Lucas had run out of patience and did not want to continue the conversation. He thought that his father would just leave if he fell silent. To his bewilderment, Mr. Woods sat down on the couch and looked at him. "Come here. Let's talk."

"What's there to talk about? Just say what you have to say." Lucas walked over in annoyance.

"Your mother called me." Mr. Woods watched as his son approached him. "Did you block your mother's number? She said she can't reach you, and when she tried to call you using a different number, you won't pick up."

"Yeah, I blocked her number," Lucas admitted. "Is there anything else?"

Mr. Woods took a few deep breaths and said, "Your mother was in tears when she called me. She told me that—"

"I don't want to hear it." Lucas interrupted him. "If that's all, I'm going back to my room."

"Lucas!" Mr. Wood stood from the couch and hurried over to Lucas. "Your mother said a lot to me. She had told me that she had purposely not told you anything when she had me p