She Never Knew Read Online Free

and all of His
angels.”
    Tyler said, “But
why did he have to go to Heaven?”
    “Because God is
taking care of him now.” Kat stroked Tyler’s hair. “Do you remember when I told
you that your daddy was in a car accident?”
    Tyler nodded,
grabbing Froggy for comfort. “And it was a really bad accident, right Mommy?”
He began sucking his thumb.
    God, she hated
lying to Tyler, but she felt that she didn’t have a choice. She couldn’t very
well tell her son that his biological father had raped his mother. Besides, he
was too young to understand the truth. As far as she was concerned, Michael was
Tyler’s father, even though he and Kat were never intimate. She made a mental
note to call her pastor. He would give her some sound advice.
    Kat nodded her
head, recalling her reaction when the doctors told her that Michael and her
parents died on impact. “Yes, a really bad one. Your daddy had so many boo boos
that his body couldn’t fix them. His body was very tired so God decided He
would take care of your daddy in Heaven.”
    Wide-eyed, Tyler
sat up suddenly and turned toward his mother. “But, will he come back to us?”
    Kat shook her
head. “No, sweetheart. Once someone goes to Heaven, they stay there forever.”
    Tyler leaned
back against the headboard, studying Froggy. His small fingers pushed the
buttons on Froggy’s chest, and a nighttime lullaby began to play. “And Grammy
and Grampy, too? They’re never coming back too, right?”
    Although Tyler
was born after their deaths, Kat talked about her parents a great deal to
Tyler. It was so unfair as Kat knew how much they would have adored Tyler and
how proud they would have been of him.
    Kat replied,
“That’s right. They will live with God forever and forever.”
    “And someday we
will see them in Heaven, right Mommy?”
    “Right.” Kat
leaned over to the side of Tyler’s bed and reached for the picture frame of
Michael and her parents that sat on a night table. In the picture, Michael
stood behind Kat’s parents with a proud smile on his face. Kat’s parents were
smiling, proud as well. The picture was taken on the day of Kat’s graduation
ceremony. The three of them had stood in front of the university’s
administration building, and Michael had worn Kat’s graduation cap on his head.
There were big smiles all around and sparkles in their eyes.
    Kat’s smile
faded into sadness as she remembered her final moments with her sister. She and
Mary had been at the cemetery with immediate family members, their heads bent
in prayer as the pastor concluded parting wishes. Although Kat was numb with
grief, she was quiet during the service while Mary openly sobbed. Their
mother’s sister and brother had embraced Mary and when Kat tried to do the
same, her sister had lashed out at her.
    “This is all your
fault!” she had screamed at Kat, tears streaming down her face. “None of this
would’ve happened if it weren’t for you!”
    Kat had
recoiled, feeling stung beyond words as she watched her sister turn her back
and drop to the ground next to the burial plots. Their aunt immediately
crouched down next to her, rubbing her back. Mary began whimpering at that
point, rocking herself back and forth.
    “I—I’m so sorry,”
Kat whispered, her eyes bright with fresh tears. She clamped a hand over her
mouth as she stared at her uncle in bewilderment. He shook his head slightly and
held up a palm to indicate that she should give Mary her space. Close friends
stepped back while others left, upset and dismayed by the outburst.
    After what
seemed like an eternity, Mary finally rose and turned to face Kat. It was
obvious how angry she was and despite her efforts to maintain composure, she
fumed at Kat, pointing her finger at her.
    “You did this.
If you hadn’t—”
    “Mary—” Kat reached
out, desperate for her sister to see reason, but Mary wasn’t finished with her
yet.
    “—If you hadn’t
dragged them across the country, they would still be