I walked over and wrapped my arms around Josie, kissing her on the top of the head. She leaned into me for the first time since I picked her up, and I could feel her start to relax. I knew she had been through something traumatizing, and it was going to take her a bit to get back to normal.
“How about this?” I asked quietly. “I’ll have some of our investigators go look for him. As soon as they find him, they will let us know.”
“Okay,” she said, sniffling.
“It’s just not safe for you to stay here,” I explained. “There are too many unexplained things right now. We need to figure it all out first.”
“I know,” she said with a sigh. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry,” I said. “Go pack your things, and I’ll be here when you’re done.”
I watched her walk away, thinking about how crazy of an idea it was that she actually thought I would leave her here. There was way too much risk involved in letting her out of my sight, something I had already done once, and she ended up arrested and charged with murder. The stakes were too high, and there was no way in hell that I was leaving her alone, much less there at that house. There had been so many events transpiring over the last forty-eight hours that I didn’t even know my ass from my elbow. Too much had happened, and I partly blamed myself for not insisting on being there when she spoke with her father. There was no way, at that point, that I was going to let her out of my sight. Hell, there was a good chance I wouldn’t let her out of my sight for a very long time. I cared way too much about her. She was sweet and kind, and I needed to figure out a way to get her out of all of this.
She packed a bag
and met me at the front door, smiling as I led her to the car. I let her in and then went to the driver’s side, pulling my seat up comfortably and buckling my seatbelt. I watched as she pulled out her phone and dialed her voicemail. She sat quietly, listening to the prompts and pressing the buttons. Her face was calm, and I could see just how tired she was from the bags under her beautiful, big eyes. She needed to rest, and I was going to make sure she did. She sighed as she pressed the erase button and continued to listen to the messages. I knew that she was praying and hoping that her father’s voice would pop up on the other end of the line. She really did love him, no matter how many things he had put her through over the years. It made me think about my father and how I wished he were here to go fishing with or have holiday dinners with. I missed him a lot, and I knew the feeling of hoping for good news but never getting it.
Josie’s father, though, was a piece of shit. I was more than livid at the old man. I knew he had something to do with Josie’s dire situation, but the messages from Josie were mixed, and there were some serious holes I was trying to fill in. I would love to get ahold of him and stick my boot up his ass for being involved in anything that caused harm to Josie. I couldn’t understand what the hell he was thinking. He could really be helpful in the case, but instead, he ran off like a scared puppy, leaving Josie to pick up the pieces once again and take the brunt of the blow. Her life was going to be forever changed.
As I reached down to put the car in drive, I glanced at Josie and watched as tears filled her eyes. She was listening to a message, and I grabbed her hand, letting her I know that I was there for her. Whoever was on the other end did not have good news, and immediately, my mind went to her dad. I was mad at the man, but I didn’t want anything to happen to him. I knew all too well how it was to lose a parent. She hung up the phone and wiped her tears, her breath catching in her throat.
“What is it?” I tried to be calm and soft-spoken.
“That was the school,” she said, sniffling. “They have suspended me without pay because of the charges. They said it was policy, and they had no choice. I can’t believe all of this is happening. Those kids were my life, my escape from the hell of my household. They will never look at me the same way again.”
“Sure, they will,” I said, shaking my head. “As soon as we solve this and prove your innocence, that school will welcome you back with open arms. Everything is going to be okay.”
I wish I believed the words that I told her.
Chapter 22
Josie
My mind was blown. I couldn’t even start to think about everything that had gone on for the past few days. It was like I was living in someone else’s world, where I had no control over what was going on and limited ability to even put it into words. It had been a whirlwind of events, but I knew there was more to come. My father almost never left my thoughts, even before all of this started. I thought about him all day, every day, wondering what he was doing, hoping he was keeping himself busy and not with gambling. My job had been my sanctuary, a way to remove myself from the madness and focus on the kids. They really gave me strength on a regular basis, something I felt I was so lucky to have. Now, though, I hadn’t heard from my dad at all since the incident with Paulie, and my job had put me on suspension.
I’d seen what happens to people when they are thrown under the bus and are charged with crimes they never committed. The public has a way of judging before they even hear the details, and the details of my case did not make me look any less guilty. I didn’t want to be the girl who was found not guilty but still had to live my life in the public, being treated like I had killed that woman. I would probably never be hired to teach again after being dubbed a murderer. The damage had already begun, and now, I just had to figure out how to not go to prison. Just being in that jail cell for three days made me realize that I was not prepared for a life of incarceration. I couldn’t stand one bit of it, from the jumpsuits and cots to the terrible, unedible food, and the constant fear I was going to get hurt. Those women did not play around, and I was in no way the girl that could harden myself to stay alive. If I was out of prison, the mob might get me, but if I was in prison, the other inmates might get me.
