Page 6 of Tesio
“Why?” I rolled my eyes, deciding that his attempt at an ethnic slur was nothing but asshole behaviour, and shrugged.
“Doesn’t matter. What’s up?”
“Rossi wants an update from you. You’re to call him asap. If you’re done beating up on my bikers, that is?”
I grinned, digging my phone out of my pocket, and scrolling for Rossi’s number.
“He started it, Pres.”
“Wise-ass.”Reacher left me in his office to make my call, because this was the only place I wasn’t likely to be overheard, and that left me with no other option but to make the call.
Jamie
It was the thirdtime lately that my dad had called me from prison. He really wanted me to go and visit him, but I had no idea why it was suddenly important to him. We’d barely spoken since he’d been locked up this last time. As a teenager, I’d had to make a clean break from him and his sickness, not because he’d ever hurt me personally, but because his life choices had nearly destroyed me.
Why he was suddenly begging me to visit, when I think I hadn’t seen him in almost four years, just made no sense. I went back and forth on whether I’d go and see him, because what would it achieve? Would we rebuild our relationship as father and daughter, when half the time I’d been like a fucking caregiver for him? Imagine being twelve years old, and having to know how to tell if he was in a deep sleep, or overdosing. Imagine having to do all the cooking, cleaning, and having to get a job, as soon as I was old enough to legally work, just so we could eat.
He really didn’t deserve my time at all, and it wasn’t something I should feel guilty for. So ask me why the hell I was waiting for them to book me in for a visit. Ask me why the hell I was voluntarily walking into a prison to see him.
The man they brought into the visiting room looked nothing like my father, not just because he looked like he was eating properly, and not spending all his time out of his face, but also because he smiled at me.Smiled. I felt like I’d slipped into a parallel universe or something.
“There’s my baby girl,” he said brightly, sitting down at the seat the guard gestured at for him. We were in a large room, andthere were several other people meeting with other inmates, and nobody paid any attention to us. I had no alternative but to put my focus on him, my father, the man who should have raised me, protected me, and loved me.
“Hi, you wanted me to come, so here I am.” Did I sound belligerent? His smile dropped for a second, and he pasted it back in place, like you could blink and miss the change in his expression.
“I’m sorry. I know it’s been a while, but I wanted to see how you’re doing.”
Huh. That wasn’t what I’d expected when I came in here. Demands for money, maybe, so he could buy whatever the hell guys buy in prison. Complaints for not visiting him more, or whatever he felt entitled to. Not this though.
“Uh… I’m fine. Good. I mean, yeah, fine. How are you?” I hated asking that question, because in the past it had always been met with anger, demands, and trying to twist me into doing something to help him out.
“Yeah, good. It’s not so bad here. I mean, I’m working. Did I tell you I’m working?”
Working? What the hell was he qualified for?
“Yeah? Doing what?”
He shrugged a shoulder. “Computer stuff. Inventory type stuff. It’s nice. It keeps me busy, I guess.”
I stared at the scarred table for a moment, because this was so hard. We had no common ground. No easy subjects to fall back on. No living family, no mutual friends. No hobbies in common, because, well, I didn’t really live for putting filth in my veins and seeking oblivion, so yeah. No common ground.
“It was good of you to come, Jamie. I want us to have a relationship again. I want to be your dad again.” Why couldn’t this have happened a decade ago? When I fucking needed him to be the dad I never had.
“Why now?” I demanded, wincing at the sharpness of my tone. He rested his forearms on the table, his fists tightening briefly, before he took a deep breath and let it out slowly, easing his hands into a more relaxed pose. Huh. Where was that quick anger I’d been so used to? In the past he’d have snapped.
“I deserve that. I know I haven’t been a good dad, and I let you down so many times over the years. I know that. I suppose I feel like I could make a new start, and I want to repair things with us.”
I didn’t know how I’d needed to hear those words, until they actually came from him. He wanted to make amends, so couldn’t I put the past behind me, and let things get better? Couldn’t I let him rebuild the only link to family that I had?
“Uh, I guess that could be… uh… yeah, I’d like that.”
Dad smiled again, and I found myself returning it. He leaned forward a little.
“So, tell me about you. You look well. What are you doing these days?” I took a deep breath, leaning a little closer too, because I didn’t want this overheard in a prison of all places.
“I uh… I’m a police officer. I’m… I’m a cop, dad.”
What was that look in his eyes just then? Was it anger? Disgust? Something calculating? Greed? I opened my mouth to carry on, and he beat me to it.
