Secrets On the Clock

by Nicole Disney

  Danielle turned the corner just as Ladona raised the gun at Jenna. Danielle lunged and swung the golf club down on Ladona’s arm with all she had. The gun veered downward as the shot sounded. Danielle’s vision felt narrow. All she could see or think about was the gun. She raised the golf club again and struck Ladona’s wrist once more, loosening the pistol from her grip. The gun tumbled and bounced a few feet across the carpet floor, away from all three of them. Danielle swung a third time, at Ladona’s head this time, and sent her sprawling to the ground.

  Ladona gripped her head in pain and tried to spring back to her feet, but struggled to right herself. Danielle spun to find Jenna. Half her face was caked in blood and she looked paralyzed with shock, but she was here. She was alive. Danielle lunged toward her, grabbed her arm, and pulled her toward the entrance of the office. Ladona’s hollow howl rang through the room. It felt animal. Pure and raw and dripping with pain.

  “Damn you!” Ladona said. “You ruined everything! You ruined my fucking life! What do I have now?”

  Danielle’s temples felt tingly as she focused on her hand around Jenna’s arm, around the realness of her. It was all that mattered. She pulled Jenna around the corner of the entrance, but the second they rounded the corner, Jenna turned into an immovable wall, stone. Danielle turned and met her frantic eyes.

  “Come on!” Danielle said. “We have to go.”

  “She’ll kill herself,” Jenna said.

  “What?”

  “She’ll kill herself if we go!”

  “She’ll kill all of us if we don’t!” Danielle tried to pull Jenna again, but she didn’t move.

  Ladona’s wails filled the room and leaked into the halls. “I just want my sons back. All I ever wanted was to take care of my babies.”

  “I have to do something,” Jenna said. “I can help her. I can calm her down!” Jenna tried to go back into the office, but Danielle wrapped both her arms around Jenna’s chest in a tight bear hug and pulled her back with all her strength.

  “She just tried to shoot you! You can’t calm her down.”

  “I can!” Jenna said and pulled again. Danielle was plastered to Jenna’s back, holding on to her. She pulled backward and tried to drag Jenna to the floor. She didn’t care what it took; she couldn’t lose her. She couldn’t let her go on a suicide mission.

  “Please!” Danielle yelled when she felt Jenna gaining leverage. “You’ll die!” Jenna managed to drag herself to the doorway. Danielle lunged on top of her and drove her weight down to keep her from going any farther. She looked up, trying to spot Ladona, trying to weigh their danger.

  Ladona was looking out the window now, at her sons in their ballistic vests. She put the gun to the side of her head and pulled the trigger. The sound rang through Danielle’s entire body. Blood and brain sprayed from Ladona’s head, and she thumped to the ground.

  Chapter Forty

  Jenna felt the life drain out of her when Ladona hit the floor. Danielle’s arms were still wrapped around her shoulders as they both stared, paralyzed, at the body.

  “Fuck,” Jenna said. Danielle’s arms loosened. Her weight lifted. Jenna found her feet and cautiously approached. She stopped the moment she was close enough to peer around the desk that blocked her view. Blood was pooling on the floor and dripping down the back of Ladona’s head.

  “Fuck.” She turned away from the body and wiped tears from her face. She left the office nearly in a jog, desperate to get away from the blood, the body. Danielle’s feet were thudding behind her, keeping pace with her as she made her way to the stairs. She realized she wasn’t even breathing and stopped to lean against the cold stairwell wall.

  “Fuck,” she said again and gripped her head.

  “I’m sorry,” Danielle said. “I didn’t mean for…”

  Danielle was standing frozen a few feet away, watching with a hollow look, like she thought Jenna was mad at her. She was when Danielle was holding her down, but it had disappeared the moment the gun fired.

  “It’s not your fault. You were right,” Jenna said. “She didn’t hesitate at all. Her mind was made up. What would I have even said? She was right. She was never getting her kids back, not after this.”

  “I heard you,” Danielle said. “For a while before I could figure out how to get to you. You said everything you could.”

