Chapter 1
The old Ford truck has been leaking oil for a couple months now, yet Eli procrastinated fixing it on account of laziness. He has enough on his plate with a new job title and lots more responsibility. That’s not even counting the new home situation he still hasn’t been able to wrap his head around.
Living with his current girlfriend wasn’t his first choice, but when her divorce was finalized with her ex, she was forced to sell the family home with little means to start over fresh. She’s been a stay at home mother since her seven-year-old son was born. Her job experience consists of waiting tables and taking her clothes off for money, which happened to be how she met her first husband. It’s her track record that appealed to Eli. He likes women with multiple skills in and out of the bedroom. As much as he feels smothered by the instant family situation, he enjoys coming home to a hot meal and getting laid whenever he sees fit.
On his own since he was fresh out of high school, Eli appreciates his independence. The last thing he wants is a nagging female making simple decisions for him.
Being under the truck working gives him some much needed space. Ever since his girlfriend moved in he's been finding more outdoor manly type of jobs to occupy him, and avoid the awkwardness of spending his time in a family environment.
Six years is a long time to live a reclusive lifestyle. He's become accustomed to worrying about himself and no one else.
The Marine Corp helped him strive. Eli has been on reserve duty for the last several years after being promoted to Corporal. Any modicum of success he’s experienced in his personal and professional life since then can be directly attributed to the years he spent on active duty. Afghanistan not only taught him how to survive, but also how to live.
There isn’t a day that goes by that he doesn’t reflect on the common sense leadership lessons it provided him. He uses that learned knowledge while making business decisions for his future.
At only eighteen years of age, Eli was taught to make sound decisions; with an extra added emphasis on being prompt. He was taught to methodically analyze decisions; weighing the pros and cons while minimizing risks. In other words, to do his best to gain as much information as he can, then use his intuition, experience, and expertise to fill in the rest. It’s always better to make a decision and execute aggressively with partial information than it is to wait and make a perfect decision too late. In Eli’s case, at eighteen years of age, risking the future of those of he loved, he was faced with this type of action.
He’s learned about the chaos when being under fire, and how to manage high risk situations. He’s learned life isn’t about himself. Eli stands by his decision to protect others first.
He’s been able to endure uncertainty. It’s made him a stronger man.
But it doesn’t change the past. Nothing can. Some wounds are left scarred for a lifetime.
When the leak is repaired, Eli remains under the truck while appreciating the solitude it brings him. It's not until he sees feet standing in the driveway that he knows that break is over.
Sighing heavily, Eli scoots from underneath the vehicle until he sees Michelle standing with one hand on her hip while the other holds his phone. "Some chick named Siobhan is on the phone. She says it's urgent."
Having gone years without hearing that name, Eli hesitates before snatching the device from his girlfriend's hand. He catches an accusatory glance before turning his back to her in order to answer the awaiting caller.
"Hello?"
"Elias, it's me."
"Yeah, I gathered as much."
The question in his mind lingers. Why has she called? She's been divorced from his dad for more than a year now. He only knows this because she reached out to him. It still can’t repair what has been broken, or take away the lifetime of lies he has to hold onto.
Unless she's manipulated her way back in his bed, he doesn't understand the call, especially when he made it so vividly clear to her that they were never to speak again.
"It's your father." Her voice breaks. "He passed away last night. I went to drop off Jonathan and we found him in the recliner."
He can hardly comprehend what she's saying because it's unbelievable. There's no way. Dad was always as healthy as an ox. We used to joke that he'd outlive his own kids. "What did you just say? Is this some sick joke to get me to come home, you're pathetic."
"I'm not lying. I'd never do that. The coroner is here at the house now. The police said they'll do an autopsy for the cause of death. I just spoke with him last night. He said he was taking Jonathan camping for the weekend. His truck is already packed with the supplies. I thought he was just sleeping."
Pinching the bridge of his nose to relieve stress, Eli calms down from his first inclination and realizes the severity of the situation.
His father is dead; the man he left behind six years ago because he couldn't live with the lie he was holding inside of him. He'd abandoned his own life to escape the guilt he experienced. For six years Eli blamed himself for what went down and more so when it came to the broken hearts he was responsible for with his decision.
"Elias, are you still there?"
"I'm here."
"You need to come home. I know what you promised, but there's no way around it. Decisions need to be made."
"Yeah, I get it. The earliest I can be there is tomorrow. I'll pack a bag and get on the road."
"Why not fly? If it's money I can -."
Eli cuts his ex-stepmother off before she's able to finish.
"It's not about the money. I don't fly. I'm driving, end of story. Don't do anything until I get there. As far as I'm concerned you're not even entitled to pick out a casket."
Hanging up before she's able to argue, Eli turns around to see Michelle awaiting an explanation. Like the story he's used since arriving in New Orleans, all of his family died when he was a kid and he's been alone ever since. Now he has to either come clean or fabricate another lie to attach to the already long list of stories he wishes he could take back.
"Who is Siobhan? Who died?"
"My dad," he replies with a clenched jaw.
Her eyes double in size as the truth radiates through his already skeptical mind "I thought he was already dead."
"We weren't close."
"What happened? You must hate the man to keep him a secret."
"You don't know a damn thing about it. I'm not going to stand here and explain it either. I need to get on the road."
She begins to follow him. "Eli, wait. I'll go with you. Let me call Luke's father and see if he can watch him."
This is exactly why she should have never moved in. Eli isn't used to waiting on someone. He wants to get in his truck and go. He needs the long ride to settle his doubts and come to terms with what he's about to arrive to. Having just learned of his father's passing, he can't complicate things further by having a nagging girlfriend added to the mix.
Leaving his old rusted truck where it sits, Eli heads inside the quaint home he managed to purchase out of foreclosure a year back. It needed a lot of work, but since that’s what he does for a living it was a fun job to take on. There’s still a couple rooms that need repair, but he’s not in a rush.
Michelle follows him to the master suite and stands behind him as he packs. Eli hasn’t shown any emotions regarding the death of his father, and she’s curious about why. Why lie? What happened in his past that caused him to recuse having a family? “Are you sure you don’t want me to go?”
“I told you already, I’ll be fine alone. It’ll only take a couple of days and then I’ll be back. Hold down the fort.”
She takes a seat on the mattress they both share. “Do you want to talk about it?”
He’s on his last nerve and lashes out with his reply. “No! I’m good. Haven’t spoke to the man in years. If I wanted to talk about it I would have done it before I left home.”
He doesn’t lean over to kiss her when he tosses his bag over his shoulder and heads out of the room. Michelle knows Eli is upset, but she remains silent knowing he could say things she doesn’t want to hear, and since leaving a verbally abusive ex, it’s the last thing she needs to happen in this new relationship.
Eli’s always been secretive, or more mysterious. He doesn’t talk about his past. Sometimes it’s almost like he doesn’t know how to express feelings. Michelle thinks he cares about her and her son, but at times like this she questions if this type of relationship can last. She watches him walk out the door praying he’ll come back, but something in the pit of her stomach says otherwise.