Tale The 24

Posted by AdminHA, Released on March 3, 2025

Talking

Easton

I skate slowly, barely moving my feet to propel me around the rink. I sent the rest of the team home. We have a big game tomorrow night and I really need to focus on that. Right now though, I simply need to blank out everything. I’m avoiding heading home for the first time in a while. Usually I rush to get there to tell Cole goodnight and tuck him into bed. But that means seeing Luci tonight and I can’t do it yet. Can’t face her after last night. For both her reaction and the fact I shouldn’t have done that. She needs no part of my f****d up

life. I should never have risked bringing her into this.

My brothers were as furious as I was with our mother after I told them her idea to allow Cole’s maternal grandmother to spend time with him and dare to take him out for a day. I know they won’t let her leave with

him.

With Vivienne Winters returning to town after years away, confronting that whole barrel of snakes is a priority. Now I have to warn Luci about her. I internally groan, thinking of explaining that nonsense.

I propel myself off the wall and snag my hockey stick as I pass it. I close my eyes and let myself make a circle that way. I know the ice so well I can skate it blindfolded if necessary. My true home has always been out here. Ever since Dad took us all to the ice skating rink downtown and strapped skates on our feet at five, it was like the very air called to me. That cold crisp breeze as my feet effortlessly glide over that frozen surface calms me immediately when I inhale it. At least it usually does. There’s no peace even out here

tonight.

My eyes fly open as I hear skate blades stroking against the ice followed closely by the sharp, dull thud of a puck hitting the surface. The one rip I hear has to be Becker taking a hard curve to get my attention. Sure enough, I see him dramatically sliding to a halt with his body leaned slightly back, his arms out at his waist like wings. He’s joining Jackson and Kingston with their hockey sticks around a puck. He grins, clearly pleased with himself.

“Shinny game?” Jackson says with a small smile.

I find myself smiling in spite of everything. “Yeah let’s play.” We hardly ever get to goof off and play like this

any more.

“No goalies, every man for himself.” Becker says slapping his stick down with an exaggerated glare and a

growl.

Kingston slaps his against Becker’s. “It’s on gentlemen.” He uses a fake British accent and I chuckle at him. As kids, we would play as characters a lot. He was always a British guy or a pirate. Becker would choose an

animal and Jackson liked to be a robot. Made it hard to play but it was hilarious. I can still picture him taking

shots like a stiff metal man.

Jackson swiftly steals the puck and takes off. “Sneaky bastard.” I push off and chase after him as Becker

howls like a damn wolf. I see him at my side as we chase him down. I grin at him before we both skate faster. But Jackson is too fast and he moves hearing us. Kingston tries to come in from the side and swipe it, but he slaps it into the net too fast. Becker whistles “damn that was a pretty wrist shot.”

He manages to steal it and take off in the opposite direction. Kingston chases him down and I sit back for a second to watch. I love this game. Jackson pokes me lightly with his hockey stick before taking off. We play

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23: Talking

for an hour with Jackson ‘winning‘. I didn’t even try to win just enjoyed the fun instead.

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Baker sits waiting in the kitchen for us. He has the baby monitor sitting beside him. He’s reading something and looks up at us over his readers. “Very late practice. Your parents went out to dinner with some friends. I

sent Luci home an hour ago once Cole was asleep,”

There’s no judgment in his voice. He’s been as much our dad the last six years as our own father. But I can see the question in his eyes. “Dinner is sitting on the stove. Should still be warm,”

“Thanks Baker.” I say quietly and grab a plate.

“Luci mentioned she doesn’t have tickets for tomorrow.” s**t I forgot to handle that too.

“I got them.” Becker says quietly. “She texted me earlier to ask if they could add a ticket for Barrett. I have them in my bag. We can leave them with you Baker.” He explains and I nod slowly at him. He knew I wasn’t in my right mind all day after that confrontation last night with Mother.

“Thanks Beck.” I tell him and he nods.

“Thought I could take something off your shoulders.” He sighs. “Especially because I need to add something big to them and it goes with Vivienne coming home.”

Becker is rarely this serious unless it’s major. “Cole found a picture of you and Lorelei. He came to me and asked who she was. I told him she was his mom.” I drop my fork as I stare at him. “East you need to talk to him. He said he doesn’t think she loved him. I think he’s already made up some story in his head for why she’s

not here.”

“When?” I bite out.

“The day before the carnival.”

“That was almost two weeks ago, Becker!” I push my chair back, wracking my brain for Cole’s recent behavior. Has it been off? “You should have f*****g told me then.”

