by Jayne Blue
Reed snorted but didn’t argue with Margie.
“Now get going,” Margie said. “We’ve got everything under control here. Reed’s going to be on his best behavior where Tora is concerned. For however long it takes, our home is her home and anybody who tries to think or say otherwise is going to have me to deal with.”
She narrowed her eyes at Reed during the last bit of her speech and I swear if Reed had a tail, he would have tucked it between his legs as he walked back up toward the house. Margie turned back to me and shot me a conspiratorial wink as I slipped into the driver’s seat of my car.
With everything in my soul I hoped Margie was right.
***
The next morning, I had a meeting with the assistant U.S. Attorney’s office along with a lawyer for the Justice Project and Bev Bradley. Bev and I were going to provide affidavits that my father’s journals were authentic. Bev was going to tell her story as well. Charlie and a separate lawyer from the project were going down to Marion to fill Dex McLain in on what was happening. In the end, he’d have to approve any motions to reopen his case and Charlie Brogan worried there was a chance he’d tell these people where to stick it. Especially if he found out anyone with the name Manning was involved. Plus, somebody was going to have to make him understand Tora’s role in all of this. Charlie was afraid if he found out about my relationship with her, he was liable to try and rip my face off. I wasn’t a father, but I had to think I might have had a similar reaction in his place.
Frank Furlong had already talked to the new prosecutor and filled her in on his observations of Dex’s trial. I didn’t know what good it would do, but hopefully, it wouldn’t hurt.
After a three-hour meeting and some serious lawyer posturing, our meeting was over. The Justice Project lawyer was a tough woman by the name of Grace Flynn. She was sixtyish with a head of cotton white hair and a sour expression. She was, however, scary as hell and the most endearing phrase I could use to describe her was that she was a real broad. When we made it back to the car, Grace Flynn was practically floating.
“The truth,” I said once we’d all made it back to our cars. “What do you think they’re going to do?”
“They’re scared,” she said. She clasped her hands together. “They know we’ve got a hell of a case to at least get Mr. McLain a new trial. The problem is there are still two witnesses who said he was the one they reported to. One of them recanted his testimony in a jailhouse confession and the other one is dead. I don’t think they’re going to recommend an outright overturning of the conviction, at least not until their forensics people go over those printouts Mrs. Bradley provided. But it’s going to be a really hard sell to keep him locked up while this plays out. Let me get on the phone to my colleague and see how it went down in Marion.”
I was dying to know that as well. Dex McLain was in my thoughts as much as Tora was. It took everything in me not to go down there and talk to him man to man myself. It mattered to me that he understood how I felt about his daughter. It mattered to me that he heard about my father first from me. I regretted that I wouldn’t get that chance but knew I could probably do him more good right here.
Grace Flynn turned her back to us while she spoke to the other Justice Project lawyer. Whoever that was did most of the talking. Grace just nodded her white head from time to time. Her mouth was set in a grim line when she clicked off the phone and turned back to us. Bev had her hand on my arm and I patted it.
“He’s confused and angry,” Grace said. “And I think that’s pretty understandable. It was a good idea that his friend went down there to help explain things. My colleague said Mr. McLain even refused to see him at first until he was made to understand Mr. Brogan was also there.”
“What did he say after that?” Beverly said.
Grace finally smiled, showing straight, nicotine-stained teeth. “Stubborn as Mr. McLain is, it looks like Mr. Brogan is equally so. He’s given us permission to file an emergency appeal on his behalf. We’ll have the paperwork ready by morning. I don’t want to get anyone’s hope up. A lot of things could happen. Depending on how much the U.S. Attorney decides to push back, we might not get a decision for weeks. Or, it could be a matter of days. Like I said, I got the impression the government lawyers are a little dumbfounded by this one.”
Grace’s phone rang again. She raised a finger and turned her back again while she answered. She walked a distance away from us so I couldn’t hear what she said. Her body language alarmed me though. She paced back and forth in front of a row of cars and her chest rose and fell with agitated breathing. She flapped her hands like she’d touched something hot as she came back to fill us in.
