Keep On Walking (A Hunter Hayes Fanfiction, Book 3 of the Hardships Saga)

Chapter Thirty-Seven

❝canine (pronounced ˈkeɪnaɪn or key-nahyn)
a dog, or a dog-like creature..❞

The more he thought about it, the more logical it seemed.

He hated that.

He didn't want to believe she was cheating on him. But she was always checking her phone. She was always going out to avoid him. It was like when she was pregnant all over again, trying to hide it from him. She was good at keeping secrets, but not from Hunter. He knew her too well. He never went through the messages on her phone, he had more self-respect than that, but he couldn't see any other explanation. If she hadn't been cheating, she would've told him. And what would Dahlia have against her that would make her lie about something so serious?

It was a week after Phoenix's fifth birthday, two days after Christmas. Robin and Elle were riding Polka, with Hunter making sure they didn't fall, and Phoenix was riding Blaze, Ryan making sure he didn't fall. They were walking to a park, where they'd have a picnic. And maybe, hopefully, Hunter could get the truth out of Ryan.

He looked at her now. Her eyes weren't their usual beautiful green. They were cold, dead looking. It made him sad to see her that way, to see the way that he couldn't make her happy anymore. Then, anger flared up inside him again. If she didn't want to be with him, then why was she still here? Why was she risking tearing their whole family apart? It was clear that Elle was more inclined towards Hunter, and Phoenix towards Ryan, but what would happen to poor little Robin?

He looked forward again, and the park was fast approaching. Phoenix, Elle and Robin all started begging to get off the horses and run to the playground, so Hunter and Ryan walked the horses to a tree, tethering them both to a strong looking branch. They lay down at the base of another tree, Ryan lying in Hunter's arms.

"Why won't you talk to me anymore?" he asked finally, after watching the kids play on the playground for a long time.

"What do you mean?"

"You know exactly what I mean."

"It's nothing."

"I don't appreciate you lying to me, Ryan."

"I'm not-"

"Why don't you ever trust me?" he said suddenly. "The pregnancy. Depression. Everything. Why don't you trust me?"

"I do!" She sighed. "I just... I don't want you to leave me."

Why does she need two men in her life? Am I not enough? I wonder what he looks like. Maybe he's more attractive to her. Maybe he's intellectual. Maybe he actually finished high school. Oh, crap, what if that's why she likes him?

These questions went unasked, though. He said nothing. She didn't say anything either. Her phone made a notification, and she didn't pick it up. "Uh... aren't you going to check that?"

"It's just spam."

"So? Just check it."

"I- I don't want to."

"Ryan Elizabeth, check your goddamn phone before I check it for you," he said harshly.

But before she had a chance to respond, they heard a scream from the playground. "PAPA!"

"Ellie!" he yelled, and they both stood up and ran as fast as they could. While he had been trying to get the truth out of Ryan, the kids had wandered away from the park towards the trees. Hunter could see all three children huddled around something.

"What happened?! Are you hurt?!"

"No, Papa! Look!"

Ryan gasped, and Hunter went pale. It was a large dog, maybe a wolf, he couldn't tell. It was mangled and bloody, clawed by some horrible animal. "Is it dead?"