by Kay Maree
“Griff,” she pleads. “I can’t lose him. I can’t,” she says, her breathing starting to increase again.
Staring at me, I repeat over and over, “Breathe in. Breathe out.” Finally she settles. “Better?”
“If Ollie was here I would be, but I’m okay…ish.” She drops her gaze to the grass, lifting her head she looks to me. “Griff, what am I going to do?”
“We are going to go inside, call the police, and while you wait, I will comb the area. I won’t stop looking until we find him.”
Carla comes racing out, her face is ashen, just like Autumn’s. “Daddy is on his way pumpkin, as is the sheriff, James, Jamie, and Jason.”
“Mom,” she whimpers, she pulls away from me and walks into Carla’s outstretched arms. She wraps her arms around her daughter and the two of them cry. “How is he out? What’s happened?”
“We will know more when Jamie gets here.” Just as she says that, Jamie and Jason pull up. Jamie is on the phone and from the look on his face he is pissed off. He hangs up. “Let’s go inside,” he says, and from the tone of his voice, I don’t think I’m going to like what he has to say.
Everyone looks to Autumn, on autopilot she nods her head. Wrapping my arm around her shoulder, we follow everyone and I usher her inside. She takes a seat on the sofa, staring into space. My heart is breaking for her right now. I sit next to her but she doesn’t register I’m here.
“What’s going on, Jamie Sherwood?” Carla asks, her eyes shooting daggers at poor Jamie right now. “Why is that pin-dicked weasel out after what he did to my baby? And how in the fire-trucking hell did he get my grandson?”
“I’m still trying to find out the why to questions one and three. As for two, it seems he was released on parole two months ago. Due to a processing error, we were never advised. In saying that, he missed his last check-in with his parole officer. When he’s caught, he will be thrown straight back in jail, with the additional charge of kidnapping a minor. He’ll have go to trial for that. He’ll be convicted and I’ll make damn sure he is. I’ll be pushing for maximum sentencing this time round.”
“Ohh God,” Autumn squeals. “He took my baby.” She jumps up and heads toward the front door, she swings it open to find Howard about to open it. She looks up. “Daddy,” she wails. She wraps her arms around his waist and cries into his chest. Seeing her fall apart like that is like a knife to the heart.
“…I’m not going to stop until I find out why. I will not let him roam free, even if it means—”
“Do not finish that sentence, Jamie Sherwood,” Carla scolds him. “We will let the authorities do their job. I just don't understand how we didn’t know he was here. Has anyone seen anything suspicious?”
That’s when I remember meeting him the other day, “Ummm…” everyone turns toward me and stares. “He and I had an altercation in the park last weekend.”
Autumn’s eyes widen at my declaration. “What?” she screeches.
“A guy blindsided me and warned me to stay away. I didn’t know who it was, not until I saw him here last night with you.”
“Why didn’t you say something?” she screams, she walks toward me. “Why didn’t you tell me? If you had of told me, he wouldn’t have taken my son.” She slams her fists into my chest. “I could have protected him better.” She looks up at me and out of nowhere, she slaps my face. The crack echoing through the room. Everyone goes silent, all eyes are on us. “This is on you, Griffin,” she spits and storms away.
Stepping to go after her, Jamie grabs my arm and stops me. “Give her time. She’s emotional and not thinking rationally.”
I shake my head. “No, she’s right. I should have said something. We could have prevented this.” I silently add, If I hadn’t have joined the navy she never would have met him.
“No, Griffin,” Carla says, “No one could have stopped that man. I remember the look in his eyes during the trial. He’s deranged. He would have gotten access somehow. It was only a matter of when. All we can do now is let the police do their job.”
“Fuck that,” I scoff. “I’m going to look for him.”
Storming out the front door, I slam it in frustration behind me. Racing to my truck, I climb in. I need to find Ollie. I need to fix this. Once again, my actions have broken Autumn, maybe we aren’t meant to get our happily ever after after all.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
AUTUMN
After slapping Griffin, I stalked down the hallway into Ollie’s room. Pushing aside the screen, I lie on his bed and hug his pillow to my chest. His smell envelops me and I begin to cry again. He must be so scared. The look on his face as Avon jumped out the window was devastating; I never want to see a look like that on his little face again. A loud sob breaks free. “Ohh, baby, please be safe,” I mumble into his pillow. Curling into a ball, I cry and cry for my little boy.
