When It Rains...

by Angie Daniels

  How could he have ever thought about giving this child away? Jay’s chest tightened just thinking about it. The pain of never knowing his son would have sliced through him worse than any bullet wound and haunted him for the rest of his life. How could he have ever considered such a thing?

  This was his son, to love and to protect.

  Thirty minutes later, Jay returned to Kendra’s room to find her sound asleep. He took a seat in the rocker, and the nurse arrived with the baby. She lowered him into Jay’s outstretched arms and exited the room.

  Staring down at him, Jay was overcome with emotion.Never again would he believe his life worthless. This child gave him purpose. Made his life worthwhile. He’d never imagined he could become so quickly attached to another life. A life he had created. Already he felt a strong stirring of love and protection toward him. He would be there to watch him grow, to hear his first word. He would be there when he took his first step. He was going to be a father to his child. His son.

  Cuddling him close, Jay reached down and gently stroked his silky black hair. His hand then slid down a soft arm to touch a tiny hand that curled around his thumb. Lifting him, Jay held him to his cheek and took a deep breath. His lips brushed across the baby’s head while he whispered loving words.

  “I’ll always love you,” he cooed, smelling the scent of his son.

  He lowered him into his crib, laying him on his stomach with his little behind in the air, eyes closed, and tiny fist curled. He wasn’t sure how long he stood there watching him before the nurse came to return him to the nursery.

  It was almost impossible to leave him behind.

  Jay headed straight to Babies-R-Us. Within minutes, he had several carts filled beyond capacity with clothes, diapers, and toys, including a football and a bat. There was a crib and rocker up front, waiting for him at the checkout. He was standing in line when he suddenly remembered he hadn’t called the office or his brother.

  Terraine was propped up on one elbow watching his daughter suckling at Sasha’s nipple when the phone rang. He reached it on the second ring.

  “I have a son!” Jay shouted through the phone.

  “What? Congratulations! Why didn’t you call us?”

  “I forgot.” Laughter floated over the line.

  “What did he say?” Sasha eagerly asked.

  Moving the phone away from his mouth, Terraine said, “Jay has a son.”

  “Congratulations, Jay!” she shouted, loud enough for him to hear; then she looked down at Ciarra. “You hear that, sweetie? You have a cousin.”

  Terraine chuckled heartily before hanging up the phone and saying, “He just bought out the store.” Then he reached down and stroked his daughter’s face before saying a silent prayer: “Thank God, he has finally come to his senses.”

  Sasha gazed up at him with a worried look. “Now all he has to do is work things out with Honey.”

  Jay returned to the hospital and held his son until he was sound asleep, then went back to his condo and spent the rest of the night putting the crib together. After finally getting some rest of his own, Jay returned to the hospital at ten the next morning.

  Strolling into Kendra’s room, he found her sitting upright in the bed, brushing her hair.

  “Where’s my son?” he asked with anticipation.

  Without looking up from the bedside table mirror, Kendra gave a bored shrug. “A nurse took him to get some blood work done.”

  Jay took in her uninterested expression for several seconds before he moved to the end of the bed and took a seat.

  “I meant what I said, Kendra. I want to raise my son.”

  She frowned. “No problem. The last thing in the world I want is to be tied down with a child. Even though I have to admit, he is kind of cute.”

  “Kind of cute?” Jay said with a smirk. “He’s handsome,just like his dad.”

  Kendra stopped brushing her hair long enough to witness the smug look on his face and snorted. “I wouldn’t say all that.”

  After a prolonged silence, Jay rose again and crossed his arms across his chest. “I decided to name him Jason Junior. J.J. for short.”

  Ignoring his comment, Kendra put the brush down and glanced sharply at him. “I’m being discharged tomorrowmorning, so make sure you’re here to pick ...” She wrinkled her small nose with displeasure. “... J.J. up by eleven.”

  “I can take you home,” Jay offered.

  “No need. I’ve already made arrangements.”

  “Then I guess I’ll contact you when my lawyer has the paperwork ready.”

