She took his hand in hers and began playing with his fingers. Andrew sat there dumbfounded. He never even considered that she would need to go back to New York. He had been so wrapped up in her that he hadn’t considered the possibility that she would leave. But now she was saying she was staying. His heart leapt at that as he could only imagine the hell his life would be without her.
“Andrew, you okay?”
“Yes, I guess I just never thought you might leave. I don’t know why. I should have.” He furrowed his brows. “You’re really going to quit your job?”
She shrugged. “Yeah. I am still on leave so I will give them notice next month. I’ll have to see about putting my stuff in storage and see if I can buy my way out of my lease. My mom will be pissed, so that’s kind of a bonus.” Madison grinned and then her lips twisted to the side as she contemplated out loud the things she would need to do.
Andrew watched her, faced with the stark realization that she had a life in New York. She had a home and a job, probably friends and also her mother. She was giving all of that up for him, yet what did he have to offer her in return? He couldn’t find work, in town or anywhere else. He couldn’t even rent an apartment because people would deny him based on his sex offender status.
“Wait!” He heard himself say.
Madison stopped talking and gave him a curious look.
“I’m not sure that I’m okay with this,” he said, his heart racing at the implication of what he was saying.
“What do you mean?” Madison tried to force down the knot in her throat.
“I have nothing to offer you, Madison, yet you are going to give up everything...” He started to say but stopped when he saw Madison’s expression.
“You don't want me to stay?” Madison asked shakily.
“Of course I do,” he said, grabbing her and cradling her in his arms. “I’m just scared you’re giving up too much,” he said, kissing the top of her head. “I’m such an idiot for not even playing this scenario out in my head, Madison.” He held her even tighter against his chest. “I love you so much and don’t want a life without you, but at the same time I don’t want you to give up everything you already have for me.” He growled into her hair. “I don’t know what I’m saying anymore. Can we...” Before Andrew could finish his thought he heard his Harley approaching. “Let's talk about this more tonight, okay?” he asked, looking into her eyes.
Madison nodded. This was not how she had imagined it would go. She thought he would be ecstatic about her staying but he seemed almost upset about it. He got out of the bed and gave her one of his brilliant smiles, which confused her even more. He reached his hand to her and she took it readily, determined not to be upset at this unusual turn of events.
“Hey Jay, Callie,” Madison said at the door.
Callie immediately embraced Madison. “Are you okay?” Madison nodded against her.
“So, any word?” Andrew asked Jayden.
“Yeah, let’s sit for a minute.” As they all sat down, Jayden began, “He had a bail hearing this morning and apparently Mr. Bowers didn’t bail him out so he’s sitting in jail until the hearing in a couple of weeks.”
Madison and Andrew looked at each other, both shocked.
“He’s being charged with attempted rape, kidnapping, and assault.”
Andrew pulled Madison closer to him, having felt her tense up. “I won’t have to testify, will I?” Madison asked in a panic.
“I don’t know, Madison. My dad said it depends on how the prosecution pursues it. Dad said Jimmy’s attorney is really good, so it could go a lot of different ways. He said he will see what he can find out. Dad tried to get in touch with Jimmy’s dad yesterday but he was in DC already. He didn’t even come to the bail hearing.”
“He went to Andrew’s hearing but he doesn’t go to his son’s, that’s just...” Madison closed her eyes and shook her head.
“I don’t think he’s going to help him, Madison,” Jayden interjected.
“Really?” Andrew asked, waiting for the catch.
Jayden started shaking his head and chuckled lightly. “Jimmy looked messed up. Not beat up or anything but like he had been crying all night. He was looking around the courtroom for his dad but the only faces he knew were mine and my dad’s,” he said with a grin. “But even when he saw us he didn’t give us that disgusted look he usually does. He just turned around.”
“I can’t believe his dad wasn’t there. That’s crazy,” Madison said, squeezing onto Andrew.
“Well, that James Bowers has always been bad news so it doesn’t surprise me one bit. You know, your grandfather nearly killed him one night,” Grandmother Downing said casually.
Everyone turned to her and Madison sat up. “What are you talking about, Grans? You know Jimmy’s dad?”
“I met him once. He took your mother on one date and when she returned she was crying and upset. He was a few years older than her. He was a senior and she was a freshman. She was infatuated with him, begged us to let her date him. So we finally gave in. Turns out he took her to a party at the lake and when she wouldn’t...” she paused and raised her eyebrows, not wanting to say the words. Madison put her hand over her mouth.
“He tried to rape her?” she uttered in almost a gasp.
Grandmother Downing nodded. “He got angry and left her there, told her to find her own way home and took off with another girl.” She turned to Andrew. “Your uncle was there and found her crying. He brought her home to us. He made sure she was safe and then he left.” Grans turned back to Madison. “Your grandfather was irate, dug out his shotgun and wanted to go to the lake to find him. I had to threaten your grandfather with a divorce if he went after that Bowers boy.” She looked down at her hands as her fingers worked nervously against one another. “That whole family is sick! Your mother was fine, but I suppose in hindsight if we had done something then...” she paused again. “Every time I see one of his campaign commercials I want to throw something at the TV but then I wouldn’t be able to see my Dodgers.”
