A Home for Christmas

by Vaughn, Ann

  "Not sure what's running through that head of yours right now, but whatever it is, just let it go, OK?" He was stroking his hands over her hair and neck, his thumbs stroking her jaw. He couldn't stop touching her, didn't want to stop.

  She took a deep breath and after a quick kiss, took a step back from him.

  "I'm fine. So, come on, get packing! I want to get home and get out of this dress!"

  He growled low in his throat. "I'd like to get you out of that dress, as well."

  Jenna laughed. "So, get to packing then, Sailor! I'm going to check on Cam."

  He watched her walk out, wondering again at the sadness he'd seen in her eyes. Something was going on in her mind and something told him it had more to do with him than with Wade and Cam. He just wasn't sure what was troubling her.

  ***

  Wade felt absolutely miserable. Detox sucked. He had the shakes. And worst of all, he had nothing but time on his hands. Time to think about all he'd done wrong over the last few years. He'd had a good life. He'd had a good family. He'd had a good wife, and he'd had the best son. He scrubbed his hands over his face. The fame had taken him by surprise. The women had come out of the woodwork and hey, he was a guy, who was he to resist? Except because he was weak, he'd lost the only two people who ever meant anything to him. He recognized that Jenna was lost to him now; she'd met someone and moved on, and he couldn't blame her. But Cam; he was scared to death that he'd done irreparable damage to his son. He'd blown him off time and time again so he could go get laid, or go score his next high, or gamble half his savings away. And now he owed Manny over two hundred thousand dollars. He was beyond screwed.

  He wanted to talk to Jenna. She always knew how to fix things. He'd screwed up when he'd let the fame get to him and he cheated on her. Jenna always took care of everything. She'd allowed him to follow his dreams and had made it so he didn't have to worry about anything. And like a complete moron, he threw that all away. He needed to talk to his son, too. He needed to try to salvage his relationship with him. He needed...another fix. Detox sucked!!!!!

  Rolling into a ball on his side, he clenched his eyes shut and prayed for an end to the pain.

  ***

  Richie didn't want to be going after Jenna Blackwell. Nothing about what Manny wanted him to do was sitting well with him. It wasn't that he hadn't gone after the family of those who owed Manny money before. Maybe it was time for him to get out of this business. Who knew? All he did know was that Jenna Blackwell and her kid didn't deserve to pay the price for Wade's stupidity. But, orders were orders and he had a job to do whether he liked it or not.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Jenna was getting sleepy as Riley turned into her driveway. Her eyes were drooping, but when his headlights hit the front of the house, she bolted upright in the seat. Her front door was wide open.

  "Riley!" she gasped, placing her hand on his arm.

  He parked and reached in the glove compartment for his gun, which further shocked her. She realized it shouldn't since he was a part-time member of the Springfield P.D. SWAT team, but still, seeing him pull a gun surprised her.

  "You two stay in here. Lock the doors. Do not open them for any reason for anyone other than me, you understand?"

  Wide eyed, Jenna and Cam both nodded.

  "Call 911. Tell them there has been a possible break-in and that I am on-scene and will check-in after my walk-through, OK?"

  Jenna nodded. "OK. Riley, be careful."

  He winked at her. "No worries."

  She watched him carefully walk into the house, then called 911 and reported what he'd instructed her to say. When she hung up, she turned to check on Cam, whose eyes were locked on the house, face pale, eyes wide. She reached for his hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

  "Did we leave the door unlocked, maybe?" Cam whispered.

  "We went out through the garage," Jenna replied.

  "I don't want to go inside."

  She squeezed his hand tighter. "It's going to be all right. Riley won't let anything happen, honey. He'll keep us safe."

  "But what if..."

  She stopped him. "Hush, now. We're not going to play 'what if'. If there is something to worry about, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, we're going to trust that Riley has it under control, OK?"

  Two minutes later, a car came to a screeching halt in front of the house. Jenna saw Mike exit the vehicle and rush inside.

  "Who was that?" Cam cried.

  "He's Riley's friend, Mike. It's OK, Riley probably just called him to..." She stopped when Riley came out and motioned for her to get out. "What's happened?"

