Chapter 12 #3
Owen stepped out of the Jeep, his eyes scanning the property, first with curiosity and then confusion. She quietly uttered a prayer in Spanish and kept her gaze averted from the windows of the garage apartment because they were being watched. Taking a deep breath, she softened her tone.
“Help me bring in the groceries,” she said, trying to keep an air of authority, despite her weariness. “And don’t even think about going over there. Got it?”
Owen huffed as if offended, but he knew better than to challenge her.
“Can’t I at least look?” he pleaded, pointing toward the motorcycles parked near the garage.
“No,” Caitlyn said sternly, grabbing two bags from the back of the Jeep before making her way up the porch stairs. Owen followed reluctantly, glancing longingly at the bikes before turning away.
“You’ll get to ride one soon enough,” she said over her shoulder, sensing his eagerness to drive a motorcycle. Grumbling, Owen carried the groceries into the house with his arms, and Caitlyn, who had a few more bags in her hands, greeted him.
He followed her outside to an old Chevy near the bottom of the stairs that led up to the apartment.
Inside, they could hear gruff voices and angry shouts.
Caitlyn paused at the base of the stairs, the sound tightening the knot of worry in her stomach.
Glancing up at the building, she saw no sign of Pops.
A wave of apprehension washed over her. Was Silas yelling? Was something wrong?
“I can’t see Pops?” His eyes pleaded for her to let him.
Caitlyn forced a smile for Owen. “Looks like Pops isn’t available right now, mijo,” she said softly, ruffling his hair and resting a hand on his shoulder.
“He has other things on his agenda.” Internally, she debated her next move.
Like Owen, curiosity tugged at her to seek the commotion above the garage, but what if Silas saw her and misinterpreted it as her spying on him?
Owen stared at the building, brooding silently before finally turning back to Caitlyn. “It’s because of that man, the one who is my father.”
Caitlyn hesitated, knowing lying to her son would only cause them problems later. She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly before finally speaking. “It’s complicated, mijo.”
“I don’t understand.”
“It’s best you don’t,” she said sadly, not wanting to hurt Owen, but this was for the best. For them both.
But Owen wasn’t ready to give up so easily and stepped closer to her with a determined expression, declaring what little independence he still had. “What if Pops needs me?”
Caitlyn’s heart ached for him. She hated keeping secrets, but she couldn’t bear the thought of him anywhere near Silas and hugged her son closely.
Engine grease stained the back of his t-shirt, and the air smelled of gasoline.
She looked into his big brown eyes, determined not to show him her worry.
“Then I’m sure he’ll come looking for you.”
Owen contemplated what she said, “But what about the man, Silas?”
“What of him?” Caitlyn asked, softly.
“He’s my father.”
“Sí, mijo,“ she said firmly, “but he’s no padre. It is best to keep your distance from him. He won’t be staying for long, so don’t get attached.”
Her son’s gaze skittered away, and he shifted uncomfortably, shrugging his shoulders to hide his emotions. Owen’s voice was quiet but determined when he spoke, a sign that his grandfather had been at work, instilling the warped belief that men should avoid showing their feelings.
“Pops said I should clean up the garage some more.” Owen followed her through the door into the kitchen, where he dumped the groceries on the counter. “He needs me. How else can he get the shop on its feet again? That’s cool, right?”
“The shop is fine the way it is.”
“But Pops said you’d get to paint more. You love to paint bikes,” Owen argued.
Caitlyn paused, placing her bags next to Owen’s on the counter, when she heard Owen call his father by his proper name, a slight gesture of defiance that Pops had allowed. At least they hadn’t gotten close enough for Owen to call Silas Papa or Dad like most kids.
She had to find a way out of this mess with no one getting hurt.
Leave it to Silas to try to pull her back into his shady business deals.
She didn’t want to be involved and didn’t need him or Pops to continue doing custom paint jobs for customers.
She enjoyed having the option of choosing what jobs she accepted.
Fear tightened around her heart as she thought of what had happened before. She couldn’t bear to endure it again.
Rather than argue, Caitlyn changed the subject.
Owen’s bottom lip trembled as he looked down at his feet, but he nodded somberly when Caitlyn suggested they see Sam at the farm later.
She adjusted her grip on the plastic grocery bags and smiled reassuringly at him.
She should have told Owen more about his father.
What kind of mother would she be to not protect her child?
But how could she wipe away the dream of a father in Owen’s mind by drowning it in the reality of all the bad things Silas did, which ended up landing him in jail?
Or that it was Caitlyn who made sure he went there in the first place?
He looked so much like his father, with that same defiant chin tilt.
With a gentle hand, she brushed an errant strand of hair from his face and forced her voice to remain steady.
“Owen, I know you want to help Pops and hang with Silas. It’s best we leave them to settle things in the garage first.” And conclude Silas’s business here.
What made him think he could reopen their business and then go causing trouble with her friend’s family?
Did he not think he’d go back to jail again?
One other option lingered in the back of her mind. She considered it long ago, and Sam tried to talk her into doing it. With Silas back, Caitlyn might not have a choice.
Looking at Owen, she said, “For now, you’ll go stay with Sam. I know she appreciates all the help of having you there.” And she needed to make plans, regretting, once more, having to involve Sam.
Owen scowled and wrinkled his nose in disgust. She smiled sadly, unable to explain why he had to go, or why his grandfather might be in trouble. One day he’d understand, if not from her, then from experience.
“I promise it won’t be every shift,” she said, reaching to brush some stray hairs from his forehead. Owen ducked before she could touch him. “If you stick to the farm and help Sam out, I can get you that new video game you’ve been talking nonstop about.”
Owen gave her a sidelong glance. “You mean the one Dan already bought me?”
“Dan? Did he tell you to call him that?” Her stomach fluttered. She tried to play it cool by pretending not to know who he was.
“His name is Daniel, so I called him Dan. He said it was cool.”
Caitlyn’s stomach twisted into a knot as she loaded groceries onto the kitchen counter. Silas’ menacing words haunted her with each item she placed in the cupboard.
She glanced up to see Owen put a can of beans away in the pantry, his brow knitted. She couldn’t help but remember how quickly things had changed since she first met Daniel and the feeling that he could be someone she’d eventually rely on even though they had just met.
Despite all her doubts about his intentions toward them, it was clear he was trying to get to know them—but could Daniel protect them from Silas? Her ex was a powerful man who often got what he wanted through any means necessary.
The thought of taking Owen away and leaving Pops here sent daggers through Caitlyn’s chest—but she would do whatever it took to ensure her son’s safety, no matter the cost. No matter how much pain it may cause her or anyone else.