22. Chapter 22
Chapter 22
Lennox
As Ivy tells Roxie all about her day with Ainsley and Ledger, I pull out my phone and text the guys.
Me:
I need info ASAP. Her aunt and uncle took her in when her parents died, and I would be shocked if it isn’t them she’s running from. I need to know what we’re looking at here. Are they dangerous?
Arlo:
I was just about to call you. So, apparently Greg and Pam Moore are broke as shit.
Oakley:
According to Woodcroft, one Gregory David Moore has debts in at least four casinos along the East Coast, and I would guess that’s on the very conservative end. He’s also been picked up for domestic violence calls, but nothing has ever come from it because Pam doesn’t press charges, apparently.
Shit.
Arlo:
Looks like Pam has been in and out of the hospital, but I can’t find why because of HIPAA. They’re originally from Pennsylvania. The last permanent address I can find for them is in Virginia, but that was three years ago.
Me:
So, what does this mean? Could they be coming for Ivy?
Oakley:
This most likely boils down to money. I’m not entirely sure if their target is Ivy or Roxie, considering Roxie isn’t making obscene amounts of money.
Arlo:
I haven’t seen anyone new in town, but if she’s seen them twice now, we need to be vigilant. Even if she stands by her just seeing things, I call bullshit. I’m going to start doing rounds around town and see if I can figure out where they are. There’s always the possibility they are staying in Rosedale and coming here randomly.
Oakley:
I still have that lieutenant’s contact information from when Rina was taken. I can call him too.
I sigh, tilting my head up to the ceiling. Roxie is in trouble, and she’s brushing it aside like nothing is happening.
Me:
I’m getting more mobile and only a couple of weeks off from having no more brace. I should be able to protect them here, but … I’d appreciate the extra help.
Admitting I’m not where I want to be if Roxie’s family comes for her is one of the hardest things I’ve done. Realizing I can’t protect Pixie is worse.
Weak.
Alone.
You can’t protect anyone, much less yourself.
My eyes squeeze closed at the phantom voice of Tennison in my head.
“Lennox?” The wobbly sounds of Roxie’s voice barely penetrate the fog.
“Lenny?” Pixie’s voice is the one that drags me back to reality. “Are you okay?”
“Hey, Pix. I’m okay, just zoned out for a second.” Squeezing my eyes tight one more time to clear the images of that cabin out of my head, I refocus on Roxie.
Concern and worry swirl in her gaze, and I don’t know how to get rid of them. I wish I could fast forward a few months to when I had my shit figured out, but no such luck.
Greg and Pam Moore are threatening my girls, and I won’t let anything happen to them.
My girls?
The thought stops me dead. They aren’t my girls, as much as I wish they could be. But I’ll be the one who helps stop her family once and for all, so they both can live the life they want to. Without worry and the constant looking over their shoulders.
“You okay?” Roxie murmurs as Ivy runs to her room to grab something.
“Yeah. No.” I shake my head. “I don’t know. I’m trying to be.” It might be the most honest I’ve been with her, dropping the air of stubbornness in favor of vulnerability.
“We can talk about it once Ivy’s in bed later if you want.” She offers it without a second thought. Her selflessness is something I want to repay, but I don’t feel like I have anything worth giving in order to do so.
I nod, though. In my weakness, I know spending more time with this steady and safe woman will fuel my greedy soul.
Roxie’s doing Ivy’s extensive bedtime routine. It’s turned into quite the ordeal lately, and I’ve done my part, which is story time. The entire time I read her story today, I was thinking about how to protect them. How to get them free from Roxie’s family. And what I came up with smarts. I can’t do it alone. Sure, I have the sheriff and an ex-U.S. Marshal on my side, but I need more help.
I can’t risk Roxie and my Pixie for anything. Even if the risk is me.
Sitting on the edge of my bed, I pick up my phone and open up the family group chat. It’s something I don’t actively keep up with, only popping in to offer family dinner or throw in the occasional “I’m okay” text.
Me:
Hi.
I roll my eyes at myself. I didn’t really think about what I’d actually say when I opened up the text thread.
Me:
I’m sorry I’ve been MIA for so long.
Rina:
Don’t apologize. We totally understand, Lenny.
Willow:
Nothing to be sorry about!
Ledger:
No need to apologize. We all understand.
They all text back simultaneously, and what I’ve found so annoying since I first landed in the hospital suddenly feels more like overwhelming gratitude. What’s felt suffocating now looks like unending support. And I feel like an asshole.
Me:
I’ve been a bad brother. I just … didn’t know how to cope. I still don’t really think I do, but I’m working on it.
Willow:
This is a huge step to that, though.
Rina:
How dare you make me cry when I’m trying to get ready for a date.
I chuckle at Rina’s response. Throughout everything, she’s never babied me, and someday I’ll tell her she’s the one person who kept the levity, who kept me laughing even on my hardest days.
Me:
Tell Arlo I’m sorry for the emotional turmoil.
Ledger:
You’ve never been a bad brother, so stop that line of thinking right now.
Me:
Yes, sir. *salutes*
Willow:
IS THAT A SMARTASS COMEBACK I SEE?? Who are you, and what have you done with Grumpy Lenny?
I smile at my phone. Maybe I’m already changing for the better. If I am, it’s all because of one woman.
Me:
Still very grumpy, so I’m going to bow out of the conversation now before the asshole tendencies take over again.
Rina:
*sighs* It was so good while it lasted.
Ledger:
I feel like we shouldn’t be joking about this.
Me:
Lighten up, Dad. If I can’t joke about it, then I’ll just be stuck in the shitstorm I’ve been in.
Rina:
Yeah, Dad. Let us joke about it … and you. *wink*
Ledger:
You guys are a pain in my ass.
