Bad Company

Chapter 56: Welcome Home

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to pay our final tribute of respect to Samuel Hume: Father, friend, loved one. To the members of the family, who mourn your loss, we offer our deep and sincere sympathy. May we share with you the comfort afforded by God's Word for such a time as this:

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. (John 14:1-3)"

The preacher man's words replayed over and over again in my mind during our long but much-needed flight home. Shaun slept most of the way home, allowing aunty Christy to sleep on and off. For someone who "hates" kids, she's sure an amazing aunt to Shaun. Given the circumstances of everything that has occurred in the past three months though, I'm glad I have Christy at my side to help with Shaun. I know Meg, Ramona and Julia when she arrives later this month will be a huge help to me with Shaun.

I haven't slept a wink since my dad's funeral. He's a peace now and no longer suffering but I still feel cheated of my own father. Why was I such a fucking rebellious idiot who refused to see things in my parents' perspective? No, it was Shane's way or the highway.

My heart was empty, regardless of the beautiful baby boy that I had brought into this world. He's too perfect, too innocent. He doesn't deserve to have a fuck up like me for a mother. I don't blame him if he grows up to despise me and never talks to me again. At least then I know he's chosen a different path in life instead of the one I've chosen.

Maybe I'm just being dramatic. I know damn well that I can raise my son to be everything that I want him to be, everything that he deserves to be. Dad would want me to do everything in my power to give Shaun the best possible upbringing that I can provide. Let's be honest, I was going to anyway. I'm just being a sad sack of shit, feeling sorry for myself. Look at Christy, her family can't stand her and has nothing to do with her. She battled and probably still battles a drug addiction. She allowed herself to get involved with someone else, just to watch him be killed - or hear him be shot in the head. Fuck, she was shot herself during a home invasion that just so happened to be caused due to her affiliation with me.

"Yo, you gonna get your bags?" Christy asked, awakening me from my thoughts.

I nodded and handed her Shaun's car seat, "Yeah, watch him for a second."

Christy grunted at the sudden weight hanging off of her right arm. I made my way over to where luggage pick up was and gathered mine and Shaun's luggage. We didn't have to call for a taxi as Megan was outside the airport waiting for us. Christy put the luggage in the back while I buckled Shaun's car seat in the backseat before climbing into the passenger seat and thanking Megan for coming to grab us. Unfortunately for us, our flight got delayed and we didn't land in Boston until evening time instead of the planned morning. Shaun and Christy both fell asleep while Megan and I listened to music since there was nothing better to do. We were stuck in Boston's 6pm rush hour. It was bumper to bumper traffic and we were stuck on one of the overpasses impatiently waiting for the flow of traffic to pick up.

"Yo, you awake back there?" Megan called out to Christy, staring at her through the rearview mirror. I smirked and looked back over my shoulder to see Christy's head against the window and her mouth hung agape, sleeping soundly. "Guess she's out cold."

"Long flight..." I breathed.

"Well... " Megan started, glancing over at me before sighing, "There's some shit going on here while you were gone..."

"Like what?" I asked in annoyance.

"Like... shit."

"Like what, Meg?"