Sara glanced up from staring at the tea as if the leaves would part and foretell her future. “How’s my son?” she asked, in a pleading tone, as if desperate for information.
“He’s doing well.” Hope almost added that he was getting better, but quickly changed her mind. If his mother wished to speak to Cade, all she needed to do was reach out to him herself. Hope didn’t know what she could do to facilitate that and preferred not to get involved.
His mother kept her gaze lowered.
“How did you know about Cade and me?” Hope asked. From what he’d told her, he’d had no connection with his family for the last six years. Hope couldn’t help wondering if they’d kept tabs on him by some other means.
“It was a lucky break,” Sara said, warming to the subject. “I suspected Cade was living in Oceanside because this was where he’d gotten into trouble.” She paused, and then, stricken, glanced up. “Oh dear, you do know about his…arrest, don’t you?”
“I do.” She didn’t elaborate.
Sighing with relief, Sara continued. “Every now and again, I drive into Oceanside, on the off chance I might catch a glimpse of him.”
“You saw him with me,” Hope guessed.
“I did. He was at one of those food trucks near the beach. It was such a lovely afternoon, I sat in my car and watched him walk to where you were sitting with a dog.”
Hope remembered well what she considered her first date with Cade. Wee Willie’s Wiener Wagon would always have a special place in her heart because of it. Every time she thought about the name of that truck, she found herself smiling.
“He looked…” His mother struggled to find the right word. “Better,” she said, after a moment.
Hope smiled. She’d like to think she might have had something to do with the improvement in Cade. And perhaps she did, but only a little. The biggest help Cade had received was from therapy and the work he was doing on himself because of that.
“I’d caught a glimpse of him a few times before. He always looked so sad and dour. That day he was smiling, and I felt sure it was because of you. I got out of my car and approached a man who was painting a mural. I was intimidated at first because he was so big. I asked if he was familiar with the community, and he told me he’d lived here nearly his entire life.”
“That sounds like Keaton.”
“Yes, I believe that was his name. He’s very talented.”
“He is,” Hope agreed.
“Anyway, Keaton told me he thought you were the new high school teacher in town. He couldn’t remember your name, so I did a bit of investigative work on my own and found you on the school webpage.”
Now that she knew how Sara had discovered her, she felt obligated to ask: “You went through a lot of effort, but shouldn’t you be talking to Cade and not me?”
She blushed with embarrassment. “The truth is, I’m not sure my son wants anything to do with me. I tried to talk to him a while back and he refused to even acknowledge me.”
“In the courtroom?” Cade had mentioned the encounter.
“Yes, I wasn’t there to embarrass him or make him feel guilty. I went because I wanted him to understand I was there to support him…I was there for him.”
From their conversation, Hope knew Cade had been mortified to find his mother witnessing one of his darkest moments.
“When was the last time you saw him before that day in the courtroom?” Hope asked.
Sara looked as if she was about to break into tears. She drew a tissue from her purse and wadded it up in her hand. “Six years ago.”
“You didn’t go to see him after he returned from Afghanistan?” His injury had been extensive. Surely his family had been informed. The fact that they hadn’t shown their support then said a great deal.
“We knew nothing about his injuries,” Sara said quickly, defending herself. “I would have moved heaven and earth to get to my son had I known.”
From the vehement way she spoke, Hope tended to believe her.
“You must think me a terrible mother,” Sara said, and dabbed at her eyes with the tissue. “I have failed Cade in so many ways. It isn’t any wonder he wants nothing to do with us.”
“I don’t believe that’s the case.” As much as she wanted to comfort and reassure Sara, she had to believe Cade would be willing to mend fences with his family under the right circumstances. Cade had said so little about his parents. What she did know had been painful for him to discuss. From what she’d learned, the real disagreement was between him and his father.