I was in high school, and my only focus was to achieve the best grades so I could decide my career choice, but I was only fifteen and had four years of high school left. That didn’t matter to my mother.
Late one night while I was flipping through pages of the medical textbook, writing my thoughts in a little notebook, my father slipped into my room carrying a thick textbook. It surprised me because he never pushed these types of things. He always encouraged the artistic aspirations I had.
He settled on the bed next to me and placed the textbook between us. I ran my hand over the dark-blue book and read the title. It was for coding.
“Follow your dreams, Kathleen. Don’t let what you love, all those visions in your mind go. I’ll love you no matter the path you follow. I’ll be proud because you’ll be happy.”
My father left that night, and I made my choice. I never looked back and never regretted following my heart. He supported me every step of the way. When my mother pulled funding from underneath me because she didn’t approve of my choice, he was there. When my mother refused to see me because she was upset with me, he was there.
I set my pen down and bury my face in my hands. Who will be there for Jake when she chases his dreams away?
The front door opens and draws my attention to my mother and brother walking inside. Lukas’s arms are full of grocery bags. “Lukas and I bought groceries,” she states, an edge to her voice that reminds me of those years ago when she would correct me.
“Oh, okay.” I rise from the table to help Lukas with his load. My mother only held one bag, anyway. “You didn’t have to go shopping. I could have done it.”
My mother lets out a huff and sets her designer handbag on the counter. She removes her suit jacket and starts cleaning up around my apartment. Not that there’s much to clean. She cleaned last night too, but that’s her, she needs to keep busy.
I glance at my brother who shakes his head and unloads the bags. “I think it’s keeping her mind off things. Sorry, you’re the target.” He leans in close and whispers like we did growing up. He’s sincere in the regret I hear. I only nod and place the groceries away, so thankful for his comforting presence.
“I get it.” I’ve always been her target, but I keep my thoughts to myself. Even when Lukas cheated on his wife, he didn’t get our mother’s judgment as I do. Her advice and reassurance that the stress of his job took its toll.
My mother strolls back into the kitchen. “Where’s Jake? He needs to eat and then get ready for bed.”
I glance at the clock. It’s only seven. “Jake’s with Lily in his room. We had dinner before Lincoln left.”
My mother scoffs at my response and storms from the room to check on them.
“Oh, he’s in his room alone with a girl? You just gave her a heart attack. So, who’s Lincoln?” My brother raises his brows twice in exaggeration as he asks.
He looks ridiculous when he does it so I can’t help laughing. “Oh, whatever, they’re friends. And so are Lincoln and I. He’s Lily’s dad.”
Before my brother can add more, my mother walks back in. “You shouldn’t leave them alone. They are at that age, Kathleen.”
“Mother, they are friends. Stop. They were just listening to music.”
Well, not anymore, it seems. Jake and Lily step into the living room and take a spot on the couch. Jake has his arms crossed in annoyance and Lily looks embarrassed. God, what did my mother say to them?
“When is her father coming back to pick her up?” my mother asks, but I ignore her and walk into the living room.
“You guys want to play the new game?” I ask and hope I can diffuse the awkward tension forming.
“Oh, hell yes!” Lukas yells from the kitchen. He abandons the groceries on the counter to join us. “I haven’t seen it yet but the things you’ve told me... Let’s see this.”
The four of us settle in the living room and push my mother’s anger at us aside. “Do you game?” Lily asks Lukas as he takes his spot next to me and pushes his blonde hair back. His green eyes shine in excitement at the thought of seeing the game. It warms my heart to receive support from my brother because I’m following my dreams.
“Of course, I game. Where do you think Jake learned his skills?”
“Kate?” Lily laughs at the expression Lukas gives her. It’s a mixture of a fake snarl and a smile. Jake laughs and picks up his gaming controller.
“It was definitely Kate,” he assures. Then we lose ourselves talking about the game and dive into something that helps the four of us escape for a little while. We don’t have to think of the death of our loved ones or what this changes about our lives. No, for now, we can focus on this quest and slaying the dragon who threatens our world. We can pretend for a little while.
“Kate, you’re amazing at this. The work you put into it. Impressive. The sky, I’ve never seen such detail, and look when I glance down, the grass and texture is just perfect. It’s moving with the wind.”
I can’t help smiling at the praise.
“Did you design that?” My brother glances from the screen and raises his brows in question.
Lukas’s character is standing on the top of a hill and staring out into the open game world of Agorath. The city expands across the open world, the mountains creating the most surreal backdrop. I spent countless hours of my life on the complex coding that makes up the world.
“Yeah, this is one of my levels.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
Lincoln
I wait at the baggage claim for my mom and the moment she arrives, she takes me into a hug. Once she embraces me, I realize how much I needed it. She’s a breath of fresh air and brings a wave of calmness over me.
“Take me to my grandbaby.” Mom steps away and I grab her bag. She follows me out to the car and I sense the wave of stress she rarely has rolling off her as we load into the car and drive away from the airport.
“Lily will be happy to see you. She’s at Kate’s house with Jake because I figure she should be with him as much as possible before he leaves.”
