And it actually felt really good.
Chapter 29
Cole
I was still on desk duty at Parker Security, which meant I was basically trapped there until five. Stella had picked up a few more shifts at Cornucopia, which meant she had to head to work pretty much right as I was getting done. This was the case on Wednesday night, anyway, and after the long day I’d just had, all I really wanted was to come home, maybe get some takeout food, and snuggle on the couch with her.
But she was rushing out the door, and we had time for a kiss, and that was about it. “I don’t know how late I’m going to be tonight,” she said, “but you don’t have to stay up.”
I smiled. “Oh, I’ll stay up,” I said. “And if you should come home and find me sleeping on the couch, you totally have permission to wake me up.”
Taking a little snooze on the couch actually didn’t sound like such a bad idea, but after I relaxed for a little bit and had some dinner, I got a second wind. I decided to take the bike out for a little nighttime cruise, which, in some regard, was more dangerous, since it was dark and there was a better chance the people driving had been drinking. But I actually liked to think of it as a little safer, because there were fewer cars overall—meaning that, on some streets, I had the whole road to myself.
I tried to time my ride with when I thought Stella would be getting back home, but I could tell when I rolled back up to my building that she wasn’t there yet, as all the lights were off. So I cruised around the block once more and then I sat on the front steps, figuring I’d surprise her.
I looked at my phone while I waited, and when I happened to glance up, I saw someone walking in my direction from the other end of the block. It was definitely Stella’s silhouette, so I stood up and slid my phone into my pocket. I had taken a couple of steps toward her, my arm just starting to lift to wave hello, when there was a flurry of movement from one of the parallel-parked cars, right as Stella walked by.
Someone had jumped out of the car and grabbed Stella.
I couldn’t believe my eyes, even as I ran toward them. But yes, it was really happening. The person was trying to drag her back to the car they had just come out of, a black SUV. It didn’t feel like my legs could propel me fast enough, but I got there right as Stella managed to break away.
“Get away from her!” I shouted, and I slammed into the person, realizing, as I did so, that they had a gun. The person flung their arm around and caught me right on the jaw with it, my teeth clacking together as my head snapped back. There was a metallic taste in my mouth, but I still had my two feet underneath me and I knew that if I didn’t want either Stella or myself to get shot, I needed to get that gun.
Everything happened in a blur, yet I felt strangely focused. My jaw was throbbing, but it was as if my mind knew that it only had one task at hand right now, and that was to get the gun away from whoever the hell this person was.
We fell to the ground, my hand wrapped around his wrist, trying to yank the gun from his grasp, all the while hoping that it wouldn’t go off accidentally. I was vaguely aware of Stella above us, shouting something.
“Get back!” I yelled at her. The guy was scrambling, trying to get to his feet. He yanked his wrist from my grasp, pointing the gun right at me. And that was the chance I needed—this close, I used my right hand to hit and twist his wrist, pulling the gun toward me while simultaneously turning it away from myself. Though I hadn’t really practiced it in a while, I was trained in jujitsu—everyone at Parker Security was, to some degree—and that was a basic disarming technique that my brain must have dredged up from somewhere. I hadn’t even consciously thought about doing it—it had just happened. And now, I had the gun.
The guy clamored to his feet, holding his hands up. He had a hooded sweatshirt on, but the hood had been knocked off in our tussle. Stella came and stood next to me.
“Are you okay?” she said.
I couldn’t answer her, though—all I could do was stare. Because we knew this person.
It was Gareth.
“What the hell are you doing?” I said, gun still pointed at him. There was about ten feet separating us.
“Oh, my God,” Stella said, turning her attention to him now, too. “Gareth? Are you kidding me? What the hell?”
“It’s time for you to come home now, Stella,” he said, breathing heavily. “I’m not trying to hurt you. I just... I need you to listen right now, okay? Your mother’s been terribly upset since you’ve been gone, and she wants nothing more than to have you back home.”
Stella stared at him. “Are you insane?” she said. “Actually—don’t answer that. You’re clearly psychotic.” She paused. “Wait a second. Are you the one who’s been sending all those texts? And was it you who gave Marty the money to mess with my brakes?”
“I only did it because I wanted you to realize you were making a mistake. You’ve got the perfect life, Stella. Or you could have the perfect life—don’t you see that? All this nonsense with the bike riding, though—what was that? Your mother hated that you were so involved in something so dangerous.”
“So, you’re telling me that my mom put you up to this?”
The gun felt heavy in my hand, though I still had it aimed at Gareth. I was having a hard time believing that any of this was really happening.
“No,” Gareth said. “She didn’t know anything about it.” He took a step toward us.
“Stop,” I said. “You don’t need to come any closer.”
“Why would you do any of what you’ve done, then?” Stella said. She sounded just as confused as I was. “I don’t get it. You just took it upon yourself to try to completely sabotage my life? That doesn’t make any sense.”
