Somebody’s Perfect

by Kallypso Masters

  If she was able to bail them out tonight, they could be back in the courtroom with her tomorrow morning for closing statements.

  The San Bernardino criminal defense attorney she’d hired had given them an appointment for late tomorrow afternoon. She hoped the jury in Gentry’s trial would be in deliberations by then so she could join them.

  And God willing, she’d be in the courtroom to see his face when the verdict was read. She should call the DA to find out more about what to expect in the coming days, but right now, her focus needed to be on her husband and Adam.

  She was ready for it all to be over so they could go home. She’d never been apart from Marisol this long. While their evening video chats helped, it just wasn’t the same.

  Parking as close as possible to the Central Detention Center, she followed the paralegal’s advice and stowed her cell phone, along with Adam’s and Damián’s, in the glove compartment before waddling to the judicial center and up the stairs as quickly as a woman eight months along could.

  She cleared security quickly, but Damián and Adam still hadn’t been booked.

  The security person who checked her bag said they would be in a holding pod with other unprocessed detainees until booked. She hoped they were at least together so they could provide moral support for one another.

  Her heart ached for them. Especially for Damián, who would be beside himself worrying about her and have not a care at all for the legal problems the two of them faced. She wanted to put Damián’s mind at ease and begged the clerk to pass along a handwritten message to him but was told it was against protocol.

  Determined not to return to San Diego County without them, she took a seat on a bench near the metal detector entrance to wait. Surely they’d be booked soon.

  “Ms. Orlando.”

  After waiting forty-five minutes, she turned toward the desk to see who had called her name. The young woman smiled sympathetically, probably only seeing the poor pregnant woman waiting to bail out her husband. While Savannah needed no one’s pity, this woman stood between her and Damián, so she returned the smile.

  “Yes?” she asked, returning to the desk.

  “Mr. Orlando and Mr. Montague have been booked.” She jotted down some numbers on a pad of paper, tore the top sheet off, and handed it to Savannah. “Here are their booking numbers. Take this to the clerk’s office and you can post bail.”

  Adam’s bail had been less than Damián’s, but after giving the woman in the clerk’s office her driver’s license and a personal check to cover both of them, she was told to have a seat again to wait for their release.

  Anxious to be reunited with Damián, she kept her eye on the door she expected them to come through any moment.

  * * *

  Damián had gone through several scenarios today of how Savannah’s rebuttal might have gone. Was she okay? And what about the baby? He should have been there to protect them both, to rub the stress out of Savannah’s back and neck before and after she went on the stand, to support her from across the room as she took down the maldito bastardo.

  If anything happened to her or the baby, he’d rip Gentry’s fucking balls off this time and cram them down his goddamned throat.

  “Stop worrying,” Dad said. “Savannah’s strong. And smart. She won’t do anything to jeopardize this pregnancy or the case against Gentry.”

  Damián glanced over at him. Guilt over dragging Adam into this ate at him, too. “You ought to be home with Karla and the babies, not holed up in this detention bay with me.”

  “Stop worrying about me, too,” Dad said quietly. “Think of the stories we can tell our friends when we see them again. Two married guys don’t usually get this much excitement in their lives.”

  “I could do with a lot less excitement.” He ran his hand thru his hair and loosened it from its tie. “I don’t see how you can make light of this,” he whispered. “What if that bastard succeeds in putting us both away?”

  “Who would a jury believe? A soon-to-be-convicted double murderer or two U.S. Marine heroes?”

  Damián grew even more serious. “I don’t feel like much of a hero today. I should be with Savannah.” He didn’t want to say anything incriminating in here, but it had been his idea to torture Gentry that day. If their cases went to trial, he’d take the heat for it.

  “Neither one of us is going to be convicted for something we didn’t do.” Thankfully, Dad was aware of the potential for jailhouse snitches and spies and wasn’t admitting anything. “Gentry filed these asinine charges because he wanted us out of the way so he could torment Savannah again. What evidence would he possibly have?”

