The phone lines lit up and I couldn’t bear to pick up the receiver. I guess because I was afraid I would hear something I didn’t want to know. Thank goodness Tristan and two of his assistants manned the phones while I called the hospital to check on Donovan to see if there were any changes. There was none. Then I called the police officer handling my son’s case and had to leave a message.
By the time Tristan came over into my office I saw the long face and already knew there had been no luck at finding Aiden.
“Sweetie, everyone’s calling with their love and support, wanting to let you know they are out there doing everything they can to help you find your son.”
My throat was so dry all I could do was nod. I don’t know why I thought after being on the air Aiden would magically appear. I guess I was just desperate.
“At least I tried,” I said, and a single tear rolled down my cheek that Tristan reached over and wiped away.
“You did more than try. I had Courtney post Aiden’s picture on our Web site. Someone is bound to remember something.”
I nodded and thanked him, then reached for my purse out of the drawer. “I think I’m going to stay at the hospital tonight with Donovan.”
“You want me to drive you?” he offered.
I shook my head. “No, I’ll be fine,” I lied. I was far from fine. I was more like a walking zombie.
At the close of the show Tristan walked out of the building with me. It was December and I was bundled up tight in a bomber jacket with a hood. Christmas was barely two weeks away, yet the holiday season wouldn’t feel the same until my family was back at home. As we moved toward my car I spotted a woman standing there waiting in a long white winter coat and hat. It wasn’t until she swung around that I recognized her.
“Who is that?” he asked.
I frowned. “Malinda Sanders. She’s in Donovan’s unit.”
As soon as she spotted me coming her way, she walked around the car. “Hello.”
I looked at her wondering why the hell she was here so late.
“You want me to stick around?” Tristan asked.
I stopped as soon as I reached my car and shook my head. “No, I’ll be all right.”
“Too bad. I think I’ll stick around a few minutes.” He stared Malinda up and down before he snapped his fingers twice and then pivoted on his heels. I watched as he walked over to his car across from mine, then leaned against the trunk with his ankles crossed and waited. He was such a good friend.
I finally swung around and faced Malinda. “Why do I get the feeling that you’re here to tell me something I don’t want to hear?”
“Because I am.”
I took a deep breath, then leaned back against the hood, trying to mentally prepare myself. “Well?”
“I think my sister has your son.”
I stood up straight. “What? Your sister? Why would she have him?”
“She was married to Smitty.”
“Jackie? Jackie is your sister?” She nodded. “Why in the world would she have my son?”
“Because Sergeant Truth felt he owed her.”
I was clearly confused. “Okay, hold up. You’re gonna have to start over because I have no idea what the hell you’re talking about.”
Malinda took a deep breath and stared down briefly at her feet. “Our team was sent out on a reconnaissance mission to locate an area for a possible staging base for returning troops. We found a location that Truth believed to be the perfect area for the base. But when Smitty moved over to occupy that position, he tripped an IED . . .” I guess I looked confused because she paused to clarify.“It’s an explosive device. Something your husband should have easily been able to identify.”
“So what are you saying?”
Malinda shifted uncomfortably as she spoke. “Because of Truth’s lack of judgment, three lives were lost.” I flinched at the comment and her expression softened. “Look . . . Truth thought he should have been one of the ones to have died in the explosions. And he’s been feeling guilty ever since.”
I was gasping and trying to catch my breath. Why hadn’t Donovan said anything to me about what had happened out there? All the hours I spent asking him questions, even during the counseling sessions, never once did he mention his involvement in Smitty’s death or any overwhelming feelings of guilt.
“When my sister lost the baby, Donovan blamed himself. No matter how much I tried to tell him the miscarriage wasn’t his fault, he felt personally responsible. Instead, he allowed guilt to eat at him for the rest of the deployment.”
“Anybody could have made that mistake,” I replied defensively.
“Anybody?” She looked offended by my comment. “He was the assistant convoy commander! Because of his lack of judgment three families’ lives have been destroyed. That’s not just a mistake.”
Tears burned at the backs of my eyes.
“Donovan promised Jackie that while in Afghanistan he would keep Smitty safe and bring him back home to her and the baby. The only reason why he had allowed Smitty to be on the team was because he thought it was an easy recon mission.” Malinda pulled her collar up around her neck and shrugged. “After Sergeant Truth got home, he visited Jackie practically every week, trying to apologize for failing to keep his promise.”
I had a hard time stomaching my husband being so personal with another woman. I was jealous and angry all at once.
“That day you saw me in his office, I had dropped by to talk to him about my sister’s behavior. She was starting to get too attached.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean . . . she expected him to come by and when he didn’t she’d fall apart.”
I was so stunned by her confession that I didn’t know what else to say except for the obvious. “What does this have to do with my son?” I didn’t mean to sound like I didn’t care, but I needed to first deal with finding my son; then I would focus on the source of my husband’s pain.
“I think they both were grieving and trying to find a way to cope. Most times he took Aiden over there with him.”
