Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
Holly
Once I have the food all set up, I give him a plate and some utensils so he can get whatever he wants, then hang the pictures the girls colored for him on the front of the wardrobe. I feel like my tote is a Mary Poppins bag today because I just keep pulling things out that shouldn’t otherwise fit. His clean clothes, along with a few more pairs of shorts go inside the wardrobe, while the sodas he occasionally drink go on the counter so he can reach them easily, along with an insulated cup for him to get ice when he wants one of his drinks chilled. His plastic cup is full of water, and that’s what he typically drinks most days, but the girls insisted which is what I tell him when he raises his brow at me.
“Come, sit and eat with me,” he says, patting the side of the bed.
I make myself a plate, taking smaller portions than he did and lean back with a sigh. “God, Grammy’s a saint for doing this,” I murmur after taking a bite of my buttered biscuit.
“Definitely. Tell me why you look like you’ve been crying,” he demands.
“What makes you say that?” I question.
Deflect, Holly, deflect! Defcon alert.
“Well, for starters, I didn’t expect you to miraculously look as though you’d slept for a week, but you look as tired if not even more so than you did when you left yesterday evening. Plus, your eyes are red-rimmed, sweetheart. You know you don’t have to come every day,” he says.
“I’m not just gonna leave you all willy-nilly in someone else’s care,” I huff out.
“Willy-nilly?” he teases, making me giggle.
“Yeah, willy-nilly,” I reply. “I had a nightmare last night, so I woke up at a ridiculous time and couldn’t go back to sleep. I did what little housework there was to do seeing as Grammy and the girls pretty much did the bulk of it. They even cleaned out the refrigerator for me!”
“What was the nightmare about?” he asks, eyes narrowed in my direction as if he’s preparing to slay all of my dragons.
Without even thinking, probably because he didn’t really push the issue, I pour it all out, the heart-pounding fear I had, hearing the girls’ screams, every last thing. “I think my mind just twisted everything that happened to you is all, Rebel,” I state, finishing up my long-winded story. “Because there’s no way me and the girls are in any kind of danger.”
I don’t tell him about Myra’s phone call; that’s still a bit too… raw for me to think about right now. But I suspect it was that combined with everything from the past two weeks swirling in my brain to create the nightmare to end all nightmares.
He’s quiet for so long, I glance at him to see his eyes are closed, his jaw is clenched, and his hands are balled into tight fists. “Rebel?”
He shudders then says, “Heard from Data after you left last night. The person who hit me was Myra McAfee. It’s been confirmed and is no longer a suspicion.”
“What? She was actually responsible?” Even after her phone call last night, I was still wishful that she was just talking shit and she didn’t actually do anything so nefarious. “I mean, I know what Samuel found at their house, but I was hoping he was wrong, and there was another explanation for why her car was damaged. Devin would be so disappointed in his mom. Well, the old Devin would’ve been. I’m not sure the man he was before he died would’ve cared. What’s gonna happen now, Rebel?”
“The detective is getting a search warrant so they can go and pick up the car and examine it. I need to see if your grandfather kept the stuff he got out of the ditch in case any of those pieces match up,” he replies.
“Jesus Christ, she’s off her rocker,” I murmur, briefly wondering if I should tell him about the phone call. Then I realize that we don’t keep secrets from each other, so I tell him that as well, totally unprepared for his reaction.
“Dammit, Holly! She all but threatened you and she admitted that she was hoping you were on my bike with me! How could you think that wasn’t important?”
“I… I’m sorry.” My voice and lower lip quivers. “Does it help if I tell you that I hit record on the conversation?” I manage to stammer out.
“Fuck yeah, it does.” He picks up his phone and calls the detective. “Detective Chesterfield? Rebel Sherman here. I know Samuel McAfee came to see you yesterday, but that’s not why I’m calling. Myra called my fiancée last night and not only did she admit to hitting me, but she also issued a thinly veiled threat toward her as well. Holly managed to record the conversation, but I don’t know how much of the conversation was taped.” He looks at me and I shrug. “Okay. Okay, that’s fine, we’ll see you soon.”
He hangs up and looks at me and says, “He’ll be here shortly since he’s gotta go and pick up the signed warrant.”
I pull out my phone and cue up the recording, then press play. After listening to it, I watch my man lose his mind. When one of the aides steps in, he throws up his hand and growls out, “Not. Now.” She hurriedly leaves while I try to calm him down.
“God, I could use a nap,” Rebel says, yawning so loudly his jaw cracks.
“Me too,” I admit. Detective Chesterfield has come and gone so now, it’s a waiting game as to when Myra is arrested.
“Then get your ass over here and let’s take one,” he says.
I set my laptop down, grateful that my early morning allowed me to take care of several tasks for my clients and crawl into the bed with him. He covers me with the fuzzy throw, and I snuggle into his arms and sigh. “I love you. Remind me that this is just a speed bump, pretty please?”
He leans in and kisses me and whispers, “And it’s one we’re gonna conquer, sweetheart. Now sleep, babe.”
I don’t nap for long because Ash and Data come into the room. “Hey, Pres, how you feeling today?” Ash asks Rebel, grabbing one of the chairs. “You look better at least.”
“Sore as hell from physical therapy and I look better because I finally got a fucking shower,” Rebel replies.