“I love your mother,” Gareth said. “I have always loved your mother. Perhaps if you weren’t so self-absorbed, you would have realized that. And, you see, when you love someone, you do what you can to make them happy. Your mother loves you, which is why she always went along with your bike riding. She was never interested in it and didn’t want you to do it, but she knew that it was something you loved.”
“So, then, why did you do all that stuff?”
I glanced at the SUV that Gareth had gotten out of and realized that it was probably the same one that had run me over.
“You were the one who hit me,” I said. “It was you, wasn’t it?”
He nodded, but kept his eyes trained on Stella. “Your mother was sacrificing a lot to keep you happy. She was always so nervous before your races. It wasn’t good for her.”
“So, you had the genius idea to have someone tamper with my brakes? Because that would somehow make her less nervous?”
“I didn’t think your injuries would be as extensive as they were. My intention was never to hurt you, Stella. It was just to get your attention. Make you wake up.”
“Wake up to what?” Stella’s voice was getting louder with each syllable.
“I think I’m going to call the police,” I said.
“You can’t do that.” Finally, Gareth looked at me, though I kind of wished he hadn’t because he was clearly having some sort of mental breakdown. There was something in his eyes that just wasn’t right. “You can’t do that because they’ll try to take me away, and really, all I want to do is bring you back home to your mom, Stella.”
He ran toward her. Or, he started to, his arms outstretched, like he was being reunited with a long-lost friend. I grabbed Stella and yanked her back, aimed the gun and pulled the trigger. Gareth fell, though he wasn’t dead, not by a long shot. I had aimed for his right kneecap, and apparently hit the mark.
“Call the police,” I said to Stella, digging my phone out of my pocket.
“Holy shit,” she kept saying.
Gareth was moaning in a heap on the ground. I walked closer to him, though stayed far enough back that he wouldn’t be able to reach out and grab me (I’d seen that episode of Game of Thrones).
“You shot me!” he gasped.
“It’s
not fatal.”
“I wasn’t planning on shooting anyone!” He tried to move his leg and winced, howling in pain.
“Then you shouldn’t have brought the gun! And don’t try to get up. What the hell is wrong with you? You’re seriously deranged!”
I could hear sirens in the distance, getting closer. Then flashing blue lights were visible further down the street, running red lights to get to us. I still had the gun in my hand.
I held both my hands up and then gently placed the gun on the ground when the police officer told me to. I thought he might try to cuff me, but he didn’t, and instead he talked with Stella and me while another officer retrieved the gun. By that point, the ambulance had arrived and Gareth was being put onto a stretcher and loaded into the back of the ambulance. I could see the blood staining the leg of his pants.
“He came running toward Stella,” I told the officer as I watched the ambulance drive away. “That’s the only reason I shot him. I’m actually not a fan of guns at all.” I could still feel the weight of the thing in my hand, the way it had kicked back when I’d pulled the trigger. “I definitely wasn’t trying to kill him or anything.”
I felt Stella take my hand, and she gave it a little squeeze. I looked at her, trying to gauge her reaction to all of this; on the surface, she appeared completely calm, like nothing out of the ordinary was happening.
“Cole saved me,” she said. “I don’t know what would’ve happened if he hadn’t been right there. I know that Gareth was saying he didn’t want to hurt me, but he’s obviously not playing with a full deck. I have a feeling that anything could’ve happened if he had gotten me into the back of that car.”
She looked up and gave me the tiniest of smiles, and I suddenly remembered something Jeremiah had said, way back when I was talking to him about whether or not I should take this job in the first place: Maybe you’ll be her knight in shining armor. That might not be totally accurate, but it was pretty close.
Chapter 30
Stella
The next day, I was still having trouble trying to wrap my head around the whole thing. But while part of me was definitely having a hard time believing it, there was also a part of me that realized how much sense all of it made. I’d always felt like there was something a little strange about Gareth, and perhaps he was right—maybe if I had paid a little more attention to things at the house, I would’ve picked up on the fact that there was something going on between them. I knew my parents didn’t have a close relationship, but that’s just how it was for some parents. They had seemed happy enough each doing their own thing, and the sheer size of the house we lived in made it seem not that unusual for me to never really see the two of them together. Yet the more I thought about it, the more times I could remember finding my mom and Gareth together.
I didn’t know what my parents knew, but I decided to go over to their house. No matter what the outcome ended up being, we needed to talk about this. My mother was in the front sitting room when I let myself into the house, and I could tell from the dark circles under her eyes, and the fact that she was sitting there in a bathrobe without a lick of makeup on, that she knew what had happened.
“Are you all right?” she said.
“I’m fine, Mom. Thanks to Cole.” I went in and sat on the couch next to her. “So, you know what happened?”
“Yes. The police called us to let us know. I’m in shock.”
“It was pretty surprising to me, too.”
“It’s not something that I really want to talk about,” my mother said. She wiped at her eyes. “But I will. Because I want to be upfront with you. I don’t want you to think for a second that I put Gareth up to any of that. I had no idea what he was doing. None at all.”
“He said he was doing it because he loved you.”
She nodded. “We were involved.”
“Romantically?”
