Easy Silence (23 page)

“When are you heading back home?” I asked

“Tuesday night.”

“Tuesday night as in tomorrow?” He nodded. “I thought you were staying until Thursday?”

“I was planning on it, but I have some things that need my attention before heading out to California.”

“Oh.” I stopped and stared out at the water, wishing that just once he would put his work on the back burner and realize that I needed his attention as well.

“Is everything okay, Sam?”

“Umm…actually, no.” I needed to quit stalling. I needed to come out and tell him. “Dad, I've decided that I'm not starting college this semester.”

“What?” He laughed as if I were joking. That laughter quickly faded when he saw the seriousness on my face. “Sam, you are being absolutely ridiculous. I told you a million times your acting is a hobby. It will never be a means to make a living.”

I shook my head. “It has nothing to do with that.”

He creased his eyebrows. “Well, then, what is it?

“I met someone.”

He threw his head back and let out an annoyed breath. "Jesus, Sam! You're forgoing college over a guy? That’s even more ludicrous than acting!”

“He's not just a guy, Dad. He's very special to me.”

“Sam, come on! How long have you known him?”

“Three months.”

“Three months? Three months and he's special?” He shook his head and laughed.

I could feel my anger rising. “Yes he is!” I shouted. “He's more special to me than anyone I know. He's been there for me more in the past three months than you've been my entire life!” I didn't mean for it to slip out, and when I saw the despair that washed over his face, I had wished I hadn't.

“Is that so?”

“I'm sorry, Dad. It's just—”

“Well, I can tell you one thing. I don't like this person that you've become in these past three months. So, if he's got anything to do with that, I already know my feelings about him.”

“I'm the same person I've always been; you just never took the time to get to know the real me. You only saw what you wanted me to be. Well, I don't want to be that person, Dad. I want to be happy, and for the first time in my life, I am. I'll still go to college, but I'm going to do it here and for what I want to do.”

“Well, don't plan on me supporting you with that decision.”

“That's fine. I don't expect you to. I can take care of myself.”

“Can you, Sam? You may think you’re all grown up, but you’re just a kid.”

“I'm not a kid, Dad.”

“You're eighteen years old!”

“And, I will be nineteen in just a few short months. Years ago people married and had kids already at my age.”

His eyes widened. “Is that what this is all about? Are you pregnant?”

“What No, I'm not pregnant! But, I know that someday, I will be…with his babies. I love him, Dad, and nothing you say or do is going to get me to change my mind. I am going to be with Jaxson Callahan for the rest of my life."

His face went blank, and I watched as all the color drained away. “Wh—who?” His voice shook.

“His name is Jaxson, and he—”

He shook his head and his whole body began to tremble. “You stop seeing him now!” he demanded.

“What?!” I knew that once my dad met Jaxson he would have the same opinion of him as everyone else, but I didn’t expect him to fly off the handle like this before even meeting him. “No. I’m not going to stop seeing him! You don’t even know him, so what gives you the right to demand that of me?”

“Sam, I’m telling you now, either you stop seeing him, or you are no longer my daughter.”

My eyes widened. What the hell? “How could you even say something as heartless as that?”

“Because you haven’t a clue about that family!”

“Yeah, Dad, I know his mother is a piece of trash, but Jaxson is not. He is caring and loving and—”

“Damn it, Sam! Just do as I say!”

“No, I will not. I’m sorry if he doesn’t live up to your standards, but he lives up to mine and that’s all that matters to me! I’m sick of all of these people in this damn town forming an opinion of him without even knowing him.”

“Sam, I’m telling you—”

“What are you telling me, Dad? That I can plan on you not spending gross amounts of money on me for my birthday and Christmas? Or you won’t pay for me to go to school or my car? Well, you can have all of that because none of that means anything to me. All I ever wanted from you was your time and your love, and you weren’t able to give me either. All I ever was to you and Mom was a burden. Well, you can release yourself from that load now.” He tried his hardest to blink away the tears, but I could still see them forming. “I’m sorry if you’re not happy about this, but I want to be with Jaxson. So, if you can’t accept that, then I guess you no longer have a daughter.”

“Sam!” he shouted as I walked away. I didn’t turn around. I just kept on walking. I didn’t want to hear what he had to say anymore because I knew it was just going to piss me off. I walked inside, preparing for him to come inside and lecture me. When I heard his car start up and I looked out the window to find him driving away, my heart sank. He didn’t even care. He wasn’t even willing to get to know Jaxson for the sake of my relationship with him. All he cared about was getting back to that hotel and preparing for his stupid fundraiser. His political cronies meant more to him than his own daughter.

“Sam, where did your father go?” Hadley asked upon walking into the kitchen.

“Did you tell him about Jaxson?” I accused.

“No. Why? What happened?”

“You know what, Hadley? I’m just so done with everyone!” I cried.

I grabbed my keys and headed out the front door while she followed after me. “Sam, please tell me what happened?”

“I told him about Jaxson, and he freaked out on me, telling me to break up with him. He doesn’t even know him! Nobody knows him like I do, Hadley. Why do people only want to see the bad in him?”

She closed her eyes and shook her head. “Sam, just calm down before you go running off anywhere.”

“I’m fine.” I ignored her plea and got into my car, readying myself to go and see the one and only person who could ease my mind at the moment.

I pulled into Pete’s service station, happy to see that Jaxson’s truck was still there. I spotted him as soon as I got out of my car.

“What’s up?” he asked as he approached me. I couldn’t speak; all I could do was bury my face into his shoulder and bask in the comfort of his arms. I didn’t care that he was all sweaty or covered in grease. “What’s wrong?” he asked, placing his hand under my chin and wiping away my tears.

