Chapter 5

5

JACKSON

T he door closes behind me, and on instinct, I pat the thick white envelope inside my jacket just to make sure it’s still there. It’s not much, but Jenny and I can leave town and start a life together.

After all the paperwork, I can start picking up where I left off. Jenny doesn’t know what I used to do for a living, and I can’t wait to tell her all about it. She’s throwing her lot to a man who seems to have a bleak future ahead. She doesn’t mind that I don’t have money or anything to my name.

Jenny wants me for me, and that’s more than enough.

She’ll be surprised to know we’re set for life even if I ultimately decide to spend my days in bed with her—not too bad of a plan, to be honest.

See, I am not an impulsive guy. Not the type who will drop everything for a woman. Then again, it’s Jenny. She’s NOT just any other woman.

She’s mine.

Thinking of her makes me smile, but I stop dead in my tracks when I see that the car isn’t where I left it. I swing my gaze to the left and right. Nothing.

Did she leave? Did she get bored and get coffee? But the cafe is just across the street. Maybe she had an emergency?

It takes me a while before I notice a kid tugging on my shirt. I look down to see a boy with wide eyes and a tooth gap. He has his skateboard clutched to his chest while handing me a small piece of paper.

I furrow my forehead. “What’s this?”

“Someone told me to give it to you.”

I read the note, and my stomach twists.

“Welcome back, son. You know where to find me. Be fast. I’m not a patient man.”

Goddammit. That sick fuck. That piece of shit, motherfucker. When I get my hands on him, I’ll pulverize his face to his ground.

I look for the kid to pepper him with questions, but he’s gone. Shit. I know where that bastard is, and now he’s taken Jenny.

Has he been following me this whole time? Waiting for his chance to pounce? It’s my fault Jenny’s gotten wrapped up in this mess. Now she’s in danger, and fuck.

I should have taken care of him first. I should’ve known he would always be on to me.

Jesus. I’ve been too lax, too obsessed with Jenny to notice someone on my trail.

I crumple the note in my hand, blood roaring in my ears. I let the familiar wave of anger flow through my veins, warming me, filling me with enough strength to beat him to a pulp.

I was almost too late with Mom, but that’s not going to happen to Jenny.

The town is quiet, and I’m already considering running all the way across the square when I see a patrol car slowing to a stop in front of me, its window lowered.

“Jackson? Is that you, man?”

I blink. “Adam?”

Adam used to be one of my best buddies, and he often found reasons to hang out in my home whenever Mom baked her chocolate chip cookies. He stayed at his folks’ place until he graduated college. We lost touch when I was imprisoned, mostly because I cut everyone off.

Instead of the long-haired, mustached guy, this one is clean-shaven and looks like he has his shit together. His uniform looks crisp, the badge glinting in the sunlight.

He rests an arm on the door. “You okay?”

If I want to get there in time, this is the only way, so I jog to the passenger side and slide in, handing the crumpled piece of paper to Adam.

A patrol car isn’t my favorite mode of transportation, but I can’t be choosy right now.

Adam doesn’t say anything as he revs the engine. “Where do you think he is?”

“Home.”

He nods once and takes out the emergency lighting to set on the car’s roof. He doesn’t turn on the siren, which is good because the last thing I want is for the fucker to know I’m coming with company.

I’m running high on adrenaline and anger, and I know I have to tamp it down. I can’t risk Jenny, so I need to calm the fuck down.

With my fists clenching and unclenching on my lap, I break the silence first. “A police officer, huh?”

“Who would have thought, right? Even my mom wasn’t sure until I got the badge.”

“Damn.”

Adam clears his throat. “I heard you got out. I thought for sure you were gonna drop by to see me.”

“I didn’t want to stay. I only came to visit Mom.”

“I understand.”

“So, he’s been here the whole time?”

“Your stepdad? Nah. Saw him a couple of times, but I heard he’s living in the next county, stirring trouble as always.”

We’re quiet once again, and when the car stops in front of my childhood home, I begin to stew. That bastard has no right to sully my memories of this place. He’s done it once already. I won’t let him do it a second time.

