Here With Me (The Archer Brothers 1)

“Did anyone ever come for you?”

“Yes, they brought us supplies, a new radio and they made sure our ammo was stocked. That’s why this is so hard to understand. They had pictures of my son, letters from Ryley and my mom. But according to that newspaper article you showed me, I died months after being gone. None of this adds up. The Navy was supporting us, we were on a mission to recover children who were being used as sex slaves and someone here was telling everyone that we’re dead!”

I stand and start pacing, stopping at the wall. My fist pounds against the wall, once, twice before I push away and run my hand over what little hair I have.

“Someone did some serious covering up, and it’s costing me my life.”

“LET’S SHIFT A LITTLE and talk about your parents. Both your parents are in the military, right?”

I lean my elbow on the armrest of the couch. “My dad is a consultant for the Army Corps of Engineers, a federal employee. My mom is still active; she’s stationed in Coronado. She takes EJ to work with her every now and again. EJ loves it. He wants to be like his grandma and his dad. I have no doubt that someday he’ll wear the same uniform, but I’ve told you that already.”

“I know, just going over my notes.

“Okay,” I say meekly. My voice is tired. I’m tired. My session needs to be over.

“You met the Archers in Washington?”

I nod. “We did, but when Evan received his orders for Coronado, I applied to school in San Diego. Everyone thought I was stupid, but I wanted to be near him. My dad was livid and insisted that I apply everywhere so I could live my life and not worry about Evan or cater to his whereabouts. My mom encouraged me to enlist or become a lawyer like her, saying I might help someone on

e day like she does, but that’s not what I wanted. It’s not how I saw my life.”

“How did you see your life?”

“With Evan, as his wife, raising our children while he’s protecting our country. It was important to me that I support him and be there for him. I think it was important to him, as well, that he knew I’d be his support all the time, regardless of the situation.”

“What if you were to break up?”

I shrug. “I tried to never think like that. I wanted to always be positive for Evan. Happy and welcoming. He was under enough stress that he didn’t need mine as well.”

“How many schools did you apply to?”

“Five, maybe? I don’t remember. I wanted something close and really liked the area when I visited the schools there. When I was accepted at San Diego State I thought my dad was going to freak and refuse to pay for school. My mom though, she requested a transfer. They moved to Coronado about three months after I left for school.”

“How did you feel having them so close?”

“Honestly, I didn’t mind. I’m family orientated, so having them literally in my backyard was a blessing. I could drive home on the weekends and for holidays. I could’ve even lived at home, but being on campus gave Evan plenty of opportunities to spend the night. Having them there made it easy for me to make decisions. I didn’t have to apologize to them because I was going to be spending the holidays with Evan. We were all together.”

“And what about Evan’s mom and sister? Where were they?”

“Julianne and Livvie stayed until the twins received their orders. Right now, they live in Sacramento.”

“And all the parents get along?”

“Oh, I don’t know about that.” I hate that they don’t, but there’s nothing I can do about it. Our relationship is strained. “At first, yes, everyone got along and even more so after Archie died, but since Evan… the tension started at his funeral. Like I said before, Julianne wanted things a certain way but Nate made sure I was afforded liberties. She was mad at Nate for a while, but eventually forgave him. Julianne questioned Evan’s death and asked my mom to look into it. She wanted answers, and the Navy wasn’t giving them to her. She expected my mom to find them out and my mom couldn’t.

“I hadn’t told anyone I was pregnant except for Evan and Nate so when I announced that I was… I don’t know. Julianne didn’t seem excited. I thought for sure she’d be thrilled, her son’s legacy was going to live on and she’d still have a piece of Evan with her. At first she ignored the idea and that upset my father greatly. He couldn’t understand how, after losing her husband and son, she wouldn’t embrace my pregnancy.

“As I started to show and the more Nate brought me to her house, she came around. I know she was hurting, but so was I. I was trying to sustain a healthy pregnancy and bring Evan’s child into this world when most of the time I wanted to curl up and be left alone.

“I can’t imagine what’s going to happen when Julianne finds out about Evan now.”

The therapist leans forward as if she’s intrigued in my soap opera life. “She doesn’t know?”

I shake my head. “No, I don’t believe she does. He… Evan said he wasn’t ready to see her yet.”

“And do your parents know?”

“Yes, they do. I called my mom because… because this whole situation seems so wrong and unrealistic. I need her to get answers.”