So guys, we reached the end of this story. And I can't tell you how grateful I am for all the support you gave me during this. I stopped writing a few years ago and English is not my first language (it's Brazilian Portuguese) and I was really anxious about getting out here again, but you made it worth it! Thank you so much for everything, and stay turned for my other stories
It happened very quickly, without warning
"Hey, Liv. You're on TV" she barely had time to respond to Eli's excited exclamation when her blood ran cold upon hearing her little boy ask.
"Mommy, who is William Lewis?"
Her whole body froze.
"Eli, turn that off!" Elliot hissed. The teen quickly took the remote stumbling to get the tv off in a hurry. The older kids looked at each other like deers caught in highlights.
"Mommy?" Noah asked again, sheepishly. The reaction from the older kids made him think he'd done something wrong.
"Noah, come here." Elliot said, as Olivia seems to be frozen in her spot. The boy came to the door and Elliot led them to the bedroom.
"I didn't see that coming, guys, I screwed up" Eli said to his siblings when the door closed.
"Is not your fault, the 10 years is coming up, we should have been more concerned about the news around them." Maureen reassured the teen.
When they made it to the bedroom, Elliot put Noah on the bed and Olivia sat down next to him.
"Do you want me to stay?" He asked. Olivia grabbed his hand with imploring eyes. "Okay" he moved a chair near the window, sitting in front of them, making himself present for the conversation but only participating in it if necessary.
She took a deep breath feeling her heart beating erratically in her chest. The boy kept looking from his mother to Elliot still having no clue what was happening.
"Honey, you know what mom does, right?" She asked slowly.
"You go after the bad guys, to make the city safer" he answered proudly. She smiled at the oversimplified description of her job.
"That's right, but that means sometimes the bad guys get angry at me" he frowned and she continued "And some years ago, a bad guy got really angry at me, and he took me"
"Took you where?"
"To a house, it doesn't matter"
"Where was I?" He asked.
"Oh honey, you weren't here yet" she said "This bad man really hurt me, and his name was William Lewis" she shuddered at the mention of his name.
"And where were you?" He asked Elliot.
"Noah, I wasn't here, I was working out of the country, I only found out about it some months ago" he explained to the boy.
"Is that why you have dots?" She looked confused at him.
"Over your heart, you have dots." he explained. She realized he was talking about the cigarette scars.
"You know about them?" She asked sadly.
He nodded and his eyes filled with tears "I see them sometimes, when you wear shirts, I thought every girl had them too, but no one else has them" he paused, getting upset "Why would anyone hurt you? You are the best" he said.
"Oh sweet boy, there are some people in the world that are just bad, and they do bad stuff to other people" she ran her fingers over his cheeks wiping the tears. "But you don't have to cry, I'm here now, and I'm fine" she tried to make it better.
"But you have bad dreams" he said.
She looked at Elliot not knowing what to say anymore.
"Noah, why do you think that?" The older man asked. He dropped his head.
"Sometimes I hear you scream in your sleep" he said "and the you come to my room and look at me for a really long time, I stay really still so you don't see I'm wake, but then I fall sleep" her breath caught on her throat.
"Why didn't you tell me?" She asked as her own tears fell. Oh her little boy.
"I didn't want to be in trouble for being awake so late" he admitted.
"Oh baby, come here" he threw himself at her, fitting the best he could into her lap with his size. "I'm so sorry"
He cried in her neck and she hugged him until he calmed down. "Mom?"
"Yes, baby"
"If there are bad people in the world, how do I know who to trust?"
"You have to observe how they act, baby. But that can't stop you from meeting new people and making new friends. There are also really good people in the world, and that is enough for us to still have faith." She paused "and you know what? There is a really great group of people you just recently met, and that really make it worth it for us, and they are just outside" he nodded against her neck.
"Want to get back to the living room with the others?"
He nodded again. They got up and walked out of the room. The 5 pairs of eyes looked at them.
"It's ok guys, we're fine" she calmed them.
"You guys knew? So where were you?" Noah asked.
"We did, baby, just not at the time. But we are here now." Kathleen said.
"And no one is hurting you mom again, ok?" Elliot said.
"Because you are partners?" He asked in a little voice. Elliot's eyes went to Olivia's and 24 years of history played between them.
"That's right, sweet boy, we are partners" she gave him a soft smile.
"For better or for worse" Elliot completed.
I'm thinking of adding Elliot to this, but the main focus was the kids, so I'm marking as completed. What you guys think?
Please share your thoughts with me!
Stay tuned for my other stories