The Chase, Volume 2 Read Online Free PDF

dinner.” Trent went over to his mother and pulled on her sleeve.
    “No is no. Don’t test my patience, Trent. You know that’s not good for anyone.”
    Trent looked to the floor and mumbled, “Fine.” He walked over to me and gave me a hug.
    “See you next week?” I hugged him back as tightly as I could, trying my best to hold back the tears. I was always sad see to him leave and wished he could stay with me forever. I used to ask my mother if he could live with us, but she said that it wouldn’t make Beth happy and told me to never ask again.
    “Yup. See you next week.” He walked toward his mother.
    Then I remembered something, and raced after him and gave him another hug. “You haven’t promised!”
    “Promised what?”
    “To always protect me.”
    He smiled. “I promise.”
    I giggled and felt so happy to hear that. “I’ll miss you.”
    “Me too. Take care of Sophia while I’m gone.”
    “Okay, I will. I promise.” I beamed at him.
    “Okay, that’s enough.” Beth grabbed Trent’s hand. “Come on, we gotta go.”
    I frowned as I saw them disappear down the hallway. From my room, I heard their distant voices fade into the background as they turned the corner.
    “What did I tell you about being nice to her?” Beth scolded Trent.
    “But mom, she’s my sister. I love her.”
    “Don’t you dare love her. She’s the daughter of the bitch who stole your father away from us.”
    I looked at Sophia and sniffled. “Sophia, do you know why Trent’s mommy doesn’t like me?”
    Sophia looked back at me blankly. I wrapped my arms around her and wished I didn’t feel so alone.
    ***
    One Year Ago
    Dark, threatening clouds rolled through the sky as I felt the first drops of rain on my black dress.
    “Honey, don’t forget your umbrella.” My mother handed me the umbrella from the car.
    “Thanks, mom.” I wrapped my arms around her arm and leaned in and whispered. “How’s dad doing?”
    She sighed. “You know how he is. He likes to keep things in and not let on when he’s sad. But I can tell he’s taking Beth’s death pretty hard.”
    I frowned. “Are you okay with that?”
    She looked at me and gave me a sad smile. “Of course. When you get older, you’ll realize that sometimes relationships and emotions are complicated and messy. Even though they got a divorce a few years before we got married, they were married for five years and they had a son together. So I know there’s a part of your father that will always love her.”
    Her words struck a cord with me, and something that Beth had said years ago when I was a child rang in my head. I knew this wasn’t the best time to ask, but for some reason my curiosity took a hold of me. “Mom?” I looked at her tentative.
    “Yes, honey. What is it?”
    “Did you meet dad when they were still married.”
    She sighed and looked away and nodded.
    I bit my lips as I debated what to say next. “Did you…”
    She looked at me with a pained expression. “No, I didn’t even meet your father until after they were separated. But we did start dating shortly after their divorce was official, and sometimes I wondered if Beth blamed me for their failed marriage.”
    I knew the answer, but held my tongue.
    She shook her head in regret. “I wished we were closer. I always tried to keep things civil and make us all feel like one big happy family as much as possible, but I always felt like she resented me and questioned my actions. I wished I tried harder. But now she’s gone…”
    I squeezed her hand and tried to comfort her.
    She let out a deep sigh and forced a smile. “At least our problems didn’t cause a strain on your relationship with your brother. I’m glad that you two get along.”
    “Yeah, I’m glad, too. He’s great to me. I just feel so sad for him right now. I know he was very close to his mother, and she was so proud of him when dad made him the Vice President of Parker, Inc. last year.”
    “Yeah, he’s a good kid. He’s