An Act of Redemption

by K. C. Lynn

  “Come on, Ma, don’t cry,” I say, my own voice hoarse as I pat her back awkwardly. “We can’t change the past but we can move forward, so let’s just focus on that. It will take some time but it’ll work out.”

  Looking up, she gives me a sad smile before taking my face between her warm hands. “You are such a good boy, you always have been, and I can’t take any credit for it. On the nights when you would come home late from working so hard, and I’d be passed out on the couch from drinking my guilt away, you would pick me up and carry me to my bed. I would lie there all night wondering how you could be so honorable when you had no role models. After all this time I’ve realized it’s just who you are. God graced you with courage, strength and honor. I might not be able to take credit for it, but I want you to know how proud I am of you, Logan. I promise to show you every day how much I love you. I won’t ever take you for granted again.”

  I stare at her uncomfortably, not really sure how to take her affection because it’s something I’ve never received from her before. I’ve always known she loves me, but just couldn’t express it, until now.

  “Thanks,” I mumble.

  With a lighter smile she pats my cheek before releasing my face. “So tell me, what’s going on with you? Janey told me what little information she had about you being released early, something I’m incredibly happy about, but I’m told you can’t talk about it?”

  “I’m sorry, but I can’t. Not yet.”

  “Fair enough, just as long as you’re okay.”

  “I’m okay.”

  “Then tell me something else, tell me about Anna,” she adds with a smile. “You have seen her, yes?”

  “Yeah, she’s a part of my life. She always will be.”

  Her smile spreads at my admission. “I’m glad to hear that. She’s a special girl and I know she hurt so much when you were gone. I hope one day she can forgive me, too,” she adds quietly.

  “Don’t worry, Ma, she already has. She’s too good of a person to hold onto grudges.”

  “She’s lucky to have you.”

  I shake my head. “I’m the lucky one.”

  “She is everything you deserve, Logan, and don’t ever think different. You two are perfect for each other. I’ve always known that, even back in the day I saw how much you cared for each other.”

  “I didn’t care for her, I loved her then and I never stopped. I’m going to marry her.”

  She gasps. “You’re getting married?”

  “Well, one day, I haven’t proposed yet but I plan to.”

  After I figure out how the hell I can fix my life and be someone she can be proud of.

  The unwanted thought has me frowning.

  “Oh my gosh.” She squeals, clapping her hands. “That makes me so happy. I want grandbabies. Lots of them.”

  Her words bring on a wave of panic. “Whoa, hold up, don’t be getting too ahead of yourself. Anna is just finishing up college and there’s lots of things that need to be dealt with before anything like that.”

  “I didn’t mean right away.” She chuckles. “I want them from both my kids when the time is right. Janey is dating a nice boy right now and it seems pretty serious.”

  I tense. “What? For how long? She hasn’t said anything to me about it.”

  She shrugs. “She probably wanted to wait until you were done dealing with whatever it is you’re doing. He’s a very nice boy, he treats her good.”

  He fucking better or I’ll kick his ass.

  “You’ll like him,” she says, trying to reassure me.

  I grunt. “I don’t know about that, but if he’s good to her I’ll tolerate him.”

  She chuckles again. “He’s very good to her. She’s really happy.”

  “I’m glad.” A moment of silence settles between us. I glance at my watch for the time and see it’s getting late. “I better get going. I’m meeting Anna at Jaxson’s for a barbecue.”

  “Oh, of course, don’t let me keep you.” We both stand and she watches me hesitantly. “Will you come back? Some other time when you’re not busy?”

  “Yeah, Ma, I’ll come back.”

  “Maybe you can bring Anna and stay for supper,” she suggests, hopefully. “I’ve actually become a pretty good cook.”

  “I’d like that.”

  A radiant smile takes over her face before she walks over and wraps her arms around my waist, squeezing the life out of me. “I love you, Logan, so much.”

  “I know. I love you, too,” I reply quietly. With a nod she steps back and I see she’s crying again. Fuck, I hate that. “I’ll come back soon. I promise.”

