Chapter Thirteen
S aturday started with Janice hovering over me while I was asleep.
“You’re creeping me out,” I mumbled.
“That’s the point.”
“Right.” I sat up and rubbed my face, trying to force the exhaustion away.
“Are your nights always like this?” she asked.
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
She raised an eyebrow. “How much sleep did you get last night? Did you sleep at all?”
“Okay. Then let me ask you the same question if you already know the answer for me.”
She sighed and sat on the bed, leaning against me, shoulder to shoulder. “Fair. It’s weird being away from Ezi and Rowan. I’m having really bad separation anxiety. That’s what Ezi said when I talked to him last night. And my tits miss him.”
I nearly choked on my spit. “Miss who exactly?”
It was Janice’s turn to nearly choke. “Rowan. I’m talking about breastfeeding! My boobs hurt. I’m pumping, but it doesn’t feel right.”
“I can’t say I relate,” I said, trying to keep myself under control. “But if I had an adorable little human that I created waiting for me, I don’t think I’d want to be away for too long.”
She made a humming sound, her eyes closed as she rested her head on my shoulder, grabbing my hand and holding it. “Did I show you all the pictures?”
“Is it possible? I feel like you have an infinite amount on your phone.”
“Not yet. But soon. Soon. I’m working on it. Ezi sent me more last night.”
“How about you show me while we eat breakfast?”
“I don’t know how to cook and I already know you don’t either.”
“Hey!” I pretended to feel offended. “Seth has been training me, and it’s going well.”
“Yes, but has he taught you how to make good breakfast food?”
I sighed. “No. But I do have a couple of things I can make really well. Like breakfast burritos. Even Toby and Justin approve of them.”
“I don’t think that’s much of an endorsement. From what I saw, those two are garbage disposals.”
I pushed her away from me, both of us laughing.
“Well, come on. I’ll prove you wrong.”
“Right. I promised to go to the police station this morning, so I don’t have long.”
“Do you need a ride? I can take you.”
“You don’t have to. I can call a taxi.”
I waved that idea away. “I’m taking you. No use wasting money on that.”
Once I forced her to be stuck with me for longer, I dazzled her with my subpar cooking skills and made us breakfast burritos that she ended up really enjoying as I drove her to the police station.
I pulled into a parking spot out front and stared at the building. I hated hospitals the most, but police stations were second. After the whole Ryder gang bait situation, I had trouble really trusting that they’d keep me safe, even if I knew they weren’t all bad. They even gave me a sizable settlement as reparations, and some other stuff that my lawyer forced them to do, including an uncomfortable public apology, promising changes in their policies and whatnot.
“I can go in alone.” Janice held her undone seatbelt in her hand, staring at me.
“What?”
“I’m the older sister here, I don’t need anyone to hold my hand. You don’t need to go in.”
“You’re making it sound like I’m scared.”
“You are, though. Your face is completely white and you’ve been gripping the steering wheel like it’s your lifeline.”
I forced my hands to open, my fingers aching as I stretched them out. I think I held that grip through the entire drive here without really noticing. It certainly felt like I did.
“I’m fine. It’d be good to go in.”
“Right. There’s a nice warm-looking coffee shop across the street.”
I glanced at where she was pointing. It really was a nice coffee shop, the windows too dark to see inside. Small, with only a handful of tables, but good coffee. I’d gone there once or twice. They had fun seasonal drinks. I think Toby mentioned them currently having like ten different hot chocolate options.
“I’m coming in,” I said a bit more firmly.
“Okay.” She finally released her seatbelt and got out.
It took me a few extra seconds before I could unbuckle myself and get out of my car.
The outside air bit at my face instantly. I shoved my hands into my coat and followed Janice inside, trying to ignore how the wind felt like an icicle when it blew by. Winters were always miserable. It meant cold hands and feet, and runny noses. And I always got sick.
Always.
I sighed the moment we stepped inside, getting hit with a blast of warm air. The man at the front desk looked us over professionally and gave us a polite smile.
Janice took the lead, talking to him as I glanced around the space. It was rather large with a waiting area off to the right and a couple of doors leading further into the building. There was a couple sitting in the waiting area and a small group of police officers talking quietly before they went through a set of doors and disappeared.