  Jenna looked at the floor and shook her head. “Doesn’t feel like it.”

  “You did,” Danielle said. Danielle’s gaze was so intense it pulled her back to life.

  “What the hell are you even doing here?” The words jumped out of her. “Are you crazy? She would have shot you for sure if she had the chance. What was your plan?”

  “Just what I did,” Danielle said. “Search and rescue, I guess. Save you.”

  “You’re insane,” Jenna said. “You risked your life. You…” It hit her. “You saved my life.”

  “I couldn’t lose you, Jenna.” Their voices felt full and strong in the solid stairwell, but she knew they both felt paper-thin inside.

  Danielle stepped closer and pulled Jenna into an embrace. Jenna stiffened in surprise when Danielle’s lips met hers with a certainty she’d never felt before. All the doubts and complications that plagued them before felt meaningless now. All that mattered was kissing her. She melted into Danielle, welcoming her soft lips and strong arms. Danielle gently pulled away, loosening her grip but not letting go.

  “I love you, Jenna,” she said. “I was an idiot the last time we talked, what I said, when I left.”

  “You sure that’s not the life-or-death moment talking?”

  “It’s not,” Danielle said. “I mean, thinking you might die, it was the worst thing I’ve ever felt. It puts things in perspective. But I was already on my way to tell you this when I heard about Ladona. Please tell me we can fix this, Jenna. I want to be with you. I’m so sorry for everything that happened.”

  Jenna looked into Danielle’s eyes. The sincerity, the love she saw there made her feel like all her bones had disappeared from her body. She touched Danielle’s cheek.

  “I want to be with you too. I love you, Danielle.”

  Jenna leaned in and touched Danielle’s lips with her own, feeling the relief wash through her. She pulled Danielle into a tight embrace like she was trying to melt into her, like she would never let go.

  A voice faintly pierced the stairwell from outside, the blurry roar of the megaphone. Jenna and Danielle jolted apart.

  “Shit,” Jenna said. “I have to talk to Deon and Raylon. I have to tell them what happened. How am I going to do that?”

  Danielle grabbed her hand and squeezed. “You’re the one they’ll want to hear it from.”

  Jenna sighed. “I know. We better go.”

  When they made it to the front door of the building, the cops all had their guns raised as they screamed commands. They kept their hands in the air as three officers in full gear swept in and guided them away.

  “She’s dead,” Jenna said, but they pulled her away in the same speedy manner as if she hadn’t spoken. When they were behind the cop cars in the area the officers deemed safe, they finally looked her in the face. Danielle’s hand slipped back into hers.

  “What happened in there?” the officer asked.

  Jenna recounted the story, trying to balance speed with detail, but she could barely focus as she swept the parking lot for Deon and Raylon. Instead, she spotted Callie, who was running toward her full speed.

  “Jenna!” The officers let her by, and Callie blasted into her arms, knocking her several feet back. Callie’s arms squeezed around her neck tight enough to hurt a little, but Jenna smiled and hugged her back. When Callie finally released her, she planted both hands on Jenna’s shoulders.

  “Are you okay?” she asked. “Jesus, that’s a nasty cut.”

  “I’m okay,” Jenna said. “I’m glad you’re here.”

  “Of course, I’m here.” Callie hugged her again.

  When she pulled away, Sasha was next t
o her and reached in for a hug too.

  “Fuck, Jenna,” she said. “That email…”

  “I didn’t know what else to do.”

  “It was great. I thought you were messing with me for a second, but when I really looked, everything was there. Then I heard you in your office, and God, I was so scared for you. What happened? Is she still in there?”

  Jenna shook her head slowly, surveying her surroundings again for Deon and Raylon. She looked back to Sasha.

  “She’s not coming out,” Jenna said. “Where are the boys?”

  “They’re in the car over there.”

  Jenna glanced at the officer for permission. He nodded. Jenna started slowly toward the vehicle. Callie and Sasha were chirping excitedly at Danielle behind her, but it faded as her mind tumbled through the things she had to say to the boys, to the clichés everyone used, to the graphic details she could never tell them, the impossible questions they might ask.

