Along Came Trouble(126)
“It’s kind of you to defend him, but I’m sure we can agree the situation got a bit out of Caleb’s grasp. All those photographs in the papers! And some of them quite . . . compromising.”
“Well, I agree that having the world gawking at you when you’re wearing a Butter Cow T-shirt is less than ideal,” Ellen answered, knowing full well that wasn’t the kind of “compromising” Janet had in mind. “But there’s not much to be done about it except keep the guys with the cameras off the lawn and wait for them to go away.”
She fed Henry another bite. Caleb leaned back in his chair with his arms crossed.
“They should be forcibly removed from the village,” Janet said firmly.
“Can’t do that.” She popped a bite of lasagna into her mouth. After she swallowed, she added, “They have the right to assemble, just like anyone else.”
“But they’re dangerous! One of those people cut me off with his motorbike the other day, and I nearly had an accident. They don’t respect the pedestrian crossings. I should think you’d be worried. They’re endangering your son.”
Ellen sat up straighter at that. Janet Clark was now officially getting on her nerves. “No, they’re not.”
“Of course they are. He could be struck by one of their cars, or kidnapped for ransom by one of these crazy people. Anything could happen. Any of a hundred things. Why, I’m surprised you haven’t left town.”
That was when Ellen lost track of her polite restraint and all control over her tongue. “My son is not in danger, because your son has been protecting him. Busting his butt protecting him, as a matter of fact, day in and day out, with next to no cooperation from either myself or my brother, or even Henry’s own father.”
Building up steam, she tapped the table for emphasis. “If you could’ve seen him, you’d understand. He knew hundreds of people were going to show up before even Jamie did, and he got a fence up and barricades on the street in advance. He had people walking around my property all the time, day and night, for days, and he put a team of men over at Henry’s grandmother’s place to keep an eye on him. And the whole time, he let us live our lives, even when that meant letting Jamie do that stupid strip show for all the world to see, because that’s what Jamie had to do to get Carly back. Even when it meant organizing security on the fly to get Carly to the hospital as fast as possible when she was in danger.”
Janet frowned. “That’s hardly professional, taking Carly Short to the hospital. That’s what ambulances are for.”
“I disagree. And so does my brother, for that matter. He’s planning to fire those professionals from Los Angeles and bring your son in to take care of all of his security from here on out. I can’t say that I blame him. Caleb is really great at what he does, Mrs. Clark. As a matter of fact, he’s kind of incredible. And if you can’t see that, you have a serious problem.”
When she finally shut her trap, Henry was watching her, stunned into silence, and so was everyone else. Ellen met the eyes of every adult at the table, daring them to disagree with her. Nobody did. She focused on Janet and silently demanded a rebuttal.
Janet looked at Caleb for a moment and said, slowly and with great care, “No, I can see that. I’m not blind.”
Caleb gave his mother a small, warm smile that made Ellen’s chest tighten painfully with empathy. “Go easy on her, Ellen,” he said. “She’s a real sap, deep down. She just turns into a stubborn, critical pain in the keister when she’s worried about somebody she loves. Isn’t that right, Ma?” His smile widened as he said it, softening the criticism so that it sounded like an endearment.
His mother made an exasperated face, but she didn’t quite pull it off. “Honestly, Caleb. That’s no way to talk to your mother.”
“Yeah, but I think we need a new way of talking to each other. One where we say what we really mean. I think it’ll do both of us some good, don’t you?”
His mother didn’t answer. She glanced at her husband, looking slightly rattled. Derek smiled encouragement at her from across the table.
“We may need some coaching,” Caleb said, “since we’re new at this. But I think what you want to tell Ellen is that you’ve been worried about me, but you love me, and you respect and support my decisions.”
Janet looked back and forth between Ellen and Caleb, as if wondering how she’d gotten herself into this. “Of course I do,” she said. “You don’t need me to—”