Sweet Retribution (Rydeville High Elite #3)(92)
“We’re going to get her out of there, A. You’re going to get to kiss and hug her again,” Drew promises. Tears cling to his lashes briefly, before he composes himself.
“How?” the doctor asks.
“You don’t need to be concerned about that,” Drew says, his voice resonating with confidence. “But we’ll need your help and the help of your colleagues.”
“We want to help, but we’re afraid,” he truthfully admits.
“Don’t be,” I say, sniffling. “Because in a couple of months, lots of things are going to change. We just need you to take care of our mother in the meantime.”
It kills me to think of her in there for that long, and the urge to race to Parkhurst and bust our way into the medical facility, come hell or high water, is riding me hard, but I won’t risk her life like that. And I won’t risk everything we have planned.
“Can we count on you to keep our mom safe?” Drew asks.
“I’ve been keeping her safe for the four years I’ve been a doctor at Parkhurst.”
“Good.” Drew straightens his shoulders. “You’ll be contacted for the pertinent details, and I need you to start noting all schedules. Meds, rotations, schedules, deliveries etcetera.”
The doctor nods. “I can do that.”
“Then we’ll see to it that no harm comes to you or your family and that same protection applies to your colleagues and their families if they’re willing to help us,” Drew confirms.
“You will be free of the elite and comfortable for life,” I add, “and you can start being the man your wife and daughters believe you to be.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
The next couple of months are some of the worst torture I’ve ever endured. Knowing my mother is alive and that I can’t go to her is killing me. I know it’s getting to Drew too. But we get regular updates from Dr. Collingsworth via a secure line Xavier set up, and we’ve been writing letters back and forth to Mom. Xavier offered to set up a video link, but we declined. We’re fearful of doing anything that might be traced, and neither of us could bear to see her again for the first time after ten years where we couldn’t hug her and kiss her and tell her to her face that we loved her.
So, we are trading correspondence.
Dr. Collingsworth burns all our letters after Mom reads them because we can’t risk them falling into the wrong hands.
The first time we got individual letters from her, we sat on the floor in Kai’s and my bedroom, staring at her neat handwriting on the plain white envelopes for at least an hour before either of us could pluck up the courage to open them.
And then I spent hours shedding happy tears, reading her loving words through blurry eyes, with a happy ache slicing through my chest. It’s clear from the way some of her letters are worded that her mind is not altogether there, but it’s a testament to her strength of will that she’s survived ten years in that place.
We’re more determined than ever to get her out of there, and finally, all our planning and preparation is coming together.
These past two months have been both difficult and easy-breezy. Easy because I’m living with my husband and I’m more content in my relationship than I’ve ever been in my life. Every day, Kai and I grow closer, and it’s got to the stage where I can’t imagine what life was like before he barreled his way into mine.
I’ve seen little of Charlie except for a few functions the bastard made me attend with him. All events were hell, because Charlie is giving me the cold shoulder, and he’s completely closed himself off to me. I’ve tried to reach out to him, as a friend, but he’s not interested, and I’m not going to force him to talk. There is a lot of hurt and regret between us, and I know regaining a friendship won’t be a walk in the park, but I’m hopeful we can get back to where we once were.
I’ve reached out an olive branch.
Now the ball’s in Charlie’s court.
Father has kept his distance, and he hasn’t made any demands on me or Drew, which should make me happy, but it just makes all of us uneasy and scared shitless. He’s not one to take things lying down, and we’re all on edge, constantly watching our backs, waiting for him to strike. I’d like to think he’s distracted and concerned enough about the recording to have legitimately backed-off, but he’s a twisted, unpredictable bastard, and we can’t assume anything.
Atticus was voted back into the elite, but it was no cakewalk either. A lot of high-ranking elite were opposed to letting him back in, but Father pushed for it, no doubt resorting to his usual blackmail tactics to achieve his goal. Rick and Kai were applying subtle pressure, convincing Atticus to threaten the bastard with a renewal of his legal suit against him and Christian if he failed to pull off his end of the bargain.
Atticus is living at his old house in Rydeville again, but we go out of our way to avoid him where possible. Harley and Joaquin are living by themselves in the New York apartment during the school term, returning to Rydeville during breaks.
All the board members at Manning Motors have signed NDAs and new contracts that come into effect the day of the Parkhurst vote. We’ve managed to keep it a secret, but it’s just another thing that keeps me tossing and turning at night.
Drew successfully turned our target list of high-ranking elite against the bastard, and it took little effort on his part. They welcomed the opportunity to stab him in the back, and we’ve been assured that the vote will not go his way tomorrow.