Chapter 6
After his bath, Eamon climbed into bed wearing his dinosaur pajamas. "Dad, is that lady really my mom?" he asked.
"Yeah," I replied.
"Then why doesn't she live with us?" Eamon asked.
"Because she went somewhere really far away," I said.
"Then why didn't she take me with her?" he asked.
"Because..." I hesitated. Because she chose to take Darian with her instead.
"Dad?" Eamon repeated.
"Go to sleep. I'll take you to kindergarten tomorrow," I said.
"Okay, goodnight Dad," Eamon said.
"Goodnight," I replied.
I turned off the lights. In the darkness, I stared up at the ceiling.
Three years, over a thousand nights. Every night, it was just me and Eamon.
And Calanthia had her papers, her awards, her lab, and that junior of hers.
I rolled over. And my phone lit up.
It was a message from Calanthia: [I found those seventeen messages you talked about.
[Darian deleted them while he was handling my phone for me. Aldric, there's a lot you don't know.]
I stared at it for three seconds. I didn't reply and set my phone face down on the nightstand.
Early the next morning, I took Eamon to kindergarten.
At the entrance, I ran into Eamon's homeroom teacher, Karla Yates.
"Morning, Aldric! Eamon's looking pretty lively today," Karla said.
"Yeah, he went to bed early last night," I said.
"By the way, a woman came by this morning, said she was Eamon's mom and wanted to take him out for breakfast. I didn't recognize her, so I didn't let her take him," Karla added.
My expression turned grim. "You did the right thing. From now on, only me and John can pick up Eamon," I said.
"Got it, Mr. Vance. I'll make a note of that," Karla replied.
I crouched down and adjusted Eamon's backpack straps.
"Dad, can I have a cupcake today?" Eamon asked.
"I'll bring you one after school," I replied.
"Yay!" Eamon cheered. He bounced into the classroom.
I stood outside the kindergarten and dialed a number. "Ms. Anderson?"
"Morning, Mr. Vance," Bennett answered.
"Where did you put up Calanthia's team?" I asked.
"Verlia Hotel apartments, booked according to the local talent program," Bennett replied.
"Don't ever give out my personal info to anyone," I said.
"Okay, Mr. Vance. Sorry, I wasn't thinking," Bennett stammered.
I hung up.
As soon as I opened the car door at the office, Vivian rushed over. She said, "Mr. Vance, Dr. Blackwell from Dr. Thornwood's team is here.
"He says he has something personal to discuss with you."
Darian? Well, that was intriguing.
I took the elevator up to the 32nd floor.
Darian was sitting in the lounge. When he saw me walk in, he stood up. "Aldric."
"Dr. Blackwell, is there something you need?" I asked.
He seemed torn. "About that divorce agreement..." he started.
"You signed for it," I said.
Darian lowered his head. "I made a mistake. When the agreement arrived, Calanthia was preparing for an important defense. I didn't want to distract her."
"So you made the decision for her and hid the divorce papers," I said.
"I..." he stammered.
"Darian, you like her, don't you?" I asked.
He stiffened and said, "That's not the point."
"No, that's exactly the point," I said, dropping into a chair. "You hid my divorce papers, wiped out my messages to her, took over her phone. Was that really for her benefit?"
Darian went quiet.
"Did you really think hiding the divorce papers would mean she'd be yours?" I pressed.
"That's not what I meant," he protested.
"Whether you meant it or not doesn't matter. What matters is Calanthia didn't know about any of this," I said.
"She found out last night," he muttered.
"Oh?" I raised my eyebrows.
"She checked the chat history and found those seventeen messages you deleted," Darian said, letting out a long breath. "She had a huge fight with me."
"And then?" I asked.
"She said she hates me," he replied.
I looked at him. "Darian, you think she only hates you?"
He looked up.
I added, "She hates herself too. Even if you hadn't deleted those messages or hidden the papers, she still wouldn't have come back.
"You just gave her an excuse. Someone else to blame, so she wouldn't have to confront her own feelings."
Darian's expression collapsed. He knew deep down I was right.
Calanthia didn't stay away because Darian blocked her path. She chose not to come back herself.
"Aldric, are you really not going to give Calanthia a chance?" Darian asked.
"I gave her a chance every single night for over three years. She never took any of them," I replied.
"You've changed," Darian said.
"No, I finally see things for what they are," I replied.
"What is it you see?" Darian asked.