Chapter 29 Freddie
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Freddie
The car hums softly as it rolls into my quiet street at long last, but inside it’s anything but peaceful. My hands are clenched on the steering wheel like I’m trying to hold myself together, and every passing second feels heavier than the last.
Ivy’s sitting next to me, the last one here now Mitchell and Timothy have been dropped off. I can feel her eyes on me, and I can’t stand it.
I can’t stand the way she’s looking at me like she’s waiting for me to break. Waiting for me to tell her what the hell’s going on inside my head.
But I can’t. I can’t do it. Not yet.
I glance over at her, just for a split second, and my stomach tightens. She’s worried. I see it in the way she holds herself, the way she’s been watching me out of the corner of her eye since that moment, when everything cracked open.
Man, that woman.
I can’t even think her name without the tension tightening in my chest again.
Ivy’s been quiet, and I appreciate it. She’s not pushing me. But she knows something’s wrong. It’s obvious.
And I don’t know how to explain it to her. How to explain the mess in my head.
“I can put Penny to bed if you want,” Ivy offers as I pull up. “If you need a moment.”
I nod gratefully. “Actually, yeah I could use a moment. Maybe go for a walk.”
She bobs her head just once, her gaze softening as she opens the door to get out.
I watch her head inside, making sure Penny is okay. The soft click of the door behind me feels like the moment I can breathe.
Alone, finally.
I step out of the car, my feet dragging as I make my way down the street. It’s a crisp night, the cool air biting at my skin, and I pull my jacket tighter around me as I walk aimlessly, no destination in mind. Just… trying to clear my head.
But as I walk through the quiet streets of Coyote Glen, my thoughts are anything but calm. Every time I close my eyes, I see her face.
Trina.
I can’t stop the images from flashing behind my eyelids, and I don’t know how to shake it.
It’s like there’s a ghost hanging over me, a shadow I can’t outrun.
One that I’m supposed to have put to bed by now.
My feet take me through the heart of town, without me even realizing where I’m going until I’m standing in front of the fire station. The bright red doors are lit up against the dark sky, the familiar, comforting smell of smoke and rubber seeping into the air.
Jesse.
I don’t even think about it. My feet just move. He’s the only person who knows how to make sense of the nonsense I’m feeling right now. The one person who can pull me out of my head.
I push open the door, the familiar ding of the bell sounding above me as I step into the station. The warmth and hum of the place is a small relief, the air thick with the usual scents of coffee and fire gear.
Jesse is at the counter, messing with some paperwork, looking every bit the part of a firefighter, tough, steady, like nothing could break him. But the second he looks up and sees me, his eyes narrow slightly, like he knows something’s off.
“Freddie,” he greets me, his voice easy but laced with concern. “You look like you’ve been hit by a truck.”
“Feel like it,” I mutter, letting out a deep breath as I drop onto a nearby bench. “Just need to… some shit happened at the con.”
Jesse doesn’t press me, but his eyes flicker over to Leo and Karl, who are sitting at the table in the corner, casually chatting. Leo’s giving me his usual gruff look, like he sees more than he lets on, ignoring Karl’s constant stream of jokes.
“I’ll catch up with you guys later,” Jesse says to his friends, pushing back from the counter. “You good for a minute?”
Leo raises an eyebrow, but Karl, ever the easy-going guy, shrugs and waves him off. “Sure, man. Don’t worry about us.”
We step out the back door, into the cool night air, away from the hum of the fire station.
“Talk to me,” Jesse says, his voice soft but firm, as we stroll in silence for a while.
“I saw her at the tattoo con, Jesse,” I admit, my feet dragging against the gravel. “Trina. And I think… well, I think she might have texted me before we even left for the event. Look at this. I thought it was an ad text or something, but Mitch and Tim didn’t get one.”
Unknown Number: Looking forward to seeing you at the con!
Jesse frowns. “I mean, this does seem like the sort of thing she’d do, but now? She’s been gone for so long.”
“Right,” I mutter, still staring at the text. “It doesn’t make sense. Why now? Why at the con?”
Jesse’s gaze softens, and his voice takes on a quieter, more concerned tone. “What do you think she wants, Freddie? You think it’s just to stir things up? Or… could she be trying to take a shot at custody?”
The words hit me like a punch to the gut.
The thought has been eating at me for hours, but hearing it out loud makes it feel more real.
More dangerous.
More possible.
I swallow hard. “I’m scared it’s custody. I don’t know what she’ll pull, or if she’s got a leg to stand on, but she’s Trina. She’s manipulative as hell. If there’s a way to mess with me, she’ll find it. She’ll try to take Penny.”
Jesse slows his pace, letting the silence hang between us for a moment. He knows. He gets it. He saw me fall apart all those years ago when Trina first left, and he’s seen the damage it did. He’s the only one who understands the fear I’m carrying now, the fear of losing everything again.
“Hey,” Jesse says quietly, his voice firm.
“I’m not gonna lie, man. That’s a real fear, and I get it.
But if she’s coming for custody, you’re not fighting this alone.
You’ve got me, you’ve got the whole damn town.
We’ll back you up. You’ve got a network here.
Hell, you’ve got people who would fight tooth and nail for you and Penny. ”
I close my eyes for a second, but it doesn’t help. The tightness in my chest won’t loosen. The fear doesn’t ease. I just keep picturing Trina showing up one day, walking back into Penny’s life like nothing happened, ready to rip everything apart again.
“I don’t want to drag everyone into this,” I say, the words heavy. “I can’t keep asking for help. I have to handle this myself. I have to protect Penny.”
Jesse doesn’t let up, his voice steady but insistent.
“You’re not in this alone, Freddie. You never have been, and you’re not gonna be now.
You’ve got people who care about you, who care about Penny.
You think Mitchell and Timothy won’t have your back if it comes to a custody battle?
They know Trina better than anyone from their high school days. I’m sure they have dirt galore.”
“I’m scared I’ll fail her, Jesse,” I admit, the weight of it almost unbearable. “I’m scared I won’t be able to protect Penny from everything. I don’t even know what the right thing to do is.”
Jesse puts a hand on my shoulder. He doesn’t let me pull away. “You won’t fail her. You’ve been doing this alone for so long, but you don’t have to anymore. We’re all in this with you.”
For the first time tonight, I feel like I can breathe, even if it’s just a little bit. The storm inside me doesn’t feel so impossible to weather.
I take a deep breath, the fear still there, but just a little bit easier to carry. “Thanks, Jesse.”
“Anytime, man,” he says quietly, giving my shoulder a squeeze. “And hey, no matter what happens, I’ll be there. You’ve got more support than you think.”
But will that be enough to get me through this?
I seriously hope so.