Prologue

Many moons ago the love of my life, Gregory Finster, promised that he would return home to see our son. Of course he had to ditch his wife in order to do all that.

 

My story is not one that many in my neighborhood would repeat to my face, but I can hear their thoughts as I pass them on the street, in the grocery store, or even at the playground where my friends and I often congregate.

 

Since Liam's birth I hardly ever had time for myself. I'd let my hair starry frizzy for days and more often than not my mom had to remind me to shower while she or her new husband, Arthur, watched over my bundle of joy.

 

So much had happened since the night I received that phone call from the dead. Detectives Scully and Mulder made several failed attempts at tracing the number, but nothing came of it.

 

"Honestly, Myra, I wouldn't be too worried. The FBI is involved in this case and they can crack through anything. We should have this perp apprehended by the end of the week," Detective Scully said to me over the phone one hot June night.

 

"I hope," I said to him before I hung up.

 

That was a month ago and still nothing. It was during that time that I decided to join my friends, fellow members of a group we had dubbed The Crew, in their crusade to find the person who had killed one of our own, precious Eliza. Most of my contributions came from home, but lately Crystal and her little girl Lizzie came over and we'd discuss any new leads Cameron, Scott, Dom, Nick, Jimmy, or Robbie (Crystal's boyfriend) had come up with.

 

"We're really doing this," I said to Crystal two nights ago.

 

"Yes, we are," Crystal said as Lizzie and Liam slept together in Liam's crib, "you can back out at any time."

 

"No, this is something I have to be apart of," I told her and we went back to mapping out the final steps of our departed friend.

 

My oldest brother Kevin had decided to go live on campus at the local university. He cited Liam's crying early in the morning as a reason for him to fail all his college classes the first semester.

 

"I can't work with a baby in the house," he said angrily to one of his girlfriend's while I passed through the living room and into the kitchen.

 

Good riddance to him. Kevin had been nothing, but unsupportive since the truth about my pregnancy had come out. He didn't care that I almost got sent to jail for the rest of my life after assaulting two girls who I had once considered my best friends.

 

The one thing we agreed on was that Langston Miles, my rapist, needed to pay for what he'd done. However any plans of revenge were fully thwarted when I dropped all charges against Langston and began dating him. Kevin refused to speak to me after I moved out of the house and into a home my brother Sonny owned with Langston.

 

Some people had such a hard time forgiving others.

Reviews

[Tina Kline]

Great beginning. Sets the stage nicely for the rest of the story.