A hand touches my shoulder, startling me. Rolling over, I look into the concerned eyes of Mom. “Ohh, baby,” she coos, brushing a tendril of hair off my face. She cups my cheek. “He’s a tough little boy, he’ll be fine.”
I nod my head. “I’m so scared, Mom.”
“I know, baby,” she swallows. “The police are here, we need you to come out and answer a few questions.”
Nodding my head, I sigh. Sitting up, I swing my legs over the edge of the bed and rest my elbows on my knees, lowering my head to my hands. I’m exhausted but I know I need to be strong for Ollie. Looking to Mom, I sigh, “Let’s do this.”
Standing up, she takes my hand and together we walk down the hallway and into the dining room. Taking a seat at the table, I rest my arms on the surface and look around. I notice Griffin isn’t here, and then I remember: I slapped him and said horrible things to him in the heat of the moment. “Where’s Griff?”
“He’s out looking for Ollie,” James says, as he takes the chair next to me. He reaches over and squeezes my hand in his, just like he has many times before when it comes to Avon. That touch calms me, that is until the officer starts speaking. My heart rate accelerates and with each question he asks, all the memories of what Avon did to me come crashing back. They play over and over in my mind on a loop with the added scene of him taking Ollie. The look on Ollie’s face as Avon snatched him away will be imprinted in my mind forever. It turns my stomach at the thought of what he might do to Ollie, and I race to the kitchen sink. I empty my stomach, retching and heaving. Tears pour down my cheeks as I continue to throw up. Once my stomach is empty, I slide down the cabinet door and sit on the kitchen floor and continue to cry. I can’t stop the tears, the floodgates have opened and they just won’t stop. James and Jason come and sit next to me. They each take a hand and hold tight. They let me get it all out. It reminds me of when Griffin left, we did this on many occasions when the grief of him leaving became too much.
Finally, the tears stop. Jason hops up and gets me a glass of water. I drink it down and hand it back to him.
“More?”
I nod, my gaze drifts to the dining room and I notice Mom and Dad are in there. Dad is sitting on the table, his arm around Mom, who has her head resting her head on his thigh, she staring at me. She mouths, ‘I love you’ and I smile. Dad rubs Mom’s head and I sigh. I want Griffin to hold me like that right now, but I was a bitch and blamed him, so he left. “It’s not his fault,” I mumble.
“What’s that?” Jason asks, as he hands me another glass of water.
“It’s not Griffin’s fault.”
“He knows that. We all know that.”
“I was horrible to him. I slapped him.”
“You slapped him in the heat of the moment. He’ll be fine, just like Ollie will be. They are both tough.”
I nod my head but right now, I don’t know if anything will ever be fine again.
The three of us stay seated on the floor, hours have passed by and there’s still no word from the police or Griffin. I want to be out there looking for Ollie but, like I’ve been told se
veral times, I need to be here when they find him.
The sun is starting to set and my worry is ramping up again. I’m about to tell them to fuck off and let me go search when Jamie races into the kitchen. He looks at me and declares, “Doc found him.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
GRIFFIN
I’ve been driving around for hours.
I feel helpless.
I’m worried for Autumn.
I’m scared for Ollie.
I’m a huge bundle of nerves…and I’ve been to fucking war. I’m going to lose it over a seven-year-old kid. This kid has worked his way into my heart and I would, no I will, do anything to get him back safely. I know Ollie’s a tough kid, but Avon, he’s a fucking psychopath. I’ve heard what he did to Autumn, what he really did to her. With knowing that, who knows what he’ll do to his son.
Pulling up near the park, I need to think. My mind is racing all over the place and if I’m going to save Ollie, I need a clear head. Taking a deep breath, I hold it in my lungs until my chest hurts. Letting it out, I’m now calm. Closing my eyes, I lean my head back and think; if I were a fucking psycho dickwad, where would I hide out? Then it hits me—the lake.