  "We had Whit, one of my colleagues, watching the house. He's inside, got hit from behind. He's OK but he's going to need stitches where he got hit."

  "Oh, my God!" Jenna cried, her hand covering her mouth in shock. "Why? Why did you have someone watching the house? What's going on? What about the alarm system?"

  His eyes shifted to Cam, who was clinging to Jenna's arm, his face pale and his eyes as big as saucers.

  "Can you call your folks to come get Cam? The police are going to have to go through the house, dust for prints. It's going to be a while before you can change clothes or pack a bag."

  "I don't want to leave you," Cam said to her.

  "Honey, I know you don't, but..."

  "No, Mom! I don't want to leave you!"

  Riley stepped forward, placing his hand on Cam's shoulder. "Listen to me, bud. Someone broke into the house and trashed the place. You don't need to be here, OK? It's better if you go back to your grandparents and stay with them and your Aunt Jackie until the police clear it so your mom can pack clothes for you."

  "But..."

  "Cameron," Jenna cautioned.

  He sighed. "Fine."

  Riley squeezed his shoulder then kissed Jenna's brow as she called her parents to arrange for them to pick Cam up. When the police arrived, Riley sent them in to meet with Mike and he stayed with Jenna until her parents came and got Cam. After Cam was gone, she looked up at him.

  "How bad is it in there?"

  He shook his head. "I think it's mainly trashed because Whit got into a fight with whoever was in there. He's banged up a bit more than I wanted to say in front of Cam. Nothing bad, bad, but they grabbed one of Cam's baseball bats and did some damage to his ribs and face. There's a lot of blood, so prepare yourself, OK?"

  She nodded and allowed him to lead her inside. What greeted her had her stopping in her tracks. Her living room was in shambles. Her tree had been toppled, decorations smashed and scattered everywhere. There was blood on her furniture and all over the wood floor. Whit was sitting up and speaking to the police, but he was having difficulty with his facial injuries.

  "Hey, James," Riley greeted one of the policemen, "this is Jenna Blackwell, the homeowner."

  "Ms. Blackwell," James said, nodding to her. "We're going to need you to do a walk-thru and see if anything is missing, but I think Mr. Whitten got here before any damage could be done."

  Jenna nodded, leaning into Riley's side for support. She couldn't imagine why anyone would have broken into her home. She didn't understand why Riley had someone watching her house...but she had a feeling it had something to do with Wade. Riley held her hand and took her on a walk-thru of the house but as far as she could see, nothing was out-of-place.

  When they got back into the living room, the paramedics had arrived and were seeing to Whit, getting ready to take him to the hospital. Mike came to them, speaking in his low, soft voice.

  "Whit saw the guy go in and was in the house within a minute after the suspect entered. They engaged in here and Whit had him subdued until he was hit from behind by an unseen assailant."

  "Did he know who they were?"

  Mike shook his head. "Said they looked like muscle for someone, though."

  Jenna released a pent-up breath. "So, this has something to do with Wade?"

  "Most likely," Mike replied.

  "Because of the d
rugs?"

  Riley rubbed the back of his neck. "He's also into gambling...and over two-hundred thousand dollars in debt."

  "Oh, my God!" she cried. "So, they're coming after me now??"

  "With him in rehab, they can't get to him, so they go after his family," Mike said. "I have some feelers out there. If I can find out who he owes his money to, maybe I can call them off. My family has...shall we say, connections, to those in the sports booking business. It's only a matter of time before I find out who it is."

  She looked up at Riley. "Take me to Wade. I'll make him tell me."

  "That's not a good idea," Riley began but she held up her hand to stop him.

  "Wade is many, many things, not the least of which is easily manipulated. Take me to him, or I'll go myself."

  "All right, baby," he said, kissing her brow. "Go get changed and pack a bag for you and Cam."

  She nodded and then disappeared into her room. Riley watched her go then turned back to Mike.

  "Why would they break into her house?"

  Mike shook his head. "Doesn't make sense. Not if they're only after gambling debts. Something else is going on here."

  "I'm glad we got that security system put in," Riley said, "thanks for that."