Me:
You’d hate it if we weren’t.
Ledger:
I’m not admitting that.
Willow:
But you kind of just did.
Me:
Please carry on giving big bro shit. I’m going to try and get some sleep.
Me:
Seriously, though, thank you guys for not giving up on me.
A throat clears from my doorway, causing me to look up. What I see steals my breath. Roxie looks unsure but no less beautiful. She’s got her hair on the top of her head and is makeup free. Dressed in an oversized T-shirt and shorts I can barely see underneath, she’s temptation come to life.
“I can leave. I just wanted to check on you.”
I don’t tell her with words that I don’t want her to leave. That I want her to stay, more than just tonight. Instead, I slide back on my bed until my back hits the headboard and pat the mattress next to me. If I talk, I’m at risk of spilling all my secrets. Like the fact I had Arlo and Oakley look into her past behind her back.
Yeah, let’s ignore that right now.
She cautiously walks toward my bed, sitting down and giving us ample space apart.
A million thoughts race through my mind. I want to tell her so many things. How I’ve started opening up to my siblings, how I want to make real progress toward getting back to my job, all because of her. What comes out of my mouth is something else entirely.
“I remember waking up in the cabin. It took me a long time to recall how I got there. Chloroform or something like it, the doctors told me later. I don’t think I fully realized what was going on at first. I realized I was naked and tied to a chair, but somehow it didn’t register. Even when Alfred Tennison walked out of the shadows with a smirk on his face, I didn’t put two and two together.”
“Lennox…”
I ignore her. “I was supposed to direct any people in the park away from the area. Keep them safe. And I did that, but then I thought, Let me just go check out the area. See if I can get the jump on him. It was the wrong decision.” I laugh humorlessly. “The first cut was one of the worst, not because it was deep but because it shocked my brain into understanding what was happening.
“It felt never-ending. He just kept cutting into me. My legs, which you’ve seen, were some of the worst. The deepest, that’s for sure. His precision was impeccable. Never cutting anywhere that could cause too much blood loss too fast. He didn’t speak a word until he moved to my torso. That’s when he started telling me how weak I am, how my parents’ car accident was my fault. He knew things he shouldn’t have known, and I believed him. I think…” I swallow hard. “On some level, I still do. It’s hard not to when I’ve relegated myself to this.” I gesture down to my leg.
I make an effort not to look at Roxie. It’s suddenly imperative that I get this out, and looking over at her will make me stop. I don’t want to see her reaction, her pity.
“Arlo got me out. I don’t remember any of that. I don’t remember him driving to the hospital or anything before I woke up after surgery. I had lost so much blood, and some of the cuts were so deep they needed to do some extensive surgery to put me back together. Up to that point, I think I could have handled it all okay. But I was stuck in ICU for a week and then in the hospital for another couple of weeks. I was supposed to go home pretty quickly to heal, but the media took over Rosedale and Bluebell Falls, so everyone thought it best I stay in the hospital until they cleared out.
“All it did was make me go crazy. There wasn’t a day I was alone. There wasn’t a day I could just break down and feel everything that happened. I closed myself off and chose not to feel at all.”
I heave out a sigh, worn out from the confession, and chance a look at Roxie. Tears stream down her face as she looks at me, and my heart breaks. I didn’t open up to her to make her sad.
“I’m sorry—”
“Don’t you dare apologize, Lennox Hutton,” she hiccups. I open my mouth, but she holds up her finger as she swipes at her face, clearing it of the offending tears. “Thank you for telling me all of that,” she says as she calms down a little. “I know that wasn’t easy, and I’m not sure what brought this on, but thank you.” She reaches over, our pinkies barely touching before I slide her hand into mine, intertwining our fingers.
“No one knows the whole story,” I say softly. “I know logically that Tennison is dead, but his words and his methods make it so you think he’s coming back the second you talk. Getting out of that mindset has been … so fucking hard.” I sigh. The emotional dump catches up to me fast.
We sit there, not saying anything, for what seems like years. Once my head is cleared of most of Tennison’s negativity, I tug the hand I’m holding toward me. She curls up against me immediately, and it calms my soul.
“I’m so fucking proud of you,” she whispers.
I’ve already told her more than anyone else in my life, might as well go for broke. “I like you … a lot. You make everything less scary while still pushing me every day. I want to be worthy of your greatness, of Ivy’s sweetness; I’m just not sure if it’s possible for me.”
“You, Lennox Hutton, are the strongest man I’ve ever known. You don’t have to try and be worthy of anything; you already are.” She presses the softest kiss to the place where my heart is as it pounds in my chest.
Although my emotions are overwhelming right now, I don’t break down or cry. For once, I feel stronger, not weaker.
It’s only this way with Roxie. She makes me feel like things aren’t so dire, like there’s hope for the future.
I want her and Ivy to be my future.
The thought pops into my head unbidden, and the fear usually present when thinking about the future isn’t there. In its place is a deep sense of rightness that this woman was put in my life for a big reason. How she got here doesn’t matter, but how she stays here does.
“Is Roxie short for something?” A rogue thought infiltrates me.
Her watery chuckle reaches my ears as she answers, “Roxanne. I’ve always hated it, though.”
“You, Roxanne Moore, are the most incredible woman I’ve ever met,” I echo her words. “Thank you for sticking with me while I figure everything out. I still have a long way to go, but I think I’m getting there.”
Her arm wraps around my waist, and I shift us down on the bed. We’ve cuddled and fallen asleep together multiple times at this point, but we’ve never talked. It’s always been this quiet truce, and then we wake up and move on.
Tonight isn’t the same. Tonight is a turning point—not only for me but for us.