“I understand.”
“She had a code. Our mother. She would yell out ‘Jesus save us all’ and when I heard that, I was supposed to get you and take you outside if it was daytime or to one of our rooms if it was nighttime.”
Kim’s hand slipped into his and she squeezed. “That’s horrible, Josh. Thank you for protecting me.”
He returned the squeeze. “It seemed just normal to me at the time. I didn’t know anything different.”
“She was going to leave him. That’s what Mr. Gathers told my dad.”
“He told me that, too. I didn’t know. I’m assuming that’s what pushed him over the edge.” He rubbed his free hand across his mouth. “I remember how hard it was to get you out of the crib, you were getting so big.”
He stopped for a few deep breaths. Another memory surfaced. When he’d set her on the floor, she’d taken his hand. Like now. He looked down at their hands then up into her eyes. “I took you to the closet and hid under a pile of clothes.”
Her pupils were dilated until he could only see a rim of blue. “He was going to kill us, too, wasn’t he?” she whispered.
“I think so,” he whispered back.
She leaned against him and he brought his arms around her. Holding her. Like all those years ago. It was surreal. Kim snuggled against him. The breeze off the pond cooled his face. The sound of a fish breaking the water from time to time. If he had had time to think about what their first meeting would have been like, he’d have thought it would be awkward. He thought they’d feel like strangers. And maybe that was yet to come. Right now, they were both survivors of the same nightmare.
He rubbed her shoulder. “But look at you now. All grown up and teaching school.”
She shifted away and wiped at her eyes. “Yeah. It’s amazing, I love my kids. What do you do, Josh? Do you live in the Charleston area still?”
“No. I moved to Columbia a little while ago. Have you heard of the Cleaning Crew?”
Her eyes widened. “The all-guy cleaning service? Yes!”
He grinned. “I’m setting up and running the new branch in Columbia.”
“You’re one of the Crew?” Her voice raised a couple of octaves in her excitement.
“I was the first Crew member,” he said with a grin. And realized exactly how proud he was of that fact.
“Shut. The. Front. Door! I used to tease my mom about that all the time. That I was going to get her a year’s worth of house cleaning by the Crew. She is going to flip out.”
After their laughter died down, he nudged her with a shoulder. “I need to tell you something.”
“Good? Bad?”
“Neither, really. A full-disclosure kind of thing. A little while ago, I hired a private investigator to find you. And he did. So I know a little about you. That you teach second grade. That you’re getting married soon.”
“Why didn’t you get in touch with me?”
“I was going to do that. I wrote you a letter. It’s in my desk back home. I was going to read it again on Monday and make myself mail it to you.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Kim,” he said seriously. “I didn’t know what you knew about our past. All my life, all I wanted to know was that you were safe. And happy. And I knew that. Then I wanted to know you but was afraid I’d ruin your life.”
She looked down at her feet. Reached into the bag of corn and tossed some to the fish. “Still protecting me after all these years.”
He hadn’t thought of it that way and let out a short bark of a laugh. “I guess. I’m not... Let’s just say I didn’t have the upbringing you did, Kim. I barely graduated high school. If I hadn’t found Sadie and became part of the Crew, I don’t know what would have happened to me.”
“But you found her. The Crew became your family? They must have if you’re still with them after all these years? Are you married, Josh? Do I have any nieces or nephews?”
“No, I’m not married. The Crew is family, though. My boss, Sadie, grew up in foster care. I think of her as my big sister. She’s getting married soon and will have a stepdaughter. So I’m sort of an uncle.”
“Good. Because I want to have four or five kids. Want them to have lots of cousins because let me tell you, being an only child sucks.”
“You’re not an only child anymore,” he said.
“And you’ve got real family to add to your heart family.”
He smiled at that. Heart family. Much nicer sounding than family of choice. He tucked that away to tell Sadie. Sadie. She is going to lose her mind. “Sadie has some half siblings. She’s building a relationship with them. I’d like to do the same with you, Kim.”
“Why do you think I’m here? Ever since Mr. Gathers called me last week, I’ve done nothing but research this. Reunification of siblings.”
Mickie and her index cards appeared in his mind’s eye and he had to cover his mouth with a hand to hide his grin. But Kim had said that about research with the exact same tone of voice that Mickie used when she talked about those damned cards.
Kim turned her head and caught his grin. “What? Is that weird?”
“No. You reminded me of someone.”
“I like to know things. That’s what I do when I’m worried or nervous. I research.”
“Were you worried or nervous about meeting me?”
“Nervous. I wanted you to like me. I wanted you to remember me.”
“I could never have forgotten you, Kim. You’re my baby sister. I may not know the you you’ve grown up to be, but I loved that fat little baby girl.”
She stared at him until a blink sent twin tears coursing down her cheeks. He was pretty shocked by his words himself. They’d rolled out without thought. He reached out and took her hand, grasping it tightly for a moment. “Tell me about your research.”
She wiped the tears away. “It’s basically what you said. Separated siblings remember the children they used to be, but as adults, they bring entirely new selves to the relationship. Your boss has it right. Let’s do this slowly. Get to know each other.”