Madison let out a nervous laugh and touched the palm of her hand to her forehead as she absorbed what her grans had said. Her mom had never told her anything about this. Maybe it would have changed things, changed their relationship. Madison remembered how her father had worshipped her mother; they always looked at each other with such love and adoration. She imagined that for her mom having had an experience like she did with Jimmy’s father and then meeting her dad must have been like a godsend. Madison was suddenly getting a clearer picture of why her mother turned into such a bitch when her dad died. An evil and awful man ascends to greatness while a loving and caring man succumbs to addiction. The world was clearly not fair.
“I can’t believe his wife still stands by him,” Callie said, gripping Jayden’s hand.
“I don’t understand it either, baby. Over the years I have learned that there are some sick and twisted people out there and those people always have someone who believes in them, a wife or a girlfriend that doesn’t think they would ever do something awful. Look at all those serial killers that have these women that help them bury the bodies.”
“It’s crazy,” Madison muttered to herself.
“That it is,” Jayden agreed.
Jayden and Callie stayed for another few hours, visiting and watching soap operas with her grans. They all laughed and tried not to think about Jimmy or what could happen. After they left, things were quiet for a while which was nice. It wasn’t until after dinner that they got some more unexpected visitors.
“Boy, I suddenly feel very popular,” Grans said with a chuckle.
“Olivia, Aaron, come in,” Madison said, clearly confused by their presence and not really wanting to talk about what happened anymore.
Olivia gave her a hug and then handed a bag to Andrew, who had gotten up from the couch to walk over to them. “I know that right now you need to stay with Madison but I thought you might need a few things.”
He smiled widely an
d hugged her. “Thank you, Auntie.”
“Aaron, thank you,” Madison said out of the blue. Aaron looked at her confused so Madison continued, “Grans told us how you helped my mom when Mr. Bowers tried to hurt her.”
Aaron looked to the ground and scrunched his brows. “I should have done more,” he said, looking up. “I went back to the lake to confront him but he ended up getting away scot-free. I swear that man sold his soul to the devil.”
“I never knew you went back there,” Grans said with concern as she motioned for the two of them to sit down.
Aaron took Olivia’s hand and they walked to the couch.
“It’s nothing really, ma’am. After I dropped Jacqueline off, I was so angry. After twelve years of dealing with James’ bullying of other people I had had enough. I went back to confront him, figuring that if I did, maybe other people would as well. I found him with his little crew of followers.” He frowned again. “The girl I had seen him with after Jacqueline, was on the hood of his car and the four of them were taking turns, you know...” Aaron looked at Andrew and Madison who closed their eyes then he glanced at Grandmother Downing who was shaking her head in disgust.
“That’s awful,” Olivia said, wiping under her eyes.
“I yanked James off of her and he pushed me away and said that if I wanted some to get at the back of the line.” He took a deep breath. “I argued with him right there, said he was raping that girl. He told me to take my pansy as...” Aaron paused, not wanting to curse. “He told me to either participate or leave. I tried to grab the girl because she didn’t look like she was there voluntarily, but I wasn’t able to. They ganged up on me and made me leave. I went straight to the sheriff but by the time they got to the lake everyone was gone.”
“My God! That could have been my Jacqueline,” Grandmother Downing said in horror.
“What happened to the girl? Did she press charges?” Madison asked, although she had a feeling the answer was no.
Aaron shook his head. “She said I misunderstood what I saw and that she wasn’t raped. James ended up marrying her a few years later. So I don’t know, maybe it wasn’t what I thought,” Aaron said with a sigh but his suspicion had always been that the marriage was the price James paid for her silence.
“God! Is it wrong to want the world to swallow him and his son up?” Madison said exasperated, setting her head against the back of the sofa. This was all surreal to her.
“Madison, honey, are you really okay?” Olivia asked, touching Madison’s leg softly.
Madison nodded. “I will be. To be honest, I wasn’t that shaken up. It happened so fast. I was just hoping I could fight him off and then, I don’t know... I was more concerned about Andrew.”
Andrew turned to her. “Why would you be concerned about me?”
“I didn’t want him touching me but I would have continued to fight and I might have been able to stop him but...” She looked down and wiped her eyes. “More than anything else I didn’t want you doing something that would send you to prison,” she said, looking at him. “Whatever happened to me, I wouldn’t have wanted that.”
Andrew pulled her close to him and kissed the top of her head. “If Jayden hadn’t come and calmed me down I probably would have done something stupid. I couldn’t think straight.”
Madison nodded against his chest. “I’m glad you didn’t do anything.”
He held her closely. He hated the idea that she was afraid for him versus being afraid for herself. He heard movement and looked towards his aunt and uncle. Aaron was standing up and reaching his hand down to his aunt to help her up as well.
“We’ll take our leave now,” Aaron said, reaching his hand to tap Madison’s shoulder reassuringly. He then turned to Andrew. “You call if you need us?”
Andrew nodded and then thought of something. “Can you bring the Harley to the house? I was going to drop it off when I went to grab some clothes but now I don’t need to do that,” he said, smiling at his aunt.