  Damián nodded. He couldn’t picture Gentry presenting his mangled balls as evidence, so what could he possibly have on them? And even if he did bare it all, he’d have to prove they’d been the ones to do it.

  He’d wasted enough time on Gentry’s sorry ass. “How do you think she held up?”

  “Knowing Savannah, she cut him off at the knees.”

  Damián grinned at the image. “Sure hope so.”

  “Montague, Orlando,” came the voice of the detention guard. He opened the bay door and waited for them.

  What now?

  “You’ve both been bailed out and are free to go. Just be sure to return for your preliminary arraignment hearings Monday.”

  Savannah!

  They gathered their belongings from where they’d been secured, dressed, and were shown the exit.

  Damián scanned the waiting area until he saw Savannah sitting alone nibbling on her lower lip. When she glanced toward him, her eyes brightened with unshed tears, and her face lit with a tremulous smile. She looked fragile, yet there was an air of confidence he hadn’t seen before. Or was it relief? He raced across the room to her and wrapped her in his arms.

  “I’ve missed you so much, bebé.” He couldn’t wait to ask how it went today, but right now, he needed to hold her. They’d only been apart for ten hours, but every minute seemed like days.

  Reluctantly, he took her by the arms and put some distance between them so he could look at her. “Are you okay?” They laughed when they realized they’d both asked the same question. “You first,” he said.

  “I’m fine. I just want to get out of here so we can talk.”

  “That sounds like a great idea,” Adam said from behind him. “Let’s go.”

  Adam had them ensconced in the backseat together within five minutes while he drove toward the base. Savannah, next to Damián, rested her head on his shoulder; he slid his arm around her back to pull her body closer.

  “Tell me everything, querida.” He placed his palm against her belly. “How’s the baby? What happened after we left?”

  “I gave my rebuttal.” She sat up straighter, beaming at him. “I didn’t break down. Not once.”

  Damn. “I wish I could have been there to watch you take him down.”

  “No regrets, sweetheart. It wasn’t your fault you weren’t there, and to be honest, I actually think I needed to face Gentry by myself like this. Yes, I was terrified out of my skull.” She held up her hand and pointed to her wedding band in the dim light. “Look at how I mangled your family heirloom trying to remain grounded the way you taught me by rubbing my ring.” She gave a lopsided grin and a shrug.

  “I’ll fix it when we get home.” He clasped her hand in his, pulling it against her baby bump under his hand to connect their circle. “Jesús, you sure squeezed the hell out of it.” He chuckled so she wouldn’t think he was upset about the ring.

  “But it did its job, Damián. I didn’t even realize it was bent until the drive up here. But it kept me in the moment. I remembered everything we’d worked on, and I stayed calm. I told my story! All of it.”

  His chest nearly burst with pride for his warrior princesa and her increased strength.

  “At first, I avoided making eye contact with Gentry. Then something clicked into place. I stared him down as I told what happened. Damián, I actually saw fear on his
face at one point. Imagine, Gentry afraid of me for a change! The power shift was monumental. I held all the cards for the first time…ever.”

  “I wish I could have seen it, but I’m so proud of you, bebé!”

  “Oh, Damián, it was so freeing to confront him after all these years. And to come out the winner? Priceless. At least, I hope the jury sends his ass to prison for the rest of his life after all they’ve seen and heard. You should have seen him practically go after Sullivan at one point. That woman has some definite Domme tendencies, if you ask me.”

  “I’m so fucking proud of you, querida. You’re one kickass opponent.”

  “Let’s just say I wiped the smirk off his face that had been there since he’d gotten you and Adam arrested. I refused to back away from the ugly details, too. And the session last night made it so much easier for me to provide realistic details to this sordid birthday party. Oh, and then there’s Lyle!”

  Fuck. She’d had to face both those dicks today?

  What had she endured alone while he sat in jail unable to help? “Why was he called back in there?”

