Unbroken

by Riley Edwards

  “It’s the middle of the night, Jimmy. JJ is sleeping. He has school in the morning.” I was trying to keep my cool. My initial shock of finding Jimmy on my porch with Reid was starting to wear off. Even though I would never admit this to Reid, he was right. This might not be a good idea. “How did you get here, Jimmy?” I hoped to God he didn’t drive, as drunk as he was. Thankfully I didn’t see a car out front, not that I looked all that hard.

  “I’m starving, Sis. Do you think you could make me one of those grilled cheese and bacon sandwiches? You remember the ones you used to make when I would escape from Mom and Dad’s house and stay with you and Jacob?”

  There it was again. Jacob.

  Jacob and Jimmy had a crap childhood. Their parents were absolutely horrible. My mother was horrified when I started dating the boy from the bad side of town whose father was a criminal. That might have been what pushed me to him in the first place. Anything to annoy my hoity-toity mother and her obnoxious band of snobs from the country club.

  “I’m tired, Jimmy. How about I make you a peanut butter and jelly? I need to get some sleep. I take it you’re staying here tonight?”

  I prayed he said no. That he was going to walk to a local motel. Bitchy? Yes! However, in the middle of the night when I was emotionally fried, I didn’t care.

  “Yeah, just for a few days. I thought I’d stop by on my way up north and check in on my favorite sister and Jacob Junior.” His eyes were already closing as he sat upright on the couch.

  Why was God punishing me? What had I done to deserve Jimmy showing up drunk on my doorstep after five years of not returning a phone call, a text message, or an email? Nothing. Not on a holiday, a birthday, or the anniversary of his brother’s murder. He didn’t even show up for the trial. I sat in the courtroom with no family. Only Mac and Reid stayed by my side.

  The only days either of them missed during the two-month trial was if I needed someone to take care of JJ.

  Jimmy had just abandoned us. Finally, I gave up trying to reach out to him. I had a life I had to piece back together. A child to raise, losses to grieve, and, for the first time in my life, I had to figure out a way to live on my own. I simply didn’t have time to manage his feelings as well as mine. I couldn’t help him if he was unwilling to meet me halfway.

  “Why are you here?” I asked.

  “I just told you, I wanted to see you.” His eyes closed all the way and his head nodded off to the side.

  “Right,” I mumbled. I was too tired for this shit and he was too drunk to answer any questions.

  I noticed my purse on the hook by the front door. I snagged it and my keys on my way to the stairs. I might be too nice for my own good sometimes, but I was not stupid. There was no way I was leaving my wallet and car keys unattended.

  With a quick check on JJ, I was finally ready to get back in bed. I only had two hours until I had to be up and five AM comes fast. I wished I had a job where I could call in sick, stay in bed, all day, and veg out. How long had it been since I was able to take a lazy day and just lie in bed and read? Five years, that’s how long. It had been five years since I was able to breathe.

  I burrowed back into my warm bed, my eyes closing almost the instant my head hit the pillow. I would worry about Jimmy tomorrow.

  The sound of loud banging woke me up. I was completely disoriented when I sat up in bed and threw the covers off. What the hell was that?

  The sound of glass shattering finally pulled me from my stupor. My only thought was JJ. I had to get to him. I ran across the hall to his room.

  Gone!

  His bed was empty. An all too familiar feeling started in my stomach and traveled out in all directions. The heat and panic I had grown accustomed to living with was coiled tight and ready to strike. It would be so easy to let it take over; fighting the panic attack was always so much harder. I couldn’t let it consume me. I needed to find JJ.

  Everything that Jacob had ever told me about personal safety and home defense came rushing back.

  Do not scream and give away your location. Never call for JJ. If he is hiding he will run to you, giving away his location. Calm. Methodical in your movements. Never leave the bedroom unarmed.

  Mother F’er! I broke that rule. I forgot to get the .38 I kept locked in a small gun safe in my room. Too late.

  “MOMMM!” JJ screamed.

  Downstairs. The yell came from downstairs. I took the steps two at a time, coming to a sliding stop in front of my son. He was standing in the living room surrounded by broken glass and a puddle of orange juice. Jimmy was standing in front of him pointing a gun at my son.