  She waves me away. “I know. Never mind me, I’m just being emotional. Go on now.” I hesitate, not wanting to leave her when she’s so upset. “Go on, Logan. Go to Anna. I promise I’ll be okay. I can take care of myself.”

  I nod. “All right, see you soon.”

  “Bye.”

  I walk to my truck, feeling a hell of a lot lighter than when I came, and make my way back to Charleston.

  Back to my Anna.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  Logan

  The sky is grey and gloomy as I pull up to Jaxson and Julia’s a couple of hours later. The wind roars something fierce with the impending storm. As I exit the truck I hear a commotion coming from the back of the house. I make my way to the backyard to see everyone frantically trying to move stuff inside. The kids run around like banshees, the little girls laughing as their hair and dresses whip in the crazy wind while the boys chase after them.

  “Everyone, take cover. It’s a tornado!” Parker yells, waving his hands in the air, trying to scare the girls.

  “Parker, that’s enough,” Grace scolds from the patio. “It’s not a tornado, now get in the house. All of ya.”

  They all switch direction and run to the house, following her order. Annabelle is at the end of the pack. She trips and lands on her stomach, but no one sees her since they’re moving everything inside.

  I rush over and kneel down beside her. “You okay, Annabelle?” I shout to be heard over the wind. She looks up at me, her small face pinched with pain as her ice blue eyes hold back tears. “Want me to help you inside?” I ask, when she doesn’t respond. At her nod I lift her in my arms. A loud crack of thunder booms through the air. I start running, fearing for heavy rain to start at any moment. Annabelle squeals with laughter and hides her face in the crook of my neck as I bolt through the back door.

  “Logan, hi,” Julia greets me with a smile, but concern quickly darkens her expression as she takes notice of her daughter in my arms. “What happened?” she asks, rushing over to us.

  “I showed up when all the kids were running inside and saw Annabelle slip so I helped her up.”

  “I’m all right, Mama, thanks to Logan,” she assures with a bright smile, before leaning over and giving me a sloppy kiss on the cheek. “Thanks for savin’ my life.”

  “Uh…you’re welcome,” I mumble uncomfortably as I pass her over to Julia.

  The rest of the group all pile around to say hi. The entire gang is here, including Sarge and Bandit. Even Christopher is amongst them. I haven’t seen him since before the arrest and his career path of joining the Navy. He’s a hell of a lot bigger than I remember him but otherwise looks pretty much the same. Although Cade would never admit it, you can hear the pride in his voice when he talks about him at the gym. Apparently, the guys have trained him to be quite the machine.

  I return their greeting and Christopher’s nod, but my gaze quickly scans the room looking for one person only. I finally spot her at the entrance of the kitchen, watching me with her smile that always reminds me that the world is fucking awesome, mainly because she exists in it.

  I weave through the crowded bodies and make my way to my girl… My Anna. Picking her up around the waist, I walk around the corner for some privacy and kiss her like I’ve been dying to since leaving her this morning. “Hey, baby,” I mumble against her lips.

  “Mmmm, hi,” s
he replies softly before pulling back, her warm eyes penetrating mine. “That was nice of you to save Annabelle’s life. I’m glad you made it to her in time.”

  I smirk. “It was a close call for sure.”

  I’m rewarded with one of her sweet giggles that always does funny shit to my chest. “Did you work out whatever it was you set out to do today?” she asks, quietly.

  “Yeah, I did.”

  “Good.” Her tone is light but her smile dims.

  I sense the question she doesn’t ask. “I went to see my mom.”

  Her eyes widen in shock. “You did?”

  “Yeah, it was time.”

  “I would have gone with you. You didn’t need to go alone.”

  “I know, but it was something I had to do on my own.”

  She nods in understanding. “And how did it go?”

  “It went well, I think. Better than I expected.”

  Her smile reappears. “I’m glad.”

  “She wants us to come for supper soon and I told her we would. I need to scope out this asshole Janey’s dating.”

  “His name is Ben. He sounds nice and she really likes him.”

  A scowl forms on my face. “What the fuck? You know, too? Am I the only one who didn’t?”

  She shrugs. “I guess so. They’ve been dating for a while now, close to six months.”

  “Jesus,” I murmur in annoyance. Why the hell wouldn’t Janey tell me?