Aaron grinned widely. “It would be my pleasure.”
Olivia gave him a hug and whispered in his ear. “You take care of her. She needs you right now.”
“I will.”
She then hugged Madison. “You let him take care of you, okay?”
Madison nodded and wiped her tear soaked face. She watched as Olivia hugged her grandmother and then took Aaron’s hand. Not long after Aaron and Olivia left, Madison helped her grandmother to bed and then found herself snuggled up next to Andrew. She held him close, feeling the gentle beat of his heart and feeling completely at peace. She was never surer of anything as she was in that moment.
“Either you are coming with me to New York or I am staying here. Those are the only two viable solutions because I love you and my life belongs to you, with you, whether you like it or not,” Madison said, indignant. Then, in a much calmer tone, she added, “Andrew, there’s only together, there is no apart.”
Andrew let out a deep breath and ran his hands over her back. “I don’t know if I can leave the state. I will have to talk to Jamal about it next week when I see him.” He kissed the top of her head. “My life belongs to you as well and I want us together. I doubt I could survive apart,” he said sincerely.
She looked up at him, her eyes expressing the amount of love she had for him and seeing that same love reflected back to her. He brought his lips to hers and rolled her on her back, settling in above her.
“I love you so much,” he whispered against her lips, his eyes closed. “I don’t want to ever be without you.”
She wrapped her arms around his neck, gently twirling the hair at the nape of his neck around her fingers. Their lovemaking that night was gentle and sweet. They had made a commitment to one another, as solid as any other commitment could be. She wasn’t sure whether their life would be in California or in New York, but she was certain that it would be together and that was all that mattered.
36 IT’S A GO!
It had been nearly a week since the incident with Jimmy. Andrew and Madison had spent that time with one another. Their friends had called to check in with them and invite them out of town, which they were extremely grateful for. They both needed to get away. She glanced at her clock and sighed. Andrew had gone to his aunt’s to shower before meeting with his parole officer today, which made her extremely nervous. If Jamal didn’t allow Andrew to leave... She stopped herself mid-thought and breathed in deeply. She would not think about that just yet. She did wish she had Callie to talk to about things but they had decided that they were not going to discuss the possibilities of New York with anyone until they knew if it was even an option. Madison was hoping that he would be able to come to New York with her. She hated the idea of having to start over at some entry level position. She also reasoned that in New York there had to be more opportunities for Andrew. Opportunities at places that didn't care about the fact that he had been in prison. The more she thought of it, the more excited she became. She already had a place of her own, so that was one thing they didn’t have to worry about. Plus, they could walk around naked or have sex on the kitchen counter, if they desired. Yes, Madison was becoming excited, that is, until she realized that it may not happen.
“Have you called your mother to tell her what happened?” Grans asked, giving her a curious look and bringing Madison out of her thoughts.
Madison shook her head. She hadn’t talked to her mom since their last dreadful call a few weeks ago. In truth, she never shared her life with her. Her mom only seemed interested in knowing what Madison was doing professionally, how she was advancing. She had always told Madison, in no uncertain terms, that she should never give her heart to anyone. For the most part, Madison had always done that. That is, until the day she met Andrew and fell hard. Hell, Madison had practically thrown her heart at Andrew. Madison picked up her phone and walked back to her room.
“So I take it you’re not mad at me anymore?” Jacqueline answered.
“I’m not sure yet,” Madison said with
a grin, imagining her mom rolling her eyes.
Jacqueline sighed. “How are you?”
“Umm...” Madison paused.
“Oh hell, Madison, don’t tell me you’re stupid enough to get pregnant?” Jacqueline asked quickly.
“No, God, no. Damn, mom. You must think I’m an idiot or something. Why do you always have to say stuff like that?” Madison stated angrily.
“Okay, okay. I’m sorry,” Jacqueline replied remorsefully.
“No, it’s just...” Madison started but then stumbled on her words.
“My God, Madison, just spit it out already.”
“Fine! I was almost raped by the son of the bastard that almost raped you. You happy, now?”
Silence. An eerie quiet ensued and Madison wasn’t completely sure that her mom was still there. Madison took a deep breath, regretting blurting it out like she did. She probably could have been more tactful but her mother always seemed to push her 'bitch' buttons.
“Mom?” Madison asked timidly.
“Did you say you were almost raped?” Jacqueline finally asked, softly.
“Yes.”
“What happened, Madison?” Jacqueline asked, concerned.
Madison spent the next ten minutes telling her mom about how she had met Andrew, leaving out the part about him being an ex-drug addict who had been in prison before. She told her about the lake and how Andrew had protected her from Jimmy and finally how Jimmy had attacked her. She went on to say how Jimmy was in jail and that his dad hadn’t bailed him out but she didn’t know if she would be required to testify, something Madison was not looking forward to.
“How did...” Jacqueline took a deep breath. “How did you know about James?”
“Grans told me and then Aaron filled in the blanks,” Madison explained.
“Aaron? Oh wow. Now, that’s a name I haven’t heard in a while.”
“He’s Andrew’s uncle. He’s been such a help to all of us.”
Helios Awakened (The Helios Chronicles #1) Page 34
