by Allie Kay
I hung the phone up and looked up at the officer and Jack who’d appeared next to me. “He said I have to come to him. I need you to take me there.”
“That’s not how this will work.” Shaking her head, the police officer told me, “You’ll stay here. And my men and I’ll go out there and get your son back.”
“He’ll see you coming. He’ll hurt Mateo.” I argued, “I know him. He sees cops and it will just make him angry.”
“Joy, listen to Jess. I’m sure she has some idea on how to go about this, and how to best protect you and protect Mateo.” Jack reached a hand out and cupped my shoulder. “Let them get your son back.”
The police officer at his side nodded her agreement. She must be Jess then. Jack must know her. Jess spoke, “We’ve done this sort of thing before. We’ll move quickly and have Mateo in hand, him in cuffs, and be out of there before he knows what has hit him.”
I tried to have faith. I didn’t believe in a God or a higher power. After all, what sort of God would allow an innocent child to be beaten and have his bones broken by his father? To let Ricky take Mateo away from my loving arms? But this Jess seemed confident in her team’s ability, and it was have faith or go back to Ricky.
“Okay?” Jess prompted.
I nodded. What choice did I have but agree? I wrapped my arms tightly around myself and closed my eyes, letting the tears silently fall. I didn’t speak another word. Jack pulled me close and I allowed the touch. A flurry of movement burst around me as Jess barked orders and her team left.
And left me standing helpless in a now mostly empty police station.
I tore myself away from the comfort Jack tried to offer. I didn’t deserve comfort. Each and every drop of pain coursing through me had been earned. What kind of mother let a four-year-old out of her sight for even a second?
I paced beneath the fluorescent lights, the odd flicker adding to the ache in my head. But that ache had nothing on the one in my heart.
Jack leaned a hip on a desk, but despite the casual pose he looked far from relaxed. He’d shed his jacket somewhere along the way. His shirt stretched tight over the muscles of his chest. He studied my face for a second before speaking. “Joy—”
“I failed him. I failed my son, Jack. I can…” I trailed off. Swallowing down a lump in my throat, it was a moment before I could continue. “What if they don’t bring him back? What if Ricky’s already hurt him? Or worse?”
Sweat trickled down my temple and I swiped at it with a shaky hand. The sting of tears pricked my eyes, waiting to be released. But I refused to cry. Crying would offer a release on the pain that I didn’t deserve. I shook my head, mostly at myself.
“Hey,” Jack murmured. “You are not to blame. Not at all.” He reached out and took my hands in his big, warm ones. “This is one hundred percent Ricky. Okay?”
“No, it isn’t.” I met his eyes and nearly cried at the emotion I saw there. Anguish was written all over his face. Knowing Mateo meant something to him made what I had to say even harder. I cleared my throat. “I should have been watching out more for my son. I knew we weren’t safe. Yet I still stupidly let him out of my sight.”
“You thought he was going to the bathroom ten feet away,” Jack argued. “No one blames you for that. We are in a small town, at a family run diner. No one could have predicted this would happen.”
“I was too caught up in what’s happening between us to properly protect my child.” I tugged my hands free of his grasp. When he flinched, I almost second-guessed myself. Almost…
“Joy, don’t push me away. Not now.” He reached for me, but I sidestepped his grasp.
I shook my head. “I didn’t put my son first. You make me forget myself and it put my son into danger. I don’t know what tomorrow will bring for me, but I know that can never, ever, happen again.”
Jack nodded. He looked toward the door and let out a harsh sigh. His clipped tone when he finally spoke didn’t disguise the hurt in his voice. “Got it.”
I resumed my pacing, my heart aching a bit more after my talk with Jack. If someone had asked me even twenty minutes ago if I could be in any more pain after my son had been kidnapped, I’d have answered with a resounding hell no.
But I’d have been wrong. Somehow, my sexy neighbor had snuck through my defense and absconded with a piece of my heart. I glanced over at him and a knot tightened in the pit of my stomach. He still stood staring at the exit, glaring hard at the door as if he could will those officers to bring Mateo through it.