  “He sounds very nice. I’m excited to meet him.”

  I grunt, which makes her laugh. Before she can say anything, the kids round the corner. “Ohhh, love birds,” Annabelle coos. “It’s time to eat and Daddy says you better come out from around the corner or Logan is going to get his…butt kicked. Well, he said ass but I’m not allowed to say that word.”

  Anna throws her head back and laughs, finding the entire situation amusing. I, on the other hand, don’t. That guy is always interrupting my time with her.

  With a hard kiss on the lips, she pushes against my chest, giving me no other option but to let her down. “Well then, we best get movin’.” Taking my hand, Anna pulls me behind her as we follow the kids into the kitchen. Jaxson is glaring at us as we walk in. I glare right back, letting him know I didn’t appreciate his message. Anna gives his shoulder a playful shove as she walks by him. “Stop threatening my man to your daughter.”

  “Then stop hiding around corners in my house.”

  She rolls her eyes. “Fine, next time I’ll kiss him in front of you. A great big kiss that lasts a long time.” His scowl furrows further at her smart-ass comment, making her and the rest of the girls laugh.

  “Knock it off, Jax,” Julia berates lightly.

  “Yeah, man, you better watch yourself. Knight has almost bested you a few times in that ring,” Evans tosses out with a shit-eating grin.

  Jaxson grunts at the bullshit response, mainly because we all know I’m good but not that good. I will probably never beat that fucker in the ring, or any of them for that matter.

  Assholes.

  “All right, everyone take a seat, supper’s ready,” Julia says, carrying a salad to the table.

  Anna tugs on my hand again, bringing me to sit between her and Annabelle as everyone else takes their seats. It’s just now I realize Cooper is missing. “Where’s Cooper?”

  “He got a call. It sounds like he won’t be back until early morning,” Kayla informs me, regretfully.

  “Yeah, he’s busy locking up bad guys,” Beckett adds, which brings a smile to Kayla’s face.

  “I’m sorry Grams couldn’t join us either. It’s been a while since I’ve seen her,” Anna says, as she dishes her plate.

  “I know, but this cold she has is quite the doozy and she didn’t want to chance the kids getting sick. I’m glad Christopher could join us though,” Julia comments with a warm smile before looking over at him. “It feels like forever since we’ve seen you.”

  Faith leans over and kisses his cheek. “It was the best surprise I could have gotten today.”

  Ruthie leans over the other side of him and wraps her arms around his neck. “It sure was. We missed our Twistiphwor,” she says, purposefully pronouncing his name how she always used to say it when she was younger, and gives him a giant kiss of her own.

  He shifts uncomfortably at their affection but there’s no denying how much he cares about them.

  “How long are you back for?” Jaxson asks, breaking up the awkward moment.

  “Probably only a week or so.”

  “Really? After such a long stretch? Usually you get to stay home a little longer than that,” Sawyer remarks.

  He shrugs. “I volunteered to go out sooner. A guy from Team Eight just had a baby so I’m going in his place.”

  “Well, I’m going to make sure this week is packed full then,” Faith says. “We’ll go to the music festival in Charleston, visit my parents and Papa. Oh, and we better have a birthday supper for you in case you aren’t back for it.”

  “It’s okay, I don’t need a supper,” he says, seeming less than enthused about the idea.

  She looks up at him, hurt evident in her gaze. “Oh, okay then. Sure, that’s fine.”

  His hard expression weakens. Cade clears his throat, shooting a hard look his way. “Okay.” Christopher relents. “A supper would be good, but just something small, okay?”

  Faith beams at him, all hurt feelings gone. “Of course, very small. I promise.”

  A bunch of grunts sound around the table, no one believing her, but she doesn’t let it dim her smile.

  A comfortable silence falls over the table and that’s when we hear a strange slurping sound. “Hey.” Jaxson points at Sarge. “You better not be feeding that damn dog under my table.”

  “I’m not!” Sarge shoots defensively.

  “I am, Daddy,” Annabelle admits happily. “Bandit’s gotta eat, too.”

