Chapter Twenty-five
I’M STILL PACING, thoughts spiraling, when a knock on the door startles me. I practically jump out of my skin. It’s not a light tap. It’s four hard raps.
I quietly tiptoe to my door, sneaking a peek through the peephole.
It’s Jack. He looks…maybe not angry, but very upset.
Fear slaps me in the face, hard. Why is he here? What does he want? I turn my back to the door, covering my mouth with my hand, not daring to make a noise. I refuse to open the door to him. My love of true-crime shows catches up with me, and my thoughts go wild.
What if I know too much? What if he can’t let me live?
No, no, no. That can’t be right. Jack would never hurt me.
My imagination is wandering to crazy places.
He read to me while I was recovering in his home.
He’s a wonderful man. He loves me. I look forward to him being my father-in-law one day soon.
That is, if my relationship with Ren progresses to that point.
The phone in my pocket rings loud and clear, startling me. I grab it, fumbling with my good hand as it drops to the floor with a loud clatter. I sink to the floor, clicking my phone to silent with shaking hands. I stare at the name JACK on my caller ID.
It’s too late. Jack heard my phone ring. He knows I’m hiding behind my front door.
“Bree, I know you’re there. I just want to talk with you. That’s all. Just want to explain. Please let me in. There’s so much you don’t know, so much you don’t understand.”
There’s no way I’m opening the door to Jack. No freaking way. I start to click on Ren’s phone number, then I hesitate, my finger just above the call button.
What am I going to say? “Hi, Ren. I need help. Your father is at my door. I caught him in the act of sneaking medication into Allison’s dinner. I think he might be here to silence me.”
Ren would think I’ve gone stark raving mad. It would devastate him to know I could think such a thing of his father.
Jack knocks on the door several more times, the door rattling beneath my back. “Another time,” he finally says. “I would never hurt you, Bree. I’m sorry I scared you.”
I unbutton my blouse and slip it off my shoulder to take a look at my upper arm. An angry bruise is already forming where Jack grabbed me.
“But you did hurt me, Jack,” I say to the empty room.
I sit with my back to the door for the next hour, shivering. And it’s not from the cold.
What just happened?
JACK DOESN’T RETURN. It doesn’t stop me from jumping every time I hear the slightest sound. I’ve lived alone since I was twenty. I’m not one who’s easily spooked.
It’s Thursday. Ren’s staying late for taste testing at Exodus. I debate over and over whether I should tell Ren what I saw today or not. Should I get involved? I have no idea if Jack is helping or hurting Allison.
What if I make a huge deal over this only to find out that Jack is actually helping Allison?
I’ll look like a suspicious idiot. Maybe Ren will hate me. Surely my possible future father-in-law will too. I’ll lose everything. Again.
Jack said there are things I don’t know, things I don’t understand. Maybe he really was just here to explain the truth.
It doesn’t matter. I could let my thoughts spin in circles all night long, or just tell Ren everything. I trust him. If we don’t have trust between us, then we have nothing.
I wait until I figure he’s basically done with his responsibilities at Exodus. Then I shoot Ren a text.
Me: I need to see you. It’s urgent.
Ren: I’ll be there.
It’s an hour later when Ren shows up at my door. He looks as handsome as ever. But his fatigue is noticeable in the circles under his eyes and his slow movements. His schedule is catching up with him. He’s in desperate need of a vacation. Or maybe five days of nonstop sleep.
“Hey, Bree. Are you okay?” He takes a few steps toward me as if he’s going to embrace me, then seems to remember himself.
We can’t have a physical relationship right now.
I would give up everything I own just to feel his arms around me, to bask in his comfort. Especially right now.
“I need to talk to you.” I glance behind him, wondering if Jack is hiding outside, ready to pounce. “Close the door. And lock it.”
Ren does so. Then he studies me, taking everything in. “You look upset. And you’re shaking. What happened? Did someone hurt you? Dad texted me, asking for your address. Did you need help?”
“Come sit with me. We need to talk.” I take the couch, and he takes the wingback chair across from me. I want him close, but I know it’s not a good idea.
“I have to tell you something, something that happened today. To be honest, I don’t know what to think. I’m not making any judgments or accusations. I’m just telling you exactly what happened. Because we’re a team, and we can face this together. Right?”
Ren’s expression is a mask of worry. I hate that I’m putting it there.
“Right. Absolutely. But why are you shaking? You look terrified. What happened?”
I start from the beginning. I don’t leave out a single detail. I tell Ren every specific thing that happened, including his father showing up at my door.
When I’m done, he’s dead silent for several moments. Ren slowly stands. “What are you saying?”
I feared “Kill the messenger” might be his first response. “That’s just it. I’m not saying anything. I don’t know what to think. I’m just telling you what happened.”
Right now, I really miss the old me, the girl who would’ve challenged Jack on the spot. The girl who would’ve thrown open her door and told him a thing or two about bullying women.
