Page 26 of Landon & Shay: Part Two

“You don’t have to do that,” he commented.

“Do what?”

“Hold me.”

That was when I held on tighter. I knew when people say you don’t have to hold on to them, that’s when you need to hold on the most. I’d done it for my mother on the nights she cried after she learned about my father’s betrayal. I’d crawled into her bed, wrapped her in my embrace, and held on tight.

I did the same for Landon, thinking of Mima’s words as I did so.

Sé valiente. Sé fuerte. Sé amable. Y quédate.

Be brave. Be strong. Be kind. And stay.

* * *

Landon wasn’t notifiedof when his father’s funeral was taking place. April hadn’t replied to any of his messages, so we had to track the information down on our own. When Landon, his mom, and I showed up to the church where the funeral was being held, we were stopped almost immediately when April saw us walking into the building.

“No,” she stated in her all-black outfit. Her eyes were puffy as if she hadn’t slept in days, and her hair was pulled up into a perfectly crafted bun. “You can’t be here.”

Landon stuffed his hands into the pockets of his gray slacks and shrugged. “He was my father. I think I have a right to be here more than you do.”

“That’s not how Ralph would’ve wanted it,” she disagreed.

Landon’s mother stepped forward, standing tall with her shoulders rolled back. “Yes, well, that’s not a call for you to make.”

“You definitely shouldn’t be here,” April scolded, eyeing Landon’s mother up and down. “You’re the last person he’d want here.”

“I was married to him for over twenty years. And you were, what? Screwing him for twenty days?”

“Try seven years,” April spat out, the venom in her words stinging Lori. “And the only reason he was able to put up with you in those last few years was because he had me to come to when he was overwhelmed with you.”

“I knew it,” Lori murmured, her nostrils flaring.

A sinister smile curved April’s lips as if she felt victorious in finally voicing the truth of her affair with Ralph, but I didn’t understand why she’d feel good about that. How could someone feel good about being so evil?

“You’re disgusting,” Lori spat out.

“Yes, well, at least I’m not you,” April replied.

Landon stepped forward a fire burning in the back of his gaze. “Say one more nasty word toward my mother, and I’ll make sure you pay for it.”

“Landon,” Lori said, her voice controlled as she put a hand in front of her son. “No.”

He growled slightly but took a step back at his mother’s request.

“I will leave, but at least let Landon pay his respects to his father,” Lori requested, keeping her calm a lot better than I would’ve if I were in her situation.

“Like I said before, no. Neither of you are welcome here. It’s Landon’s fault his father passed away anyway. He was the last one to speak to him and upset him to such an extreme.”

“Don’t ever put that kind of bullshit on my son. He was not the cause of what happened,” Lori barked, raising her voice to a level that made everyone around us look our way. It was now time for her eyes to blaze with anger. “I will rip your poor excuse for extensions out of your head if you ever say such a thing again.”

“It’s true.” April pursed her lips. “Like Ralph always said, you two are toxic, and he wouldn’t want you anywhere near him today. So, leave.”

There were a few seconds of pause as Lori and April stood nose to nose, breathing heavily. Landon finally reached for his mother’s arm and gently tugged. “It’s fine, Mom. Let’s go. She’s right—he wouldn’t want me here. To be honest, I don’t want to be here either.”

My chest ached for Landon because I knew that wasn’t true. I knew how much he cared for the man who hadn’t loved him back the way he deserved. I knew how much he was hurting after his father’s passing, especially since their last conversation hadn’t been a good one. I was sure he wanted a chance to say better words to his father, a chance to give his truths, but he wasn’t going to be able to do so.

Life wasn’t fair for a lot of people in this world, but I was certain it was even less fair for Landon Harrison.

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