Tainted Love

by Stacy Claflin

  “Yeah.” Parker put a stiff arm around her shoulder. “Perfectly fine.”

  Nick knew it wouldn’t be that easy, but hoped it was at least a start.

  Plotting

  Jess pressed her back against the heat pad, holding it between her and the chair. Taking the kids to the arcade and the long drive, both ways, had more than done her in. And now at least, she could once again enjoy the comments on her new post. Blocking the haters had been the right decision.

  Not that there weren’t still a few that slipped through, but she blocked those as they came. It was easy enough. She could keep a handle on it. It was the social media insanity that was making her stomach churn acid. She could block people, but not get rid of the posts or the hashtag—which was still trending, though not as high as before. Hopefully, it would drop off completely soon.

  She just needed to keep convincing people everything was fine. And she was sure to post lots of pictures of the kids smiling wide this time. She’s snapped pictures that captured them having the time of their lives.

  Nobody could argue with that. The kids were fine. They weren’t emotionally damaged because of Connor moving away. They’d moved on because she was a good mom. Their happy grins proved that much.

  Jess replied to a few comments then checked her email before heading to bed.

  A new email from Alexander. She really needed to block him from sending her emails. Out of curiosity, she opened it first.

  And immediately regretted that decision.

  It was long, for starters. The wall of text made her already-growing headache throb. Didn’t he know that white space was a writer’s friend? But ironically, the length piqued her interest. She pressed her back harder against the heating pad and read the message.

  He still didn’t believe anything she said about Connor. Claimed that the truth would come out one way or another. Said it always did. Like he was some kind of telepath.

  Jess was tempted to delete and block before finishing, but something urged her to read it through. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of replying, but he’d never know she took in every word he wrote.

  As soon as she finished it, she noticed something. His email signature. It linked to a blog.

  He was a blogger, too?

  She let the pointer hover over the link for a moment before clicking.

  Jess’s stomach dropped to the floor when she saw the header. He wrote exclusively about missing and exploited children. And a quick perusal of the site showed it was popular. Not as well-ranked as hers, of course, but the man knew what he was doing. And from the looks of it, he had been doing it for a while.

  That explained why he was so adamant. Why he claimed to know so much about everything. And most importantly, that he was serious about not dropping the subject.

  Which was fine. There was no way he could prove anything, one way or the other. She could block him, then she wouldn’t have to think about him. She was about to click away from his site, when a recent post title caught her attention.

  It had the annoying hashtag. Had he been the one to start it?

  Anger stormed in her chest. She clicked to the post, as much as she hated to give him another page view, and read it over.

  He had been the one to start it. #MommyBloggerMayhem had been his stupid idea, and worse, it had taken off. Still trending, even though there were real problems in the world beyond a single mom trying to raise her kids.

  It was time to shut him up for good. Fury pulsated through her veins. Her fingers shook as she hastily typed a response to his email. She told him in no uncertain terms how wrong he was and that he needed to put a stop to the insanity, that he needed to stop harassing a hurting single mom who had just lost custody of one of her beautiful children.

  Then she hesitated. Would that be enough, or did she need to take it a step further and threaten the superiority right out of him?

  Stupid men. She could definitely do without a single one of them. If only womankind could carry on without them.

  That settled it. He needed to be put in his place.

  She would threaten him. Where it hurt. He’d mentioned being a dad. She’d see how he liked having people say things about his kids.

  Her fingers could barely keep up with her mind as she typed the message. She could hardly think straight as she read over what she’d written and fixed it until it was as close to perfect as she could get it.

  Once he read that, he’d leave her alone. If he cared about his kids, anyway. She would drop a subject if someone threatened to do the things she’s just written out.

  Then she could finally get back to blogging in peace. All she wanted was to be able to have a good time with her kids. Go places, blog about their adventures, and just enjoy being a mom.

  Was that really so much to ask for? Seemed pretty simple.

  Pressure built around her temples and near the back of her neck. Time to get some sleep before the kids woke, which was usually pretty early.

  She’d wanted to look for her next baby. That would have to wait until the next day. Besides, with Alexander out of the way, she would have plenty of time for that.

  She pressed send. Freedom was hers again.

  Threat

  Alex sipped his coffee as he went over paperwork. After dealing with the racing accident, he was more than happy to be at his desk. He’d only had to go out on two calls this shift, and they’d both been minor issues—at least compared to a fatality involving a teenager. Not much older than Ariana.

  He closed his eyes and shoved the thought from his head. His daughter had a good head on her shoulders. She made good choices. Good grades and winning awards were her goals. She was thinking about student government.

  “You okay?”

  Alex glanced up to see Detective Sanchez, concern in her eyes. He nodded. “Paperwork. It’s tedious.”

  Sanchez leaned against Alex’s desk. “I mean, how are you doing after pulling the DB out of the car?”

  Alex’s stomach clenched at the mention of the body. “All in a day’s work.”

