Page 41 of The Soul that Redeems Me
“Shane Montgomery is the man who raped and beat my sister with an inch of her life. He is the monster who destroyed my family and apparently, your father and your friend knew he was, what? Trying to get another trial, to get out of jail? What the fuck, Josh! I thought you cared about her! About us! How could you keep this from us, the people you call family?” Andrew bellowed, trying to push past Lucas who still had him in a rear restraint hold.
Caroline swung her eyes around and looked at me with shock and disgust. I never wanted them to think I was trying to keep a secret but from the look on all their faces, they felt betrayed by mine and Jason’s decision to withhold the truth until now.
“It was my decision to keep this from you while I tried everything in my power to keep him locked away like he deserves. Josh wanted to tell you but I persuaded him to not say anything until there was something to say. Y’all had just brought the babies home from the hospital when I received the news he was appealing his conviction. If you are going to be mad, be mad at me, not Josh. He has done everything in his power to make sure she is safe and thriving, not walking around fearful that the man who attacked her wanted his freedom. How do you think she would have taken that news, Andrew? Ask yourself how she would have reacted knowing that he could be free with the stroke of a judge’s pen.” Jason yelled into the chaotic room.
“She would have withdrawn into herself and built higher walls to protect herself. Her insomnia would have gotten worse and she would be a nervous wreck, looking over her shoulder again.” Maddie replied, tears falling as Andrew finally stopped struggling and Lucas backed away, going to sit next to his wife while Caroline embraced Andrew. I wiggled my jaw to work some of the soreness out and righted my chair Andrew had tossed, sitting down, and putting my arms on my legs, my head bowed down as I listened to them chatter on about what we needed to do.
“Can you start at the beginning and bring everyone up to speed, Jason? That way when we sit down and talk to Emily, we are all on the same page.” I asked, not lifting my head to look at my family, not wanting to see their disappointment in me.
I was angry that they thought that I wasn’t thinking about Emily when we decided to not talk to anyone about the potential for his freedom. Every decision I have made since I knew I loved her had been for her, and for my family to mistrust me brought back up old anxiety and seething anger.
I leaned back in my chair and listened as Jason began to tell our family the details of what had occurred.
“When you first moved back, Andrew, I looked into her case.” With a raised hand he stopped Andrew from speaking, “As I explained to Josh, I didn’t want the details, I just wanted to know that monster would pay for what he did to that sweet girl. My lawyers started researching the case and their private investigator found out some details about Shane Montgomery that I’m sure even your parents didn’t know about.”
“Can you not say his name?” Andrew seethed from his seat across from me, his fist clenched until his knuckles were white.
With a sigh, Jason continued, “Apparently the asshole,” a look toward Andrew who nodded his head before he went on, “is from a wealthy family in Texas. They made their money on oil some years back and in the small town they live in, they rule the kingdom. Asshole was in a lot of trouble growing up and his family was always able to sweep it under the rug. He developed a drug habit some years ago and took off, spending his trust fund on anything he could smoke, snort, or shoot up.
“When he was caught, it was because of Andrews’s recollection of his license plate. He was apprehended and pleaded guilty, saving your family the pain of a trial where Emily would be expected to testify. That should have been the end of it, but earlier this year, his family found out where he was after his trust fund showed no withdrawals. They hired a new lawyer who began to work on appealing his conviction. They used everything from a case of mistaken identity to he said/ she said.”
“He said/ she said?” Caroline gasped, “How is that possible after what he did to her?” tears fell from her green eyes.
“Legal bullshit. That’s how. God, now I know why she left law school.” I responded into the room, my anger reaching a level that had my vision hazing red. I wanted to kill the man who hurt my woman but I knew that would take me away from Emily and nothing in the world would make me risk that.
Nodding his head in agreement, Jason kept speaking. “After my lawyers fought them on every front, they finally got a judge to agree to an evidentiary hearing, of sorts. The defense and prosecution will go over everything from the case and see if there would have been enough to warrant his conviction. They have everything sorted through, ready to present to the judge, except for one thing.”
“No!” Maddie cried out, her hand covering her mouth as tears continued to flow throughout the room.
“I’m afraid so. They need her testimony. She made a statement to the police and spoke with the DA who recorded her interview inside the hospital. Since he had been captured and plead guilty when he was booked, it was more of a formality than anything. Now, they want her to tell her version of events to a judge to see if her testimony backs up the evidence. I have been able to find out the appeals judge is strongly against letting predators back on the streets and he needs her testimony to guarantee he stays where he belongs. Behind bars.” Jason finished and I noticed Carol had slid her hand into his, giving him comfort as he told everyone the details.
