Troubled One (Wilde #2)

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

       "Remind me why Nick and I have to be here as well?" I asked Laughlin. Apparently, we had to go grocery shopping with him and Elliot. Boring.

       "Because I said so," Laughlin said. "I really don't need you staying at home by yourself and making a mess like last time."

       "But grocery shopping is boring," I whined.

       "Do you ever stop complaining?" Nick asked.

       "Nope."

       Elliot took Elizabeth out of the shopping cart and placed her on the ground. "Can you do me a favor, Munro?" she asked. "Can you take Elizabeth and go get some snacks for her? Laughlin and I usually let her pick out two different snacks."

       I sighed. "Sure. Come on, Lizzie." Elizabeth grabbed my hand and we went to the snack aisle. Immediately, Elizabeth pointed to a box of cookies that she wanted. "This one?"

       "Yeah!" Elizabeth said, so I took the box off the shelf and let her hold it.

       "Excuse me?" a voice said behind me. I turned around, almost freezing in my tracks at who was there. Someone I hadn't seen for five years. Someone who twelve year old me was terrified of.

       My own mother.

       "Can you get that box for me on the top shelf?" she asked, pointing to a box. I didn't even think she recognized me.

       "Yeah, sure," I said, reaching for the box. I then handed it to her.

       "Thank you," she said. "And can I just say how nice it is for someone to take his little sister out shopping?"

       "Oh, trust me, she's not my sister," I said. You would have known if she was. "She's my niece."

       "Oh, well, that's even more nice," Mom said. "I'm sorry, but I can't help but notice how familiar you look." How could she not recognize her own son? "Have we met before?"

       I shrugged. "It's possible."

       Elizabeth suddenly said, "Daddy!" before running over to Laughlin, who started walking down the aisle. "Look! My snack!" She held out the box of cookies she was holding.

       "Nice choice, Lizzie," Laughlin said. "We'll put it in the cart when your mommy gets here."

       "Laughlin?" Mom asked. So she recognized Laughlin, but not me? Then again, the last time she saw me, I was twelve and now I was seventeen. I grew a lot in the last five years.

       "Mom?" Laughlin said. "What....What are you doing here?"

       "Grocery shopping," she said. "I was released from prison." She then looked at Elizabeth. "Your daughter?"

       "Yeah."

       Mom then turned to me. "Then you're Munro."

       "Glad to see you recognized me," I said sarcastically.

       "You've grown up so much," Mom said. "I can't believe I didn't recognize you." She then turned to face Laughlin. "How are you? All of you?"

       "We're okay," Laughlin said. "Better than five years ago, that's for sure."

       "I was horrible, wasn't I?" Mom asked, sounding sincerely sorry. I wondered if my brothers were going to forgive her, but I sure knew that I wasn't.