I’d never believed in love at first sight. Attraction? Of course. And like every other young woman, I’d had crushes over the years. I’d even had quite the spicy little romance before Ricky. But I was far from a romantic. And after being married to Ricky, and experiencing his kind of love for so long, there had been no stars in my eyes.
And then I’d met Jack. Those big shoulders and deep voice had sparked an attraction the moment we’d met, but it was the kind and gentle way he’d spoke to Mateo that kicked it up to something more than attraction. I’d been dizzy with hope when he’d spun us amidst the brightly colored leaves. Hope that such a man could be interested in me. Hope that Ricky hadn’t completely ruined both my and Mateo’s future chances at normal relationships.
Jack had done the impossible in only a few weeks. He’d actually managed to put stars in my eyes. Stars that might have now cost me everything. And despite the almost tangible future between us, I had to walk away. I couldn’t risk it. Couldn’t risk Mateo.
Coming to a halt, I watched Jack for a moment. Brooding. Dark. My heart kicked up in fear at the underlying anger radiating off him. Reminding me of how little I knew about him. How stupid it was for me to have trusted a total stranger like I’d done.
As if he sensed me watching, he jerked and our eyes met. My cheeks heated when he busted me staring.
“You can go home now,” I muttered. He didn’t need to stay. He had my emotions twisted up into such a snarl. Maybe if he left I could focus on Mateo. Come up with a new plan for keeping my son safe.
“I’m staying.” His gaze returned to the door.
“Jack—”
He spun to face me and took three quick steps in my direction. I moved back, one hand flying up to my mouth. “Oh, for fuck’s sake, Joy, I’m hardly gonna hurt you. But you need to get over the idea of me leaving here. I’m not going anywhere until I know Mateo’s safe. You can throw me out of your arms, you can throw me out of your heart, but I’ll be damned if I let you throw me out of here today.”
“I don’t need you to stay,” I argued, tears welling up in my eyes. But even as the words came out of my mouth, I knew I didn’t mean them. I was pushing him away out of fear, but I couldn’t seem to stop myself from sabotaging myself. “This is my son, so not your problem. I don’t want you here.”
“It’s not all about you.” He stepped back, running his hands through his hair. “Don’t you get that? You and your son mean something to me. I know it’s crazy. I know it’s too fast. But I can’t leave. I have to know he’s safe.”
“Jack—”
He pulled me close and pressed his lips to mine, interrupting my words. And while my mind told me I should pull away, my traitorous body refused to comply. My arms wrapped around his neck and my lips began to move against his. After a moment, he lifted his lips from mine and sighed. “This isn’t the time or place. I get why you said what you did. I don’t agree with it, but I will respect it. But until that little boy is safe in your arms, you’re stuck with me. Lean on me today. Let me stand beside you. I’ll step aside tomorrow if you still want that, but not now. Not when you need someone beside you.”
“Okay,” I whispered and buried my face into his chest. His strong arms tightened around me. If only I could borrow some of that strength…
29
Jack
Why weren’t they back yet? I glanced up at the clock. Jess had only been gone nine minutes. It felt like a freaking eternity.
“Jack,”
Joy murmured from where she’d buried her face against my throat.
“Hmm…”
“I can’t wait here any longer. How far is that motel from here? That’s not the one I stayed at.”
“Five minutes if we walked. Two by truck.” I leaned back and met her eyes. “Why?”
“Take me there.”
“You sure that’s the best idea?” I was already fishing my keys out of the pocket of my jeans. Good idea or not, I wanted to be there too.
“I need to be there. I’m going with or without you.” She stepped away from me, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. “I need to be closer to my son.”
Without another word, I led her out of the police station to my truck. If she was going to this motel, no way would I let her go alone. Despite how she might want to put some distance between us, in my mind, she was my woman and I damn well wouldn’t let that asshat Ricky lay another finger on her.
