Bloodline Divine 2-The Rise to Fall

Chapter 23

Remembering the Road

RIP Sika Anoa'i

The next morning after my talk with Solo. I'd remember something as I couldn't fall asleep last night and was replaying his words in my head. I had kept some of my mom's things most of which I hadn't hardly looked at but I briefly remember opening a box and there were some pictures. Of course, back then I had no interest in dealing with everything plus I was trying to get my career going. When I had first opened the box and saw the pictures, I quickly closed it and moved on never once going back to it but then all night I wondered if there was a picture of him in it.

Once everyone had wondered off downstairs for their morning workout, I went back to my art room going over to the giant cabinet. I mostly kept extra art supplies in it but on the very bottom were three boxes, stuff belong to my mother that I put in here after I moved in and haven't touched since. I pulled out the middle box thinking I remembered putting them in there. I sat on the floor setting the box out next to me, Sergeant hovering over my arm to see as I lifted the lid. I moved somethings around and I saw the small box. I pulled it out and pushed the bigger box aside. I sat the box on the floor in front of me and stared at it. Did I really need a reason to go to the past? Would I have ever even bothered to look through this if Rich hadn't stepped back into my life? Yet I didn't throw any of this away, I kept it, why? As I pondered stuff, I came up with no answers to a hundred questions I had.

"Okay, let's do this," I said and lifted the box after at least ten minutes of staring at it. Setting the lid down pictures stared back up at me from in the box not a lot of them but there were some. There were photos of my mother when she was young maybe high school some before, she was even a teenager. I'd never seen her this young, I also never seen her look that happy as she smiled at the camera. I flipped through some more then stopped when I came to a photo of my mother in a fancy dress standing with a guy in a tux, I was almost certain this was a prom photo and that was my father. He looked just like Rich just a much younger version. They both were smiling and didn't look like they had a care in the world, they looked happy. The next picture made me freeze; I was sure I'd stopped breathing. The picture showed both of them again only this time a baby was in my mother's hands and Rich was standing next to her his arm under hers to help support the baby. I was confident that the baby was me. They smiled but I could see the happiness didn't reach their eyes like the previous pictures had. This only made me have more questions. I heard the sound of the keypad on my door being touched as I pulled myself out of my frozen position and a stray tear had come down my cheek. I heard the doorhandle and the door being pushed open.

"Briar?" Roman's voice floated over to me in a soft comfort.

"Yes Chief?" I asked trying to sound normal as I turned away wiping at my face.

"Can I come in?" he asked part of me wanted to hide everything but Roman and I were going to be married, we were supposed to be sharing everything so in truth I had nothing to hide.

"Yes Chief," I answered again. I did not move as I stared ahead facing away from the door. Sergeant who'd move to resting his head on my leg glanced up when Roman came next to us.

"You're on the floor," he noted.

"I am," I answered and he got on the floor next to me facing my direction his legs near mine with Sergeant between us.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"I couldn't sleep last night," I said.

"I know, I'm always aware of if you are or aren't," he replied.