Bad Seed

“Then, what’s going on with you?” I demanded. “You’ve been somewhere else. It’s like you’re not even here.”

Tara sighed and closed her eyes. She rubbed her forehead, and when her eyes opened again, they were swimming with emotion. She opened her mouth to speak but never got a chance to explain. The door to the PT building swung open with a bang. I jumped and spun around to see Darren walking toward us.

The same suspicious expression was on his face. I’d grown to know it well, and after everything that happened with Tara that day, I didn’t have time for it.

“Can you give us a second?” I asked. “Tara and I were just in the middle of something.”

“No,” Darren said flatly. “Your mother got pulled in with a patient, so I need to take you home. I don’t have all night, so let’s go.”

“Okay, in a minute,” I said, turning back to Tara.

“Unless you want to walk, let’s go.”

I was livid as Tara handed me my crutches and Darren led the way toward the parking lot. He climbed behind the wheel while I struggled to put my crutches in the backseat, then fell into the passenger seat with a sharp pain in my leg.

“Thanks so much for the help.” I snapped once I slammed the door behind me.

“I’m giving you a ride, aren’t I?” Darren asked. His voice was sharp and juvenile. I hated how much he acted like a child sometimes.

“What the fuck is your problem?” I demanded.

“Don’t talk to me that,” Darren hissed.

“Darren, I’m not a child anymore, okay?” I said. “I’m twenty-seven years old, and if you have something to say to me, then just fucking say it already.”

“I want you to stay away from Tara,” Darren said bluntly. “I don’t like how close you two have gotten since she moved back to town. It’s not healthy, and it’s inappropriate.”

“Why?” I asked. “Because it makes you uncomfortable.”

“Don’t you remember what happened last time?” Darren demanded. “Don’t you remember how much you hurt her?”

“Whose fault was that?” I snapped. “You sent me away to military school because you couldn’t stand the thought of me being with your daughter. You were so terrified that what we had might have been real, that you couldn’t deal. You sent me out of the state just to keep us apart.”

“And it was obviously the right decisio

n,” Darren said. “Considering how long it took her to get over you.”

“What are you talking about?” I asked, his words catching me by surprise.

“Nothing.” Darren sighed and shook his head.

“No,” I said sharply. “You started this conversation, now finish it.”

“You destroyed her,” Darren said. “You broke her heart, Caleb. She spent years trying to get over you, and now that she finally has, you’re back in her life. You’re just going to hurt her again.”

“You don’t know that,” I said.

“Don’t I?” he asked. “Your reputation isn’t exactly a secret. I have a few buddies down at the fire station. I know the kind of man you are.”

“You don’t know anything about me,” I said. “You never did.”

Darren continued to lecture me the entire way back to my apartment. I tuned him out; my mind focused entirely on Tara. I had no idea how much I’d hurt her when I left town. I thought I was doing the best thing for everyone by not putting up a fight. I was trying to protect her, and instead, I did the opposite.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN - TARA

I could barely keep myself from breaking. After Dr. Anderson gave me the news about my illness, everything passed by in a blur of terror and confusion. I was scared to death, worried that my fear would somehow exacerbate things and make me sicker. It wasn’t a logical fear, but it was there, lingering in the back of my mind and preventing me from engaging in my day.

I had cancer. A rare form of brain cancer that caused my headaches and vomiting. It wasn’t yet advanced, but it was so rare that the oncologists weren’t sure how to proceed. After Dr. Anderson gave me the news, he brought in two oncologists who talked to me about my diagnosis. I barely heard anything they said. My mind was spinning.