Chapter 40 Nyah
NYAH
My eyes were puffy the next day as I dropped Lucas off at school.
I could feel the tightness behind them, the dull ache that came from crying too much and sleeping too little, but I still bent down and kissed his forehead like everything was normal.
I was glad that the summer camp was going to start again in two weeks.
The thought of him being somewhere safe, monitored, and surrounded by routine gave me something solid to hold on to.
Work kept me engaged. Neither Elle nor Donna had called. They were busy with their own lives, and I was thankful for that, because I did not have the emotional capacity to explain myself or answer questions I did not even understand yet.
The pain did not go away, but it did lessen, dulling into something that sat heavy in my chest instead of crushing me outright.
Caleb sent over flowers every day, large, thoughtful arrangements that felt like apologies he was too afraid to say out loud.
I never sent them back, but I never acknowledged them either.
He messaged and called me at work and on my cell phone, but I never answered.
Every time my phone lit up with his name, my heart reacted, and I hated myself for that.
I told Amy to tell him that I was unavailable if he called or came by.
I was grateful that a conference at the hotel demanded my attention and kept me busy.
It kept me distracted from the pain, from the betrayal, from the images that invaded my thoughts when I was alone.
During the week, Lucas asked to use my phone to talk to Caleb. “When am I going to see you? You don’t come around anymore. Is everything okay?”
I left his room before he could say anything else. I did not trust myself to stay, because the sound of confusion in his voice hurt.
Later that night, I took down all the pictures of Caleb and me in the apartment, even the one from New Year’s, which I had framed because I had believed in it so completely.
I grabbed a box and threw in all the things he had left at my apartment.
It felt like a definitive end, a line I drew even though my hands shook as I drew it.
It brought a fresh round of tears to my eyes.
The smell of his aftershave clung stubbornly to his clothes and pulled memories to the surface, memories of warmth, laughter, and safety.
Then the image of Caroline and him in bed flashed before my eyes, vivid and merciless.
My chest constricted. I closed the box and shoved it into my closet, as if hiding it would make the memories disappear with it.
At noon on Friday, while I was in a meeting, my cell phone rang. I did not recognize the number, so I ignored it.
It rang again.
I excused myself and answered. “Hello?”
“I thought you wouldn’t pick up, and I would have to leave a message, Jiya.”
My entire body froze when I heard the sickening tone of Jeremy’s voice. “How did you get this number?” I asked, already scanning the room as adrenaline surged through me.
“Don’t worry about how I got this number. Should I call you Nyah or Jiya?”
I stiffened.
“Well, anyway, you’ll always be Jiya to me, and right now, I’m staring at your little boy… Lucas, is it?” He snickered. “Beautiful little fella—”
“Stay away from him, Jeremy. Don’t you dare touch him.” I ran to my office and grabbed my bag and keys, my movements frantic and uncoordinated. I calculated that it would take me at least ten minutes to reach the school at this time of day.
“Well, how long would it take you to reach him? Ten… maybe even fifteen minutes? I have a head start, don’t you think?”
“They won’t let you take him. They have strict instructions from me.”
I jumped into my car as my heart pounded. I needed to keep him talking. I grabbed the burner phone I hid in the dashboard and texted Alex to send someone as soon as possible to Lucas’s school.
“You’d be surprised how easily they’ll hand him over, especially if I have a gun with me. Whose life do you think they would choose, his… or theirs?”
The line went dead.
I called the number back, but he did not pick up. Panic flooded me as I sent the number to Alex to track it and called him.
“Nyah, we’re on the way. We’ll be there in less than five minutes.”
“He’s there, and he has a gun,” I screamed into the phone as I zigzagged through the streets, horns blaring behind me. “He’s already there.”
Reaching the school minutes later, I slammed on the brakes. My tires screeched as the car came to a stop. I jumped out and ran toward Alex. “Where’s Lucas?” I yelled, looking back and forth between him and the teachers. “Alex, where is he?” My lips trembled as fear clawed its way up my throat.
“I’m sorry, Nyah,” he said, looking down. “He took him.”
My heart stopped. I could not breathe. My mouth went dry as my world closed in on itself.
“How could you?” I demanded, staring at the teachers. “How could you let this happen? How could you let him take Lucas away?”
My phone rang.
It was Caleb.
“Caleb… Lucas… He took Lucas…”
“Yes, I know. I took him… remember? To the park with Cooper and Oreo.”
“WHAT?” My hands shook violently. “What are you talking about? You took him?”
He must have realized then that I had no idea, because I heard him say something to Taylor and tell him to turn the car around.
“You have Lucas? You have Lucas. Oh my God! Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I thought Lucas told you when I spoke to him,” he said softly. “I was taking him for lunch and then to the park to play. I’ll be there in five minutes.”
I hung up and told Alex that Caleb had him. Then I turned to the teachers. “Why didn’t you tell me it was Caleb who came to pick him up? Why didn’t you tell them?” I pointed to the policemen.
“Well, I was trying to tell you that when you came, but you were screaming, and then your cell phone rang,” the teacher explained. “I was giving them a description of Caleb as well.”
Minutes later, Caleb pulled over, and Lucas jumped out.
I ran to him and hugged him tightly. “Are you okay, Lucas?” I checked him all over. “Please don’t ever do that to me again.” I squeezed him again. “Why didn’t you tell me that Caleb was coming to pick you up today for lunch?”
