Penance (Oak Grove Suspense Book 2)

by Reese A. Stephens

  She freezes and her shoulders tighten. We’ve been talking about having another child for a few months now, so I know this isn’t a surprise to her. Her physical response is not what I expected. She turns to me with worry etched on her face.

  “I don’t think I’m ready.”

  My eyebrows pinch together in confusion. “Shay, it was your idea.”

  “I know, but with Jason still out there.” She looks down for a moment before continuing. “I just can’t have a baby knowing that he’s so close. What if he comes for me?” she looks up at me and I can see her fear. “I just can’t take that stress right now.”

  I pull her to me and try to reign in my frustration. I hate it when she calls him ‘Jason,’ like he’s some kind of family friend. She has a very strange relationship with him. It’s like when she’s with him they’re almost, I hate to say it, friends. The therapist said it was common for people held in captivity to form a bond with their captors, Stockholm Syndrome I think she called it. She also said that Stockholm combined with Shayla being a doctor and having helped him medically enhanced her connection to him, but I’m not so sure about all of that. I honestly worry about how she’ll react to him if he does somehow get to her again.

  “Baby, I’m doing my best to find him,” I say as I kiss the top of her head. “But we can’t put our lives on hold for him.”

  “I know, but what if …” she pulls away from me and I can see the panic in her eyes. “Ryan, what if he comes back and somehow gets me? What if he hurts the baby or the stress causes me to lose…” she shutters. “I just can’t. Please, can we wait?”

  “Whatever you want, Shayla. Always. Of course we can wait.” I pull her into my arms again and kiss her softly. “We’ll wait. I’ll find him as soon as I can. Please, try not to worry.”

  “I can’t promise I won’t, but I’ll try.”

  “That’s all I ask and when this is all over, we’ll fill this house with dozens of babies if you want.”

  She giggled. “I don’t know about that, but a couple more would be nice.”

  “Whatever you want, baby. I mean that.”

  She looks up at me with her beautiful blue eyes. “But what do you want?”

  “That is what I want. I love our children and I’ll help you create as many as you want or just love the two we have with everything I am. I just want you to have the life you’ve always deserved. Doing that will give me everything I’ve ever dreamed of and that’s all I want.”

  “You’re kind of perfect, you know that?”

  “Far from it,” I say with a laugh. “But as long as you think that, I’m happy.”

  I kiss her until we’re forced to finish getting ready for our days. Hannah and I walk her out to her car to say goodbye. I detest that she has to work so much and I know she does too, but this is the life we lead. We deal with it the best we can. I turn to my daughter.

  “All right, baby girl. Let’s get you over to Maw.”

  “Maw!” she squeals.

  She loves her maw, which is easy to do. She has a love for her grandchildren that would put many to shame. Both our children and Faith for that matter, adore Gail. I gather all of Hannah’s things and get her over there. Gail opens her door to a happy and eager baby girl. Once I’ve handed my squirmy daughter over to her grandmother, I head to the station.

  The station is a little busier today than most mornings. There was an accident involving a school bus. Thankfully no children were hurt, but the bus driver and driver of the car were injured. Shayla was passing by on her way and stopped to help, but let me know everything was okay. My men had it covered, so I headed in to the station to start going over the information Jessica was able to uncover on Grant McMann. I’m completely immersed in the research when May buzzes me to say Judson is here with a friend. I assume it’s my sister, so I have her send them in.

  “Morning, Ryan,” Judson says as he steps through my door. He then turns and pulls Grant McMann in by the arm, giving him a push to sit in one of the chairs in front of my desk.

  “Good morning, what brings the two of you by?”

  “Grant has quite a bit to tell you.” Judson waves to Grant

  Huffing, Grant readjusts himself in the chair then says, “I’m the reason Judson’s family is dead and I’m the reason he’s being framed for murder.”

  Well, that makes my research a lot easier. “Why do you think that, Mr. McMann?”

