Page 46 of The Gentleness of Rage

“No! But you might want to call your mate Lucy,” Slate said.

Outraged, I stiffened and twisted to look at him. “What did you say?”

“Lucy. She’s the one who reported you missing. Lucy’s really upset you’ve disappeared.”

“Lucy Rogers?” I hissed.

“Yeah.”

“That’s the bitch Damien was cheating on me with! She’s no friend of mine, she’s a whore!” I cried.

Slate’s eyes widened as he took in what I was saying.

“What?”

“I bet Damien got Lucy to report me. He wouldn’t want his name linked. Damien’s station can claim they looked into it, but actually do nothing,” I hissed.

“No, this was a nationwide alert. You’re being hunted,” Slate disagreed.

“Why not report me missing himself? A cop’s girlfriend disappearing would get a lot more attention than Lucy reporting me. Cops stick together,” I stated.

“True. But Ramirez and Ben had pegged your ex as a dirty cop. You knew they were officers before they identified themselves, and you were frightened of them. That meant you had experience with the police. Throw in the cash-in-hand job and a fake ID, and you’re on the run from a bad relationship. Ben and Ramirez acted to protect you. Not all cops are dirty,” Slate summarised.

“How do you know I’m not hiding from a crime?”

“Because that ain’t you, babe. Not the girl who gives up two evenings and doesn’t expect a penny in return. She did it because she recognised people needing help. That isn’t a criminal on the run,” Slate refuted.

“Smartass,” I retorted, but my heart was not in it. “Your friends won’t report me?”

“They swore an oath to protect and serve. Ben and Ramirez meant it,” Slate explained.

I sighed. It was now or never. “I met Damien while delivering snacks for a friend’s husband. Lewis always forgot his lunch, and Lacey usually ran it up to him. One day, she couldn’t, so I did. Damien and I got talking. He was a sergeant like Lewis. Damien and I talked, and I left. Lewis forgot his food two days later, and I took it again. Damien invited me to join him for lunch.” I shrugged as I swallowed tears.

“I was naïve, charmed that somebody like Damien wished to take me out. Damien snowed me completely. I was ten years younger than him. Within six months, I had Damien’s ring on my finger and was living with him. Then the abuse began, a random slap here and there, before escalating. There was gaslighting until I believed I was going insane. Damien started isolating me and telling people I was sick.

“The few times I did call the cops, Damien cried and said I’d thrown myself down the stairs or something similar. Between him and his partner, Wade, everything was covered up. Even Lewis and Lacy turned against me. Lacey begged me to get help. Damien had managed to turn my close friends against me.

“But Dorothy is a federal judge, and she wasn’t buying Damien’s bullshit. When they kept getting turned away, Dorothy finally contacted someone to get support. They helped me escape and got me out of state, and I hid out with them for a while. It was peaceful there, with good food and lots of fresh air. I slowly found myself again.” I puffed out my cheeks as Slate stared at me.

“Did Damien have any medical shit on you?” a man asked, and I leapt up from my chair as Slate reached for me.

The two detectives were standing in the doorway, scowling.

“Calm down, Jaelynn, we ain’t gonna harm you. The reason I’m asking is because if Damien didn’t have a doc examine you, it was false imprisonment, hell, even kidnapping,” Ramirez explained.

“I never saw a doctor.”

“And this person who helped you. They wouldn’t be called Parks?”

I couldn’t control my reaction and jolted.

“Yeah. Thought so. They’ve got a long reach. The Parks family help a lot of people, don’t worry Jaelynn. Not many are aware of them,” Ben said and offered me a reassuring smile.

“I don’t know anyone called Parks,” I replied.

“Keep it that way, babe, what the Parks do is a miracle,” Slate added as he rubbed my shoulders.

“Has Slate informed you why we’re here?” Ramirez asked.

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