by L. E. Bross
The sound of tires on gravel farther down the road filled the still air.
“Looks like they’re already here. You’ll be going back to prison for this, and then Sara will get out of the hospital and she’ll come back, just like she always does. You’ll lose. Again.”
Davis started to laugh, and I snapped.
Lights swung across the front of the trailer, illuminating the triumph in Davis’s eyes.
This was it, my only chance to end this fucker. He glanced over my shoulder, and that’s all I needed. I ducked my shoulder and slammed into him, sending us both flying through the door and onto the dirty living room carpet.
I grabbed for his wrist and held it to the floor, then pried the gun from his fingers and flung it behind the couch. But Davis managed to free his other hand and connected with a left hook right on my jaw.
My head snapped back, and he used the momentum to push me off him. Another blow landed on the other side of my face before I got a good rib hit in.
We both pushed to our feet, and Davis’s gaze darted around the trailer.
“Not so big now, are you, you fucker.” I dove and slammed him up against the wall. I had him pinned and got right in his face. “The thing is, if I’m going back, it’s going to be for something worth it.” And then I pulled back and drove my fist into his gut.
And did it again.
And again.
Once I started, the haze in my head took over and I couldn’t stop. Davis’s breathing grew ragged and the moans got louder.
“Seth, stop!”
A frantic voice filtered in through the rage, as if coming through a long tunnel, and then there were fingers on my arm. A cloud of vanilla and flowers filled my lungs. The combination made me hesitate. It was all Davis needed. He lifted his legs and kneed me right between the legs. Fiery pain exploded through my entire body.
My knees hit the carpet, and before I could say what the fuck? a fist connected with my jaw, sending me sprawling back onto the floor.
I heard a scream. Swearing. Through the darkness swimming in my vision, I saw Avery trying to pull Davis away from me. He swung around and she stumbled, then he drew back and punched her on the side of her face.
I heard her cry out.
She went down.
I jumped up.
No way. No fucking way was he going to hurt Avery.
Ignoring the pain radiating out from the middle of my body, I grabbed him from behind and lifted him off the ground, then used all my weight to swing him as hard as I could into the wall. He hit with a thud, but I didn’t wait for him to get up. I was on him in a second, straddling his body, ramming my fist into any part of his body I could get to.
Everything around me tunneled until all I could see or hear was Davis. The sound of my fists hitting his face. Blood flying from cuts on his cheek. Satisfaction in every single hit.
It felt like I’d just gotten started when arms grabbed me and hauled me off Davis. I swung my shoulders and jammed my elbows back at whoever pulled me off him. I kicked out, connecting with his ribs. He needed to die. That was the only way to keep him away from the people I loved.
My gaze was still locked on Davis, curled into a ball and panting in the corner, when I heard new voices.
“You have the right to remain silent . . .” a voice thundered next to me.
Pain lanced in my shoulder as my arms were yanked behind my back and I felt the cold touch of metal around my wrists. Slowly the tunnel vision eased and sound started to return. I looked around me, at the cops in the living room, at Avery standing off to the side, in the arms of that fucker in a suit from the hospital.
I started to struggle again, and she turned.
My blood ran cold.
The side of her face had already started to swell and bruise. A trickle of blood ran from the corner of her mouth. My stomach roiled and I thought I was going to be sick. I felt a flash of anger. No one had asked her to come here, to put herself in harm’s way.
But she did, you asshole, an inner voice said. For you. And it was true. This was my fault. Avery had gotten hurt because of me. I couldn’t protect anyone.
“Do you understand these rights as I’ve read them?” the cop asked. “Do you need me to repeat them?”
I shook my head numbly. I’d heard them before. I didn’t need another run-through.
As they led me outside, an EMT moved past us into the house.
Davis would heal.
Sara would go back.
I’d be back behind bars.
I failed.
I hadn’t fixed anything at all.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Avery
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Grant asked for the tenth time.
“I’m fine.” I held the cold compress against my cheek and tried to hide the wince of pain from moving my mouth. I’d never been hit before. Guys made it look so easy.
We’d been at the police station for hours, waiting to hear what was happening with Seth. I gave my statement to the officer at the scene. Told him everything I knew about Davis, about what happened to Sara, and about how Seth was only trying to protect his sister.
But I knew how hopeless it was.
Seth violated a restraining order while on parole, and he attacked Davis. Again.
“The system is so messed up,” I said. “How can they ignore everything that was going on like that?” I turned to Grant and lowered the compress. “That animal was pimping out his stepdaughter and was giving her drugs, and no one did a damned thing.”
Tears burned my eyes. I hurt physically, but I hurt even more emotionally for Seth and his sister. Neither should have ever been in this situation to start with.
“I feel so helpless,” I admitted.
“Do something about it,” Grant said.
“Like what? I gave them my statement . . .”
“No. You’re the one who’s going to be a lawyer. Your father chose corporate law for you, but this is where you can decide for yourself. If this all really matters to you, then use it to motivate you to do something.”