“So you think he left my son with Jackie?” I wanted so desperately to think that Donovan left Aiden with her while he went out to the mental hospital to ask Kenyon about the letter. But if that was the case, why the hell hadn’t she brought him home to me yet?
“I’ve been trying to reach Jackie for days and tonight she finally returned my call. We were discussing my father who had recently been in the hospital, when I heard a child in the background crying. When I questioned her about it, she hung up on me.”
My heart skipped a beat. “Do you think it was Aiden?”
She shrugged one shoulder. “I really don’t know.” There was a long moment of silence before she spoke again. “You have to understand, my sister kinda snapped after losing not only her husband, but their baby as well.”
“I don’t have to understand shit! That bitch has no right keeping my son.”
Malinda jerked back. “Listen, you don’t have to call Jackie a bitch. I’m just here tryna help.”
“And I appreciate it.” I should have known something was up the way she had been holding my husband’s hand. Last week Jackie’s ass was all up at the hospital smiling in my face while she was hiding my son. “Take me to her. Take me to my son.”
She shook her head. “I don’t know where she’s at. I drove by her house on the way over to the station, but she wasn’t there.”
I suddenly remembered something. “Wait a minute . . . she had said something to me about renovating some old house, that it was therapeutic.”
Malinda was quiet and I could tell she was thinking about what I had just told her before a frown marred her forehead. “They had bought a fixer-upper in Belleville before Smitty was deployed. But I thought she decided to sell that house.”
Obviously she didn’t know her sister as well as she thought. “Do you know where it is?”
She nodded. “I’m sure I could find it.”
“Good,
then I’ll follow you.” I hurried over to Tristan. He was sitting inside his car, with the music playing, waiting. I was shaking so bad I could barely speak.
“What she say?” he asked the second I climbed in on the passenger’s side.
“S-She thinks h-her sister has Aiden.”
“Oh my goodness!” he cried and waved his hand. “Hallelujah!”
I pointed in the direction of the white Kia Sorrento. “Just follow her.”
My heart was pounding so hard I had to take several deep breaths just to slow it down. The drive to Belleville would take thirty minutes and I wasn’t sure I could sit still that long. I was both nervous and upset as I replayed the conversation with Tristan. The whole time I couldn’t help but wonder, what if Malinda was wrong and Jackie didn’t have Aiden?
“Hey, you okay over there?” Tristan took his eyes away from the expressway long enough to look my way.
“It depends on how you define okay. I wish this car had wings so we could be there in seconds, but at the same time I’m afraid to get there and find Aiden isn’t.”
Tristan reached over and squeezed my hand. “Uh-uh! We’re having none of that, girlfriend! You just need to think positive. He’s there. I can feel it in my bones.”
I released a long, shaky breath. “I sure hope so.”
There was a long moment of silence before he spoke again. “I went by the shop today,” he said, and I appreciated him changing the subject.
“Really? How did that go?” I couldn’t imagine the crew giving him a warm reception.
“I strutted in making sure everyone saw the diva that I am.” He grinned. “I said, ‘Your new boss is in the house!’ and, girl, you could have heard a pin drop as quiet as that place became. All eyes were on me . . . just the way I like it.”
“Hell nah! No, you didn’t!” It felt so good to laugh.
He nodded his head. “You know I did. Uh-huh. Girl, I’m thinking about bringing in a few stylists and maybe even putting a small boutique in the front. You know women love shopping.”
I had to chuckle. “You know my husband ain’t going for that shit, right?”
“That man is stubborn.” He pursed his lips. “Like I told Donovan when he offered to buy me out, we are partners, so he needs to look at the bigger picture. Together we can make the shop a success . . . if he’d just take the time to see my vision. We can add some color to the walls, install new lighting, and knock out a wall or two.... We could have the hottest spot in all of St. Louis!” He did a three-finger snap and I laughed. Although it sounded fantastic, there was no way in hell Donovan was agreeing to something wild and flamboyant. He had offered to buy Tristan’s half of the business, but my bestie told him there was no way he was letting go of his final gift from Lorenzo. I had to agree. Obviously Lorenzo wanted him to have it.
I laughed a little longer, then watched as we crossed over the Martin Luther King Bridge and into Illinois. “Do you think I should call the police?”
There was a long pause before Tristan finally shook his head and said, “No, not yet. We don’t even know for sure that woman has Aiden.”
He was right. I wasn’t sure, yet I was hoping and praying that my gut was right.
Sanders pulled off at the Green Mount exit and as soon as Tristan moved up the ramp, my heart started racing again.
“Please let him be there,” I mumbled under my breath. “And after I have my son safely in my arms, I’m going to be at that ho’s ass.”
“I know that’s right!” Tristan shouted, and I realized that I had said it out loud.
I gave a shaky laugh and focused on the Kia. It seemed like it had taken forever before Malinda finally turned onto a wide street with homes just like you’d see in the movies with long driveways, large porches, and plenty of curb appeal. It was well after midnight and the street lighting wasn’t the best, so when she pulled up in front of a large house, I had to really focus to see the two-story structure hidden behind large oak trees with a balcony coming off the master bedroom overhead.