  As she approached the car, a short, plump woman stepped in front of her, blocking the way. Her resemblance to Ladona was obvious, and Jenna knew this was the aunt who wanted nothing to do with Deon. A woman who just lost a sister.

  Jenna held out her hand. “You must be Mrs. Jorgenson.”

  “Yes. Audrey.”

  “My name is Jenna Thompson. I—”

  “Oh, I know who you are.”

  “I’m not sure if that’s good or bad,” Jenna said. “But I want you to know I care about your family a great deal.”

  The woman nodded. “I heard that,” she said. “At one point. The boys adore you.”

  Jenna smiled. “That’s good to hear.”

  “You were inside with her?” she asked.

  “Yes.”

  “And?”

  “She was very distraught,” Jenna said. “When she saw the boys in vests, when it looked like she’d never get them back…”

  “She shot herself?”

  Jenna nodded.

  “Heard it from here.” She wiped a tear from her eye. “We all knew it would happen someday. She talked about it a lot.”

  “I didn’t know that.”

  “Scared us all to death, but what do you do?”

  Jenna shifted her weight, trying to figure out what to say. “It’s a tough situation.”

  “I’m sure afraid of what it’s going to do to those boys. I’ll tell you that.”

  “Audrey, I don’t mean to overstep, but have you considered giving Deon one more chance?”

  Audrey scoffed and shook her head. “Of course, I have,” she said. “No one wants to put a boy in foster care. But he was too much last time. He was awful to me. I have health problems, Ms. Thompson; I can’t do it. It’ll be the death of me. And I won’t have him leading Raylon astray.”

  “He cares about Raylon more than anything,” Jenna said. “It’s the only reason that’s ever been good enough for him to act right. I’m afraid of what will happen to Deon without him.”

  “And what about Raylon? Do you care what happens to him being around a brother who’s halfway in the street life already?”

  “Of course, I do,” Jenna said. “But I also worry what will happen to Raylon if he loses his brother and his mother in the same month.”

  Audrey shook her head again. “Hell of a time to bring this up. I have to plan my sister’s funeral, you know?”

  “I know,” Jenna said. “I thought that might be easier as a family.”

  Audrey scanned Jenna with an appraising stare. Jenna could see her struggling with the idea.

  “Just one more chance,” Jenna said. “Foster care isn’t going anywhere if it doesn’t work out, but this might be your only shot to keep them both on track.”

  Audrey’s eyes burned into her, and she finally waved her hand. “Fine,” she said. “One more chance. One.”

  Jenna smiled and hugged her. Audrey felt like iron in her arms, but she squeezed her before she let go anyway.

  “Tell them I’ll be in the car.” She walked away muttering under her breath, then looked over her shoulder. “And tell them what happened, if you think you can. You know better than I do.”

  Jenna took a second to prepare before she started back toward the police car with the boys. She was ecstatic to tell them they were going to live together, but the reality was still horrible. She wasn’t sure how she was going to say those awful words; your mom is dead. It felt impossible.

  She reached the car, and the door opened from inside. Raylon’s head popped out. Deon was in the shadows on the other side.

  “Ms. Thompson?” Raylon said.

  “Come on out, guys.”

  Raylon climbed out instantly. Deon got out on the other side and walked around, moving slowly. He kept looking between Jenna and Raylon like he already knew. Like he was daring her to crush his poor little brother. The scene around them said it all. The cops had put back their rifles and shields. Bystanders were taking selfies with the mob of cops in the background. Everyone was smiling again. And Ladona was absent. Deon knew. How could this look to him? All this relief? All this happiness, when his mom was gone? Watching them both struggle with the awkwardness of the vests, knowing it had sent their mom over the edge put a burning sensation in her chest.

  Jenna waited for Deon to make his way around the car even as it took so long Raylon was coming unglued with impatience. She let Deon decide when this would happen, and eventually he made his way over to her and leaned against the car.

  “Is our mom going to jail?” Raylon asked.

  Jenna grabbed each of their hands. “No, sweetie. Your mom…” She knew she couldn’t use a platitude with a child his age, not that she ever cared for them anyway.