  Sarge reaches over with a smile and pats her head. “Good girl.” He glowers over at Jaxson. “I see your daughter takes after your wife. She has better manners than you.”

  All of us chuckle at the expression on Jaxson’s face. Julia bites back a smile and leans over to kiss his cheek. “She’s right, Bandit has to eat, too.”

  “I tell you what, baby girl,” he says to Annabelle, “I’m going to make you sleep with that dog tonight and we’ll see if you ever feed it table scraps again.”

  “Sorry, Daddy, but I can’t. I’m sleeping at Hope’s tonight.”

  “Since when?” Julia asks.

  Hope looks over at Grace. “Mama, can Annabelle sleep over tonight?”

  Grace laughs. “As long as it’s okay with her parents.”

  Annabelle looks over at Jaxson and Julia, her hands clasped together under her chin. “Please, please, please,” she pleads hopefully. “We wanna have a slumber party.”

  “As long as you take the dog with you,” Jaxson says with a smirk, glancing at Sawyer.

  Sawyer shuts down the idea fast. “Hell no, that stinky bast…dog is not coming to my house.”

  “Well he doesn’t want to anyway. He thinks y’all are a bunch of stinky bastards!” Sarge snaps, making Anna giggle. “Now quit picking on my dog.”

  “Come on, Daddy, please!” Annabelle begs again.

  “Fine,” Jaxson grumbles.

  “YES!” Both girls squeal and clap their hands excitedly.

  “Then I’m sleeping at Beckett’s,” Parker declares.

  “Parker,” Grace snaps under her breath, “you don’t just invite yourself to someone’s house. It’s rude.”

  “It’s fine,” Kayla says. “You know he’s always welcome.”

  “Good, because I’m not being stuck with a bunch of girls.”

  Sawyer looks over at Grace, disappointment evident on his expression. “It’s times like these where I wonder if he’s really my child.”

  Laughter erupts around the table as Grace slaps his shoulder. “Whatever, Evans, that boy is all yours and you know it. I’m terrified for when he
gets older.”

  He slings an arm around her shoulders with a chuckle. “Don’t be scared, Cupcake. Just be happy that God blessed you with all this perfection.”

  She rolls her eyes, a smile twitching her lips.

  All talk ceases as we hear a bunch of motorcycles approaching the house, coming up the driveway.

  “What the hell?” Jaxson mutters. I see something flicker in his eyes, a silent panic, just before the world explodes around us.

  My reaction is lightning quick. I take Anna to the ground, shielding her body with mine. Screams of terror fill the air as glass shatters and gunfire erupts through the house. Within seconds everything stills, only the sound of the kids crying and Bandit growling can be heard.

  Adrenaline pumps through my veins, my heart hammering, as I comprehend what the fuck just happened. I glance up to see everyone on the floor, all the guys on top of their women and kids.

  “Is everyone okay?” Jaxson whispers, looking around. “Kayla, where are you?”

  “She’s with me,” Christopher replies, from somewhere behind me.

  “Jax?” Julia’s voice trembles. “What’s happening?”

  My gaze meets Jaxson’s, a stone-cold fury lighting his eyes. “Everyone just stay where you are.” He listens for further movement before maneuvering around the counter and shutting off the kitchen lights. A moment later he returns with a handgun he obviously had stashed somewhere.

  “Daddy, I’m scared.” Hope whimpers.

  “Shh, it’s all right, baby, I’ve got you,” Sawyer assures her.

  The sound of several boots crunch on gravel. “Sorry to interrupt like this,” a deep voice calls from outside. “But you have someone in there that we need. I’m hoping you’ll cooperate and send out Logan Knight for us before any more damage is done to your home and family.”

  Fuck! I hang my head, guilt plaguing me. Anna’s hand fists my shirt in fear.

  Jaxson glances at Christopher, his expression harder than I’ve ever seen it. “Take everyone upstairs to my room, I have a case in the closet, code two-five-five-four-three. Keep eyes on the window, don’t shoot unless you have to or until we tell you to, got it?” He nods. Jaxson reaches for his phone and hands it to Julia. “Call the police when you’re up there and keep everyone in the bathroom. Don’t come out until one of us tells you it’s okay.”