“He’s so sad all the time,” Tessa says, pulling me into the house as Jase hugs Chad’s mom. Carole looks awful. Even worse than the last time I saw her. Haunting shadows bruise the skin under her eyes. She is in bad need of a haircut, and her clothes hang off her skeletal frame.
“How is school?” I ask Tessa, needing to divert the conversation.
“School is fine.” She shrugs, but all the euphoria has disappeared from her eyes. I know it was hard for her to leave Lowell Academy to attend public school. All her friends are freshmen at the private school while she’s at a new school without her usual support system. I make a mental note to talk to Chad again about letting me pay her school fees.
“I’m always here if you need to talk,” I remind her, pulling her into my side and pressing a kiss to her cheek. She has Chad’s big blue eyes and the same shaped face, but she doesn’t share his dark-blond locks. Yet they are instantly recognizable as siblings. “Call me anytime.”
“Ashley.” Carole reaches for me, and she feels like skin and bone in our embrace. “I’m glad to see you.”
“I’m sorry I haven’t stopped by in ages.” I don’t offer an excuse because there isn’t one.
“Please thank your mother for everything she did for us. I’m very grateful.”
“It was no trouble.”
“Is there anything you need now?” Jase asks.
“Just my son,” she whispers, her voice cracking.
“I can’t believe Chad got that bug back again. We had to stay away from him for weeks the last time,” Tessa complains, and I wonder who fed them that excuse.
“Your brother will be in touch as soon as he can,” Carole says. “Now, it’s time for bed young lady.”
“Mom.” She draws out the word. “It’s the holidays, and I don’t have school tomorrow.”
“You can watch TV in your room,” Carole says. “I need to speak with Ashley and Jason in private.”
“We’ll do something over Christmas,” I tell her. We have at least a couple of days where we can’t do anything because of the holidays. “I’ll call you, and we can go to the movies and out for pizza.”
“Yay!” She jumps up and down.
“This is for you,” I say, before I forget, handing her the bag with her gifts. I managed to grab a few things for her in between wedding shopping, and the girl behind the counter wrapped them for me. “Merry Christmas.”
“Oh my God,” she says, peering into the bag. “Thank you so much, Ashley.” She envelops me in a hug again. “You’re the best.”
“No opening them until at least Christmas Eve.”
“Go on,” Carole urges. “I’ll call you to say goodbye before Ashley and Jason leave.”
Tessa reluctantly heads toward her bedroom, and my heart hurts for her.
“Thank you for that, Ashley,” Carole says, urging us to follow her into the main living area. “That was thoughtful and generous. She was very upset when I told her Chad couldn’t be with us for Christmas.”
“Who told you he was sick again?” I ask as soon as I hear Tess’s bedroom door close and we’re assured of privacy.
“No one. I didn’t know what else to tell her to explain Chad’s absence. Where is he? What’s happened to him?”
ChapterTwenty
Ashley
Carole sits down in the recliner chair by the fireplace, gesturing for us to sit on the couch.
Jase and I share a look, and I convey I’m letting him run with this. We sit side by side, our thighs brushing. Jase clears his throat. “What makes you think anything has happened to him?”
“My son calls me every single day. Without fail. Even when he was going through the height of his depression, Chad still called to speak to me and Tess. I last spoke to him on Friday. It’s been three days, and I haven’t heard a word from him. His cell is off when I call.” She slams a hand over her chest as a strangled cry rips from her throat. “A mother knows when something is wrong. I have known something is wrong for some time.”
Pity she didn’t do something about it then. I still haven’t forgiven her for falling apart after her husband died and letting Chad take all the responsibility for his family. That was her job. Not her son’s.
