Chapter 11
Chapter Eleven
Leighton
Having eight huge, muscled men pack up everything you own goes by really fast. They had everything packed and in the trailer within two days. Lynton came down to my place to help but all we did was sit and talk. The guys wouldn’t let us help. The only thing I got to pack was my clothes. And that only took me a few hours with my sister’s help. I’m a little sad to leave St. Cloud. All my memories are tied into this town. Kayla is buried here and that makes me sad too. Because now no one will visit her regularly. Valentino suggested taking her ashes with us and putting it in the cemetery close to us. We’re going down there today to see if that’s possible. I’d feel better if she was close by, that way when Davis is older, he can go and visit her too.
Caitríona said that they have a big family plot with a beautiful mausoleum. She offered to have Kayla put in there. I think Kayla would like that. It was surprisingly easy to get some of our money back for the niche that she was in. Now she’ll be in a castle—or at least that’s how I imagine it.
“St. Cloud is a nice city,” Valentino says.
“It is, Kayla and I grew up about thirty minutes away from here. But when we decided to get a place, the city seemed like the best place. Lots of jobs and places to go to have fun.”
“I want you to know that I appreciate you moving to Lake Renegade. I don’t know what I would’ve done if you decided against it. Well, that’s a lie. I probably would’ve followed you back here and kept on you till you gave in.” He laughs.
“I bet you would,” I tease him. “But in all honesty? I feel good about moving. I’m not losing anything, Lyn will be coming with me and she’s the only one I’d really miss. Carl and the people I worked with will keep in touch. That’s really all I need. Well, besides you.”
Valentino leans down and kisses me. Every time his lips touch mine I feel like I’m in heaven.
“You’ll never regret moving to be with me.”
“So you’re back. Where’s my grandkid?”
We both turn around to see Loraine Moss.
“What are you talking about?” I stare at her.
“That kid is my blood and you need to bring it back to me.”
Valentino laughs as his brothers come to stand behind us. The look on Loraine’s face makes me laugh too.
“I think you’re mistaken and need to walk away,” Valentino says to her.
“Who the hell are you to tell me what to do? You have nothing to do with this. This whore stole my grandchild and I want it back.”
“‘It’?” Hollis says from behind us.
“That child is my blood,” she says again.
It’s unbelievable that she doesn’t even know that Davis is a boy. And yet she’s acting like she has a claim on him.
“Again, you need to walk away. Before we call the cops.”
“I’ve already called the cops. I called them the minute I saw this kidnapper. And there they are.” She smirks.
“Is everything okay, ma’am?” one officer asks.
“No, officer, I need you to arrest this woman. She kidnapped my grandchild. I want it back.” Loraine starts sobbing.
Valentino and the guys come in closer to me.
“I didn’t kidnap anyone. This woman is crazy, she walked up to us and started accusing me of things.”
“Do you know each other?” the other officer asks.
“She’s my best friend’s mother.”
“Where’s your best friend? It would help if we could talk to her.”
“S-she died,” I say softly.
“Dammit. I’m sorry. Ma’am, you need to leave this woman alone.”
“Are you serious? She kidnapped my grandchild! Do something about it. Arrest her!” she screams.
“Ma’am, there’s no child that I can see. I can’t just arrest her.”
“She’s hiding him!” she yells.
“Ma’am. You need to stop yelling and leave. Or we will be arresting you for calling the police under false pretenses.”
“You’re all worthless,” Loraine spits out and stomps off muttering to herself.
“Okay, I have a feeling there’s more to this,” the officer says.
I sigh. “Before my best friend died, she had a baby. Her parents wanted nothing to do with the baby or Kayla. I don’t know why she wants the baby now. She doesn’t even know if the baby is a boy or girl. But that’s another story. So I have custody of the baby. And this is his daddy.”
“Where is the child now?”
“He’s with my parents,” Valentino answers.
“Do you have the paperwork for custody?” the other officer asks.
“My lawyer here does. We can go there now if you need to see the papers.”
“No, we believe you. But I would keep the papers with you. I don’t think she’s going to give up.”
“Thanks. I won’t be here long.”
“Good luck,” both officers say as they leave.
I turn to everyone.
“Why does it feel like she’s going to be a real problem?”
“We should keep an eye on her. Francesco and I will see what we can find on her,” Sebastiano says.
Francesco nods. “Yeah, I don’t like her and I have a bad feeling about it.”
We head back to my apartment to finish packing and loading the trailer. It feels more urgent now that we hurry and head back to Lake Renegade. I call Lynton and let her know what happened. I worry that Loraine will go after my sister if she can’t find me. Why now? Why is she coming after Davis now? It’s so frustrating not knowing whats’s going on.
Valentino
We’ve been back in Lake Renegade for a week now and there have been no issues. Leighton and I have settled into a routine with Davis. I’ve even started to move some of my stuff into the house. As we’re getting dinner ready, there’s a knock at the door.
“Hey Enzo, is everything okay?” I ask as he comes inside.
“I need you both to stay calm. Salvatore is on his way, he called me a few minutes ago. Somehow Loraine’s lawyer got a judge to sign an arrest warrant for Leighton, saying she kidnapped Davis. The warrant says she had something to do with Kayla’s accident.”
“She would never…how the fuck did this happen?”
“From what I can tell, she knows this judge. We’re contesting it now because if she knows this judge personally, that’s a conflict of interest and we will get him disbarred. But the first step is Sal needs to take Leighton and Davis. Mirabelle is waiting at the station to take Davis. We asked her to be there and she of course said yes. She’s going to make sure he’s okay. And your mam has her foster care license, so she’ll be taking over Davis’ care. The only catch is that Leighton can’t be near Davis till this is over.”