  “Yeah, but that stuff can be hard to deal with. It doesn’t get easier, you know. Not for those of us who care and don’t get calloused. Was that your first DB?”

  He shook his head no. “Remember that holdup at the convenience over on Nineteenth and Hollow Drive? Or that drug deal gone bad by the train tracks a couple of months ago?”

  “Those guys were attempting to murder others. It’s not quite the same as a young kid with his whole life in front of him. This was senseless and preventable.”

  “What are you getting at, Detective?”

  She gave him a sympathetic smile. “I’m sure you’ve heard this before, but you can set up an appointment with the precinct’s therapist any time. There isn’t any shame in needing to talk things through. In fact, sometimes it’s required.”

  “Are you saying I need to make an appointment?”

  “No. Just throwing it out there. Something to think about.”

  “Okay. Thanks. My sister’s a counselor, too. I could talk with her if I felt the need. She’s helped my wife through some things.”

  “Good. Well, I’ll see you tomorrow. I’m heading out a few minutes early today.”

  Alex glanced at the time. “Shift’s already almost over?”

  “Time flies when you’re having fun.” Sanchez nodded toward his paperwork.

  “Right.” They said their goodbyes, then he started filing everything away.

  Wilson walked by and tapped Alex’s desk. “Check your email. There’s an update with the Potter case.”

  “Is it urgent?”

  “Just have a look.” Wilson walked away.

  Alex held back a groan. After hardly getting any sleep the day before, he was more eager than usual to get home. Whatever the email said, he would deal with it the next day. He typed in the password to his laptop then opened
his email, found the message, and read it over. The suspect had been arrested two towns over on unrelated charges. Definitely something he could deal with the next day. He shut down the computer and picked up his cell phone, ready to clock out.

  An alert on the screen showed an email from the mommy blogger.

  He blinked a few times, hardly able to believe his eyes. She’d responded? He tapped the notification and unlocked the screen with his thumbprint, his pulse drumming in his ears.

  * * *

  Alexander,

  You need to stop your smear campaign. Clearly, you have something to prove. That much is clear by your blog. Find a new hobby that doesn’t involve attacking a single mom who just lost custody of a child. How low can you get, really? Pathetic, that’s what you are. Worse, actually.

  Get a life and focus on kids who are actually in danger. No, I’m not happy about Connor living with his dad now. It breaks my heart, but there’s no reason to start a whole hashtag movement and rile up all of the Internet against me. Seriously, who picks on a single mom of four? Someone lower than a worm, that’s who.

  Leave me and my kids alone or you’re going to regret it. Just stick with your blog and actual endangered children. My kids are all safe, loved, and happy. All of them! Do you hear me?

  If I ever hear from you again or see you mentioning me online, you will regret it. But I won’t go to you. I’ll find a way to your kids. You have three, right? One’s in school, isn’t she? Guess what? Things happen at school, or on the way to and from. Wouldn’t want something to go wrong, would you?

  Are we on the same page? In case I haven’t made myself crystal clear—stop your campaign against me or your kids will pay. And don’t think this is a way you can draw me out. I won’t do it myself. You’ll never find me. Ever.

  ~A LOVING mother

  * * *

  Alex shook as he read the message several times. If she was trying to convince him that she was dangerous and crazy, then she’d succeeded. Threatening his kids while at the same time trying to convince him that she was a loving mom?

  The woman was certifiable.

  And now Alex might have enough to convince Nick to put police resources on her.

  He took screenshots of the message before going over to her blog to see if she had posted it there. There was a new post, but it didn’t mention him.

  Connor was in some of the pictures.

  Alex’s breath hitched. The missing child was there? He read the post, which explained that he’d come to their home for a quick visitation. The mom lamented that her ex wanted nothing to do with his other kids and that he hated being forced to drop Connor off for a few hours. She talked about what a great time the kids all had together, and that the boy was happy and healthy with his dad, though he’d begged to move home. She claimed he’d clung to her when the dad arrived to take him back.

  Something about the post didn’t sit right with him. He re-read the post and studied the pictures. The kids were all smiling and happy. Almost too happy. Like she’d gone to serious effort to make everyone think all was well.

  Then it struck him. Why hadn’t he noticed it before?

  While all the pictures were inside her house—as many were in other posts—the kids were wearing different outfits in almost every picture. Their hair lengths were all varied. Connor had a scratch on his arm in a couple, but not the rest. None of them had the children’s new hairstyles.

  These were all old photos.

  She’d staged Connor’s visitation.

  It was a complete farce.

  This had to be enough to convince Nick. They needed the station’s resources to get to the bottom of this.

  Alex looked at the time. The captain should be in his office. He gathered his things, clocked out, then knocked on Nick’s door.

  Nick waved Alex in. “Morning. How are you doing? I heard you were on the scene at the wreck.”

  “I’m fine. That’s not why I came here.”

  “Have a seat.” Nick turned to his computer screen. “What’s going on?”

