Chapter Thirty-Four
Derek
I didn’t know why I was still here. I should have gone home after I signed the fucking papers. Samantha wasn’t mine anymore. I wasn’t sure she ever was.
I knew I fucked up when I lost control. I fucked up long before that by lying to her. I wanted her to be happy.
Jack made her happy.
What a clusterfuck this all was. My baby fucking brother. What were the odds? I should go home. Something was keeping me here. It wasn’t Sammy or Charlie. She wasn’t my daughter. I’d known that from the beginning.
I refused to believe it was Jack.
I didn’t need a brother. I didn’t need any family. I was doing just fine on my own.
Sure you were, that’s why you married a girl you barely knew not long after your mother died and your father went to prison.
My fucking father.
I’d turned into him. He was the reason I didn’t want kids. He should have been the reason not to get married.
A loud knock interrupted my thoughts. I answered the door, and Marsha stood there with a little girl.
“Is that Charlie?” I asked, staring at the frightened little girl.
“This is our baby, Derek. Isn’t she beautiful?”
I looked at Marsha. How had I never noticed the woman was crazy?
“Are you going to let us in?” she asked.
I moved out of the way, letting them into the room. Sticking my head through the doorway, I looked around for her parents. Why was she here ?
“Marsha, what are you doing here? Why do you have Charlie?”
“I am here because we are a family, Derek. You, me, and Charlie. We can go home now. Back to Arkansas.”
“What about Samantha and Jack?” I asked.
“What about them? They aren’t our friends, Derek. They tried to take our baby from us.” She ushered Charlie further into the room.
“They are her parents, Marsha.”
“NO!” she screamed. “We are her parents!”
That was when I noticed the gun in her hand. I lifted Charlie up in my arms and walked to the bathroom. I needed to get her somewhere safe.
“Where are you going?” Marsha asked.
“Charlie needs to use the bathroom.”
I walked through the doorway, closing the door behind me.
“Hey, pretty girl. Do you know who I am?” I asked.
Charlie shook her head, no, and her lip trembled.
“I’m your Uncle Derek. Your daddy is my brother,” I whispered.
“I want my daddy,” she cried.
“I know, baby girl. You don’t know Daddy’s number, do you?”
Charlie shook her head again, no. I pulled her close to my chest, my hand resting on the back of her head.
I set her in the tub and asked, “Can you lie down in here while I go talk to Marsha?”
“Who is Marsha?” she asked.
“The lady out there.”
“That’s Auntie Carrie. She used to be nice,” Charlie said, her eyes watering.
“I’m gonna go talk to Auntie Carrie and see if I can call your daddy. I won’t let anyone hurt you, ok?”
She nodded her head and laid down in the tub. I walked back out to deal with the crazy woman in my room.
“Where is Charlie?” Marsha said, raising her hand to point the gun at me.
I lifted my hands, hoping she wouldn’t see me as a threat .
“She’s still in the bathroom. I wanted to talk to you.”
I slowly made my way over to where she stood.
“What are you doing, Marsha? Where are Samantha and Jack? Why do you have Charlie?”
I wouldn’t mention the gun. I didn’t want her focus pulled to it.
“She is our daughter. Where else would she be?”
“She’s not our daughter, Marsha. Our daughter is eleven years old; Charlie is only four. You hurt our daughter, Marsha,” I reminded her.
“No,” she said, shaking her head. “Charlie is mine.”
I moved slowly, careful not to spook her.
“Charlie isn’t yours.”
I was almost there. Just a few more steps.
“Yes! She is mine,” she screamed.
Marsha lifted the gun just as I reached for it. Her finger was on the trigger, and I turned her wrist as quickly as I could. When the shot rang out, I expected pain.
Marsha’s eyes widened. “Derek,” she whispered.
Her hands released the gun and moved to her belly. Blood seeped from the wound between her fingers, and I stepped back. I shoved the gun into the waistband at my back as Marsha fell to the floor.
I knew I needed to call 9-1-1, but I also knew someone had heard the shots. My priority was Charlie. I left Marsha bleeding on the floor and rushed to the bathroom.
“Charlie, honey, it’s me. Uncle Derek.”
She sat up from the tub, tears running down her tiny cheeks. I walked over, and she reached for me. Something landed in the pit of my stomach. This little girl trusted me.
Me.
