36. Dempsey
36
Dempsey
T he tension in the room is thick with anger as I tell everyone the details of Shane’s appearance at Katy and Owen’s preschool.
“He claimed to be Owen’s father and wanted to talk to Katy. The dumb director at the preschool almost let it happen.”
“She’s not going back there.” Tucker runs a furious hand over his beard, and I can hear the heel of his boot tapping on the floor.
“I told the director she would be out the rest of the week and probably wouldn’t be back.”
“She won’t be,” Lincoln confirms. “Katy can have my entire salary if she needs money.”
“That’s a generous offer, but you know she won’t go for that,” Spencer states blankly. “Her job has been her only independence.”
“Fuck!” Miller exclaims. “We can’t take her independence. She’ll hate us.”
Silence fills the room as Miller’s statement sinks in. He’s right. Work is the only time she gets to do something that me or any of the others aren’t actively in the room with her. She loves working there, and she loves Owen getting the chance to play with kids his own age.
The song Brown Eyed Girl breaks through the room, and everyone looks at Axel while my head whips toward the living room. That’s Katy’s text alert tone on his phone. Why is she texting him from the next room?
“Katy went back to the pool house but left Owen here asleep in his crib.”
Another alert comes through.
“Fuck. Look.” He turns his phone to show us the text sent from Katy.
Unknown: I was so close today. I couldn’t decide who I wanted to see more, you or my son.
Once again, his phone buzzes, and everyone in the room is on high alert. Axel jumps from his chair, and it crashes to the floor.
“Tucker, where’s your laptop?” Axel charges toward the living room, and everything in me wants to go to the pool house and make sure Katy is okay, but there’s so much going on right now I don’t know which way is up.
“Fuck!” Axel roars. He slams Tucker’s laptop closed and spins to face us. “She watched the video.”
Everyone but Tucker looks confused. What video did she watch? Why is she contacting Axel and not me? I pick up my phone and hit #1 on my speed dial.
“I’ve got her.” Some of the tension leaves my body.
“She made it safely back to the pool house?” Patrick grunts. “Is she okay?”
“No.”
“No? Why the fuck not?” Everyone’s attention turns to my phone conversation.
“She told me not to let anyone in?” I storm into the kitchen and out to the three-season porch. Patrick’s hulking figure stands outside the door to the pool house.
“I’ll be right there.”
“No.”
“Why the fuck not?” My rage seeps through my voice. Who does he think he is telling me no?
“She specifically said not to let you in?”
I hang up the phone and spin to walk back inside, but everyone is already behind me. “What was on that fucking laptop?”
Guilt.
Shame.
Trepidation.
Finally, Tucker sighs and gives me the answers I need. “It was open to the video footage from the dashcam of the shooting.
“Fuck. And Katy watched it.” There’s no reason for anyone to answer. It wasn’t a question. It’s the only reason she would have left here, on her own, without Owen, and now doesn’t want to see me.
I’ve seen it. Once. That was enough for someone like me who’s seen combat and death. I can’t imagine how she’s feeling right now. “And the text?”
“I’m looking into it, but since it’s from Shane, I’m sure it’s a dead end as usual.”
“Thanks, Chip.”
I look back across the yard. I want to go to her. I need to go to her. She can’t just shut me out like this. We can work through this together. We have to work through this together.
I turn to walk out the back door and hands grip my shoulders.
“Get your fucking hands off me.” I don’t care who’s grabbed me. Right now, I’m not in the mood for anyone’s shit.
“Dempsey.”
My head falls forward. Of course it’s Tucker. The fucking voice of reason.
“Respect her wishes. You can hate it now but she’ll appreciate it, and you, later.”
“How did you find out?” I barely just heard she doesn’t want to see me.
“Patrick texted me.”
All the fight leaves me. “Can I go and stand with Patrick? I won’t bother her. I just…I just need to be near her.”
“Dempsey, I’m not sure—”
“Please.” I’m clearly not above begging. I know she’s hurting right now. The video is fucking horrible. She still has nightmares about me, and now she doesn’t even want to see me. “Tucker, please.”
He finally releases his grip, and I feel my entire body deflate.
“Don’t push her. You can stay in Katy’s room if you decide you’re going to sleep at all tonight.”
“Thank you. Can you let Patrick know I’m coming so he doesn’t try and shoot me?”
“Sure.”
I walk straight out the back door toward the pool house. Patrick lifts his hand then glances at me, and I silently thank Tucker for announcing my arrival.
Patrick eyes me suspiciously as I approach, and I lift my arms in surrender.
“I’m not going to cause any problems. I just need to be as close to her as I can. She’s hurting, and on the off chance she decides she needs me, I’m going to be here.”
He nods and ignores me. That’s fine by me. I have enough thoughts swirling around in my head. I wouldn’t be good conversation anyway.
One hour passes, then two. I watch the shadows as they change across the yard. At hour three, Patrick answers a series of texts, and hope blooms in my chest when he punches his code to unlock the door. It quickly plummets when he reaches in, picks up Owen’s diaper bag, and quickly closes the door.
Miller walks toward us and retrieves the bag from Patrick, giving me an apologetic look.
“Is Owen spending the night with you?”
“He is. Do you want to come have a beer?”
“No. I’m good here.”
“Okay. It’s a standing offer.” I nod, and he leaves to return to his house.
“Wait. Are his stickers in the bag?”
Miller turns, giving me a confused look. “Stickers?”
“His potty stars. He gets one for peeing in the potty and two if he poops.”
Miller rummages through the bag and pulls out a sheet of holographic stickers. Shit . I was hoping it would give me another chance to see her.
“Okay, well, he really likes getting them as a reward.” He smiles his thanks, and as he turns, the doorbell microphone crackles behind us. I turn with hope that I’m going to at least hear Katy’s voice.
“Go with him, Viktor.” My heart sinks that she’s sending me away. I just want to be near her. “Go be with Owen.” She says the one thing that will change my mind.
“Okay. Okay, Pepper. I’ll go be with Owen. I’ll go be with our boy.”
As I leave, the mic crackles one more time. A quiet “So much” whispers through the air, and I smile. I repeat the words back into the silence with a smile. It’s her way of reassuring me that we will be okay. I’ll give her the space she needs, at least for tonight. Tonight, I have a little boy to take care of.
“Patrick. Guard her with your life. Your. LIFE. I don’t need to tell you how important she is to me.”
“My life.” He nods, and I already know he takes his job as seriously as I do, but I needed to hear it out loud.
I catch up with Miller and take the diaper bag from him. He throws his arm over my shoulder and smiles.
“Guess you’re coming for that beer after all.”