I drove over to the Lakeside Motel. As we got close, I looked around for signs of Jess and her team. No sign of them. What the hell? They should be here already.
Pulling into the lot, I parked my truck off to one side. When I looked over at Joy, the fear on her face sent my heart racing. She shouldn’t have to go through this shit again. All the fear, the pain, Ricky had put her through was unreal.
She closed her eyes and I wondered if she was praying or just steeling her nerves for the upcoming confrontation. I waited for her cue.
“Okay. Let’s do this.”
I took her hand as we walked up to the motel. “Room 18, right?”
“Yeah.”
“It’s right there on the end, first floor.” I gestured.
“Yeah.”
“I won’t let him hurt you.”
“Yeah.”
We stopped just before we got to the door.
“Joy, you know I meant that, right? I won’t let him hurt you. I won’t let him hurt Mateo any more than he already has.”
“I know.” She squeezed my hand. “I know you won’t.”
“Stay behind me. You ready?” I held my hand up to knock. At her nod, I rapped on the metal door, hoping there wouldn’t be a gun in my face when it opened.
It swung open in an instant, an angry red-faced Ricky stepping into the opening as he snapped, “Took you long enough, bitch.”
“Not who you expected, huh?” I grinned down at him. Fucking with this asshole was going to be the highlight of my week.
“Mr. Jack!” Mateo squealed from somewhere inside the dark motel room.
I couldn’t see him, but he at least sounded strong. Maybe we’d got here in time to keep the damage to the kid at a minimum, physically, at least. Kidnapped and threatened by his own dad, well, I could only imagine what that would do to him mentally and emotionally.
“Shoulda known that whore would drag you along.” Ricky poked my chest with a single bony finger. The odor of tequila and stale cigarettes radiated off him. “You got no place here.”
I shook my head. “But that’s where you are wrong. My place is always going to be with Joy, protecting her and Mateo from assholes like you.”
“You sonofabitch, I’ll put my fist so far down your throat you’ll be belching knuckle sandwiches for a week,” Ricky shouted, stepping forward until his chest touched mine.
“Try it,” I taunted. “Step on out here and we’ll settle this right now.” I took a step back, hoping to lure him out of the motel room so Joy could get inside and see to Mateo. “You got the balls to back up those threats?”
“I’m not afraid of you.” Ricky pushed me.
I retreated another step, sidestepping to give Joy more of a gap. “If you aren’t afraid, why don’t you take a swing?” Out of the corner of my eye, I thought I caught a glimpse of blue polyester. I took another step and Joy darted behind Ricky.
“I’ll whoop your fucking ass. Bet you won’t touch another man’s wife again when I’m done with you.” Ricky jabbed a fist toward me.
I deflected the jab with a forearm. “Oh yeah?”
He swung again, his punch going wide and losing impact over my shoulder when it didn’t connect. It threw him off balance and he stumbled into a parked car. “Stand still so I can give you what you got coming.”
I motioned him toward me. “I’m not the one who’s wobbling. Had a little too much tequila already, have you? Seeing double? Nah, the way you’re blinking, I’d say triple. Aim for the middle me. It’s probably the best target.”
Someone behind me chuckled.
Ricky flipped them off and came at me again. He kicked out with his right foot. I caught it easily and tugged upward. Falling back onto the pavement, he let out a string of curses.
“What was that? I thought you were going to teach me a lesson. Was it a falling lesson? Maybe what not to do?” I let his foot go and nudged him with my boot. “You’re pathetic, really.”
“Mr. Jack!” A little voice squealed my name and I barely had time to turn before Mateo hit my arms at a dead sprint. I swooped him up and held him close. “I knew you’d come for me. I knew you would.”
I was about to get one good punch in when Mateo had called to me. I stepped away from Ricky, with Mateo still in my arms. The urge to kill that bastard still boiled in my blood, but I didn’t want Mateo to see me beating the shit out of his father. We had built some trust, and I didn’t want to rock that for the satisfaction of a couple punches. Plus, there were cops around and I didn’t want to go back to jail over this piece of shit.
