Learning to Trust

Learning to Trust

By

Brenda Kennedy

Copyright 2017 by Brenda Kennedy

SMASHWORDS EDITION

Dedicated to

The Band of Mothers

Denise, Kathy, Melina, Rosell, and Sandy

Mothers who don’t just know their heroes, they raised them.

Fort Benning Army Moms

From Basic to Beyond and Back Home Again

Book 2 of the Learning Trilogy

Books 1 and 2 end in cliffhangers.

Synopsis

Hope is being able to see the light, despite the darkness.

Nichole is adjusting to her new normal. A happy life with a trusting man, Luke, and her adopted grandson, Connor. But when Nichole’s parents show up at her bakery after being declared dead over thirty years ago, she is leery of their intentions. Although she is happy that they are alive and well, she can’t help but fear they could have an ulterior motive.

Luke Tanner has worked hard to earn Nichole’s trust, and he’s vowed to protect her and Connor at all costs. While searching unsuccessfully for Lorraine, Connor’s birth mother, they’ve both decided to move forward with their lives in hopes that she may have left the area for good. But when an accidental encounter brings them full circle, Nichole and Luke are stunned at what they learn.

Are Nichole’s parents working with Lorraine? Is Lorraine here to claim Connor or does she have another motive? Can Luke protect Connor and Nichole? How can Nichole have faith in anything when everything she believed has in has been a lie?

When things go from bad to worse, Nichole is faced with yet another devastating blow.

Chapter One: It Can’t Be

Nichole

Stay in the car with Connor. Luke opens his truck door and starts to climb out of it. Dale wastes no time climbing into the driver seat.

Luke, let’s not confront her. I think we need to call the police.

Standing at the open door, he says, Let’s at least see what they want. They? I forgot there were two people in the photo of the Jeep. I know one person is Lorraine, but who is the other one? Stay right here, okay? I nod, unable to speak. Dale jumps out of the truck after Luke.

I watch as he walks over to the Jeep. He doesn’t walk to the Jeep’s door, but he stands in front of it at a distance. I watch as the doors slowly open and out steps a man and a woman. They look vaguely familiar. I focus on the woman since she’s on the passenger side and closest to me. Then I see the man. My mind races with who they can be. Can it be possible? It can’t be.

My head fills with memories as the tears spill from my eyes. I watch as they both talk to Luke. Dale stands at attention as he watches guard. With shaky hands, I open the door and step out of the truck. All eyes are on me. My hands sweat and I stand on shaky legs, holding on to the handle of the truck for support.

Licking my dry lips, I say in a voice I barely recognize as my own, Mom? Dad?

No one says anything. The woman cries; I can see her tears glistening. I haven’t seen my parents in nearly thirty years. I thought they were dead. Brett said they were dead. I got an inheritance from them. I got life insurance money from them. How can this even be possible?

I don’t move; I can’t. Luke walks over and takes me by the hand. Dale walks with him. Nichole, they said they’re your parents. We hold hands, and he slowly walks me over to the Jeep. Standing at a distance, I stare at both of them. They look like my parents but much older than the last time I saw them. They are both completely gray, with heavy wrinkles around their eyes and mouth. They look like my parents, but it can’t be, can it?

Nikki, it’s us.

Tears flood my eyes, blurring my vision. With trembling lips, I cry out, Dad? I haven’t been called Nikki since early in my marriage. How can this be? They died in a house fire. I saw the pictures of the charred building.

He slowly walks to me as I stand there holding on to Luke for support.

Oh, Nikki. It’s really us.

Dad? You died. Brett said you were dead. I saw the pictures of the house after the fire.

How can this even be possible? I want to believe it, but I feel like it’s a mirage, an illusion. This can’t be happening.

He opens his arms and I immediately go to him. I cry. I know without a doubt that my parents are now alive and well. But how? I don’t care. I cry and he securely holds me. I tuck my head into his neck like I did when I was a child. I feel safe.

God, I missed you, we say in unison.

Oh, Nikki, Mom cries.

Mom? Oh. My. God. You’re really here? I lift my head and look at my Mom standing there. I turn to her and hug her tightly. God, I love you. I’ve missed you both so much.

I’ve dreamt about this day.

My mother gives the best hugs. If I didn’t believe it was them before, I do now. She runs her hand down my hair just like she did all those years ago. I don’t know how they’re here, but I am so glad to see them.

How? When? Why? Where… where have you guys been? I saw pictures of the fire. The house was destroyed. Everything in it was destroyed. Brett said you both perished as a result of it. It was on the news. It was in the local newspaper. I collected life insurance and an inheritance. I’m standing here looking at them and not believing it’s really them. Is it a dream? I hug Mom even tighter. If it is a dream and I wake up from it, I want to remember this hug, this embrace. I love you both and I can’t tell you how much I’ve missed you.