“Yeah, well I needed to talk to him more before I told you and let you bite my damned head off.” His eyes flash. “You tend to go thermonuclear when she’s brought up and forgive me if I wasn’t in the mood. I mean you proved that this morning when I asked if you thought she might dare to make an appearance with the demon grandmother.”

I wince visibly. I don’t handle talking about her well.

Jackson voices his agreement. He has told me off several times for my reaction. “I…I know. I’m sorry for that this morning. You didn’t deserve it. How did he find that?”

“Said you told him to grab something else and he opened that drawer. He hid it under his pillow for a few days,” Becker admits.

Baker agrees quietly.

“East, he’s old enough to know some of it and if you wait much longer the story he comes up with will only get worse. I’m sure it’s already bad enough. We know how that feels.” Kingston tells me gravely and I close my eyes knowing he and Becker understand. Took Dad a long time to tell them the truth and they came up with lots of bad scenarios for why both their parents were gone.

“Anything else you need to tell me about it?” I pinch the bridge of my nose. “He seem upset?”

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23: Talking

Becker and Kingston exchange long side glances. “I won’t lose my s**t. Just tell me.”

“He talked to Luci about her.” Becker finally admits.

“Fuck.” I breathe out. Yeah, she definitely needs no part of me and this family.

“Listen, he needs to tell you what she said but….it really helped him. East, she knows how to talk to him. He trusts her and she trusts him. Careful you don’t break that trust.”

“You know what she said, don’t you?”

He nods slowly. “I do, but I’m not breaking their confidence. She did good.” He ends simply. “Cole will share it with you.”

I slide both my hands down my face. “I’ll talk to him in the morning. But you are sitting with us to tell me if he’s hiding anything to save my feelings.” Cole is extremely empathetic and always worries about upsetting

me.

“OK.”

I get up and put my plate in the dishwasher. “I’m going to bed. I’m done.” First I check on Cole and drop a kiss on his forehead. “I’m so sorry buddy. You deserve better.”

After breakfast the next morning, I tell him we’re going to the big guy game room as he calls it. “Yay Daddy, what are we doing there?”

“Talking.”

Becker joins us holding the frame Cole had. Cole sees it and his little mouth drops open in a gasp. “Cole, it’s ok. Your daddy wants to talk to you about this picture. You can ask him anything you want.”

I sit him on the couch and kneel in front of him. Becker hands him the picture. “Uncle Becker says this is my

mom.”

I nod. “She is. Do you want to know her name?”

“Yes Daddy,”

“Lorelei. Lorelei Winters. She used to live two houses down. We grew up together after she moved there when

she was eight.”

“Did you love her, Daddy?”

“Very much. She was what you call my childhood sweetheart. We were together a long time.”

“Did she love me?” He fidgets with his shirt. I take his hands the way Luci does when she talks to him. It seems to help her focus and he always listens to every word she says.

“She loved you so much that she brought you to me to raise. To make sure you were taken care of and safe. Cole, before you were born your mom left here to live in France, which is really far away. When she left she didn’t know she was going to have you. So I didn’t know either. I didn’t get to meet you until you were three months old. But the second I did, I loved you more than anything in the world.”

“Is she still there?”

“Yes. She lives there for now.”

“She doesn’t want to see me?” God the pain in his little voice.

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“I send her pictures of you every month. She….she can’t come see you right now. But she loves to look at your

pictures.”

He sits there for a really long time saying nothing and I wait. “Anything else you want to know Cole?”

He shakes his head. “Don’t be mad Daddy. At Uncle Becker or….” He breaks off looking upset.

“I’m not mad Cole.” I smooth his hair and smile at him to reassure that sweet little heart of his.

“I asked Luci about her. She said she didn’t know about my mom, but I could ask you because you love me tons and bunches like I love you. That you wouldn’t get upset with me.”

That makes me chuckle. “Luci is right.”

“She told me that not everyone will love me, but that’s their bad luck. And that I have lots who love me. If only one person loves you, but if it’s big enough and special enough that’s all you need. Is she right?” She did good

like Becker said.

“Yes she is. Luci knows how to talk to you buddy, doesn’t she?”

“Yeah, she said she loves me.” And that hits me hard in the chest.

“She does. You can see it when she looks at you.”

“I love her a lot. She needs it.”

That has me frowning. “Why do you say that?”

“I just do.” He looks over at Becker who winks at him. “You’re not mad at Uncle Becker, right?”

“No I’m not. Cole, you can always come to me when you want to know something. About me, your mom, any of that ok? I will never get mad at you. Some of it upsets me because it hurts you, but I will not get upset with you.” Which I need to start copying for everyone else too.