“It’s big,” she said. “Very big. The U.S. Attorney wants to go after Seth Manning on a fraud investigation. This started before we even got here. I’m surprised they didn’t clue us in. U.S. Marshalls just showed up at the Crane Law Firm looking for him and with warrants to seize a bunch of files.”
“Shit,” I said. I took a step back and leaned on the hood of my car. “Are they going to arrest him?”
“Probably,” she said. “They want to bring him in for questioning. Jack. This is going to work. As soon as you turn your phone on you’ll see the story exploding all over the news. They can’t have it both ways. They can’t go after Seth and argue hard about keeping Dex McLain in jail. We’re going to get him out. Mark my words. I can’t make you any promises but my bet is we’ll have him home to his daughter by the end of the week.”
I almost couldn’t breathe. I wanted to get to Tora as fast as I could. Hope was a dangerous thing but I needed her to have some. If only the joy she would feel didn’t have to be tempered by the uncertainty of her own charges. Again, if I could get away with it, I thought I could murder Seth with my bare hands for her.
Chapter Ten
Four days later, I was heading down to the valet at The Drake. Like Margie said, I’d given Tora some space. I hadn’t called her and she hadn’t called me. It was killing me not knowing how she felt. I made daily phone calls to Reed and Margie but Margie wanted to respect Tora’s privacy. But four days was the most I could stand. I had to see her. Even if it was to give her the chance to tell me to take a flying leap into Lake Michigan, I craved contact with her. I wanted to see that flash of green fire in her eyes when I touched her. She tried to stay strong for everybody else but for me alone, she still told the truth. It killed me every day knowing that I punished her for it when she gave me the truth about my dad.
I had just come out of the lobby elevators when my phone started to blow up. I got incoming calls from Frank Furlong, Grace Flynn and a text from Reed. I answered the call from Grace Flynn first. I didn’t even have a chance to say hello before she started talking.
“It’s gonna hit the 24-hour news cycle any minute now, Mr. Manning, but the Court of Appeals just fast-tracked their decision on Declan McLain’s petition. They’re granting him a new trial and they’re letting him out ... today!”
I froze. My heart pounded damn near out of my chest. I had to replay her words in my head more than once.
“Did you hear what I said?” she said after a minor coughing fit. “You did it, you son of a bitch, you got him out!”
“When?” I said. “How soon?”
“I’ve got someone heading down to Marion as we speak. They’ll arrange for bus fare wherever he wants to go but I figured you’d maybe want to get somebody he knows down there. There will be reporters camped out at the prison, probably. Is Charlie Brogan still in town?”
“Yeah,” I said. “Yeah. As soon as I get off the phone with you I’ll make arrangements to get him down there with a driver. He’s going to want to come straight to Lake Bliss, I’m thinking. He’ll want to see his daughter.”
“Good enough,” she said. “Congratulations, Manning. I know it wasn’t easy for you to incriminate your father in all of this but you have to know you did the right thing.”
There was a lump in my chest when she brought him up.
The stray bits of news she told me took a more complete shape in my head. There would be media coverage. Declan McLain’s petition was public record. Within the hour, the rest of the world would know about what my father did and there was nothing I could do to stop it.
“Thanks for saying that,” I said. Grace Flynn snorted something in answer and then she clicked off the phone.
I stood for a moment and took a breath. Someday soon, people would expect answers from me about my father. Someday soon I might feel compelled to provide them. But for now, only one thing mattered. I had to get to Tora. She would know by now what was happening and no power on this Earth was going to keep me from seeing her face.
I ran to my car and punched in Charlie Brogan’s number. His voice was more ragged than usual when he answered and I knew he had been weeping.
“Where are you?” I asked.
“I came straight to the Burnetts,” he said. “I’m here with Button.”