  “Your mom isn’t coming back. She died.”

  “She died?” Deon asked. “What do you mean she died?” His voice was sharp and harsh, the way it always was when he detected the slightest measure of someone patronizing him. He knew the words “she died” didn’t quite say it.

  Jenna fought the passivity that wanted to take over. “She killed herself.” She looked at each of their faces, waiting for a reaction, but none came from either of them. “She was really upset,” Jenna said. “And she wasn’t well. But she loved you both so much.”

  Silence stretched, and finally, tears began to roll down Raylon’s face. Jenna knelt down and hugged him. When he pulled away and she stood again, Deon still looked like a statue. She hugged him.

  “I’m glad you’re okay.” He was scrutinizing the side of her face where she knew she had bled badly. She was disoriented by the comment. It felt off topic, beside the point. She guessed he wasn’t processing it yet.

  “Do you want to talk about it?” she asked.

  He shook his head. His stone demeanor betrayed just a glimpse of grief and rage.

  “It doesn’t matter,” he said. “We weren’t going to see her anymore anyway.”

  Jenna tilted her head and looked into his eyes. “You can be mad at her and still love her,” she said.

  Deon returned her stare and finally nodded like he didn’t want to.

  “It might take some time to figure out how you feel about it,” Jenna said. “You can always call me. Even if it’s way later.”

  Deon nodded and wrapped his arm around Raylon.

  “When do I have to go back?” Deon asked.

  “You don’t,” Jenna said. “You’re going home with your aunt.”

  Raylon broke into a beaming smile, and Jenna felt warmed by his innocence, the ease with which he could smile, even now.

  “Really?” Raylon asked.

  “Really.”

  “Today?” Deon asked. “I don’t have to go back at all?”

  “Well, I’m sure you can go get your stuff.”

  “I don’t want it. I want to go now. Can I go now?”

  “Yes,” Jenna said. “You can go now. I’ll take care of the rest.”

  Chapter Forty-one

  “Good as new,” Dr. Williams said. Danielle leaned over to get a look at the lacerat
ion on Jenna’s head where Ladona Clark had hit her with the pistol. There was a pink mark where her skin had split that would soon be a scar, a reminder, and nothing more.

  “How do I look?” Jenna smiled at her.

  “You look beautiful.”

  “Callie!” Jenna said. Callie pulled back the curtain and came in with a candy bar between her teeth.

  “What?” she said with a full mouth.

  “Look, I have a scar now too.”

  Callie laughed and covered her mouth, trying not to spew chocolate everywhere. “Yeah, rugged.”

  Jenna hopped to her feet and turned to the doctor. “So that’s it?”

  “That’s it,” he said. “You’re free to go.”

  Jenna lead the way through the halls and into the parking lot, moving at a fast, excited, pace as if she’d been in the hospital for months, not the hour she actually had been. Danielle couldn’t stop smiling as she watched. She’d spent every single day with Jenna since the shooting, and she couldn’t believe she still felt more in love every day.

  “Lunch?” Jenna asked.

  “I have to go to work,” Callie said.

  “Dinner?”

  “I, uh, have plans.”

  Danielle and Jenna raised their eyebrows at each other and shot Callie a look.

  “Plans?” Danielle asked.

  “Yes,” Callie drew the word out.

  “With a gentleman caller, perhaps?” Jenna asked.

  “A gentleman, yes. I’m not sure he’s a caller.”

  “But he might be?”

  “He might be.” Callie shrugged and looked down to hide the smile that crept across her face.

  “All right,” Jenna said. “Have fun.”

  “I will.”

  “Don’t forget we visit Mom tomorrow,” Jenna called after her.

  “So not staying out all night,” Callie said.

  “Just in case.”

  Callie shook her head, but she was smiling as she walked away. Jenna turned to Danielle and wrapped her arm around her shoulders.

  “Just us, then,” she said.

  “That’s always okay with me,” Danielle said. “Just a few more days before you have to go back to work. Let’s make the best of them.”