  “Fine, you do that.” She looked down into the mirror again, signaling the end of their conversation.

  Jay exited the room anxious to see the little tike, and eager to get away from the selfish bitch as quickly as possible. He was thankful that she had no desire to be a part of their son’s life. J.J. would be better off without someone like her as a mother.

  He rapped lightly on the nursery door, and an elderlynurse opened it.

  “Came to take your precious baby to the room?”

  He beamed. “Yes, ma’am. Baby Boy Andrews.”

  “Just a minute.” She disappeared and walked betweenthe glass bassinets. After checking all the names she returned, frowning. “We don’t have a Baby Andrews.”

  Jay snapped his fingers. “He’s probably registered under his mother’s name, Johnson.”

  “Oh, one moment.” She walked over again and slowly checked each crib, then reached for a log sheet before returning. “He’s in his mother’s room. We’ve been trying all night to get her to bond with that darlin’ little boy,” she said with an apologetic smile.

  Jay scratched his head and gave her a sheepish grin. “Yeah, his mom isn’t very affectionate.” Then suddenly his expression stilled. “But I just left her room, and he wasn’t there.”

  The nursed followed him down the hall to Kendra’s room, and they found her on the telephone.

  “Kendra, hang up,” Jay said.

  She covered the mouthpiece with her hand and snapped, “What do you want?”

  The nurse moved around to the side of her bed. “Ms. Johnson, who came to retrieve your baby?”

  She shrugged. “A nurse. Why?”

  The nurse mumbled something under her breath and exited the room.

  Kendra whispered into the mouthpiece, then hung up. “Jay, what’s going on?”

  He shook his head, surprised by her fear-stricken face. “I’m not sure yet.” He walked out and found the nurse conferring with the other staff. Within minutes, everyone was scrambling around the wing while another nurse in the nursery checked each baby’s bracelet one by one for a possible mix-up.

  Jay caught a blond nurse by her arm as she came down the hall. “What the hell’s going on? Where’s my son?”

  She wore a grave expression. “We don’t know what happened to him.” She pulled her arm free. “Please, we have to act fast.” She dashed into the nursery and grabbed the phone. Jay took long strides down the hall to where a heavyset nurse was sealing off the exit doors.

  Kendra raced out of her room wearing a blue satin robe she had brought from home. “What’s going on? Where’s my son?”

  “He’s missing,” Jay said, his heart pounding. “J.J. is missing.”

  Jay caught Kendra just before she hit the floor.

  Honey closed her eyes as the plane prepared for takeoff.Attending the convention had been good for her. She was coming home with lots of new ideas for the salon. She’d spent a ridiculous amount on new equipment,but it was well worth it.

  But her mind wasn’t on the salon, or on the grand opening she was having next week. Her thoughts were on Jay. She stared out the window, thoughts floating in her head. She had done a lot of soul-searching, and realizedJay wasn’t the only one at fault.

  How could she blame him for keeping a secret, when she had done the same? It was ironic. She couldn’t have children, and he had one on the way. It was so fuckin’ unreal. Her heart filled with an ac
he. She was pissed at him. But even though he’d gotten another woman pregnant, it did nothing to change the fact that she still loved him, and he loved her, and she still wanted him regardless. When she got home, she planned to call him and give him a chance to explain.

  The hospital was swarming with police. Every wing was checked and every nurse questioned, but there was still no sign of J.J.’s whereabouts.

  After Jay contacted his brother, Terraine was there within minutes.

  “Any word yet?” he asked as he joined Jay at the end of the hall.

  Jay shook his head. Terror shuddered through him, drowning out all the frantic voices as he shuffled numbly down the hall. He spotted a female police officercoming out of the nursery, heading toward the exit.

  “Hey! Aren’t you gonna question the rest of the staff?” he shouted.

  “Sir, we’ve already done that.” She gave him a sympatheticsmile.

  Terraine reached for Jay and pulled him in the other direction. “Come on, Jay, let the officers do their job.”

