Chapter 62
***Joe***
“There you are! We were starting to wonder if everyone had been kidnapped!” Mandy greeted us with tight hugs and warmth that we didn’t deserve.
“Where are the kids? Does Ada have them out somewhere? We would’ve looked around but all the security guards spooked me.
After eating shrooms for nearly two weeks straight, you get a little paranoid around men who look like the cops. ”
I frowned down at Ada’s mom and slowly shook my head. “What do you mean? Ada’s not here.”
Ken laughed. “Obviously. We might still be a little high but we would’ve noticed our daughter if she were here.”
“Ken! I’m not high! I drove here. You’re high, you fool.” Mandy rolled her eyes and focused on me. “Where is she?”
Jud chose that moment to walk by. He froze when he saw Ada’s parents and I saw his face lose all its color. “Mandy. Ken. What are you doing here? Is everything okay with Ada?”
Mandy’s eyes narrowed. “Okay. Now I’m starting to get a little worried. Where is our daughter?”
“She left. She’s not here.” Collin sat down on the couch closest to him and sighed. “Have you not talked to her?”
“Of course, we’ve talked to her. I talked to her yesterday and she didn’t mention being gone. When I asked her how the kids were, she told me they were great. If my daughter isn’t here, where the hell is she?”
Jud came farther into the room. “We don’t know. She left. She didn’t exactly tell us where she was going.”
“She told me everything was fine here. Why would she tell me everything is fine here if she wasn’t here to know how things were?” Mandy looked at Ken and smacked his arm. “Your only child is missing, Kenneth! Look alive.”
“I was with her when you called after you saw the news. She lied and pretended like everything was okay even though things had already hit the fan. She was out of the house by that point. We were in a hotel. She was protecting my brothers and keeping you from worrying, but I just assumed she would’ve told you the truth by now.
It’s not like she has any reason to protect us anymore.
I also assumed she’d gone to be with you. ”
“What are you talking about? Someone had better start from the beginning and tell me where the hell my daughter is.”
“I didn’t react well when the story first broke. The campaign bombed and our stocks crashed. I thought Ada came here under false pretenses to help our competitor.” I glanced at Jud and felt a powerful sense of shame land square on my chest. “I kicked her out.”
“I’m sorry. I thought I heard you say you kicked my daughter out.” Mandy took a step closer to me. “That can’t be right, though, because that would mean you kicked my daughter out when she had no place else to go.”
I couldn’t hold her gaze. “Yes, ma’am. I thought-”
Mandy grabbed the front of my shirt and dragged me closer, proving that she was a lot stronger than her small frame suggested.
“If one hair on her head is harmed, I’ll make sure you never pee standing up again.
I am so disappointed in you and I’d love to tell you all the ways that you’ve failed, but I need to find my daughter. My homeless daughter.”
“I’m sorry. I thought she’d-”
“Joe, let me explain something to you. That girl is my life. You kicked my baby out. You have a daughter so you should understand what I’m feeling right now.” She let go of my shirt and slowly straightened it out. “Find my daughter. Now.”
“It wasn’t just Joe, ma’am. I agreed with him. I was there with him and I helped. It’s my fault, too. I’m sorry. We’ll find her.” Collin hung his head and I felt like I was looking at my kid brother when he was just a kid again.
“Did you all turn on her?”
“No.” Jud crossed his arms over his chest and held Mandy’s gaze.
“I left with her. I’d still be with her but she left me because she didn’t want to let this family break apart over her.
I love your daughter and I’d still be with her if she wasn’t determined to save a family that I’m not sure is worth saving. ”
“That’s why you came back here?” I felt like he’d punched me square in the gut. “I just... I assumed you made that decision yourself.”
“Fuck no. She begged me to come back here because she thought you two and the kids needed me. She didn’t want to be the reason you two went back to being cold hearted assholes and she thought me being here could somehow prevent you from being yourselves.
” Jud shook his head and scowled at us. “She told me she loved me and then she left me to try to save you two.”
I sank onto the couch behind me and pressed my fist into my mouth. Had I really managed to fuck everything up so royally?
“I always knew you were my favorite, Judson. Come here, sweetheart. I can tell you’re hurting.” Mandy pulled Jud into a hug and rubbed his back. “As for you two, Joe and Collin. You’d better find my daughter and make this right.”
Ken winced as he looked at me. “You activated momma bear. I’d feel sorry for you but you kicked my daughter out.”
“We’ll find her.” Collin stood up. “We were getting there on our own but we’re idiots so it was taking longer than it should’ve. We’ll go get her and bring her home.”
“After the way you treated her? You’ll be lucky if she’ll even look at you.” Jud pulled away from Mandy to show me just what he thought of us. “You don’t deserve a second chance with her. Neither of you do.”
I set my jaw and stood up. “That’s not for you to decide.”
“Just go get her.” Mandy sighed and grabbed her husband’s hand. “Come on, Ken. Even though we’re angry at Joe and Collin, no hotels will take us with Kitten in tow. We’re going to our room but we’re not happy about it.”
I watched them leave and tried to shake the feeling of being a little kid in trouble. I looked at Jud and held his glare. “Are you going to come with us when we find her and go get her?”
“I’ve been rejected enough for a lifetime.” He looked down at his feet and shook his head before looking back up at me. “Are you even going for the right reasons?”
“What are the right reasons, Jud?”
“Love. If you don’t love her and you’re just going to make yourself feel better, don’t go.
I can’t go through this again.” He looked from me to Collin.
“I love you both but I don’t know how to look at you right now when the reason the love of my life isn’t here is you.
If you don’t love her, stay here. I’ll figure out a way to move on eventually and things can go back to normal here.
Give Mandy and Ken her location and let it go. ”
Before I could answer he walked out of the library, leaving me and Collin alone. I looked at Collin and raised my eyebrows. “Well. I think that all went about as well as we thought it would.”
“The nicest lady I’ve ever met just threatened us and said she was disappointed in us. I genuinely feel like throwing up.” He rubbed his jaw and looked away. “I need to think about what Jud said.”
“I’ll start the search for her and we can decide what we’re doing once we know where she is. Jud’s right. If we aren’t sure, we can’t go.”
“Agreed.”