Chapter 38 JP - A PLAN
That night, my brain was too wired to sleep. Ali laid in bed beside me while I sat up against the headboard. I lazily gave her a head massage while researching the divorce situation and Mark Rossi.
My research led me right to the Centre Ice website, and I navigated to the squirt team’s page.
They had a typical schedule for that level of play—practices every Tuesday and Thursday and a mixture of home and away games every weekend.
I stared at tomorrow’s practice etched into a tiny square on the monthly calendar.
Everyone warned me to keep my distance from Rossi, and I would, but I wouldn’t keep my distance from Baker and his mom.
I promised Ali we’d find a way to talk to her, and I wasn't about to break that promise. Showing up during a game wouldn’t be good, because Rossi would have a perfect view of the stands.
He’d one hundred percent see me talking to her.
But during a practice, Rossi would be tied to the ice, distracted by watching kids and running drills.
And Baker’s mom wouldn’t necessarily be watching the entire practice.
She’d most likely wander into the lobby for warmth or to order something from the concession stand. That would be my opening. It had to be.
Closing my laptop, the room was blanketed in peaceful darkness.
Laying down, I curled around Ali, hating that I couldn’t drape my arm over her body.
Ali stirred a little and I froze, hoping I didn’t scare her.
But a couple seconds later, she scooched back until we were touching before going still again.
A mixture of relief and gratefulness filled my chest. We were almost there. We were almost to our happy ending. We just had this final piece to fix.
And now that I had a plan, I closed my eyes and easily fell asleep.
__________
2015
A sob escaped first.
I quickly pulled my phone away and stared down at the unknown number for a beat. “Ali?” I guessed.
The only sound on the other end of the line was ragged breathing.
My heart picked up speed. “Ali, is that you?” It’d been a year since I last heard from her, but deep down, I knew this phone call would eventually come.
“I-I need help,” she whispered. “C-can you come get me?”
“Yes, where are—”
“Wait, no,” she cut me off.
I held my breath, waiting for her to continue.
“This was a mistake,” she whispered. “I shouldn’t have called. Never mind. This was so stupid. I’m sorry.”
“No, Ali, just tell me where you—”
She ended the call.
Damn it. Frustration mounted in my body. I wanted to chuck my phone at the windshield. Instead, I squeezed it hard in my hand as I stared at the red stoplight ahead of me, willing myself to calm down and think this through.
I didn’t want to be right about Rossi, but I knew I was.
And that’s why I spent the last year loosely constructing a plan in the back of my brain for her.
As much as I wanted that plan to include stealing her away and protecting her for the rest of my life, I knew that wouldn’t be good for her.
If I hid her away like that, it would make me just as selfish as him.
A girl like Ali didn’t want to be trapped.
She dreamed of flying away, and I’d help her do that.
I’d let her go, but I’d always hold onto the hope that we’d make it back together one day.
As soon as the stoplight turned green, I booked it down Michigan Avenue, speeding through the large skyscrapers on either side of me. My body trembled with a dangerous mixture of nerves and rage as I blew past my turn and continued to the highway.
I was supposed to be driving to our home stadium and suiting up for a game in a couple hours. But Ali was supposed to be in a safe and loving relationship.
As soon as my tires hit the highway ramp, I redialed the number she called from, but it went unanswered.
My next call was to Hans. I knew she was working for him at Centre Ice, so he’d know where to find her.
_________
Four hours later, I stood on the front porch of her apartment across the street from the rink.
Their door was the only one not illuminated.
On closer inspection, the porch light was broken, same with the doorknob.
It looked like I could easily jiggle it open without a key, which filled me with even more frustration. Living here wasn’t safe.
My muscles trembled with pent up energy as I continued knocking on her door.
She wasn’t answering, but I wasn’t leaving until I saw that she was okay with my own eyes.
A full five minutes later, she hesitantly cracked it open, and my stomach bottomed out.
“Ali,” I rasped. I stepped forward to hug her and she went rigid, making me stop in my tracks.
My eyes darted around, taking in her tear-streaked face, her swollen eye, her bruised neck. I’d never forget it as long as I lived. And in the wake of my devastation came anger so potent I could taste it. My jaw clamped shut. My hands clenched into fists, trying to reign it all in.
“Where is he?” I asked calmly, looking over her head for him.
“He’s not here,” she said, drawing my eyes back to her. Her face crumpled. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know who else to call.” Her body shook with tears, and I wanted so badly to pull her into my arms, but I wasn’t sure that’s what she wanted.
“You never have to apologize for calling me, Ali,” I said, and I meant it. “I’m so fucking glad you called.”
Her golden eyes filled with tears, and she walked into me then, burying her head in my chest. Her fists wrapped in my hoodie, clinging to me as her shoulders shook.
I slowly reciprocated the hug, cradling the back of her head.
My eyes burned, but I grit my teeth and looked up to the ceiling, trying to stop them from leaking. I had to be the strong one here.
Dropping a kiss on her hair, I murmured, “It’s okay. No one’s gonna hurt you, baby. Not anymore. Not ever again,” I swore as I moved us into the apartment and locked the door behind us.
I wanted to keep holding her, but I knew we needed to get moving. Taking stock of the room, my anger multiplied. Things were thrown everywhere, like someone ripped apart the place in anger.
“All right, we have to go,” I rasped, trying hard to keep the waver out of my voice.
Her shoulders heaved with a breath. She kept her forehead against my chest, her hands curled into my hoodie, like she was afraid to let go. “Where?”
I gently lifted her chin and had to force myself to take a quick breath to control my anger. I hated seeing the marks on her body. I hated seeing her in pain, once again. “The police.” I ran my tongue over my teeth. Mark Rossi needed to rot in jail. “You need to report him, Ali.”
She was shaking her head before I could finish.
“This is all…it’s all out of control. I can’t, JP.
” A sob wracked her too-small body. She pushed out of my arms, her hands shaking with nerves as she brushed her hair back.
“I c-can’t do this. Maybe this was all a m-mistake.
I can’t report him,” she rambled. Her eyes went wild with fear, and her voice wobbled, edging on hysteria.
“If I report him, it’ll just get worse. He’ll find me, and he’ll be so, so angry, JP. I c-can’t. I d-don’t want to—”
“Okay, okay,” I said as calmly as I could, lifting my hands.
I knew I needed to move carefully here. “I’m not going to force you to do anything you don’t want to do, Ali.
Breathe,” I said, motioning for her to calm down.
After a beat, I said, “I think it’d be a mistake to let this go, but I’ll take your lead here.
” This was it. This was my last hope. “I have a plan, Ali. And I really fucking hope you take it.” My throat burned.
“You can’t stay here. You can’t stay with him. You just can’t.” I choked up.
Her golden eyes went glassy as she stared at me. When she finally nodded, I breathed normally for the first time in what felt like a year.
_________
“JP?”
The urgency in her voice stirred me from my sleep. “Huh? Wh—?” I rubbed my eyes, trying to see her in my dark room. “Good?” I coughed to clear my throat. “You good?”
“Yeah, yeah, sorry.” She breathed deeply and moved closer to me in bed, cuddling into my side and laying her hand in the middle of my chest. “Sorry,” she repeated. “Bad dream.”
I maneuvered so I could wrap my good arm around her. “Everything’s okay. I’m right here.” I dropped a kiss on her hair. “No one’s gonna hurt you, baby,” I said as we drifted back to sleep.
.