I spent the first two decades of my life living in a farmhouse, sitting on a massive plot of land. It’s a few miles to the next neighbor, and I’ve always liked the privacy. It was just Mom and me and a few of our farm animals. We were happy here … until my stepdad arrived and threw our lives into chaos.

I don’t know what I expected to find, but seeing the house stand almost like a skeleton of its former self unsettles me.

We repainted it every few years, but now the peeling paint clings to the warped wood, the porch sagging. The old barn’s roof has caved in, and everything looks decrepit.

I stand outside the car, listening to sounds, especially Jenny’s voice. I don’t have a plan of attack because I don’t know what I’ll find. He was never the most mentally stable person, and he often did things impulsively without regard to the consequences. Maybe I can work that to my advantage.

Adam gets out and looks at me. “Is he there?”

“Yes, with my girl.”

Apparently, this small town still works like every other typical small town. News travels fast.

Adam nods. “Jenny.” I can’t stop myself from glaring, and he smirks and shakes his head. “You forget that everyone knows everyone here.”

“I need a weapon, Adam.”

“I can’t give you my gun, man.”

“Anything else, then.”

“I have a bat in the trunk, confiscated from one of the high school kids. Let me get it for you.” My eyes don’t leave the house even as Adam hands me the bat, big and heavy enough to do damage if I swing it correctly. He takes out his gun. “Whatever happens in there, you won’t be locked up again. I’ll make sure of that.”

I nod, and we stalk toward the door. There won’t be any element of surprise because I’m sure he heard us arrive. Here’s hoping he doesn’t know I’m with a cop.

I kick the door open, and I’m greeted by the smell of something so pungent and slightly sweet, so strong I can feel it at the back of my throat. Then my gaze falls on Jenny, tied to a chair in the middle of the family room.

Her hair sticks to her forehead and face, while her shirt clings to her body. She sees me, and the relief on her face hits me square in the chest.

“You brought a friend.” My stepdad, Trip, stands behind Jenny and points a gun at her temple. His perpetually hoarse voice, thanks to daily alcohol consumption, grates on my nerves, but it’s the way he’s so close to Jenny that makes me see red.

Trip is only fifteen years older than me, but he looks like he’s pushing sixty. The years haven’t been kind to him. He’s gaunt, and his skin is pale and drawn. His hair is sparse and gray, and his eyes are sunken and shadowed.

Good. I can take him on. I just need to make sure Jenny doesn’t get caught in the middle of our fight.

“Hands in the air, Trip.” Adam steps forward, and I don’t miss the way he subtly nudges my foot.

I do a quick scan of Jenny. She looks terrified, but from what I can see, there’s no wound or discoloration on her skin. No visible injuries, but I don’t allow that fact to make me complacent.

I’ll need to take care of Trip first.

“Stay out of our business, boy.”

“I’m a cop, Trip. It’s my job to get in your business.”

Trip waves his gun. “I could shoot you.”

“Then what? You shoot a cop, and it’s gonna be so much worse for you.”

“Fuck off. You don’t do noth?—”

Trip doesn’t finish his words as I ram my body into him, the bat hitting his stomach. We both fall to the floor, and I knock the gun from his hand.

Time to settle an old score.

The first punch breaks his nose. The second makes him cough up blood. I hit him for my mother. For Jenny. For me.

I’m so consumed by rage that I brush off the hand on my shoulder. The only time I stop is when small arms wrap around me, Jenny hugging me from behind. She’s crying, and she presses her face to my neck. “Stop, Jackson. Please. You’ll kill him.”

Trip is lying in a pool of his blood. He’s breathing but barely. I stare at my knuckles, raw and bleeding, too. Mustering whatever strength I have left, I spin around to face Jenny.

Tears fall freely on her cheeks.

“Are you okay, baby girl? Did he hurt you?”

She takes my hand and holds it in both of hers. “No, he didn’t, just doused me in gasoline. Let’s go home, Jackson. Take me home.”