  A gun!

  “Jimmy! What the hell are you doing? Put the goddamn gun away!”

  I was no stranger to guns. I, however, had never had one pointed at me, nor had I ever seen one pointed at my son.

  All traces of my earlier panic were gone. Replaced with white-hot rage. I was going to kill Jimmy.

  There was a movement to my left and before I could comprehend what was happening Reid was behind Jimmy. His own weapon was drawn and pointed at the back of Jimmy’s head.

  “Drop your gun, asshole.” I watched Reid’s mouth move as he spoke but his voice was unrecognizable. In all the years I had known, Logan Reid, I had never heard that menacing tone.

  Jimmy didn’t lower his gun. A wide smile pulled at his lips. “Ah, yes. The white knight has come to save the day again.”

  The dumbass must have a death wish. Why would he poke the bear who held a gun to his head?

  “Please tell me this isn’t happening! This cannot happen in my living room,” I yelled. “Jimmy, swear to God, put that gun away.”

  “JJ, sweetheart, please go up to your room.” As I gave him a gentle push in the direction I wanted him to go I noticed his bare feet and the broken glass around him. “Wait! I’ll carry you to the stairs so you don’t cut your feet.”

  “Both of you stay put,” Reid’s scary voice commanded.

  Holy shit.

  I was just about to argue when Jimmy suddenly fell to the ground. The blow to the back of his head happened so fast I didn’t even see Reid move. Jimmy’s head hit the coffee table with a sickening thud and blood instantly began to pool.

  “Close your eyes, JJ.” When Reid spoke this time, his voice was gentle and coaxing.

  Reid stepped around Jimmy’s body, picking up the gun now laying on the floor. He reached around behind him and shoved both guns in the waistband of his jeans. He was taking slow and measured steps towards us, hands out in front of him. He must’ve thought I was a hysterical wreck the way he was approaching us, like he thought I might freak out at any moment.

  I belatedly noticed he wasn’t looking at me. Reid was laser focused on my son.

  “JJ, I’m gonna pick you up and carry you to the stairs. I want you to wait until I bring your mama over to you before you go up. You with me, little man?” Reid spoke softly to JJ, a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

  My heart squeezed at Reid’s gentle care of my son.

  “I’m with you, Reid.” JJ’s little voice trembled.

  I was going to fucking kill James Kelley.

  I remained silent as Reid scooped my son up and took him to the stairs. I was too afraid to speak. Now that guns weren’t being pointed I could feel the adrenaline drop coming.

  After setting JJ down Reid turned to me. “Look at me, Ava. You’re safe. JJ is safe. Trust me. All you need to do is take JJ upstairs and I will handle the mess down here.”

  I nodded my head in response.

  “Thank you,” he acknowledged my nod.

  “Thank you? For what? You’re the one rushing in here saving the day,” I whispered.

  “For trusting me.” Reid picked me up as if I weighed nothing, cradling me in his arms. I desperately wanted to snuggle into him and soak up every ounce of warmth he had to offer.

  Wrong. This was so wrong. Not a single man had touched me since my husband died. I wouldn’t even allow Mac to hold my hand at
the trial. Nor had I let him hug me in five years. I didn’t want anyone to touch me. Only JJ.

  “I didn’t see any glass in JJ’s feet but you’ll still want to check.” Reid set me down on the bottom step next to JJ and I winced. For the first time, I realized I had glass in my feet. Damn, it hurt.

  “Change of plans, little man. Go ahead upstairs, I’m right behind you.” Reid picked me up again, adjusting my weight in his arms as he ascended the stairs.

  “I can walk,” I said in weak protest.

  I could walk, that was the truth. It would hurt like a son-of-a-bitch with the tiny shards of glass in the bottoms of my feet, but I still could make it.

  “You’re not walking.” That was it, no further explanation.

  Reid carried me into the master bathroom, JJ glued to his side. When he sat me on the edge of the tub I was a little confused. There was no way I was getting in the shower now. Was he crazy?

  “Do you have Epsom salts?” he asked.

  “Hmm, under the sink, I think.”

