by Taylor Hart
Shar laughed. “Yeah, Noah and I are going on a road trip for our time off.”
“Dang right,” Noah said, fist-bumping her.
Out of the blue, the door to the studio burst open and in walked their brother, Jack. He was tall and lean, and there was a scowl on his face.
“Jack!” Kira jumped out of her chair and rushed at him.
Jack’s expression brightened into a friendly smile, and he caught her when she jumped into his arms. “Hey, baby sister!”
“You’re home!” she squealed, sounding younger, Shay thought. It’d been a long time since her big bro had come home.
Shay’s heart thumped as he stood. He hadn't imagined that Jack was actually coming to Rutherford.
“I got you,” Jack whispered in his ear as they hugged. “We’re going to figure this all out together.”
The prospect of help was a huge game changer, but Shay needed to let him know about the new information. He waited while all of his siblings had a chance to greet Jack.
Before he knew it, Noah, James, and Mason were circling Jack and play-fighting like they’d done their whole lives. “Little Mason, when did you get so huge?” Jack play-punched Mason.
Mason smirked, then frowned and dropped the play fighting act. “Wait a sec. Why are you home? Is something wrong?”
Jack looked around. Everyone seemed to have the same question on their minds. Jack hardly ever came home. His work was the most important thing in his life, and he’d made no bones about it.
“I came home because I couldn’t miss out on you schmucks performing at the Senator's Manor,” Jack scoffed. “How did my family become so famous, anyway?” He tickled Kira beneath the neck, and she giggled like a little girl and pushed him.
His mother came in, and her huge grin made it clear that she was more than delighted. “I can’t believe it. All my kids home.” With tears in her eyes, she sniffed and said, “Rehearse quickly, because your father and I are preparing a huge breakfast to celebrate.”
“Wahoo!” Kira celebrated, hugging Jack fiercely; then she took off after her mother. “I’ll help too.”
Jack turned to the rest of his siblings, nodding and grinning. “Well, let’s hear you rock.”
Chapter 8
“I can’t let him get hurt, Tauni. I just can’t,” Jaycee said. Tauni had rolled in this morning, and once they’d retreated to Jaycee’s room, Jaycee had filled her in on her new plan.
Tauni looked unsure. “Okay, I get why you don't want to involve him, but I don’t know if it’s the smartest thing for you to leave on a plane right before your engagement party.”
Jaycee had spent most of the night—well, the part of the night that she hadn’t been with Shay—coming up with this plan. She’d gone to Ms. Fairbanks this morning and had everything set up. In fact, she only had ten minutes before Ms. Fairbanks would give her a ride to the airport and see her on her way. “This is the perfect plan, because who better than you to provide cover for me today and most of this evening? You give me the most time away from my father and Kurt and Duke. You can pretend I’m sick, then pretend that Kurt can’t see me, then keep everyone out of here. Only you can do that.”
Tauni frowned. "I don't know."
Jaycee grasped her friend’s hands. “I need you, Tauni. You’ve been there for me the entire past year. Truthfully, I wouldn’t have ever gotten out of the facility without you. We’ve known that something was going on, but we had no proof. This is my shot. Will you help me?”
Tauni sucked in a huge breath and cursed. “Fine, I'm in. I got this. How long will it take you to get to Jackson?” She checked her phone. “When can I figure you’re there?”
“Ms. Fairbanks told me the flight would be about four hours. Then I’m showing up at Mr. Stetson's office without an appointment, but I’ll be there around four o’clock, so hopefully it will all go well.” Jaycee put her hand out. “One more favor—can I have your phone? My phone is always tracked; you know that. Once they find me missing, they’ll track my phone, but I don’t think they’ll track yours.”
Tauni handed Jaycee her phone. “You know my code. You’re right. I’ll get a burner and call you.” She drew Jaycee into a hug. “Be careful, please,” she whispered.
Chapter 9
Shay stood in the sound studio with Jack. After an enormous breakfast that he’d hardly been able to swallow, even with his mother breathing down their necks to eat, eat, eat, he’d finally been able to break away and talk with Jack.
“Tell me everything, bro,” Jack said, sitting on the couch across from him.
“Yeah,” said Leah over the intercom. “Why don’t you tell us everything?”
Shay looked up, frowning when he saw all of his siblings trickling into the room.
Noah growled at him as he entered. “You think none of us would notice how weird you’ve been since you’ve seen Jaycee last week, that we wouldn’t really suspect something when big bro Navy SEAL shows up out of the blue?”
Leah walked over and pushed him in the shoulder. “You don’t leave us out, Shay. We are the Summerville Solid Gold for a reason.”
The others surrounded them: Mason, Kira, Liam, Shar, James … all of them looking determined. Shay’s heart sped up, and he let out a sudden laugh, turning to Jack.
Jack was less amused. He stood and crossed his arms, scowling again. “You think you all want to be part of something important?” He was speaking like a major in the army.
None of them responded.
Jack marched around them. “You don’t come in here demanding answers if you’re not ready to hear the truth. If you’re not ready to do what it takes to protect people.”
