Regretting The Wife He Threw Away

Jeannie looked at Irwin, her hazel eyes warm with a gentle smile.

"Irwin, do you know why your father doesn't want you to be around your mother?"

Irwin shook his head.

"It's because he's worried she might be a bad influence on you."

Irwin froze, startled.

"Do you remember how old I was when I first came to Southcreek Manor?"

Irwin nodded. "I remember. I was five."

Jeannie smiled softly. "Right. And do you remember how, back then, you used to have nightmares all the time?"

Irwin thought hard, vague memories surfacing. He nodded slowly.

"But I can't really remember what those nightmares were about."

"You were just a little boy then-it's normal that you don't remember everything." Jeannie's voice was patient and kind. "You would cry in the middle of the night, and when I asked you what was wrong, you told me everything. At the time, I thought it wasn't my place to say much-after all, they were your own grandmother and mother."

up at her, his voice small. "Ms. Radcliffe, what did

turning serious. "You told me your grandmother gave you a 'magic stone.' She asked you to hide it under Mom Bryn's bed. She said if you did that, the baby growing in Mom Bryn's tummy would go to

widened

with time, but others, especially the ones that leave a mark, never truly disappear. As Jeannie spoke, a vivid image formed in Irwin's mind him, small and nervous, slipping that 'magic

a baby boy, and then the baby died. Was it...

wasn't a magic stone at all. If I'm not mistaken, it was something much more

frowned in confusion. "What's a radioactive

a kind of stone that gives off strong radiation," Jeannie explained gently. "It's illegal here your grandmother must have gotten it from abroad." Irwin's face went pale. "Radiation... does that hurt

And at

welled up in Irwin's eyes. "Was it my fault? Did I kill Mom

think that way. Yes, you put the stone there-but you were just a child. You had no idea what it was. Your grandmother used you to hurt Mom Bryn. But think about it why

furrowed as he tried to piece it together. After

was because of

"Your grandmother is your mother's mother. She wouldn't have done something

Irwin hesitated, confusion clouding his face. "Why would Mom want to

was afraid that if Mom Bryn had a baby, her own child-you- would lose your place in the