Episode 31

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( Texts )

Nigel: Your son did what! Are you ok!

Richard: Niles tried to kill me. He broke into where I was staying at the boarding school. He put a pillow over my face as I slept. He tried to suffocate me. My own son tried to murder me. If it wasn't for my father I would be dead right now.

Nigel: Oh my God. Please tell me he is arrested. Please are you ok? Thank God for Andrew.

Richard: He is. The constable in the area is here now. He is being arrested. And probably expelled. Not that I care. I can't believe he tried to kill me. We got into a fight earlier. He punched me. I hit him. I basically disowned him. Told him I was not paying tuition anymore. That I was stopping his allowance.

Nigel: I'm so sorry, baby. What are you going to do now?

Richard: I'm going to email his mother about what happened. I'm going to let the police here handle it. And in the morning I'm coming home with my father and my son. I need to come home. I need you. How can he hate me this much?

Nigel: I don't know. Please be careful. I can't wait until you are back home again.

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Richard lowered the phone and his head at the same time. His eyes closed to trap in the tears that threatened to overflow.

Andrew stood behind him and put his hand on his son's shoulder. " At least Lewis and Rebecca are good kids," he said softly to his son.

Richard tried to laugh but it was trapped in his throat. " Yes. Two out of three isn't bad. Right? " He turned to his father and almost begged," Dad , what did I do wrong? It could not just be me coming out. Am I that bad a person, a father? "

Andrew hugged him tightly and stroked his hair. " You didn't do anything wrong. It was your son's failing. Not yours. "

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America

Nigel sat up in their bed, still holding his phone and trying to comprehend what he had just read. Then he heard a sound at the open door of the bedroom and turned to see his stepdaughter standing there in her pink and purple pajamas holding her teddy bear.

" What's wrong, Pumpkin," he asked as he got out of bed and reached for his eye patch to put it on his face.

Rebecca whispered," I'm sorry I was mean, Daddy Nigel. Don't leave me like Daddy and Mommy. Please. "

Nigel smiled sadly. " Oh , darling one, I'm not going anywhere. And neither is your daddy. In fact he's coming back home tomorrow. I do promise that. "

             

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