32. Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Seven
J esse sat with her feet up, feeling another one of those freaking stupid Braxton Hicks contractions. At her appointment last week, she'd thought she was in labor only to be told they were only practice contractions. She'd had to look up who named them. Of course, it was some man in the 1800s who'd never experienced them for himself. Half the time they didn't feel like practice contractions. They felt like what she imagined the real thing to be.
Cannon had gotten upgraded to a smaller walking cast and a brace for his arm. He'd been thrilled to lose the wheelchair. He'd even gone back over and done a couple of office tasks at the range.
Jesse, her dad, and her sisters had all sat down and gone over exactly how the garage would function going forward. Once the girls were here and she was able to work on vehicles again, then she'd structure her days at the garage to make it work best for her and Cannon. Since school was starting soon, she'd talked to the administration about how she planned on doing the classes going forward. They'd be twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Her dad, Scoop, and a couple others would be her coverage when the girls were born and after for a little bit.
Jesse watched Cannon playing the video game against War and Bear. They'd finished lunch and War and Bear had challenged Cannon. He'd been the one at the top of the board before moving to her house. While he was there, the guys had been practicing, hoping to beat him. It was always a competition for them.
Sarah sat down beside her. Jesse hoped she had news. She'd asked Sarah to look into Renae's situation and also track down Cannon's dad.
"So, I don't think you're going to like what I found out," Sarah said.
"Then just tell me."
"Renae is living with her male cousin and his three friends. Her mom passed away, and the cousin is the only relative. He's twenty-nine and can't seem to hold down a full-time job. However, he has money in the bank. I did find a life insurance policy from when Renae's mom passed. It could possibly be hers, but I don't see that she has spent any."
Jesse worried about what was going on. Renae was thinner, and the bruises were worrisome. But she didn't want to scare her away.
"She's fifteen. Do you think maybe we could see if she would want to babysit some of the kids and we could get to know her better?"
"You're reading my mind. We need to have her away from the other students and able to talk. Do you have her number?" Sarah asked.
"Yes, I have email and phone numbers. It was one of my requirements for the class, so I could contact them if something came up."
Winnie sat down along with Remi.
"What's up?"
"I'm worried about one of the girls in my class. We want to talk with her. Can you make up needing a babysitter?"
Winnie nodded. "Of course I can. How about this afternoon if she's available? We could have you hang here and get that painting done for the babies' room."
Jesse loved how her family jumped all in. She texted Renae and got an immediate yes. She let her know Winnie would be picking her up.
"Okay, she's ready right now."
Jesse showed Winnie her address, then relaxed. Her sisters would get everything situated.
Cannon returned from checking on the painting at the house. Despite everyone telling him he didn't need to be there, he had to. He'd missed so much that he wanted to check on it. The pale gray walls along with the white trim looked great. The pink accents and bedding were very cute. After everything was dry, they'd situate the room. He had to admit he was getting a little nervous the closer they got to the due date.
Those birth videos had scarred him for life, and he couldn't imagine Jesse having to go through that. He'd asked her about the epidural. She'd said she was leaving the option open, which he was happy about. He wasn't sure how he'd handle her in pain.
Jesse was sitting at one of the tables with Renae while the kids were sacked out in front of a movie with a bowl of popcorn. How they had room for it, he wasn't sure. He was still stuffed from lunch. Jesse had clued him in about her concerns and Sarah's findings. He'd also left to have less males around to see if Renae would open up.
He walked over to let Jesse know he was back. He could go and pack up some more of his clothing from his room. He'd like to have his whole hat collection.
"Sorry to interrupt. I wanted to let you know I'm back. I thought I'd pack some more clothing."
Jesse smirked. "He means more hats. I think he has more hats than I have shoes, Renae, which is saying something."
Renae shyly smiled.
"Cannon, I've been chatting with Renae about her situation. I told her you used to be a police officer before you came here. She and I thought you might have some ideas about how to help her. Why don't you sit down?"
Cannon pulled out a chair and sat down. His leg was aching from the walking cast, but it was worth it to be more mobile. Getting to go piss when he needed to was a gift in itself.
"Sure, what's going on?"
Cannon kept his voice softer, using the one he'd unfortunately used thousands of times on the job with abused individuals.
"My mom died and the only person they could find was a cousin I'd never met. He moved me here. He and his friends aren't nice, and I'm scared of them."
Cannon nodded. This young girl's eyes had entirely too much pain in them for someone so young.
"Okay. I'd like to ask a couple more questions."
He waited for her nod before continuing. "It's August and hotter than fire out but you're wearing long sleeves. Is there something underneath I need to see?"
Renae stared at him, then nodded, pulling up her sleeve. What a brave girl. Fingerprint bruises went all the way up her arm. Cannon leaned closer, reaching out but holding his hand above her arm. He waited for her nod before turning her arm to see the bruises better. There were two different sizes of fingerprints, so it wasn't just her cousin who had hurt her.
Cannon breathed deep. This young girl didn't need to know how much these bruises infuriated him. He remembered what his therapist had said about how he wasn't to blame for his father's actions. Renae needed to know this wasn't her fault.
"First off, I want to tell you that you didn't deserve to have this happen to you. You did nothing wrong. People that hurt kids do it for a variety of reasons and none of them are the child or youth's fault. I'm going to call the Sheriff's Department since they are the law enforcement over the area because what your cousin did is abuse. And then we'll make sure you're safe."
Renae had tears start to trickle down her face. "I just kept saying I needed to make it to eighteen so I could graduate. I want to join the Army."
Jesse wrapped her arms around Renae while Cannon dialed his phone.
"We'll get you safe and then help you follow your dreams."
Cannon called the sheriff directly because as mad as he was about how Renae was being treated, he didn't think he could deal with Kerwin today. They'd get Renae settled and then see about cleaning out the trash.
Thinking about how Renae had been at the mercy of her cousin when her mom died made him realize he and Jesse needed to have everything in writing. He didn't know if his dad was alive, but he wanted to make sure his girls were always protected. He'd contact Locks and find out which attorney they used after he chatted with Jesse.
After speaking with the sheriff, he texted the guys all about what was happening with Renae. Rascal, War, and Scoop had all offered to go to get any of Renae's stuff when needed or help out with any message that needed to be received. Cannon despised the fact that he couldn't be the one to deliver the message with his fists, but with his girls on the way, he wasn't chancing injuring his one hand that wasn't hurt.