“Yeah, he has. Kind of remind you of another boy?” she says, trying to break my solemn mood with a little nudge of my shoulder and a wink.
“Maybe a little bit. I think it’s the dark hair and the way he walks.” Tommy starts walking closer with that same familiar swag. “Umm, Jace never had a tattoo at fifteen, though.” I glance at her with wide eyes.
“Well, Tommy does.” She laughs. “Hey, Tommy, do you remember Shay?”
“Yeah, I remember. Hi, Shay.” With light eyes staring at me, he smiles.
“How’s that math homework?”
He chuckles. “It could be better.”
“How about we start working on it together again?”
He puts his hands on his hips, causing his toned arms to flex. “All right. When?”
“How about Wednesdays?”
“Sounds good.”
“Okay, see you next week.” He waves and jogs over to the fence my boy would hang on and watch me drive away every week, putting one hand on the top and jumping over it into the parking lot. Both Shannon and I stand up and wipe grass clippings and dirt from our pants.
“There’s a good kid under all that toughness. He just has no guidance,” she says sadly, still brushing off dirt from her pants. I say my goodbyes, and with so many reminders in my rearview mirror, I take my chances and drive to the place that holds the most precious thing in the world to me.
I want to be where Jace is, and maybe, just maybe wishful thinking, I will be on that list, or at least I can see if he really took me off it. He won’t deny me if I’m there. I need to know why he missed two calls. I pull in and take my charm bracelet off and set it on the passenger seat. With a little bit of happiness from my time at the center, I make my way through the prison doors, walking straight up to check in.
Old and grouchy greets me without any emotion, and I smile my most cheerful smile with my fingers crossed at my side that when I say Jace’s name I will be granted a visit. Jace knows I always respect his wishes, and I wouldn’t come down here if he told me no, so maybe I’m still on that list.
“I’m here to see Jace James,” I tell the guard, then give him Jace’s DC number to locate him as I look around the cold room.
“Jace James is no longer in our custody.”
I quickly turn away from the door that used to lead me to him, and I shake my head, asking, “Do you need me to repeat his DC number? You must have heard me wrong.”
“I didn’t hear you wrong.”
“Yes, you did.”
“Jace James was released yesterday.” I keep shaking my head back and forth and put my hands onto the counter to brace myself. “The DC number you gave me matches, and in the computer it clearly states that Jace James has been released from our custody.”
“I need to speak with someone else,” I say frantically. “There is no way that you are right. There is some type of mistake.”
“Miss, there is no mistake, and there is no other person for you to talk to. The inmate you are looking for is no longer in our prison.” His tone is harsh. I push off the counter and stare at the door that leads to the visitation room.
“Check his list of visitors. Maybe I’m just not on the list.”
“You aren’t on the list because he has no list on file any longer.”
“Well, where is he?”
“We can’t help you with that.”
“He still had a year to serve.”
“He was granted early release, then… Look, ma’am, there are people waiting to check in. I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
“He was released yesterday?” I chew on my pinkie nail.
“Yes, he was. Sorry, but once the inmates are out of our confinement, we don’t have their whereabouts, unless instructions are given otherwise.”
I nervously look around and move out of the line growing agitated by my breakdown. Unable to accept what he’s telling me, I push past the line of people checking in and go right back up to the front.
“Excuse me?” I get the guard’s attention again. He kindly smiles, glancing at my face full of tears.
“I need you to check again, please.”
“Miss, I already told you Jace James has been released.”
“He would have called me… I was supposed to pick him up when he was released. He would not do that to me.”
“Listen, I’m sorry, but this sounds like more of a personal problem, and I can’t help you with that. Now, I’m going to ask you one more time to step away, or I’m going to have to call security.”
While everyone stares at me, I step back and walk out of the doors. There is no way that Jace would find out he was going to be released and not tell me. No way would he ever do that to me. What the hell is going on?
With a shaky hand, I reach inside my bag and pull out my phone. I make a call to my mom. “Mom, did Jace call?”
“No, honey, he hasn’t.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’ve been in the kitchen all day cooking and baking. The phone hasn’t rung once.”
“I’ve got to go.”
“Shay, is everything okay?”
I hang up and hold my phone tightly in my hand as I practically run to my car. No, nothing is okay! What the hell is going on? Where is Jace?
I unlock my car door quickly, open the door, throw my bag onto the passenger seat, and try to catch my breath. My heart is beating so hard I feel like I could pass out. In a moment of realization of missed calls and clearly visible releases, I slam my hands onto my steering wheel hard. Something is wrong! Jace would never not tell me he was going to be released. I try to control my breathing and start to feel really lightheaded. I’m too worked up. My cell phone rings, and without looking, I pick it up.
“Hello.”
“What’s up, Shay?”
“I can’t talk right now, Hunter.” Tears are streaming down my cheeks.
“Is everything okay?” I don’t answer him. “Shay, are you still there?”
“I’m… I don’t know…”
“Where are you?”
“I have to go.”
“Don’t hang up. I can tell you’re upset. Where are you?”
He’s right. I’m way too upset, and I don’t even think I can drive. I swallow down my cries and tell him, “I’m sitting in the parking lot of the prison.”
