Page 8 of Two Hearts' Accidental Heroes

“She never has before,” Rick replied. “Usually, she only travels out of town with Dad.”

“She used to go on business trips,” Eric muttered. “Remember, Brian?”

“I do,” Brian answered. “You were only in grade school, Rick, so you probably wouldn’t remember.”

Strangely, the words seemed to reassure Eric, although Brian didn’t look very reassured himself. Mom had been right to let Rick know the truth. As the youngest, he would always be the one who Eric and Brian would feel responsible for. If Rick managed to stay calm, maybe his brothers would too.

Rick suggested that they play some video games to give the situation a sense of normality, and by the time eleven o’clock approached, he was yawning.

“Go on up to bed if you want,” Eric said. “We won’t be far behind you.”

“That’s alright,” Rick answered, deciding that both his brothers might need more assurances.

“Let’s get things shut off,” Eric said.

“I wish I could quit being so worried. What the hell is going on between Mom and Dad?” Brian growled.

“I wish I had a clue,” Rick answered, attempting to sound believable. “I tried to listen to what they were saying earlier, but I couldn’t understand anything they were talking about since they were nearly whispering. Every time they noticed me, they stopped talking.”

He and Eric began cleaning up the room, shutting off the TV and lights before walking upstairs. Dad was nowhere in sight when they reached the kitchen, so after slugging down some water, Brian followed Eric and Rick up the staircase to their rooms on the third floor. Rick had heard Dad’s voice on the phone when they’d hiked past the second floor.

“Did you hear Dad talking on the phone again in the bedroom just now when we walked by?” Eric asked, his hand on the knob of his bedroom door.

“I did,” Brian answered. “I guess we’ll just have to wait until tomorrow like he said.”

Eric nodded his agreement. “My gut is telling me something big is happening.”

“I think you’re right,” Rick agreed, finally coming up with a feasible explanation. “There hasn’t been any trouble at Dad’s marketing company. Has there?”

“Not that I’m aware of,” Eric replied.

“I don’t know if that’s something we could find out about or not, but anything’s possible, I guess.” Brian shook his head numbly as he made his way down the hallway. “Night.”

“See you in the morning,” Eric answered, walking into his room. “I’ll leave the door open. I’m a little worried about you, Rick.”

Rick sighed. Little did they know.

“I’m kind of worried about all of us,” Brian said, walking into his room, located beside Eric’s at the end of the hallway.

Rick rolled his eyes upward. Keeping Mom and Dad’s secrets sure wasn’t going to be easy, he realized, finally making his way into his bedroom.

* * *

The next morning, they were all eating breakfast while Dad made the big announcement. When Brian and Eric stared open-mouthed at their father in astonishment, Rick did the same.

Brian finally closed his mouth and spoke. “What do you mean, you and Mom are splitting up?”

Dad didn’t seem to be able to look Brian in the eyes, because he stood from the table, approaching the dishwasher with his cereal bowl.

“You heard me, Brian. Your mom has left town with Aaron Mitchum,” he muttered, opening the dishwasher and shoving his bowl onto the rack.

“What?” Eric growled.

Brian looked at Rick, who tried to appear as shocked as Eric.

Dad poured some coffee and sat back down, continuing to avoid everyone’s eyes but Rick’s.

“What it comes down to is this—they’re gone and there’s money missing in the form of a huge investment Aaron had supposedly made for the benefit of several of us, including Tom Ashford. We’re probably going to have to get rid of several big-ticket items, like the cruiser and Camaro, and maybe even sell the house.”

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