Vengeance (Oak Grove Suspense Book 1)

by Reese A. Stephens

  I stare at her for a long while. I’m not sure why she never mentioned any of this, but then again, she didn't tell me about my dad’s involvement until we saw each other. She’s always trying to protect me, crazy girl. She looks at me concerned.

  “I’m not mad at you. I’m upset with my dad more than I can explain, but he’s not here anymore. I’d like to put all this behind us and move forward. A lot of mistakes were made, but they were made in the effort to protect those we love. Let’s just vow from this point forward, that the three of us are a team, even if we aren’t dating, Shayla. The three of us talk about everything, no secrets.”

  They both agree. I pull them into a family hug. That’s what we are, no matter what. The drive to my mom’s is full of happy chatter. I tell Dylan a few silly stories about his mom, teasing her. She laughs, but for the most part, lets us talk. I squeeze her hand as I pull into the drive of my family home. I know there’s nothing for her to worry about, but I can tell she’s nervous.

  “Oh, my goodness!” My mom squeals from the porch steps. She pulls Shayla and Dylan into her arms.

  I chuckle. “Let them breathe, Mom.”

  “Sorry, I just … oh, look at you. You look more like your dad in person.” She pats Dylan’s face. “Come in. My manners are out the window. Have a seat. I’ll get us something to drink.”

  “I’ve got it, Mom,” my sister, Alaina, says, setting a tray of drinking glasses with a pitcher of iced tea on the coffee table. “Hi, I’m your Aunt Alaina, but everyone calls me Laney.”

  She smiles at Dylan and then looks at Shay. She and Shayla used to be friends, not like Shay and I were, but they’re the same age and had several classes together in school.

  “Shay,” she greets her with a warm smile.

  “Hey, Laney.”

  It doesn’t take long for us to get settled in or for my mom to drag out the photo albums from my youth. There’s tons of Shayla as well. The fear I’d seen in Dylan’s eyes on the ride over is replaced with laughter and contentment. The easy acceptance of my mom and sister has done that for him.

  I look over to Shay. She’s been quiet most of the time. She’s answered questions and laughed, but I can tell she’s a bit distant. As Dylan is looking at pictures from right around the time he was conceived, she excuses herself to the bathroom. She’s gone so long, that I go to check on her.

  “Shay?” I say, knocking on the door.

  “Sorry, be out in a minute.”

  I can tell she’s been crying. I twist the knob, finding it unlocked. I slowly push it open, giving her a chance to deny me. She doesn't. I find her sitting on the side of the bathtub, tissue in hand.

  “Hey, what’s wrong?” I ask, kneeling down in front of her.

  “I’m a horrible person. I kept him from his family.”

  Frowning, I push her hair back so I can see her face. “You’re not horrible. We both made mistakes. You can’t shoulder all the blame.”

  “You should hate me. I kept your son from you, your mom, and your whole family. I was selfish.”

  “You were scared, that’s not being selfish. You thought something horrible would happen to me, so you protected me. That’s not being selfish.” I snort and shake my head. “If anyone’s at fault, it’s me. If I wasn’t so hardheaded and would have let you talk when you called, I would have known. I don’t know what would have happened, but it would have been worth it.”

  “Not if you were in jail or labeled a sex offender. That’s what would have happened. Even if you didn’t go to jail, you’d be considered a sex offender because you were eighteen and I was fifteen. That wouldn’t be worth it. You couldn’t see him right now. You’d have lost your job and any chance of being what you want. At least, now you have him in your life. I just wish that I would have found you sooner. I’m so sorry.”

  I wipe the tears from her face. “We’ve apologized enough. Let’s place the blame where it belongs, on my dad and that stupid social worker, Simon. We have forgiven each other; we’ve agreed to move forward. Right?” She nods. “Then come back out there with me and visit with my family. I know they may not say it, but they missed you.”

  “Yeah, okay. When will your brothers be here?”

  “Nathan had to work, and Paul is on a business trip, but we’ll meet up with them when we can. Paul’s wife is going to bring the boys down to meet Dylan and watch his first game.”

