by Callie Rae
Darla speaks up. “I think I can speak for Catherine when I say, why the hell did you drag our children and us to this place?”
Cruise clears his throat. “Sorry about that, but it really is for the best. This is one of our local safehouses.”
“And why would we need to be in a safehouse?” my mother speaks up.
“Well, because—” Cruise starts, but I interject.
“Mom.”
She turns her face toward me and Fallon, who is tucked next to me.
“You know why. I know you’ve had to survive all these years for us, but it’s time. Look at us. We’re all legal adults. You don’t have to protect us anymore.”
“We know he isn’t the man you wanted for us. And we don’t blame you for that. We would never blame you. We love you.” Jade’s voice is barely a whisper, but still audible enough for everyone in the small living room to hear.
My mom sighs. Darla grabs onto her hand and pats it.
Finally, after several moments of digesting the scenario, she leans forward and straightens her spine.
“Okay. Tell me.”
“Actually, I can’t. Because of my…ties with the family, I am only able to offer my protection. However, because James is your spouse, we are going to have to remove you from any further conversation about what will need to be done. I realize that James has been acting without consent or knowledge of his spouse and that you’ve been separated for quite some time, but legally, you’re still considered a liability. Before I can proceed, I will need you to exit the room with Officer Ridge. He will also need to ask you a few questions.”
I push from my place against the wall. Fallon’s hand shoots to my arm just as quickly.
“That was not the deal,” I growl.
Cruise turns to me. “She is not under arrest. She is in protective custody. She is protected in a court of law, as we have plenty of proof that she was unaware of her husband's illegal activities. At the same time, we have to make sure there are no loose ends that can mess this up.” He picks up a folder from a table in the corner. “I’m also going to need Jade and Cason to sign these affidavits stating that they are aware anything they say will be used to detain their guardian.”
“They will not sign that,” my mother grits through her teeth. “They’re minors.”
“Actually, they’re all eighteen, and if they choose to sign, you cannot stop them,” Cruise states simply.
My mother’s face turns a light shade of red, but I have no doubt she is seeing blood red when she looks at him. “You are not going to do this to my family. You don’t just get to come back here and make everything explode again. They are not going to sign until our lawyer is present. Period.”
Cruise sighs. “As you wish, Catherine.”
“Jesse and Fallon, you will need to come with me.”
Both mothers immediately begin their protests.
“Excuse me?”
“Absolutely not.”
“You can’t fight me on this, as they have both already signed and agreed to work with us as informants,” Cruise says as he turns to the mothers.
“I’ll sign,” Cason says.
Jade perks up at the same time. “I will too.”
Mom gasps. “You will do no such thing! Either of you.”
“Mom, like he said, you can’t stop us. This nonsense needs to end. Look at us! Our family is suffering because of him. It’s time.” Jade stands up and reaches for the file in Cruise’s hand.
“Jade!” Mom growls.
“Sorry, Mom,” Jade says, then looks at Cruise. “Do you have a pen?”
Cruise pulls one out of his pocket and hands it to Jade. Cason follows behind her.
Mom stands up and stares Cruise down. “If any of my children get hurt because of you, I will demolish you. Do you understand me?”
Cruise meets her with an unwavering stare. “You have my word.”
Mom continues to stare hard into his gaze.
Darla stands and grabs her by the shoulder. “Come on, Catherine. Let’s go see if they have some tea or coffee.”
She holds her position for a few seconds longer before exhaustion appears over her face and she reluctantly falls in line behind Darla. My gut clenches at seeing my mom this way. The plan was to never hurt her. But either way, she was in the line of fire. You can’t be married to the devil without getting burned.
Once Cason hands his copy back, Cruise nods for us to follow. We go to the back of the house into a room where a makeshift conference table has been set up. Maps and photos are pinned to the wall. Coffee cups litter the table. Mrs. Tate is sitting at the table reviewing something. Cruise shuts the door behind us, and Mrs. Tate looks up. I grip Fallon’s hand to pull her to my side while Cason and Jade both balk at the old lady.
“Mrs. Tate?” Cason and Jade both say in unison.
“Hi there.” She smiles at them. “Nice to see you. I wish it was under better circumstances.”
“But…you’re the seriously psychic school secretary.”
“I am. At least that’s how you’ve known me.”
“This doesn’t make sense,” Jade says, then crosses her arms and glares accusingly at Mrs. Tate. “You’ve been spying on us.”
Mrs. Tate nods her head. “It was my job to keep an eye on you kids, yes.”
“More like make my life hell,” Cason snorts.
“Oh, Cason, I have thoroughly enjoyed your antics these last few years.” Mrs. Tate shakes her head and sighs. “Well, I’d love to reminisce, but we only have a few hours to nail this down. I need you to take a seat and get comfortable. I need to know everything you know.”
We all have a seat at the table. Fallon is seated on one side and my sister on my other, while Cason takes the seat across from me.
“Cruise, these kids love coffee. Think you could grab some for us?”
Everyone’s eyes go wide as we look at Cruise. His face turns red, but he doesn’t argue. He nods and leaves the room.