“Yes. It didn’t start that way. I did originally hire him because of the magic he was able to work with plants. I suppose that was part of the attraction, for me. I’ve always enjoyed my gardens, and then to meet someone who just had such a gift for the very thing that I love—your father and I don’t share many common interests, as I’m sure you must have gathered by now.”
“Yeah, I can definitely see that now.”
“And that’s hard. He and I are supposed to be partners, but your father is really married to his business. That’s the real love of his life. There was a part of me that knew this, even before we got married, but I just assumed that would change. It didn’t, though. So we agreed to keep things essentially platonic between us. Your father understands that I have my needs. And Gareth was able to meet many of those needs. And most of it was about companionship. But, trust me, Stella, I would’ve preferred that it had been your father. He just wasn’t interested in that.”
“Oh, Mom. I’m sorry. I had no idea.”
It felt strange to be sitting here hearing all of this, but mostly, I felt bad for my mother. I knew that my father was away on business a lot, and even when he was home, there was always something work-related occupying his attention. I had never really considered how this affected my mother, because she seemed happy enough—she had her friends she went out to lunch with or played tennis with; she lived in this beautiful house; she could travel anywhere she wanted... But as I sat there thinking about it, I realized that the only times I really ever saw my parents together were on special occasions, like that night we all went out to dinner to celebrate Dad’s birthday.
“Obviously, Gareth will not be welcome anywhere near here, ever again,” Mom said. “I assume a prison term is in his future, and after that, it’s probably likely that he’ll be deported.”
“Deported?”
“He was here illegally. His visa expired years ago. They’ll probably send him back to Wales.” Her voice caught in her throat as she said it, and I realized how upsetting that idea was to her, despite the fact this was a guy who could’ve killed me on more than one occasion. She rubbed her eyes. “Things clearly spiraled out of control. They got to a level I never imagined they would. I don’t want you to think this is something I wanted to have happen.”
“I don’t, Mom.”
“Things have not been great between us lately, Stella. That’s hurt me, but I know that I played a role in it. If Cole makes you happy, then of course I want you to be with him,” Mom said. “It wasn’t very kind of me to say what I said about him. Sure, there might be some guy out there who’s more a match to you socioeconomically, but who’s to say you’d be happy with him? You might be miserable, and I don’t want that.” She sighed. “I know that reality all too well. And I always had in the back of my mind that you and I would face the world together. We used to be very close, you know. I don’t know if you remember all the way back then or not. But I do.”
“Oh, Mom,” I said. “Of course I remember.” And I did, at least a little bit anyway. I hadn’t wanted us to grow apart, but it just seemed like the natural progression of things—what happened with mothers and daughters sometimes.
“And I guess I complained to Gareth about that a lot. He’s not a bad person, you know. He shouldn’t have done what he did, but he did it because he thought that it would make me happy. And your father, he’s a good man, too—he gives me free rein to spend whatever I want because he thinks that will make me happy. So, here I am, surrounded by men who want me to be happy, yet I find myself feeling so unhappy all the time.” She waved a hand. “We’re not here to talk about me and my feelings, though. I just want you to know that I’m starting to understand that your life is your own, and that you’re going to live it on your own terms. I’m coming around to that idea. I know that sounds silly to say, because you’re an adult, but you always will be my little girl, Stella. That won’t change.”
I squeezed her arm and then gently pulled her toward me and gave her a hug. As I did so, I remembered something, like recalling a scene from a movie, except it was me. I was maybe seven years old and I
’d just gotten my first twenty-four-inch-wheeled mountain bike. It was still a little big for me, but I didn’t care; I was eager to get on that thing as soon as I could. Of course I wiped out, and I skinned my knee pretty bad. I tried my hardest to hold back the tears, which I managed to do until I pushed the bike back to the house and my mother saw me and came running over, pulling me to her, not caring that I was getting blood all over her clothes. Only when I felt her arms go around me and my face was pressed up against her did I allow the tears to flow, because I felt safe, because I knew she would protect me, because I knew it was okay to let her see me cry. And now it almost felt as if the roles were reversed, as we stood there embracing.
When she stepped back, she wasn’t crying, but she did wipe at her eyes. She took a deep breath and smiled. “Well. I know there is still plenty to figure out, but I think it would be nice if we had a little get-together, and you brought Cole. Do you think he would come to something like that? Even after the way I treated him?”
“I’ll talk to him, but yeah, I bet he’d be happy to do something like that.”
“I’d like us to all be on better terms, if you’re serious about him.”
“I am,” I said, and just thinking about him brought a smile to my face. “I am.”
***
I stayed for a little while longer, but I could tell that my mother needed to be alone right then. But it felt good that we had actually talked and seemed to have a better understanding, both of us, of where the other was coming from. As I stepped outside, I decided to text Lauren.
Hi, I wrote. I’m just leaving my parents’ house and I was wondering if we could meet up. I’d like to talk.
I didn’t know if she’d respond or not; that was definitely the worst fight that we’d ever been in. But I’d only made it a few blocks when I heard my phone chime.
Where/when?
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