  “Good. They’re about the same age right?”

  “Yeah, Sam is fourteen and Danny is about to turn thirteen.”

  “Good, he needs cousins. He’ll like that,” she says, wiping under her eyes.

  I kiss her forehead, then help her up. I squeeze her tightly and she returns my embrace with a chuckle. God, I have missed her. I won’t let anything get in the way of us being a family.

  “I love the sound of your laughter. Now, let’s go hang with my family.”

  Chapter Five

  Ryan

  “Hey, bud. We’re going to be late,” I say, lightly popping Dylan’s leg that’s hanging out of the covers.

  He groans. “Five more minutes.”

  I laugh. “You’ve had fifteen minutes. We have to leave in ten. Up! Don’t make me go drill sergeant.”

  He sits up, flopping the covers down to his lap and glares at me. “I change my mind. I want Mom to take me.”

  A giggle from behind me makes me smile. I turn to see Shayla dressed to kill in a black knee length pencil skirt with a silky looking blouse, her blonde hair pulled half way up in some sort of twist. It shows off her long neck. She’s absolutely killing me right now. I wish I could do what I’d like, but I promised last night to respect her boundaries. However, I haven’t agreed not to push those limits.

  “Sorry, Dyl-pickle. You’re on your own. Your lunch is packed. I also put some drinks in the cooler for you two for practice.”

  “Traitor,” Dylan grumbles. I ignore him as I walk to Shayla.

  “Morning, sweetheart.” I kiss her cheek. Perfectly within the realm of her rules, but the hand resting low on her hip is pushing me towards the edge of getting slapped. Not that I care.

  I hear the hitch in her voice before she says, “Ry” breathily. Her hand rests on my chest, ready to push me away, but before she can, a pillow hits my back with excessive force.

  “Out! Be gross anywhere else, just not in my room,” Dylan says, aiming another pillow my way. I pick up the pillow from the floor and toss it back to his bed.

  “No grossness here,” I tease, holding my hands up in surrender, laughing. Shayla grabs my arm, pulling me from the room.

  “Love you, Dyl,” she says, closing the door. He mumbles in return. “Poor baby.”

  “He’ll get over it because I don’t plan on giving up on us anytime soon.”

  “I don’t expect you to give up. I don’t want you to. I’m not trying to be complicated, Ryan. I just don’t want to rush.”

  I walk backwards as we enter the kitchen so I can see her. “Way I see it, Shay, we’ve wasted enough time already. I don’t want another minute without you.”

  She blushes. “When you say stuff like that, it’s impossible for me to say no to you. It’s not that I don’t want us. I just don’t want to do anything we’ll regret or that will hurt Dylan.”

  I take her hand and pull her to me. “I get that. I’m not going anywhere. I’m with you wherever you go. I lost you once, I won’t do it again. I’m going to kiss you now. On that sweet mouth of yours,” I tell her, watching for rejection. Every time has killed me, but I understand. This time though, she leans up on her tiptoes, wraps her arms around my neck, and kisses me before I can move. I smile as I kiss her. “Knew I’d wear you down.”

  She laughs and slaps me. “You’re so arrogant. I’m not worn down, but I’ll admit my feelings for you are just as strong as they always were. A kiss, a simple kiss like we just shared, is okay on occasion, but I can’t go farther yet.”

  I nod. “I get it. I do. I’ll wait. You’re worth waiting for, Shayla.�
�� I pull her close again and kiss her. It’s sweet, soft, and slow. See, I can follow rules.

  “Ryan!” she squeals as my hand dips down to her butt.

  All right, maybe I can’t be good, but she’s laughing so I know she’s not angry with me. I give her the crooked grin I know she loves as I gather the supplies she’s prepared for Dylan and I.

  ~*~

  “I said run!” I yell into the megaphone as the football team makes their laps around the field. Half of them are barely moving.

  “They were just as pitiful yesterday. We’ll never beat Central at this rate,” Trent Mathews, the other assistant coach, says.

  “Titans, get your butts moving!” I shout again, bringing my drill sergeant voice out a little more.

