Secrets and Lies | ✔️

Chapter 27 - Talia

Ch.27 - Talia

As the sun came up, Talia sank into the overstuffed couch, watching Carter play on the floor in front of her, thinking about how much her daughter resembled her own mother at the moment. The baby studied the wooden blocks in her pudgy hands, her delicate blonde eyebrows creased in concentration, trying to make sense of the bold black letters on each side.

How simple and happy her life is...just as it should be.

The thought, when it struck her, felt surprising and natural. The look of surprise on Carter's face as she studied the curve of the figures mesmerized Talia. She could almost see her working out all the details in her brain. Was it that she had not expected the contrast of color against the light wooden grain, or did she somehow understand that each shape had a meaning all its own?

All of the baby books she'd pored over since she discovered she was pregnant claimed infants spent most of their time eating and sleeping. But that had never defined her baby girl. From day one Carter had broken the mold. If there was one thing Talia knew about her nine-month-old bundle of joy was that she was predictably unpredictable. And pleasantly so. Being a mother was the most rewarding experience for her, outside of marrying Charlie, her hero--in more ways than one.

What she loved most about her new role as a wife and mother was the feeling of satisfaction she felt bringing a ray of light into the world. With so much violence and hostility she'd witnessed over the years it gave her hope to see wonderful things taking place around her. If she could have a happy ending, anyone could...all you needed was faith.

Talia was so caught up in her thoughts she almost didn't hear the chirp of her phone as it lay on the table beside her. She reached for her cell and saw it was Laura from Healing Hearts. It was unusual for her to call at this hour in the morning unless she found the shelter was short staffed for the day.

"Good morning, Laura. How are you?"

"Talia, I'm sorry to bother you at this hour. I hope I didn't wake you."

Talia could immediately sense the tension in her voice. "No, I'm just sitting here with Carter." She readjusted herself on the couch and looked at her daughter with a smile. "What's up? Are you short today?"

Laura was quiet for a moment. "I wish that's why I was calling."

Instinctively, Talia felt her stomach leap.

"I'm afraid I'm the bearer of bad news," Laura continued. "I received a phone call early this morning before I even arrived to work. It's Janice." Another pause. Talia could hear muffled breathing on the other end of the phone. "She's gone, Talia. Janice passed away. Blunt force trauma to the head."

Talia listened as Laura went on with a vague sense of unreality. Janice's husband, the man she had willingly gone back to, had finally gone too far.  She glanced at Carter who was regarding her closely, her focus on Talia now instead of the blocks in her hands. Talia hid a thick swallow in her throat and turned away, acutely aware of Carter's scrutinizing gaze.

"When?" Talia squeezed her eyes closed, determined to fight off the burning tears that threatened to fall.

"Last night. Her sister called thinking we'd like to know. Apparently Janice had confided in her about staying here with us after she left home."

Talia took a deep breath. "When's the funeral? I'd like to be there."

"There's not going to be one."

"What?" Talia's eyes flew open with surprise. "There has to be a funeral! Her friends will want to see her one last time. We need to have the chance to say goodbye." She couldn't fight back the tears anymore, they trickled down her cheeks in heated streaks, one right after the next.