  "Melissa is on her way to the hospital to be with Whit," Mike told him, referring to the widow of their fallen comrade, Pete "Zig" Zigler. She and Tessa ran their offices and tech department.

  Riley smiled. "Think they'll finally admit they got a thing for each other?"

  Mike shook his head. "They're still tip-toeing around Zig's ghost."

  Riley chuckled and was about to answer when Jenna's scream sent him and Mike both bolting down the hall to her room. She was on her knees on the floor, phone in her hands, tears streaming down her face.

  "Jenna? Baby? What's wrong?"

  "They got Cam! Riley!! They got Cam!!"

  He lifted her into his arms and sat with her on the bed.

  "Who has Cam? What's going on?"

  She handed him her phone. The screen showed a picture of Cam, hands bound, mouth gagged, eyes terrified. Terror like he'd never known gripped his heart, making his stomach clench. He handed the phone to Mike, who immediately did a synch with his then handed it back to Riley.

  "Jenna? Baby, you need to call your parents. You need to..." He stopped when her phone rang. The number came up as blocked. He hit answer and put it on speaker.

  "This is Riley Stanton. Who is this?"

  "Put Mrs. Blackwell on the line," the voice on the other end said.

  "I'm here. Where's my son?"

  "He's safe. For now. Wade owes us two-hundred thousand dollars."

  "That's Wade! Not me! We are divorced. We've been divorced for over five years!" she cried.

  "I understand that, Mrs. Blackwell. However, money is still owed and Wade hasn't been paying. We need to get his attention somehow."

  "So, you go after Wade! Leave my son out of this! Please! He's just a boy! I don't have the kind of money you're talking about. That's all on Wade."

  "Well, we understand that, Mrs. Blackwell, we really do. But Wade needed a little bit of motivation. So, now, he's got incentive."

  "He is in rehab!!! Let my son go!" she screamed.

  "Colt? Got a trace yet?" Mike asked quietly

  "Working on it. Keep them on the line."

  "What do you want from Jenna?" Riley asked.

  "As of now? Nothing, other than her to light a fire under Wade's ass to get us our money. He pays up, we let the kid go."

  "And who is we?" Riley asked. "Who does he owe money to?"

  "That's none of your concern, frog man. Blackwell knows who we are. Tell him he has until the end of the day tomorrow if he ever wants to see his kid again."

  "Don't you hurt my son!" Jenna screamed, but the call had already been disconnected.

  "Colt?" Mike prompted.

  "Working on it, Boss. Signal was scrambled. I've got an approximate location but nothing specific; call wasn't long enough."

  "Tell me they are still within city limits," Riley said.

  "Affirmative."

  Jenna was calling her parents, anxious when there was no answer. She tried Jackie's phone and got the same result.

  Riley called his uncle, the chief of the Springfield police department. He had units mobilized to check the roads between Jenna's house and her parents, and had units go to their house. Mike was speaking in rapid Italian on his phone, so fast Riley couldn't pick up on all that he was saying.

  "Riley?" she said when he ended his call. "What's going on?"

  "We'll get him back, Jen, I promise. Finish changing. We need to go to the rehab facility and talk to Wade."

  She shook her head. "I don't know if I can face him without wanting to kill him. Cam was taken because of something he is involved in. Riley...I swear, if anything happens to Cam..."

  He kissed her brow. "I know it's hard, but you can do this. You need to stay strong. These people, muscle for loan sharks or bookies...they usually don't have a stomach for hurting kids, OK?"

  She nodded, raking her hands through her hair. Mike left the room, still on his phone. She watched him walk out and then got off Riley's lap to go into her closet to find her shoes. She felt numb, as if this were some sort of nightmare. Someone had her son. She lifted her phone and pulled up the picture of Cam. He was so terrified; her heart broke looking at him. And what had happened to her parents and Jackie? None of them were answering their phones.

  After she pulled her shoes on and grabbed a jacket, she went in search of Riley, finding him and Mike in the living room. She crossed immediately to Riley, burying her face in his chest when he wrapped his arms around her.