“How do your parents feel about this?”
“They were hesitant at first, not because of you, but because they didn’t want it to upset me if things didn’t work out. Now they are happy. And feeling rather guilty about not being more insistent with following up on adopting you, also.”
He shook his head. “They shouldn’t. Tell them I said thank you for taking you and giving you a good life. That means more to me than they will ever know. What about your fiancé?”
“Scott. He’s a little bit geeky. So, he’s not going to invite you over to watch a football game. But if you can tell a DC villain from a Marvel villain, you’re gold.”
“Not an expert, but I know Batman is DC and Spider-Man is Marvel.”
She gave him a double thumbs-up. “Gold.”
“You two doing okay down there?”
They turned at the sound of Nate’s voice. He was making his way toward them at an easy pace.
“Y’all been out here a spell. Thought I’d check.”
Josh and Kim stood. “Yes, sir,” she said. “We’re doing just fine.”
“Well, come on back up to the house. I got some barbeque on.”
Josh scooped up the bag of corn feed and put his arm around Kim’s shoulders. “That’s a coincidence. I’m starving.”
* * *
A FEW HOURS LATER, after gorging on barbeque, sweet tea and laughter, Josh hugged Kim goodbye. They’d exchanged phone numbers and email addresses, and had plans to meet again the next weekend. He hugged her close and grinned for the selfie she insisted on taking. He pulled on his leather jacket and strapped on his helmet, feeling lighter and happier than he had in years.
He’d pushed the bike on the ride down as a
means of distracting himself from his own dark thoughts. Now, he pushed it out of sheer joy. To feel the rush. He remembered taking Sadie for a bike ride after she’d met her mother. Her triumphant scream as they tore down a back road at not-going-to-say miles per hour. He understood it all now.
Slowing the bike, he pulled into a gas station at the edge of the interstate. He dug his phone out of his jacket pocket and held it up. Good. Got a signal. He typed out a message to Sadie because he didn’t want her to hear the joy in his voice yet. He wanted to see her face.
Hey. Near town. What are you doing?
Not more than a minute later, his phone vibrated in his hand.
God. Please. Save me.
He grinned.
What’s going on?
Shopping for maid of honor and bridesmaids dresses with Lena and her mother. They might kill each other.
She sent another text as he was composing a reply.
Make up an emergency. Save me!
Tell them I need you.
Do you?
Tell them. 45 minutes. Your place or Wyatt’s?
Mine.
He tucked the phone away with a smile and cranked up the engine. Even better. He liked Wyatt and loved Jules, but this felt like something for only him and Sadie right now.
It was more like an hour by the time he turned the bike into the Cleaning Crew driveway and parked. Stripping off his gear, he looked up at the building with a wave of nostalgia. This two-story brick box of a house had been his home for so long. He’d been there when Sadie bought it. He’d helped her clean it up, fixing up what they could and supervising contractors when they couldn’t. All the while, it was only the two of them, cleaning houses from sunup to sundown. Then they hired DeShawn. Then Molly.
He walked around to the back, where he was greeted with a volley of barks that would have been intimidating if he hadn’t known the giant goofball dog behind them. “Jack,” he said, leaning over the fence. “It’s me. Knock it off.”
Jack gave a few more barks, but his tail was wagging his entire back end. Josh opened the gate and stepped through. Jack jumped up, putting his paws on Josh’s chest. He ruffled his hands through the dog’s thick black-and-white fur, wincing at the doggy breath being blown in his face.
“Miss me, boy? Yeah?”
Jack dropped to all fours when Sadie opened the back door and skipped down the steps. Josh turned to her. She looked worried.
“What’s wrong?” they said in unison.
“You,” she said. “What’s wrong with you? You texted me you needed me. That’s usually bad.”
He grinned and pulled her into a hug. “No. I said that for you to use an excuse to get away.”
“Oh, for Pete’s sake. I’ve been worrying my brains out. Come on upstairs. Why are you in Charleston?”
He held off answering until they’d crossed the kitchen and went up to the second floor that Sadie had turned into an apartment. Being back here made him homesick but it also made him determined to build something for the Columbia Crew that felt just as much like family. Like home.
He pulled his phone out of his pocket and tapped through to the selfie Kim had taken. She’d sent it to him. “I wasn’t really in Charleston. Up in Sumter.”
Sadie frowned as she plopped on the couch and propped her bare feet up on the coffee table. Grabbing a glass of wine from the side table, she looked over at him. “Sumter? Is that where that cop you went to see is?”
“Yep.”
She cocked her head and pointed at him, her finger making a swirling motion. “Your face. What’s going on?”
“Mr. Gathers asked me to come see him today.”
“Oh? Did he have more information for you?”
“He had a surprise for me.”
He handed her the phone. She took it and glanced at the screen. Then the frown came back as she focused on the picture. “Is that...?”
She appeared to be holding her breath as she looked back at him and set down her wineglass. He let his grin tell her.
