Absolution(119)

He could make a break for it, but there was no guarantee that they wouldn’t come back here once he was gone. He couldn’t risk that. Jimmy said they knew where she lived. The other option was to go to the cops, but what if they couldn’t protect her? He could take Ally and go on the run, but what kind of life would that be, constantly looking over their shoulder? Clearly, Ben had resources he didn’t know about, or how else would he have found him? It was a sobering thought, and the frustration grew.

A chair scraped against the wooden floorboards. Callum was talking about calling the cops. Before he could think of standing up and going in there, Ally answered for him, repeating what he had told her earlier. It seemed to satisfy Callum. The voices lowered and conversation resumed. He sat there, listening to them.

“Okay,” Jane said after a few moments. “Then let’s talk about the money.”

Jack sat forward, resting his head in his palms, his head throbbing.

The money. What the hell am I gonna do about the money?

“How much do you have?”

He looked up. Callum stood in the kitchen doorway, waiting.

“A little over five grand,” he said, straightening up again. “If I sell my car, I’ll get another grand, maybe less.”

“That leaves you four grand short.”

Might as well be four hundred grand. Close is not good enough. Close is not gonna get them off my back – or hers.

Callum moved aside as Ally appeared in the doorway, moving through into the hall. She made her way towards him slowly, powering her wheelchair with slight, even strokes.

“I have two thousand dollars from my inheritance, from Gran. I want you to have it,” she said, stopping beside him. “You can pay me back, if it makes you feel better about taking it.”

He stared at her, his blood pressure rising. He shouldn’t need her help, or her money. He should be taking care of this on his own. It was his mess, not hers.

“No. I’ll figure out a way to do this myself.”

“So you’re gonna find four grand in forty-eight hours – are you kidding me?” Callum shook his head. “What are you gonna do, rob a bank? This is like déjà-vu. Pull your head out of your ass for a change. This isn’t just about you!”

Jack struggled to keep his anger in check. “I’ll figure it out.”

“How?” Maggie asked, from behind Callum. “How are you gonna raise four grand? Tell us how and we’ll back off.”

“I don’t know yet, but I’ll fix it.”

If he had a job, this would be so much easier but no bank on earth would give him a loan if he had no means to pay it back.

“Bullshit you will, because there is no other solution,” Callum said roughly. “I’ve got about a grand in the bank and can borrow more. Ally has two – take it, and you can pay us both back. Whatever it takes to make this go away, that’s what you’re gonna do.”

Jack glared at him, his pride insisting he throw it all back in their faces, but his head screaming that he was out of options. Frustration built inside of him, pushing his lungs up into his throat. Callum was right. This was about more than just his pride. The smart thing to do was to acknowledge that doing the right thing wasn’t always easy. So why the hell did it feel like he was being trapped into doing the wrong thing here? Wouldn’t the right thing be to handle this himself, without getting anyone else involved? Isn’t that what he should be doing?

“Jack, please.”

The heartbreak in Ally’s voice turned his stomach.

“You’re not alone anymore,” she said. “You don’t have to do this by yourself. Let us help, please? It’s not a sign of weakness, no one will think any less of you for it.”

Her words sank in slowly, leaving footprints on his heart. He couldn’t hurt her again, not now, when she had given him the one thing he had longed for all this time: a second chance. He had to do the right thing. And if the right thing meant borrowing money off his friends, then that’s what he must do.

He imagined a hand on his shoulder, squeezing tight, encouraging him and he closed his eyes.

I feel you, Dad. I’ll make it up to you, I promise.

Opening his eyes, he reached for Ally’s hand. “Thank you.”

He looked over at Callum, Maggie and Jane standing by the kitchen doorway.

“Thank you,” he repeated, addressing Callum. “I’ll pay you back, I promise.”