Chapter 45
“You got horses in the show this weekend?” I ask Jaxon, taking a bite of my burger.
He shrugs and shoves a fry in his mouth. “A couple of them. My parents are going to be there, so I don’t have to go. Not that I don’t want to, but I have a few jobs we need to wrap up this weekend.”
Nodding, I take a sip of my beer and glance around the diner as I casually take another bite. If you’d have told me five months ago I’d be sitting down for a meal with Jaxon Thorton, I’d have told you to go jump off a bridge, but here we are.
After beating the shit out of him a few times, we’ve formed a truce of sorts, maybe even a friendship. Ruth and her husband have sat down with all of us individually, as well as a group, to work through our issues. Jaxon’s main one being to let go of his past and realizing that the sinner is the only one responsible for their actions. Basically, Clayborn’s sins don’t belong to Edith. He also received some grief counseling for his sister, which, to be honest, was hard to hear when he detailed the events from the night they lost her.
Griffin, according to Ruth, needs to let people see who he really is. Not always present himself as shallow or, frankly, as an idiot. Trust his gut to know what’s right and to allow his relationships to develop. Not assuming he knows everything without having a conversation. Communication being key and all that.
And fuck if they didn’t hit me with some truths I didn’t want to face. Letting go of grudges is a huge thing for me, apparently. Although, I still say my hatred of the Hughes family is well founded, Edith excluded. I apparently also have anger issues and come off as a real dick. That’s a fair assessment which I’m trying my damnedest to correct. If you ask me to do a group hug with these fuckers, I’m going to tell you to fuck right off, but diving into how I treated Edith and what was between us opened my eyes quite a bit. I’ve got some pretty deep feelings for her and I’m anxious to let her know she’s gotten under my skin. I just need to let her in.
Shoving another fry into his mouth, Jaxon points a fresh one at me. “Why are you scowling?”
Frowning at him, I smack his hand away, making him chuckle and eat the fry. “I’m not scowling. Just thinkin’.”
“About what?”
“Shit Ruth and Pastor have been sayin’ to us. Nothin’ I want to get into now.”
I appreciate when he just nods and keeps eating. We’ve all developed a deep respect for the Danielsons, and I’m incredibly thankful for the bits of information she’s shared regarding Edith. The biggest news is that she’s been getting her own counseling to help with the bullshit she went through with her father.
Imagining her facing off with him on a daily basis over the course of her whole life makes me absolutely sick. Memories of Griffin beating the shit out of him help to ease my rage, which seems to be constantly boiling inside whenever he crosses my mind.
“Why the hell are you smiling like that now? What is wrong with you tonight?”
Laughing, I pop my last bite of burger in my mouth and grin, then wipe my hands clean of the grease. “Just remembering our visit to ol’ Clayborn’s house a few nights ago.”
Jaxon snorts a laugh. “Griffin took it a bit easy on him last time, in my opinion.”
“Maybe. But the way he’s just curlin’ up and cryin’ is taking all the fun out of it. Bet that dude hasn’t pissed right in months.”
I wave our waitress down to let her know we’re ready for the bill when he responds. “Probably not. I don’t feel bad about it, though. You’d have thought he would have tattled by now.”
“Nah. Even if he did, it’s not like he’s got any friends over at the station. Court’s next month and he knows he’s gonna be put away for—”
My phone rings, cutting me off. I hate answering while I’m eating, so I reach into my pocket to silence it, then turn it upside down on the table.
Continuing, I say, “Gonna be put away for years. Then she’ll get to come home.”
“Thank God. This has been absolute torture. I just want to talk to her.”
Jaxon’s phone rings this time and, unlike me, he checks the caller.
“It’s Fin,” he tells me before answering. “What’s up, man?”
Listening, his brows move higher and higher the longer he listens, then hits me with a hard stare. Mouthing, “What?” I get annoyed when he doesn’t answer me as he keeps listening, his mouth dropping open in shock.
“You’ve got to be kidding me. Are you serious? What the hell happened?”
Hating that I don’t know what’s going on, I peek at my phone and see my missed call was from Griffin as well. Making sure I’m not overheard, I lean forward and hiss, “What’s going on?”