“My dad. He just—” There was no way I was going to tell him the real reason that my father had basically disowned me. The last thing I wanted was for Jaxson to feel guilty about something he had no part in. “We just got in a major fight because I told him I wasn’t starting college this semester.”

He took my hand and led me over to his truck, grabbing the pack of cigarettes from the front seat and lighting one up. “Samantha, are you sure that’s what you want to do? Don’t not go to college because of me.”

I frantically shook my head. “That’s not why I’m doing it Jaxson. I didn’t want to go to that stupid school from the day we went on our college visit. That’s not want I want to do with my life. I’m still going to college, just locally. I always said if I couldn’t be an actress then I wanted to be a nurse and that’s what I’m going to do, and I’m doing it here with you!”

He smiled and brushed his hand along my cheek. I moved in closer to him waving my hand in the air to chase away the smoke. He took one last drag and threw the cigarette on the ground, putting it out and looking down at his watch. “I hate blowing you off, but I gotta get back to Pete’s and shower real quick. I have to be at the restaurant in a half hour.”

“Go!” I said without hesitation.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine now. All I needed was to see your cute little face.”

He blushed and looked down at the ground. “I get off at eleven.”

“I’ll wait up for you.” I smiled. When he smiled back, I felt all my apprehension of the day fading away.

“See ya, Samantha.” He leaned down and gave me a kiss.

“See ya,” I responded before turning around and heading back to my car.

“Sam,” Pete called, coming out of his office just as I was about to get into my car.

“Oh, hey!” I slammed the door shut and walked over to him.

“Are you okay?” he asked, no doubt noticing that I had been crying.

“Yeah. I am. Just got into it with my dad earlier, but Jaxson made me feel better. He…umm…he wasn’t happy when I told him I wasn’t starting college in the fall.” He nodded. “And he was even less happy when I told him about Jaxson. He freaked out on me when I mentioned his name! I didn’t even know that he knew his family.” I shook my head. “I just don’t get it, Pete, why is everyone so hard on Jaxson without even knowing him?”

“I–I don’t know, Sam.” But something told me he did, at least where this was concerned.

I let out a deep sigh. “Pete?”

“Hmm?”

I dug around in my purse and pulled out the photograph of my father and Brooke. “I need to know the truth,” I whispered. “What do you know about Brooke?”

He let out a deep sigh. “Sam, honey. You need to talk to your dad—”

“No! Please just tell me, Pete. I need to know.”

He looked deep in thought before waving me into his office. I took a seat, and he sat down on the other side of the counter. “Your dad and Brooke married right after he graduated college, and they moved to Maryland. She and Bonnie were the best of friends, so they always kept in touch. Brooke always wanted a baby in the worst way, but your father wanted to wait until his career took off.” I bit my lip in anticipation, wishing he would speed up his words. “She ended up getting pregnant, and your father wasn’t happy. So, they slowly began to drift apart, but Brooke didn’t care. She just wanted to have that baby, and she did…the beautiful young lady who I’m talking to right now.”

I felt my stomach tighten. How could this be? My whole life was a lie? I had a mother who I never knew existed. How could my father have done this to me?

“Oh my—oh my god! She was my mother?” He nodded sadly. “What happened to her? Does she live around here?” I could hear my voice quivering at the same time that Pete’s eyes began to fill with tears.

“She…umm—she found out that your father was having an affair, so she decided to come back home with you and start all over again here.” He took a deep cleansing breath and closed his eyes. “You were just about two years old when it happened.”

“When what happened?”

“She had just gotten into town and stopped off at the convenience store. She walked in with you in her arms just as the store was getting held up.” I stared straight ahead and swallowed hard. “It was all caught on surveillance camera. She begged that animal not to shoot her and most of all not to harm you. He didn’t care he was so high at the time, and he shot her right in the head, without even blinking an eye.” I gasped, feeling the surge of tears rushing to the surface.

“And, he did this all while his four year old son who was with him watched, begging him to stop. He pointed the gun at you and was ready to shoot you, too, until that little boy of his shielded you, taking a bullet for you.”

A loud sob escaped my throat. Pete took my hand and rubbed it gently. “Did—did the boy die?” I asked, wiping my eyes.

He shook his head. “No, Sam.” He cleared his throat and hesitated. “The boy was Jax.”

“Oh my god—” My whole body began to quiver.

“That piece of garbage took off and left his own son there to die as well. When the police came they found you and Jax huddled in the corner together crying, both covered in Jax’s blood.”

I covered my face in my hands and bent down, burying my head in my lap, unable to breathe through the cries that were escaping me. Everything that Pete had just told me was so tragic. A mother I never knew. A little boy brave enough to take a bullet for me, now a man so broken because of it. And a lifetime that was a lie, believing that some other woman was my mother.

Pete got up and sat back down beside me, handing me a bottle of water. “Try and drink a little of this, Sam.” My eyes were so swollen from crying, I could hardly see as I lifted my head to take a sip.

“Does Jaxson know about this?”

He shook his head. “He was too young when it happened. I think he suppressed a lot of it into his subconscious, but I think every now and then he vaguely remembers bits and pieces.”

I stared into space. “His nightmare he was having last night,” I whispered. “He was begging someone to stop. When I woke him he was burning up and trembling in fear. All he wanted—” I choked back a sob, grabbing a tissue from the counter to dab my eyes. “All he wanted was to hug me. Oh my god, Pete, he was having a nightmare about that day. My poor sweet Jaxson, he was always there taking care of me even as a little boy, but he never had anyone to take care of him.” He waited until I caught my breath.