Total pages in book: 217
Estimated words: 207224 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1036(@200wpm)___ 829(@250wpm)___ 691(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 207224 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1036(@200wpm)___ 829(@250wpm)___ 691(@300wpm)
“I’m fine,” she says, as I step away from the table, getting a warning look from Tank. I don’t go far, wandering in front of the bar area.
“Where are you?” I ask.
“I need answers.”
“That’s not what I asked,” I retort. “Where are you? You didn’t come home, Beau. I can’t believe how stupid you’re being.” I love her, understand her, but I cannot accept this level of recklessness. “James is so worried.”
“I know.” She sounds quiet. Defeated. “I don’t want him to worry.”
“Are you joking?” I stop with my pacing and look at the top shelf in disbelief. “You don’t want him to worry?” She really is acting stupid right now. “Beau, after killing, that is what our men do best. They worry about us. We’ve discussed this before.”
“I know.”
“Come home,” I beg. “Please.”
“Where are you?” she asks, obviously registering the hustle and bustle.
“At a pizza place in town.”
“With?”
“Tank, Daniel, Esther, and Lawrence.” I hope she also registers the fact I’ve mentioned her uncle, not her aunt.
“Lawrence is there?”
“Ye—”
The phone is snatched from my hand and Lawrence is soon yelling down it. “Beau Hayley, you will get your ass home this minute, do you hear me?” His mouth falls open and he looks at the screen. “She hung up on me!”
Burying her head. Being a coward and not facing the hurt and worry she’s causing. I put an arm around Lawrence and lead him back to the table. I want to point out the quite important fact that her call at least tells us she’s alive, but I don’t. I lower, get a knee rub from Esther and more questions from Daniel. “Why won’t she come home?”
I shamefully push the pizza toward him to shut him up. Of course, he doesn’t, looking at me tiredly as he talks over his food. “I’m fourteen soon, Mom.”
“I know,” I mutter, thinking talk of school would do the trick, distract him, excite him, but no. I’m not tempting fate. If the principal of this school finds out who we are, Daniel won’t be going anywhere near his school. Also, Danny could change his mind. Anything could happen. He might not be satisfied with the security. It might be too far away. Too . . . anything.
I take a chili from a pizza and pop it in my mouth, noticing Tank’s on his cell. He’s silent. And his face pales. Oh God. I chew and swallow as he hangs up and looks down at the table blankly. What the hell? I wave for a waitress to box up the rest of our pizza to take home and wait for Tank to declare our immediate departure. But the waitress comes, she goes, returns again with the boxed pizza, and he still hasn’t spoken. The rest of us all look at each other in question, and then Daniel puts a hand on Tank’s big arm and wins his attention.
“Are you all right, Tank?” he asks.
“That was the nurse.” Tank winces, reaching for his head and rubbing a hand across the back. “It’s my mom.”
“What about your mom?”
“They said it won’t be long.” He gets up, sits down, gets back up again, clearly in a muddle.
Oh no. “You must go.” I stand too, collecting my bag and the pizza boxes, putting some cash on the table.
“I can’t,” he says, motioning to Daniel, then me.
“That’s why we’re going with you.” I make it clear it isn’t up for discussion, looking to Esther and Lawrence to get moving. I don’t know what Danny will say. I don’t actually care. He won’t hold it against Tank, I’ll make sure of it. “You should call Fury too.” I take Daniel’s arm and lead him out of the restaurant. “Perhaps someone else should drive.” Tank looks shaken up, completely lost.
Daniel looks up at me as we walk down the sidewalk to the car, Tank close behind. “I feel bad for him, Mom.”
“Me too, darling.”
“He and Fury really love their mom.”
I nod, keeping myself together, trying not to think about all the lost years we’ve had. “Do you hate me?” I blurt out of nowhere, my fears spilling out of my mouth.
“Why would I hate you? You’re my mom.”
I exhale, exasperated with myself, and stop us just before the car. Lawrence and Esther are catching up, and Tank gets straight behind the wheel. “I wish I could give you more.” Good grief, I don’t even have to look down at him anymore.
He doesn’t say anything, his poor thirteen-year-old brain probably doesn’t know what to say. But he does hug me. And it’s the best thing he could do.
I so need it.
27
JAMES
It was fifty-fifty. Part of me hoped it would be Volodya sitting here so I wouldn’t currently be aching with the effort it’s taking me to remain in my chair, but the practical side of me knew Sandy was our best option.