The bastard who gave away his child without ever setting eyes on her. The asshole who beat her mother so bad she ended up in the hospital. The little boy who never looked for his baby brother because he was jealous he got out and away from the abuse .
I lifted her into my arms, pushed her face into my neck, and held it there. Leaving the bathroom, I hurried through the room and out the door, closing it behind me as I heard the sirens.
I sat on the ground against the building, holding Charlie tight. I made her a promise and I would damn well keep it.
No one would hurt her.
Police and ambulances sped into the parking lot.
I sat there with Charlie in my arms.
The sheriff walked over, his gun drawn and held at his thigh. I could see Jack and Samantha by his car, being held back by deputies.
“Mr. Reynolds, can you tell me what happened?”
“I kept her safe, Sammy. Until you got here. I promised her I would. I know I broke my promise to you, but I won’t break my promise to her,” I called out.
My eyes watered. I tried to blink back the tears.
“Mr. Reynolds, can you tell me what happened?” the sheriff asked again.
“I kept her safe.” I buried my face in her hair.
“Sheriff, let me talk to him, please.”
I looked up at the sound of Sammy’s voice.
“I kept her safe, Sammy.”
“You did, Derek. Thank you,” she said, sitting down against the building beside me.
“Sammy.”
“Stay back, Jack. Let me talk to Derek,” she insisted, her eyes never leaving mine.
“Hey, Charlie.”
“Hi, Mommy. Uncle Derek saved me.”
“He did?”
Sammy placed her hand on the back of Charlie’s head. She didn’t take her from me, she just sat next to me.
“I’m sorry, Sammy. I’m so sorry. I loved you so much. I didn’t want to be him. I didn’t want to hurt my child. I couldn’t take that chance.”
Sammy placed her hand on my arm .
“I’m sorry for my part in what happened, Derek. I shouldn’t have done what I did.”
I saw the tears well up in her eyes.
“Don’t cry, Sammy. It breaks my heart when you cry.”
“What happened, Derek?”
“She won’t hurt anyone again. Charlie is safe, and my baby girl is safe.”
“Where is she Derek?” Sammy asked.
“She’s in there.” I tilted my head in the direction of the room I was staying in.
Deputies rushed through the door. I knew what they found.
“Sheriff, come take a look,” a deputy called out.
The sheriff looked at Jack. My brother nodded, and the sheriff moved inside the room. As I sat there, my arms tightened around Charlie, and her little arms tightened around my neck. Her way of letting me know she had me, just like I had her.
Sammy just sat there, rubbing my arm. She made no move to take Charlie from me. I knew I would have to give her up eventually, and I would. Just not yet.
I looked up at Jack. His eyes locked with mine.
“Thank you, brother,” he said.
I closed my eyes and nodded.
I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t look at him.
The sheriff came back outside and walked over, standing in front of me again.
“Mr. Reynolds,” the sheriff said. “I need you to tell me what happened.” He had holstered his weapon.
I guess he no longer thought of me as a threat.
“Dec, is she?” Jack asked.
“She is,” the sheriff confirmed.
I released the breath I hadn’t realized I’d held on to when Jack asked.
“Sam, can you take Charlie over by the cars? I don’t want her to hear this.”
I tried to pull her back, and she held on tighter.
Placing my hand on the back of her head, I whispered, “Baby girl, you gotta go with your momma.”
Her little head shook. “You need me, Uncle Derek.”
“I do. But I need to talk to the sheriff,” I explained.
“Hey, Shortcake, I’ve got Uncle Derek. You go with Mommy.”
Charlie’s arms loosened on my neck, and she turned to look at her dad.
“You promise you won’t leave him?” she asked Jack.
“I promise I won’t leave him,” Jack replied, his eyes on me.
Charlie crawled off my lap and stood up. She looked up at the sheriff. She narrowed her little eyes and pointed her little finger at him.
“You be nice to my Uncle Derek. He’s a hero. If you are mean to him, I’s telling Auntie Beck and Uncle King.”
I couldn’t stop the snort. I heard Sammy chuckle next to me.
“I promise, Charlie,” the sheriff said, his hand on his chest.
Sammy stood, taking Charlie’s hand and walking her away. I watched until she was far enough away, then I stood.
Once I was on my feet, Jack slammed into me, his arms wrapped around my shoulders. My first thought was, he was going to take me down until I heard him say, “Thank you, brother. Thank you for keeping my baby safe.”
He hugged me tight. My arms went up around his waist and I clung to him.
