Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 79169 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 396(@200wpm)___ 317(@250wpm)___ 264(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79169 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 396(@200wpm)___ 317(@250wpm)___ 264(@300wpm)
“This isn’t just about you or what you need, Trevor. This is about our daughter.” I tried to remain calm as I explained, “She’s been through enough, Trevor. It’s not fair to expect her to come into this place and see you, not when she’s finally starting to recover.”
“Recover? Recover from what? All the damn lies you’ve told her about what happened?”
“The lies I told her? Are you kidding me?”
“There are two sides to every story.” I was completely stunned. I never dreamed Trevor could believe that I was even remotely to blame for anything that happened until he said, “We both know you’ve only told her your side—the one where you were completely innocent and I was the one who carried all the blame, and that’s not the way it was. Not even close.”
I could feel the anger rising in the pit of my stomach, and I wanted to lash out at him but knew it wouldn’t make a difference. Trevor was a narcissistic asshole who still couldn’t accept the blame for what he’d done.
“Cat was there, Trevor. I didn’t have to tell her anything. She knows what happened.”
“She was just a kid,” he replied nonchalantly. “And kids are resilient.”
“This conversation is over.”
“Of course, it is,” he snarled. “You’ve never wanted to listen to the fucking truth.”
“You’re insane. There’s no way I’m bringing her here to see you. Not now. Not ever.”
I took the receiver and slammed it back in place, then stood up to leave. I could hear Trevor pounding on the protective glass and shouting a stream of profanities at me—much like he used to do when we were still married. I turned to look at him, and he was glaring at me with such an intense hatred that it sent a chill down my spine.
Thankfully, it was only a matter of seconds before the guards had him restrained and were removing him from the room. The guard at the door came over to me and said, “You made it.”
“Yeah, I guess I did.”
“Let’s get you out of here.”
He was just about to open the door when a call came over his radio. He quickly picked it up and listened, then turned to me and said, “We’re going to have to hold up here for a bit.”
“What?” I gasped with worry. “Why?”
“There’s a disturbance out in the yard.”
“What kind of disturbance?”
“No tellin’. Probably just a fight or something.”
“I’ve got to pick up my daughter from school.” I glanced down at my watch. “How long do you think we’ll be stuck in here?”
“Shouldn’t be long.”
I didn’t say anything more. I simply stood there next to him, silently praying that he was right and whatever was going on out in the yard would be handled quickly.
Unfortunately, that didn’t happen.
I waited in the room for over an hour and a half, and by the time I made it through security and out to my car, there was no way I’d be able to pick up Cat from school without being late. I immediately took out my phone and started calling everyone I could think of, from my parents to my best friend, Celeste, and even a few friends from work—even Delilah.
Mom was at the doctor’s office with my father, Celeste was still out of town, and my friends from work were all in the middle of a shift. I was stuck. There was only one person left for me to call—one last resort.
Thatch.
I tapped in his number, and a mix of dread and desperation washed over me as I waited for him to answer. I’d never called him during the middle of the day, so I wasn’t sure he’d even answer.
But after several rings, he picked up. “Rebecca?”
“Hey, Thatch. I’m so sorry to bother you, but I’m in a real bind, and I had no one else to call.”
“What’s going on?”
“I got held up at, ah ... um, a meeting, and I’m going to be late picking up Cat. I wondered if there was any way you might be able to run by the school and get her for me.”
“You want me to pick up your kid from school?”
“I know it’s a lot to ask, and I would understand if you didn’t want to do it. I’m just kind of ... um, I’m just kind of desperate here, Thatch. I’ve got no one else who can do it.”
“What about Delilah or ...”
“I’ve already asked her. She’s in the middle of her shift. Same with all my other friends from work.”
He didn’t immediately respond, and I feared he was about to turn me down when he finally replied, “What do I do with her once I get her?”
“Just take her back to the house, and I’ll meet you there as soon as I can.”
“That’s it?”
“She’ll probably want a snack or something, but she can manage that herself.”