I stared at Grant. He’d never talked career with me before. I didn’t think he even cared.
“What?” he said. “You know it wasn’t ever your choice, Avery. Your parents have been making all your decisions for as long as I’ve known you. You’re different now, stronger. If you want to change how things are done, you’ve got the chance to do it.”
I felt like he pushed me out onto a tightrope and said, Now walk across it without a net.
And at the same time, a spark of excitement started to burn in my gut.
I’d never felt passionate about the thought of corporate law. It was safe and it would pay well, and it was what my parents wanted. But the idea that I could do something that would make a difference in real people’s lives? For people like Seth and Sara?
It was like everything slid into place perfectly.
I smiled despite the pain in my face.
“I can,” I said in barely a whisper, like I was waiting to see if one of my parents would suddenly appear and tell me no.
Grant took my hand. “Damn right you can.”
His hand was warm and familiar, but there was nothing else there. No spark. No excitement. Not like when Seth touched me.
“Thank you. For being there tonight.”
He grinned. “We got this friendship thing.”
It took me a minute, but then I nodded. “Yeah, I think we do.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Seth
I stared at Avery’s father across the table.
I figured I’d be put in a holding cell until one of the overworked public defenders could be assigned to my case. You could have knocked me over with a feather when the man in a dinner jacket came in and introduced himself as Samuel Hartley. I knew who he was before he introduced himself. His face was on billboards all over the city.
The leading mayoral candidate was Avery’s father. That was just the icing on the cake.
“Are you here to help or to make sure I get put away for a long time?” I finally asked.
We’d been sitting across from each other, neither of us moving. If he expected some kind of confession, he’d be waiting a long time. I didn’t need to incriminate myself for them to bring charges.
“Do you have counsel already?” he asked.
“No. Just waiting for some poor shit to get assigned to me, I guess.”
Mr. Hartley’s eyes narrowed. “I can help you, Mr. Hunter, but if you don’t care, then I’m just wasting my time.” He started to get up, and I held out my hand.
He was there to help me?
The current mayoral candidate was in this room to help me?
I’d officially fallen down a fucking rabbit hole.
“Wait.” When he finally sat back down, I looked him in the eyes. “You really think you can help me?” He nodded and shuffled through the papers in his briefcase. “Look,” I said, leaning forward a little, “I’ll be honest. I don’t really care what happens to me at this point. I screwed up and I know that. I just need to be sure that Davis never sets foot near my sister again. Can you do that?”
“Yes.”
No hesitation. No uncertainty like the last lawyer I’d talked to. His blunt reply took me off guard.
“I can’t afford you.”
“I’m not asking for any money.”
Okay, now this made even less sense.
“Mr. Hunter, I’ve already looked over your case file. Honestly, I requested it last week when I learned you and my daughter were . . . getting close. I made a few inquiries.”
He pulled my fucking file because I was with Avery? “Hoping to find a loophole to send me back?” I said with a glare. “To get me away from Avery?”
Mr. Hartley snorted. “You seemed to have done that all by yourself.”
Shit. My shoulders sagged, and I fell back against the hard chair. He was right. I had made my choice. I brushed Avery aside at the hospital when she begged me not to go find Davis. And even after that, she followed me to my house, tried to stop me from screwing everything up worse.
And got hurt because of me.
“Is Avery okay?” I asked.
“I was wondering when you’d ask.” Avery’s father set his pen down and leaned back, crossing his arms over his chest. His stare pinned me to the chair. “The EMT took a look and said there was no damage. Some bruising that will heal, but nothing that required medical attention. She insisted on coming down here and waiting. Grant is with her. They’re in the lobby.”
My fists clenched involuntarily. It had taken me awhile, but I figured it out. I knew what he wanted. I guess Avery didn’t tell him that I’d pretty much pushed her away already, though.
“You’re helping me so that I’ll stay away from her? That’s what this is all about, right?”
He shrugged. “My daughter has had a plan since she was ten. She’s always been focused toward that future. Lately she’s been too unfocused. I don’t want her to get distracted and ruin everything she’s worked so hard for.”
“To make you happy,” I muttered.
His sharp gaze cut back to me. “Excuse me?”
“Avery. She’s not happy with your plans for her future, but you’d know that if you stopped telling her what to do and listened to her for once.”
“You don’t know anything. We’ve all always had the same dream for Avery. Her mother and I are merely guiding her along.”
“Really? When you were twenty, was your big dream to be a corporate attorney? You had visions of defending white-collar assholes who extorted money or didn’t pay their taxes?” His eyebrows dipped down. God, this guy was clueless. “Avery has a huge heart and she wants to help people. Christ, you should be able to relate at least a little bit. You’re running for mayor. It can’t be all about the money. You have to want to at least help someone, even if it’s your rich, privileged friends.”
“She’s never said anything about this.”
“Have you ever asked her what she wants?”
He gazed over my shoulder and a muscle ticced in his jaw.
If nothing else came of this conversation, maybe Avery’s father might finally pull his head out of his ass and look at her. Really see his daughter.
