Acts of Desperation(40)
Sarah’s mouth hung open in shock. “Are you kidding me? Thank God Jax walked in when he did,” she said. “Was there a full moon yesterday or what?”
I laughed. “Yeah, I don’t know. But Dad, John accidentally broke one of the panes of glass out on our kitchen door.” Again, I conveniently left out how. My dad is by no means a violent man, but he does have a hot temper like yours truly, and I saw no reason to tempt fate. “Liz has some cardboard up, and she was wondering if you could finagle something until someone can come out to fix it.”
“Sure, honey. I’ve got some Plexiglas in the basement that can work.” He got up and reached into the fridge and cracked open a beer. He took a long swig, draining nearly half the can.
“Really Dad? It’s Sunday and it’s not even one o’clock yet,” I said.
“It’s either this or I go kill that sonofabitch. He better make sure he doesn’t come within ten miles of you,” he barked.
“He won’t, Dad. There’s a restraining order in the works, and they’ll notify me if he posts bond,” I said.
“They fuc—”
“Fred! Watch your mouth in front of the kids,” my mom said, slapping his shoulder before his obscenities flew. She looked at me. “I heard everything from the other room so you don’t have to tell me the story.” Since childhood that woman had the hearing of a bat, and there was nothing that ever got past her. “Did that boy lose his mind? Good lord, I’m glad you’re alright.” She shook her head and gave me a hug.
“I’m fine Mom. I’m a tough chick,” I said.
“You’re going to have to bring this Jax around so I can meet him. If he’s going to be so involved in both my girls’ lives, then I need to get a good look at him,” she said.
“I’ll bring him around soon, Mom,” I said, rolling my eyes. “We just started dating. I don’t want to scare him away by introducing him to you guys too soon.”
My mom poked me in the ribs while I laughed. “Watch it missy. I’m still your mother, and I can slap you around if I have to,” she said through a laugh.
I playfully smacked my mom’s hands away. “So what was Anders’ reaction when he found out you switched attorneys?” I asked Sarah.
“Oh my gosh, I can’t believe I didn’t tell you! I think that might have been one of the catalysts for him coming in the house last night. He’s been so amped up since he found out I switched…but don’t think he didn’t pass on the opportunity to tell me that he told me my other attorney was an idiot. I just rolled my eyes and shrugged my shoulders,” she said, smirking.
“Well he should be nervous, if that’s what you think it is,” I said.
“I don’t know, but I hope so. Based off what he did on Friday, I think he is,” she said.
“What did he do last Friday?”
“After he loaded the kids into his car for their overnight visit, he came back in through the garage door and waltzed right into the kitchen, and completely caught me by surprise. He looked crazy. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, but something about his eyes was off and his hair was sticking out—you know he usually has it all perfectly gelled into place. He was about to start in on something, but Mom blocked him when he started to back me up against the refrigerator.”
“Darn right I did,” my mom said, crossing her arms. “If he wants to try something, he’s going to have to get through me.” On a good day, in heels, my Mom was pushing five foot three at best, but she was the only girl in her family. Her three exceptionally tall brothers always gave her a tough time growing up so when it came to handling men, she knew how to hold her own.
“Did he say anything new or was it the same old same old?” I asked.
“He barely got any words out before Mom stepped in. I don’t think he knows enough about Jax yet, but I’m sure he’s learning. I don’t doubt that he’ll call him an idiot too—no one is anything compared to him, you know.”
“Oh I know,” I said, rolling my eyes this time.
We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing and hanging out. Later that night when I got home, I let myself in the backdoor using my key and laughed. Really all I needed to do was push the cardboard, reach my hand in, and turn the lock. But still, I went with the formality of using my key. My dad said he’d be by in the morning to get the measurements and cut something to fit. So I stopped by Liz’s room to tell her the plan then headed in to bed.
Hours later, something woke me—a sound off in the distance. I blinked my eyes until the clock came into focus—it was just after two. I looked around, blinking my eyes and straining my ears, listening for another noise. After a few seconds of hearing nothing, I resigned that I was being paranoid. Maybe the John thing was resonating with me more than I thought.
He’s in jail so there’s no reason to be scared, I reminded myself.
I lay back down and rolled over determined to continue the dream I was having about Jax. After tossing and turning for a few minutes, it became clear that I wasn’t going to easily drift back off. Now, if it had been a nightmare, I would have jumped right back in, but a good dream, not a chance. It figures.
I threw my covers off and went down to the kitchen to grab a snack. Don’t judge me. Some people might drink tea. I eat—cold food straight from the fridge. I reached in the refrigerator for the container of curry chicken, grabbed a fork, and leaned over the island ready to dig in. Then something caught my eye in the family room—a dark figure walking toward me. My heart pounded as I reached back for a knife off the counter behind to me.