Chapter 29
TWENTY-NINE
TUCKER
My tummy hurts like it did the time I ate too much ice cream and threw up on myself.
I tuck my legs to my tummy and hug them. Lay my head on my knees and squeeze my eyes shut.
“There’s my boy.” Her voice is scratchy but one I’ve heard before. “Mommy’s so happy to see you.”
Lifting my head a little, I peek between the front seats of the big van. The sunlight hides her face some, but I think the lady is my mom. But she looks… different. Skinnier. Scarier.
“Mom?” I barely hear my voice.
Her cracked lips form a smile. It makes my tummy ache more.
“Yeah, Tuck. It’s Mommy.”
I haven’t called her Mommy in a long time. Not since her second boyfriend after Dad. He was a bad man that made fun of me for calling her Mommy.
“Where am I?” My body shakes as I look around the inside of the van. Food wrappers, empty bottles, and dirty clothes cover the floor. And it smells really bad. “I’m scared.”
“I just wanted to see you. I’ve missed you, Tuck.”
When Mom left me with my dad, she told him I was always in her way. A pest. That she should’ve abandoned me when she did him. She must not remember saying that. Or she thinks I didn’t hear her.
I shiver when I look at the man driving. He’s big. Really big. He makes me want to throw up more. “Wh-who is he?”
Mom turns to look at the man and smiles. “This is Mommy’s friend.”
I don’t know who he is, but I don’t like him. The ring on his finger is the same one I saw before the bathroom went dark.
He’s not a good man. Not at all.
Mom faces forward in her seat and talks quietly with the man. I can’t tell what they are saying.
I hug my legs tighter and stare out the front window. Tall trees and a cloudy blue sky. It looks happy outside.
I want my dad.
Does he know where I am? Is he scared too?
Laying my cheek on my knees, I close my eyes and make a wish. I wish for Dad to rescue me from my mom and the bad man. I pretend like I’m at home with Dad and Miss Kaya, eating snacks and watching a movie. I pretend like I’m not scared.
The van wobbles and makes my tummy hurt worse.
“Ready for vacation, Tuck?”
I don’t want a vacation. I want my dad.
“Mommy and her friend found this supercool cabin to stay at until it’s time to see your dad again.”
My eyes hurt like they do just before I start to cry. I want my dad now.
The van stops. Mom and the man get out. A door on the side opens and Mom waves at me to come out.
“This place is nice, Tuck. Come see.”
I don’t like this van, but I don’t want to see the cabin either.
Mom leans into the van, grabs my arm, and tugs. “I said come on, Tucker.”
I stumble out of the van and trip over a rock as she leads me to the cabin.
When we get inside, she lets go of my arm and huffs. “Always difficult,” she mumbles then points to a chair. “Go sit down.”
The cabin is one big room with a bed, kitchen, bathroom, table, chairs, and a fireplace. It’s nice, but I still don’t want to be here. Not with her or him.
“This is how we get the money,” Mom says, her dirty finger pointed at me. “We don’t hurt him.” She shakes her head. “You make the call, and his family will pay.”
I don’t understand what is happening.
Who is he going to call? What are they paying for?
The man gives Mom a mean look then grabs her throat.
I taste throw up in my mouth.
“Better be right, Cook. Or this is where it ends for you.”
Mom smiles at him. “I am right. They’ll do anything for Tuck. Make the call.”
The man lets her go and she falls on the floor. He taps on his phone then holds it to his ear. “Is this Ray Calhoun?” He doesn’t say anything for a moment. “I got your boy. If you want him back, you’ll have to pay.”