  “JJ, look under the sink, would ya?” Reid asked as he fiddled with the faucet, adjusting the temperature.

  JJ silently handed the carton of salt to Reid and sat down next to me on the side of the tub.

  “Mama, who is that man downstairs?” JJ asked.

  I hesitated, not knowing how much I wanted JJ to know. In the end, I opted for honesty. “That is your Uncle Jimmy, Daddy’s younger brother.”

  “That’s Uncle Jimmy?” JJ was shaking again. “Why was he pointing a gun at me?”

  Now that was the million-dollar question, wasn’t it? I was going to kill James Kelley.

  “I don’t know, baby. He’ll never do it again though. He came by last night after you were asleep. He said he just wanted to see us.” I smiled brightly at my son, trying to be somewhat reassuring.

  “Next time Uncle Jimmy wants to spend the night, can you please tell him no?” JJ asked.

  Reid chuckled at that.

  I jumped when he touched my ankle, lifting my foot to get a better look.

  “You’re a smart little man, JJ.” Reid continued to snicker as he set my foot in the warm water. “Let your feet soak a few minutes. I’ll be back up with some tweezers and my kit. Stay put until I get back.”

  I cocked my head to the side and pursed my lips. It had been a long time since someone told me what to do. I wasn’t sure I liked it.

  “Please, Ava, stay up here. I need to know you and JJ are safe while I dispose of the trash downstairs.”

  It might have been the please, or the mention of keeping my son safe, or maybe the fact that he was handling my problems for me, allowing me to take care of JJ.

  “Thank you, Reid.”

  “No worries. I’ll be back. You watch your mama, little man.” He winked at JJ and headed out.

  “I was so scared, Mama,” JJ admitted with tears in his eyes.

  That is when I snapped and the dam broke. I sobbed, holding onto my son. The soles of my feet might have had a thousand shards of broken glass in them, but nothing compared to the pain I felt when my boy told me he was scared.

  6

  Pack a Bag

  Reid

  “I was so scared, Mama.”

  After hearing JJ’s soft admission and Ava’s sobs I was positively murderous. That motherfucker was going to pay. I knew I should’ve never let him stay here. This was on me. I knew plenty of guys on the force who would’ve come down here and hauled his drunk ass in.

  Not to mention the fact that the name Ava Kelley had pull around the San Francisco PD. The widow of a murdered cop always got special care. She was on the watch list of every retired cop, watchdog group, and local PI. Even our not-so-friendly chapter of the Iron Claw MC had her on their radar. Everyone knew that Ava and JJ Kelley were to be protected.

  I failed.

  I pulled my phone out of my pocket, stabbing at the screen harder than necessary. When I found the number I was looking for I connected the call. “Yea,” Austin grumbled on the other end of the line.

  “Sorry to wake you, I need you at Ava’s and call Rick and Dustin. I need them at the office ASAP. Tell them I want all of the information they can find on James Kelley’s whereabouts and dealings since the last report. And tell them to dig deeper into the last five years, I want to know every hole this douchebag has ever crawled into.”

  “Copy that boss. See you in ten.” The phone disconnected.

  I jogged down the stairs, needing to make one more dreaded phone call. Mac. He was gonna kick my ass. And rightfully so. I should’ve called this in last night and made him aware that Kelley was in town.

  “Mac here,” he answered.

  “We gotta problem. Call a unit out to Ava’s and get here.” As I rounded the stairs I saw that the douchebag was not where I left him. “Motherfucker! We need a BOLO out for James Kelley. He is injured and on the run. Last seen ten minutes ago, leaving Ava’s. He is in dirty blue jeans and a red and black button up.”

  “Ava and JJ?”

  I didn’t need for him to finish his question. I knew what he was asking.

  “Safe.” I disconnected and shoved my phone in my pocket.

  Drawing my sidearm, my training took over. I pushed all thoughts of JJ and Ava aside and cleared the downstairs, noting the black duffle bag that Jimmy had with him last night was near the dining room table. Douchebag was in a hurry to leave.

  I heard the front door slowly creak open, I turned and leveled my weapon.

  Mac.

  “All clear,” I informed him.