Pulling out of the park, I haul ass to the lake. Around the other side of the lake, there are abandoned cabins. It would be the perfect place to hide out if you don’t want to be seen. The sun it starting to set, Ollie has now been missing for almost nine hours. I will search all night; I will search for the rest of my life, if I have to. I need to find Ollie for Autumn.
I’m driving down the road that snakes alongside the lake, my eyes dart around when in the distance, I see a light illuminating a cabin on the far side of the lake. “Bingo,” I say to myself, and for the first time today, I feel like I have something.
Parking my truck, I turn off the engine, switch my phone to silent, and climb out. Quietly I close the door and make my way toward the cabin. Sneaking along the shore, I start to think I should have come along the road when the door to the cabin slams open and the dickwad himself steps out. I freeze and crouch down. “Shut up, you little fucktard,” he bellows, “She’s raising my son to be a fucking pansy,” he mumbles to himself as he lights a cigarette. He leans on the railing and I’m just about to make myself known when Ollie says something. It's muffled and I can’t hear him clearly but Avon does. He growls, “For fuck’s sake.” Kicking the railing in anger. He throws the cigarette to the ground and heads back inside.
Sneaking back to my truck, I hide behind it and call Jamie. “Jamie, it’s Griff,” I whisper, “I found him. He’s got Ollie in a cabin on the far side of the lake. I’m going to get him now.”
“Griff, no,” he says, “wait for the police.”
“I’m not leaving him with that man any longer than necessary.”
“Griffin,” he pleads again, but I hang up on him. Slipping my phone into my pocket, I grab a baseball bat out of the bed of my truck and sneak back to the cabin. Heading along the road this time, I use the trees and shrubs for cover.
Pressing myself flat against the cabin, I can hear Ollie and Avon talking. Seems Ollie has managed to calm Avon down, it's like he knows if he keeps him distracted he’ll be rescued. Popping my head up, I glance in the window and see Ollie sitting on the sofa cross-legged; Avon is sitting on a dining chair in front of him. The chair is backward and he’s straddling it. He has a beer in one hand and the other is leaning on the chair back. He seems interested in what Ollie is saying. Ollie catches me and his eyes widen, Avon turns just as I duck down.
“The fuck you looking at?” Avon snarls, the way he speaks to Ollie grating on my nerves.
“A bird flew past the window. I love birds. Did you know that twenty percent of bird species migrate long distances every year? And the chicken is the most common species of bird found in the world.”
“A chicken isn’t a bird,” Avon scoffs at him.
“Is to.”
“Is not.”
“Totally is. The official name for a chicken is the ‘Gallus gallus domesticus’ and there’s more chickens on Earth than people.”
“You’re shitting me?”
“I beep you not,” Ollie says.
“What’s with all the beeping?”
“I’m not allowed to swear, so I say beep in place of the bad word.”
While Ollie keeps Avon distracted with his random chicken facts, I sneak around the other side of the cabin. Climbing onto the private deck in front of the master, I spot the sliding doors that lead inside. Creeping over, I hope they’re unlocked and luck is on my side. I quietly slide one open. It sounds really loud and I hold my breath, but the door to the room doesn’t open. Deciding to leave it open, I sneak toward the door. I can hear them talking, Ollie is still talking about chickens. I smile. Man, I love that kid.
There’s footsteps and I can’t tell where they are going and then I hear the front door to the cabin open and close. I let out a sigh and quietly open the bedroom door. Peeking out, I see Ollie still sitting alone. His eyes widen when he sees me, “Doc,” he whispers. Lifting my finger to my lips I mimic the ‘Shhhh’ motion. He nods.
My eyes dart around the room, trying to figure a way out. We need to exit through the bedroom, so I beckon Ollie to me with my finger. He nods and stands up. With his eyes glued to the front door, he walks backward toward me. “You’re doing great, buddy,” I whisper, “A few more steps and we can get out of here.” He’s almost to me when the front door swings opens and Avon steps in. He pauses midstep when he sees Ollie and me. His face morphs into anger. A force takes over my body and I step into the room, pushing Ollie behind me. I will protect him with my life.