  We make them run for another ten minutes, then I about kill them with drills. By the end of practice, the boys are barely moving.

  “A few more weeks of this and they’ll be ready for that game,” I tell Mathews.

  “Heck, yeah. It’s not until September fifteenth. They’ll be in good shape by then. Hey, did you hear they have a candidate for coach?”

  “No, who?”

  Mathews snorts. “Some ex-football player. I don’t think he’s very well-known because he was hurt his first year. His name is Grant Hamby. I’ve never heard of him. Have you?”

  I shake my head. “Nope, can’t say that I have. Maybe that’s what this team needs though.” He nods in agreement, but doesn't say more.

  I wrap my arm around my tired son. “Good job, Dylan.”

  He glares at me. “You’re evil. The guys all hate me now.” I throw my head back, laughing loudly. He weakly shoves me.

  “A few more weeks of this and you’ll be just fine. You’re not that out of shape.”

  He snorts. “I’m nowhere near as fit as you.”

  “Yeah, but I was in the Marines and FBI. I trained for years, still do. You’ll get there. I can help if you want.”

  “Heck yeah.” He immediately perks up.

  “I have all the equipment we need at my house. You’re welcome anytime, even if I’m not home.”

  “Seriously?” he asks surprised.

  I nod. “Of course. You’re my son. I know you don’t live with me, but consider the house yours. I have a spare room that we can fix up for you. You can stay over anytime.”

  “What about tonight?” he asks.

  I’m a little taken aback so I sputter. “S... sure, yeah. If your mom doesn’t mind.”

  “I’ll ask her. I just thought it’d be easier, since practice is at six in the morning.”

  I nod, he’s probably right. I’m just worried about what Shayla will say. I mean, he’s my kid too. But I’m not sure she’s ready for this step. They’ve only been back a couple of weeks.

  I drop Dylan off at home and head into the station. I have a ton of paperwork to file and a few things to check out in the next county over. Apparently, there’s been a string of break-ins. The local police have no leads and they’ve asked that I come and help out. I’m about half way through my paperwork when Shayla calls my cell.

  “Hey, babe.”

  “Hi. So … uh, Dylan called me. He asked if he could stay with you tonight.”

  “Oh, yeah. He mentioned that in the car. Are you okay with that?”

  She sighs. I brace myself for the worst. “Can I be honest with you?”

  “Always.”

  “I’m nervous about it. I mean, I know he’ll be safe. That’s not the issue. It’s just, it’s always been me. Now, he has you, and I’m happy, but a part of me feels like I’m losing him. That’s silly, I know.”

  “It’s not silly. I’m not going to take him away from you. You know that, right?”

  “I know.”

  “When I said I wanted custody of him, I was angry. I didn’t mean that. I mean, yeah I want to be responsible for him as any dad should, but I won’t take him from you. I want to help you raise him. You’re not alone anymore.”

  “Dr. Thorn, line four. Dr. Thorn, line four.” The intercom blares loudly enough that I can hear it through the phone.

  “You need to go. We can finish this later. But know this, if you aren’t comfortable, we can wait. He doesn’t have to stay at my house.”

  “He can stay. It’ll be fine. I do need to go though.”

  “All right, baby. See you later.”

  We say our goodbyes and hang up. I understand her fears. I’m not gonna lie either, I do want custody of Dylan, but I want it when Shayla and I are married and we change both their names to Jacobs. I want to share everything with her.

  ~*~

  I walk around the glass that litters the floor of the jewelry store in Riverton Park. It’s only ten minutes from my neighborhood in Oak Grove. There’s been four break-ins in the past two weeks in towns surrounding Oak Grove. The older officers tell me this is the first time something this big has happened in the area. Granted, big to them is four break-ins, but it’s still serious. Last night, two men were injured. Thankfully, not seriously.

  “Whatcha think, Chief?” Officer Mills asks.

  I turn to him and chuckle. He’s probably been on the force since my dad was a kid.

  “I’m not chief yet, but from the looks of this, it’s intentional. Things are just too clean … planned. Look at this,” I tell him, pointing to the long glass jewelry counter. “This is smashed, but nothing’s missing. If I were going to go to the trouble of breaking it, I would have taken something. This is just smashed.”