“You’re a great dad, Lincoln.” She rubs a hand along my bicep, and her praise wraps around me, settling my rampant nerves. “Also, who is Kate?”
I smile at her name. “She’s Jake’s aunt. He’s staying with her for now.”
“Oh, God, that means she lost her sister. Were they close?”
“I believe so. Morgan and Julie were close but to be honest, I wasn’t around much back then, so I never talked to Julie much about Kate. We weren’t that close. I mean, I didn’t even know Kate and I worked together until I met her a few days ago during a marketing campaign.”
“Lincoln you can’t regret what happened back then. I know you are thinking of how you weren’t around enough to even know Morgan’s friends that well. Don’t dwell on the past. You’ll make yourself suffer more. We learn from our mistakes and move on.”
I nod and continue the drive from the airport toward Kate’s home. My mom is right, but that doesn’t mean I can stop regretting various parts of my past. I lost my wife because of those decisions and almost lost my daughter. Had I not buried myself in work, Lily wouldn’t have been in the accident that nearly took her life because I would have been there to drive her.
“Stop.” My mother’s firm voice demands my attention. I try my hardest to pull myself back from the dark spiraling path my thoughts went down. “Tell me something happy.”
I get her up-to-date on the game release. She always loves to hear about my work, so I update her on the presentation and trailers for a good twenty minutes before she speaks again.
“She makes you happy, doesn’t she?”
“Who?” My eyes narrow and I ask because I’m not sure why that was her response to the conversation.
“This Kate.”
I glance over and can see my mother’s face through the headlights of the other vehicles. “I can hear it in your voice when you talk about her.”
“Mom, we only met a few days ago and yea
h, she’s a beautiful woman. She’s driven and always a spark of happiness, but that’s it. She’s a friend.”
“Ah. I see. Okay.”
We pull up to Kate’s apartment, and I park the car. “I’ll grab Lily real quick then we can head home so you can rest.” She’s looking my way with a smile. She wants to meet Kate, so I indulge her. “You want to come up?”
“I thought you’d never ask. Besides, I haven’t seen Jake in a few years, and I’d like to say hello.”
Of course, she would want to meet Kate. I hope this doesn’t bite me in the ass later. I don’t want my mom getting the same ideas Lily has about Kate being a more significant presence in my life than a friend because I haven’t even wrapped my head around that thought. Kate and I need time to figure things out.
We walk past the doorman with a quick wave then knock on Kate’s front door. There’s laughter coming from inside, and I can’t help smiling toward my mom. Whatever Kate has going on helped lighten the mood.
Kate’s mother opens the door with an annoyed expression. “It’s time for your daughter to head home.” Her icy voice washes over me, a chill running down my spine with her words. She doesn’t like Lily, not that I can understand why. Or maybe this is a mask she’s wearing to hide what she’s going through because my daughter would never deserve that tone from another person.
“I’m sure she’s been no trouble, but we’ll head home.” I step in, and my mom follows behind. Mom walks into the living room and takes in the four on the couch, refusing even to acknowledge Kate’s mother. My mom always believed rudeness met with aversion was best because she has a short temper. I continue to watch Kate’s mother, and the mask slips away when she looks into the living room at the others.
Kate, Lily, Jake, and a man I assume to be Lukas crowd around the large television in the room’s center. Lily immediately drops the gaming controller and jumps up to hug her grandmother.
“It’s been forever, Nana. Thanks for coming up.” She pulls Mom’s hand and drags over to introduce her. “This is my best friend, Jake, you remember him. This is Lukas, he’s Jake’s uncle from California, and this is Kate, Jake’s aunt. She works with Dad and look, she designed this game we are playing. It’s amazing! Everyone, this is Martha Thurlow.”
Jake gets up and greets her first, followed by Lukas and Kate.
“I’m sorry for your loss, but I’m always here if you need anything to let me know,” my mom swears to Jake around a hug and then says hello to Lukas.
Kate comes up beside me with a small, sad smile on her face. It’s not an expression I can read well from her yet. All I know is I want to comfort her until it disappears.
“Everyone sounded like they were having fun. Thanks for letting Lily come over.”
“Lily’s always welcome here.” Kate’s face falls, and I know she realizes that with Jake not here that Lily won’t be coming over anymore. I won’t have a reason to show up here either, and that makes a sick feeling form in my stomach. No, we are becoming friends and I’ll still come and see her.
We stand behind the couch as the other three talk my mom into picking up the controller. She walks the character on the screen around. It’s a solo game unless you have multiple systems. My mom explores the world while they fill her in on what’s going on.
For a moment, I forget that we should head home. For a moment, everyone forgets the loss that’s happened and for a moment, we are a family acting as one.
There’s one along the sidelines. Kate leans over the couch and coaches my mom on something and my attention shifts to the presence I felt join us. Kate’s mother stands behind us with sad, longing eyes, the mask fully slipping away now. From what Kate says, she isn’t a terrible mother, only she set the bar high and expects nothing less than perfect.
I turn and walk up to her because the grief I see reflected in her eyes as she watches her two children tugs on my heart. “Why don’t you join them? They’d like it.”
