Page 7 of Knot His Omega
What am I supposed to do now?
It’s not long before Da’s sobs join mine.
I wish there was something I could do to comfort him, but how do you comfort a man who just lost the love of his life?
You can’t.
Instead, we cry our tears and share in the grief of losing the woman we love most in the world.
Chapter Three
FINNEGAN
Idon’t know how long we sit there like that, but eventually, our tears dry up, and the nurses come in to unplug Ma from the machines.
I appreciate their letting us have some time before they come in. It’s not that I care if others see me cry…I just…
I don’t fucking know.
Now that my tears have dried up, my thoughts are bouncing all over the place.
Ma is dead.
Gone.
It’s just me and Da now.
My head shoots up, eyes clashing with his as anxiety rises inside me. “Da…I…I cannae…”
Da gives me a sad smile. “I understand. Go. Call me and let me know you’re okay, and please come home when you can.”
“I love you, Da.” I throw my arms around him, and we cling to one another. “I’ll come back when I can…I just need…”
“Time and space. Of course you do. I love you, my boy. I’ll be waiting for you at home.” Da pats my back before releasing me. He tries to give me a smile, but he ends up grimacing. “I’ll let your aunt and uncle know. I’m sure they’ll insist on coming to the house.”
I sigh. “Of course they will. I’ll be home when I can. I love you, and I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize,” Da assures me. “You’ve always needed time and space to deal with big emotions.”
Not knowing what else to say, I just nod and head for the rental car.
I climb inside and pull out of the parking lot, having no idea where I’m heading but knowing I need to get away.
When I pull into a parking lot, I don’t know why I’m surprised I ended up here. This was always my go-to place when I needed to think.
Glenfinnan National Park has been around for at least the last hundred years. It’s only about thirty minutes from Glenmore, so we came here often when I was a child. Then, when I was old enough to drive, I’d come on my own. There’s just something about hiking the land of my ancestors that allows me to clear my head.
I don’t know if it’ll help today or not, but I’m willing to give it a try.
It’s chilly because it’s still winter here in Scotland, and I only packed my leather jacket, which I pulled on when I stepped out of the airport.
Shucking my jacket, I open the trunk and dig into my suitcase. I pull out an old flannel shirt I’m pretty sure used to be my da’s and tug it on and quickly do up the buttons. It’s thick enough to cut off the worst of the cold when I pull the jacket over it.
I pop the collar of the jacket up and lock the car beforedropping the keys in my pocket and starting down the path. At the first split, I veer off to the right. The main path circles the entire park before ending up right back where you start, but there are many smaller paths that lead to specific parts of the park.
Luckily, I grew up walking these paths, and though it’s been over five years since I’ve been here, I remember the way to the overlook well.
It’s easy to get lost in the park if you don’t know your way around—even with the signs posted everywhere. I’m just glad I don’t have to worry about that.
