Chapter 46
CHAPTER 46
FORD
My kid was officially fourteen.
I wasn’t ready. I hadn’t been ready for so many things around fatherhood. The constant worry, the way my heart seemed to live outside my body now, the crushing weight of responsibility that came with every decision I made.
Peyton had bounced back from the events of the past couple of months with shocking ease, but I hadn’t been able to do the same. I was having a hard time letting her out of my sight, jumping at shadows and checking her bedroom door three times before going to bed myself. Thankfully, she was tolerating it well, only rolling her eyes a little when I insisted on taking her to school or picking her up from friends’ houses. Bree and Mom and Mimi had helped with that, creating a protective circle around her that made me feel less crazy for being so vigilant. As had Ed, who’d been released from the hospital in plenty of time to be here for today’s birthday party, his presence another anchor of stability in our newly reformed family unit.
He still had a long way to go with his recovery, but we were all circling around him like protective satellites, making sure he didn’t overdo it while still letting him maintain his dignity. He’d get through it, and his doctors were confident he’d make an almost full recovery as long as he stuck to the program and kept his stress levels down. That was going a lot better since he found out the Galef situation had been resolved. Turned out he’d made the same connection Peyton had right before his AFib attack. The shock of the whole thing sent him over the edge. If Peyton hadn’t grabbed his notes, we might never have known about any of it in time.
Right now, a promised deep sea fishing trip next summer was the carrot on a stick getting Ed through the year or more of rehab ahead. He was determined to catch a replacement for Marv, the marlin that had burned along with the original tavern, though we all knew nothing could truly replace that fish. It had been his pride and joy for over twenty years, mounted over the bar like a mascot. His own personal Moby Dick.
I scanned the yard again, taking in the cheerful chaos of the party. Picnic tables dotted the space between my cottage and Bree’s, festooned with balloons and streamers in Peyton’s favorite colors. The late afternoon sun cast long shadows across the grass, and the breeze carried the scent of Mimi’s massive German chocolate cake. Keeley and Roy were playing a spirited game of keep away with a lime green frisbee.
My daughter’s laughter rang out as she and Madison huddled over something on Madison’s phone. Probably some social media thing I was too old to understand. Turned out there was nothing like acquiring a teenager to make you feel old in your thirties. Mom was deep in conversation with Gabi and Daniel about some environmental initiative, while Sawyer and Willa helped Mimi arrange the food spread, and Ed snuck appetizers off the platters of food near his chair of honor.
Bree caught my eye from where she was setting out plates, raising an eyebrow in silent question. She knew me too well. Knew I was still struggling to relax, even with Miles Busby behind bars and the flash drive safely in the hands of law enforcement. The two men who’d taken Peyton and Madison had been arrested, and Daniel’s team had managed to snag the boat that had been running dark that night. I wasn’t privy to the details, but things were slowly being dismantled. I should have been satisfied with that.
But I wasn’t.
I forced myself to take a deep breath. This was Peyton’s day. She deserved to have it be perfect, unmarred by my lingering paranoia.
But I couldn’t shake the feeling of waiting for the other shoe to drop. Maybe it was the dad thing—this constant awareness that my kid could be hurt or taken from me. Or maybe it was the military training that had kept me alive all these years.
“Earth to Ford.” Bree’s hand slipped into mine. “She’s safe. We’re all safe.”
I squeezed her fingers, grateful she understood without me having to explain. “I know. Just can’t seem to turn it off.”
“Then let me help distract you.” She stretched up to press a kiss to my jaw. “Come help me with these plates before Mimi decides we’re being antisocial.”
That was definitely an appealing offer, but before I could take her up on it, my phone rang. I checked the display, and my stomach bottomed out at the sight of Langston’s name flashing across the screen.
“I need to take this. Be back.”
With a quick squeeze of Bree’s hand, I ducked into the house and answered. “Langston?”
“I guess celebration is in order.”
Not at all what I’d expected from the federal agent. “Is it?”
“It’s Peyton’s birthday today, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. Is that why you’re calling?” I knew I sounded borderline rude, but this man never came with good news. Every time his number popped up on my phone, my stomach twisted into knots, dreading whatever fresh hell he might be bringing to our doorstep.
“Yes, and no. I have a rather unconventional gift.”
“What’s that?” My fingers tightened around the phone, bracing for impact.
“We took down Northwest Global. The key players have already been arrested, and we expect their operations to be shut down within the month. We got the evidence we needed through another informant, so there is no longer any plausible reason for anyone connected with the company to have any interest in Peyton, no matter how remote. It’s over.”
“What about the two goons they hired, who were spotted in Norfolk?” I hadn’t stopped looking for them since Dax had brought that potential threat to my attention.
“Pinched last week on another job. They’re out of commission. Oh, and I happened to touch base with the police who handled the recovery of your moving pod. Yours wasn’t the target. One of the other units was being used for drug trafficking. Idiot who was supposed to pick it up couldn’t remember which one it was, so he stole the whole fucking truck. Seriously. It’s over.”
“It’s over,” I repeated, not entirely believing it. The words felt foreign on my tongue.
“Your daughter is safe.”
