Chapter 12

At Charlotte’s shocked look, Grams added, “Yes, I know you’re being threatened.”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have come,” Charlotte whispered. These nice people didn’t deserve to get dragged into her mess.

“Oh, stop it with that bullshit. Of course, you should be here. This is the safest place you could be. So can the bullshit and spill. Ares didn’t tell us much, and I’d rather hear the details from you.”

Charlotte wrung her hands. “It’s my ex. He followed me from British Columbia.”

“I’m going to assume he’s a shitty father since you’re trying to keep him away from the kid?” Grams didn’t pull punches.

“He abandoned her at three months old. Tried claiming she wasn’t his, and when a paternity test showed she was, he called her defective.” Charlotte clenched her fists as the familiar hot anger filled her. “There is nothing wrong with Greta.”

“I take it he changed his mind?” Athena’s soft addition.

“About eight months ago, he showed up unexpectedly. Barged his way into our apartment, demanded to see Greta. She’d already gone to bed, and I refused to wake her up. When I asked what he wanted, he told me to hand her over.”

“That’s insane,” Athena huffed. “He can’t have seriously expected you to comply.”

“I told him he was nuts and to get out, that he’d relinquished his parental rights. I reminded him that he called her defective, and he smirked. Told me he’d changed his mind and either we moved in with him or he’d take Greta.”

“No court would have agreed,” Derek stated.

“He wasn’t planning to do it legally.” Her hand went to her cheek. “And he gave me a taste of what to expect if I didn’t give in.” Charlotte saw how Ares’ jaw clenched as he simmered with anger on her behalf. Honestly, the slap, while it stung, hadn’t hurt as much as the thought of losing Greta.

“After the assault, you left BC and came here,” Derek stated.

“Not right away. I hoped I could reason with Barry. Offered him supervised visits on the weekend so as to ease him into her life.”

“Wait, you actually were going to let him see her?” Ares couldn’t help his shock.

Charlotte shrugged. “He’s her father. I owed it to Greta to give him a chance.”

“He wasn’t content with the offer,” Grams surmised.

“Not one bit. He wanted us under his control. And he got it. For two weeks.”

Ares stiffened. “You agreed to live with him?”

“Not exactly. He kidnapped us, took us to a remote house in the woods, and made it so we couldn’t escape.” That had been the toughest moment of her life. Kept locked in a room, allowed out only under supervision. She’d done her best to keep Greta from realizing the severity of their situation, but she knew. She’d smiled very little. Spent a lot of time huddled on Charlotte’s lap.

“You obviously got away,” Athena pointed out.

“By fluke. When he and his gang went out one night, I smashed the handle off the door of the room he kept us in.” Her lips twisted as she offered a wry, “I couldn’t figure out how to pick the lock. Luckily, he hates banks. I took a few thousand in cash and stole his car. Drove to the bus depot and ditched it. Then took a taxi to the train station and booked us some seats.”

“You made him think you took a bus,” Ares murmured. “Smart.”

“We travelled by train and bus.” Charlotte stood and paced. “I’d planned to go farther east, but my emergency stash got too low, so we ended up here.”

“When you say this asshole is violent, what are we talking about?” Grams questioned. “We know he’s a piece of shit who likes to smack women, what else?”

Charlotte hesitated. “He’s the leader of a gang or a cult depending on how you view it. Around a dozen or so men and women who live in some cabins on his property. They intimidate local businesses for money.”

“Protection scam,” Derek murmured.

“It’s blackmail, all right, as the money is to protect those folks from him and his gang.” Charlotte paused and ducked her head before admitting, “He is a killer. On the day I escaped the cabin, he showed me his depraved side thinking it would make me fall in line. The victims hadn’t done anything wrong, simply got lost, but rather than let them leave, they…” She swallowed hard. “He and his gang murdered them.” The memory of the pleading, the blood, the screams still haunted her.

“I met Charly’s ex,” Ares announced. “He came by the farm before we left. Doesn’t seem like he followed us here, but he’s as you’d expect. A big, brutish bully.”

“Did he bring his gang?” asked Derek.

Charlotte shrugged. “I don’t know. He might have.”

“He was driving a rental, which implies he flew in,” Ares added to the information pot.

“I can’t imagine it was cheap flying last minute this close to Christmas, so unless he’s willing to waste a ton of dough, I imagine he only brought a few of his posse. While he couldn’t bring weapons through security, it wouldn’t be that hard for him to pick something up from the black market,” Athena’s contribution.

Charlotte eyed them all. “You’re taking this all very calmly.” Sane people would have been on her to call the cops or leave so as to not bring her troubles to their doorstep.

A hard-eyed Grams spat, “I ain’t calm. The thought of some asshole trying to hurt that sweet baby has me ready to hunt down that fucker and put a bullet between his eyes.”

Charlotte’s eyes widened, and Ares grabbed her hand. “I know that sounds harsh, but the reality is, guys like your ex can’t be scared off with words.”

Agreed, but still, murder? “You ran him off earlier today,” she reminded.

“Because he wasn’t sure you were with me, and I imagine because I was tougher than he expected. More than likely, he’ll return with some of his bully boys to see if I was lying.”

“Pity the roads are so shit. We could have lain in wait,” Derek lamented.