“Holly couldn’t take it any longer, huh?” Data teases, making me giggle.
“I think he couldn’t deal with himself, Data,” I reply. “I mean, would you like to have caked blood and dirt plus God knows what else embedded in your scalp for two weeks?”
Both men shudder at the thought, making me laugh harder. Maybe I’ve finally gone over the edge of sanity, but it honestly feels good to expel some of this pent-up emotion and I’d rather laugh than cry. Heaven knows I’ve done enough of that in the past few weeks to last me a lifetime.
“So, you want the latest update?” Ash questions. “Seems the police served the search warrant and picked up one very badly damaged vehicle with a tow truck. Also, she’s now in custody and currently sitting in jail waiting for her attorney to show up before they begin the interrogation since she asked for legal representation before they could get a word in edgewise.”
My arm flies in the air as I yell out, “Yes!” At their looks, I shrug. “What? She’s hated me since I was a teenager, y’all. A scrawny, gawky girl with braces no less. All because ‘her precious son’ liked me! That should’ve been my first clue, I guess, but I had never heard of red flags before.”
“Well, now that we have that sorted, how long before they spring you from this place, Pres?” Ash asks.
“I think another week, since that’s how long I have left on the IV antibiotics,” Rebel replies.
“Figured you’d want to take a look at this,” Data says, handing Rebel a Harley-Davidson brochure.
I watch my ol’ man’s eyes gleam as he takes it, knowing he’s got to replace his bike. Hopefully, her insurance will handle that because as far as I’m concerned, nothing should come out of his pocket because of her actions! He glances at me and grins which makes me shake my head. Boys and their toys, I swear.
“Yeah, I mean, I have another bike, but she’s getting older now and has to be babied a lot. She’s not good for long runs or anything. Not that we have a lot of those, but I’d worry about riding her during a poker run.”
“Might be time to retire her then,” Ash states.
“She was my first bike, Ash,” Rebel growls, setting the brochure on his rolling table. I know the man, though, and after they leave, he’ll be pouring over the pages while he figures out which model he wants to buy.
“So, keep her and make sure she’s road-ready, of course, in case the girls want to learn when they get older.” My heart jumps in my chest at Data’s words picturing Mina or Ruby riding a motorcycle on their own. Especially after what happened to Rebel, for heaven's sake.
Rebel must realize where my head’s at because he says, “Naw, she’s got too much power for a new rider. If any of our kids ever want to ride, I’ll start them on something with less juice behind the throttle.”
I release the breath I was holding, which comes out as a high-pitched gasp, and all three men turn to stare at me. “What? I don’t expect Rebel to quit riding by any means, but right now, the thought of my babies riding on two wheels with an engine and experiencing what he did is something that gives me the willies.”
“They won’t get on one until they’re ready, and not only will I teach them if they want, but the local Harley store has classes as well, sweetheart,” Rebel promises. “Before any of our kids ever take to the road, they’ll be able to handle themselves as well as a bike without hesitation whatsoever. You have my word.”
“Good. Next topic?” I ask, eager to change the subject. “Do we know if she’ll get bail?”
Ash shrugs then says, “It’s anybody’s guess, to be honest. Depends on the judge, of course, but y’all have a wedding to finish planning, which is more important than that bitch. Because she’ll get hers even though it might not be at our hands.”
“Oh, I can ruin her life with just a few clicks of the keys if y’all want me to,” Data advises, smirking at us. “Or we can let the justice system handle her because I suspect with everything they’re going to charge her with, she won’t see the light of day anytime soon. Not to mention, but she literally has nobody in her corner.”
“She’ll end up dying a bitter woman,” I murmur, my heart hurting slightly for her. I know she’s brought all of this on herself, at some point in her life something switched off in her brain, her empathy for others all but bit the dust… but then again, at the end of the day, she is Mina and Ruby’s paternal grandmother so my feelings for the woman are somewhat skewed. “I feel bad for Samuel, though. I know he divorced her, but she made his life a living hell for years. I often wonder if she was like the way she is now throughout their whole marriage or if something chemical caused her to change.”
I don’t want to ask him, though, because that seems too intimate of a question to ask the man I’m very fond of, especially since he’s still grieving the loss of his son, plus his marriage, of course. Still, at the end of the day, his willingness to go to the police with what he discovered says a lot about who he is as a man. He’s full of integrity down to the marrow of his bones.
“Regardless of what made her do what she did, actions have consequences, Holly,” Rebel reminds me. “If not for your grandfather, I’d be dead, because I was bleeding out in that fucking ditch.”
Shuddering, I say, “I know, handsome. The horror of that moment when he walked into my house covered in blood replays on a loop inside my head. I’m just glad the girls weren’t there at the time.” Poor Grammy, the self-professed stain removal queen, finally had to give up with Pappy’s clothes and throw them away, that’s how bad they were.
“Alright, Pres, we’ll get out of y’all’s hair, just wanted to stop in and give y’all an update,” Ash states, standing and motioning to Data. “If y’all need anything, and I mean anything , y’all better reach out.”
“We will, brother,” Rebel says before doing a weird handshake thing with both men. I bite back my smile because there are probably always going to be things they do or say that I don’t understand.