“She’s safe.” I let out a shuddering breath and covered my eyes, fighting back the sting of tears I hadn’t expected. “She’s actually safe. Truly?”
“Truly.”
“Oh, thank God.” The tension that had been dogging me for weeks finally released at the confirmation, leaving me light-headed with relief. My knees actually wobbled, and I had to press a hand to the wall.
“Thought you’d want to know.”
“I appreciate it. And Langston?”
“Yeah?”
“With all due respect, you’ll understand if I say I hope I never hear from you again.”
The other man laughed. “Understood, and no offense taken. Though from what I hear about how your kid pieced together what happened with the murder on your island, she could have a future in the Bureau down the line.”
“Hopefully, she’ll decide to be something nice and safe. Like a podiatrist.”
Langston chuckled again, the sound warm with understanding. “Hope springs eternal. Have a nice life, Donoghue.”
I was still standing there several minutes later, staring at my phone and trying to process everything, when Bree came to find me. Her footsteps echoed softly in the hallway as she approached.
“Everything okay?” she asked.
I pulled her into my arms and beamed, unable to contain the joy bubbling up inside me. “Everything is fantastic. That was Agent Langston. They took down Northwest Global. Peyton is safe.”
Those gray eyes I loved so much brightened, hope and relief washing across her face. “Truly?”
“Truly.”
I spun her in a giddy circle. Finally, finally, the dark cloud hanging over us had lifted. As Langston had said, that was something worth celebrating, and I knew exactly where I wanted to start. I captured Bree’s mouth in a kiss, pouring out all my relief and happiness. She tasted of strawberry lip gloss and the promise of a tomorrow I hadn’t been free to imagine. But now I could. There’d be no more looking over our shoulders. No more wondering if today would be the day someone came for my daughter.
Bree melted against me, fingers sliding into my hair. God, I loved this woman. Loved how she’d stepped up to protect my kid without hesitation. Loved how she called me on my shit but supported me, anyway. Just… loved her.
“Dad! Bree! Come on, I’m starving, and Mimi won’t let us eat until everyone’s out here!”
We broke apart at Peyton’s voice. Bree’s cheeks were flushed, her lips curved in a soft smile that made me want to kiss her again just to coax out more of that softness she hid so deeply beneath that prickly exterior.
She gestured toward the door. “We should probably...”
“Yeah.” I caught her hand, threading our fingers together. “Let’s go celebrate.”
Outside, Bree got pulled away from me and into the divvying up of food. But that was okay. We had time.
“You’re looking a lot less like a guy on a gallows walk,” Sawyer observed. “What turned that attitude around?”
I gave him the update from Langston, watching the tension ease from his shoulders as well. He still hadn’t fully forgiven himself for what he considered losing Peyton on his watch.
“Damn, that’s awesome. Seems like things are finally settling down.”
“Thank God. I’d like some time to just be, you know?” I felt like I’d been in the middle of a hurricane since January, caught in an endless cycle of one crisis after another. The thought of a quiet evening with Bree and Peyton sounded like heaven.
“I hear that.” He glanced over, his eyes thoughtful. “You talked to Rios since the arrest?”
News of Miles Busby’s arrest and the contents of the video had swept the island like wildfire. The Busby family was, of course, utterly devastated. But the one good thing to come out of all of it was that Rios was, at last, unequivocally cleared of suspicion in Gwen’s disappearance. Thirteen years was a long time to carry that kind of weight.
“I don’t think he knows how to feel about it. And I’m not sure he’ll believe people are really over blaming him until he’s come home and seen it first-hand.” I’d talked to him briefly, but the conversation had been stilted, weighted with too many years of distance.
“Hope he’ll do that soon. I miss our boy.”
“Same,” I agreed. Despite all the chaos and danger, being home around family and friends had been fantastic, and I wanted the same for all the Wayward Sons. Maybe then our circle would finally be complete again.
Across the yard, Bree fell into a fit of laughter with her grandfather. I couldn’t help but grin. It was so damned good to see her smile. So damned good to be a part of it, when I knew I’d caused so much hurt.
“It’s good to see you two happy,” Sawyer observed.
“It’s good to be happy. I never thought she’d forgive me.”
“And now that she has?”
I understood what he was really asking. “I want something real and permanent with her. But with everything that’s happened, I’m not sure Peyton is ready for that.”
Sawyer rolled his eyes. “That girl’s been in match-making mode with the two of you practically from the beginning. She’ll be on board.”
“He’s totally right,” she whispered behind me.
I jolted, uncomfortably reminded that my kid could walk like a cat. “You’d be good with that?”
She looked at me with far more wisdom than a fourteen-year-old almost high school freshman ought to possess. “Dad, if you don’t lock that down, I will forever question your intelligence.”
I looked from her to Sawyer, who only grinned.
“Well, I guess you told me.” I snagged her around the neck and pulled her in so I could ruffle her hair and press a smacking kiss to her head. She squirmed in mock protest and giggled. “But today is for you. We can plan the asking for later.”
“I’m holding you to that,” Peyton declared. “Right now, I’m having more cake.”
Sawyer and I watched her trot over to the picnic table.
“Priorities,” he said.
I grinned. “Priorities.”