With a wave, he silences me. “Fin, is he dead?”
“Who?” I bark out, pissed I’m being kept in the dark. Jaxon shoots me a dark look, then nods once. “We’re coming over. You… Yeah, okay. We’ll meet you at Mason’s farm. Yeah, I’m with him. No, he didn’t want to talk to you. I’ll tell him. See you soon.”
Hanging up the phone, Jaxon doesn’t let me ask anything before he hits me with the best news I’ve ever heard.
“Clay’s dead.”
I’m absolutely stunned and find myself frozen in my chair until Jaxon stands and drops cash on the table. That gets me moving and I toss some bills down as well. As soon as we’re outside, my questions start pouring out.
“What the hell happened? How’d he die?”
“Fin said it was a car accident. We’re going to your place because I want to drive by the crash site. Apparently, he was only a mile or so away from his home, heading into town.”
He’s speaking rapidly as he picks up the pace to his truck. I grab his arm to stop him and when he turns to face me, his eyes are wild. “Edith.”
“I know.”
Deciding to leave mine behind, I hop into his passenger seat, anxiousness growing quickly. I’m ready to go.
“There’s no more case, Jaxon.” I’m stating the obvious, but what the hell else is there to say? Holy fuck! “Edith can come home…”
“I know.” Those are the only two words he’s capable of speaking at the moment. I stay quiet for the drive, my knee jerking up and down and eyes flying everywhere once we hit the final stretch toward my place.
“There.” I point when the flashing lights flicker in the distance. We have to slow down due to the number of curious, nosy residents conveniently driving by. On a normal day, there aren’t this many people who travel this particular road over the course of twenty-four hours, but I don’t blame them. We’re here for the same reason.
Inching along, Jaxon and I both crane our necks to see the crash hidden behind firetrucks and first responders. As soon as what’s left of Clayborn’s van comes into view, Jaxon stops the truck, his brakes squealing softly.
“Holy shit,” he breathes out and I can only nod.
The van is in literal pieces. My eyes roam the field and what looks to be the front end is about thirty feet to the right, then a few bucket seats are another forty feet beyond that.
Rolling down my window, the scent of gasoline and burning rubber assault my nostrils, but to me, it smells like freedom.
Freedom for Edith. Freedom from the monster who’s been allowed to roam for far too long on this earth. Freedom to pursue the woman who can now live without fear. But most importantly, freedom to move forward as a family, if she’ll have me.
Instead of moving on, Jaxon jams the gear into park and hops out, not caring about the short line of vehicles waiting behind us to get their own look. Shit like this doesn’t happen often around here, and Clayborn was not a loved person. Those few forced to interact with him barely tolerated him.
Following Jaxon, I jog to catch up and just barely hear his question to an officer standing off to the side.
“What was the cause of the accident, Nate?”
I’m glad Jaxon knows him. Hopefully, he’ll be willing to give us extra information.
The officer, Nate, lifts his chin in greeting. “Evenin’, Thorton.” Flicking his eyes toward me, he nods a silent greeting. “We don’t know for sure,” he says, then lowers his voice. “But considering you could literally smell the alcohol on him, my guess is drunk driving. To do this kind of damage, he had to have been going eighty plus. Wasn’t even a mile from home and there aren’t any skid marks on the road. Headlights weren’t on either, so I think he just took off and floored it right into the tree.”
Considering that every time we’ve gone to his place, he was absolutely obliterated, I’m not surprised tonight was any different.
“Wonder where he was goin’,” I mumble, but wave Jaxon off when he lifts a brow in question. “Doesn’t matter. Let’s find Fin.”
Thanking Nate, we leave the scene. I turn in my seat to let the sight of the mangled metal burn into my memory. Grinning when I turn back to Jaxon, I see a lift to his mouth as well, fighting back the glee. I’m sure my face is just as relaxed as his, all our tension melting away with every yard we put between us and Clayborn’s body.
“I should probably feel like shit for being so happy about this, but I’m not.”
“Same,” I grunt, then burst out laughing. He joins me, both of us laughing all the back to my farm where Griffin is waiting on the front porch with arms wide open and the biggest fucking smile I’ve ever seen.
