Page 10 of Shank's Tricky Situation

THAT FUCKING BASTARD took my son! My father is going to die by Billy’s hands and I can’t wait for it to happen. This is a line that no one should ever fucking cross and I hope Billy truly makes him pay for the sins he’s no doubt committing against our boy. All I know is I will rock an orange jumpsuit if Zane is hurt in any fucking way. My father won’t have to worry about Billy getting his hands dirty, I’ll kill him myself. He can do whatever the fuck he wants to me but Zane is another story altogether. I will die for my son and I hope Billy understands that. That he knows if I could have prevented this I would have. I just never believed he would have taken our son so soon after attacking me.

“Calla, you’re not fit to be here right now,” my boss says, coming up to the nurse’s station where I’m taking a quick breather. “You can’t concentrate on work and there’s nothing you can do here that another nurse can’t handle. You cover everyone when they call in or need to trade a shift for something. There isn’t a single reason why you can’t go home where you can concentrate on what matters most. Your son is to be your only priority right now.”

“You’re right. I’m gonna head out. Thank you,” I tell her, knowing I would never forgive myself if I let something happen to a patient or new baby because my only thoughts are of my son and what’s currently being done to him.

“There’s no need to thank me, Calla. You take the time you need. You’ve never taken a sick day or any vacation since you started,” she says, telling me what I already know.

Grabbing my things, I clock out and make my way out of the hospital. I keep my eyes open and searching for anyone my father could possibly send my way. Just as I get to my car, I’m slammed against the side of it.

“Just know your son being taken is on you and only you. Your father will make sure the boy knows exactly what he’s being punished for. He’ll never look at you the same again,” a man tells me as I rear back and head butt the stupid fuck my father sent to deliver his message.

He grunts in pain and I know it was a stupid move on my part. However, I’m not about to let anyone get between me and being there for my boy when he gets saved by his father.

“Motherfucker, my father isn’t gonna do a damn thing to my son. His father is on his way as we speak. You’ll be lucky if you don’t suffer the same fate as the monster who has needed to be put down for a long time now. Do you know he killed his own fucking wife in front of me?” I tell the asshole as soon as I turn around and face him.

The man is about as tall as I am. He hasn’t bathed in so long his hair is stringy and greasy. The clothes covering his thin body are stained with things I don’t even want to think about right now. I could more than likely overpower him if I want to, but my thoughts turn from him and Zane to Heather. She’s more than likely still here and I never thought to go into the emergency room to check on her.

“No one will ever find out where he has your son,” the man taunts me before laughing his ass off.

“I’m sure he can. He’s already on his way there,” I state, remembering the message about a possible lead they have on Zane. “My father isn’t as smart as he thinks he is. Billy might not know all the details about what’s been done to me or the threats he’s tossed my way, but he’ll give his life for our son now that he knows about him. You haven’t seen them together. The love between a father and son is unlike anything else. Not like what the monster I grew up with considered love. He doesn’t know the fucking meaning of the word.”

The man drops to his knees when I manage to land a punch in his gut. It’s not hard by any means, but more than enough to take out this stupid fuck. Once he’s down on the ground, I land a few kicks. They’re nothing more than what he deserves after slamming me into the side of my car. My already beaten body is so fucking sore and this isn’t helping the situation at all.

With him down, I head back in the hospital to find out if Heather’s still here. The charge nurse in the emergency department lets me know she’s already been discharged and was picked up by a cab. While I want to go check on her, the need to do something to help find Zane overwhelms me. So, I make it back out to my car and head out in search of the man I’ve known all my life. He’s got my boy and I will do my part to ensure Zane’s brought home safe and healthy.

With no real destination in mind, I drive around town and search for any small sign of cars that my father uses on any given day. He doesn’t do much of his own driving from what I can remember, but it could change on any given day. Especially with him having my son now. I don’t know what he plans on doing to him or where he would take him. My father always made sure I didn’t know much of his business and everything that held anything important was always kept locked around me. He’s got more fucking secrets than anyone else I know. And he’s caused me to keep secrets as well. From the only person I’ve ever loved besides my mom.

