A Soldier's Honour. Regan Black

phone was somewhere near Philly.

      She called him immediately, but he didn’t pick up. She sent a text, and as she waited for a reply, she struggled to find a logical explanation for his behavior. Had Caleb overheard her conversation with Matt last night? Had he been in more trouble or more upset than she’d thought?

      She wasn’t buying into those scenarios. He’d been himself over spaghetti last night and in a good mood this morning. She groaned, reviewing his behavior in her mind. He’d been planning this.

      Still waiting for a reply from Caleb on her cell phone, she used the office phone to call his soccer coach. Dread and fear were an icky congealed mess in her stomach when the coach said there was no practice at all tonight. Caleb had been lying about being home late.

      She sat back. Anger and hurt quickly burned away her initial worry. What was he up to?

      The standard school policy when a child was absent was an automated call after 6:00 p.m. Because of her unique situation with Caleb, she’d had a standing request at every school that she be notified immediately if anyone other than her or her parents asked about Caleb or tried to pick him up from school.

      She wasn’t so paranoid that she thought Matt would try something as outrageous as taking him right out of school; she just needed the extra layer of confidence and support. Fortunately school administrators had been cooperative and, until today, her precautions hadn’t been necessary. Thank goodness she’d never shared that particular safety detail with her son.

      Whatever Caleb was up to, she had to assume he thought he’d have an entire day to himself. Why did he have to do this today? And why run off to Philadelphia?

      Her head pounded from lack of sleep and a resurgence of worry. Matt was coming today. Lovely that Caleb would pull this kind of stunt on the day she wanted to introduce him to his father.

      On a hunch, she checked his bank account. She’d opened a checking account for him and started teaching him about personal finance as soon as he’d started mowing lawns in the neighborhood for extra cash. Reviewing his recent activity, she gaped at the screen. Despite the evidence in front of her, she resisted the truth.

      Once more, she picked up her desk phone, this time dialing the Pentagon’s switchboard. “Major Matthew Riley, please. He’s currently the adjutant for General Knudson.”

      It took some time for the call to reach Matt, but when he picked up the call, she wasted no time. “Dinner’s off.”

      “Bethany?”

      “Yes. It’s me.” Her heart was pounding and everything in her was urging her to leap into action, to chase down her son. “I’m sorry to be so abrupt. I think Caleb is on his way to see you.”

      “What? Did you tell him already?”

      “No.” They’d come up with a plan, and she intended to honor it. “He’s skipped school, Matt. First time ever.” She forced herself to slow down and relay the facts. “I’m looking at his bank account. He purchased a train ticket to DC two days ago. He’s not answering my calls or texts. The app I have is showing that he’s close to Philly.”

      “You have a tracking app on his phone?”

      The censure only sparked another flash of temper. “Pardon me,” she snapped. “How many busy and bright teenagers have you raised?”

      “None,” he admitted. “Though I recall volunteering for the task plenty of times.”

      She took a deep breath. “That was rude. Sorry,” she repeated, this time meaning it. “I’m just worried.”

      “And mad.”

      Was that anger in his voice, as well? “Yes, and mad,” she admitted.

      “You think he skipped school and put himself on a train to Washington in order to find or meet me.”

      “That’s as much logic as I can make of his actions,” she said. “He’s not skipping with any of his friends.”

      “All right. If he’s in Philly now, it won’t be long before he reaches Union Station. I’ll get down there and find him.”

      “Thank you.” Relief coursed through her at his confidence.

      “I’ll have him call right away. I’ll bring him back home, and we can all have dinner as planned.”

      “Oh.” She couldn’t come up with a reason why they shouldn’t go ahead with dinner. “You don’t have to do that.” Caleb had purchased a round-trip ticket.

      “Would you rather come to DC and have dinner at my place?” he queried.

      “No.” She heard the reply came out more like a question.

      “Well, I’m not dumping him back on the train.”

      “Matt, you really don’t have to—”

      “Bethany, I was planning to drive up anyway. This is exactly what I want to do. Caleb and I will be there by seven.”

      “Okay.” What option did she have? She couldn’t get to DC ahead of Caleb. Rushing after him, having this conversation on Matt’s turf, wasn’t her idea of a good time, either. “Let me know when he arrives, okay?”

      “I promise.”

      “One more thing.” She closed her eyes against a sudden rush of tears. “Let him know he’s grounded.”

      Matt tried to disguise his bark of laughter as a cough. She wasn’t fooled. “That’s not funny.”

      “It is,” he said. “My first parenting milestone is discipline.”

      His humor in the situation lifted the burden, eased the sadness a little. “I wanted us to tell him together.”

      “I know. I’ll do what I can to save the hard questions for you.”

      “Again, not funny.” So why did she want to laugh? She plucked up a pen and started doodling on her pad of sticky notes.

      “Any idea how he found me?” Matt asked. “Or why he came looking today of all days?”

      “None. Hopefully he’ll confide in you.” It seemed an odd thing to sincerely wish for under the circumstances. Clearly they’d entered new and uncharted territory. “I’ll text you his cell number. Thanks for your help,” she said. “I know this is an inconvenience.”

      “Don’t say that.”

      His voice, low and kind, rumbled across her senses. She blamed the resulting shiver on stress. “I need to notify the school that we think we’ve found him. I don’t want them to worry any more than I have been.”

      “All right.”

      And yet, long minutes after the call ended, she still sat there, paralyzed by fear of how the evening would go and how her relationship with Caleb would change. She was his mother, not his friend, but they’d been an unbreakable team since day one. Honest with each other, candid and clear, she’d made every effort to give him a stable life, while assuring him that his father was a good man, doing good work in the Army.

      On top of that nonnegotiable stability, she’d given Caleb roots and tradition with her side of the family, let him know he was loved and valued. She’d created opportunities to explore various interests, while fostering an appreciation for history that matched hers and Matt’s.

      That had been her one calculated effort once she’d accepted that this day would come whether she wanted it to or not. Matt had respected every limit she’d set in her quest to raise Caleb alone. The two of them deserved to have some common ground from the first introduction.

      Strange that until now, when she could only guess at Caleb’s reactions, her choices had never felt quite so selfish or self-serving. She’d been so confident that giving Matt room to have a Military career unencumbered by a whoops baby was the right thing