Helios Renewed

by Tawa M. Witko

  “Thank you for speaking with us and best of luck with the shop,” Ann Matthews said, shaking Andrew’s, then Jayden’s, then Connor’s hand.

  “When will this be on?” Connor asked.

  “Tonight, I got some great footage and will pull it together for the evening edition.”

  “Sweet!” Connor replied with a nod.

  The party continued for another couple of hours before the only people remaining were the guys and their immediate families. They all sat in the waiting room with the news on, waiting for their story to air. Connor was already pacing in excitement. They had seen a promo before the commercial break so they knew it would be coming on soon.

  “It’s starting,” Connor yelled, bouncing up and down.

  “Our community report today comes all the way from Bakersfield where our very own Ann Matthews is at the grand opening of,” the newscaster smiled, “a motorcycle shop. Ann, are you going Easy Rider on us?” he continued with a laugh.

  “I’m thinking about it, Joe,” she laughed into the camera. “This is Ann Matthews reporting live from AJ Cycles, where they are having their grand reopening this evening. Why does AJ Cycles sound familiar you might ask? Well, the answer is this. Just four short months ago the garage went up in flames under suspicious circumstances, causing severe injuries to co-owner Jayden Bennett, son of prominent defense attorney Elias Bennett, and destroying one of Bakersfield’s up and coming businesses. There was wide speculation that arson might have been at play with the destruction of the previous shop but that was never proven conclusively.”

  They started showing clips of the explosion and the ambulance leaving the site. They even had video from outside the hospital, zooming in on Elias who was talking on the phone. Jayden breathed in heavily as he witnessed it all. He dropped his head between his knees and wrapped his hands around his neck as Ann Matthews continued to talk about the accident.

  “Jayden, baby, it’s going to be okay,” Callie said soothingly as she rubbed his shoulders.

  Elias and Liam looked on, desperate to jump up and help but they couldn’t do that. Callie knew how to take care of their son. They watched as Jayden panted, trying to catch his breath. The whole situation made the Bennetts angry. Instead of focusing on the re-opening of the shop, they were rehashing what had happened before. Worse yet, all of the images they were showing were causing their son to have a panic attack.

  “But those days are long gone because as you can see,” Ann Matthews continued. She motioned behind her. “The shop is brand new and ready for business, and according to co-owners Jayden Bennett and Andrew Harrison; they are ready to take on anything that comes their way.”

  “Is it difficult being in here after the accident?” Ann asked Jayden.

  “No, not at all, this is our shop. No one can take that away from us.”

  “Exactly. We are here to fix and refurbish bikes. There isn’t anything the three of us can’t handle,” Andrew continued.

  “Three?” Ann questioned.

  “Yes, three, Connor, come here, man,” Jayden stated.

  “Connor has been an invaluable asset to our business and will continue to help push us forward,” Andrew added.

  “It’s good to meet you, Connor,” she stated.

  Connor stood speechless, unable to articulate anything. Ann Matthews smiled and then ignored the young mechanic, turning back to Jayden. He was the real story. After the accident, Mr. Bennett had prevented anyone from interviewing his son. The early speculation was an insurance claim gone wrong, but that was quickly dismissed, and then speculation had turned to wondering if Mr. Bennett had crossed the wrong person. That, however, was also dismissed. It all seemed too coincidental. Ann wanted to be the one to break the story and make her way to the anchors chair. She smiled that newscaster smile at Jayden.

  “Is there any truth to the speculation that the fire wasn’t an accident?”

  “Who would want to hurt a couple of mechanics?” Jayden asked begrudgingly.

  “Only a sick and demented individual would want to do that,” Andrew stated stoically.

  “So are you saying you suspect foul play?”

  “No, of course not,” Andrew said more confidently.

  “But it’s a possibility?”

  “Everything is a possibility, but honestly, who would do something like that?” Andrew asked, becoming extremely frustrated.

  “That is the big question, isn’t it?” Ann was unwilling to stop her pursuit of what she deemed the truth.

  “No, the big question is,” Jayden waved towards the shop, “when are ya coming down to have us get your bike ready to cruise this great state of ours?”

  Ann stared at him. She was stuck. She couldn’t keep pursuing the arson line of questions now that he had turned it back to the re-opening. She wondered if he had talked to his father before she got there and he told him to do that to avoid dealing with what really happened. She sighed and recovered her newscaster smile.

  “Well, there you have it, folks. In spite of questionable circumstances, AJ Cycles doors, or should I say, bays, are now back open and ready to serve you. And as I found out while here,” the camera panned to their racing friends who immediately screamed out, “AJ’s is the best bike shop in So Cal.”

  “Back to you, Joe,” Ann finished.

  Jayden was now sitting up, his leg crossed over his knee as he stared at the television. He was pissed. Not at Ann Matthews. She was a media person so he expected a bit of unscrupulous behavior. No, he was angry at himself for his reaction to the videos of the fire. He had never actually seen any of the footage and realized just now that no one ever came to talk to him. He glanced at his fathers who were watching him and he knew that they were the reason no one investigated him.

