Snippet #2393574

It was a bright and clear morning at the Reed house. From the outside, the home looked quite peaceful. A place that one would want to visit. The house was located a bit farther out than many in the small town preferred to live. It was well known around Coon Falls that the Reed's son had moved back home almost a year before with his two children to be closer to his family. The reasoning behind his move had been kept a mystery at first but then the media had begun releasing news about the event that, in the locals minds, had led to the move. They had left the Reeds alone for the most part. There had been a few older women that had spoken with Judith Reed a few times, trying to find out what was going on. It had been no secret that Darrin, Judith's son, was famous and part of the rock group Unfinished Belief. Naturally, everyone wanted to know why the band had broken up. Judith had not said much except that her son had felt that a break was needed. Rumors were circulating around the town still, no answers were found.

When news began to spread that Judith was looking for a nanny to hire to help with her two grandchildren, all of the girls in town had applied. Even some girls from different states. Judith had not been sure how so many people had found out about the position. She'd not really advertised it except in Coon Falls. The task of finding someone who would truly care for the children and not care who their father was had been very hard. She'd interviewed at least two hundred girls and had thought that it was a lost cause until she'd met Jane Miller. She'd liked the girl from the start. She spoke with Jane several times before offering her the position, which the girl gladly had accepted.

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It had only been a year since Hannah had left them, since she'd turned her back on her family. Darrin still could not believe that she had left them. He'd thought that they were happy, that she was happy with the life that he was giving her. He had been so very wrong. When Hannah had disappeared that awful day, Darrin had been worried sick. She had been supposed to pick the kids up from school and had just never shown up. Luckily, the kids teacher had called Darrin to let him know that she still had his children. He'd picked them up, at first being quite angry that Hannah hadn't picked them up. He'd taken them home, fixed them something to eat, made sure that they finished their homework, and put them to bed...and still no Hannah. It was by then that he'd really started to worry. Darrin had begun calling her phone, calling her family. No answer and her family hadn't heard from her that day. Becoming frightened for his wife, he called the police. They wouldn't be able to do anything for forty eight hours.

Darrin had stayed up most of that night, worrying. In the morning, he had had to get his children ready for school and take them there. He'd called the bass player of his band, his best friend, to let him know what was going on. By around noon, he received a text message from Hannah. All that she said was that she no longer loved him, the kids. She needed a life of her own. Darrin felt his world collapsing around him. His entire being belonged to Hannah and she didn't love him. He didn't know how to react. Slowly, as the next few days passed by, Darrin found himself not being able to really take care of his children properly. He had called his mother, asking her to watch them until he decided what he was going to do. Judith had flown out to the family's large home in California. She'd spoken for a long time with Darrin. She could not believe what Hannah had done. She attempted to comfort her son, to no avail. He was too far brokenhearted. She took her grandchildren and flew back to Coon Falls, keeping them at her small home.

Darrin stayed in California for another two months before he'd completely stopped caring about his career. He tried to leave the band, though his bandmates wouldn't hear it. Darrin resorted to calling them extremely hateful names, saying hurtful things. The other men became very angry with Darrin and at the time had not cared that he was leaving them. Darrin flew to Virginia to be with his family. He told his mother that they would be living in his large home that was located on the outskirts of the town. At first everything seemed to be all right. Darrin had seemed to be holding up as well as could have been expected. Slowly, as Judith would come over to the house everyday, she would notice that Darrin was usually drunk or had been taking some sort of drugs. He'd lost weight, didn't seem to care about his appearance, his eyes were usually bloodshot. His behavior had begun to change as well. Darrin had begun to have a bad temper, he'd lost any interest in singing or practicing his guitar, he was trying to push many people away from himself. Judith was beginning to worry about her son. No matter what Judith or her husband Mick said to Darrin, he just wouldn't listen to them. It had gotten to the point that Judith was staying at Darrin's home twenty-four-seven. They were afraid to leave the children alone with the messed up man.

Darrin was upstairs in his large bedroom, laying upon the large bed. He was felt no need to move. He recalled his mother telling him that someone was coming over that day. He wasn't sure if they were just visiting or actually going to be living with them. He couldn't really think clearly. He could hear his children, Taylor and Samantha, running around the large house. It must be Saturday, he thought. He slowly sat up and reached to his bedside table to pour himself a drink. He'd forgotten what kind of alcohol was in the glass but he didn't care. He drank the strong liquid quickly and popped a couple of pills. That should do it. He stood up and made his way to his closet and quickly got dressed. He chose to wear jeans, black converse, a white t-shirt with a random band name on it, and his black hoodie. He pulled the hood up, covering most of his dyed bright red hair. He grabbed his lighter and a pack of cigarettes. He slowly made his way down the stairs and into the kitchen. He sat down at the table, not saying anything. He was beginning to feel the effects of his recent intake. He was feeling tired once again. Perhaps he shouldn't have taken the pills with the alcohol. Darrin watched his mother as she moved around the kitchen, fixing breakfast. "I wish you would stop taking whatever it is that has you so doped up all of the time." ,she said softly, not looking at her son. Darrin chose not to say anything. "I hope that you didn't forget that the nanny that I hired will be here today. Her name is Jane Miller and I've asked her to stay here for a while. I didn't see any need in her having to drive out here every day." Darrin only stared at his mother. It was obvious to the older woman that her son wouldn't be too friendly that day. She could only hope that Jane would be able to handle Darrin. Suddenly, Judith heard a knock on the door. She quickly walked to the door and opened the heavy thing. She was now face to face with a young woman. "I'm so glad that you're here! Come in! I'd like to introduce you to everyone!" ,Judith said, gently leading the woman into the home. "Head into the kitchen while I round up the kids." Judith quickly walked into a different area of the house finding the children. "Come, there is someone I'd like you two to meet." she said to her grandchildren. She led the into the kitchen, to where she had asked the nanny to wait for them.