On The Run: Part Two

Chapter Twenty-One - "The Oblivion Of Innocence"

“I like law, but I don’t know if I want to be a lawyer. I like psychology, but I couldn’t be a shrink. I like math, but I don’t think I want to do math forever.”

“That narrows it down,” I said, amused.

“How did you decide?” she asked.

I hesitated, unsure of whether this would be a sore topic for us, “I just wanted to be like my dad. My mom was in marketing, and I never really liked it. Besides, the law is beautiful, as complicated and fiery as it is.”

“I could just pick from a hat,” she murmured.

I chuckled, “No, you couldn’t.”

“No, really. Law, Psychology, Math,” she replied.

“No, you are not going to do that,” I said, with a laugh, “Think about it.”

The car slowed and I peered outside as we arrived in front of the large gate, with the intricate metalwork.

Chloe peered out, “Where are we?”

“Home. Well, the house I grew up in,” I answered, as the gates slowly opened, feeling an ounce of guilt wash over me. She’d grown up in a nice enough house when she was younger, but as she got older, I’d seen some of the ram-shackles that had been her foster homes, and I couldn’t help feeling a little guilt at my sheltered life.

Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open, as we eased across the gravelly path towards the house. “Oh my God,” she breathed, as we arrived in front of the cherub fountain roundabout that sat just before the front door.

I felt very uncomfortable, all of a sudden.

She turned to me, “It’s beautiful,” she said in earnest, her eyes still wide.

I gave her a wry smile and murmured, “Thanks.” Suddenly, surprising my dad for dinner didn’t seem like a great idea.

“It’s like a twenty-first century Von Trapp home – in a way. From the Sound of Music,” she said, looking out as Ryan parked the car. Hal was at my door in seconds, and I stepped out, Chloe in tow. I smiled and led the way to the front door. She really didn’t seem to have any resentment or anger towards me; I kept waiting for her to blow up or show me how she really felt, but it hadn’t happened.

I stuck my key in the door and pushed it open, not wanting to disturb any of the staff. The lights in the front hall were dimmed and I would have thought the house was empty if I hadn’t seen the cars outside. Chloe kept turning round and round and craning her neck to take in everything – from the front hall to the living room to the dining room to my dad’s study to the library. I gave her a commentary as we walked around, but she kept zoning in on the photographs. We went up the stairs, where I showed her the other living room – the one that was just for me, and my friends – and my bedroom, which hadn’t changed at all.

I knocked on my dad’s bedroom door, wondering where he could possibly be. When there was no answer, I walked over to the other living room – the one that was dedicated to just my parents; I don’t think I’d ever spent more than five minutes in there.

I pushed open the French doors and in that instant, I felt my skin crawl as a wave of shock crashed through me. I let out a scream and spun around, grabbing Chloe’s arm and pulling her out of there as fast as I could.

“Sarah!” my dad exclaimed, his voice travelling after me.

Ugh.

No.

No.

No.

I grimaced, holding my hands over my eyes. My skin was crawling, and a shiver ran down my spine.