Goodbye, Mr. Regret

"Sallie, do you seriously have the nerve to call me right now? Or have you just conveniently forgotten everything that happened?"

She was furious.

Vince gritted his teeth and spat out, "Let me make myself perfectly clear: from this day on, whatever happens to Timothy-whether he lives or dies-has absolutely nothing to do with the Zimmerman family!"

With those words, he hung up.

Sallie nearly threw her phone in frustration.

This was a disaster.

Salome had always been the Zimmermans' favorite. That day, right in front of Vince, she'd called Jessica a mute and accused her of embarrassing the Lawsons just by showing up.

It was no wonder Vince had lost his temper.

But now Timothy had vanished without a trace. Where was she supposed to find him?

Timothy was on the mountain.

He'd returned to the same old abbey he'd visited once before.

He was lucky; just as he walked in, he came across Father Benedict, the abbey's head priest, whom he'd met on his previous visit.

"Father," Timothy greeted him quietly.

Father Benedict pressed his palms together and bowed his head slightly. "Peace be with you, my son."

Timothy had seen enough of the world to know the proper etiquette, and since he'd come seeking the priest's guidance on how to escape his pain, he tried to follow Father Benedict's example, bowing his head and folding his hands. "Peace be with you, Father. I visited your abbey once before, and your words about suffering left a deep impression on me. I have some questions I'd like to ask."

come this

Father Benedict into the

chants played in the background. The moment Timothy stepped

to quiet, if only

tea was kept warm.

you?" the priest

who was usually so composed—almost unreadable-couldn't hide his surprise. It wasn't often that anyone could

did you

Benedict smiled, unhurried. "It's written

frowned. He prided himself on keeping his emotions

hiding them. He got straight to the point: "How do I ease

think it can be eased?" Father Benedict asked in

answered honestly, "If she came back to me, if we could go back to our old life together, then the pain would stop. But she refuses. She's

a while before he spoke, "When an

the drug," Timothy

the

pain just comes

nodded, satisfied. "So, do you understand

paused, thinking it over. "You mean, for an addict, the relief from pain is only temporary. Taking the drug eases the suffering for a

for a little while, and the person

real joy, just the absence of pain. The deeper the suffering, the more intense the fleeting relief, but that only feeds greater pain in the end. So, the more you love, the

through him.

he couldn't

came back to me and we lived as we used to, wouldn't that take the

his pain by taking the drug? Does someone who never started ever suffer withdrawal? The only real cure is to