  “After I finished my rebuttal, Lyle took the stand again and gave his rebuttal, refuting many of the things Gentry had lied about concerning him, too.”

  “Did he disrespect you in any way? Because if he did…”

  She shook her head. “I’ll admit that, at first, having to share air space with him again so soon left me in a sheer panic.” She swallowed. “But you’ll never believe what evidence Lyle’s been sitting on all these years.”

  “What?”

  “He produced the signed, original contract in which my father had spelled out all the evil things he was going to allow his associates to do to me.”

  “Where’d he been keeping that piece of evidence?”

  “His lawyer’s office. I guess he knew he’d need collateral when dealing with someone as ruthless as Gentry.” She swallowed before continuing. “He even told the court he had audiotapes of several incriminating conversations with my father in which Gentry instructed Lyle as to what he was or wasn’t supposed to let the clients do to me. It was pretty clear he hadn’t been as clueless of what was going on as he tried to let on in his earlier testimony.”

  “Shit. Never thought I’d have anything good to say about Gibson, but good thing he didn’t trust Gentry.” The two had been thick as thieves for more than a decade, but apparently neither one trusted the other.

  She smiled brightly. “I stared both of them down. At one point, Lyle even stumbled on his testimony, because I actually intimidated him, too.” She giggled, and he couldn’t help but relax with a smile of his own.

  Her eyes opened wider. “Oh, wait! How could I forget! Remember how I was given some kind of white pill the night of the birthday debacle?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Lyle testified that it was Ecstasy. So that explains the burning sensation and my acting wildly out of character that night.”

  Fuck them both. He hoped their time in prison ended with them being the bitches to their worst nightmares for what they’d done to a sweet, innocent girl. “Even though you didn’t need us, I’m still pissed I didn’t get to watch you in action.”

  Sitting in the drive-through lane to pick up a late dinner, Dad turned around to Savannah, saying, “Told that husband of yours to stop worrying. Let me go on the record, too. Hon, I’m proud as hell of what you accomplished today.”

  “Damián made me stronger, Adam. Made me believe in myself.”

  Damián and Dad both shook their heads.

  “No, bebé, you’ve always been incredibly strong. All I did was help you find focus and to overcome feeling exposed in front of strangers when sharing your story.”

  “Don’t be modest. You taught me I can control my fear and how much power, if any, I’m willing to allow others to have over me.” She stroked his arm, needing even more closeness with him tonight. “You also helped me find my voice, Damián. Without that night at the club on your Alive Day and the countless reminders to ground myself in the moment, I don’t know that I could have done it otherwise. Stop beating yourself up about not being there. You can’t help that Gentry filed trumped up charges against you two.”

  Damián turned to glance out the window as Dad pulled into a parking spot. But she was too astute to miss his avoidance tactic.

  “Did you two do what he accused you of?”

  He opened his door and helped her out. “We’ll talk about this tonight.” Wanting to shift the focus back to her, once inside the elevator, he turned to her. “I’ll never forget how you showed that cabrón what you’re made of, querida. I’m so fucking proud of you.”

  “Will one or both of you ever tell me what exactly happened after my rescue?”

  They exchanged glances again before Damián shrugged. “Let’s just say we made sure he wouldn’t rape anyone else for as long as he lived.”

  Her eyes opened wide as saucers as she looked from one to the other then a slow smile curved her lips. “Thank you.” She gave them both a hug, kissing Dad on the cheek and Damián on the lips. “I’m behind you both a hundred percent. Whatever you choose to do, I’ll be there for you the way you’ve been there for me.”

  Dios, could he love this woman any more than he did in this moment?

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  The closing statements were given Friday morning, revealing no surprises. While the jury deliberated, Savannah, Adam, and Damián met with their defense attorney in the afternoon. The attorney mostly rattled off routine procedural information about what to expect at Monday’s arraignment. Sounded like it could be months before they’d need to come back to face charges. The attorney assured them she’d probably be able to plea to lesser charges, but both men wanted to plead not guilty at Monday’s arraignment. She vowed to work hard to have the charges dropped or reduced before they would go to trial.

