Page 66 of Redeeming Melodies

The words hit like a physical blow, stealing the air from my lungs. "What?"

"His mother." He took the bottle back, drank deep like he was trying to wash away the taste of defeat. "Filed some bullshit emergency motion. Says moving here shows I'm unstable, that I'm trying to alienate him from her."

"That's fucked up." The words felt inadequate against the magnitude of his pain.

"Yeah." His voice cracked, a hairline fracture in his usual strength. "Know what's really fucked up? She's the one who pushed me into racing. Wanted the lifestyle, the fame, all of it. Then blamed me for never being home."

I stayed quiet, sensing he needed to get this out. He stared at the stars like they might hold answers, wine bottle dangling forgotten from fingers that trembled slightly.

"Should've seen it coming, I guess. The way she changed once the money started rolling in. Suddenly nothing was good enough - not the houses, not the cars, not even our kid."

My hands clenched into fists, thinking of Tommy's bright smile over pancakes, the pure joy in his laugh when he was just allowed to be himself.

"Started with tutors." Elliot's voice dropped lower, confessing secrets to the night sky. "Then specialists, coaches,constant criticism about his development. Like our son was some project she could perfect. Like being himself wasn't enough."

"Tommy's amazing just as he is." The words burst out fierce and protective, straight from my heart.

Elliot's head turned, something vulnerable and hoping crossing his face. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." I met his eyes, needing him to hear the absolute truth in this. "Kid's got the biggest heart I've ever seen. Smart as hell too, but more importantly? He's kind. That's not something you can teach. That's all you - the way you love him, the way you see him for exactly who he is."

The smile that broke across his face felt like sunrise after the longest night, like hope taking physical form. "He really likes you, you know."

Something warm unfurled in my chest, tender and terrifying in its intensity. "Sorry I missed him. Work-"

"Bad case?" His voice softened with genuine concern, and God, how long had it been since someone looked at me like that? Like my burdens mattered too?

Images flashed through my mind: Jimmy's broken body, Ramirez's face on the security footage, betrayal written in black and white evidence.

"Yeah." The word came out rough. "Someone I trusted turned out to be... not who I thought."

"Want to talk about it?"

"Can't. Not yet anyway. But thanks." The genuine care in his voice made something in my chest crack open.

We sat in comfortable silence, passing the wine back and forth. The stars wheeled overhead, witnesses to this moment of shared vulnerability. His thumb traced patterns on my palm, each touch like lightning under my skin.

"Jake?" His voice came quiet, uncertain in a way that made my heart clench.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks. For letting us stay here. For being so good with Tommy. For making us feel like... like we belong somewhere again."

The raw honesty in his voice made my chest ache. Without thinking, I pulled him closer, until his head rested against my shoulder, fitting there like it was made for this.

"It was the night before a big event.” Elliot's voice came quiet, like he was sharing secrets with the stars instead of me. "Tommy was supposed to be asleep. I'd just gotten back from from it, wanted to surprise them both."

Something in his tone made my chest tight. His head stayed on my shoulder, but I could feel the tension building in him, like a storm about to break.

"Found them in our bed." The words cracked like breaking glass. "My old friend. The guy I'd trusted with almost everything. And she just... looked at me. Like I was interrupting something inconvenient. Like our whole life together was just... nothing."

"Jesus." My hand found his in the dark, squeezing tight. He gripped back like it was the only thing keeping him anchored to earth.

"Tommy heard everything. The shouting, the accusations, her throwing shit at me when I said I wanted custody." His voice shook with remembered pain. "Kid's too smart, you know? Picks up on everything. Probably knew before I did that his mom had checked out long ago."

The rage that flooded me felt different from my anger about Ramirez. More personal, more visceral. Protective in a way that scared me with its intensity.

"She didn't deserve either of you." The words came rough, honest, straight from some deep place I usually kept locked away.

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