  Grant sits up in the chair again and then leans forward putting his elbows on his knees and scrubbing his face with his hands. He looks up at me. “I stole money from the company to pay off a gambling debt.”

  “What does that have to do with Judson’s wife and children dying or the murder of Mr. Clark?”

  “I couldn’t stop gambling,” he answers with a sigh. “Shan tried to get me to quit. She even threatened to tell Judson everything, even if it meant exposing our relationship and the children. But I was in too deep, owed too much.”

  “Why would it have exposed the children?”

  “They’re mine, not Jud’s.”

  It looks like Jud was right about this guy. I don’t know how he didn’t kill him because if it were me, I probably would have beaten the crap out of him. I look over at Judson and I can see the grief on his face. This poor guy can’t catch a break. I turn back to Grant and narrow my eyes.

  “How does that connect to the fire or the murder?”

  “They threatened to take Shannon and the kids if I didn’t give them the fifty-thousand that I owed them.” He leans back and looks away. “I had a business trip with Judson and I led them to believe that we’d be getting a lot of money up front out of the deal.”

  Judson takes a deep breath and glares at Grant. “You didn’t tell me that last night! If you had told me back then, I would’ve given you the money if it would have saved my family!” He stands and starts pacing the room, pulling at his hair.

  “I’m sorry,” Grant says feebly.

  “Don’t.” Judson stops pacing and I wonder briefly if he’s going to hit him. “I don’t want your apology. I don’t want anything from you except my daughter alive and well, and you to rot in jail!”

  I look up at Judson startled. “Daughter?”

  “Josie isn’t dead,” Judson says, turning to me. “They’ve been holding her hostage to use Grant as they’ve seen fit.”

  “Who has her?” I ask Grant firmly.

  “I’m not exactly sure.” Grant fidgets in his seat. “I know that Lyon is the collector, but there’s someone over him. There have been times that I’ve overheard him getting reamed over the phone by someone.”

  “Did he say a name?”

  Grant shakes his head. “No, they all call him Boss.”

  “Are you sure that Boss is a man?” Grant shakes his head again. “Okay, what about Josie? How have they used her against you?”

  “The original plan was they’d hold all three of them hostage until they got the money, but Shan fought the guys. In the shuffle, something fell and the fire started. It was made worse by her oil lamps. From what they told me, they tried to get the kids out safely, but it was too late. That’s all they’d say.”

  “Do they have Josie now?”

  Jud hands me his phone with a picture of a little blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl swinging on a playground set. She looks content but not really happy. This is a nightmare. I can’t believe his friend did this to him. Grant shifts in his chair as I hand the phone back to Jud.

  “They said she’s going to be adopted by the couple they placed her with unless I paid what I owed them,” Grant answers and looks down defeated. “I couldn’t pay them, so as far as I know the people have already adopted her.”

  “I don’t understand why that was considered that big of a threat,” I ask confused. “Judson already thought she was dead. If this family is good to her, why would that be a punishment for you?”

  “They knew I loved the kids and Shan,” he wipes at his eyes. “Josie was the last link I had to Shan
. I begged them not to hurt her, to let me bring her back.”

  I glance at Jud who looks like he is holding on to his anger by a tiny thread that’s about to break. Before I can ask another question, Grant starts speaking again.

  “Lyon said several times that he didn’t want the kids hurt. He said that he was a horrible man, not a monster, and kids were off limits. They thought that keeping Josie away from me, threatening me with never knowing about her or seeing her was enough. I did pay them as much as I could, but Clay took over the accounting and other than shorting Jud’s cut, I couldn’t do much more.”

  “How did you short him?” This guy is a piece of work. He doesn’t truly seem to care about anyone but himself.

  “I deposited his check, since his bank was in Brantsville. I always got cash back. He never noticed.”

  Judson grunts. “I never mess with that account. I had no idea.”

  “So why murder Ralph Clark?”