“Thanks!” Janice said and turned to me. “The lead detective will be out shortly.”
I tilted my head over to the chairs.
Once we sat down, she bumped her shoulder with mine to get my attention. “I only got the gist of it, how the Ryder gang was interested in you because they thought you knew where I was, but Officer Brelly didn’t go into details.”
“I don’t blame them for being quiet about it,” I said, unable to hide the little bit of bitterness that slipped in.
She frowned as an eyebrow rose at my response. “What happened?”
“They kidnapped me. Grabbed me in the parking lot at school.”
Janice gasped, her face going pale.
I continued, my voice sounding dead even to me. “Drove me to the middle of nowhere and tied me up in the basement. Left me in the dark for a while until Rick came and tried to get me to tell him where you were. Even shot a gun to threaten me.”
“Holy shit. What the fuck?” Janice’s cheeks turned red as her anger flared. “They told me none of that.”
I shrugged. “Probably because they’re embarrassed. Turned out they used my abduction as an opportunity.”
Janice jumped to her feet, hands fisted at her side. “What the ever-loving fuck? How dare they?”
I grabbed her hand before she stormed to the police officer standing behind the desk. He was staring at us now, aware that drama was unfolding.
“Janice, stop.” I yanked her hard so she’d stumble back. She went with the movement, sitting back down. “It’s been handled. I have a really good lawyer, and Amy already raised all kinds of hell with them. Got me a settlement and everything. So please, don’t. It’s over.”
“It’ll never be over as far as I’m concerned,” she gritted out.
I squeezed her hand and made sure she was looking at me when I said, “It’s over. Let it be over.” I needed it to be over.
She glared back at me and then slowly the anger slipped away. She was still stiff, but at least she wasn’t practically steaming at the head anymore. I didn’t need to worry about her going on the warpath through the police station.
She wouldn’t even make it past the officer who was standing behind the desk still watching us. He looked like he’d had to body slam a person or two in his lifetime and Janice would be nothing to him.
“Fine. But this conversation isn’t over. What kind of bullshit station is this?”
“One that barely has enough resources as it is for how fast the tri-towns are growing?”
“They still haven’t opened another station?”
I shook my head. “Whispers of talk, but heck, we still only have one high school too.”
Janice blew out air as she reached up and undid her ponytail before putting it back up, making sure all the escaped hair was captured once more. In an hour, the smaller strands would be loose again.
“Ladies, ready to come in?” Officer Brelly was standing in the doorway across from us. He was an older man with dark eyes and grey in his receding hairline. He was a kind man who genuinely seemed to care about everyone around him. “Good to see you again, Cadence.”
We followed him further into the building, walking down a hallway with multiple doors; some looked like conference rooms, others were offices, storage spaces. We came to an open area filled with desks only big enough to fit a computer and chair. We went to a medium-sized conference room. There was a glass wall that looked into the room with a long window on the other side with a view of the parking lot where the police cars were parked.
“We’ll be in here,” Officer Brelly said. “I’ll be right back, so get comfortable.”
Janice glanced around before finally sitting down. She dug in her pocket and passed me some bills. “Do you mind getting me a water?”
“Sure.” I grabbed it and headed back out. The vending machines were off to the right, near another hallway.
“Cadence?” someone called while I was getting a drink.
Davies approached as I straightened. He was a tall man, intimidating with his broad shoulders and dangerous, dark gaze. As a military veteran, he was honed to be dangerous and had proved it when he rescued me after I had been abducted. His main job as far as I knew was cooking at a restaurant he opened, but he also did freelance consulting work for the police when he was needed.
“What happened there?” I pointed at the white bandage that popped against his dark skin. He was wearing a black sweater, with the sleeves pushed up to his elbows, and it seemed he had some other scratches on his other arm too, though he didn’t have them covered.
“Nothing you need to worry about. What are you doing here?” he asked. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah.” I pointed toward the conference room. “Keeping Janice company.”
“Oh, right. She came in now that Rick McCormack has been caught.”
I nodded. “Surprised me yesterday. Are you joining the meeting?”
He shook his head. “My part in that is all done. I’m here for something else. I just wrapped it up.” He tilted his head to the side. “Do you have a minute to talk?”
I glanced over at Janice. She was talking with Officer Brelly and I was only here for moral support. I lifted the water. “Let me deliver this to her first.”