“The prison?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t move. I’ll come right now.”
“No, don’t.”
“Too late. I’m already on my way. I was in my car.”
I hang up the phone, throw it down onto my lap, and put my hands to my face.
“I will be in your arms the second I’m released.”
The next thing I know, with my boy’s voice running through my mind, I’m pulled out of my car and into a warm, comforting embrace, and it’s not the arms that promised to be around me.
“Hey, what’s going on? You’re shaking.”
I hold on tight and cry into his neck. Shirtless and sweaty, he holds me as I tremble in his arms.
“I’m sorry. I just got done with a workout,” Hunter says, putting a strand of hair behind my ear. “You’re a mess, girl. Tell me what’s wrong.”
“Jace got out yesterday, and he never called me.”
“Why would he do that?”
“I don’t know,” I say, pulling out of his embrace and holding my hand to my mouth. “I don’t know what’s going on. This is not like Jace at all. He would never keep his release from me. Something isn’t right.”
“Listen, I’m not going to ask you twenty questions right now. I just want to help get you home safely. You are really upset.”
“Where is he, Hunter?” I softly cry.
“I wish I could help you. Do you think you can drive now?” I nod. “I’ll follow you, and if you get overwhelmed, just call me. I’ll have you pull over.” With my lips quivering and my heart in overdrive, I tell him okay and get back into my car. “I’m right behind you, okay?�
�� I start the car and look at him. He smiles at me and shuts my door.
It doesn’t take long to drive back to my condo, and with Hunter pulling up behind me, I shut my engine off and get out. “So, now I know where you live,” he says, raising his eyebrows.
“Oh, great. I have a stalker now.”
As we walk up the flower-filled pathway, Hunter stops and puts his arm around me, pulling me into him. He gives a side-glance, asking, “How the hell do you guys creep up on people like that?”
“Are the rumors true?” a guy with a camera says. “Kind of hard to deny them as you walk into her house.”
“You are on private property. You need to leave,” Hunter demands.
“Were you visiting your childhood boyfriend at the prison, Shay?” I keep walking as Hunter tries to shield my face from the camera. “Does he know that while he’s been incarcerated, you’ve been hooking up with Hunter Daniels?”
Finally, I can’t keep silent. “Hunter and I are just friends,” I respond with my head pressed into Hunter’s shoulder.
“Looks that way,” he says with attitude.
“Okay, that’s enough. Get the hell out of here,” Hunter says as the guy walks off. “I’m sorry about that.” He looks to make sure the guy left.
“I can’t worry about that right now, but how did he know Jace was in prison?”
“Those scum find out everything about celebrities, Shay. I have no clue how, but they do.”
“Now that this guy knows where we are, there will be a swarm of paparazzi here in minutes. Do you mind if I come in for a little while until they leave? Plus, you’re really upset. I don’t want to leave you.”
“That’s fine.”
Thankfully, the guy didn’t see which place was mine, so Hunter and I walk quickly to the side of the street where the condo entrance is. I open the door with my cell phone ringing. Hunter closes the door behind me, and I answer my mom’s call.
“What’s wrong? You sounded upset.”
“Jace was released.”
“Oh, Shay, he was released early? Where are you two? Why do you sound upset? You should be jumping for joy.”
“Mom, I didn’t know he was being released. He didn’t tell me. He was released yesterday.”
“He never called you?”
“No, he didn’t.”
“That doesn’t sound like Jace.”
“I know, Mom. Something is wrong.”
“I’m coming over.”
“No! Don’t leave the house. He might call.”
“All right, I won’t leave, but you can’t be by yourself right now.”
“I’m not. Hunter is here.”
“Okay. Good.”
Minutes pass, and a text comes in from Jules.
Jules: On my way home from the airport. Want to get something to eat?
Me: Jace was released!
Jules: Seriously????
Me: Yes.
Jules: I guess that means no lunch. You must be a little busy taking care of your jailbird. ;)
Me: He never called me to pick him up! I don’t know where he is!
Jules: What the hell! Are you messing with me, Starkie?
Me: I can’t talk right now.
Jules: I’m on my way.
I set my phone onto the counter, and Hunter shuts the curtains while I pace back and forth. Just as my phone rings again, my front door opens, and my dad and Beau walk in.
“What’s going on, Shay? Where is Jace? And why is there damn paparazzi out front?” Dad is full of questions. I waste no time and walk into my father’s arms.
“One of them followed me to the prison and then followed me home. I went to see if I could visit Jace, and they told me he was released yesterday.”
“Yesterday?” Beau says, then he looks at Hunter. “What are you doing here?”
“I called Shay to see if she wanted to go into the studio, and she was crying hysterically from the prison parking lot, so I went to see if she needed help.”
“Thanks, bro,” Beau says, slapping his back.
“Of course.” Hunter glances out the window.
“Dad, where is he?”
He shakes his head. “I don’t have any clue. This seems way out of Jace’s character.”
“It is! Jace would never make me worry like this.”
My phone starts ringing again, and I grab it quickly, leaving my dad’s embrace. “Did he call?”
“No, I’m glued to the kitchen, Shay. Have you heard from him?”