Leah stepped up to Jack; her tiny figure was a joke next to a man his size. “Maybe you are loyal to your country, sailor, but you haven’t been around our family for quite some time. Maybe you’re the one we can’t trust.”
Jack didn’t seem to mind her confrontation. In fact, a huge grin settled on his face. “That’s a girl. I think we should tell them,” he said, nodding at Shay. “I think they’ve proven their loyalty to you, and now they want in. Leah’s right: we Summervilles stick together. We have each other’s backs through thick and thin.”
Their parents walked into the studio. His father looked just as determined as Jack did. “Yes, I think Summervilles stick together. So spill it.”
Shay knew that he had no choice. He loved this group.
After giving them all the rundown of what was happening with Jaycee and her father and all of the scandal, Shay stood by the window that overlooked the Summerville ranch backyard. Even when he was telling the story to his siblings and parents, people he could trust, it sounded ridiculous.
“So what’s the plan, then?” Liam asked and bumped up next to him.
Shay saw worry on his twin’s face. Liam wasn’t the kind of person who took things too seriously, but he couldn’t hide the concern in his eyes.
Shay sighed and faced all of them. “The plan is to do the concert tonight at the manor. We don’t want to alert anyone to what is going on. Then,” he said, nodding to Jack, “with Jack’s contacts, we move out tonight, head up to Jackson, find this attorney, and get the information he has.”
“The information that Jaycee’s mother left with him that incriminates the senator, correct?” his mother asked nervously. She’d sat on one of the couches, and his father was sitting next to her, patting her hand.
Jack moved to stand beside Shay. “The only thing that matters for all who are in here is that you play your concert tonight and act like nothing is wrong. You be the senator’s public relations spot. You smile and seem like you’re having fun. You give nothing away,” he said, looking at all of them individually. “Then, like Shay said, we head to Jackson. Me, Shay, Jaycee, late tonight … when we can bust through security or sneak her out somehow.”
Kira moved to Shay's side, taking his hand. “Maybe to distract everyone, we could say Jaycee just wants to come to the ranch and ride horses."
Shay smiled his little sister, the youngest of them all and still so innocent and sweet. “That’s a good idea, Kira."
Jack clapped a hand on Shay’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. I’ve got some guys ready when I say go, but what I’ve found is that most of the time, the clarity of the mission doesn’t become crystal clear until you’re in the middle of it. Then … you go with what God dictates.”
“Amen to that,” their father stated.
"Then let's say a prayer," their mother said, looking at all of them with tears in their eyes.
His father held his hands out. "Yes, let's do."
They all gathered around, holding hands.
His father prayed, "Dear Lord, please help my children to be safe and help them to do the right things at the right time…"
Chapter 10
As Jaycee sat on the plane heading to Jackson it was strange because she felt calm. There was no way to tell if she was doing the right thing but the more and more she thought about getting justice for her mother, the more confident she became.
She'd said a prayer before she left and she felt like she was being guided. When the plane touched down, a car was waiting for her at the airport. Now that car was driving through downtown Jackson and the driver stopped in front of an office.
The sign above the door said Stetson Law. She slid the door open and walked inside. The place wasn’t fancy. In fact, she would have thought it abandoned if not for the cup of fresh coffee on the desk.
“Just a sec!” someone called out.
“Okay,” she called back. It didn’t even look like more than one person worked here.
“Got the blasted flu this week, and I’m running behind now,” the same voice said; then a man appeared and headed toward her.
She wanted to laugh. He looked just like a cowboy, complete with a five-gallon hat, a mustache, and a belt buckle.
“Well, what do we have here?” asked the man.
Her mouth went dry, but she got the words out. “I’m Jaycee McCade. My … my mother sent me.” She tugged the envelope out of her pocket and handed it to him.
The man froze, and his eyes darted around. He moved past her to the window and then shut his blinds and locked the door. “Did anyone come with you?” he asked.
Now her nerves shot up again. “I don’t think so. Ms. Fairbanks chartered a plane and sent me in a car.”
He took pause, really looking at her for the first time, and his face softened with a smile. “Your mother said you looked like her, but dang, the resemblance is striking.”
This took her by surprise. “Did you know my mother? I mean, not as her attorney.”
“Why, darling, I almost married your mother.” He winked at her. “But you tell me about how you came to find me first.”
A half hour later, Jaycee sat across from Mr. Stetson in a different office down the hallway toward the back.
She’d filled him in about everything that had happened to her the past year.
“Okay,” he said. “I think it’s time I give you the evidence your mother entrusted to me. But first, while I go get it, I’ll have you read this other letter she left.” He pulled an envelope out of his desk and handed it to her. There was no name on it. “I’ll have you know that it was with a heavy heart that your mother asked for my help. She truly did hope you could move on and have a normal life. Well, semi normal, at least.”
Jaycee took the envelope and nodded. She could hardly believe that she was about to read more words from her mother. For the past year, she’d so longed for something, anything, to give her comfort, and now she’d gotten two letters.
