38. Chapter Thirty-Seven
Janie felt her blood run cold as his words started to sink in. How was she going to get out of this? Was she going to get out of it?
“Th-there’s nothing g-going on,” she stuttered. Janie closed her eyes. She knew that her stuttering wasnt good. It was one of her signs that she was lying and nervous.
“Really?” Mac asked, his voice very calm.
A shiver made its way through her body. This was not good. He was calm which was a sign that he was very mad. Was he trying to be calm since Eleanor was on his chest? Or was he calm because he was truly mad?
“Dont lie to me,” he said.
Janie took a deep breath in and nodded her head. She didnt know how she was going to get out of this.
“Your ex-husband has been threatening you and calling you. Thats unacceptable,” Mac said. “Why didnt you tell me?”
Janie took a small step back. Maybe she could leave the room until he calmed down some. She wasnt worried that he was going to hurt Eleanor because she knew he wouldnt. It wasnt like him, but she didnt want to talk about this right now.
“Stop,” he commanded. “Come sit on the couch and explain things to me.”
She stayed in her spot, not really wanting to sit down and talk about it. Who wanted to talk about it?
“Now,” he said, his voice going lower.
Janie slowly walked towards the couch and sat down. She looked over at Eleanor only to find her asleep on Mac’s lap. That was what she wanted to do right now. She didn’t want to be talking about this.
Why hadn’t she taken her phone with her while she was talking to Hedda? Her ex-husband hadn’t texted her for hours and she thought she was safe. But she should have known she wasn’t safe.
“Explain why you didn’t tell me right away that Donald was sending those texts,” he said. “How long has it been going on for?”
“Well, he started messaging me after I shot him down in person. The day you showed up. And then it got worse when the lawyer came, or well after he came.”
“That long? Why didn’t you say anything?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “He wanted me to get rid of Eleanor. Told me to put her on the street and go back to him.” Janie looked at him, tears in her eyes. “You have to know that I don’t want to go back with him. I want my daughter. I love her with my whole life.”
His hand made contact with her hand. “Shhh. Its okay. I know you want your daughter.”
“And I don’t want to go back with him,” she cut him off from speaking more. “I really don’t. I never really loved him and the only good thing that came out of anything related to him was Eleanor.”
Mac continued to look at her and hold her hand. Was he going to say anything or was he just going to be silent the whole time? Had she lost her chance with him? If he read the messages, he had to see her replies that she wanted nothing to do with Donald.
“I really don’t want him. I want you and I’ve always wanted you! I was worried that if you saw what he was saying, you would agree with him,” Janie said. “I have a daughter that’s not blood related to you.”
“That doesn’t matter. I don’t care that Eleanor and I don’t share blood. I think of her as my daughter and I want her to be my daughter,” Mac said. “And I would never agree with anything Donald has said. It’s all false. I just wish that you would have come to me about it.”
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I really am. I was just worried and scared. Not in the right mindset.”
“Which is when you should have come to me. I want to help you through things. I want to be your rock. I love you and Eleanor.”
Her eyes went wide as she stared at him. He really loved her? “I’m scared,” she whispered.
“Lean on me and I’ll take care of you both. I’ll be your rock in hard times. I’ll be your rock whenever you want, even if it isn’t in hard times. I’ll catch you when you fall and make sure you don’t get hurt.”
Tears formed in her eyes and he continued to talk. It all sounded like a dream.
“Now, why didn’t you come to me when your ex-husband started to call you names?” he asked.
“I felt guilty in some way. I was worried that showing you those text messages would make you leave,” she said. “I had honestly thought about showing them to you so you would leave but I wasn’t ready.”
Mac cupped her face with his hands. “Nothing is going to make me leave. I promise you that. Im going to be there for you and Eleanor no matter what. I want you to come to me for everything, no matter how little it is.”
Janie had always wanted that. someone to come to for every little thing was she finally going to get that?
“We’re going to go to the police station and get an order of protection against Donald. We have the evidence from your text messages to show them so we shouldnt have any problem.”
“I dont know,” she whispered.
“How about we talk to Jaxson about this and get his opinion. He is a retired police officer,” he said. “How does that sound?”
She nodded her head. That sounded better. She trusted Jaxson. “Okay.”
“Im going to have to call him. He is currently at home,” Mac said and she nodded her head. She watched as he carefully pulled his phone out of his pocket and called Jaxson.
“Hello?” Jaxson picked up the phone. “What can I help you with?”
“ I have Janie here and we have a question,” Mac said.
“Give me one second.”
Janie could hear Jaxson moving around. What was he doing?
“All right, Im in my office now. What did you guys want to talk about?” Jaxson asked.
Mac looked over at her and gave her an encouraging smile. Was he expecting her to ask Jaxson about it? She didnt even know where to begin.
“He’s going to need to hear from you at some point,” Mac said. She nodded her head. “Janie has been receiving some nasty texts from her ex-husband. He’s also been threatening her and Eleanor, her daughter.”
“He doesnt have any parental rights to Eleanor,” Janie whispered.
“So, whats the question?” Jaxson asked.
“Janie didnt know if it was wise for her to get an order of protection against him or if she should just leave it alone,” Mac said.
“How long has this been going on for? Has she told him to stop?”
“Several weeks,” she whispered. “Ive begged him to stop several times.”
“And he hasnt listened. I would definitely go down to the police station, show them the evidence and get an order of protection. Then, if he continues to talk to you or sees either one of you in person, you call the police.”
“Is there someone we should talk to when we get there?” Mac asked.
“Just ask for someone who has been there for a couple of years. Nothing against the new guys, but I don’t know them. Better yet, tell them I sent you and you’ll get someone who worked with me,” Jaxson said.
“Thank you,” Janie whispered.
“Welcome. So, are you two together now?”
Mac looked down at Janie, almost like he was waiting to see what she would say. “Yes, we are,” she said.