Page 12 of Right in Front of You

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt if you have a patient.”

“Oh, that’s okay. It’s just your mom.”

“Is she okay?” I asked, and Doctor Burke looked back as she stepped out of the room.

“It’s just migraines, honey. Came back to refill my prescription.”

My mother and Doctor Burke always had a special relationship. They were old high school friends. Except Father was jealous of them. It wasn’t a secret that my mother and Doctor Burke had dated while in high school, but that was years ago, and neither of them had ever spoken about that time.

“Where’s Nathan?” I asked.

I didn’t leave him at the house with that maniac, did I?

“He’s at the convenience store, eating treats with Mr. Grafton. What are you doing here, honey? I thought you were packing for your trip.”

“I finished early.” I felt my face go cold just thinking about my afternoon. Getting ready for my high school trip was supposed to be one of the more exciting moments this year, yet he’d managed to ruin it. I added in a whisper, “And I got out through the back window.”

That’s when my mother must have noticed the bag flung over my shoulder. She rushed toward me and took me by my shoulders. “Did he hurt you?”

“No, it’s okay. I’m fine. I snuck out the back,” I said quietly. “But I didn’t have a chance to get any money for my trip.”

“Oh my.” My mother covered her mouth. “Well, I can go back with you.”

“I really don’t want to be there, Mom.”

“He won’t show up if I’m there.” She squeezed my shoulders a little harder, trying to infuse into me the strength that I lacked when it came to Father.

“I’ll go by myself. You wait here at Doctor Burke’s, and I’ll be back in twenty minutes.” She headed for the door, and I placed my hand on her arm to stop her.

I lowered my voice to spare her the embarrassment of my words. “Mom, you know how he can get when he’s upset. I don’t want you to be on the receiving end of that tonight.”

“He shouldn’t even be in our house,” she whispered apologetically.

“Clare, let me step in. I think it’s about time we stood up to him.”

We?

“Donald, know that I want that more than anything else, but it’s not the right time yet. I can’t lose them.”

Donald?

“Is there something between you two I should know about?” I asked.

If my mother and Doctor Burke were together, it would have been odd because my mother didn’t even have a divorce. Although if I’d pictured her with anyone else in this world, it would have been without a doubt, Doctor Burke. Was she planning a divorce?

“No, honey. We’re just friends,” my mother said.

“We’ve been good friends for a long time,” Doctor Burke added. The warm look he gave my mother, though, suggested a much closer bond between the two of them.

“It doesn’t matter. I’m not going back to the house as long as he’s in town. I think I’d rather sleep on the street tonight.”

Doctor Burke reached inside his pocket and started counting hundred-dollar bills. “This one’s on me, Molly.”

He handed me a stack. It was way too much; I only needed twenty bucks at the most.

“Oh no, I couldn’t possibly—” I put my hand up, blocking the unexpected gesture.

“But you will, because you deserve it.” He pressed the cash into my palm.

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