The Neighbor III: The Dark Web

Chapter 20

Zach stared down at the floor, the world around him muffled. He had his eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he tried to think. He only saw her a few hours ago. She was perfectly fine. She didn't seem sick, or unhappy - despite her current situation.

She couldn't have committed suicide.

"Zach...Zach, honey, I know this is a lot," Cassie gently told him, "We, um...we have some more news, too." Zach slowly looked up at her through his eyebrows. She gave him a sad look before saying, "Your Uncle and I...well, we think it's best for you...if we contact your real father."

He looked like he had just got hit by a freight train and Cassie couldn't help but feel awful. "Listen," Ben piped in, "it's not that we don't want you here. Your father - real father - is a good man. He'll be able to have the parental support you need. It'll be new for both of you, but you'll learn and grow together. Believe me, he's going to what's best for you."

Zach stayed sitting in silence. It got to the point where Ben and Cassie were getting uncomfortable from the silence. "She didn't commit suicide," he said. "I mean...where would she even get Cyanide?"

Both Ben and Cassie glanced at each other, then look back to Zach. "Cyanide comes from a lot of places, honey. It's even in apple seeds! It could have come from anywhere. Whether she got it and swallowed it, or was exposed to it accidentally, we don't know. It's not officially ruled a suicide."

Oh, how Ben wishes she would just roll with the suicide thing.

"Point is," Ben said, annoyance in his voice, "it's a pretty common death. Actually, it's pretty common to die at Rikers." Cassie kicked him, then told Zach, "We'll just leave you to be alone. If you need anything, come get us."

As Ben walked out, Cassie kissed Zach's head, then closed his door on her way out. She went into the bedroom, where Ben was looking through his phone. "I don't know if this is still Alec's number..." He mumbled. He put his phone up to his ear.

"Why are you in such a rush to get rid of him?" She asked. "We moved to another home to make him more comfortable!" Ben put his hand over the speaker of the phone and told her, "Because the sooner we do, the sooner all this shit is behind us. Besides, we'll need that room for the baby."

Cassie let out a sharp breath as she watched his face light up when the other line answered. "Alec! Hey, it's Ben Carlton. Yeah, listen, man...we need to have a chat."

**

"Zach's leaving?" Jess sadly asked. "Why?" Cassie put her hand over her daughter's, then said, "We talked about this. Tom was his adoptive father and he has a biological one out there. He needs to be with his real dad."

Michael leaned back into the couch with his arms crossed. "So, we moved homes for this guy and now he's leaving? What the hell!" Cassie went to say something, but Ben came rushing down the stairs while shouting, "Hey!"

He came into where the three of them were talking and put his hands on his hips. "Don't speak to your mother that way," he scolded. "We did what was best for all of us and getting out of that place was a damn good thing. Besides, you're mum is pregnant so we'd need an extra room either way."

As Cassie whipped her head to him with wide eyes, the kid's heads whipped to her with their wide eyes. "Mom!" Jess practically screeched. "You're pregnant?!" Michael put his hands over his face and groaned, "Gross, you two still have sex."

Cassie was in so much shock, her mouth had literally dropped open. Ben looked to her with a smirk. She shook her head at him with a scoff. Turning back to her kids, she had to gently explain, "I, uh...I took an at home pregnancy test and it was positive. I won't know for sure until I get an appointment. The thing is, though...don't get your hopes up. I have my tubes tied and I'm just past the age where my body can handle carrying a baby, let alone have one. It's all complicated stuff, which is why I wanted to wait to tell you."

After a little more explaining to the kids, Ben and Cassie went up to bed. As soon as the door shut, she went up to Ben and slapped him in the face. "You fucking prick!" She shouted. "Do you want me to die during the birth? Do you want to be left with two teenagers and a newborn? What the fuck is wrong with you!"

Ben shoved her against the wall as he growled, "I want this fucking baby. I want my child to be born! You are having it and you are going to be fine." With that, he put his lips to her ear. "And I'm almost certain I've told you never to hit me again. You're going to fucking pay for that."