Page 35 of On The Run

“What did you tell him when he asked where I was?” Fuck, was that question suspicious? Would normal people ask that?

Mary didn’t seem to think it was strange though. “I just told him you’re a volunteer and had to take some time off for personal reasons. I’m not sure why, but I didn’t tell him you were coming in today. It didn’t feel right.”

A wave of gratitude washed over me.Thank you, Mary, and your old lady instincts.I was sure it was nothing, but I’d rather nobody be asking after me. Except Max. He could ask after me any time. I shook my head. Man, I needed to stop.

“Thanks, Mary. You mind doing me a favor and letting me know if you see him again?”

“Sure, sweetie,” Mary replied, already distracted by the task she had been working on.

“Thank you. I’m gonna go find Linda. I’ll talk to you later.”

She waved goodbye as the phone rang, and I finally walked over to Linda. The fear was like ice in my veins, but I refused to give into it this time. As much as every instinct I had was telling me I should run, just in case, I ignored it. Something had changed this time, or, I should say, someone had caused me to change, and I wouldn’t run. I finally had something worth staying for.

Chapter16

Max

The instant I spotted Aiden,I knew something was wrong. He was manning the scavenger hunt section and standing behind a plastic folding table loaded down with flyers and little goodie bags for the kids. He had a smile on his face as he talked to the family in front of him, but I could see how tense he was.

His eyes were on a constant swivel, bouncing around the perfectly landscaped outdoor area as if he were expecting someone to jump out of the shadows. Even from this distance, as Gray and I made our way toward him, I could see him tense up or jump anytime someone got too close.

Part of me wanted to hope it was just nerves about seeing me, but he was scared. And fuck, it would kill me if it were my fault Aiden felt that kind of fear. I would leave this place immediately, no matter how disappointed it made Gray. But no, there was something else going on here. I’d bet my life on it.

“Look, Dad! It’s Aiden!” Gray tugged my hand, dragging me toward the scavenger hunt station. “Hi, Aiden!” He screamed way too loudly, to be heard over the crowd.

Aiden jumped, panic in his features as his eyes flew toward us. And then the tension visibly leaked out of him when he saw us.

I allowed Gray to drag me toward Aiden, trying not to act like I was as thrilled to see this man as my son was. But I was also concerned, and that ramped up about 1000x when I got closer to him. Despite the smile plastered on his face and the easy tone he had for Gray, he looked wrecked. What happened to him since he texted me an hour ago?

Still, despite the obvious caution, Aiden did look happy to see me, his expression genuine. “Hi, Max! Thank you for coming.”

“Of course. Thank you for inviting us.” Because, yes, this was a public event I could have taken Gray to regardless of Aiden’s text, but I knew making that effort was a big step for him, and I wanted him to know I understood and appreciated it.

He smiled brightly, and I felt like he may want to say more, but a line was starting to form behind us, so he just picked up the printed brochure and gave it to me while handing the goodie bag to Gray. “These are all the instructions to the scavenger hunt. Your first clue is in the brochure. At each station, you’ll receive another clue and a sticker for your book.” He jerked his head toward the handout. On the back was a sticker chart of sorts to keep track of the hunt. “If you find every clue, there’s a prize at the end.”

“Awesome! C’mon, Daddy, let’s go.” Gray started dragging me away, ready for his prize.

“Hang on a second, bud,” I told Gray. Glancing behind me to make sure no one was too close, I leaned in to whisper to Aiden, “We will talk about whatever’s bothering you later.”

Aiden shuddered, but not in fear. I knew I really didn’t have a right to demand that he tell me anything, but the more time I spent with Aiden, the more important he became to me, and I couldn’t stand seeing him like this. I knew he wouldn’t let me help him, and a reasonable person would accept that, but I’d never been good at letting people solve their own problems if I cared about them and thought I could help. And I was desperate to save Aiden from the torment that was obviously eating at him. If he would just give me an inch, I’d do anything to protect him.

That was why I decided against telling Aiden about the grants or having a fundraiser for Manny at the cookout. I just knew it wouldn’t be received the way I intended, and I chickened out. I couldn’t bring myself to get rid of the applications though. Maybe, if I could just get Aiden to trust me a little more, he’d let me in to help. In the meantime, I’d keep the contacts open, just in case.

Aiden’s pupils dilated and he sucked in a breath, but he didn’t tell me to go fuck myself and leave. Instead, he just nodded sharply before straightening his shoulders and turning to the person behind us, his customer-service smile glued to his face. I knew a dismissal when I saw one, so I gave up and allowed an impatient Gray to drag me along, trying to turn my attention back to my son and this activity.

I couldn’t keep my focus on Gray though, as much as I tried. I dutifully followed him around and read the clues to him and helped him when he needed it, but my eyes kept finding Aiden, sometimes against my will. What happened to make him so jittery? When I wasn’t watching Aiden, I found myself scanning the crowd, looking for the invisible threat that had him on edge. Of course, I had no idea what I was looking for, since he wouldn’t talk to me. And the little scraps of knowledge that Aiden let slip weren’t enough to get a clear picture of what had him so frightened, so skittish.

At first, I thought maybe he had just been afraid of committing to something real. It’d obviously been just him and Manny most of his life, and with Manny sick, his focus had been on him. I could understand how trying to fit in someone else may be terrifying, but after meeting his father, I didn’t think that was the case. They both had this edge to them, like they couldn’t fully relax. I hadn’t spoken to Manny enough to pick up on it, but after they left, my dad mentioned it—how he kept scanning the yard, searching out Aiden without even realizing it. Jana noted that both Manny and Aiden always sat where their backs were protected and they could see an easy escape. I apparently didn’t realize my family was filled with a bunch of psychologists and amateur detectives, but thinking about it now, I could see the signs. It didn’t make it any clearer what they were so afraid of. Aiden mentioned his other father the at the cookout, but I didn’t fucking know anything.

Eventually, Gray moved on from the scavenger hunt, after grabbing his prize of course, and was wreaking havoc in the bouncy house, which gave me time to find Aiden again. He hadn’t moved from his table, but no one was around him now. His body was frozen in place, and he was fisting the pile of papers so tightly, I was afraid he was going to tear them in half. From where the bouncy house was staked down, I was staring directly at Aiden and was maybe only 10/15 feet away from him, but he didn’t see me. He was staring right through me, his eyes unfocused. I looked around again, but there was nothing but rambunctious kids and harried parents. Whatever threat Aiden was facing right now was only in his head, but that didn’t make it any less real.

I glanced back at Gray. He’d made friends with a little girl with curly hair about his age and the two of them were having a blast. I had a few minutes.

I took the few steps back to Aiden, with the bouncy area still in my vision so I never lost sight of Gray. Aiden didn’t even notice when I was standing directly in front of him.

“Aiden.” No response. He didn’t even blink.

I lightly gripped his shoulder, trying to get his attention. Aiden’s response was immediate. His whole body jerked away from my touch, his eyes going wild as they came back to focus, looking for the threat.

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