She pointed toward the hallway. “In his office,” she said.
He stood up, walking toward the hallway. He stopped, turning to face her. “Are you coming?”
Realizing she hadn’t moved, she stood up, following close behind him. They entered the office and Frank immediately sat down at the laptop, opening it. Peighton swallowed, seeing another man sit at Todd’s desk made her throat grow dry. She frowned, suddenly feeling like she couldn’t catch her breath.
“I’m going to check on Kyle,” she said softly, wanting nothing more than to get out of that room.
“Do you want me to come with you?” Frank asked, starting to stand.
“No,” she said. “You should stay. I’ll be back in just a minute.”
He nodded. “Okay.”
She grabbed hold of the door, walking out of the room and taking a deep breath. She walked up the stairs, and down the hallway, headed for Kyle’s bedroom. Staring at the light leaking out from under the door, she listened, trying to hear what her son might be doing. “Kyle?” she called. When he didn’t answer, her pulse began to race, her thoughts headed to the worst place imaginable. What if he’d disappeared again? What if he wasn’t coming back this time? Why hadn’t she followed him immediately?
She grabbed hold of the door handle, pushing the door open quickly. “Kyle!” she yelled, entering his room with gusto. He lay upside down on his bed, his head hanging off the side, staring up at her with a blank expression.
“Yeah?” he asked, appearing annoyed.
She slapped a hand to her collar bone, letting out a dramatic sigh. “Oh, thank god. Why weren’t you answering?” she demanded.
“I didn’t hear you,” he said simply. “What do you want?”
“I want to see you,” she told him. “I’ve been missing you.” When he didn’t respond, she continued. “Are you going to tell me why you ran away?”
He rolled over on his bed, sitting up. When he still didn’t answer, she sat down beside of him. “Kyle?”
“What, Mom?” he snapped.
“Can you please talk to me? Why did you leave? Do you have any idea how worried about you I was?” she asked, her voice growing quieter as she fought back tears.
He looked at her then, his eyes truly meeting hers, and a softness filled his face. He was quiet for a moment longer before he spoke. “I didn’t mean to worry you,” he said honestly.
“Why would you leave? What did I do wrong?” she asked, welcoming the tears that fell suddenly. “Don’t you know that you’re all I have left? You’re everything that matters to me, Kyle.”
He looked away awkwardly, his eyes darting back to his mother every few seconds. “You didn’t do anything wrong,” he said finally.
“Why then?” she asked. “Why would you run away? Why would you go to your grandmother’s house instead of just talking to me?”
He shrugged, rubbing his arms as if he were cold. “I don’t know.”
“I don’t like that answer, Kyle. I need to know why. I need to know what I can do to make sure that never happens again,” she begged him.
“I came home, Mom. I don’t know what else you want from me.”
“I want the truth,” she said. “I want you to tell me why you left. Is it because Frank told you about the job?”
“No,” he said firmly.
“Is it because of Clay? Because he stayed overnight?”
He looked disgusted. “No!”
“Then what? What is it?”
“I just needed to get away,” he said finally.
“Away from what? Away from me?”
He stood up from the bed, appearing agitated. “Just…just away. Away from all of it.”
She stood too, walking toward him. He backed away. “Kyle, I can’t help you if you don’t talk to me.”
“You can’t help me anyway, Mom. Just drop it, okay?” he asked, his chest rising and falling as he breathed heatedly.
“Kyle—” she pleaded, interrupted by the bedroom door swinging wide open. In the doorway stood Frank, his eyes wide.
“Peighton, come with me,” he told her.
“We’re in the middle of something. Is everything all right?” she asked, fear filling her.
“Now,” he said simply, turning and walking back down the hall. She moved toward the door, turning back to face Kyle before she left.
“We’ll finish this conversation in a minute,” she said, casting a longing look at him once more before disappearing out the door.
When she walked into the office behind Frank, she thought she was prepared for the worst. “What did you find?” she asked, bracing herself for trouble.
“I found out who broke into your house the last time your alarm went off.”
“Okay,” she said, holding her breath. He stared at her for a moment, his face serious. “Show me, Frank!” she demanded. He sat down at the desk, grabbing hold of the laptop and spinning it to face her. She stared down at the computer, lowering herself to look at the dark screen. She squinted, trying to make out just what she was looking at before gasping.
“Is that—?” she asked, but she knew exactly who she was looking at. She’d looked into that face so often lately. Trusted that face. Loved that face.
“Peighton, it’s Clay.”
Thirty-Two
PEIGHTON
Peighton sat next to Frank in the car, staring ahead at the light that shone out of Clay’s living room window. They’d been sitting for so long, her entire window was fogged up. In her lap, she held her hands together, wringing them with worry.
“Are you ready?” Frank asked again, touching her shoulder gently. She shook her head, unable to speak. “Are you sure you don’t want me to go with you?” She nodded.
His eyes bore into her, though she couldn’t bring herself to look his way. She felt foolish, embarrassed. “What am I supposed to say to him?”
“Ask him why.”
“But,” she asked, turning to look his way, “what if he lies?”
“Then I’ll kick his ass,” he joked, elbowing her playfully.
“Frank,” she cautioned him, not in the mood for jokes.
“Just ask him for the truth, Peighton. If he lies, it’s his loss.”
She shook her head, rubbing her temple with her cold fingers. “I can’t believe I was stupid enough to think I could trust him. I let him into my life, Frank, my son’s life, our home…” she trailed off, not saying what they both knew was on the tip of her tongue: my heart.
“Hey,” he told her, his voice firm, “you are not stupid. You are kind and trusting, and as far as I’m concerned, that’s one of your best qualities. You’ve always been able to find the good in people, Peight. Even when there’s no good to be found. If you see something in this guy, then maybe there’s something there. But for now, you need to find out why he’s been lying to you. Because if he hurts you,” he stopped, his jaw tight. “If he hurts you, I’ll kill him.”
She froze. “I’m scared to go in.”
“Then let me go in with you. I won’t interrupt. I’ll just be there to make sure you’re safe.”
“He isn’t dangerous,” she assured him, though she wasn’t entirely sure how she knew.
“You don’t know that,” he called her bluff.
“I’ll be okay, Frank, I swear,” she said, placing her hand on the door handle and pulling. The car door opened, the overhead light coming on. She cast one last look toward Frank before climbing out of the car. “I’ll be back,” she promised.
“I’ll be here,” he said.
She made her way up the short driveway and onto his front patio, pausing slightly before she opened the screen door and knocked. Within seconds she saw the curtain in his living room window swish open and then closed, and she heard footsteps. The oak door swung open. Clay stood in front of her, dressed only in flannel pajama pants.
“Peighton? What’s wrong?” he asked, his expression filled with worry. “What are you doing here?”
“Can I come inside?” she asked, staring at his face and wondering what secrets were hidden behind the eyes she’d come to trust.
“Of course,” he said, stepping back and allowing her to pass. “Is everything all right?” he asked, shutting the door and turning around to face her.