“Maybe if he can’t find me, he’ll go away.” Charlotte still hoped for a miracle.

“Don’t you suddenly go dumb on me,” Grams chided. “That man didn’t follow you this far to give up. We’ll have to be prepared. We’ll get you set up with a gun.”

“But I don’t know how to shoot one,” squeaked Charlotte.

“It’s called aim and pull the trigger. Even if you miss, it will cause noise and bring others to help,” Grams dry reply.

“And if I hit someone?” Charlotte asked faintly.

“I know how to clean blood so the cops can’t find a trace.” Grams wore a secretive smile.

“I don’t want to kill anyone, and I don’t want anyone to get arrested for murder,” Charlotte exclaimed.

“Ain’t murder,” Grams stated. “It’s what’s needed to protect you and that sweet girl. And don’t you worry about us getting caught. Can’t charge us with murder if they don’t have a body.”

“Well, it’s doubtful he’ll find us here,” Charlotte said, more to convince herself. “I should get to bed. Greta rises early.”

“So do we.” Grams pushed herself to her feet and hobbled to Charlotte. “You might not like our methods, but we will keep you safe.”

With that, everyone went to their rooms, the one she and Ares shared not very large. Most of the space taken up by the queen-sized bed covered in a thick patchwork quilt. While fatigue did tug, Charlotte didn’t lie down. She paced.

“I shouldn’t have come. Oh god, what if Barry comes here and hurts them?” she lamented.

“Don’t let Gram hear you. She’s liable to give you a cuff.” Ares tried to be light with his words, but she whirled with trembling lips.

“Barry will kill anyone who gets in his way.”

“You’re assuming we’re easy to kill. I can tell you right now we’re not.” Ares wrapped his arms around her. “I wish you’d told me what he did to you. I mean I guessed it was bad, but Jeezus, Charly. You’re lucky to be alive.”

“I’m aware.”

“You know he’s not going to give up and go away. He’s going to keep coming for you and Greta as long as he lives.”

“I think about it every second of every day,” she whispered against his chest.

“Then you know there’s only one way to stop him.”

What he implied… “Maybe he’ll get arrested,” her weak reply.

“These days he’s more likely to get a slap on the wrist than go to prison.”

How mad would Barry be if he went to jail because of her? “How can you speak about it so calmly? All of you acted as if killing people were an everyday thing.”

“Not for me, but Grams and Gramps did fight in a war. I did warn you they weren’t like other folk.”

“Will they really kill Barry if he shows?”

“Most likely. They understand there’s only one way to deal with that kind of man. The fact they are determined to act is a compliment. They don’t like many people, and yet you’ve already won them over.”

“You mean Greta did.”

“Grams took a shine to you too. She’s not usually that soft-spoken and polite.”

Her eyes rounded. “That was polite?”

“You should hear her when she’s herself. It’s ‘fuck this. Fuck that.’ She was being so nice she didn’t call Derek ‘the little bastard’ once.”

“They’re good people, but I meant what I said. I don’t want them getting in trouble because of me.”

“I’d say the chances of your ex showing are slim to none, so I wouldn’t worry about it. But at least you know they’re prepared, meaning you can sleep in peace. Ain’t no one getting their hands on Greta.”

That was probably the only thing that kept her from fleeing. These people genuinely cared and wanted to keep them safe. And truth be told, while the frank talk did discomfit, Ares and the others did have a point. Now that Barry had decided he wanted Greta, nothing would stop him but death. A terrible thing to think, this was her child’s father. A scumbag who would traumatize a little girl who deserved better. A man who would most likely kill her if they ever met again.

“You’re thinking too much,” Ares murmured against the top of her head as he held her.

“Can you blame me?”

“Nah, stressing about the situation is understandable. Good thing I’ve got something that will fix that.”

“Sleeping pills?”

“Nah, something better. You just need to get naked first.”

Her mouth rounded. “You can’t be serious.”

“Very. Get your butt on the bed and get ready for the best massage of your life.”

She wanted to argue. Wanted to keep tormenting herself. Instead, she stripped and lay face down on the bed.

Ares proceeded to knead her muscles. Working out the knots. Relaxing every inch of her until she felt something other than stress. When she flipped over and reached for him, he was ready.

To her surprise, making love eased even more of her tension. Afterward the intense orgasm, they snuggled, cozy under their pile of blankets, even too hot. The woodstoves in the house kept things toasty.

Ares spooned her from behind, their pajamas—which she’d insisted on them wearing—not really getting in the way of that snuggly intimacy. She fell asleep and woke to Greta beaming at them.

“Mama, wake up and come see all the snow.”

So much snow. They’d gotten forty centimeters overnight, and it was still coming down.

It could have meant backbreaking shoveling, only after the most ridiculous breakfast—fried potatoes, pancakes, bacon, sausage, toast, eggs, and even freshly squeezed orange juice—Derek got the tractor with its plow going, and the boys took turns chugging up and down the driveway. Greta whooped when they took her for a ride on it.

Greta played outside for hours, and so did Ares and Derek. They built her an epic snow fort and a maze in the snow to reach it.

Charlotte preferred the indoors and, after getting shooed from the kitchen, spent much time standing at the window watching.

Worrying.

And even praying.

Please, don’t let anyone take my munchkin away.