“That sounds good to me.”
Trudy pointed in the direction I should head in, and I hauled myself up. I gritted my teeth against the pain and limped off to watch my kids.
Mariah
“That is a family in crisis. He has no idea how lucky he is to have four beautiful and amazing children,” I said sadly.
Benedict wrapped his arms around me.
“No, he doesn’t, but we don’t know what happened to him. He must have seen some awful things,” Benedict replied.
“Those children are frightened of him. No child should be scared of their dad.”
“No, darling, they shouldn’t. But I sense Adam’s a man who is struggling to find his place in the world. If he’s unable to do the job he once did, I can’t imagine how he must feel. Especially since I sense he loved his job,” Benedict replied.
“You experienced something similar with Vemis. You didn’t turn into him!” I exclaimed.
“Didn’t I? I was very bitter and didn’t trust anyone, remember?”
“True. But you didn’t isolate your family,” I retorted.
Benedict grinned, and I blushed. I knew what he was going to say before he said it. “Babe, I was unaware my family was alive.”
“Okay, so that was a bit of a daft thing to say,” I admitted.
“Mariah, my whole focus was on keeping Vemis locked down and stopping that idiot Klaus from accomplishing his goals. Which we succeeded in doing.”
A laugh made me look outside, and I saw the three younger children chasing the older one and Rina around.
“That is how children should be heard, not the quiet, meek stuff they have going on,” I stated.
“And you’re feeling it more because you want our own child,” Benedict guessed.
“Yes.”
“What will be, will be, Mariah. Whether we have children or adopt, we have each other, and we’re alive. And I’m very happy with that. After all, not everyone gets a second chance at life.”
Adam
Not everyone gets a second chance at life. Those words rang through my head, taunting me, hounding me as I slipped awayas quietly as I could. Benedict and Mariah hadn’t been aware I’d been eavesdropping. I certainly hadn’t liked what I’d heard. As I moved away, I saw a woman standing staring at me.
My disbelieving eyes took in the transparent figure of Lady Catherine from the portrait. She stared straight at me, her gaze unflinching.
“Those who hide in shadows to listen, often find comments not to their liking,”she stated, and I gaped as she began fading away.
Sensing a trap, I looked around for evidence that I was being played. What the hell was with this place?
I slid into a chair where I could watch over my kids and Rina. Walker had just smacked Rina with a snowball, and she was laughing at him. It hurt deeply to see how relaxed they all were without me around. I’d caused this rift, me and only me. I was to blame. With guilt and other emotions swirling inside me, I dug out my cell and dialled a number.
“Adam,” Janet said by way of greeting.
“Janet, I’m watching my family have a snowball fight.”
“Yes?” Janet asked. “How does that make you feel?”
“Shit. They’re all laughing and having fun. I’m seeing a side of Zoie I’ve not seen for months. I dampened their spirits and caused sheer misery,” I replied.
“You probably did.”Ouch, don’t hold back, Janet!“But it wasn’t your fault. PTSD can take many shapes and forms. The most common symptoms are anger, emotional numbness, and distancing yourself from loved ones. We’ve discussed these alongside self-destructive behaviours, such as shoving loved ones away and alienating them. You’ve admitted to having flashbacks, trouble sleeping and concentration problems. And add to all those, the panic attacks you’ve had. PTSD is not your fault.”
