Page 91 of A Lesson in Obedience
Corrin licked her lips, smacking them. “Just curious. The school has archives, and I just wanted to clear some things up. Riley is curious about it too.”
I rubbed my temple but didn’t stop her. She wasn’t wrong…Iwascurious.
Teresa leaned back against the couch. “My husband had a wandering eye. Our marriage was never about love, but our son was the only thing that connected and united us. Phillip was a weak man, but Erik loved him. We wanted what was best for our son. That was where our similarities ended.”
“That doesn’t answer my–” Corrin started, but I grabbed Corrin’s knee and squeezed hard enough that I’m sure she felt a bit of pain.
“If that’s a sore subject, I’m sorry to bring it up…” I began to apologize, but she cut me off.
“His death was such a tragedy to that school. I tried my best to make the transition of the next chancellor easy, but it destroyed my son…amongst other things.” She looked at me, but it was almost like she was looking past me.
I stuck my tongue in my cheek, taking a moment before speaking. “I’m going to just assume you were fully aware of when he came back from his disappearing act and was the Chancellor of Mystic Riegan?”
She blew out a breath. “Of course. That moment made me so proud, finally being the person his father never was. He was going to run that school better than Phillip ever did.”
“My mom told me you and Chancellor Fowler didn’t get along.”
Teresa stared at the rug underneath her coffee table for more than a few seconds and I shifted on the couch. She ran her hands along the tops of her thighs before getting off the couch. “Would you excuse me a moment?”
“Sure,” I answered quickly.
“Bathroom?” Jade asked, grabbing her mass of curls and moving them over her shoulder.
Teresa pointed around the corner, waiting as Jade followed her instructions. Chancellor Fowler’s mother disappeared into her kitchen and I let the heaviness I felt in my chest ease up.
“I shouldn’t have fucking said that,” I whispered to Corrin.
“We’ll get nowhere if you play it safe. And that means maybe making things a tiny bit uncomfortable.”
“A tiny bit? Corrin, I basically told her that I know her son didn’t like her that much. Also how the fuck do you just blurt out a question about her murdering her husband?”
She pushed out her bottom lip, not looking sorry at all. “Hmm, yeah, well can’t take it back now. Keep moving forward.”
Teresa walked back into the room, now choosing to sit on the arm of the couch. “You caught me off guard with that, I’m sorry.”
I shook my head. “No, I shouldn’t have brought it up like that, but it’s just odd to me that he took your maiden name later on.”
She hummed. “We had spoken about it and thought it best he move on from his father as much as he still adored that man. He needed to build something new for himself.”
I tucked one of my braids behind my ear. “Mrs. Lowe…”
“Call me Teresa, dear.”
“Okay, Teresa. You were around the time my dad died, so I have to ask…” I rolled my lips together, “did you know that your son was responsible?”
She narrowed her eyes at me, but there was no indication that she was hurt by my question. One of her eyebrows shot upward. “Freak accidents happen all the time.”
“Accident? No, no. He admitted to me that he did it. I want to know if you knew, if you found out that your son killed my father, so you left?”
Teresa shook her head, placing her hands on either side of her skull. “Of course he admitted it. Always so obsessed with you and that woman.” She wasn’t looking at me, but she was talking to herself. “I thought maybe him leaving and just getting away would be good for him; he came back and wanted to be a leader, he wanted power, and I had the son I always deserved again.”
I caught Corrin’s eye and she quickly nodded towards the door. Jade walked around the corner but stopped when she saw the concerned looks on our faces.
“Teresa…we’ve caused you a lot of stress and I think we should be going.” I started to get up from the couch, Corrin following close behind.
“I don’t hate you sweetheart, I really don’t. Your mother was going to make my son weak. He wanted to leave, he wanted to rid himself of his own family and make a new one and that kind of overbearing love scared your mother. She left him and that was the happiest day of my life.” She turned her head so she could look at me. I was halfway to the door, but her stare caused me to stop. Jadehustled over to us and Teresa never acknowledged her. “He blamed me for it. I got rid of his cheating father so that that man’s feeble heart wouldn’t taint my son. Your mother made Erik’s heart just as vulnerable, and it made me sick.”
I was inches away from the door when my feet wouldn’t move. Corrin tried to shift sideways, but nothing happened. Jade tried to move her legs, but it was like there was force keeping us here.
