Page 9 of Having HIs Back

“Is Mommy still asleep? I wanted her to wake up.”

Kerry gently rubbed Henry’s back. “That’s just the part she left behind when she became an angel.”

“Oh,” Henry said, and rolled over, holding his stuffed dog under his arm as Pebbles settled at the foot of the bed.

Kerry quietly left the room and partially closed the door.

He went to the living room and sat on the sofa, his head in his hands.

“What am I supposed to tell them? Their mother is gone, taken away by someone we don’t even know, and all they want is their mother back.

I can’t give them that—no one can. And they deserve that. ”

“I know,” Brian said softly. “You all deserve answers, and I wish I could find them more quickly.” His phone rang, and Brian stood and left the room, going outside.

He stayed away for a while, and Kerry was happy to have a chance to get himself together.

Losing someone was bad enough, but having them killed, forced away from you, only made things worse.

And Kerry was doing everything he could to keep the boys from that horror, if it was at all possible.

Brian returned and sat down. “We found him. The man who was at the funeral home today is Charles Westerly.” Brian showed him a picture, and Kerry nodded as he looked at it.

“At one time, your sister went after him for child support for Phillip. That’s where we got his name from.

Somehow, your sister was able to prove that he was Phillip’s father, and he was ordered to pay child support, but never did.

The records show that the state garnished his wages and tax refunds, but he still owes a great deal. ”

“Do you think he could have gone after Caroline because of that?” Kerry asked.

“It wouldn’t have made a difference. He is still in arrears, which means that he owes the money to you for Phillip’s care, and each month more will accrue.

So, if he did, it meant nothing. At least we have a name and a picture.

We can circulate this to law enforcement.

” His phone chimed, and he read the message.

“Finally. It seems that your sister was able to get DNA from Charles some time ago and the results are on file as part of the case. We’ll run the samples from the garage and see if they match.

If they do, then….” He let the words hang in the air, but Kerry got the picture.

“We can also run it against national databases, but that will take time.

“That’s good. At least it’s something to go on.” He sighed and tried to pull his mind out of the grief spiral he seemed to be descending into.

“Hey. We’re going to catch who did this, one way or another.”

Kerry turned toward Brian, taking heart in the conviction he saw there. “I know you’ll do your best. And I appreciate everything you’ve done for us.” He blinked his eyes, trying to stay awake, but he was failing quickly. “I’m sorry. The last week has been almost more than I can take.”

“Do you want some tea or something?” Brian asked.

“That sounds great.” He got up to make some, but Brian told him he’d make it. Kerry explained where the tea was kept and leaned back, resting his head on the back of the sofa. He closed his eyes for only a few minutes.

Kerry woke with a start to find a light blanket spread over him and tea on the coffee table. He blinked, wondering how long he had been out. The tea was cold and the doors locked, so he must have been asleep for a while.

A single piece of paper sat on the table next to the mug. I made the tea and didn’t want to wake you. The doors are locked. Call if you need anything. It was signed Brian .

He set the page down and got up, leaving the blanket on the sofa.

Pebbles came out of Henry’s room as Kerry passed.

Kerry used the bathroom and changed into light clothes for sleeping.

He still didn’t have the heart to sleep in Caroline’s room, so he turned out the lights and stretched out on the sofa, hoping to go to sleep.

“Damn you,” he said under his breath to whoever had cut his sister’s life short.

“I really hope you rot in hell.” He missed her with every fiber of his being.

The only bright spot in this entire ordeal was Brian and the fact that he seemed to know what needed to be done.

Kerry had been floundering for days, but Brian would stop by, and suddenly, Kerry felt grounded once more.

Kerry knew it was a bad idea to count on anything from Brian.

After all, it was likely that once the case was solved, Brian would move on to something else, and Kerry would find himself with a new life as the sole parent of Phillip and Henry.

That was frightening. He might know all about children in a professional manner, but he had no practical experience raising them.

He closed his eyes and tried not to think too far into the future.

All he could do was take things one day at a time.

It was his primary job to love and care for Caroline’s children and to make sure they grew up knowing their mother loved them more than anything else.

He tried to settle his mind, but it refused to stop running.

Finally, after a few hours of tossing and turning, he managed to fall asleep.

When Kerry woke, twisted in the blanket, he tried to get off the sofa, but nearly fell to the floor as someone knocked on the front door. He managed to untwist his legs and got to the door, opening it to Brian, who had raised his hand to knock again.

“You look like you’re about to fall down,” Brian said. “I was on my way to work, and I thought I’d stop by to make sure you were okay after the way I left you last night. I know you have been under a great deal of strain, and today is only going to add to it.”

“Well, thank you.”

Brian checked his phone. “I need to get to the station, but if you need anything, call right away.” He nodded and turned away.

As much as Kerry needed to go inside, he didn’t move until Brian and the car were out of sight, because he just couldn’t look away.