Page 38 of Out of the Shadows
“I’ll take you,” Jack said, “and Margo can stay here with the kids.”
Laura agreed.
Margo grabbed a flashlight and her Yeti with, Jack presumed, the iced coffee she drank like water. She gave him a salute, then went out the back door.
Laura showed Jack to the guest room. “The sheets are clean, and there’s a small bathroom. If you need anything, let me know.”
“You didn’t have to go to any trouble.”
“It really wasn’t.”
“You should get some sleep as well,” Jack said. “You didn’t have much last night, and you need a sharp brain for that surgery tomorrow.”
She tried to smile, but it turned into a yawn. “Iambeat and still sore, though the hot bath I took this evening worked wonders.” She hesitated, as if thinking maybe she didn’t want to share that information with him. “I’ll make sure Margo knows where everything is and then hit the hay. Thanks again, Jack. I mean it. I gave you a bad time this morning, and I do appreciate you being here.”
“Aw, shucks, ma’am,” he said, trying to lighten things up.
She laughed. “My knight in shining armor.”
There was something in her eyes and her smile faltered as she looked at him, as if she had second thoughts about her words. “Good night,” she said and quickly walked out.
It took Jack far too long to fall asleep.
As previously arranged with Margo, Jack woke at two thirty in the morning, and Margo collapsed onto the bed. Like Jack, Margo could sleep anywhere. She was out before he closed the door.
He quietly made a pot of coffee and listened to the quiet of the country.
This was exactly the kind of place he wanted for his forever home. A few acres, minimal light pollution, no traffic. His siblings all seemed to thrive living in the city, but Jack had always wanted to be away from it. It’s why he and Whitney had bought a house in the west valley, in a neighborhood they could afford, with good schools and more police per capita than Phoenix. He didn’t mind commuting because his family was safe in a nice home in a quiet neighborhood where they had a big yard, a nearby park, and friends.
Whitney hated it, and grew to hate him. The only reason she hadn’t sold the house was because the divorce settlement allowed her to live in it until three months after Austin’s high school graduation. When they sold it, they would evenly split the equity. Right now there was no equity to split because they had to refinance the house to help pay Whitney’s debt.
Now, she lived there for free because Jack paid the mortgage. He didn’t mind—it was his son’s house, too. He just wished Whitney would find something that made her happy, because an unhappy mother wouldn’t help Austin grow into a confident, capable man.
It pained him that Whitney hadn’t found joy in their family, or in her career as a teacher that she’d abandoned. She now worked in school administration and didn’t like the job, complained about it every time Jack saw her. He’d suggested she find something else, even if it didn’t pay as much—since he paid the mortgage and child support, she didn’t need much money to live on. However, her lifestyle was expensive, and she insisted that Austin needed all the latest gadgets, clothes, private coaching in baseball, and more.
Jack poured coffee and took his mug outside. At three in the morning, it was still hot—eighty-seven degrees. As a Phoenix native, he was used to it.
He walked to the barn door, listened. The animals made noise while they slept. A little rustling. One of the horses was snoring—he almost laughed. The chickens seemed to talk in their sleep, secure in their hutch.
He walked the perimeter, enjoying the early morning. No one was around, and he didn’t even hear a distant vehicle.
Thirty minutes later he went back inside and found Laura sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee. Only the stove light remained on.
“Did I wake you?” he asked.
“No.”
He poured himself another cup of coffee, sat across from her. “Are you okay?”
“I don’t know,” she said honestly. “I woke up and my mind just wouldn’t stop. I’m angry at Charlie and so very worried about him. I don’t know what he’s up to, but it’s rubbed off on me and the kids, and our friends, and I can’t even yell at him about it. What if something happened to him? What if he’s hurt? What if the men who wanted that storage unit found him?”
“All good questions, but you can only control what you can control. That’s you, your home, your kids. If we get a lead on Charlie today, Margo will pursue it and my sister Luisa will stay with Sydney and Cody. You can trust her like you trust me.”
“Your family really is something,” she said. “I love how you work together.”
“It took some getting used to, but it works for us.”
“You complement each other and really care about each other. It shows.”
