Page 1 of Betrayed
CHAPTER ONE
Erin
Ryan holds my hand tightly as we near the preschool gate, his Spider-Man backpack bouncing with each skip. I try to smile genuinely for him, but the knot in my chest tightens with every step.
He’s been incredibly brave since we had to run away from everything he’d ever known.
“Okay, kiddo,” I whisper as we reach the edge of the walkway leading to the front door. “You ready?”
He nods without hesitation; his eyes fix on the brick building as if it’s a battle he’s ready to win. Then he drops my hand. I look down, and he’s staring up at me, worried.
I kneel to meet his eye. “What’s wrong, Ryan?”
He looks at me for a moment, his brow furrowing as if he’s debating whether I can handle what he’s about to say.
“Ryan?” I ask, brushing a loose strand of hair from our travels. He flinches at my touch.
I step back to give him some space. “Should we get going? We don’t want to be late.”
He takes a breath, the red straps of his backpack rising and falling with the heave of his small shoulders, exhaling, “It’s you.”
Huh? “Me?”
“Yes,” he states, looking up at me. “You.”
I was rushing to get ready so we’d be early on his first day, and it’s possible I forgot to put on deodorant. I resist the urge to perform a sniff test.
“Tell me,” I say. “How can I fix it?”
“You can’t,” he says. I watch him as he side-eyes the other children walking into the big green doors of the school. Finally, he meets my eye. “I need to do this by myself.”
“Okay. I get it.” I smile at him. “You’re going to have a great day.” I reach my arms out, desperate for one last squeeze before he grows up completely. “Can I have a hug?”
“Later,” he whispers behind a pudgy hand.
Then he turns and runs up the path to the door, never once looking back.
A swirling gust of wind ruffles his hair and steals my whisper, “Love you.”
I watch him march up the stairs to the front door. A surge of pride hits me as he pauses to thank the teacher who holds the door open for the flow of students. He’s the only one who does.
I can’t wait to tell Cass.
The teacher waves from the doorway, calling out hellos, and I wave back like any other mother.
But I’m the aunt, and tomorrow, Cass will bring him to school.
She’s home, unpacking the last of our boxes. She wanted to do her first drop-off when he has a full day under his Spiderman backpack, and the emotional burden is lighter. She said the last thing Ryan needed today was a mom in a wheelchair, crying her eyes out.
Now, traveling will be easier for her. First-floor apartment with a ramp from the front door to the sidewalk. Two blocks from school. A sense of pride hits me. I walked through his door that night.
I took the risk. It was a life-changing sum of money. And I did it for us.
A simple plan that turned out to be anything but. Feelings got involved, and now things are complicated.But my feelings for him aren’t. Just whispering his name—Lucian—makes me tear up, aching for him to be here, to wrap his arms around me and hold me.
I think back to the dinner with his family, enduring the evening with an icy knot of guilt settled in my stomach. I knew I didn’t belong at their table, not after what I’d done, or who I’d been working for.
I was no guest. I was the enemy.