  “I know, I know. I just can’t fuckin’ believe this shit is happening.” Jay ground his teeth in helpless anger. It had already been two hours since J.J. was last seen.

  “I can’t believe it either,” Terraine said. “If anything happened to Ciarra, I’m not sure what I would do.”

  “I think God is punishin’ me.”

  “What’re you talking about?” Terraine’s eyes were large in disbelief.

  Eyes filled with regret, Jay said, “For not wanting J.J.”

  “What?”

  “No, I’m serious.” Jay shook his head, then said, “I need to get some air. Go back to your family. Kiss Ciarra for me.” Terraine heard the deep sadness in his brother’svoice.

  Jay traveled down to the lobby to smoke a cigarette, dodging TV cameras and newspaper reporters. The chill air met him at the door, temporarily numbing his pain.

  There were clouds overhead again.

  Honey walked into her house and, leaving her suitcasein the hallway, moved to the answering machine to check her messages, removing her coat on the way. There was a message from both her mother and Darrius,but nothing from Jay.

  She reached for the remote control and clicked on the television, then strolled into the kitchen for an ice-coldsoda.

  “This just in ... the newborn son of Jason Andrews, great-grandson of millionaire fashion designer Richard Andrews, was abducted today from the maternity ward at Christian Hospital.”

  Honey slowly walked back into the living room, and her eyes froze to the television.

  “About seven this morning, a woman dressed in a nurse’s uniform walked into the mother’s room and told her she was taking the baby to have some tests. The little boy hasn’t been seen since.”

  Honey watched, rooted to the floor, as Kendra appearedon the screen. “Whoever you are, please bring my baby back!” she said, then burst into heart-wrenching sobs.

  Jay moved in front of the camera and pulled her into a comforting embrace. His pained eyes blazed onto the television screen. “All I want is my son back. No questionsasked.”

  With a trembling hand, Honey managed to click the television off. Her knees turned to water as she lowered herself onto the couch, feeling as if someone had reached into her chest and crushed her heart.

  It was well past midnight when the police finally convinced Jay to go home. The nurses were forced to give Kendra a tranquilizer to calm her down. When he left, she was sound asleep. Jay found it a relief to know that deep down she did care about their son. She was probably just as confused as I had been. It was a shame it had taken a tragedy to bring her to terms with her feelings.

  Clicking on the television, he found the media still reporting on the kidnapping and clicked the television off again. They didn’t know any more than he did. He walked back to the room he had all ready for his son, and seeing it choked him up. Who took his son? His heart wrenched with pain as he thought, Are they feedinghim? Is he okay? He had to pray that whoever had taken him did it because they wanted a child of their own, and would make sure that all his needs were providedfor.

  The phone rang. Hoping it was news, Jay raced into his room to pick it up and practically shouted hello.

  “J-Jay?”

  “Honey?”

  “I’m so sorry about your son,” she said.

  Taking a seat on the bed, he briefly closed his eyes. It was soothing to hear her voice. “Thank you. I really needed to hear that.”

  “Have they any leads yet?”

  He lowered his head into his hands and answered in a troubled voice, “No, not a one.”

  Honey heard the pain in his voice, and wished she could be there for him. But did he need her? He and Kendra had each other. The thought of the two of them consoling each other caused her stomach to churn. “They’ll find him. I can feel it.”

  “I hope so.” There was so much more he wanted to say. “Honey, I want to ...” His voice broke. He was an emotional mess, and now wasn’t the time. “Honey, I’ve got to go.”

  She tried to hide her disappointment. “Good luck finding your son,” was all she could muster.

  Twenty

  Natalia slumped back against the couch, shaking her head in disbelief. “Who could do somethin’ like this?”

  It had already been twenty-four hours. There were still no leads. Jay’s eyes blazed with anger as he paced around the living room. “I’m not sure. But when I find out, they’ll have hell to pay.” And that was a promise.

  Natalia’s brow furrowed with worry. She had returnedto St. Louis only hours ago. After catching word of the abduction at the airport, she headed straight to Kendra’s apartment. “I didn’t even get to see him,” she whispered.