“Was wondering when you’d show up,” he sneers at me.
“Here I am.” I spread my arms wide, and brazenly take a step toward him. We stare each other down, I can feel the anger and desperation coming off of him. “Let Ollie go, you can have me.”
“Noooo,” Ollie wails from behind me.
“Why the fuck would I want you?” he snarls, taking another step toward me. “I want the kid and Autumn.”
“Not happening, Avon,” I say, as I reach behind me, squeezing Ollie’s arm to reassure him I’m not letting anything happen to him. Looking behind me, I want to see Ollie’s okay, and in the moment that I drop my gaze, Avon lunges toward me. Pushing Ollie to the side, I take the hit from Avon. He slams my body into the wall behind me.
Ollie steps forward and grabs Avon’s arm. “No, leave Doc alone,” he pleads, Avon reaches out and shoves Ollie aside; he falls to the floor with a thud and shuffles into the corner.
“Ollie!” I yell. This snaps Avon’s attention back to me. He swings and I duck. I swing in retaliation and my first connects with his jaw. While he’s disorientated, I lower my shoulder and ram it into his stomach, sending him flying backward onto his ass.
“You’ll pay for that, you fucker,” he snarls.
“Bring it on,” I taunt in reply. From the corner of my eye, I see blue and red lights in the distance. I need keep Avon facing me, so he doesn’t notice, but it seems my luck has run out.
“You fucking son of a bitch,” he snarls, “Calling them was a big mistake.”
“Letting you out was a big mistake.”
“It was easy to fool those assholes. I’m reformed, blah fucking blah.”
“If you give yourself up, I can help you.”
“Why the fuck would you help me? You are playing daddy to my kid and you’re fucking my wife.”
“She was never your wife.”
“But he’s my fucking kid.”
“So approach Autumn and ask to see him. You don’t kidnap him.”
“He’s my son, it isn’t kidnapping.”
“Yeah, it is.”
“What the fuck do you know, navy boy? You don’t know shit.” He steps toward me. “I’m going to tell you how it goes.” He points at Ollie, who is once again standing behind me. “You are going to give me
my son. He and I are going to walk out of here—”
“Over my dead body,” I spit at him.
“Fine by me.” He opens a drawer to his left and pulls out a gun. He walks toward Ollie and me, pointing the gun at my chest. His hands are shaking and I notice the safety is on, clearly he doesn’t know anything about weapons. He keeps walking toward us. He’s mumbling incoherently, his eyes no longer focused on Ollie and me, and I think it’s now or never. Pushing Ollie in the chest, I shout, “Run!” I leap forward, taking Avon to the ground. We land with a thud and the sound of a gunshot ricochets through the cabin and then it’s silent…dead silent.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
AUTUMN
Jamie’s car comes to a stop and when I climb out, I hear a gunshot from inside the cabin. Racing to the dwelling, I push past James and Jason, who arrived a few moments before us, and barge inside. Griffin and Avon are on the ground, my eyes look around, and that’s when I see Ollie, standing in the doorway to the bedroom.
“Ollie!” I shout, not caring about my safety. All I’m focusing on is getting to Ollie.
He looks up and when he sees me, his eyes well with tears, “Moooom,” he wails.
We race toward one another. My arms outstretched, he jumps into my embrace. His little body heaving as adrenaline courses though him, and me. He snuggles into my chest and cries. Collapsing to the floor, we both cry in each other’s arms.
A groan from next to us startles me and I notice someone pushing himself up. I panic, thinking it’s Avon, but when he lifts his head, I’m met with worried hazel eyes. “Griff,” I whisper, as he crawls over to Ollie and me. He wraps his arms around us, the three of us hugging each other tightly.
Hearing someone one cry out in agony causes my head to snap up. I see Jamie standing by Avon, his foot crushing Avon’s hand. “Oops,” he playfully says. Then there’s the smack of a boot connecting with ribs. I look up to see James as he pulls back his foot and kicks Avon in the ribs, again, garnering another groan from the dickwad. “My foot slipped,” James offers, just as the door swings open and officers file into the cabin.