  Alex waited for his friend to turn to him, but he didn’t. “That mommy blogger threatened my children.”

  Nick turned to him. “What?”

  “She told me that if I didn’t leave her alone, she’d hurt one of my kids.”

  “You’re not harassing her, are you?”

  Alex narrowed his eyes. “Seriously? You told me to use my blog, and that’s what I did.”

  “I have to ask. It sounds like that’s what she’s accusing you of doing.”

  “She’s lying about her missing son! I have more proof.”

  Nick sighed. “She’s in the area?”

  “Now that she’s threatened my family, this falls into our jurisdiction. But yes, I still believe she’s close. She took her kids to that new arcade about an hour from here. I recognize it from when I took Ari and your kids. Remember, Parker won one of the Grand Opening prizes?”

  “Show me what you have.” Nick rubbed his temples.

  Alex first let him read the email, then he showed him the blog posts. “See? There’s no way these pictures are from the same morning. The kids’ hair doesn’t go from short to long overnight. And a scratch doesn’t heal between breakfast and snack time.”

  “And you’re sure that arcade is the same one you took our kids to?”

  “I’m certain. Show the post to any of the kids, and they’ll tell you.”

  Nick tapped his desk and looked deep in thought. “Your evidence is more compelling this time around. I’ll give you permission to use police resources for this, but you have to promise me two things.”

  “Anything.”

  “First, this can’t take precedence over the cases we have now.”

  Alex leaned forward. “No problem.”

  “And second, you need to do everything by the book. Fill out all the proper paperwork, give even more detail in the report than you’ve given me. She’s right about it potentially looking bad—an officer going after a single mom. Handle this with care, Alex.”

  Excitement drummed through him. “The utmost care.”

  Nick nodded then turned to his computer, tapping on the keys.

  “Everything okay?”

  “Yeah.” Nick didn’t look up.

  “You seem kind of distracted.”

  “Huh?” He turned to Alex.

  “I said you’re distracted.”

  “Mason was threatening Ava, and I arrested him yesterday. I’m thinking about paying Dave a visit.”

  It took Alex a moment to process everything. “How long can we hold Mason?”

  “Long enough. He has some charges back home, so it’s complicated.”

  “And how do you think talking with Dave will help?”

  “They’ve probably been in contact. I doubt Mason has been doing all of this on his own. The kid really doesn’t seem that bright.”

  “If you do see Dave, take me with you.”

  “On what grounds?”

  Alex clenched his fists. “You really have to ask?”

  “You aren’t in any way involved with Mason. That’s why I would question him.”

  “I need to know if he suspects anything about—” Alex lowered his voice. “—the twins.”

  Nick shook his head. “He’d have spoken up at the trial. And it’s a moot point. The man is never getting out of prison alive. He can’t get custody.”

  “I need to know.”

  “Focus on the blogger. And your cases. Mostly your cases.”

  Alex rose. “Let me know when you go to see Dave.”

  The two friends stared each other down before Alex headed out, sure it would be another nearly sleepless day.

  Vent

  “Ava! Wait up!”

  “What?” She spun around and stopped in the middle of the track, then waited for Emma to catch up.

  “Wh
ere are you going?”

  “I’m going to walk home.”

  “That’s going to take hours.”

  Ava shrugged. “I could use the space to think.”

  “Why not just take the bus and have space at home?”

  “What do you want, Emma?”

  “We’re worried about you. Braylon hates that you won’t talk to him.”

  “He knows what he did.”

  “What did he do?”

  “I don’t want to talk about it. Space, remember?”

  Emma frowned. “We’re friends. Talk to me.”

  “You’ll miss your bus.”

  “I can call for a ride later.”

  Ava pulled some hair behind her ear and chewed on her lower lip. It might actually be helpful to talk to Emma. Dad and Braylon were too close to the situation to hear her out.

  “Let’s get some ice cream. I heard that shop by the pet store is having a deal on waffle cones today. An extra scoop for free, or something like that.”

  Ice cream did sound good.

  “My treat.” Emma tilted her head.

  “Okay, you win.”

  “Come on!” She dragged Ava across the street and down the block.

  Ten minutes later, they sat on a park bench with their overflowing waffle cones, watching little kids at the playground.

  “So, why won’t you talk to Braylon?”

  Ava sighed. Maybe she didn’t want to talk about it, after all.

  “He really cares about you. Whatever he did, he didn’t mean to piss you off.”

  “Is that what he said?” Ava finished off the scoop of mint chocolate chip.

  “No. He’s a guy. All he said was, you wouldn’t talk to him. The rest was written all over his face.”

  Ava started on her scoop of cookie dough.

  “Are you going to break up with him?”

  “I don’t know about anything right now.”

  Emma nearly dropped her cone, but caught it. “You’re seriously thinking about dumping him?”

  Ava shrugged.

  “You can’t! You guys are totally meant to be together. And besides, the four of us get along so well. One of the football players called us the four musketeers.”