  Remembering his son squirming innocently in his arms, he sighed, then lowered himself into a chair. “J.J.’s adorable. Big brown eyes and ... wavy hair like mine.”

  Natalia didn’t miss the catch in his voice. Jay was trying to appear strong, but she knew he was torn up inside. “What are the police doing?”

  He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. “They’re building a case, but so far they’ve got nothing. I can’t just sit back and wait for somethin’ to happen.” Jay stared down at the floor. The not knowing was killing him. To ensure that he didn’t miss any news, all his calls were being forwarded to Kendra’s phone. She’d been discharged from the hospital only hours ago.

  Natalia leaned over and patted his hand. “We mustn’t panic. They’re gonna find him.”

  He turned to her with solemn eyes. “I hope so.” The lack of leads was eating at his confidence, but he wasn’t about to give up hope.

  Kendra moved into the room. She was dressed in black pajamas, her eyes bloodshot and her hair in disarray.“Nat, when did you get back?”

  “An hour ago.” She rose and embraced Kendra, then kissed her cheek. “It’s so sad.”

  “It’s terrible!” Kendra shrieked, fear burning in her eyes. “How could someone do something like this?”

  Natalia blinked in surprise. Jay had already warned her that Kendra was upset, but she had to see it to believeit. “They’re gonna find him,” she told her distraughtfriend. “It’s just a matter of time.”

  “I wish I had that kind of faith,” Kendra said as she took a seat on the couch next to Jay. “The Lord is punishingme for being a bad mother.” She threw herself into Jay’s arms and began to cry again. “I’m so scared. Can you hold me please?”

  His arm curled around her waist, then his gaze settledon Natalia as he mouthed, “See what I’m talking about?”

  As quickly as her tears started they stopped. Kendra moved her head from his chest and leaned back against his shoulder. “When are they gonna send the ransom note so we can get this shit over with?”

  “I—I don’t know.” Jay was afraid to voice his darkestfears that maybe whoever had J.J. planned to keep him. Best to let Kendra believe that this was a ransom kidnapping.

  Natalia wished there was somet
hing she could do to comfort the two. If anyone could find the baby, Jay would. He was an excellent PI, and finding J.J. was just a matter of time. Searching his troubled eyes, she tried to read into his thoughts. “Jay, do you think this could be directed personally at you? Maybe someone’s trying to get back at you?”

  “I’ve considered that.” Jay had been racking his brain since yesterday trying to think of people who would be out to get him. The list was extensive; he’d made a lot of enemies over the years. He had assigned Chad and Alan to start narrowing down the possibilities.

  “Look at my hair,” Kendra moaned as she tunneled her fingers through the lifeless mass. “I look awful!”

  Now, that’s the Kendra I know, Natalia thought. Who else but Kendra would be thinking about her appearancewhen her child was missing? “Would you like me to make you an appointment?” she offered, certain she could get her hairdresser to see Kendra right away.

  Lip quivering, Kendra nodded. “That would be nice. I have to do something to take my mind off of this.”

  Jay was no longer listening.

  Dean.

  Not only had Dean threatened him with harm to his child, but he had been in his office when Jay received the news that Kendra was in labor.

  Jay took several breaths to calm the rage stirring again. Removing his arm from around Kendra, he moved to call his office, thinking, J.J., Daddy’s coming for you.

  He was going to hold his son again.

  Now that the renovation was in the final stage, preparationswere being made for the salon’s grand opening.

  Honey tried burying herself in her work, concentratingon the décor for the new space. She even overbookedher schedule so she had little free time to think. But nothing worked. Her thoughts kept returning to Jay and that bitch named Kendra Johnson. She couldn’t even turn on the television without taking a chance of hearing some reporter talking about “the Andrews baby boy.”

  Every night when she turned on the salon’s security system, her thoughts turned to him. Then she went home to spend a restless night of tossing and turning while he invaded her mind. He was hurting, but she was too. She needed to feel his arms around her, his lips on her lips.