Garrett walked to the beginning of the pier and took the steps leading down the the soft sandy beach. He sat at the last step and thought. It was a great deal of information to take in, let alone all the emotions swirling around inside him. It made his stomach turn and ache, he bent over with his elbows on his knees letting his head fall between his arms so his hands could massage the tension building up in his neck.
“Would you like ….” Adele spoke but was cut off immediately by Garrett.
“No! Not now Adele. Give me a few minutes alone.” Adele receded to the outskirts of Garrett’s mind, allowing him to have a moment of peace and silence. It had been a long time since he had his thoughts to himself. Garrett had grown accustomed to the constant presence of Adele, the comfort of having someone close when loneliness crept in like a sickness. It didn’t matter if she had a physical body or not, she was his other half, his best friend and partner in crime. But right now, he needed to be alone.
He walked along the beach, his head cast down focusing on the grains of sand mixed with the countless pieces of broken sea shells passing under foot. His choice was all but made, all that remained were the details. He would have Adele retrieve them when he allowed her to return, but should he say anything to Molly and Serenity. They had a right to know what had happened, but if father wanted them to know, he would have sent the message to mother. The fact that he didn’t showed he didn’t want them to find out. He was probably trying to protect them, like he always tried to do.
Fathers attempts to keep things simple, always seemed to make things much more complicated. There were to many secrets, to much information withheld from the people who should know. Father was right though, if mother knew, she would insist on going, pulling her away from her duties and her clients. Between the surgery and recovery, it may take months for him to be completely healed. She still loved him dearly and wouldn’t leave his side till he was healed and even then she would stay for as long as he would permit. Father wouldn’t allow her to spend so much time away from the clients she had invested years into helping and building a relationship with.
Serenity would shower him with gifts, paintings, cards, and anything else she could find to make him feel like he was at home. She would delve into the challenge of brightening his mood with such vigor all her other studies in school would cease to exist. With such advanced classes, she would fall behind too quickly to ever be able to recover. It was one of her distinguished years, one of the few years which the universities focus on in determining chance of success and talent development.
It was clear, father didn’t want either of them to know.
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Mile 29 