  “Could it have been forgotten when the two men came in?” Mills asks.

  “According to the footage on the surveillance camera, John and Mark were here when the perp was over here.” I point to another counter on the other side of the store. “See, right here is where they smashed the glass, but it didn’t break completely. They fired their guns and fled.” I pause, looking around. “What’s missing?”

  “Michaels, where’s the missing items list?” Mills calls to his colleague.

  Michaels looks through some papers, then pulls out one for Mills. Mills looks it over for a few minutes then says, “There are some very specific items missing.”

  “Specific, like what exactly?”

  “There’s a wedding band set in size six, a necklace, earrings, and a watch. Why would they only steal those things, but smash up the rest of the shop?”

  “I’m not sure, but it gives us a starting point. I’d like to check in with the other robberies and compare,” I explain.

  “Let me know if you find a connection. I’d say your area is next. It’s the only one in the surrounding towns not hit.”

  “Exactly, if I can find a pattern I might be able to catch these guys.”

  “I hope you can, Ryan.”

  Mills shakes my hand and hands me the file he has on the two robberies that happened in his district. I leave the crime scene to Officer Mills and his officers, and then stop by the other two stations to pick up copies of their files before heading back to my office to examine all the material.

  “Your mom called,” May tells me as I pass her desk.

  “Thanks, I’ll call her back.” I put my stuff down and pick up my phone.

  It rings a few times before she answers. “Hello?”

  “Hey, Mom. Just calling you back.”

  “Oh, good. I wanted to see if you and Shayla would mind Dylan spending the night Saturday. The boys will be here. I thought they’d have fun getting to know each other. I’ll take them to church with me on Sunday, then you two can come to dinner.”

  “Sounds good, I’ll talk to Shayla.”

  “Okay, dear. How are things going with her?”

  “Okay. We’re taking our time. Doing things right this time, you know?”

  “That’s probably best, sweetie.”

  “That’s what Shayla says.” I laugh.

  Mom giggles. We chat a few more minutes, but I tell her I have work to do so we end the call. I love my mom, more than I have words, but the woman will talk your ear
off if you let her. Finally, I sit down at my desk and start looking over the break-in files. There’s no pattern in regards to places hit. The first was a home, only the TV was taken. Second was a furniture store, a sofa and two chairs were taken. Third was a gas station where they stole food and money. Fourth was the jewelry store. The only connection I see so far is with the first three. It seems like the offenders are getting a place together, home or hide out maybe. Or they could be totally unrelated. The jewelry store seems unrelated, but still odd that they only stole a few items. I glance at the clock and sigh. I’m no closer to an answer than I was two hours ago. So, I pack up and head home. It’s been a long day and I just want to relax.

  I don’t even bother going to my house. I head straight to Shayla’s and use my key to let myself in.

  “Hey, Dad!” Dylan calls, looking over his shoulder to me as he watches TV.

  “Hey, bud.”

  I kick my shoes off and hang my gun holster and gun on the coat rack. I go to the kitchen and grab the awesome iced-tea that Shayla made. This stuff doesn’t even have sugar in it, but it’s somehow sweet and so good. I crave it. I plop down on the sofa beside my son.

  “What’re you watching?”

  “Tyler gave me a copy of the game against Central last year. These guys are awesome. I don’t know how we’re going to beat them. Our guys can’t seem to work together.”

  I chuckle. “I know. Tomorrow you’re really going to hate me. We’re going to start working on team work and communication.”

  He groans. “What kind of crap are you going to make us do?”

  “You’ll just have to wait and see. I can’t be giving you an advantage. What time does your mom get home?”

  He shoves me, making me laugh. “She said six. Maw and Pop want us to come over for dinner, you coming?”

  “Oh, yeah. I forgot she told me about that. She called me about you spending the night.”

  “Yeah, it made her nervous. I don’t know why. It’s not like I wouldn’t be fine. I mean you’re ex-Marine and FBI, and the local cop. No one will mess with me.”