“No, Mom. Nothing.”
“Well, what the heck is going on?” she asks.
I start crying as Jules comes rushing through the door. “I’ve got to go, Mom.” I hang up on her.
“Where the hell is your jailbird?” Jules says, putting her sunglasses on top of her head. I watch as Dad walks out of the condo, then I wrap my arms around Jules.
“Jules?”
“Relax, Starkie. Take a deep breath.”
I shake my head. “Something is wrong with him. Maybe it’s that guy he got in a fight with. Oh my God, maybe he had Jace hurt when he got out, and that’s why he hasn’t been able to get in touch with me. He could be hurt.”
“He better be for putting you through this.”
“Jules, don’t kid right now.”
“Nice, princess,” Beau teases.
“Shut up, Beau,” Jules sasses back.
I pull out of Jules’s hug and grab my phone and car keys.
“What are you doing, Shay?” Hunter says. “There are paparazzi out there. You can’t leave right now.”
“I have to check the hospitals, Hunter. You don’t know Jace. He would never put me through something like this, ever!”
“Hunter is right, Shay. Let’s just wait to see if Jace gets in touch with you,” Jules pipes up.
“Jules, my boy got out yesterday and didn’t call me. He made promises to me. Something happened to him.”
“Okay…okay…Let’s start checking the hospitals.”
Dad walks back into the condo, looking worried, making the panic set in even more. “Your mom said she hasn’t left the kitchen. I think checking the hospitals is a good first step, and if he’s not checked into one, then we need to call the police.”
“The police?”
“To file a missing person report,” he says.
I stop and look at every face that stands before me. “If anything happened to him—”
“Let’s not think the worst yet, Shay,” Dad interrupts. “Jace is a big boy.”
“I’m sick of hearing he’s a big boy and can take care of himself, Dad.”
“It’s the truth, Shay,” Beau says.
“Maybe it is, but I know him. He made me promises and said he would never break them unless he was hurt and couldn’t get to me.”
“Then try to calm down, and instead of leaving the house when there are paparazzi here, just call the hospitals.”
“No, Dad! If they tell me Jace has been admitted, I won’t be able to get to him fast enough. I want to be there when they tell me.”
“Listen, I will leave so the paparazzi sees I’m no longer here. They will lose interest, then Shay and Jules can take off,” Hunter says, walking over to me.
“Thank you, Hunter.”
“All right,” Dad says. “But take Beau with you. I don’t want you two driving frantic around town by yourselves.” Jules rolls her eyes, and Beau grabs my keys out of my hands.
“Looks like you’re in the back, princess.”
She groans, and Hunter pulls me in for a hug, saying, “Jules is right. Take a deep breath. I know I don’t know Jace personally, but from what you’ve told me, I bet there is a good reason why he’s not contacted you.” I smile up at him. “Give it a few minutes after I leave before you go to your car.”
“Okay,” I tell him as he turns to leave.
“Dad, can you stay here while we check the hospitals?”
“He’s never been to the condo, Shay. I think I should go home with
your mom to see if he shows up at the house.”
“No, Dad, he’s been here,” I blurt out.
“When?”
“That doesn’t matter right now. Please stay for me.”
“Okay, I will, but I want to know when Jace has been to the condo.”
Jules glances at me, but I can’t worry about that right now. I thought the day my boy got out he would be coming home to the condo. My dad had to have known that was going to happen anyway. He has to know Jace and I have been intimate.
“Thanks, Dad.”
We take off with Jules navigating us to all the nearest hospitals. She and Beau fight over bad routes, and I sit chewing on my pinkie nail while my eyes roam every person walking the streets. Where is Jace? What is going on?
We pull up to the first hospital, and Beau parks in the emergency area. I jump out of the car. “Wait here,” I tell them as I run through the doors. It’s crowded, and kids are crying. With one person coughing in front of me, I wait impatiently behind her, tapping my white Converse on the scuffed-up floor. She coughs loud, and I can’t take her twenty questions any longer. “Excuse me. I just have a quick question.” She throws me a look and steps aside. “Can you just tell me if a Jace James has been brought in?” I ask the receptionist. She fiddles with some papers, and I start to cry with worry.
“No, it doesn’t look like a Jace James has been brought in.”
“Are you sure?”
“No, he hasn’t.”
I don’t even say another word. I just run back out to the car.
“What did they say?” Beau and Jules say in unison as I jump in.
“He’s not here,” I answer. “Look up every hospital in L.A.,” I tell Jules as Beau starts to head out of the parking lot.
“There’s another one about ten miles from here, closer to the prison,” she says.
We get there quickly, and I jump right out. It’s not as busy, so I walk up to the registration desk. “Can you tell me if a Jace James has been brought in?”
“Sure, let me check.” She calls the emergency room. “The only male back there has a gunshot wound.” I put my hand to my mouth, and a cry escapes. Then she nods her head no quickly. “No, he’s been identified, and it’s not Jace James.” I let out the loudest, shakiest breath.
“Thank you for checking.” I give her a half-smile and walk out with unsteady legs back to the car.
Questionable Love (A Love Beyond Labels #2) Page 24