“How do I tell her? How do I explain to her she has to relive the worst moments of her life so he stays where he belongs? How do I protect her from this?” Andrew asked, his voice thick with emotion, his eyes shining with unshed tears.
“You don’t tell her. We all do, as a family. We sit her down and explain what is going on then, we support her in whatever she decides to do. But know this, if she doesn’t testify, there is a very good chance he will be set free pending a new trial and without her testimony, he will probably have his conviction overturned.” Jason responded as he clutched Carol’s hand in his.
A noise from the hallway had Carol rising from her chair and sticking her head out into the open space to see what had caused it. Not seeing anything, she closed the door and sat back down next to Jason as we discussed the options and when we were going to tell her.
“There is one more thing. I found out he is a suspect in another rape in Texas. He was in Dallas for a few months and the M.O. of this attack had my PI looking into open cases. The details match Emily’s case and they are petitioning the Georgia courts for his DNA to compare to their case. The girl was thirteen and if they can connect him to it, he will be extradited back to Texas following his release from prison here. That is if we can keep him there long enough for them to build a solid case.” Jason said to a stunned room.
“She wasn’t the first?” Andrew asked before jumping up and running toward the trashcan, barely making it before losing his breakfast, Caroline kneeling down with him as she rubbed his back and whispered words to him.
I had the same nauseous feeling and I prayed when Emily found out about it all, she was strong enough to come back from whatever dark place she goes to hide inside of her mind. I prayed she was strong enough to face her demon and come out the other side intact.
We spoke for a few more minutes before we all began to file out of Jason’s office. I had the overwhelming need to call Emily and check on her, needing to hear her voice to calm my anger and settle my soul.
Dialing her number, I put the phone on speaker as I began to pace my office, willing her to pick up. The phone rang three times before it went to voicemail. I left her a message, “Hey baby. I wanted to see when you finally got on the road to get Jake. Call me when you get this message. I love you.” Hanging up the phone and staring out the window, wishing the day was over and I had Emily in my arms, her faithful guard dog Jake curled up at her side, the two of us protecting her from the unknown.
I tried calling her an hour later, worrying since she should have seen my message or have been to my parents by now to get Jake. Her not answering had me dialing my Mom’s number. She picked up with her cheerful greeting, “Hey sweetheart. What time will you be by this evening to grab Jake or would you like us to bring him back? We don’t mind coming into the city if it will be easier for you and Emily.”
“What do you mean, Mom? Isn’t Emily there to get him? She should be there by now.”
“She texted me over an hour ago and said you would be coming up tonight to get him and she was sorry she couldn’t make it. I assured her he was fine with us and she sent me a reply saying she was sorry. Is everything okay, Josh?” my Mom asked, sensing something was amiss.
“I hope so, Mom. I’ll call you back about Jake but I may need you to keep him for a few days until we get things settled here. Is that okay?”
“It’s our pleasure. Let me know if you change your mind. We would love to see you and Emily.” She replied before disconnecting the call.
I immediately dialed Emily’s number again, a feeling settling over me letting me know something was seriously wrong. The phone never rang, just went straight to voicemail. I walked out of my office and was headed toward the elevator when I looked into the trashcan behind Carol’s desk and noticed the bagel box from the shop across from the apartment.
No, no, no!
Looking inside, I found the receipt with Emily’s name on it, dated this morning, shortly before I hung up with her. I went back to Jason’s office and opened the door without knocking. I found Jason and Carol in a hug, them pulling apart as soon as I walked into the room.
“I’m sorry for barging in but I need for you to pull up the camera from when we were in the meeting. I think Emily was here and she may have overheard our conversation. She texted my Mom she wasn’t getting Jake, there are bagels with a receipt from this morning in the trash, and she isn’t answering her phone. Please, Jason. I need to know where she is now.” I rattled off, demanding, not asking.
A phone call later, a young man from IT came in and started going through the cameras until I spotted her exiting the elevator and standing outside the door to Jason’s office. I saw her go from shock, to shaking tears, to a look of hurt so deeply, I could feel her heart breaking through the monitor. The final look that passed over her face before she left the building had me worried. Emily was pissed and I didn’t know what she might do in her current state of mind.
She stood outside the door for what appeared to be most of our meeting, her hand stifling her cries before she stalked toward the elevator, throwing the bagels into the trash, and running into the open elevator. Her posture was stiff and her movements reminded me of the stretching she started her karate katas with. Carol poked her head out and checked for the noises we all heard, just as the elevator shut.
“Fuck, she heard everything and now she isn’t answering her phone. I have to tell Andrew. We have to find her before she…” I couldn’t finish the sentence, knowing the real dangers that lurk out in the world. The dangers that are breathing down her neck.