“Well boys, how we celebratin’ tonight?” he shouts, literally skipping as he jogs over. My parents are sitting on the porch, clearly having been told as well. They don’t seem overjoyed, but mom and dad aren’t ones to celebrate the loss of life. What they do seem to be is content. Which means they definitely aren’t torn up over the news.
Jaxon slaps him on the shoulder, and I’m floored when they hug, laughing together. “Definitely not getting wasted, but I wouldn’t mind a beer or something.”
“When do you think she’ll be back? Anyone call ol’ Ruthie?” Griffin asks, clapping his hands and rubbing them together.
Shit, we need to call her!
I don’t waste a moment dialing her number. “Good evening, Mason. I assume you’ve heard.”
“When’s she comin’ back?” I refuse to beat around the bush.
“Pleasant as always. I’m doing well this evening. Josiah and I just finished a lovely pot roast one of our congregation members brought over. My joints have been flaring up mighty bad these past days, so cooking was a drain. Wasn’t that kind of them?”
Rolling my eyes, I wait out her desire to teach me patience. I dig my teeth into my cheek to prevent a rude retort.
You’d think a woman of God wouldn’t be so goddamn sarcastic all the fucking time.
“Thrilled that you got a hand. Don’t mean to be short with you, Mrs. Danielson, but would you please tell me when Edith is comin’ home?” I’ll use the ‘Mrs.’ title if it’ll win me some brownie points.
Ruth pauses, then begrudgingly says, “I don’t know yet. She was only just informed of Clayborn’s passing. Probably a few days.”
Swallowing hard, I glance at both Griffin and Jaxon who are staring impatiently for an update. “Few days,” I mouth at them. “Thanks for the information, Mrs. Danielson. We appreciate you.”
“You boys need to give her a minute. It’s been a tough time for her. Don’t go messing everything up that she’s done to heal herself. I have no problem asking Jesus for handing all of you a good ol’ fashioned lesson. Something from the Old Testament ought to do the trick.”
Chuckling, I let my shoulders fall in relief. “Promise. Thanks again. Hope your joints feel better soon, and let us know if you need anythin’. Give my regards to your husband.” She says a quick goodbye and hangs up the phone. “Few days. Told us not to mess up the work Edith’s done to get better. Don’t know what that all means, but basically, we need to watch ourselves with her.”
“Few days as in a couple of them? Or are we talkin’ like five or six?” Fin is bouncing on his toes, glancing toward the trees as if he can’t wait to go over there.
Jaxon seems to be the most nervous, but there’s no doubt he’s determined to make things right. Keeping my voice low so my parents can’t hear, I make my feelings known to them. “We don’t know what she’s gonna want to do. If she’ll want any of us, but I’m tellin’ you both right now, I’m fightin’ hard for her. Be prepared for that, but what she decides, goes. I’ll stick around here until she comes back, and I’ll let you know when she’s home.”
“I’m not backin’ down, Mason,” Griffin states firmly, narrowing his eyes at me.
Of course, Jaxon has to speak up as well. “Same. She and I have some shit to work out, but I’ll be damned if I walk away without giving it everything I’ve got. There’s a lot I need to make up for with her.”
Nodding, I ready myself that this is going to get a lot more complicated before it gets easier. Not even considering the fact that one of us is going to be a father in just a few months.
“You both should head out. I’ll let you know.”
I spend the next four days walking through the woods almost every other hour to check if the house has been opened back up. For any sign that my girl has returned.
Then, finally, just as it starts to turn dark for the evening, headlights flicker through the trees. I race toward her house, arriving just in time to see a lone figure emerge from an older four-door sedan after shutting off the engine.
Squinting to see her better, I soften my steps so she doesn’t hear me, just wanting a moment to soak her in before I make my presence known.
Edith steps around the vehicle, and with a hand on her swollen stomach, she chews on her lip, staring at the house unblinkingly and with a large amount of trepidation.
I shoot a quick text to the guys, knowing I’ll only have a few minutes of time with her, just the two of us, but I promised I would tell them.
She’s back
Without waiting for a response, I step out from the trees and head toward her slowly with my hands in my pockets, watching her body language as I murmur, “Girl…”