I don’t like feeling weak and scared. This isn’t me. I sit up a little taller, the fight entering my soul once again. I can be a good person and still have a backbone. I’m not a Melanie. But I don’t have to be a Scarlett either. There’s a happy medium.
“Hold on. You actually saw my father put a white powder in Allie’s food? Are you sure?” Ren runs a tired hand through his hair.
“I’m positive. I wouldn’t say it if I hadn’t seen it.”
Ren’s brain is working at hyper speed. “It can’t be a sedative. She’s far too restless most nights.”
“That was my thought as well.” It’s a thought that leads to scary places. If Jack’s not sedating her, then what is he giving Allison?
Ren runs both hands over his face, another sign of fatigue. “Dad, what are you doing?” he mumbles. “So what’s he giving her? Is he trying to release her from this horrible state she’s in? I mean, my dad would never hurt Allie. Maybe he thinks it’s for the best.”
“Maybe.” A sweet release? I could see how Jack might succumb to that route. It’s tough to see Allison suffering. Because she is suffering. She might have brain damage, but there’s no doubt that she’s suffering. It’s horrible to see anyone suffer, especially a loved one.
Ren goes on as though he’s talking to himself. “The doctors didn’t expect Allie to live this long. Maybe Dad couldn’t take it anymore. There’s no other explanation.”
I slowly unbutton my blouse.
Ren’s eyes widen. “What are you doing?”
I let my blouse hang over my shoulder, revealing the bruise on my arm.
“My…my dad did that to you?” The alarm in his voice is evident.
“Yes.” I put my blouse back together. The lantern sleeves fit easily over my cast. That’s why I chose this blouse today.
“That’s the action of a man who knows he’s doing something wrong.” Ren plops down on his chair, leaning his head back, his eyes staring at the ceiling.
“He seemed tense, upset about me catching him in the act. Looking back, I don’t think he meant to hurt me. He just didn’t realize his own strength in a worried moment.”
Ren shakes his head in the negative. “No. It doesn’t matter. It’s not okay that he did that to you. I’m so sorry. Whatever he’s doing to Allie is not okay either. I want her to be at peace as much as anyone else. But I’m not going to take matters into my own hands.”
“What would cause agitation and restless behavior? If she was dying from being poisoned, wouldn’t she be flat on her back in bed?”
Ren lets out an exhausted breath. “It doesn’t make any sense.”
“My thoughts exactly.”
Ren leans forward, his elbows on his knees. “What do you mean?”
“When I visit Allison in the late afternoon, right before dinner, she’s the calmest I’ve ever seen her.”
“Go on.” Ren sits up, his mind catching on before I utter the words.
“Think about it. Then she’s given the next dose of whatever meds your dad’s giving her with dinner. And the cycle repeats itself. It seems like too much of a coincidence.”
Ren expels his breath. “The only other time I’ve ever seen anyone act overstimulated and restless, unable to sleep, is when we were adjusting Ethan’s Adderall dosage.”
Our eyes meet, snapping to attention. My mind jumps to conclusions.
So does Ren’s. His next words prove it. “No way,” Ren whispers. “It’s just not possible. I mean, my dad loves Allie.”
“Hold on. Are you insinuating your father could be giving Allison a dose of Adderall? I thought Adderall helps people with ADHD to focus, so they’re not restless and can pay attention.”
“That’s true. But if someone takes it and they don’t actually need it, or if the dosage is wrong, it can cause all types of side effects. Like mood swings, hostility, aggression, insomnia, paranoia, and…psychosis.”
“All of Allison’s symptoms on her bad nights,” I state flatly.
“But why? My dad loves Allie. It’s not possible.”
“Wait. We’re getting ahead of ourselves. Don’t they check her bloodwork at Tranquility House? Wouldn’t they know if some other drug was in her system?”
“Not if a patient is under an allow natural death directive. They’re responsible for keeping her comfortable. That’s all.”
“Which leads us back to why? Why would your father do such a thing?”
“She’s been this way since she was allowed to come home. My father…” Ren stops abruptly.
“What?”
Ren’s skin turns a sickly shade of white. “Dad was often the one who fed her dinner. He continued feeding her dinner after she was placed in Tranquility House.”
“Oh my gosh.” His words hit me hard.
“Dad has access to Ethan’s Adderall. He gives it to him every night. And…Ethan hasn’t been doing well. As if he’s not even taking his medication.”
I think of Jack, Ren’s wonderful father. “No, we’re way off base, making huge leaps of logic. Allison has brain damage. Of course her behavior is unpredictable.”
“And yet you witnessed my father putting something in Allie’s food.”
I did. I can’t ignore what I saw. “I think we need to speak with your father. Right now. We can’t put this off.”
“Let’s go.”
I wish I could hold on to Ren. I’m feeling decidedly unsteady.