“No.” I shook my head. “I’m just going to grab CeeCee’s sling and her diaper bag, and then we’ll be out of here. You don’t go near the fucking car.”
He was nodding before I’d ever finished speaking.
“Okay.” I nodded back. “Go wait for me on the road. I’ll be right there.”
I moved toward the car, my stomach churning with dread. Don’t look, Farrah. I kept my head down as I opened the back door, swallowing hard as the smell of Tommy’s body filled my nose. Fuck. I reached through the door to Cam’s side, the car closing in on me as I grabbed the diaper bag off his seat and the sling off the floorboard.
I pulled myself out and took a deep breath, catching sight of my purse strap hanging through the space between the front door and the driver’s seat. Shit. I needed my fucking purse.
Decision made, I slammed the back door shut and moved toward the front, taking a deep breath before opening my door and reaching for my purse.
“What are you doing?” Cameron called anxiously, causing my head to jerk up until I was facing Tommy’s dead body. His eyes were still open.
I pulled the purse out and slammed the door, vomiting on the ground beneath my feet. Fucking gross.
“Let’s go!” I told Cameron as I reached him, slipping the sling over my head and then reaching for Cecilia. “You get the gun?”
He nodded, watching as I got Cecilia settled. “Okay, make sure the safety’s on—”
“It’s on,” he replied without hesitation.
“Then put it in the diaper bag. Can you carry it?”
He nodded again, slinging the bag over his shoulder as we started down the road.
“I’m sorry, bud,” I said quietly after we’d been walking for a while. “You didn’t deserve this shit.”
“How can you say that?” he replied, his angry eyes turning toward me. “I went with him. I got in the car with you knowing that something was wrong and I didn’t say anything!”
“Cameron, you’re twelve years old and your dad outweighs you by like a hundred and fifty pounds. What in the fuck do you think you could have done?”
“I could have told you that someone needed you inside the club! I could have said I had a stomachache so Dad had to take me back inside! I could have tripped and hit my head on your car so I was bleeding and you would have had to take me back inside!”
“You’ve been thinking on this a while, huh?” I asked, stepping around a pothole in the road.
“Since we pulled through the gates,” he mumbled quietly.
“Dude, if you would have stopped him today, your dad would have just waited for another chance,” I argued. “Maybe without you there to have my back.”
He went silent.
We walked for hours, stopping only to change Cecilia—I was down to one last diaper—and so Cameron could pee. When we finally came to a road, I called Cody.
“Hey, baby. We just hit a road, but I have no idea what it’s called.”
“Okay, Ladybug. Cops are on their way. They figured out where you were at before, so they should be showing up pretty damn soon. You okay?”
“Yeah, we’re tired and Cecilia’s on her last diaper, but we’re good.”
“Slider’s grabbing a van and we’re headed to you. I’ll see you soon, okay?”
“Can’t wait. Love you.”
“Me either. Love you too.”
I stuffed the phone back in my pocket and turned toward Cameron.
“Cops are on their way,” I told him, watching his face sag in relief.
We’d only walked maybe a mile more when I saw police cars in the distance, and we stopped on the side of the road.
“Careful what you say, Cam,” I warned him as the cars got closer. “Your dad kidnapped us and held us at gunpoint. We don’t know why. Right?”
“Right,” he answered, taking a step closer to me as the cars rolled to a stop fifty feet from us.
“Farrah Miller?” the cop who was driving called out as he climbed out of his car and stood behind the door.
“Yeah, that’s me.” I took a step forward, and Cameron moved with me when all of a sudden we had four guns trained on us.
No, they were trained on Cameron.
“Hands where I can see them!” the same cop yelled, startling both Cameron and me into movement.
“Now, step away from the woman,” he ordered.
“What the fuck are you doing?” I screamed back, moving with Cameron as he tried to step away.
“Ma’am, we need you to stop what you’re doing so we can do our job!”
“Fuck you!” I screamed, then wrapped one arm around Cecilia at my chest and flung the other in front of Cameron. “Get your guns off my boy!”
Cameron’s head whipped toward me as I moved closer to him.
“Excuse me, ma’am?” The cops looked confused, but they didn’t drop their weapons.
“Get your guns off my son, or I swear to God I’ll cause such a fucking stink not one of you will be able to flip burgers at McDonald’s when I’m done,” I growled, finally coming to a stop with Cameron directly behind my right shoulder.
“Your son?” the cop repeated, lowering his weapon to our feet.
“That’s what I said,” I yelled back, my heart racing in my chest as Cameron laid his hand against my back.
“Lower your weapons,” the cop ordered, looking around to his men. “Ma’am, we were led to believe that you’d been kidnapped?”