Janice was thankful when I gave her the drink and smiled when I mentioned that I was going to talk to Davies. Then Officer Brelly pulled her back into their conversation.
Davies led the way to an empty lounge area and politely waited for me to sit before he took one of the plastic chairs.
“How are you doing?” he asked.
“In what capacity are you asking?”
His lip curled briefly before dropping. “In whichever capacity you need me to be asking. Either way, I want to know. A real answer.”
Oh. I pursed my lips, trying to forge an answer that was acceptable for him. Davies would never accept me shrugging it off and saying I was fine. He always wanted a real answer, never caring about the small talk.
“I’m seeing a therapist. She helps.”
He nodded slowly. “Okay. That’s good. And your injuries?”
I picked at the imaginary lint on my jeans as I answered. “The doctors are hopeful. And the pain has been occurring less and less.”
“That’s great. I’m glad.” He leaned back and stared at me.
I looked everywhere but at him for a time, growing uncomfortable the longer the silence lasted. But I could only hold out so long, and I finally met his gaze. “Is there something else? You could have asked me that at the vending machine.”
“No, it isn’t everything. I was wondering if I could pick your brain about something.”
“Okay.”
“How much do you know about Hope’s Embrace?”
I chuckled. “What don’t I know is probably a better question, though I guess I wouldn’t be able to answer that because I wouldn’t know what I don’t know.”
“Cadence.”
Something in his tone had me sitting ramrod straight. “I’ve supported them for years. They’re good people. I mean, look at Janice, she’s practically one of their success stories. I’m not sure what you want to know.”
“Just your impressions.”
“Well, they’re pretty transparent. Their main office is out of New York City, but they have shelters all throughout the country. I think the last time I checked that, they have a presence in forty-three states. The Midwest has been a bit more difficult. Every year they raise funds for multiple things.” I raised my hand as I ticked them off. “The obvious—domestic violence. That’s their biggest one. Child abuse. They’ve stepped in for rape victims, custody battles. They help people who need to start their lives over get affordable housing and new jobs. They have a handful of scholarships for those in need to take advantage of. They do hygiene care packages for anyone to walk in and request, especially for the homeless and women. They’re a support system for pregnant women, especially teens. Help provide mental health services. It’s extensive. You’ll need to be more specific on what you’re looking for with them.”
“You really do know everything about them, don’t you.”
“I support them for a reason.”
He rubbed at the black scruff along his jaw. “Right.” He mulled over a thought before finally asking, “You don’t believe they’d ever be capable of getting into anything illegal.”
“Illegal?” I scowled. “Like what?”
He shrugged. “Anything. Maybe money laundering.”
My eyes grew wide. “That’s...” I wasn’t sure what to say to that. I shook my head furiously and got to my feet. “No way. Never in a million years. I’ve met the founder multiple times. She’s a little old lady. Heck, she just recently adopted a kitty she found on the streets. And she’s fostered multiple kids throughout her lifetime.”
“I didn’t know that.”
“Her granddaughter runs her social media and posts about all that kind of stuff.” I waved it off. “But no. No way. They’d never risk their nonprofit for something like that. And they are nonprofit. There’s no money to be had in that.”
“I looked into their financials. They’re doing really well. There’s a lot of money involved.”
“And a lot of moving parts that cost money. I’m working with them to make a musical.”
Davies perked up at that. “They have a team able to do that? Who are they working with?”
“A producer named Arden Laurens.”
Davies pulled his phone out and typed quickly. He stood up. “This was helpful. Thank you, Cadence.”
My face heated, and I felt like I’d done something really bad. “They aren’t doing anything bad,” I said stubbornly.
“I hope you’re right,” was his only response. “Thank you for talking with me.”
“Don’t...don’t be reckless,” I finally said. “Don’t ruin them.”
“I have no intention of dragging them through the mud, I promise.”
That didn’t make me feel better.
Not wanting to join Janice, I walked out of the room and headed back to the waiting area, deciding to wait there while a million and one questions filled my thoughts.
What was Davies up to and why did he think Hope’s Embrace was worth looking into? Nausea filled my stomach as I thought about it, knowing I wasn’t going to get an answer. It felt too much like he was going after my precious someone and there wasn’t anything I could do.