“You okay, buddy?” I ran my hand up and down Mateo’s spine. “Did he hurt you?”
“Not too much.” He sniffled. “Mainly he just told me all the bad things he was gonna do to Mama. He wanted to wait for her to see so that he could make her sad.”
A banshee-like scream came from behind us and I spun, still cradling Mateo against my chest. The sight that filled my eyes was one I’d never forget. Joy straddled Ricky’s chest and was beating the ever-loving fuck out of him. Punch after punch, she plowed her fist into his freckled face. Tears ran down her cheeks and she sobbed, but she didn’t stop punching.
The cops just watched, without making an effort to stop her, probably as gobsmacked as I was. Hell, Ricky didn’t try to stop her. I wonder if she’d ever fought back before, or if this was a first and she’d shocked him so badly he couldn’t react.
Mateo poked me. “Mr. Jack, you might want to stop her. I think maybe he got dead she hit him so much.”
I didn’t think the asshole was dead, but someone needed to stop her. Glancing at the cops, I could see they weren’t inclined to do it yet. Looked like I got the nomination then.
I set Mateo down. “Okay, you stay back. I don’t know how this is going to go and I don’t want you to get hit or kicked by accident.”
Walking over, I called her name a couple times, but she was too far gone in her rage to hear me. As much as I hated to take this from her, because it had to be the most satisfying thing she’d ever done, I couldn’t let her kill him in front of Mateo. So, I wrapped my arms around her from behind and lifted her, still swinging off Ricky’s prone body. Stepping away from him, I set her on her feet and she began pounding on my chest, the raw sobs coming from her throat tearing at my soul.
Pulling her close, I let her pummel my chest until the fight had gone out of her. Once she quit hitting me, she wrapped her arms around my waist and wailed. Mateo ran up then and hugged us both.
Joy sank to the ground, right in the middle of the parking lot and cradled her son. Her fists were bloody, her eyes red and bloodshot from crying, but there was a peace surrounding her now that had been missing before.
Jess stepped up beside me. “I can’t believe you didn’t pound that sorry S-O-B into the pavement.”
“Didn’t want to go back to jail.” I nodded toward Joy. “Besides, this was her fight. She needed to be the one to set that fucker in his place.”
“Pretty sure she just did that,” she said with a laugh.
“Ya think?�
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“You are pressing assault charges, right? Half of the GFPD saw him going after you.”
I raised an eyebrow at her. “Thanks for stepping in, by the way.”
She rolled her eyes. “Like you needed any help? He was kicking his own ass for you. So, yes to the charges?”
“I meant after she got a hold of him.”
“Oh, we’d have stopped her in a second. Figured the adrenaline would wear off in a minute or two.” She shrugged. “Fighting back after years of abuse is probably good for her. Now she can make a fresh start without the lingering what ifs in her mind.”
“Mmmhmm.” I hoped Joy would still consider Garden Falls her fresh start, despite what had happened here.
“Y’all go over to the ER and get her and the kid checked out, then come on over to the station. I got paperwork out the wazoo over this one.”
30
Joy
The sun had long set before we pulled back in to the gravel drive of home. After visiting the emergency room where Mateo first got a clean bill of health, I got some rocking new bandages that Mateo said turned me from a mommy to a mummy. Giving statements at the police department had filled the rest of my day.
But honestly, it was all a blur to me. I couldn’t have told you who I talked to or what questions they asked me. All I knew was that my baby was safe and Ricky was locked up finally where he belonged.
“I think Mateo’s asleep back there,” Jack said as he shut the truck off.
“Pretty sure he fell asleep before you got the engine running.”
“I’ll carry him in for you.” Jack followed me up to the door, my sleeping son held tight in his arms. After we got inside, he carried Mateo into my room and started to lay him down.
“What are you doing?”
He stopped, half bent over the bed. “I figured you would want him to sleep with you tonight?” His voice held a note of question.