“Now, where were we?” Mrs. Tate says. “Oh, yes. So let me start by telling you I am working with the FBI. We have been following a gun ring for a few years now. We knew it connected with Callaway Exports. We just didn’t know how. Not until Detective Cruise came along with a lead.”
“So is Cruise not working on this case?” I ask.
Mrs. Tate smirks. “You were always smart, Jesse. No, I am taking the lead here. Because of the new circumstances we’ve uncovered, Cruise has been removed from the case. He will stay here as protection to make sure you all are comfortable.”
“You mean the fact that he’s probably my biological dad,” Cason says.
We all suck in a deep breath. I did not see that coming.
Mrs. Tate nods. “That, and his relationship with the suspect's sister.”
“So, is he?” Cason mutters. “Is he my father? I figure you must know for sure by now.”
“Cason, that is something for you and him to figure out another time. Right now, I am here to focus on one thing: getting guns off the street.”
Cason nods quickly and swallows hard. I know this is tough for him. He went from having a mother who didn’t care to a mother and a father who didn’t care. My chest tightens just thinking about how he must feel.
Fallon leans forward, reaching her hand out to him. She waits to see what he’ll do, and for a second, I think he might be too angry to accept her offer. Instead, he lifts his hand up to the table and grabs her hand tightly. I see her eyes well up, but the tears don’t overflow.
Things will be okay. Cason will be okay.
“So you’re saying you’ll have the entire compound surrounded?” I ask. “How do you know that’ll be enough?”
“What do you mean?” Mrs. Tate says.
“You have no idea what they’re packing on that barge. You know it's going to be full of weapons, but how many people will be there to drop that shipment? On a normal day, we have a ton of workers unloading crates and bringing them into the warehouses, checking them in. If I know my dad
, he’s using the same system here, but with extra security. Vic has his own hired security on top of that. You could be walking into a death trap.”
“That’s a risk, yes.”
“Well, why not remove the risk?” I suggest.
“And how would we do that?”
“Jesse…” Cason warns.
“I’ll go in. I can assess the situation and tell you how many and where,” I say.
“No,” Fallon says sternly.
I turn to her. She is shaking her head fervently.
“You are not doing that. With all the shit we’ve almost lost this year, there is no way I’ll let you put yourself in harm's way.”
“She’s right,” Jade says with a shake of her head.
“I know this might be hard for you to understand, but this man has ruled my entire life. He’s manipulated us all, and I need to do what I need to do to end this. To end him.”
“That’s very noble of you. But we can’t put you in the line of fire,” Mrs. Tate says. “You’re way too close to this. I understand that you have a lot of anger and you’d like revenge for Fallon’s sake. But that makes you a liability.”
“Revenge for what?” Jade speaks up.
“What?” I ask.
Jade points to Mrs. Tate. “She said revenge for Fallon. What does that mean?”
I let out a rush of air. “He was the reason Marcus took Fallon.”
“No, that’s not true. He might be a lot of things, but a monster is not one of them.” Jade shakes her head and turns to Fallon. “It’s not true.”
“Jade…” Fallon says softly.
“Actually, we have evidence that says otherwise,” Mrs. Tate says.
“What? No.” Jade shakes her head again.
“I heard him, Jade,” I say, interrupting her next words.
She looks at me with tears in her eyes.
“He was in his office with Vic’s guys, and I heard him say it. He wanted her to disappear. He was mad that Marcus went off plan.”
I stare at the table with a tense jaw. I’m breaking my sister's heart, and I can’t witness that.
“You’re wrong. I don’t believe you.” Jade stands up suddenly, eyes brimming with unshed tears. “You’re all wrong.”
She exits the room quickly, leaving us all stunned.
Fallon looks down at her lap before slowly pushing her chair back. I reach for her before she can stand.
“I’ll be okay. There are plenty of people here watching out for me. Let me just go talk to her,” Fallon says.
I inhale, trying to calm the fear I feel about her being out of sight. I know it's irrational. We're at a safehouse. She should be safe.
I nod and let her go. She stands and leans over to plant a kiss on my head before leaving with a swipe of her hand across my shoulders.
Chapter 34
Fallon
I open the front door and find Jade sitting on the front steps. I could’ve walked right into her. She’s curled into herself. My heart drops; this isn’t the life Jade is used to. This is the life Cason and I know: the life where people leave, where they disappoint you. We expect it.
“I’m not stupid. I know he’s not a good man,” she murmurs.
I sigh and step down to sit next to her. “But no matter what, the small piece of you that will always be his little girl wants to believe there’s hope.”
She’s silent at first. Processing things. But then she looks over to me with a tear-stained face. “Did you know?”
I nod. Part of me had always suspected.
“I didn’t have proof. But I suspected he was involved. It just didn’t make sense to me. I didn’t know that Jesse overheard him.”
“I’m sorry he did that to you,” she says quietly.
I look into her tortured eyes and wrap my arms around her shoulders. “I’m sorry you grew up feeling less than. Jade, you’re not. You’re so smart and so full of life despite always being put last. I’m proud to be your friend.”
“How are you always so strong?” she asks, her head on my shoulder.
“I’m not strong, Jade. I survive. There’s a difference.”