  “Are you okay?” Liam finally asked.

  Jayden breathed out heavily and nodded.

  “Well, I think you all did wonderfully,” Olivia stated. “That woman was baiting you both and you didn’t allow her to get under your skin.”

  Andrew reached for his cigarettes, but then stopped. He was trying hard not to rely on smoking to calm him down. He had always been a smoker and didn’t think he could stop, but he also didn’t want to depend on it. His fingers started tapping against his thighs as his mind started shifting. He needed to do something to stop the train of thought that wanted to emerge. That bullshit thought that always blamed him for every bad thing that ever happened and subsequently made him feel horrible.

  “Excuse me,” he finally said and stepped away.

  Madison watched Andrew dart out of the room. Aaron started to rise but Madison was already following him. She caught up to him at the mural and touched his back to let him know she was there. He turned sharply and grabbed her, pushing her against the wall. He kissed her hard, and as quickly as it started, he stopped, for he didn’t want to use sex like that either. He hesitantly rested his head on her shoulder, breathing in deeply, and trying to calm down. She immediately brought her hands into his hair and started massaging his scalp softly, knowing that this was something that had calmed him in the past.

  “None of this is your fault, Andrew.”

  He swallowed thickly but didn’t say anything. He wasn’t sure what was worse, seeing the visuals of what had happened or watching Jayden have a panic attack. In spite of what Madison said, he knew that he was partially to blame. His temper had always caused him problems, including this one. In his mind, everything bad that had happened to them stemmed from his fight with Jimmy a few years ago.

  “Let’s talk about this, Helios.”

  He still didn’t answer. Madison had been watching his reactions and knew that he was getting in his head again. He had been doing so well but anything that concerned her, Jayden, Aaron, well, any of the people he cared deeply for, rocked him to his core. But this was the first true test of what he had learned in therapy. This was a situation that involved Jayden and knowing what had happened to him. It was just the type of thing that would send him spi
raling into self-doubt and worthlessness.

  “Andrew?”

  He kissed along her neck softly, tenderly and Madison almost cried. Of course, that wasn’t new for her. The last few weeks she wanted to cry all the time. It had gotten so bad that commercials made her weepy. He finally looked up at her. His eyes were softer, calmer, as he brushed his lips against hers.

  “I’m sorry if I scared you.”

  “You don’t have anything to be sorry about. Are you okay?”

  He rested his forehead against hers as his eyes closed. “I’m trying hard not to blame myself for all of this.”

  “It’s not your fault.”

  “Old habits die hard, I guess.”

  Madison pulled him closer. “I love you so much.”

  Before Andrew could respond, they heard footsteps running. Andrew looked towards the sound and saw Connor approaching. His look was both elated and frightened. He got to them and breathed out quickly.

  “Hurry up! They made some form of announcement about Senator Bowers. I don’t know what it’s about but it’s gonna be on after the commercial. Hurry!”

  Connor turned and ran back to the waiting room. Madison and Andrew looked at one another for only a second before he grabbed her hand and they hurriedly made their way back to the waiting room as well. Neither could imagine what this was about but knew they needed to find out. They just hoped it was some form of good news, like him being arrested, but somehow neither believed that would ever happen to the slippery senator. As they entered the waiting room, the news was back on.

  “Word is starting to trickle out that Senator James Bowers, representative from Kern County, may have been involved in the unscrupulous handling of money. Documentation has leaked, indicating several instances where the Bakersfield Senator was aware of and encouraged the mishandling of moneys in his Setting the Economy Straight, also known as the STES, program. The senator has not issued a formal statement at this time, but if this is proven to be accurate, then it could cripple his bid to become California’s next governor.”

  The news then switched to several reporters following the senator down the steps of the capital building where he was attending meetings. They were asking him many questions, none of which he was answering. He looked angry as he made his way to his waiting car. Madison brought her hand to her mouth and watched. She then turned to Elias and Liam. Elias looked smug, swatting a nonexistent piece of lint off his jeans while Liam watched him with what appeared to be both pride as well as concern.

  “Did you do that, Elias?” Madison finally asked.

  Everyone turned to Elias, who looked up and smirked. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Madison,” he said casually. “However, it seems that the senator may have screwed with the wrong family.”

  “You’re not going to get in trouble are you?” Olivia asked, showing her evident concern.

  Elias opened his mouth to answer and then saw Liam out of the corner of his eye. Liam now had a look of apprehension on his face. He knew what Elias had done, and as long as Bowers was out, he feared for them and for their family. Elias took his hand in his before letting his eyes fall on everyone in the room.

  “I’m not saying anything one way or the other, but,” he paused and breathed out deeply, weighing his words carefully. “People who do bad things eventually have bad things happen to them. It’s inevitable, it’s called Karma.”

  No one said anything. They weren’t sure what to think or feel about the situation. Aaron looked around the room, seeing worry and fear on people’s faces. He understood that, as his experience with James over the years had proven that he didn’t have a caring bone in his body. He stood up to address everyone.

  “Elias is right,” Aaron stated firmly. “James has been hurting people for as long as I can remember. I’m not surprised that his son turned out the way he did. So whatever happens to him, he deserves.”