“Damn, that’s a nice house,” Tristan muttered under his breath.
“Wait here. If you hear someone scream, call the police.” Quickly I leaped out of the car and followed Malinda up the walkway to the door. She glanced over her shoulder and frowned when she spotted me.
“Why don’t you let me talk to her first?” she suggested.
That wasn’t happening. “How about we go and talk to her together.” I didn’t even wait for her response and walked up to the door and rung the bell. It seemed like forever before I heard footsteps and the lock turned and swung open.
The second Jackie spotted her sister and me standing at the door, the smile left her lips. “Nikki . . . Malinda . . . what are you doing here at this time of the night?” I didn’t see what difference it made. It wasn’t like she had been asleep. In fact, she was dressed comfortably in sweatpants, a hoodie, and running shoes, like she was about to go somewhere. I also noticed how she kept glancing nervously over her shoulder.
“Because you hung up on me. Why are you all the way out here?” Malinda asked.
Before Jackie could even speak, I blurted out, “Do you have my son?” I mean, really, why waste time with idle talk.
She gave me a confused look. “Your son? Why would I have your son?”
I placed a hand on my hip and stared straight at her. “Because Donovan left him with you.” I didn’t know that for sure, but it sounded convincing enough. Malinda turned to look at me, brow bunched. Goodness! Why couldn’t she just play along?
“I have no idea what you’re talking about. The last time Donovan came to my house was when he asked for Smitty’s gun.”
I still couldn’t understand why that chick gave another man her husband’s gun. Did she not realize his state of mind? “I think you’re lying.”
“What I need to lie about?” she retorted.
I was ready to drag that chick out of her house. I took a step forward and she took a step back and immediately Malinda moved in between.
“Hold up . . . we didn’t come here for this.” She rolled her eyes at me and I rolled mine back at her. I didn’t care what she said, Jackie was lying.
“Look, sis . . . when I called you yesterday I heard a child in the background.”
She gave her a blank stare. “Child? Girl, that was the television!” she said and then had the nerve to laugh.
“Jackie . . . I didn’t drive out here in the middle of the night to play games. Aiden is missing, so if you have any idea where he is, please tell me!” She might have been my last hope.
She looked at me for a long moment, eyes getting all misty, and for a second I thought she was going to cry before the stupid smirk returned to her lips. “Nobody cared about me when I lost my child.”
“You miscarried . . . my child is missing. Big fucking difference!”
She disagreed. “What’s the difference? Losing a child is losing a child.”
I was seconds away from wrapping my fingers around that crazy chick’s neck. “Look, either you know where Aiden is or you don’t?” I asked and brought a hand to my hip again.
Malinda stood there also waiting for Jackie to answer. I was sure she was hoping she had been wrong about her sister.
“Sorry, but as much as I wish I could tell you where your son is, I can’t help you.”
I don’t know why her words hit me hard, but they did. I clearly thought she had Aiden or knew who did. “Well . . . thanks.”
I turned and was heading down the steps to climb back into the car with Tristan when from inside I heard a heart-wrenching scream.
“Mommy!”
I swung around and noticed Jackie’s eyes had grown large and wild.
Aiden!
38
Nikki
I raced back up the steps, anxious to get inside, but Jackie managed to step back into the house and slam the door in my face. “Open the door!” I screamed and looked at Malinda. “Did you hear that? Jackie has my son!”<
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Her eyes got large like she wouldn’t have believed it if she hadn’t heard it herself. “We don’t know that for sure.”
“Okay, then, who was that crying,‘Mommy’? It sure in the hell wasn’t Casper the Fucking Friendly Ghost!” I barked. That chick was working my last nerve. “I know my son’s voice.” I rolled my eyes and screamed across the yard. “Tristan! Tristan . . . Call the police!”
There was no way in the world I was leaving there without my son. Even if I had to peel back every piece of aluminum siding, my baby was going home with me. I started banging on the door and ringing the doorbell like a lunatic.
“Jackie, dammit! Open this door!” I screamed.
Malinda removed her cell phone from her purse and started dialing. “Let me try calling her,” she suggested. After a brief moment I heard her say. “Jackie, sweetie, you need to open the door and give Nikki her son. Jackie . . . listen . . . Jackie . . . that’s not true. I’m not trying to hurt you.”
All that baby talk was getting on my damn nerves. I snatched the phone from her hand and barked. “Listen, you crazy bitch. I want my son!”
“He’s my son!” she screamed. “He’s mine. Donovan took my baby away and brought me another one.”
I didn’t know what sick game was running through her mind, but that’s my son. “I’m not playing with you!” It wasn’t a threat; it was a promise. “The police are on their way.”
“Well, then . . . if I can’t have him, then no one can,” she said, then hung up the phone.
“What the hell did she mean by that?” I muttered, then tossed Malinda her phone. “Your sister is a freaking nutcase.” I ran up to the door and kicked it with my heel. “Ow!” That shit hurt. “Get your sister to open that damn door!” I turned on the heel of my sore foot, limped out to the curb, and climbed back into the car long enough to warm my hands.
Consequences Page 24