  Grant rubs the back of his head. “I owe over two-hundred thousand dollars.”

  “For crying out loud, Grant!” Judson cries, sitting down roughly on the sofa against the wall in my office.

  “I know. I get it. I’ve screwed up everything. I have no idea why they killed Ralph. I didn’t know anything about it. All I know is that they told me Judson was next.”

  “Ralph was your warning?”

  “I guess.”

  “Did you help kill or move his body?” I ask.

  Grant is visibly flustered as he pulls on his hair and closes his eyes to calm himself. “I told you. No, I didn’t have anything to do with him.”

  “Was the alibi you gave yesterday the whole truth?”

  Grant nods. “Yes, I was with my family.”

  I shake my head considering all this information. I got the same story from his parents yesterday and a couple of people saw him locally, not to mention the traffic camera. Big cities have their uses. One thing is certain, I will be arresting Grant, at least for the embezzling, but I’m not so sure I’ll be able to hold him long on this evidence, especially if Judson doesn’t press charges.

  “The fact is, Grant, that you still embezzled company funds and stole from Judson personally. I’m going to have to hold you on that.”

  “I get it. I figured as much.” Grant seems almost relieved.

  I look up to Judson. “Do you want to press charges against him?”

  Judson stares at me for a few seconds and then down at his hands. “You know, I’ve wanted nothing more for the past twenty-four hours than to see him rot in jail for what he’s done, but I just don’t think I can actually press charges against him. Even if he misused funds from the company, it’s his company too. Our taxes and everything have always been in order. I don’t know what embezzling charges consist of, but I won’t be the reason he’s in jail.”

  “I believe this goes farther than embezzling,” I say, looking between the two of them. “That combined with being a suspect in the murder, I can and will hold him. Besides, I think for his own safety, it would be better if I arrested him on embezzling charges. You have proof and he’s admitted to doing it, so we can go with that for now.”

  “I agree,” Grant says softly. “I’d be a lot safer in jail. I’ll help anyway I can.”

  I stand, pull out my handcuffs, and motion for Grant to rise. “Grant McMann, you’re under arrest for embezzling company funds. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you. Do you understand the rights I have just read to you?”

  “I’m good.”

  “I need you to tell me you understand these rights.”

  “Yeah, I understand,” he states solemnly.

  I click the handcuffs on him and lead him out the door; ironically to the same cell were I held Judson just a week before. He says nothing as I leave and head back to my office to talk to Judson. I find him lying on the sofa in my office, staring at the ceiling when I get back.

  “Are you okay?”

  He shakes his head. “What am I going to do about my daughter? If someone adopted her, how will I get her back? I’m not even her blood.”

  “No, but you’re on her birth certificate and you are the only father she knows. Besides, she was kidnapped, any adoption would be null and void.”

  “I hope you’re right,” he says sitting up. “What are you going to do about Lyon?”

  “Well, we’re going to investigate him further.” I come around my desk and take a seat. “I’m going to call my buddy in the FBI, there may already be a case against him, or at the very least, suspicion of him.”

  “I’ll do whatever you need me to do.”

  “Thanks. Why don’t you go home and rest; I’ll do what I can and keep you informed.” My phone rings before he can respond. “Hello?”

  “Ry, where’s Judson? I went by his house last night, but he was acting strangely and wouldn’t let me in. I’m really worried about him.”

  “He’s fine, Laney. There’s just a lot going on with this case. Why don’t you just give him some time to breathe?”

  Judson looks up at me with wide eyes. I gesture to the phone silently asking him if he wants to talk to her. He shakes his head frantically and I nod my understanding.

  “Why don’t you come over to my house and help me with Hannah tonight. Shay is working a double, which is more like a triple.”

  “Okay, but will you at least tell him I’m here for him. I hate seeing him like this. He’s shutting me out again. I can feel it.”

  “Just give it time, Lane.”

  She scoffs. “Yeah. Time.”

