Heart and War// Feathers and Stripes Book 2

Chapter 9

                      Eliza locked the door to the bedroom, mostly because she could hear John on the other side of the door, moving around. Eliza didn't want to deal with anything, or see anyone. All she wanted to do was let her grief overtake her and bury herself in bed.

     Every little memory hit her like a knife. Had he ever even loved her? How long had this been going on? Eliza was questioning every little thing, and she knew that she shouldn't, but....everything just hurt so much. 

She cried a lot more until she heard the door open to the apartment. Eliza wiped her eyes, and got out of the bedroom. Heather and Regina had come home, and both were teary eyed.

"Mom! I can't believe what dad did" Regina exclaimed, empathy and anger in her eyes. Heather and Regina both gave Eliza a big hug, and that made Eliza want to cry more, that they had to know the horrible thing that their father had done.

 "All day, the kids were teasing us, and reminding us about what had happened, and the whole day, we were thinking of you, and the way you had been affected. No wonder you left breakfast early!" Heather seethed, tears showing in her eyes.

Eliza let out a sob that she had meant to keep in, and Heather's eyes softened. Eliza had the best daughters she could have asked for, and she knew it as they hugged her, and told her how much they loved her and that it would be ok. Eliza was vaguely aware of John staring at everything from the doorway to the guest bedroom, but she couldn't bring herself to care. Let him see how this was affecting them all.

"Mom, why don't we go out to eat?" Regina gently told her. Eliza relaxed at the idea of spending more time with her daughters.

"Ok, let's go." Eliza said. She opened the door for her daughters, and made sure she had the key before she left. As she go out of the apartment building, she was aware of stares and whispers.

"Eliza Bushnell wasn't enough for her husband" Some women whispered to  a friend, loud enough for Eliza to hear. Regina and Heather obviously heard as well, as their grip on Eliza's arm tightened, and they gave her a look of sympathy when a unwanted tear slid down her cheek.

When they eventually made it to the restaurant, Regina and Heather talked to Eliza about school, and their projects that they needed to work on later. Eliza smiled. They were trying so hard to pretend that everything was normal in front of her. It meant so much to her that her children were ready to do anything for their mother.

Eliza didn't want to leave, but all to soon it was over and they had to go back home. On the way home, there were not as many stares and whispers, but that was only because it was night, and there were less people out and about in Paris.

Eliza instantly went to bed when they got back, and welcomed the darkness that was taking away everything.