She sits up and looks at me. “You survive because there is something to live for.”
I nod. “You, my mom, those boys in there. You’re my family. You’ve taught me there’s more to life than just pain.”
I can see the wheels turning and watch as her eyes become hard and determined.
“Then I can do this for you. I can survive for you.”
“Oh, Jade…you don’t have to survive for me. You don’t even have to do any of this. I would understand. I don’t need this. I don’t need revenge.”
“Maybe I need it. Maybe I can’t keep pretending like he hasn’t been hurting my entire family at every turn.” She squeezes her eyes shut. “I think that’s what hurts the most. I haven’t been brave enough to acknowledge that he’s hurting the people I care about because I was so determined to prove myself to him. To prove I could do everything he wanted Jesse to do.”
“Our brains can only process so much at a time, Jade. Sometimes it’s easier to pretend that it isn’t happening than to acknowledge what we can’t see.”
She lets out a sardonic chuckle. “That’s a major understatement. I’ve barely acknowledged any of it—not even the parts I can see.”
I sense him at the door. I sense his need for me. I turn my head to look behind us, and he’s standing there looking every bit the strong and powerful man I’ve come to know. And it looks fine as hell on him.
Jade must sense him too, because she looks back and then to me.
“Thank you, Fallon,” she whispers.
We both stand, and I watch Jade walk inside, briefly grabbing her brother's arm as she tries to slip past him.
Jesse stops his sister with a hand on her shoulder and looks at her with worry. “Are you okay?”
She gives him a soft smile, one only ever given to her siblings. “I’m as okay as I can be.”
He nods and, with a slight tilt of his lips, mirrors his sister’s sentiment. Jade continues inside, and Jesse’s fierce eyes lock on me. They are full of need—the need for me to understand. He swallows hard as we watch each other.
He finally breaks the silence. “I have to do this.”
“I know,” I say, still watching him. Still feeling the need radiating off him, I sigh. “I know. I just—I’m tired, Jesse.”
He finally closes the distance between us. His hands cage my face, and his fingertips grip the back of my head as he touches his forehead to mine.
“I know,” he says on a whisper. “Me too, baby. It’s almost over. It’s almost done.”
A single tear slides down my face. “I can’t lose you, Jesse. I just can’t.”
“You won’t. I’m not going anywhere,” he says. He brushes a kiss on my forehead as his arms wrap around me. I feel the gentle brush of his lips against my skin as he speaks. “I’m right here. I won’t leave you.”
Chapter 35
Fallon
The boys find an old rusty fire pit on the side of the house. They drag it to the back patio and light a fire with sticks and branches they find lying around the property.
Jesse, Jade, Cason, and I all sit around the fire. Even the moms and the detectives join us after a while. Cason finds a bottle of whiskey in the freezer and makes sure we’re all taken care of. It’s taken the edge off, but the thought of what tomorrow brings looms in the air.
I look around the fire at all the people I care about and search their solemn faces. Cason, usually the lively and fun one of the group, is staring into the flames like he wishes they would consume him, while the moms both shift around nervously.
I glance at Jade, who’s staring beyond the fire out into the woods. I can see the wheels still spinning in her mind. The knowledge that her father is actually a fucking monster is tearing her apart. I wish I could fix it for her. Make it easier somehow. I don’t know what it feels like to have a father and lose him b
ecause he just couldn’t care enough about you. I’ve never met my father. I didn’t get to know the bastard, so I don’t know what to say to her to make it better.
It won’t be better. Not for a while.
The truth is, tomorrow will break all of us in one way or another. To be fair, I think most of us were damaged goods to begin with.
I glance over to my mother, whose leg has been bouncing at a mile a minute. I don’t know when it happened. After the fire? Maybe before then and I didn’t notice? But she’s aged. She looks sad and tormented. She looks broken. I’ll never forgive myself for my choices that literally burned and scarred her.
Jesse must sense my turmoil. I’ve been sitting between his legs on the ground in front of him.
He slowly leans down and lifts a finger to my chin, tipping it back so I can look at him.
I give him a soft smile. It’s one that doesn’t quite reach my eyes, but still shows my appreciation for him all the same.
“Hey,” he whispers. “What’s going on up there?”
He nods toward my head.
I watch him for a moment. His eyes are so full of worry and love, I can feel it down to my soul. How lucky am I?
“Nothing. Just appreciating the moment.”
He grins and leans down, bringing his lips to mine for a soft kiss. He pulls away to look at me again. This time, the need in his eyes for me is overwhelming.
“You know I love you, right?”
My heart jerks a bit hearing those words and knowing how much they mean coming from him, someone who had closed himself off from everyone but his siblings. Here he is, professing his love to me. But he doesn’t get to do it tonight. He doesn’t get to tell me he loves me because he knows he's walking into danger tomorrow and this could be his last chance to say it.
“Don’t you do that. Tomorrow, when your dad is in custody, when you’re safe…then you can tell me all the reasons you love me.”
He looks away, guilty. I know what he’s saying, and this is his way of admitting he’s been caught. When he looks back to me, he has a smirk on his face. My man is back.
