“And she’s not responding to any of it?”
“Not even close. She’s blocked quite a few of us from commenting on her blog and from seeing her social media profiles.”
“Does she really think that’s enough? I mean, if she’s hiding something about her son being hurt or worse…” Zoey shuddered.
“Doesn’t matter what she thinks. She can run, but she can’t hide forever. The truth is going to come out one way or another.”
“What if she decides to quit blogging? Then there won’t be any new clues to go on.”
“True. But from what I’ve gathered, it’s her only source of income. She has ads, sponsored posts, she reviews products—the whole shebang. Without another source of funds, she has to keep blogging.”
Zoey lifted an eyebrow. “Can’t she just start a new blog? Anonymously?”
“She could. But it’d be unlikely. Too much work to start over from scratch. She’s got a good thing going for herself. Looks like she’s making some good money from this one.”
“But if everyone thinks she hurt that boy, wouldn’t that hurt her bottom line?”
He frowned. “Unfortunately, it’s probably helping. She’s probably getting more pageviews than ever. She really has the site monetized well.”
“Well, once she’s in jail, it won’t do her a bit of good.”
“That’s true.” He gave her a kiss. “You mind if I call Nick? Or do you need help with the babies?”
“Call him. It’s all good.” She squeezed his hand and walked over to check on the babies, who were fascinated with a squeaky ball.
Alex grabbed his phone then settled on his bed and called Nick.
“Hey.” Nick didn’t sound himself.
“Something wrong?” Alex asked.
“That obvious?”
“Yeah. I thought you’d be walking on air.”
“I was.”
Alex waited for Nick to continue, but he didn’t. “Don’t tell me there’s trouble in paradise already.”
“No. My kids. The older two. No surprise there, is it?”
“Sorry to hear that. They having trouble blending the two families?”
Nick sighed. “I wish that was all it was. No, it’s Mason. He’s been texting Ava, and neither she nor Parker bothered to mention it to me.”
“What?” Alex’s mind spun. Mason was nothing but trouble for Ava, or for any of them. He glanced over at the babies, one of whom was related to Mason—a thought Alex pushed out of his mind every time it entered. As far as anyone was concerned, Alex was both Laney and Zander’s dad. His name was on both certificates. No questions were asked because he and Zoey were married at the time. It wasn’t like anyone asked for a blood test.
But the genetics were an entirely different story. Thanks to Dave abducting and abusing Zoey.
Alex snapped his attention back to the phone conversation. “Why has he been texting her?”
Zoey glanced over at him with furrowed brows. The last thing he wanted was to worry her, even though it was unlikely Mason had any idea about the twins. He got up and went into the empty backyard.
“He’s headed our way,” Nick said. “Might already be in the state. If not yet, then soon.”
Alex took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. “What does he want?”
“My daughter!”
“Even though they’re brother and sister?”
“Half,” Nick corrected. “It’s Parker who could be Mason’s full sibling.”
“Maybe you should get that paternity test. Set your mind at ease.”
“Or have my world crushed!”
Alex paced. “At least you’d know. I think it’s the not knowing that’s harder on you.”
“I don’t care about genetics. He’s my son!”
“I get it. Believe me.”
“Right. I know. What am I supposed to do? Tell him and then do the test? Secretly take the test and hope it comes out in my favor? Or wait and see what the test results are, and then tell him if it’s bad news?”
Alex pulled on his hair. “I’m facing the same dilemma, Nick. You know what conclusion I’ve come to?”
“What?”
“There is no right answer. It’s a horrible situation and Dave is a horrible person to have done this. But the kids deserve to know the truth. Eventually, it could be a matter of safety. They’re going to need to know their medical histories.”
“I don’t want to talk about this right now. What did you call about?”
“It’s not important.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. We can talk about it later. Just figure out what’s going on with Mason, and keep Ava safe.”
“I’ll let you know if I learn anything new, but I really don’t think you have anything to worry about. I’m sure he has no clue about Zander being his brother.”
Alex clenched his jaw. “He’s not the one I’m worried about finding out.”
“The good news is that Dave is never getting out of prison. He can’t attempt to go after custody of either of our boys.”
“At least you have a chance of your son actually being yours. You should find out and stop worrying. Maybe Corrine was actually telling the truth that one time.”
“I’m not going to hold my breath. Talk to you later, Alex.”
“Later.” Alex ended the call and leaned against a pine tree, his mind reeling. For the last year, nobody had a clue where Mason was, and now the kid shows up? Some timing.
Alex had fallen in love with both babies the moment he saw them. He’d known that Zander was baby B—Dave’s biological child—but he hadn’t allowed that to get in the way of anything. Alex had already promised Zoey he would raise them both as his. They’d had a quick wedding in order to secure Alex’s name on the birth certificates.
He was Zander’s dad in every other sense of the word. Alex was raising him, loving him, providing for him, giving him a family. Sure, one day, he would have to come clean. Tell him the truth—hard as that would be. But he would be the first to know, outside of Zoey, Alex, and Nick.
