Chapter twenty

Raiden parked outside the barely familiar house. He hadn't been home in decades, nor had he ever thought he would be about to take another step inside. He eased out of his car and walked up the pathway, not a single happy memory surfacing. The door opened almost as soon as he rang the doorbell and he made his way into the living room, his eyes perusing the staged family photos. He cringed. His entire life had been about pretenses, saving face, and betrayal. 

His mother entered, her features bright with excitement, despite having seen him a few hours before. "I have dreamed of the day you would return to visit us. Stay for dinner, your father will be back by then." she pulled him to a seat beside her.

"And where is father?" Raiden questioned, poking at the thinly veiled illusion. His mother's face momentarily collapsed in distraught, recovering just as quickly.

"What brings you by?" she directed the conversation else to distract herself from the fact that he