Out here though, away from all of that, I had Blaine. He believed me from the start and never asked otherwise, which was pretty amazing for a week’s worth of dating. He has been so gentle with me, talking me through everything, loving me at every turn, and fighting so hard to get the charges dropped. He didn’t even flinch or waver when he found out what the charges were. He just found a way to me and put his arms around me. I couldn’t have asked for a better boyfriend in this case, and I knew that he was going to find a way to help me. I honestly didn’t know what I would have done if it weren’t for Blaine. There was a really good chance I probably would still be in the cell.
When we got home, he didn’t stop pampering me or trying to ease my mind and my body. He unlocked the front door and took me by the hand, setting the alarm as we walked. He didn’t stop for food or drinks, and he didn’t put me to bed. Instead, he led me through the hall and directly to the bathroom where he started to fill up the enormous bathtub. The water was hot, and steam rose from the tub, making me think about the cold showers I had been forced to take in prison. He walked over to me and slowly pulled my shirt over my head and helped me out of my pants. He walked behind me, unclasped my bra, and finished undressing me with the gentlest touch. There were no words, just silent caring and the sound of the water flowing from the tap. He took my hand and helped me step into the hot water, smiling as I sunk down with a sigh. The water washed over me, and I could feel my stress begin to dissipate by the second. He sprinkled some bath salts in the tub, and I took a deep breath of the lavender. It was exactly what I needed.
I was so grateful to have the ability to take a bath. The nights in my cell were cold and dark, and I could still smell the steel bars in my nose. I had laid there in the cot at night, thinking about the dinners I would cook my father, the warm bed I missed so much, and Blaine’s strong, hot arms around me. When the other girls had arrived, I got myself through the night without sleep by thinking about the warm air over my body as Blaine and I walked across the sand, the ocean waves just barely touching my feet. I could still hear the waves from my windows, crashing against the shore, even in that cold dark cell. I figured I would have to start remembering a lot more of that if I didn’t get out of these charges.
I sat there while Blaine pulled the sponge from the edge of the tub and lathered it with body wash. He gently moved it over my skin, cleaning the last few days from my body. He smiled kindly at me as I sat there, feeling comfortable but still not completely at ease. When he was done washing me, he helped me out of the tub and wrapped a towel around me as he pulled out some clean clothes from my bag. I got dressed and combed my hair and then met him in the living room where he had set up a nest of blankets and pillows on the couch. He asked if I needed anything, but I shook my head no, not even wanting to eat since the exhaustion had just struck me. I watched him walk over to the table and open his laptop, files piled up everywhere.
“When are you going back to the office?” I asked.
“I’m not,” he answered. “I’m going to work here, from home. I don’t want to leave you for even a second. It’s too risky.”
“Thank you,” I said with a yawn. “And if I don’t get a chance to say it later, thank you for everything you’ve done, and everything you will do for me. I couldn’t imagine what I would do if I were in this situation alone.”
“I love you,” he said. “I would go to the ends of the earth for you. Don’t worry. We are going to figure this all out and get your life back on track.”
I smiled at him, thinking about those words and wondering if I should tell him the entire story. I wondered if he should know that Harry the Hammer had come to visit me inside the jail. But then I remembered that they were not playing around, and if I brought Blaine into this, there was a good chance he would get hurt, too. I couldn’t, for one second, even start to think about putting his life in danger, not after all he had done for me. If there was a way out of this without revealing my secret, I was sure Blaine was going to find it.
I watched him as he pulled out his pad of paper, his notes, and his files and began to work. There was something so amazing about the way he handled himself. He was so organized, and everything that he had gone through so far was tabbed and highlighted. Now, I understood what made him such a good lawyer. He really put himself into his work. I knew that he was way more invested in this case than probably any of the others, but still, if he did this on a normal basis, he would be unstoppable. His parents must have known that when they left him the firm. I wondered if everyone on his staff was this diligent, and I felt an ease come over me, knowing I had people like Blaine slaving away at my case, trying to find me a way out, any way they could.
Even the way that Blaine talked on the phone was incredibly impressive, and I smiled at the way he twirled his pen while he waited for someone to pick up. His tone of voice was completely different than the one he talked to me with. It was assertive and dominating, while his voice was always so gentle and loving with me. I thought about how he might sound in the courtroom, and I wondered if it would make me giggle. Probably not, especially since in the courtroom, I would be fighting for my freedom and possibly life. There would probably be no moments on that stand that I felt good about what was going on, regardless of whether I felt I was winning or not. I listened to Blaine talk to some man name Anderson on the phone.