It wasn’t something he and Zoey had wanted to broadcast to the world, especially before the court trial. It was bad enough that she had to get on the stand and relive her ordeal, the last thing either of them wanted was to bring up the fact that her abuser had also fathered one of her children.
Luckily, it had barely come up. Because she’d been carrying two babies and it was her second pregnancy, she looked much further along than she’d actually been. It had been assumed she had already been pregnant when kidnapped. Zoey never corrected anyone and nobody questioned it. And considering that Dave had shot up a school, blown it up, and killed some people, those violations had been the focus of the trial. Not the pregnancy of a married woman who looked like she’d already been expecting at the time of the ordeal.
Alex and Nick had both been annoyed that more focus hadn’t been on him abducting Zoey and Ava, but they were relieved that neither had to endure days of testifying. The short time of questioning had been traumatic enough for both of them, but it could’ve been so much worse.
Now the question was if he should tell Zoey that Mason was heading their way. She’d been so happy recently, he didn’t want to throw a wrench in her progress by potentially upsetting her again. But it wasn’t like Dave had escaped prison. It was his son, a young guy who had no clue Zander was his half-brother.
Alex’s stomach knotted. As much as he hated it, he knew what he had to do.
Wreck
Alex drew in a deep breath. His mind flooded with reasons—excuses—not to tell Zoey about Mason being close by. It wasn’t going to affect them. Mason was only in the area to see Ava. Maybe his parents. The kid had no idea about Zander and probably wouldn’t care. Telling Zoey would only stress her out. Maybe set her back, send her back to counseling.
But it wasn’t up to h
im to keep the truth from her. She deserved to know what was going on, even if it didn’t directly affect her or Zander. She was smart and capable and would know what to do.
“You look like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders.”
Alex jumped at her voice.
She rubbed his shoulders. “I thought you were going to take a nap before heading into work.”
He glanced at the time and his pulse raced, drummed in his ear. “I still have time, but I have to tell you something.”
She tilted her head. “What?”
Alex took a deep breath and held it for a moment. “Nick found out Mason’s in the area.”
Zoey’s eyes widened. “Mason? As in, Dave’s son?”
“Yeah. He wants to see Ava.”
Her eyes flitted as she took in the news. “What’s Nick doing about it?”
“Trying to protect her as best he can.”
“But he assaulted her. Don’t they have a restraining order?”
Alex shook his head. “Ava swears nothing happened, that she got away before Mason had a chance to do anything. She won’t press any charges.”
“What about him coming here? That has to be grounds for an order.”
“I think he has to do something to her first. I’m not all that familiar with restraining orders. The grounds for one is more of a legal matter. The ones I’ve dealt with were already set in place.”
Zoey twisted a strand of hair around her finger and looked away. “Chances are, Mason won’t have any interest in us. Even if he knew about Zander, I doubt he’d care. He doesn’t seem to care about Parker or Hanna. Just Ava, right?”
Alex frowned. “Fixated would be a better word, but yes.”
“Let him know if he’s worried about her, she can stay with us until this calms down.”
He gave her a double-take. “Really? You’re not worried about him coming here?”
She shook her head no. “Mason’s not going to have any interest in us, and he’d have a harder time tracking her down here. As long as you’re okay with it, I think we should let Nick know that her staying here is an option.”
“I’ll let him know. But you can keep thinking about it while I sleep.”
“I won’t change my mind.” She kissed him. “Have sweet dreams.”
Alex got ready for bed and it seemed as soon as his head hit the pillow, his alarm woke him. He turned it off, yawned, and stretched. Then he checked the time. Sure enough, it was time to get ready for work. Zoey and the twins were sound asleep next to him. He gave each one of them a light kiss before getting ready and heading out.
It was a double-mocha kind of a night, so he stopped at his favorite coffee stand.
“How are those twins?” asked the barista as she made the drink.
“Getting bigger every day.”
“They’ll be going to college before you know it,” she teased.
“Ugh. Don’t remind me. My oldest definitely will.”
“Is she in high school already?”
“Stop.” Alex laughed.
“Just teasing.” She told him the total, and he gave her a generous tip.
When he got to work, everything was pretty quiet. Most everyone was busy with office work, which didn’t often happen. Not on his shift, anyway. After some small talk, he hit his paperwork that had piled up over the weekend. Wouldn’t be long before he was called out for something—bar brawl, holdup, drug deal. Dull moments never seemed to last long.
After a while, Detective Sanchez stopped by his desk. “Ready to go on patrol?”
“Yes.” He got up and stretched. “Been sitting too long.”
“Sometimes quiet nights are nice.”
“Yeah, the paperwork’s a dream.” He finished his mocha then tossed it into a can.
She snickered. “Well, after a busy weekend, I’d have to say it’s an appreciated break.”
They made their way to a cruiser then headed for a shadier part of town. Radio chatter reported complaints of cars racing down a residential street.
