by J. E. Taylor
She narrowed her eyes and inhaled, putting on a smile that felt foreign and fake. “No, no problem.”
“That settles it.” Tom leaned down and planted a kiss on Jessica’s forehead before heading upstairs to clean up.
Daniel confirmed the appointment and hung up the phone. “I can find someone if you want me to.”
“No, Tom said he’d stay.”
“But you want him with you.”
Jessica chuckled. “I keep forgetting how well you know me.”
Daniel smiled. “You gave him the look.”
“Yeah, I did. Mind if I get some juice?”
“Go ahead.” He sipped his coffee.
“Is LeAnn coming?” Jessica poured herself a glass of orange juice.
“Yes, she always goes with me. She loves them like they were her own.”
Jessica took a deep breath and nodded. Tom never really understood what it was like to be a parent; he wasn’t around the kids enough. He certainly didn’t understand the sacrifice she made when she gave Daniel primary custody and moved to Maine.
“Sorry Jessie. I didn’t mean to rub it in.”
“You’re lucky.”
He nodded. “I know I am. I don’t know anyone who is divorced and actually still gets along with their ex either.”
“It was a very unique situation, Danny.”
“Still, you didn’t fight the divorce and were more than generous with everything.”
“I didn’t want the money.” Aris Industries had sent her a very large check for her pain and suffering and she gave it all to Daniel and the children. She wanted to start over with Tom and she couldn’t accept the money knowing it came from Ty.
“I know. But I still appreciate it. It’s made our life a hell of a lot easier.” He smiled at his ex-wife. “Does Tom know how lucky he is?”
“Yes I do,” Tom said walking into the room and wrapping his arms around Jessica. “Yes I do.” He leaned over and kissed her neck. “Mmm. Salty.”
“I need to clean up.” She wiggled out of his grasp and excused herself, leaving Tom and Daniel staring at each other.
* * * *
“You sure you don’t want to be there for Jess?” Daniel asked.
Tom’s smile faded and he turned toward the stairs. “Shit, the mirror,” he said and sprinted for the stairs, leaving Daniel’s question unanswered. He burst into the bathroom just as she stepped into the tub.
“What is it?”
He looked at the wall and her gaze followed. Her reflection stared back.
“Shit,” she said and Tom stepped in the room and closed the door behind him.
“I’ll just stay here while you shower. Okay?” He leaned against the closed door, watching the mirror with dread. Don’t know what I’ll do if he shows up, but at least I’m here.
* * * *
Stepping behind the shower curtain, she quickly washed and rinsed her body and hair, her heart pounding in her chest the entire time, leaving her mouth dry and her throat throbbing. She turned off the water and reached around the curtain to grab a towel. The rush of cold air on her wrist made her hesitate, dread wrapped its frigid hand around her heart and she took a deep breath reaching farther until the soft terry grazed her fingertips. She yanked the towel behind the curtain, her heart fluttering like a hummingbird’s wings, her airway closing, restricting the flow as the panic attack gripped her. Jessica wrapped the towel around her body and willed herself to calm down, forcing deep breaths. Slowly, she moved the curtain aside.
Tom’s blue eyes met hers, his face pale with dread etching lines in his forehead and around his tightly clamped lips. A layer of steam clouded the mirror and relief washed through her, springing tears from her eyes. The lines in his face smoothed and he crossed, wrapping his arms around her and he kissed her wet hair.
She nodded and clung to him. The mirror was starting to clear and she didn’t want to be in the room when it did. “Bedroom,” she said and gathered her things. They went into the bedroom so she could dress. He helped her with her hair by brushing it while she put moisturizer on her face. She put a dash of lipstick on and turned so he could see. “Do I look okay?” she asked, twirling her wet hair and clipping it into an easy up-do.
“You always look fantastic.”
“Thank you.” Her eyes welled with tears and she blinked them back, clearing the sudden burning from the back of her throat. “I don’t like being scared.”
He laughed. “I know. You want to be in control of everything.”
Surprised laughter burst from her lips. “I guess,” she said just before his lips found hers, shutting off the laughter.
He pulled away smiling and wrapping his arms around her tight, holding onto her for longer than he normally would. “Do you have any idea how much I love you?” he asked and released his hold on her.
“Yes, I do.” Jessica turned and headed downstairs.
Daniel and LeAnn sat at the kitchen table with Emily eating breakfast. Eric had already caught the bus to school.
“Hi angel,” Jessica said and kissed Emily on the cheek.
She turned to her mother with eyes that were bright and alert and pointed to the pile of pancakes on her plate. “I’m hungry.”
Jessica smiled at her and then up at Tom. “Tom’s going to stay here while we go to the doctor for more tests.”
“Will you stay for dinner?” Emily asked.
“Yes.” Both Jessica and Tom answered at the same time and smiled at each other.
* * * *
“So did you settle on which college you want to go to?” Jessica asked Emily on the drive to the hospital.
“No.” Emily picked at a hangnail, avoiding her mother’s eyes.
“Why not?” She glanced into the rearview mirror and caught Daniel’s warning glance.
Emily shrugged. “Just never got around to it.”
