Page 94 of Road to Redemption

“What about my dad?” His jaw was clenched tight, knowing the answer before I gave it.

This was the part I dreaded the most. It was going to break Caleb’s heart, even if he already suspected his father’s responsibility.

Sighing, I tried to stay level. “He wasn’t interested in helping her. When she was in a bad place, we would just rag on her. Call her a druggie and a terrible mother. He wouldn’t let me take her away.”

“Why would he do that?” Caleb’s breathing was fast, like he was running a marathon.

“Honestly, I think he liked the control. When she was spiraling like that, he could make her reliant on him. Make you two rely on him.”

Shaking his head, Caleb grumbled. “Like he does now.”

He was piercing it all together, realizing the way his father was stopping him and his sister from growing. But there was reckoning to happen too: to realize that Jess was both responsible for her own actions and that the man who claimed to protect her was damning her to her own death.

“Did the people that hurt grandma have something to do with my mom?” Caleb asked.

It was natural to look for someone to blame. I’d done it too, I was happy to have the excuse to put it all on Dom. But it didn’t stop the truth.

Isaac and Zeus had exploited my mom, they’d sent her into a downward spiral and refused to be accountable for their role in ruining her life. And she couldn’t fight those demons back enough to be the mother Jess and I needed.

But Jess, she was just haunted by the ghost of our mom’s tormentors.

I may have been angry with Dom, horrified by her lie, but it didn’t change the truth: Dom shouldn’t have to pay for the sins of her father. And more than anything, I knew Caleb and Abi would need Aunt Dom as they moved into a new phase of their lives.

They deserved to be free of all of this.

I’d break the tie to Zeus. I would free my niece and nephew from Isaac’s shadow.

Shaking my head, I grabbed Caleb’s arm. “No, bud. Your mom just couldn’t win that fight with her own demons. The more your dad harped on her, the more she believed that she really wasn’t fit to be your mom. She let the voice in her head win. And I wish she hadn’t.”

“Me too.” Caleb’s face was scrunched up tight, deciding between crying or raging.

I squeezed him, trying to bring him out of that anger. “I need you to promise me something, Caleb.

“What?”

“I told you all of this because I trust you to stay calm.”

“How am I supposed to do that? To be in the same house as him?”

I knew how he felt, I felt it every time I saw Bill’s face. “Because your sister still lives in that house. You could walk out today and she would be left with him alone. Blowing all of this up will only make a bigger mess for all of us.

“When the time comes, we’ll tell Abi the truth too and we’ll get her out.” The weight on my chest grew heavier as I thought about my little niece in danger. “Until then, you have to be the adult and hold your shit together. It’s not fair to ask of you, I know. But it’s what I need you to do.”

Looking at the bottom of his frozen yogurt cup, Caleb considered what I was asking of him. Eventually, he met my eyes and nodded. “Okay. Fine.”

“Good boy.” I looked up at the clock on the wall. “Think you can manage to go home tonight? You’ve got school in the morning.”

Caleb wanted to say no. But he took a deep breath. “Yeah, I’ll get my shit together.”

We stood up from the table, chucking our cups into the garbage and thanking the staff before walking back outside.

Pulling Caleb into a big hug, I told him I loved him.

“I love you too.” He nodded, without breaking the embrace. “Thank you. Not just for telling me all of this. But for taking care of Abi and me. I don’t think I realized how badly I needed a steady adult around.

Releasing him, I made sure to look in his eyes. “I’m here, always. Day and night. If you’re struggling to keep it in, just call and we’ll work it out. Okay?”

“Yeah, you got it.” Caleb rubbed the back of his head as he turned to go back to his sedan. “Love you, Spence.”