Shelby,

Pacing the floor of this hospital, griping my hands together wiping tears casually, my father sat on the chair with his head hung low. My mother was currently in surgery after a second heart attack last night.

Just last month she was perfectly heathy, taking our morning walks and talks before I headed to work at the diner. My dad called my last week saying she had a heart attack and it looked bad, every day since she’s been in this hospital getting worse by the day.

“Dad, how did she get so sick?” I whimpered sitting next to him, staring at the heath posters and smelling the alcohol and sterilized waiting room.

“I don’t know, but I need to make a phone call wait here.” For some weird reason he seemed nervous almost anxious. It’s not surprising that he’s scared his wife is deafly sick, but something seemed off the past few days.

He’s been making phone calls almost every ten minutes coming from a man that never answered his phone years ago.

“Ms. Mars?” jumping to stand as I was called by the doctor.

“One second I need to get dad,”

Running to the other end of the hall hearing his voice,

“I told you before this isn’t fair, we were drunk… Lilly will kill me if I force Shelby into that world.”

Unsure what I’d just heard I became even more unsettled that I really didn’t know much about him or my mom past. No photos, No family reunions, No relatives ever stopped by. It was then that I noticed I didn’t know anything about how they meant or the wedding or the births of my siblings and I.

“He’s busy sir, how is my mother?”

As if the heavy weight only grew, he said the words only to confirm what I already knew.

“There was no way of saving her from the second heart attack. I’m sorry” I just nod my head

I felt as if I’d never knew my own mother at this point, I raked my brains thinking of any memory that I had with any other family except mom and dad, but none.

“Shelby was that the doctor?”

“Ugh. Yea…”

“Hey wait Doc!” I stood off to the side letting him receive the news. His reaction seemed un normal for a man married to a woman for thirty-five years.

It seemed as if he already knew…

“Dad, what about Jaz and Jud” I asked watching his face completely drop to the floor.

“I’ll tell them, you go home and rest, I’ll see you later tonight.”

He left me standing there as if he wanted to hide something. Me being a curious person did the complete opposite of what he said.

Sure; I went home!

But first thing I did was run to mom room, walking into her alone seemed weird.

Mom and Dad are married why was there two single beds… not even side by side. More like across the room from one another.

The room was so neat and clean as if one of them had OCD, then why did the house always seem cluttered.

Not sure which bed was moms, but only one bed had boxes under it. Even the dresser stood out of place for a married couple. The closet had a divider hanging from the middle, the more I thought about my life with them. I’ve never seen them kiss before or even hug or even holding hands, watching movies Dad was never home, he worked so much, but when he was here mom seemed to have a depressed look on her face.

I questioned myself Why didn’t I ever notice this before?

Rushing as if time was against me searching through the boxes finding nothing, looking through the dresser draws finding nothing, finally the closet nothing but a hollow panel.

Pulling the board off finding a medium box.

“What is this?” I spoke softly to myself.

Opening it to finding pictures as many pictures, and old pictures at that.

One of Dad and another man with black hair and tan skin, he looked fierce. On the back the line written

‘Time can change a man, Jaxon’

That name, I’ve heard that name before, frantically searching more to find a picture of two ladies standing side by side both fully pregnant. The line written on the back

‘If our paths crossed differently would our choices be the same.’ Lilly

“Mom wrote this, is this her?” I didn’t recognize either woman, but I had a feeling the blonde hair lady was my mom, but I’ve only even seen her with black hair.

At the end of the box was three books, more like journals the front of one said,

My mistake

Sitting on the floor flipping the pages,

June 18th

I’ve meant the most fearful man ever, by accident I walked through an alley not paying attention. I kept my head down but didn’t realize I had walked into a crime. I was grabbed by the back of my head Harry glared at me then said

"What is your name?"

"Lilly James, please don't kill me, I do anything you ask" whimpering

“Will you let my friends and I have a piece of you.” I man with a fierce face and soul piercing eyes said smiling devilishly

I’ll later find than this man is Jaxon Coal the deadly president of Sparrows M.C

"WHAT? I'll never, so I guess you'll have to kill me." Snapping as I slapped the man

"Ouch! Now you've made me mad," he growled picking me up over the shoulder, kicking and screaming punching his back only made them laugh,

"Don't do this, please.”

“Keep it up and I will gag you." He said as he sat on his bike handcuffing my hands together.

“Mom…” I gasped, looking at another picture, but in this photo she looked happy.

Reading some more, finding it disturbing that I’d known nothing about her until she died.

“Why didn’t you ever tell us this?”