Page 39 of Hate So Deep

Is Dad up to his old shit again? I have this burning need to know and I don’t even know why.

Would it make me feel better or worse if he was?

Shit this is so confusing.

Unfortunately, the screen is locked. However, when I hear Dad and Celia down the hall, I step closer, unashamed to be eavesdropping on their conversation.

“It’s nothing, honey,” Dad mutters and Celia touches his arm.

“No more lies, Trent. We agreed, remember?”

Lies about what? It was my dad lying to my mom, wasn’t it? What’s going on?

Backing away, I cock my head as he says, “The detective working Buck’s case called.”

“Okay,” she says, touching his arm. “What’s wrong?”

“They…they wanted to ask me about Lala.”

Celia’s words echo in my brain while I hide in my room. In all the years that have passed, I’ve always considered her to be the one who broke my family apart and to an extent, I still do.

However, her softly spoken demand forces me to see that my dad was no saint and it’s possible that the way he treated my mom extended to this woman, albeit in a different way.

My mom is a ballbuster to be sure. Celia is softer, kinder…the two couldn’t be more different if they tried.

However, the reality is, they both had a husband who was sharing time between two families.

Did Celia know my dad was married when she met him? If not, when did she discover the truth?

Beyond that, I’m trying to decide if I’m in deep shit if the police want to speak to my dad about me and I don’t know what to do.

Retracing my steps has become my top priority but how do I do that when I don’t even know what happened and admitting that I was black-out drunk will only make things worse?

I won’t know unless I ask but my newfound thoughts are thwarted when I make my way back downstairs.

Of course, with all the shit happening, I forgot about Kayla. Now she’s back and I can’t help but wonder just how close these two are if she’s spending the holiday with Dirk.

Biting back a groan, I summon a smile when she approaches and says, “Merry Christmas!”

My bones comply, albeit stiffly when she leans in for a hug. Over her shoulder, I meet Finn’s wide eyes before she looks away.

Although it’s interesting to know that there were rumors regarding Dirk and I, it’s completely irrelevant now. We’re so far apart, we might as well be in another country, and we were never particularly close to begin with.

Nothing but my future matters now and if I don’t focus, I may not have one to speak of.

Resolved, I turn away as my dad emerges from down the hall. When he passes, he kisses my cheek, but I see the worry creasing his eyes and my heart thumps.

Why did they call my dad? Did my mom not answer or is it something more sinister?

“Dad?” I whisper as he passes.

“Yeah, hon?” he says, patting his pockets.

With a grim smile, I pick his keys up from the sideboard and hold them out as I say, “Is everything okay?”

My heart drops when he pauses and stares at his toes before saying, “Yeah. It’s fine.”

He’s lying but he’s become quite good at that. Hasn’t he?

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