Detective Sanchez responded, letting them know she and Alex would check it out. They weren’t far, and Alex didn’t mention that he’d raced his first car down that very street numerous times in the past. It was a long, straight shot but curved sharply near the end and would be dangerous if a driver couldn’t stop in time.
As they neared the road, Sanchez turned on the lights but not the sirens. Teens and young twenty-somethings ran in all directions. Two cars lined up next to each other, burned rubber, then sped down the street.
The cruiser raced after them, sirens now blaring. Neither car slowed, much less stopped. They were neck and neck, going forty then fifty. Sixty. Seventy. Seventy-five.
Beads of sweat broke out on Alex’s forehead. The cars were nearing the dangerous curve, but instead of slowing, they were continuing to gain speed.
Sanchez eased off the gas. The other two cars continued increasing their speed. Alex’s heart thundered. It would be dangerous enough for one car to attempt the curve, but two would be reckless. Deadly. Even at Alex’s stupidest, he’d have never gone around that corner over thirty-five miles an hour.
The cars in front of them were nearing ninety.
One car slowed. The other didn’t. Traveling at least ninety, the white Acura rounded the corner. Or tried to.
The crunching metal could be heard over the sirens. Car parts sprayed out like water from a hose.
Alex grimaced. It was going to be bad. Really bad.
The other car continued around the corner. Didn’t slow. Drove right past the mangled vehicle.
As they approached, Alex snapped a picture of the car, zooming in on the license plate, just before it disappeared from sight. The cruiser’s camera would have probably gotten video, but he wasn’t taking any chances.
He radioed in a description of the car with its plates and updated the operator on the crash. Fire exploded, enveloping the Acura.
Without a word, he and Sanchez raced to the flames. Alex had a small fire extinguisher ready. Hopefully it would be enough to get the driver out. He sprayed the fire as Sanchez flung open the door.
She turned to him. “There’s a passenger!”
Everything went by in a blur as they struggled to free both the young driver and passenger from the inflamed vehicle. Sanchez started CPR on the male driver. The girl Alex pulled out was breathing but not responsive. He carefully carried her to the other side of the street, worried the fire would get worse. So far, it was in the hood only. Not near the gas tank. Yet.
Sirens sounded. Fire trucks and an ambulance arrived. The firefighters quickly put out the blaze while the medics took the girl from Alex.
The paramedics tried to revive the driver, but after five minutes he was declared dead.
It felt like a punch to the gut. Given how many times Alex had raced the same road, that could’ve been him years earlier. Who was to say that his pride wouldn’t have gotten in his way just once, and he might’ve tried that curve.
Why had he been so lucky?
The ambulance sped off with the passenger, and the coroner’s van left with the deceased driver inside. Residents now crowded around the street, snapping pictures.
Alex had to pull himself together. He could wallow in survivor’s guilt later. For now, someone needed to move the onlookers and set up police tape to keep them away from the wreckage.
It was going to be one long night.
Near
Ava rubbed her arm and winced. She’d worn long sleeves to school to cover her wounds, but she hadn’t anticipated her skin catching on the fabric every time she moved.
She’d make Parker pay. Shove him down. Give him a taste of his own medicine. Jerk.
“How are you feeling?”
Ava slammed her locker shut and smiled weakly at Braylon. “Other than wanting to skin my brother’s arms?”
She shook her head. “It’s between me and him.”
“I don’t mind. Parker won’t ever mess with you again after I’m done with him.”
“No, I need to deal with him. But thanks.”
Braylon looked at her arms. “Still refuse to show me?”
“My arms are gross.”
“Blood is cool.”
“And boys are weird.” The warning bell rang. “We’d better go.”
He put his arm around her, and they headed for their history class. “You know, I can talk to him. Don’t have to lay a hand on the kid.”
“No, really. Dad already let him have it, and I want to face my own problems.”
“Okay, but my offer still stands.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
They stepped inside the classroom just as the final bell sounded. Mr. Archer raised an eyebrow at them then told the class to open to page two-fifty-three. She and Braylon scrambled to the nearest empty seats.
Halfway through the class, her phone vibrated. Again and again. Someone was texting her repeatedly. And she couldn’t check it. If she so much as pulled it out, the teacher could take it away, and she wouldn’t get it back until after school. Maybe not even then. Mr. Archer was known for keeping them until a parent showed up for it.
The buzzing drove her crazy, and it was all she could do to act like everything was normal. She couldn’t focus on anything else.
Finally, she couldn’t take it any longer. She raised her hand.
Mr. Archer threw her an exasperated look. “Yes, Miss Fleshman?”
“I need to see the nurse.”
He tilted his head. “Why?”
So much for keeping her ugly arm hidden. She pulled down her sleeve. Her phone vibrated yet again. “I think one of these cuts is infected. It hurts really bad.”
His expression pinched. “It doesn’t look infected.”
She bit back a sarcastic comeback. “Well, do you want to take that chance? I don’t think my dad, the police captain, would be too happy to hear you kept me from needed medical attention.”
Tainted Love Page 10