He looked at me with tears in his eyes, scared. “I’m so sorry, Mama, I forgot. I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m really, really sorry.”
After reassuring him, I asked him to wait in the car with Taylor. Then I took Caleb aside.
He started talking fast. “Look, I’m sorry. I should have told you myself and checked with you first. I should have messaged you and let you know what I was planning—”
I didn’t let him finish. I stepped into him and clung to him, my fingers curling into his jacket as if he were the only solid thing left in the world. My body was still shaking, the adrenaline refusing to fade, but the moment his arms wrapped around me, something inside me loosened.
I needed him more than I wanted to admit—his touch, his warmth, the steady way he held me. In his arms, it felt like everything would be fine. I knew the feeling was temporary, but for those few seconds, I wanted it to last forever. The past disappeared. There was no betrayal, no fear, no chaos.
Only him, and the slow, steady rhythm of my breathing against his chest.
“You okay, Nyah?” he asked quietly.
I nodded, pressing my forehead into him.
“I’m really sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I promise I won’t do that again. I’ll inform you first.”
He kissed the top of my head, a gentle, familiar gesture that undid me more than anything else could have. He held on to me as if he did not want to let go, and for a heartbeat, neither did I.
Then reality crept back in. After a couple of seconds, I realized what I had done and abruptly stepped away. “Thanks,” I said, forcing my voice to steady. “Please bring him back straight to the hotel afterwards.”
Caleb searched my face, and I knew he felt the shift. I saw it in his eyes, the understanding that this moment was not permission, that closeness did not mean forgiveness. Then he nodded, accepting what I could give and nothing more.
After he left with Lucas and Taylor, I apologized to everyone and explained the misunderstanding. I informed Alex that Lucas would be leaving for summer camp in a week.
“I need you to find Jeremy and arrest him. I don’t care what the charges are, but I need him arrested,” I pleaded with a shaky, exhausted voice.
As the words left my mouth, I realized how much I had leaned on Caleb without meaning to, how easily I could have stayed in his arms and pretended that was enough.
Loving him was still easy. Walking away was not.
But I knew I had to do both at once, because my heart was not the only thing at stake anymore.
Alex told me he would put out a Be-On-the-Lookout message and keep me updated.
I returned to my office and finished the meeting I had left during the emergency.
My phone rang.
I picked up.
“That didn’t feel good, did it?” Jeremy hissed. He called from a different number.
“What do you want?” I asked through clenched teeth.
“What do you think?” he paused. “You!”
He was still as sick as he had always been. He could not digest the fact that the one he wanted had gotten away. An eighteen-year-old beat him and escaped from his clutches.
“I will get to you one of these days, either at your hotel or your apartment or through Lucas,” he breathed.
“I’ve been watching you for a long time now.
Your apartment is lovely, by the way. Your clothes have changed as well, especially your lingerie.
” He smacked his lips. “Some real fancy stuff now compared to what you had before. Then again, you do have money now. General Manager of a fancy hotel and a wealthy boyfriend… Caleb Evans.”
I stopped pacing. “We’re no longer together,” I said, forcing conviction into my voice. I had to protect Caleb.
“Oh, really?” he said. “The hug outside Lucas’s school didn’t seem like you guys were done.”
He was there. He was watching us. “I said we are not together anymore. It’s been over two weeks since we broke up. Leave him out of this.” I needed to warn Caleb. “Tell me when to meet, and let’s finish this once and for all.”
“That’s too bad,” he replied. “He does have a lot of money, which is something I need. And I need you. I suggest you patch things up. I’ll be in touch.”
He hung up.
I called Alex from the burner phone and asked him if he had started tracking my cell phone.
“Unfortunately not,” he said. “He needs to stay on the line at least ten more seconds. He’s smart.”
I sighed.
“Don’t worry, we have undercover police tailing Lucas and you, so you don’t need to stress about anything.”
Annoyed with how technology hadn’t advanced far enough to effectively track people, I said, “That’s what you said last time, and he was so close to taking Lucas away.
He’s entered my apartment. He’s followed Caleb.
He’s been following Lucas and me for weeks now.
How do you not know anything about that? ”
“I just can’t ask my boss for extra manpower for you and your son. It doesn’t work like that, Nyah. I have to explain myself. I have to justify my actions,” Alex said in a choked-up voice.
I apologized and hung up with him.
I was terrified.
Once Lucas is safe at summer camp, I’ll be able to focus on Caleb. Just another couple of days.
Taylor dropped Lucas off at the hotel. He was polite but awkward. He handed me flowers and a card from Caleb that said he was sorry.
I kept Lucas close all weekend.
“Mama, are you going to be okay?” he asked.
“I’ll be fine once you’re at camp,” I told him, hugging him hard.
He had almost lost me because of my heart.
He couldn’t lose me now because of Jeremy.
It was a situation he didn’t know anything about, and one I didn’t want to tell him about and scare him needlessly.
I would make sure it was taken care of before he got back.
Reiterating to his teachers that under no circumstances should he go with anyone but Caleb or me, I gave them the burner phone number.
When the bus pulled away, I waved until it disappeared. I was not going to run anymore. I was not going to hide.
I waited for the dreadful call.
For what would come next, preparing myself both physically and mentally.