Mr. Stetson stood. “I’m going to make a call to one of my contacts. I’m not going to tell them much, but I’m just going to inquire about a safe space, okay? Then I’ll go dig out the file your mother left.” He left the office, and she heard him start talking to someone on the phone.
She opened the letter and again saw her mother’s handwriting.
Dear Jaycee,
If you are reading this letter, then you’ve decided to pursue finding out about the truth. I am smiling, because I figured you would. It equally saddens and gladdens me to know your journalistic heart won out. I know that for people like you and me, the truth is something that is very important, and I want you to know I’m proud of you.
I want you to know first that the reason I didn’t immediately have everything in a place for you to find it was because my heart was hoping that you could avoid all of this ugliness. That is the reason that I put Ms. Fairbanks in charge of checking on you, if something should happen.
Truly, Jaycee, I wanted you to be free from all of this. I wanted …
Jaycee noted the smear in the ink. Her heart ached. It was clear her mother had been crying while writing this.
I wanted you to have a wonderful life. To become a journalist. To fall in love and marry and have beautiful children. To bring them to Rutherford Manor in the summers and play with them in the lake.
The center of Jaycee’s chest constricted. The upcoming engagement party was supposed to symbolize what her mother was talking about, but it never would.
I love you, Jaycee. I love you so much, and no matter what, I want you to be happy.
Now, on to the serious part. Jaycee, the truth is your father has been corrupt for many years. The documents that you’ll find will prove that his corruption started in his first election for governor. He got in league with a group of men that agreed to do all sorts of terrible things for each other as they rose to power.
I found these files one night in Boston, in your father’s personal office. Before I confronted him, I took everything to Mr. Stetson, George. He has been a good friend to me throughout my life, even though I turned down his marriage proposal. Looking back, I should have married him. I wanted more from life then. I wanted so many things, and it’s silly to look back. You’re just getting the ramblings of a mother who won’t get to tell her daughter, in person, all the things I wanted to tell you. One of the biggest things I need to tell you is that you should always follow your heart on love. Never follow money or power or anything except the heart.
Jaycee reflected that her mother had obviously not taken that advice—which admittedly made sense, as she’d grown up poor. Her father could be so charming, and he’d likely charmed her mother out of loving George. It was crazy, and she couldn’t digest it all right now.
If you choose to use the information and expose your father, that’s commendable, but I want you to think about something that I want you to do. Something that can be the only path I see, as a mother. I would like you to use the information I’m going to give you as a way to protect your freedom, Jaycee.
If you are here, if you have had a year in which your father has tried to control you and there clearly have been things that have happened to put your life at risk, then you might be ready to use this information to protect yourself.
But, it's hard to think your father would do this. He no longer has a lot of choices. The organization he's a part of demands justice. Their own brand of justice.
One time I came home early from a trip, I found the organization having a meeting in our home. I was confused because I knew nothing of the organization, but I did witness a horrible retribution taken out on one of the individuals in the form of a severe beating that almost killed the man. My point in telling you this is that if you are doing something where your actions are exposing you, then the organization will demand justice. So, if your father is trying to lock you up, as he locked me up many times in the guise of mental problems, then he is actually trying to save your life.
This shocked Jaycee. She hadn’t considered that her father wasn’t the one trying to hurt her or control her. Was he trying to save her?
No matter what you choose to do, know that I love you and I’m proud of you and I want you to be happy. Love you more, Mom.
Jaycee wiped the tears flowing down her face, and she started to cry. Her mother had always ended any
conversation with 'love you more.'
And, just like she had on the day she’d found out about her mother in the fire, she cried hard.
Everything was beginning to make sense. Her father didn’t want to kill her, but he couldn't have her out of his control.
A knock at the door jolted her out of her misery. Mr. Stetson opened the door, a huge file in his hand and a grimace on his face. “Uh, Jaycee, I’m afraid we have company.”
Jaycee was shocked when Duke walked inside and said, “You thought you could hide all this from me, did you?”
Chapter 11
“We are way too early,” Liam noted as they pulled up to the drive in front of the manor.
Shay had flashbacks to the night he’d last been here, almost exactly a year ago. Back then, it had been a political soiree guised as a charity event. Jaycee had been so beautiful when she’d emerged from the house and rushed into his arms. Shay had been so nervous, because he would officially meet her father as her boyfriend.
It was incredible the difference a year could make.
Shay parked and shut off the car. His siblings were following in various other cars, and their crew would already be setting up, along with all the caterers and the party prep. They were an hour ahead of when they should arrive, but Shay couldn’t help it. “I have to see her, check on her.” All day, he’d been antsy. “I have to make sure she’s okay.”
Liam got out, dressed a little nicer than he usually would for a rock concert, but the outfit wasn’t really political material. He was wearing black jeans, a white T-shirt with a palm tree on it, and a black jacket. With his long hair, he really did look the part of rock star. “Shouldn’t we wait for the others?”
“No,” Shay said, heading to the front door. “The whole reason we drove separate was so that just you and I could go find her.”