I heard crying in the background and it tore my heart in two. Tora was right beside him. I put my car in gear and screeched out of the lot. “I’ll be there in about forty minutes. Hang on. Don’t talk to anybody. Don’t go anywhere. I’m going to arrange to get you down to Marion to pick Dex up. There might be some press.”
“I know, honey,” he said and I knew he wasn’t talking to me. “We’re gonna take care of it.”
“Charlie,” I said. “Will you sit tight until I get there?”
“What? Yeah. We’ll hang out here for a little while until we know what’s what. I’m trying to get a phone call in to Dex.”
“Good,” I said. “I’m on my way.”
I broke just about every speed limit between downtown Chicago and Lake Bliss, Illinois. The traffic gods were with me as I sped down Michigan Avenue and barreled through to the expressway. When I got to Reed’s house there were already six cars in the driveway. I slammed the car into park and dashed across Margie’s manicured lawn. I might catch hell for that later but for now I didn’t care.
Margie swung the door open just as I bounded up the porch. Her smile and her arms were wide to welcome me in. I hugged her quickly but I needed to get to Tora.
“They’re all downstairs,” she said, breathless. “Oh, Jackie, I can’t believe we did it! This house sorely needed some good news.”
I smiled back at her and headed down the stairs. Tora’s back was to me as Charlie held her in what looked like a bone-crushing embrace. Her shoulders sagged as she tried to hold him up. He cried softly against her shoulder.
I must have made a noise as I descended the stairs. Tora pulled herself away from Charlie and turned to face me. It may only have been four days but it felt like a lifetime had passed since I’d last seen her. The pain and hurt had been chased from her eyes. Instead, they sparkled and flashed with joy.
“Jack.” Her voice was a choked sob as she crossed the room to get to me. There were other people in the room. Some I didn’t even recognize. All of that fell away as I took Tora into my arms and I knew she wanted to be there.
“God,” I whispered against her hair. She smelled so good as she folded herself against my chest, resting her head in the space where she fit so well. Her arms went around my waist.
“Thank you,” she whispered in a voice so small I knew I must have been the only one to hear her. “Thank you for helping me get my father home.”
I held her tight and kissed her forehead. If she’d have me, I would never let her go again.
***
Tora
Jack was strong and warm and when he held me, everything around us seemed to fall away. When he touched me it made it impossible for me to hold on to any doubt or mistrust or urge I had to resist. I didn’t want to need him. I didn’t want to leave myself vulnerable and open to him or anyone else ever hurting me again. But when he tilted my chin up and placed his lips against mine, my heart filled with love and nothing else mattered.
I don’t know how long we stood like that, with Jack folding me against him, feathering soft kisses against my lips. But sometime later I became aware of soft laughter behind me and Charlie’s gruff voice as he cleared his throat.
Feeling bashful, I knew a strong blush must have colored my cheeks as I finally pulled away from Jack and turned toward the others. He kept me close to him with his arm around my shoulder. We had an audience.
There was Charlie, Margie and Reed. Addie had hightailed it here too the minute she got word of the ruling in Dad’s case. We were also joined by Bill and Lilly Kurtz. They were the Great Wolves family who had agreed to let Charlie stay with them as long as I needed him. It seemed like another member of the club would maybe need them just as much. Bill was older and gruff like Charlie. He wore his leather cut with his embroidered wolf patch and I had a fleeting thought wondering if Charlie had thought to bring my father’s.
“Do you have a plan?” Jack said.
“I just got off the phone with Dex,” Charlie said. “That’s why we were all kind of undone when you came down here. He doesn’t believe it. I can’t really blame him. They’re telling him at the prison they can have him processed and out by this afternoon. Four hours maybe.”
Jack took a breath. “Then you better get moving. I’ve got a driver coming here. He’s gonna take you down there, Charlie.”
“Can’t I go?” I said, looking to Addie.