  “That man is just vile,” Callie added with anger in her eyes. “We all know he was responsible in some way for the fire. He almost killed Jayden and Connor, not to mention what happened in New York to Andrew.” She then turned to Madison. “He almost sent my best friend to prison for something she would never do. Whatever is the worst that can happen to him, it won’t be enough to make up for the pain he has caused all of us.” She then turned to Elias. “So if you did something, well, thank God because that man deserves some comeuppance. Now, let’s not talk about that awful person anymore. We have had a brilliant day and I refuse to let that piece of... of...”

  “Shit?” Madison offered with a smile.

  “Yes, shit, ruin what has been a fabulous grand reopening.”

  Jayden kissed her temple and smiled. “Yes, whatever happens, happens. He’s taken too much from us already. I won’t give him more.”

  “We can’t give that man anymore power over any of us. He’s dictated our lives for far too long and it needs to stop,” Andrew stated calmly.

  Madison squeezed his hand as the room remained quiet, contemplating the words spoken by all of them. Connor stared at everyone. He could not handle the sudden sadness in the room. He hated Senator Bowers for what he had done and for making everyone feel bad again. His lips twisted slightly as he glanced outside the waiting room. They had so much food left over. He smiled and nodded.

  “Hey, let’s finish up that strawberry cake. That was delicious,” Connor said happily, interrupting the silence.

  Everyone laughed. Andrew and Jayden both gave him smiles of approval because he had brought them all out of their funk. They all went into the bay to grab some more of the wonderful desserts they had left. As Madison watched everyone laughing and joking again, she wanted to be happy, but there was a tiny piece of her that was worried. She had the distinct impression that Senator Bowers was not done with them yet. She only hoped that whatever Elias had planned, it would send him away before he had a chance to do anything else to the people she loved.

  33 Change Happens

  Madison sat on the closed toilet seat, waiting. After looking at the calendar, she realized that technically she should have gotten her period two weeks ago. That, combined with her feeling sick all the time and being an emotional train wreck, made her believe she might already be pregnant. Something she didn’t think would happen so soon. She picked up her phone again and checked the time. She still had five minutes.

  “Madison, I’m heading out. Love you,” Andrew said from behind the door.

  “Love you, too,” she replied distractedly.

  She hadn’t told Andrew her suspicions. She didn’t want to get him excited only to find out it wasn’t true. She had decided to wait until she knew for sure, that way only she would be disappointed if it didn’t happen. She checked her phone again. Three minutes. Madison blew out a breath and dropped her head between her knees, locking her fingers together behind her neck. She was extremely nervous. She didn’t realize how much she wanted to have Andrew’s children until he said he wanted to have kids. It became so clear to her then. A little dark haired boy who looked just like his daddy, running around, happy and laughing, living the childhood his father never could. Her head darted up and she checked her phone again. She breathed in deeply and picked up the pregnancy test.

  Positive

  Her eyes widen to the size of saucers. She carefully set the pregnancy test back on the countertop. She stared at the little message, feeling her breathing escalating. Both hands slammed against her mouth to stop the squeal that was begging to come out. She found herself bouncing in place excitedly, unable to contain the onslaught of emotions she was experiencing.

  “Okay, okay, calm down, Madison.”

  Her eyes darted around the room, trying to think about what she needed to do. Suddenly, it came to her, she needed her phone. She snatched it up and hit speed dial. She pushed through the bathroom door and practically bounced down the hallway toward the kitchen. The phone only rang twice before a cheery voice picked up.

  “Can you come over?”

>   Callie screamed, “I’ll be right there.”

  Madison shook her head as she disconnected. Callie had asked her just the other day if she was pregnant and Madison had told her she didn’t believe so, but it had made her really start thinking about the possibility. When she decided not to renew her shot last month, she consulted her doctor beforehand. He had told her that it may take her time to get pregnant since she had been on birth control for so long. That apparently wasn’t the case. She chewed on her lip, unable to stop smiling. She picked up her phone again.

  “Hey, Jamie. Is Liam in yet?”

  She laughed. “Of course he is. Hold on, Madison.”

  “Hello, Madison,” Liam said, picking up the receiver.

  “I’m not feeling well today. I’m going to stay home, okay?”

  There was silence for a moment and then a chuckle.

  “What?” Madison asked.

  “Nothing. Give me a call and let me know if you will be in tomorrow.”

  “Thanks, Liam.”

  “You’re welcome. Hope you’re,” he paused, “feeling better.”

  “I’m, ummm, sure I will be. Bye, Liam.”

  Madison hung up and stared at the phone. “Okay, that was weird.”

  Madison didn’t have time to decipher it though. She looked at the coffee maker, tapping her fingers against the countertop. She was contemplating. She loved coffee, but if she was pregnant like she thought she was, then she had read that it was better to abstain from caffeine. Of course, she had coffee yesterday, but, yesterday she didn’t know she was pregnant. With purpose, she reached into the cupboard and pulled out the tea pot.

  “Tea, at least for today,” she said to her coffee maker.