When I get to one side of town, I make my way back towards the opposite side. This time, I take all the small side streets and go up and down every alleyway I can find that my car will fit through. My eyes scan every sight in front of me and every car that passes by. Nothing catches my eye though. I don’t see anything out of the ordinary. Billy would be killing me if he weren’t out searching for our son. He wanted me to go to the clubhouse or something instead of going rogue and being out here searching for my father and son.

Using my steering wheel, I call Heather to find out how she’s doing. She doesn’t make me wait.

“Calla, I’m so fucking sorry. Have you gotten any updates on Zane?” Heather immediately questions as she answers her phone.

“Billy said he had a possible lead. I don’t know what that means or anything else. He won’t give me details until he knows something concrete. Billy won’t want to get my hopes up for nothing. Tell me how you are,” I tell her, not sure what her injuries even are.

“I’m okay. I got banged up. There wasn’t any need for stitches or anything. I’m gonna be sore for a few days but the wounds will go away. I don’t even have a concussion despite being knocked the fuck out. I’ve got a goose egg on my head but it didn’t even break the skin on my head. Just a tap is enough to make me take a short nap,” she tells me. “Calla, I don’t even know how many men came in your house to get him. I saw two guys but that doesn’t mean that’s all there was.”

“Heather, this isn’t on you. It’s on me. My father is the one who beat the fuck out of me before you got to the house. He’s the reason I have a broken arm, bruises, cuts, and everything else. He said something about Zane and I didn’t listen. I didn’t believe he’d do it so soon after attacking me. If I had been smart, I would have sent Zane to stay with Billy tonight. No one would have touched him if he was with his dad. Instead, I chose to let you come and sit with him, putting you both in danger instead of playing things smart. I’m the only one to blame in this entire situation because I didn’t do what I should have done years ago,” I tell her as tears slide down my face and land on my scrubs.

“Calla, I’m so sorry you’ve been dealing with all this shit on your own. I get not saying shit because you get so scared you don’t know what to truly do in a situation. Now, you have people on your side and we’ll have your back. I will always have your back. Even if you don’t let me in more than you already have,” Heather says, letting me know she’s not going anywhere despite the pain she’s now in because of me and my shit touching her. “Where are you right now?”

“I’m out searching for any sign of the bastard and my son. I don’t know where he would have taken him. Or what’s being done to him. you saw how I looked after a visit from him. Zane is so small compared to me and he’ll be hurt even worse than I am right now,” I tell her the truth.

“Does Billy know you’re out searching for him yourself?” Heather questions me, already knowing the answer.

“No, he doesn’t. He wanted me to go to the clubhouse. He didn’t want me to go home. Well, I’m not home. Out searching for him isn’t going home if you ask me. He didn’t tell me I couldn’t go out on my own.”

“Why wouldn’t you go to the clubhouse?”

“They made it clear I’m not welcome there. No one was hostile or rude to me, they just didn’t talk to me or anything when I went with Billy. I can’t blame them, I’m not someone they know. Knowing Billy isn’t there, I can’t show up and be thrown to the wolves because that’s where he wants me to be. I told him I might go to your house because no one knows where it is. Obviously I don’t want to bring any more attention to you, so I’m not going there.”

“What’s your plan then? Drive around all night long until you hear something about Zane.”

“Maybe. I don’t know what I’m gonna do right now.”

Heather and I talk a little longer before I hang up with her. I’m still driving around town and searching every possible place I can think of to find my son. Even when I was younger, my father didn’t really go anywhere with us or take us places with him. That’s why I have no clue where he’d take my son now that he’s kidnapped him. I’m just hoping Billy is having better luck than I am.

I have no clue how long I’ve been driving around town just hoping for a glimpse of Zane or the asshole who is responsible for him not currently being in his bed where he belongs. He’s the reason Billy hasn’t been in his life since the second I found out I was pregnant with him. My son and Billy are the ones who lost out on knowing one another because my father is a fucking demented asshole who would choose to fucking threaten and beat others around him. He’s a greedy, selfish asshole who wouldn’t know a damn bit of goodness if it bit him in the ass. He doesn’t have the first clue as to what being a good person means.

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