“Wait. Are you fucking kidding me? What about all the paperwork we have for Davis? Leighton has custody of him.”
“Am I going to lose him?” Leighton asks as she comes into the room.
I walk over to her and wrap my arms around her.
“No. You’re not going to lose Davis. But we need to do this the right way. Your papers are in the system, but because they’re not finalized, it’s not technically legal. Since we had a court date for the judge to sign yours and Valentino’s petitions, we’re in good standing. But we still need to do it this way. I don’t know how much you heard?—”
“I heard everything. Mirabelle, is that Niccolò’s wife? She’s the social worker?”
“Yes, that’s her. She’s going to make sure no one touches Davis and that he goes from Sal to her to Caitríona. Then back to you and Valentino. But again, you can’t be around Davis, so I need you to stay away from the main house until this is over.”
“How long are we talking about?” I ask.
“I’m hoping not more than a few days. We’re pushing the court date up to tomorrow. Once the judge signs the custody papers, you’re good and Davis can come home. We’ve already proven that’s what Kayla wanted. Also, Carl is on his way here to help us if needed.”
“Thank you so much, Lorenzo. Especially for making sure Davis isn’t traumatized from all this,” Leighton says as she sniffles.
“You’re welcome. Mira is a great social worker, she’s going to take care of Davis like he’s hers. Even if she wasn’t family, I’d still choose her. Davis will be safe.”
“Am I going to jail?” she whispers as her tears fall.
“No. You’re not,” Sal answers as he comes into the house. “You’ll come down to the station with Mac and me. And we’ll start the process. But I don’t plan on booking you. You’ve done nothing wrong and I won’t have this on your record. That evil bitch is doing this for some stupid reason, and I have Sebastiano and Francesco looking into her. She’s got an agenda and I’m going to find out what it is.”
“I’ve been feeling like that too. It’s the timing for me. Why now? She’s never cared about him before.” I frown.
“We’ll have answers soon. You know those two, they won’t stop till they find what we need. But for now, I need to take you with us. But again, we’ll do the pictures and paperwork. Nothing will be submitted and we’ll bring you back home.”
“I’ll get Davis. My mam has things for him at her house,” I say, heading upstairs to wake Davis up.
I watch my son sleep for a few minutes. How can anyone be so vindictive as to take a baby from the only one he knows? That woman is going to pay for doing this. I lean down and scoop him up. He stirs a little but stays asleep. I kiss his face and take him over to the changing table. I’ve gotten good at diaper changes and getting him dressed.
“Mama and Papa love you, Davis. You be good for Maimeó and Nonno,” I whisper in his ear and head downstairs.
Leighton takes Davis from me and holds him tight. We can hear her whispering to him as he’s waking up. He’s staring at her and smiling.
“Mama,” Davis says as he yawns.
“I love you, Davis,” she whispers to him.
“He’s going to be okay, he won’t even realize what’s going on,” Sal says to her as he takes Davis. “You ready to go and see Maimeó?”
Davis smiles and nods. He’s been responding more and more when we talk to him lately. It amazes me how smart he is.
“Can I drive Leighton to the station? And Davis? We have the car seat in our cage.”
“Of course. Just follow us so it looks like we’re following protocol,” Mac answers me while Sal is strapping Davis in.
“Thank you,” I say to Mac as I shake his hand.
The drive to the station is short, only ten minutes. I’m holding her hand the entire time.
“Everything’s going to be alright. This town is your home and no one is going to hurt you or Davis. We’re going to find out why that bitch is coming after you. And she’s going to pay.”
“I know, it’s just so hard to understand and deal with. Loraine has never liked me, she thought that Kayla and I were lesbians and she’s so close-minded. Even if we were, who the fuck would care? Loraine would. That’s who. She would never accept anyone who was different from her.”
“That’s a sad old woman.”
“That’s how my parents are too. They’re friends, my parents and hers. I’m surprised mine haven’t come out of the woodwork and tried to cause problems too.”
“Your parents better not come near you,” I growl.
“I love you, Valentino. Davis and I are so lucky to have you in our lives.”
“I love you, baby. And I’m the one who’s lucky in this relationship.”
As we’re driving, the first snow flakes start to fall. I love winter.
“See? Even the weather knows how special you are and it’s showing you everything’s going to be okay.”
Leighton smiles. “I love winter.”
“Me too.”
We park at the police station and get out. The station is new, they had the grand opening a few months ago. I get Davis out and we head inside. I see Mirabelle and she gently takes Davis from me.
“Don’t worry. No one will touch him. I’m taking him to your mam right now. And then I’ll be back to have you and Leighton sign some papers. Basically they say you understand that you can’t visit Davis while this is ongoing.”
Leighton and I nod at Mira and give Davis a kiss. Watching her leave with Davis is the worst feeling ever. I never want to do that again.
“Okay, I just need you to come with me and we’ll do the paperwork and fingerprints. Again, we’re not going to put anything into the system. By tomorrow this will all be done. We just need to have it in case we’re asked,” Mac says to both of us.
I follow them to the intake area, this is horrible to watch. Even though I know it’s procedure, I don’t like seeing my woman fingerprinted and her picture taken. Mac has always been respectful and today is no different. But I still hate it.
“All done. You can both head home, please stay in tonight. Or at least stay on the property, we don’t know who’s in town. And because she filed these charges in Minnesota, if they catch you here, they’ll take you back there. We want those papers signed before you go out in public.”
We finish everything and follow Salvatore back to the property.
“I miss Davis,” Leighton whispers.
“I know, baby. I do too. It’s just for one or two days, and he’s with mam. He’s safe and happy.”