Deploy, Part One (Rawlings #1)(33)

Nolan pulled a U-turn to take the letters back to Justice. He needed her to mail the first one in two days—right about the time Declan’s first letters would roll in. That way his family would know for sure what he was up to and by the time they wrote to or spoke to Declan all would be good.

Justice had told him if there were cars at her place, to leave the box in the ditch, and she’d find it when she got off work. If there weren’t, he could put them under the porch.

Easy enough.

He knew she’d been expecting him hours before, when everyone was at work, but because of how sidetracked he had gotten all day, it was well after dark before he made it all the way out to her place. He had to take every back road there was, ones his massive family or any of their friends would be less likely to see him on.

Nolan figured waiting until after dark wasn’t all that bad of an idea, he knew it would be easier to see if anyone was at her house that way. The lights would shine through the Georgia pines.

When it started to mist on him, his one and only hope was that no one would be home. When he saw no lights at the house, he crept up the way and ditched the box under the porch and left with only one backward glance. It was odd. He’d never been there before, but he sensed his brother there, could see him standing on the porch, watching him go.

Nolan clenched his eyes closed and pushed down the emotions he didn’t want to feel and pretended for a moment he was just going on a retreat—he’d be fighting with Declan in no time.

With a heavy sigh, knowing his last task in the town of Bradyville was done, he put his brother’s truck in gear and decided to take the shortcut out of town, before he did, in fact, lose his nerve.

***

When Justice and Bell pulled in their long drive they both glanced in the distance, to the shop at the far edge of the property that basically looked like a pile of wood that was once a structure. Seeing a dim light on was not comforting at all. It meant he was there.

“I’m just going to take you with me,” Bell said.

It was one of Bell’s friends’ birthdays and she was supposed to meet up with them for dinner.

“I’m sure he’ll leave again. Might even be passed out in there,” Justice said, meaning every word.

Bell cast a weary glance at the shop once more. She could see the trailer hooked up, so she knew Justice had a point. Still, something felt off to her.

“I’ll cancel,” she said, reaching for her phone.

Justice grasped her hand. She had heard Declan in her head all day, him telling her to stand up, to deploy all power she needed. It had made her see life in a new light. It might suck for a while, but she knew one thing: she was sick of her and her grandmother arranging their life around the threat of her father and his moods.

“I’m going to take a bath. He’ll pass out. Go have fun.”

After a long hesitation, Bell nodded. “You call me if anything comes up. If you hear the door so much as creak open.”

Justice gave her grandmother a kiss on the cheek, then slid out of the front seat and made her way to the porch, waving behind her.

She hesitated at the door waiting for her to back out, then she crept down the stairs looking for the box Nolan was suppose to leave. If it wasn’t there, she was going to have to hike it to the end of the drive.

“Looking for something?” she heard a hard, harsh voice say.

She jumped, not understanding how her father had hidden himself so well in the dark shadows.

“Hiding shit from me!” he said louder.

Justice didn’t say a word. She couldn’t see him so she wasn’t sure how mad or drunk he really was. Sometimes, very rarely, he was a sad drunk. Those were the times when he’d cry. When he’d say he loved her mother, he loved her, and he didn’t understand how it went wrong. Why he couldn’t control himself. When he said how sorry he was...Justice felt bad for him.

Her father, everybody’s friend, yet he hated himself and his life.

“Shop. Now,” Brent said. He didn’t know where Bell went or when she was coming back, but he knew he was not going to let that woman stick her nose in his business.

He let his ex spend all kinds of time with her mother and how did she repay him? She left. And Bell was the one who gave her the idea. She was the one who not only drove her daughter to the ass who stole his wife, but hid his own daughter from him for months.

It wasn’t until Brent was served that he figured out his baby girl was in the same f*cking town as him. And it was a good six months before he was allowed to see her again. By then, Justice was brainwashed. She was another version of her mother who had only gotten worse over the years. Brent was done.

History was not going to repeat itself. He was going to deal with Justice, get her right; and in the morning, Bell was being evicted from their lives. He didn’t care what this town said or thought, that woman had taken his family—she was not a widowed preacher’s wife, she was the devil!

***

Murdock had lost all his courage. He’d pulled off on the side of the road miles beyond Declan’s buddy’s house. He hadn’t seen his truck there, but even if he had—what was he going to do?

Nothing.

Which only pissed him off more. Sitting off to the side of the road gave him time think, to get even madder. He knew he’d better have one hell of a story when he saw Brent again or he’d be in for a world of shame.