“Look, I screwed up,” I said. Exhaustion seeped into my bones. I had no idea what time it was, but it had to be morning by now. “I know that. I knew what would happen when I went back to the trailer. Like I said, all I want is for my sister to be safe. Maybe even get some help somewhere. She’s a good kid, and the shit Davis has done to her, no one deserves that. She’s seventeen. She should have the chance for a good life.”
Mr. Hartley’s gaze searched my face, as if he were looking for something.
“Here’s the deal,” he said, once again all business. “We’ve got Davis on felony drug charges. There was enough heroin and cocaine in the home, along with paraphernalia, to send him away for a long time on that alone. I can try to get your sister to cooperate and testify against him regarding the other things he’s done, but my recommendation is to stick to the drug charge. It will be less traumatic for her, and it’s enough to have her placed in state care.”
“No fucking foster homes,” I ground out.
“If you’ll let me finish, I was going to tell you that there is an inpatient drug rehabilitation program that she would qualify for. I know the place and it has a good track record. If she is a ward of the state, then the cost will be covered by public funding. It’s an intensive three-month program, and I believe, if I have the correct information, she will turn eighteen soon after the program is done. Which means she will no longer be a ward of the state and can make her own decisions about where she lives after that.”
As he talked, a weight lifted from my shoulders. This was the light at the end of the tunnel I’d been looking for for years. This was Sara’s chance. “What’s the catch?” Because there always was one.
“There is no catch, Mr. Hunter. The right people have stepped in and are offering you and your sister a chance. It’s up to you whether you take it or not, but I can assure you, offers like this don’t come along twice.”
“I agree. To all of it.” I didn’t need to think about it. If it got Sara help, if it gave her a chance at a better life, I’d do anything.
“The first thing I’ll do is file a motion for termination of guardianship,” Mr. Hartley said. “With the pending charges, it shouldn’t be hard at all. I’ve already got a judge in mind. Once Sara is made a ward of the state, I can get things in motion.”
I scrubbed the heels of my hands over my burning eyes. “Thank you.”
Hartley nodded briskly and closed his briefcase. When he stood up, the door to the room opened. An officer stood just outside. I would willingly go back to prison now, knowing that Sara would be safe.
“You’re free to go, Mr. Hunter,” Avery’s father said. He extended his hand and I stared at it.
“What?”
“The restraining order expired last week and was never reinstated. There won’t be any charges brought against you, as Davis has already been arrested. He was intoxicated and high tonight, and it would be a matter of your word against his. You might have been merely dropping by to get a few things for your sister and were attacked.”
He said that with a raised eyebrow, and I swallowed loudly.
I reached out and finally took his hand.
“Here’s my card. I’ll let you know when we are ready to move Sara. You won’t be able to see her until her treatment program is finished, so I’ll be sure you have a chance to say goodbye first.”
I stepped out into the hall with Mr. Hartley right behind me. I half expected one of the officers we passed to grab me and haul me to a cell. But none did.
When I turned the final corner into the lobby, I saw Avery sitting with Grant. They were both still in their dinner clothes, and they were talking quietly, heads bent together. The surge of jealousy flared hot and fast, and i
t took everything I had to push it back down.
“And this is where you tell me to stay away from her, right?” I turned back to her father.
“No. I won’t forbid her from seeing you if it’s what she wants. I’ve got to accept that she’s a grown woman.”
I stared at him in surprise.
“But before you go running back to her, I want you to consider something. That”—he nodded his head to where Avery was now staring at the two of us—“was a direct result of her knowing you. Caring for you. You talked about the better life your sister deserves. Think about the kind of life my daughter deserves. Is it one where she’s in danger, or is it one where she is well taken care of, like she should be?”
He was right. My life was lying at my feet in a pile of shit. I had nothing to give her. I was nothing. She might not deserve an asshole like her ex, but she did deserve someone who could give her anything she wanted. Safety at the top of the list.
“Give me a minute with her,” Mr. Hartley said, then walked over to Avery. I was close enough to hear what he said to her. “You accused me of not caring, but that’s the farthest thing from the truth. I’m sorry that I haven’t been the father you needed . . .”
She gave me a small smile over his shoulder.
I cringed when I saw the flash of pain in her eyes.
I cataloged every single bruise, every tiny cut, the way her cheek had swollen so much that her eye was half closed. Dressed in a fancy cocktail dress with dark bruises marring her beautiful face. The contrast to her life and my life was laid out right in front of me. I couldn’t deny that her father was right.
When she turned her face to hug him, I booked it for the doors. Yep, I was a chickenshit coward. But I knew that if I got close enough to smell her perfume, or touch her skin, I’d never be able to walk away. And I had to.
I was out the door and halfway down the steps when I heard the voice.
“Hey, dickhead,” Grant yelled.
I stopped and turned around. I had nothing to say to him. He was lucky my knuckles were swollen and bruised, or I’d be tempted to punch him for what he did to Avery.
“You’re just going to leave her there? She waited for three hours to know what was happening to you.”