“Well, where were you accepted?”
“UConn, University of Hartford, Boston University and NYU.”
“No Yale or Harvard?”
Emily chuckled. “No, no Yale or Harvard.”
“So which one do you want to go to?”
“I kind of like the idea of going to school in New York City.”
Jessica raised her eyebrow. “Really?”
Emily nodded. “It’s also one of the top ten schools for teaching in the country.”
“You still want to be a teacher?”
“Yes.”
“Then NYU it is.”
Daniel cleared his throat and traded a glance with LeAnn and turned off the highway, navigating the roads to the large parking garage attached to the hospital.
They didn’t have to wait long before Emily was carted off for tests that included an MRI along with routine blood work.
“Jessica can I have a word with you?” LeAnn asked.
“Sure, what’s up?” Jessica replied.
“Well, I don’t want to tell you how to behave with your daughter, but,” she hesitated. “Is talking to her about a future that will never exist really a good thing?”
Jessica stepped back and looked her up and down. “Yes it is,” she said and put her hands on her hips. “Regardless of the diagnosis, people need hope. No matter how remote your chances, having something to cling to makes them possible.” She looked over at Daniel. He was looking at his feet.
“But it will make it harder for her to accept it,” LeAnn said.
“Accept what? Dying? No way!” Jessica snapped. “She shouldn’t accept it and neither should you. Enroll her in NYU. Let her live and enjoy and dream and laugh.” She took a deep breath and turned her dagger-filled gaze toward Daniel. “Let her see that you haven’t given up on her.” She stabbed her index finger in the middle of his chest and turned back to LeAnn “Don’t bury her before she’s dead.”
LeAnn stepped back, her expression falling as quickly as her jaw. “I, I, I didn’t mean to do that.” She glanced at Daniel for support but he was studying Jessica.
“If they come out here and gi
ve us the same prognosis, I expect you two to do that. To let her live and have her dreams, and show her you have hope otherwise, I swear I will take her with me,” Jessica fumed.
Daniel swallowed and nodded, breaking Jessica’s intense stare.
“Good!” She stormed off to find a bathroom.
Chapter 15
Jessica glanced in the bathroom mirror and whispered his name softly. The image shifted and Chris looked back at her in surprise holding the razor inches away from his skin.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to...” She shrugged.
He smiled at her and finished her sentence. “Call me?” He lifted his eyebrows.
She nodded.
“At least I didn’t slip.” He waved the razor and set it down out of sight. “This really is bizarre Jess.”
Smiling, she nodded again. “Yeah it is.” She knew just how off balance this peculiar manifestation of her power must be leaving him, especially in light of how weird it was for her five years ago when Eric’s little face appeared in her mirror.
“Is Emily okay?”
“She looked so much better last night after...”
“After you did your magic.”
She nodded. “They’re doing more tests today, but I think she’ll be fine.”
“I’m glad,” he said and smiled.
That smile could melt armor and her heart skipped a beat.
“Thank you.”
He inhaled, tilting his head to the side, studying her and his smile faded. “It’s the least I could do considering.”
She paused, searching his eyes for any indication of insincerity and found none. She gave a quick nod and turned to leave.
“Jess?”
She turned back to his intense gaze.
“Be safe,” he said and the image faded.
Jessica took a deep breath and walked out of the bathroom lost in thought, the seductive power of his smile seeped under her skin and she wondered how long she could fight the undeniable connection.
Chapter 16
“Jess!” Daniel waved her over. “The doctor wants to talk to us,” he said and escorted both LeAnn and Jessica into the office.
The doctor studied the MRI results side by side and scratched his head. He turned and looked at the three of them. “I’ve never seen anything like this.” He looked back at the pictures and began to explain. “This was the MRI that we took last week. You can see the tumor in her brain.” He pointed to it, a black death sentence permeating Emily’s brain. “And this is today.” He shook his head. “There is no trace of a tumor. This is a healthy brain. If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes...” He shook his head again. “This is a miracle.”
“What are you saying?” LeAnn asked.
Daniel stared at Jessica, his mouth hanging open in disbelief. “Jesus.”
“There is no trace of cancer,” the doctor said and sat down. He removed his glasses, pressing on his eyelids. “I’d like to do some more tests,” he said and opened his eyes.
“That’s not necessary,” Jessica replied and stood up. She looked over at Daniel and smiled. “I’d like to take my daughter home now.”
“I think...” LeAnn began but Daniel put a hand on her arm and shook his head.
“I think we will pass on the tests. She’s been through enough,” Daniel said.
“I’d strongly suggest some more tests to be sure,” the doctor restated.
“I agree with my ex-husband. She has been through enough,” Jessica said. “Thank you very much for taking the time to do this today.” She stood to leave.
The doctor nodded and looked back at the film hanging in his office. “Miracle,” he said as they closed the door behind them.
Chapter 17
Chris reached out and touched the mirror after her image disappeared.
“Damn.” It’s been a weird day and it isn’t even noon.