  “Go ahead and get Han whenever you want. We’ll go to Dylan’s game tonight.”

  I hear her sigh. “All right. I’ll go over there in an hour. I’ll see you soon. Can we get dinner too?”

  “Sure.” I say. A few moments later, we hang up. I give Judson a questioning look.

  “I can’t do this with her right now,” he says determinedly. “I can’t be the reason someone else dies.”

  “I get it, but sometimes you need someone to help you through these tough spots. I’m not saying that because she’s my sister. I just don't know what I’d do without Shayla. She helps me in ways I can’t even explain.”

  “I understand, Ryan, I really do, but I can’t right now. I need to process this on my own. She’s so … overwhelming.”

  I laugh. I don’t mean to, but I do. “Judson, you can say it. She’s my sister and I know her. She’s a pain and she can be a nagger, but trust me, she means well.”

  “I know she does and I want her in my life, but right now, I can’t risk something happening to her.”

  I nod. “I understand that, but honestly I don’t think she will.”

  I didn’t realize it until I came back to town and was around Judson a little more, but I know with all certainty that my sister loves this man beyond the point of reason, just like I love Shayla. It is going to kill her if he rejects her, but I do understand. He has a lot to process.

  “I know she won’t. She’s so sweet and kind, and I know … I know she loves me, even though that’s hard for me to admit. That’s why I can’t do this with her right now. Once Lyon and his people find out Grant is in jail, what’s going to stop them from coming after me or the people I care about? I refuse to put her in danger.”

  “If they’ve been watching you, it may already be too late,” I note. “I’ll have her followed, but I don’t know how much she’ll listen to me. If she knows you could be in trouble, she’ll be right there with you. That’s just who she is.”

  He rubs his hands over his face and I can see the struggle he’s going through. He looks up at me almost defeated. “I don’t want to hurt her, but I’d rather hurt her than have something horrible happen to her because of me.”

  “The one thing I’ve learned from all that Shayla and I have been through, is that having someone you care about
isn’t a bad thing. Shayla’s my rock. Don’t get me wrong; I’m not saying you need to feel that way about my sister, but I’ve seen you guys together and there’s definitely something there.”

  “You’re right, there is, but I just can’t focus on that now.”

  “Well, focus on what you can and take care of yourself. I’ll take care of my sister.”

  “Do you need anything else from me?”

  “No, but I’ll let you know if I do. I have some phone calls to make. I need to see what we’ll be able to do to keep Grant here as long as possible. I’m sure once he calls an attorney, they’ll get him out rather quickly.”

  “He’s probably safer here so I doubt he’ll call someone. No matter how angry I am with him, I don’t want to see him hurt.”

  “I’ll get to the bottom of all of this.”

  “I’m sure you will,” he says as he walks to the door and leaves.

  After he’s out of earshot, I pick up my phone and call Marsh. “Marsh, I need to talk to you.”

  “Ryan! I was going to call you this evening. I got the promotion.”

  I smile. “That’s awesome, man. Congrats.”

  He had put in for a promotion almost a year ago and hadn’t heard anything yet. Marsh has lived in Seattle for a long time, but wanted to get closer to his family on the East Coast. I’m really happy for him. I know this is what he wanted.

  “Do you know where you’ll be?”

  “Yeah, I’ll be out of DC, in the white collar division, but I’ll get to travel.”

  “That’s kind of perfect.”

  “Thanks, so what was it you were calling me about?”

  “I wanted to find out what you knew about Richard Lyon. He’s a suspected loan shark with some sketchy night clubs and bars. I think he’s connected to the case I’m working.”

  “That name sounds familiar. Is he in Brantsville?”

  “Yep. He has some businesses further south in Tennessee as well.” I’m kind of surprised he’s heard of him.

  “Oh, okay, well that may actually work for me. I requested to be in the division that covers the Tennessee, Kentucky, and West Virginia areas. They don’t have many folks volunteer for that area, so I should get it.”