She looks up, and I connect with those green eyes and sense this longing that’s deep within her. There’s a break in the unreachable personality she’s worn since she arrived. She doesn’t want to be this distant and bitter, but maybe it’s what she knows to handle the pain. The death of her husband and now her daughter. I couldn’t imagine that loss. Perhaps people misunderstand her, like they do with me sometimes.
Kate’s mother steps into the room and joins them by the couch, keeping quiet and observing. My mom laughs as she attacks a creature that slipped from a side trail. The praise continues until a loud roar sounds. I smile and step up next to Kate. She’s staring at her mother who steps closer to the television, watching her daughter’s creation for what I would bet is the first time.
“What in the world was that?” Lukas mutters and my mother’s character on the screen backs up. “No way, Martha, don’t even think about it.” Lukas pushes the joystick forward, and Jake presses the inventory menu for her.
“What are you guys doing?” Kate’s mother asks as she stares at the screen, her eyes narrowed in concentration. Her husband was a gamer, and her daughter made it her life, but for the first time, she must see the work Kate does in action, seeing it as more than a hobby, that it’s an art form.
Jake speaks up and responds to his grandmother. “We’re setting up her Trail-blazer with protection spells. She’s human, so she’ll need more armor to take on Authurian which we can get with magic. When Kate designed him, he’s a high-level character placed here with a low-level vantage. He shows up and you can engage him and take the challenge awarding you with larger grabs, or you can sneak past.” That has to be the most he’s spoken since he’s lost his parents. I latch on to every word.
“Make sure she uses the right weapon, we want this loot,” Lily whispers then leans over and points at the sword.
“You can’t use a sword on a dragon,” Lukas warns and stops the character from advancing. “You have a bow?”
“Not with enough DPS, so we can’t equip it,” Lily argues. Lukas sits forward with a hand on his chin, seeming to contemplate my daughter’s words. Lily leans over Jake and preps the character with a sword then puts the inventory screen away. Mom takes a deep breath and starts the walk forward as Authurian drops from the air, letting out a large breath of fire. He’s massive, a wingspan that extends across the screen. The detail Kate put into him draws you into this world the most, inspiring most of my trailers to include him.
“Oh, my goodness, what am I supposed to do with that?” my mom asks and a round of laughter starts. Even Kate’s mother is smiling behind the hand placed over her mouth.
“Kill it, right?” Kate’s mother responds.
My mother takes her sword out and listens to the others as they yell and get caught up in the fray. My mother isn’t a gamer by any means, but she’s been around it enough she figures the controls well.
I take my hand and place it across Kate’s back, touching the soft skin. Then I slide in close to her. She leans into my side, and her eyes are glistening. I lower my head so my lips brush near her ear, that subtle cherry smell flooding my system. “You’re amazing. Look how you’ve brought a piece of family and happiness to them in such a hard time.”
She shudders, and the tear drips down her cheek, but she wipes it away as quickly, only allowing me to see it. The cheers start as my mother takes down the dragon, though I know better—she didn’t kill him. That darkness will come back again later, something unique Kate weaved into the story with Natalie, the creator of Dark Abyss. Despite the darkness leaving for a moment, it doesn’t mean the fight is over. You have to stay strong and keep fighting it, keep finding your light.
Everyone gets up with smiles, and we gather around. “Kate, that is amazing. Did you design that creature?” My mom beams, and it lights up her face. Kate blushes but it’s wonderful for the bit of peace and happiness gaming brought to us tonight. There are hard situations in the days to come and we needed a moment to relax before.
“I did, thank you.”
“Well, I suppose we should get going. It was a pleasure to meet you guys.” She hugs Kate and moves to go around the room. My mom was always the presence commanding the room.
“Thanks for coming by. Will you guys stop by tomorrow?” Kate’s mom asks, and the room grows quiet at her request. I’m certain it’s a surprise around the room, but not to me. There was a shift with Kate’s mom, and I hope it leads to more between her and Kate. “I could make everyone breakfast before we go.”
Tomorrow is the start of the end, and without thinking twice, I agree. “Yes, we’ll be here.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Kate
I wake up from a restless night’s sleep, already dreading the day ahead. Today is the day I need to be strong and help my family through this, like Julie did when Dad died. Julie has always been the pillar of strength in our family, and with her gone, I can step up and become the new foundation.
With a quick push of the covers aside, I climb from the couch and disappear into the bathroom to slip on my black sheath dress. I don’t glance in the mirror but leave my hair down instead, and the tears stay locked inside as I step from the bathroom and into the kitchen.
Today, we will bury my sister. Yesterday was full of memories and family. We surrounded one another with as much love as possible. Lincoln and Lily were right beside us during this time. We kept Jake occupied while everyone came to him to share their condolences during his parents’ wake. I held him close then swore to Julie and Jeff I will make sure he’s happy and safe for them. It was the vow I gave yesterday as I stood in the funeral home.
We came home last night, went our separate ways, and mourned alone. Today is the funeral and the final moments before we put Julie to rest forever. There’s something resolute that cements the end of this chapter in my life.
Worth Something More Page 10
