesty, it burned my eyes to see how bright the house was. The sophisticated country style was completely different from the dark gray walls of Zaden’s modern home.

My phone rang once again, making me check to see who it was. Em’s name shone on the screen. Confused, I answered the phone, “Aren’t you locked up?”

“No, I’m free. I was found innocent because that piece of work convinced them that I had nothing to do with it,” she informed me, “At least he has some sense left. So where are you?”

Feeling relieved that my best friend was free of charges, I hoped that she would have a better pick in med in the near future. Someone who wasn’t connected to someone like Jax Moon. But even though it would be nice to see her, it wasn’t going to be easy. Not when I left the state to go back to the place I grew up.

“I went home, Em,” I told her.

She let out a sigh, “I’ll call a cab and head on over. I’m just leaving the police station.”

“No, Em,” I told her, “I went home. As in back to my mother’s house.”

“YOU WHAT?!” she nearly screamed into the phone in disbelief, “You gotta be kidding me. Why would you go back there? I thought you hated that place.”

“I needed to talk to my mother about the wedding plans,” I lied. At the moment I couldn’t remember what I had already told her. My mind was still trying to process all of the puzzle pieces put in front of me. All I remember telling her was that it was an arranged marriage but that was about it.

“Well, call me when you get back. I need my best friend,” she whined on the phone before hanging up.

Rolling my eyes, I put my cell phone away. It was at that moment that I noticed that my mother was on the phone as well. I could hear her muffled voice as if she was having an intense conversation with someone. Assuming it was probably just my manager she was arguing with because I just left without saying anything. Part of the deal was that I would inform the company about my whereabouts at all times in case they had to do damage control.

Shrugging it off, I headed up the stairs towards my old bedroom. I’m sure that it would be the same as everything else in the house. It appeared that my mother wasn’t someone who liked change all that much.