  “What the fuck happened to Ava’s garage?” he thundered as he holstered his weapon.

  “Jimmy Kelley happened. He was on her doorstep last night when I got home, a little after three. He was drunk and peeking in the window. Ava heard the commotion outside and confirmed she was okay with him staying.”

  “Jesus H! Jimmy hasn’t been around since Jacob’s funeral. That piece of shit completely abandoned Ava and JJ,” Mac boomed, not telling me anything I didn’t already know. “Did I ever tell you I reached out to him? Six months after Jacob died. I offered to set him up in San Fran to be closer to Ava and his nephew. He declined and told me Ava and JJ were just as dead to him as his brother.”

  “He what?” Ava screeched from the top of the stairs.

  Mac’s eyes widened in shock, then slowly closed. He’d just fucked up. He had obviously never told Ava that he had reached out to Jimmy. I wouldn’t have either.

  The pain in her eyes was confirmation that news was best kept a secret. Only it wasn’t anymore and, knowing Ava, she was about to blister Mac.

  “Ava, how is JJ?” Mac asked.

  Smooth. Try and change the subject to JJ. Normally that would work, Ava’s only concern was for her son.

  “Not gonna work, Mac! Why would you do that?” She narrowed her eyes, then winced when she put her full weight on her right foot.

  Yep, Ava was pissed. But, now I was too.

  “Thought I told you to stay put,” I said.

  “I wanted to see who was here. This is my house, after all,” she sassed.

  “I’ll be up in a minute to check your feet and wrap them. After that, you’ll pack a bag.”

  “Pack a bag? Why would I do that?”

  She looked so beautiful with the sun shining in the windows behind her, highlighting her long, golden-blonde hair. It almost looked like she had a halo around her. The sun flare was only an illusion. Ava was no delicate, golden angel complete with a halo. She was strong, spirited, and by far the most stubborn woman I knew.

  “You’re not staying here.” I was purposely vague. This was going to be an argument. Not only was I going to have to battle it out with Ava, but I would have an all-out war with Mac. He was not going to be happy.

  “I agree, it’s not safe here, Ava. Think about JJ. We have no idea why Jimmy is in town, and who followed him here,” Mac put in his two cents.

  Before Ava could argue further, there was a noise at the front door
. Mac put his hand up, silencing the room. Ava quietly disappeared back into her room. Good girl. Mac and I both took cover behind Ava’s overstuffed couch and reached for our weapons.

  The door slowly opened and Austin’s large frame came into view, weapon drawn, looking like he just woke up from a bender.

  “We’re good,” Mac said.

  “What the hell happened out front?” Austin asked as he walked over to us.

  I glanced up the stairs to make sure Ava was still in her room.

  “A little after five I heard banging. At first, I thought it was just trash pickup. Once I woke up enough to remember Kelley was in town, I grabbed my gun and ran outside. I didn’t see a car leaving and no one was running down the street. My best guess is they used the mountain lake trail to come and go. To be honest, I didn’t pay too much attention to the damage outside, I was more concerned getting inside to check on Ava and JJ.”

  “And, Kelley? Where does he fit in?” Austin continued to question me.

  “Don’t know that yet. I haven’t had a chance to talk to Ava about him. I’m hoping by the time we get to the office Rick and Dustin will have a jacket prepped and ready for review. The douchebag isn’t very smart, or good at covering his tracks. His duffle is in the dining room. There’s a cell on the table too, but that might be Ava’s.”

  “Reid...” Mac trailed off.

  “Waste of time, Mac. I am investigating this. Either I can share my information with you or you can pretend I’m standing down. The play is yours. But we both know your hands are tied by rules and bureaucratic bullshit. Mine are not. I am going to find Jimmy Kelley, and when I do, that douchebag will be sorry he ever stepped foot back in San Fran.”

  “Tread easy,” Mac gave in.

  “Not sure about that, but I will make sure that nothing blows back on you.” I blew out a breath and prepared for battle. “Ava and JJ are coming with me. I’m going to take them to the cabin. It’s far enough away that Jimmy and whoever is after him won’t find us, but close enough if you need me I can be back.”

  Mac let out a boisterous laugh and I braced myself for the explosion.