“No way,” she said. I’d asked her this same question about forty times. “I know today’s a day for celebration and it should be. You all deserve it. But, Tora, you’re not out of the woods yourself. Not by a long shot. One mile radius. That’s your tether. That’s the reason I figured I’d better get over here. I don’t want you doing anything that might violate your bail conditions. Squeaky clean and pins and needles, Tora. That’s the way this needs to be. And I don’t want the press catching wind of the fact that you’re staying here.”
“Right,” Charlie said. “That goes for Dex too. Hard part is going to get him to keep his damn mouth shut if some reporter shoves a camera in his face. He’s been in a long time. He doesn’t really have a grasp of how fast his ugly face is gonna end up online.”
I had to laugh. Thinking of how it would be teaching my dad to use a smartphone gave me a nervous case of the giggles. I just couldn’t believe it. After everything I’d been through, I think a part of me had stopped hoping that this day would ever come. But it had. I knew so much of it happened because of what I’d done with Seth. But I also knew none of this would have been possible if Jack hadn’t been willing to face the truth about Jackson.
“Can’t we bring him here?” I asked.
Addie shook her head. “It’s up to you but there’s a risk to that. There’s at least a chance the press might follow him here. This case is blowing wide open all over social media. Especially with Seth Manning’s latest antics.”
My blood ran cold. I knew Seth was under investigation for his part in the frame-up but no one had seen or heard from him in days. “What now?” Jack and I said it together.
Addie sighed. “My friend at the U.S. Attorney’s office called me a little while ago. Seth was supposed to surrender himself to the Marshalls this morning. It wasn’t a full-fledged warrant ... not yet ... but he was supposed to come in for questioning. He never showed. Now they’re getting ready to issue a warrant for his arrest. That along with the murder investigation is what’s causing all the media attention. I’m afraid your dad is just kind of a by-product of that.”
I nodded. I had to hope that whatever happened with Seth, it might work to take some of the heat off me. “Do you think they’re looking at him for what happened with Miranda now?”
Addie shrugged. “Nobody has said that to me yet. It’s my hope they will. Right now, all of this definitely helps our theory of the case. But I’d rather not get into any more about that with an audience.” She smiled and looked around.
Margie poked her head down the stairs. “Jack?” she said. “There’s a driver at the door. He says he belongs to you.”
/> “Right,” Jack said. “You ready for this?” He squeezed my shoulder tighter and I took a breath. My heart jackhammered in my chest.
“I’ve been ready for thirteen years,” I said.
“Addie,” he said. “Unless they’re flying news helicopters, I’m pretty sure the driver I hired can get Dex back here without being followed. What’s say we get her father back to her, shall we?”
Addie sighed but she couldn’t keep the smile off her face. My own cheeks had long since gone numb from my smile.
“Charlie,” Addie said. “Go out there and bring Dex McLain back to his little girl.”
Chapter Eleven
Jack
We each had a plan. Charlie would go with my driver to the prison. Grace Flynn was going to meet them down here. Dex himself would be in a kind of legal limbo. He was still a felon pending the outcome of any new trial so, like Tora, his release was conditional. But someone at the Justice Project had worked enough magic to get him permission to stay at the Kurtz’s house a few miles from the Burnetts. I’d never met them before. Tora hadn’t either. But they were part of the Great Wolves and meeting them gave me my first understanding of how important the club had to be to both Dex McLain and his daughter. When trouble found them, the Kurtzes came running without a second thought. A part of me envied that kind of brotherhood. Tora had drawn strength from it when her father was taken away. She leaned on it now.
My phone rang again and I remembered the multitude of unanswered calls and texts I’d gotten when the news of Dex’s release broke. While Tora sent Charlie off and visited with the Kurtzes, I went upstairs to Margie’s kitchen to catch up on what I’d missed.
My first call was to Frank Furlong. I assumed he had just wanted to fill me in on the court’s ruling in Dex’s case. He did, but there was something else too.
“Hey, Jack,” he started. “I guess you’ve heard the news by now about the McLain case.”
“Yeah,” I answered. “Thank you for whatever role you had getting my information to the right people.”