Home Sweet Home (mxm)

Chapter 23: Saying Peace

Taylor hugged his backpack to his chest as he settled into a chair across from a couple that he could easily guess were Caleb and Nikolai's parents, even if he hadn't been told beforehand. The police chief had asked him and Cadon if they wanted to speak with them, and Cadon had accepted. 

He wasn't sure why, though. 

Glancing sideways, Taylor watched as Adon sat himself down beside him, his eyes narrowed on the two people opposite them. There was an officer sitting at each end of the table, one of them being the chief, himself. 

Squeezing the backpack a little tighter, Taylor slowly straightened and looked at Caleb's mother. Her attention was locked onto Cadon, and he didn't doubt that he saw her son in his features. 

She really does look like Caleb, too. They have similar eyes and hair color, among other things. 

"You wanted to meet with us. What did you want to say?" Cadon asked as he tilted his head slightly. 

Taylor wasn't sure how he wasn't breaking down. Adon knew everything, and now part of him is even the person, himself, who had gotten murdered by the woman before him. Yet, he was holding himself together perfectly fine, and even seemed interested in what his murderer and mother had to say. 

"I wanted to tell you that your father is sorry for what he did to you, Caleb."

What? 

Cadon slowly tilted his head the other way, taking in what she was saying, but not responding in any other way. 

Taylor took that moment to look at the man across from himself. He seemed stoic and sat straight in his chair, as if he had accepted whatever was said, and what was going to be added. 

What is going on?

The police chief leaned forward and addressed him and Cadon, drawing their attention. 

"So, I wanted to talk to you about this when you got here instead of over the phone because of its importance," he said, making Cadon raise an eyebrow for him to continue. 

"Well, the statements for these two are a bit different than what you boys have told me, but they correlate with what the exorcist has said, so I need more information from you two." 

Taylor felt a cold sweat beginning to shiver down his spine, but it stopped abruptly when Cadon slipped his hand into his own beneath the table, then squeezed gently.

"Not a problem, officer. Taylor? I think this is where you get the chance to tell your story, for real," he said, drawing Taylor's eyes up to his own beautiful ones. 

The smile there, half from Caleb and half from Adon, made his heart swell in his chest. 

"Okay," he whispered quietly, then sat up straighter and looked across the table at the two older adults who were now staring at him with nervous, but dark, eyes. 

"I bought that house because of its price and location. It was perfect for me, and only needed a few upgrades here and there," he began. 

"Little did I know that there were two skeletons beneath my feet when I settled down for my first night of sleep."

He looked to his right with a warm smile, seeing Caleb's appearance mixed in with Adon's perfectly. 

"That was when I first encountered Caleb, though he didn't show himself to me yet. He let me into his dream."

He leaned back and smiled at the memory. It had truly taken him by surprise, but what a wonder it had been. 

"Walking down those steps that I didn't even knew existed yet... There was a hot tub right as I got downstairs to my right. It looked so inviting, with the smaller jets running to send little ripples through the surface of the water."