I sit on a step, half way between the first and second floor and hold my face in my hands. I’m letting years of pent up anger get the best of me. I need to let it go, find the inner strength to raise above the level that Bianca keeps me at and show her that her son didn’t make a mistake. Even if she thinks he did, Liam doesn’t feel that way. My name is tattooed across his chest for Pete’s sake. I’m not going anywhere.
I want to call Bianca and ask her what type of game she’s playing except I have a feeling Sterling doesn’t know she came to the shower today. As much as I loathe the woman, I’m not going to make waves for her. As evil as she is, I firmly believe she’s a product of her husband’s brainwashing, because no decent mother would willingly treat her child the way she’s treated Liam.
As angry as I am at Bianca, I’m equally pissed at my mother. I didn’t even know they knew each other. The Prestons are from the wrong side of the tracks according to the Westburys. So why Bianca is even giving my mother the time of day is beyond me, but definitely something I need to look into.
The doorbell rings, causing me to sigh. I don’t want to move from my pity step. It could be Nick coming to pick Noah up for practice and while I’d be okay with him walking in, Liam would not.
“Noah’s…” I pull the door open and start speaking before I realize that I don’t know the person standing there. “Can I help you?”
“I have a delivery for Josephine Preston.”
My insides turn at the sound of not only my maiden name, but also my full name. I hate to be called Josephine and when I am, it’s usually because something bad is about to happen. The man standing at my door is dressed in green. Not brown for UPS, dark purple for FedEX or blue for the postal service, but gross puke green. He hands me a clipboard to sign, except I don’t reach for it.
“Who is the package from?”
“I’m afraid I’m not at liberty to say, ma’am. Please sign here.” He points to the X before handing me the pen. Everything in me is telling me to refuse the delivery and shut the door in his face, but there’s a better part of me that’s curious. I know I shouldn’t be and I may regret this by the time my day is over. I hesitantly sign ‘Josie Westbury’ and press down as hard as I can so there’s no mistaking my name. In one fell swoop the board is under his arm and he hands me a medium sized cardboard box with no return name or address. Before I can ask him again who it’s from, he’s gone, passing through the gate and out into the street.
“What’s that?”
I startle at the sound of Nick’s voice and look up quickly to find him standing in front of me. My heart is pounding out of my chest right now.
“Shit, you scared me.”
“Sorry, I called your name but you look pretty focused on that box. Something for the baby?”
I shake my head and look at it one more time before tucking it under my arm. “No, I’m not sure what it is.”
Before I can invite him in, Noah is barreling down the steps and toward the door dressed in his baseball gear. “Bye, Mom,” he says, running past me to Nick’s car.
“I think that’s my cue.” Nick smiles as he looks at Noah over his shoulder.
I nod, unable to find the words. I want to get inside and open this box, but I don’t want to be rude to Nick.
“Hey, you sure you’re okay? I can call Aubrey and have her come over.”
Shaking my head, I cover my face with my hand to hide my embarrassment. “I’m fine, just spacey.”
“I’ll call you tomorrow before I bring him home, unless you want him back tonight?”
“No, you guys need some time together.” Nick smiles and turns toward his car. “Hey, Nick, good luck tonight,” I tell him as he throws his hand up in a wave. He knows Noah well enough to know that breaking the news that Aubrey is pregnant won’t go over very well.
Once they’re out of the driveway, I go inside and press the buttons on the keypad that turns my house into a fortress. Surprisingly, hearing the windows lock, the deadbolts slide into place and the gate moving into position is calming. The security system is designed to keep people out, although even the most desperate person could find a way into the house if they wanted to. With Linda already off for the day, I’m all by myself.
Setting the box down onto the counter, I pull out the scissors and cut the tape on the box. It’s filled with those annoying Styrofoam peanuts that stick to everything. The eagerness inside of me tells me to just dig in and search for the hidden treasure, but the way my name was written on the package tells me to proceed with caution. I scoop out a few handfuls and soon enough, I uncover a book. As I pull it out, I wish I hadn’t. My stomach drops when I read the title. It’s the book he said was coming, but knew nothing about. It boggles my mind that people can pry into your life and write whatever they want as long as they include the word “source”.
Liam Page: The Untold Story
An Unofficial Account by Calista Jones
The book in my hand feels like it weighs a hundred pounds or more. I flip it over and read the back matter.