Page 13 of Storm the Night

“I promise, I won’t be long. Let’s head back.”

We walked in a comfortable silence the rest of the way home and then he took off while I got ready for the night.

Chapter 10

Ryder

Hating that Calliope didn’t have friends made me want to find that fuck face and punch him again. I absolutely would’ve loved nothing more than to take Calliope to Kai’s but I had a sneaking suspicion after everything, she really wanted some friend time. I called Sawyer because I had thought of the perfect solution that would make me feel comfortable leaving her and make her happy too.

“Hey man, what’s up? Callie ok?”

Sawyer was one of my best friends. “Yeah, she’s great. She’s a little sore still but she’s healed up mostly really well. Listen, I need a huge favor.”

“Of course. What’s up?”

“Calliope wants to go to Kai’s. I told her I would take her, but I really think what she wishes for is to go with some girlfriends. Is Lily free tonight?”

“I actually think she has tonight off. Let me talk to her.” Lily worked at Sharon’s Diner, and she worked a lot so I hoped she would be off for the night.

“Please do. If she’s free, maybe she can see if Mika is free too. Maybe even Stella. Just as many of the girls as possible. It would be great if they picked Calliope up and took her to Kai’s to hear the DJ.”

“Yeah, I gotchu, man. Let me shoot you a text after I talk to her. I know she’ll love pulling everyone together.”

“Thanks, man. Keep me posted. I’m headed to see my mom for a bit, but I’ll pay attention to my phone.” I hung up from him and hoped that as many of the girls would be able to go as possible.

*

Unlocking the front door and heading inside the house, it was quiet. I was exhausted. My mom took pills to try and kill herself. She has suffered from bi-polar disorder and schizophrenia for a long time. She said she was hearing voices of a man telling her to end her life. That’s why I had to leave Calliope and head to see my mom.

I sat down on the couch, tossed my keys onto the coffee table, and blew out a breath. Leaning back, I laced my fingers together over my stomach and closed my eyes for a second. It’d been a hell of a two weeks since Calliope’s stuff and then my mom.

“Ryder! Is that you?”

“Hey, yeah. I’m here. You ok?” When I looked up, I felt like I was holding my breath. She looked incredible. Stunning. “You look beautiful.” She was in a pair of jeans that hugged her curves in all the right places along with an oversized sweater. She had a thick headband in hair, but her hair looked wild and fucking stunning all natural.

“Thank you,” she said as she looked down at her outfit. “Is your mom ok?”

I blew out a breath. “That’s a loaded question, sweetheart.”

She walked over and sat down next to me on the couch. “What happened?”

“My mom tried to take her own life tonight.” I could hear the shock in her gasp.

“Ryder! Oh my god, I’m so sorry. Is she ok? Do you need anything?”

Turning toward her on the couch, I said, “I’m fine. This isn’t the first time she’s tried. It’s why she lives in the facility she’s in. She suffers from bi-polar disorder and schizophrenia. When she’s good, she’s great, but her lows are extremely low and on top of it she has voices in her head telling her bad shit. Tonight was one of those nights for the lows and bad shit.

“She’s gonna be fine. They called me to let me know so I went there to talk to her. She’s just not in her right mind, ya know? They had her sedated, so she kept going in and out of sleep. I just sat with her for awhile.”

Calliope moved closer to me. “Do you need anything? How areyoudoing?” She rested her hand on my shoulder.

“I’m fine. I don’t need anything. Well, maybe just one thing.”

She smiled. “Anything? Name it. You’ve done so much for me. I want to help you in any way I can.”

Smiling, I said, “Have a good night tonight. Have fun.”

She looked confused. “Wh...what do you mean? I thought you were taking me.”

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