The Truth (Mommy's House 2)

Part Three

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

This was the day we were going to search the house, and my fingers were shaking as they rested against the counter in front of me.

Something about this case made my body tremble like never before - it had to be the look in Bella's eyes the second she saw me that day. Those eyes were permanently engraved in my mind.

Imagining my son, who was only fourteen as well, going through something as torturous as that made a metal fist clench around my heart. I couldn't bare the thought, and I felt a tear slide down my cheek as I stared at the framed photo of him sitting on the table.

The phone hanging on the kitchen wall was pressed to my ear, and I listened to the dull ringing while leaning against the counter.

"Hello?" answered a familiar voice.

"H-hey, Shirley, it's James," I said quietly, biting down on my bottom lip.

There was a pause on the other end of the line. "Oh, hi," she said finally. "What... why are you calling?"

"I just... wanted to see how Benny's doing," I said as gently as possible.

Another pause on the other end, until my ex-wife took a deep breath. "I'm sure your son will be pleased to hear his father's finally calling to see how he is."

Her words punched me in the chest, and I exhaled heavily.

"Can I just say hi to him, please?" Much to my surprise, my words were steady.

There was another long pause, with muffled talking in the background.

"He's busy right now," Shirley said, and I winced at the harshness of her tone. "Try showing a greater interest in his life, and maybe he'll be more willing to talk to you."

I swallowed and nodded. "Right, okay..." I shook my head and let out a tight, uncomfortable laugh. "Just, just tell him I love him, and I'd like to see him soon... if he'd want to."

"I'll let him know," she said monotonously. I knew she wouldn't.

There was a heavy knock at my door, and I straightened my posture to peer through the frosted window. Liv was standing at my front porch with her hands on her hips.

Before I could even take another breath, the line went dead. I tried to breathe past the lump in my throat as I hung the phone up. Quickly wiping off the hot tears that trickled down my face, I swung my door open.

"Let's go, James, what are you doing? We have to go to the house now," Liv said impatiently, before stopping to stare at me with furrowed eyebrows. "Were you crying?"

"It's not important," I responded, reaching over to grab my keys off the side table. "Let's go, I want to get this over with."

The entire ride there, my fingertips tapped against my steering wheel nervously.

Liv and I walked up the drive of the house, staring at the caution tape which still surrounded the yard. Officers and police dogs were gathered at the door as well as in areas of the lonely street.

My stomach felt sour as I stared at the house. I didn't want to look through the evidence, but I knew I had to suck it up.

"This is really getting to you, isn't it?" Liv asked from beside me, and I looked over to find her large, chocolate eyes gazing at me with concern.

"No," I huffed while shaking my head. "I just don't really feel well today, that's all."

"You can admit it, you know," Liv said quietly, nudging me with her elbow. "You don't have to be made of stone all the time."