Nichole, we should take this inside. I look to Luke, who is standing beside my Dad. I think we should take Connor and go inside.

Connor? Mom asks, almost fearfully.

Luke gets in the truck and lifts Connor out of his car seat.

I rub Connor’s back gently. This is my grandson, Connor.

Mom holds onto Dad for support. I’m not sure what’s running through her head. Is she surprised that I have a grandson and that they’re great-grandparents, or did she think that I was talking about my son, Connor?

Do you want to come in so we can talk more? Luke asks while still holding a sleeping Connor.

Is it safe? Dad asks, looking around the now dark yard.

I look at Luke and I’m confused. Safe?

It is. Please, come in. He holds Connor effortlessly. I know Nichole must have many questions for you both just as you must have some for her.

It’s a long story and we have a lot to talk about, Dad says, taking Mom by the arm.

Dale and I follow behind as Luke leads the way up to the apartment over the bakery. I watch as they slowly and cautiously walk up the stairs. My parents supposedly died in a house fire nearly thirty years ago. That’s over half of my life that I believed they were dead, and they weren’t.

Luke lays Connor down in his bed and immediately joins us at the table. Dale stays at Connor’s door, standing guard and watching his surroundings. He doesn’t seem too concerned about the presence of strangers in our home. Luke makes coffee as my parents and I just stare at each other. I don’t know where to begin first. I have so many questions as to why they just left. How could I have gotten an inheritance and life insurance from living people? The black Jeep. That was them. They were the people in the Jeep all this time. How did they know where I was? If they knew I was here, why didn’t they come into the bakery or just knock on the door? I thought they were dead, but they’ve been alive all this time. I don’t understand.

Are you sure this is safe? Dad asks again.

Safe from what? I ask.

We read about Brett’s death…

You think Brett could still be alive? Luke asks.

We just need to make sure.

Why?

It’s true, Luke says, He died from an accidental drowning.

Mom reaches for my Dad’s hand and they both exhale a sigh of relief. I look to Luke; he remains stoic.

Dad sits up straighter and says, I guess we need to start from the beginning. Luke sits down and takes my hand in his. One night we received a threatening visit from Brett. He said if we ever tried to contact you, he would kill you. I shiver as I recall him saying the exact same words to me. That if I ever contacted my parents he would kill them. Tears fall as I sit there. Mom also cries. "If he had threatened my life, I wouldn’t have cared, but he threatened your life." Brett used my love for my parents to make me behave a certain way. And he also used their love for me to keep them away. He looks sadly at my mother. We did the only thing we knew to do to keep you out of danger. He cries and it hurts my heart. We packed a bag, burned down the house, making it look like an accident, and hired a charter plane to take us to South America where we would live out the rest of our days.

Oh, Dad. I reach across the table to hold both of their hands. Brett told me about the house fire. The newspaper said you both perished in it and there was nothing to identify either of you. I recall it like it was yesterday. The paper said an explosion that was the result of a gas leak in the garage caused the fire. I believed it. I read about the fire on the Internet. I saw photos of the house that was nothing but ash. I wasn’t allowed to mourn for them. I wasn’t allowed to attend their funeral, or even to plan their funeral for that matter. I had to carry on every day as if nothing had happened. The article Brett showed me must have been a fake, just like everything else in my marriage to Brett. Everything was a big fat lie.

It was hard, but we knew you were in danger and we had no idea how to help you.

I know, I say. He doesn’t need to say anymore. I understand.

But we knew if we ever contacted you, he would kill you. Brett went into great detail about what he would do to you, and Nikki, we believed him. We knew he was evil and we knew the best way to keep you safe was to disappear.

Luke’s jaw twitches, but he says nothing.

I can only imagine the picture Brett painted for my parents. For them to envision their only daughter suffering a horrific death would be unbearable for any parent… well, almost any parent. Brett was a parent, but he cared for no one, not even his son.

So you left, never making contact with your daughter until now? Luke asks.

My wife searched on the Internet and tried to keep updated on Nikki and Brett — well, mostly on Brett. We saw where she gave birth to a son, and much later when their son got married. We read about his accident that caused his death, and about his wife being in a coma. He takes slow and steady breaths and says, Most recently we read about you adopting your grandson, changing both of your names, and then about Brett’s death. I can’t believe all this time they were alive and keeping track of me. They stayed away to protect me. That’s when we decided to come back and find you.

But you needed to make sure Brett was really dead and couldn’t follow through with his threat on Nichole? Luke asks as his jaw continues to twitch.