“Always,” I replied.
I held on for another moment before I took a step back, pushing Jack away from me.
“Step back, Jack. Please.”
Jack moved away. I lifted my arms, my hands parallel to my face.
“I’m gonna turn around. I have her gun in my waistband.”
The sheriff rested his hand on the butt of his gun and nodded for me to proceed. I slowly spun my back on the sheriff and waited. A deputy came over and removed the gun. When I saw him move away, I lowered my hands and placed them behind my back.
“Mr. Reynolds, please turn around. ”
Confused, I spun back to the sheriff, keeping my hands behind my back.
“Please tell me what happened,” the sheriff directed.
I retold the story of Marsha knocking on my door. Taking Charlie into the bathroom, laying her in the tub. Arguing with Marsha until she pulled the gun on me. Fighting over the gun and it going off, shooting her in the belly.
I was honest when I told him I left her there, lying on the floor. My priority was Charlie. I told Jack how I held her face against my neck so she wouldn’t see anything when I carried her outside.
“Thank you, Mr. Reynolds. I will need you to come down to the station and file a formal statement. But that can wait until tomorrow. It looks like you could use some time with your family first.”
“Thanks, Dec,” Jack said, shaking the sheriff’s hand. When he turned to leave, I stopped him.
“Wait, you aren’t arresting me?” I asked, still confused.
“No sir,” the sheriff replied.
“But I killed someone.”
“The law is clear. You did what you had to do to protect a victim of kidnapping. A child, and your family member.”
The sheriff walked away, leaving me there with Jack.
I couldn’t look at my brother. I didn’t know how to talk to him, what to say. There had been so much resentment toward him ever since my mother told me he was alive. And that only got worse once I knew he was the man my wife cheated with.
My own goddamn brother.
I slipped my hands into the pockets of my jeans and just stood there, waiting.
“Hey, man, so you can’t stay here. Your room is a crime scene. They’re likely to be here for hours. Then, it will have to be cleaned.”
“I get it,” I said, looking out across the parking lot. “I don’t even know why I’m still here. I can head to the station and fill out my statement, then hit the road. I’ll head back to Arkansas. ”
“I’m fucking glad you were still here,” he said, and my head snapped around to look at him. “If you weren’t still here, who knows where she would have gone. Hell, we’d been looking for her for weeks with no success. What I meant was, you could come stay at the clubhouse for a few days, until you’re ready to go home.”
“Don’t you have to ask your president?” I asked, not fully knowing how those things worked.
“Fuck, no.” Jack laughed. “Charlie is the only little girl in the club for now. She has everyone, including King, wrapped around her finger. If he said no to me, I would just send her in there. You saw the way she fucking took down the sheriff? He’s King’s older brother.”
My eyebrows hiked up to my forehead at that information.
“I don’t know. Sammy… I mean, Sam, might not be comfortable with that,” I hedged.
“Sam might not be comfortable with what?” she asked, walking over with Charlie.
“I invited Derek to come stay at the clubhouse for a few days,” he said, taking her hand and pulling her to him.
“Yes. Yes. Yes,” Charlie chanted excitedly, jumping up and down. “Uncle Derek can stay in my room.”
“ Uncle Derek can have his own room,” Jack countered, and I winced.
“Jack, I’m sorry. I only told her so she would trust me.”
“Don’t be sorry, Derek,” Sam said. “You are her uncle.”
“Sammy’s right. I’m just being an ass,” Jack said.
“He’s good at that. Just ask Auntie Rachel,” Charlie added, and Sam and I both laughed.
“Hey, I’m telling Uncle Cash, Auntie Rachel needs a spanking,” Jack told Charlie.
“She might thank you for that,” Sam whispered with a smirk.
“Woman, no. Just no,” Jack said, shaking his head.
The banter between them made me smile. I wanted them to be happy. In that moment, I realized I wanted to get to know my brother. And my niece. I wanted to watch her grow up. Be a part of her life.
“So, what do you say?” Jack asked, pulling me from my thoughts.
“If you really think it’s ok?”
“I do. Come on. Zero is over there with the SUV to take us back.”
We walked over to the vehicle and climbed in.
Things were awkward when we got back to the clubhouse. But once Jack told everyone what happened, the tension eased.
That, and Charlie went after anyone who even looked at me sideways. My niece would be a force to be reckoned with when she grew up, and I could only hope I would still be a part of her life when that happened.