Chapter 16 16
Chapter to
Aty brother Shane spent a long time psyching himself up to play those recordings.
1 floated in the air, covering my ears.
No, I didn’t want to hear it again.
My brother broke down over and over.
I couldn’t bear to listen any longer and floated back to my room.
A few dozen minutes of audio took him several hours to get through, intermittently,
When he came out again, the despair in his eyes was gone,
Instead, there was a look of resoluteness.
Curious, I followed him to see what he was going to do,
Was he going to hand this evidence over to the police?
He went to the bathroom, shaved his beard, combed his hair, and then returned to his room to pack his luggage.
There were three hours left until his flight with Irene.
He looked radiant, showing no signs of sadness.
If I hadn’t overheard his phone call with Dad in his room, I might have believed it.
For a moment, my eyes welled up, and I reached up to wipe the corners.
Dry, no tears.
I smiled. This delayed family love was useless now.
Since I was ten years old, I had waited eleven years, yearned for family affection for eleven years.
In the end, it had turned to ashes and scattered in my heart.
0.0%
21.34
Chapter 16 16
It was no longer important to me.
An hour later, Irene arrived excitedly.
My brother Shane petted her hair dotingly, as always.
But when Irene wasn’t looking, there was a fleeting flash of deep–seated hatred in his
eyes.
After getting off the plane, my brother Shane took her to where Dad lived.
He pushed open the door to the living room, where a wedding photo of Dad and Mom hung on the wall.
The walls were covered with photos of my brother and me.
But my photos stopped at ten years old.
No one had taken a picture of me again since then.
I missed my childhood.
Irene was startled when she saw my photos, biting her lip hard to force a strained
smile.
“Richard, so affectionate.”
A flash of anger crossed Dad’s eyes but disappeared as quickly as it came.
He called Irene to sit down for dinner.
Dad had prepared a table laden with delicious, aromatic dishes.
Irene’s eyes sparkled.
“Richard, your cooking skills are amazing!”
The seat next to Dad was empty, with a small urn placed there, and a set of utensils
laid out in front of it.
It was Mom’s ashes.
Next to Mom’s spot was another empty seat, also with a set of utensils.
I found it a bit ironic. Was it meant for me?
I had yearned for family dinners.
Chapter 16 16
Now, I didn’t feel anything anymore.
