Atonement (The Protectors 6)

“Um, my boyfriend, Ronnie…Ronald…he works part-time for Mr. Embrick down at the cemetery and he said…he said that they got a headstone a few days ago with Jenna’s name on it. Mr. Embrick told him you’d called yesterday to say you were back in town and that you were gonna stop by and pick out…pick out the spot where you wanted to put it.”

“I’m sorry, Rachel. I was going to tell you later this week when I saw you.”

Rachel nodded. “I was going to call you to ask you if it was true, but I guess I didn’t really want to know.”

I nodded in understanding.

Rachel stopped and turned to face me. More tears threatened as she whispered, “Did they…did they find Matthew too?”

“He’s fine,” I quickly said, ignoring how strange it sounded to hear my grandson being referred to by his full name instead of the nickname Tate had given to him. Tate had explained to me that he’d needed to change his and Matty’s names when they’d gone on the run, so he’d picked something for Matty that was close to his real name and less likely to confuse him.

“He is?” she asked, as she sent me a shaky smile.

“He is,” I confirmed. “He’s staying with friends,” I added, not wanting to get into Matty’s cancer diagnosis or the custody arrangement.

Rachel hugged me again. “That’s good,” she whispered. “She loved him so much.”

I felt my own eyes burning. Rachel was one of the few girls who hadn’t abandoned Jenna when she’d gotten pregnant. Things hadn’t been easy for my daughter after her pregnancy had been discovered – she’d been called a host of derogatory names by those she’d once considered friends and I’d actually had to have her transferred to another school in the next town over after the bullying had become too much for her. But after her addiction had spun out of control after Matty’s birth, no amount of cajoling had been enough to keep the school from kicking her out, especially after drugs were found in her locker.

Rachel had stuck by her through it all and it was only when I saw the two girls laughing and having fun together that I got to see glimpses of the young girl my child should have been, instead of the addict she’d become. I’d been worried that Jenna’s addictions would rub off on Rachel, but from everything I could see, Rachel had steered clear of the same pitfalls that had ensnared my daughter.

Rachel released me and we began walking again. “Do the police know how Jenna died?” she asked. “Ronnie said there was no…”

The young woman’s voice dropped off for a moment before she managed to get out “body.”

Pain ratcheted through me as I said, “They didn’t find her, but there was a witness who confirmed she’s gone.” I hoped that was enough because I felt like I was going to throw up as images of my daughter in her final moments went through my head.

Had she been awake in those last few minutes? How had it happened? Had the fucker made her suffer? Had she called out for me?

“Magnus,” I heard Dante say softly and I felt his fingers brush over the back of my hand. I hadn’t even realized I’d stopped walking and both Rachel and Dante were watching me with concern.

“Sorry,” I mumbled as I struggled to get a grip on my emotions. Rachel managed a wobbly smile as she ran her hand down my left arm and then put her arm through mine as we continued walking. She held on to me as we walked and I felt a little lighter when she briefly pressed the side of her head against my shoulder.

She really was a sweet girl. I should have done better by her by being the one to break the news of Jenna’s death to her.

The horses were waiting for us in pretty much the same spot they’d been in earlier when Dante had been checking them out. But unlike before, Dolce came right up to the fence and hung her head over, her dark eyes fixed on Rachel. Rachel released me and went to greet the horse while I did the same with Ace.

“Hey, buddy,” I murmured as the big animal pressed his head against my chest before sniffing my pockets. I hadn’t thought to grab any treats, but Rachel solved the problem when she handed me one of the two apples from her jacket pocket. I fed it to Ace as my eyes drifted to Dante. As soon as our eyes met, he shifted his gaze to scan the property.

“Mr. DuCane,” Rachel said and I forced my attention back to her. The sight of her with her arm around my daughter’s horse was bittersweet. The girls had been riding together for most of their teenage years. Since Rachel hadn’t had her own horse, she’d always ridden Dolce when she’d come over and Jenna had ridden Ace. She’d been the obvious choice to care for both animals when I’d had to leave town.