  “After the holidays,” the lawyer began, “I’ll approach the DA’s office in San Bernardino. By then, Gentry’s verdicts will have come down and sentencing will have taken place. I’ll see what I can do to get the charges dismissed.

  “Sounds good,” Adam said. “We’d appreciate anything you can do to make that happen.”

  With Christmas only ten days away, the three spent most of Saturday shopping for Marisol and the triplets. Adam decided they were so close to the trial’s end that he would just wait and fly back with them after the verdict came in.

  Adam had to be missing Karla and his kids as much as she and Damián missed Marisol. They’d practically cleaned out the MCX at Pendleton, knowing they couldn’t get prices like those back in Denver.

  Then there was the Corps factor. Savannah found a T-shirt for Marisol that read: Marines make the best daddies. She had to get it but didn’t want Damián to see it ahead of time. Pulling on Adam’s sleeve, she whispered when he leaned down, “Could you create a diversion so I can buy this without him seeing?”

  “Sure thing.” He looked for Damián’s whereabouts and glanced out the windows. Adam smiled, took Damián by the arm, and pointed outside. “Hey, son, remember those days?”

  Damián groaned. “Don’t remind me, I had the hardest time learning to tie the double fisherman’s knot, and that’s the one the instructors always demanded of me.”

  Curious herself when she should be taking advantage of the subterfuge, Savannah looked outside to see a group of Marines running along the street with rope bundled at their lower backs.

  “Did you guys keep a list of our weaknesses or something?”

  Adam’s laugh carried through the store as she hurried to the counter to pay for that and an adorable jumpsuit for the baby with a cover—as Damián called his cap. It was a miniature replica of a Marine’s dress blues. She couldn’t wait to see it on the baby—boy or girl.

  Shopping had given her a mental break from the trial, but her stress returned as they sat over lunch at Iron Mike’s SNCO Lounge. The beautiful views of the Pacific Ocean captivated her until she began knea
ding the muscles in her lower back to relieve some cramping that had begun in the past hour.

  “You okay, querida?”

  “Just some back pain. Not as bad as with Marisol, annoying nonetheless.”

  “Why don’t we head back to the lodge after this?” Damián asked. “I can give you a massage.”

  Savannah smiled at him. “Sounds divine. I think I’m shopped out anyway. I can order the rest of the presents online this weekend and probably still get them in time.”

  Her belly suddenly became hard again, and she pushed the rest of her meal away. This one seemed more intense than the Braxton-Hicks contractions she’d been having for months. Wiping her mouth, she set the napkin beside her plate. “I need to make a pit stop before we head back.”

  But when she tried to stand, the intense pain in her pelvis nearly took her breath away. Seeing her wince, Adam and Damián both jumped up to help her. The abdominal cramping wasn’t letting up, either.

  “You okay, bebé?”

  Unable to speak, she nodded, but when she attempted to stand upright again, a stitch in her side doubled her over.

  “Sit down, hon,” Adam said, guiding her back into the chair.

  “Should we call a doctor?” the server asked.

  Shaking her head, she gritted out, “No. I just stood up too fast.” Only it didn’t feel like the usual stitches she got from doing so in the past.

  “Call her an ambulance,” Damián told the server who hurried away. “Querida, we’re going to the emergency department to get you checked out.”

  Adam threw some bills on the table to cover lunch and the tip. “Hang on, hon. We’ll have you checked out in no time.”

  “But it can’t be that. It’s too early!” Why was this happening now? The worst of the trial stress was over. They’d been enjoying a quiet lunch together. She had no warning signs for premature labor, but what if the baby came now?

  “Eyes.”

  Nearly paralyzed with fear, she didn’t respond until Damián cupped her chin and forced her to face him. “Slow, deep breaths, querida.” Until he mimicked what he wanted her to do, she had no clue.