  "The cops found your family. They're all fine. The guys rear-ended them. When your dad stopped, they pulled a gun, grabbed Cam and bound and gagged your folks and Jackie but left them in your dad's car on the side of the road. They're shaken up, but all fine."

  "Thank God," she breathed. "Where are they now?"

  "At the station giving their statements."

  "But, they're all OK? No one was hurt?"

  "No one was hurt," he confirmed. She nodded, tears beginning to pool in her eyes again. He pulled her to him, kissing her forehead. "It's going to be all right."

  Mike ended his phone call and gestured to the door. "I've got a line on who this could be, but we've got to get Blackwell to confirm."

  "Let's go."

  Jenna clung tight to Riley's hand on the drive into Dallas to the rehab facility where Wade was. Riley's uncle had called ahead to the facility to clear the way for them to see Wade after hours. The clinic director hadn't been pleased about it but when it was explained to her that a child was involved, she relented. They were met at the front doors and escorted to the director's office, where Wade was waiting for them.

  "What's going on?" he asked when they walked in.

  Unable to control herself, Jenna lunged at him, beating on his chest, screaming at him.

  "Who do you owe money to, you son-of-a-bitch!" she screamed. "They took Cam! They took my baby!!"

  "What? What are you talking about?" he asked, trying to dodge her fists.

  Riley allowed her to get a few good shots in before wrapping his arms around her from behind and pulling her away from Wade.

  "What the hell is she talking about?" Wade asked him.

  "Someone broke into Jenna's house tonight. She sent Cam off with her parents and someone followed them. They rear-ended Ramsay at an intersection, pulled a gun on them and took Cam, then sent a picture of him to Jenna. They say you owe them over two hundred thousand dollars. We need to know who it is, Blackwell. NOW!"

  Wade went pale, taking a step back then sitting hard in the chair he'd abandoned when they walked in, covering his face with his hands.

  "Wade?" the director asked, "Are you all right?"

  "I didn't...I don't..."

  "WHO DO YOU OWE MONEY TO?" Jenna yelled at him. "Who has Cam? Answer me, damn you, Wade! For onc
e in your life, stop being selfish and do the right thing."

  He looked up at her then, pure horror on his face. "It's, um Manny. Manny Lanzillo."

  Jenna glanced over to Riley and Mike and saw a cold, chilling smile spread across Mike's face. She felt her blood run cold at seeing that smile. In that moment, she saw a bit of the ruthlessness that had propelled him to team leader so quickly.

  "I know Manny Lanzillo," Mike told Riley. He hit a contact on his phone and held it to his ear. "Colt. Find me a number for Manny Lanzillo in Vegas."

  "On it, Boss," Colt said. "Just texted it to you."

  "Thanks."

  Riley turned Jenna in his arms and held her tight while they watched Mike dial the number that Colt sent him.

  "Manny...Mike Casiano."

  "Damn, Casiano, long time no see. How the hell are you?"

  "Cut the crap, Manny. You sent some of your guys after Wade Blackwell's family. His ex is with my friend Riley. Your guys picked up her son tonight."

  "They may have," Manny hedged.

  "They did. He's a ten-year old kid, Manny. He hasn't been a part of Wade's life for a while. I'm assuming Richie Ponticello is one of them. You call Richie and you tell him to meet me at Jenna Blackwell's home with the kid in forty-five minutes."

  "Wade Blackwell owes me money."

  "Take it up with Wade, but you release that kid now."

  "Two hundred thousand dollars, Mike. I can't just ignore that."

  "Tell you what, Manny. You keep the kid," Jenna gasped in the background but Mike ignored it, "I'll call my uncle. I think you know which one I'm talking about. He will move in on you and make your life a living hell. He'll undercut you and take all your guys and you know he will. So, what's it going to be? Let the kid go and forget all about Wade Blackwell? Or deal with Giovanni Casiono? Completely up to you."

  "That's fighting dirty, Casiano," Manny spat out.

  "Taking a ten-year old kid is fighting dirty. What's it going to be?"

  "Forty-five minutes. Jenna Blackwell's house. Richie will have him there."

  "And you will forget all about Wade Blackwell, correct?"