“That’s Kim?” she whispered.
“Yes. I met her today.”
“Josh!” she squealed and threw herself at him, bear-hugging him tight. “Oh. My. God. I can’t believe this! Finally!”
She looked back at the phone. “She looks like you. Same hair. Same eyes. Tall. I never pictured her being this tall.”
That got him. “I never thought you thought about her.”
“All the time. I wanted this for you, Josh. It went well, then? She knew...everything?”
“Yes. And yes. It was amazing, Sades. She’s amazing. Nate is amazing. Everything is amazing.”
She stared at him before laughing. “You are almost giddy. I’ve never seen you like this. Tell me everything.”
By the time he was finished telling her “everything,” it was too late to ride the bike back to Columbia. Josh pulled off his jeans and flopped back on the guest bed. He was still buzzed from the day. His thoughts turned to Mickie. He looked at his phone. Eleven o’clock. Not too late. He typed in a message.
Everything okay there? I’m in Charleston overnight.
He added DeShawn’s phone number with directions to call him if she needed anything. His thumb hovered over the send button. Why was he still doing this? He’d pushed her away. Forced her away. But part of him still...what? He hit Send and tossed the phone down beside him on the bed. What are you doing? It’s over. You made sure of that. Leave her alone. He climbed under the covers and turned the light out. Sleep was what he needed. Here under Sadie’s roof. Home. Where he felt safe.
The phone glowed to life. Rolling over, he tried to ignore it. But curiosity got the better of him and he reached back, groping, and found it.
All quiet on the Western front.
He frowned at Mickie’s text. What was that supposed to mean? He sent a thumbs-up and put the phone face-down. He needed to let that go. If his heart could get that message, that’d be great. He fell into a deep sleep, full of dreams. Searching through abandoned homes, looking for something. What, he didn’t know.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
MICKIE HEARD THE motorcycle roar up the drive and around back to the storage shed, where Josh kept it locked up. Relief flooded her. She’d been awake most of the night, jumping at every sound and shadow, after she got his text that he was in Charleston. Yeah, she had the police and DeShawn wasn’t too far away, but having Josh right next door gave her some peace of mind.
Because she was about to lose her mind. Still no news on Keith. He’d gone missing. His parole officer had issued an arrest warrant for violation of parole. He had also notified the Columbia police department and they’d send an officer to see her. They would increase patrols in the neighborhood. She was grateful they were taking it seriously, but she also knew that unless they assigned a cop to follow her 24/7, she wasn’t really safe.
She wanted to ask Josh if she could borrow his car because she really needed to get to the grocery store and didn’t feel comfortable walking with Ian right now. But then he’d want to know why and she was too tired to explain. Walking around the kitchen, she opened cabinets and peeked into the fridge, taking inventory. She could hold out until tomorrow. But she needed to feed Ian something besides Cheerios and Goldfish crackers. Plus the diaper supply was running low.
Just do it.
“Come on, grumpy man,” she said as she hauled Ian up on her hip. “Let’s get this over with.”
She went out the back door and crossed over to Josh’s back door. The vertical blinds were open and she could see him in the kitchen. Sadness washed over her as she watched him for a moment before rapping on the glass.
“Hey,” he said, sliding the door open as he turned and saw them. He looked at Ian. “Hey, little man, what’s up?”
“Can I borrow your car? I need to go to the grocery store and it’s too danged hot to walk that far.”
“Good timing. I was about to head up there myself. We can go together.”
Narrowing her eyes, she stared at him. “Together?” she asked.
“I was going up to the Publix.”
“The last time we talked, you were pushing me out the door, telling me to go away. Now you want to go grocery shopping together.”
The flash of guilty shame in his eyes made her regret the tone of her voice, if not the question.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that. I’ve been in a bad place the last few weeks.”
“Yeah, well me, too. Welcome to life, Josh. It’s a never-ending series of bad places.”
“Wait. What does that mean?”
She pressed her lips together. She was getting angry. Because she was scared and she hated being scared. But even so, she didn’t need to be taking it out on Josh. There was enough blame on both their sides to go around.
“Nothing. I’m sorry. I’ve been trapped inside with a cranky toddler. I’ll get the car seat. Thank you.”
After she got Ian properly secured in the back and climbed into the front seat, she shook her head. Last time she’d done this, she’d been in the same mental state. Angry, frustrated and exhausted. Josh adjusted the AC so the center vents were aimed at the backseat. She leaned against the window, grateful for the blast of cold air on her face. She was going to have a heatstroke by the end of the summer.
“Why did you text me last night?”
“Huh?”
“Last night. You texted me.”
“I didn’t plan to be out of town overnight. I know... Hell, Mickie. I understand how few options you have. I wanted to make sure you had DeShawn’s information just in case.”
She stared out the window as she wrestled with that confession. She wanted to be angry. Tell him she didn’t need him watching out for her, but that was pretty stupid considering she was using him to get safely to the grocery store and back. She wanted to beat herself up for not being able to do better for Ian than this precarious existence, but she didn’t have the mental energy for that.
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