Learning to Live, Again

Chapter Six

Hello Readers! This chapter is dedicated to @Jazzy_zucchini for her many votes and comments! I don't reply to all of them, but they make my day and put a huge smile on my face. You help to give me the drive to continue with this book. :)

Caleb's POV

Heath and Dean are playing on the playground in front of me. Heath's little legs are barely able to help him keep up with his older brother as Dean climbs all over the play structure. He doesn't interact with any of the other kids, and definitly not their parents, but he doesn't seem as afraid as he used to be. Every once in a while he has to turn around and haul his baby brother up onto a step, or sit with him so they can go down the slide.

Out of the corner of my eye I can see someone making their way towards me, and I glance over, a smile spreading across my face when I see Catherine making her way to me, Dorothy held closely in her arms. "Caleb," she greets me as I stand and kiss her cheek.

"Uncle Caleb!" Dorothy squeels and I take her into my arms, hugging her and giving her kisses all over, making her giggle and squirm.

"It's good to see you," I say, setting Dorothy down. She immediatly takes off towards Heath and Dean, making Catherine gasp. We sit down and I put a hand over hers. "Don't worry," I reassure her. "Everything will be fine."

When Catherine turns to me, her green eyes are more dull than usual, and she has a slight blush on her cheeks. "I'm sorry. Ever since your friend disappeared, I've been on edge. What if someone takes Dorothy? It's not the same, I know, but I can only imagine how it must feel to not know where she is, or if she's alright."

I shrug, uneasy at the turn of the conversation. I was hoping for a nice easy-going one, but everyone I came in contact with wanted to know how I was doing. They acted as if Niamh and I had been married or something other than acquaintances. I was helping her get her son back, and that was all. "I don't really know Niamh very well," I said. "I don't know how she's doing, but I hope she's alright."

Catherine frowned. "Well, you had to have been closer than that. She gave you her sons to watch over for her, so obviously she trusted you."

I shrugged. "I'm a cop. It's not hard for people to trust you when you have that profession."

Scowling, Catherine rolled her eyes. "You're so dumb sometimes," she muttered. "She cared about you, more than just a 'cop and civilian' relationship. She left you her children. That's more trust than I would ever give a cop." Her green eyes peered into mine, and I could tell she was trying to gauge my reaction. Catherine was a psychologist and a shrink. She liked to try and figure me out, but I was a hard person to figure out.

"Look, she may have trusted me, but that was because she had nobody. Her boyfriend was a jealous, controlling asshole, her mother blamed her for her attack, and her only friend was trying to steal her son. She was backed into a corner, and I seemed like the best option. That was it. Now can we drop it?" I scowled towards the playground, my arms cross over my chest as I searched for the boys.

"You really loved her, didn't you?" I ignored her, looking for any sign of the boys. "It's okay to admit that you loved her, and it's okay to admit that she's gone. You have to if you're going to be able to get over the loss of someone you so deeply cared about."

I stood up. "Where are the kids?"

"Caleb, you're not getting rid of me that easy. You-"

"No, seriously," I snapped. "Where are they?" Catherine stood up, instantly alert.

Her lip trembled as she looked around. "I-I don't know. Dorothy? Baby-cakes? Where are you?"

We fanned out, me going left, and her going right. We shouted their names over and over again, and I ran around the side of the play structure. Every child looked like Dean and every baby looked like Heath. My heart was pushed up into my throat, and I couldn't breath. Spinning in a circle, I noticed a shoe on the side of the bathroom. I ran to it, picking it up, a small cry coming from my lips when I identified it as Heath's shoe.

I called for them, spinning in a circle, unsure of what to do. I needed to find them. If they had gotten kidnapped, I don't know what I'd do. It was obvious to me that I lost Niamh; I couldn't lose the only people I had left that reminded me of her. I ran to the back of the bathroom, and that's when I saw two feet sticking out a bush, giggles immenating from it.

Running to it, I shouted their names, and all three of them, Dorothy, Heath, and Dean crawled from the bush. I sighed with relief, pulling Dean and Heath into a hug. Dean squirmed a little uncomfortably, but I didn't let go. "Don't do that to me," I scoled. "You scared the crap out of me. What if something had happened to you? Your mother would have never forgiven me." I pulled them into a hug.

"Mommy's not coming back." I froze, pulling back slowly to stare at Dean. I had never heard him speak before, and his words sent shivers down my spine. "Mommy's dead." His eyes filled with tears, and I shook my head.

"No, she's not. She'll be back. I promise." I pulled them back into a hug, picking them up as Catherine ran to Dorothy. I wasn't sure how I was going to keep my promise, but I was determined to try my hardest to.

First thing's first: Track down Jeremy.