He walked out of the bathroom, picked up his keys and wallet and headed out of the hotel, making his way to the lighthouse where he took a seat on the ledge. The pungent aroma of seaweed and salt cascaded over the rocks, riding on the gentle breeze that filtered through his hair. Chris watched wave after wave crash against the rock barrier as high tide rolled in, hypnotized as much by the sound as the sun dancing along the ridge of each wave.
“What am I doing here?” Leaning back, he closed his eyes and let the midday sun warm his face.
She couldn’t really love me, not knowing everything I’ve done.
Could she?
He opened his eyes, scanning the vast Atlantic. “How long till I do something I regret?” He huffed at the spoken question, her question. A part of him already regretted coming to see her but if he hadn’t, she would have lost Emily. There were precious few times in his life where he made the right decision and this certainly qualified. It felt good to know he made a difference but he wasn’t sure how long he could keep this masquerade going. He wanted to be with her. He wanted the dream, but now he had a fucking ghost to deal with.
Chapter 18
Eric walked into the house to find Tom in the family room flipping through a photo album. “What cha doing?”
“Looking at pictures of your mom,” Tom said and closed the album, sliding it back in place on the shelf.
Eric smiled. “She takes a lot of pictures.”
“Yes she does.”
Eric watched Tom scan the shelves of albums, waiting until he turned and met his gaze. “The bad man wants to hurt her again, doesn’t he?”
Tom crossed to the couch and sat down, nodding. “I’m not sure what to do.”
Eric opened his mouth and then closed it. He was old enough to know when saying something to someone would hurt them and what almost passed over his lips would have hurt Tom very much. Tom couldn’t do anything to help his mom, only Ty could. Instead, he said, “I’m not sure either.”
“He actually...” Tom started and trailed off.
“Yes, he actually appeared in my room.”
“Why?”
“He was worried about Mom.”
“Why do you and your mom care so much about him?”
Eric thought about this for a while. He had never spoke about what happened to anyone. “Ty did a lot of bad things. When he took my mom, she was just another prisoner to him, but then things changed.” Eric paused. “He fell in love with her and I think she provided him with the redemption he was looking for.” He glanced in Tom’s direction. “He had every intention of getting her out of there when he returned with you.” Eric stopped talking for a minute and shifted on the couch. He flicked his nail a couple of times. “When Ty left, that son of a bitch hurt her really bad.” He looked up at Tom, waiting for some admonishment for swearing. When there wasn’t any, he continued. “I don’t know exactly what happened, all I know is she shut me out. I couldn’t reach her at all and I panicked. Kind of like Ty did today. So I did the next best thing. I found him and made him promise to protect her.”
“He saved both our lives, that’s why I care and I think when I fixed him I changed him more than Mom did.” Eric looked down at his hands.
“He put her in harm’s way Eric.”
Eric nodded. “I know. I understand more now than I did then.” He took a deep breath. “But he still saved her and then let her go.” He looked up at Tom. “He let you both go.”
“Is this the first time you’ve talked about this?”
Eric nodded and Tom put his arm around the boy and gave him a little squeeze.
“Your mom loves you and your sister very much.”
“I know,” Eric said. “We miss her.”
Tom leaned back and rubbed his face. “I’m sorry.”
Eric shrugged. “It’s okay. You made her feel safe.”
Chapter 19
Tom pulled out of the driveway and Jessica leaned over, planting a kiss on his cheek.
“Thank you,” she said.
“You can thank me when we get home.”
She smiled and curled up in the seat,
putting her head on his lap and he gently ran his fingers through her silky hair thinking of the conversation with Eric.
Safe. Eric said I made her feel safe. I’m not doing so hot in that department these days.
He glanced down at her, her chest rising and falling in the pattern of sleep and he sighed, concentrating on the highway in front of him.
* * * *
Tom carried her into the house and laid her on the bed, gently taking off her clothes and tucking her under the sheets. Undressing, he dumped his clothes into the hamper and headed to the bathroom without swinging the closet door closed.
When he stepped out of the bathroom, he froze in his tracks. The sheet lay crumpled at the foot of the bed and Jessica’s wrists were crossed, her arms stretched over her head and his gaze shot to the closet. More specifically, the mirror on the back of the door that now faced the bed.
Frank grinned back at him.
“Jessica!” He yelled and tried to run toward the mirror but was slammed into the seat waiting for him where his arms were bound with invisible rope, tightening painfully against his skin.
“I’m going to have a little fun with your wife, hope you don’t mind.” The ghost in the mirror laughed.
Tom turned in the direction of the bed, seeing Jessica’s wide wild eyes.
“No,” she whimpered and her skin broke out in bumps, her breath frosting the air in quick bursts of fear.
Red handprints appeared on her skin and fury filled every pore as he watched the downward progression. Burning rage shook through him, setting his heart on overdrive and he struggled against the invisible bonds holding him to the chair. Flashbacks of the brutal rape he witnessed in the complex gripped him and panic settled in his bones. “Leave her alone!”
Tears blurred his vision and frustration joined the already dangerous cocktail mix in his blood. He threw his head back, letting a guttural roar leap from his throat.
“You’re not going to call Ty like you did this morning?” Frank sneered and pushed her legs wide.
She struggled, crying against the invisible tape now covering her mouth and turned her head in Tom’s direction.