I bobbed my head and sucked in a breath, desperate to clear the tears stinging the corners of my eyes. "I'm sure it seems like that," I replied. "Thank you for letting me stay here."
"Anytime," she said, the word heavy as it passed her lips. "You're welcome here anytime and for as long as you want to stay."
I pushed up from the ottoman and stepped to the side of the rocker. I bent down, pressed my lips to the crown of Annabelle's head and then Shannon's cheek. "I know."
I didn't wait for her response, instead striding from the room and down the hall before I could think better of my decision. If I stopped to think this over one more time, I wasn't sure what I might do.
25
Will
I leanedback in my desk chair, tapping my knuckles against my lips as I toggled through surveillance footage. I didn't enjoy watching Wes leave my home but I wasn't about to stop him. In a sense, it was long overdue. Keeping him under my roof for this long was a remarkable feat made possible only by his involvement with Tom. If not for Tom, Wes would've bounced before the end of February.
I toggled to the next screen, calling up the local traffic camera feeds. If I had to guess, Wes was headed to the commuter rail station. Trains were the most effective way to disappear quickly and do it without leaving a trail. And Wes was nothing if not efficient in his getaways, even without a secret police force on his heels.
He'd hop on the commuter rail and ride it to Boston's North Station but he wouldn't stay in the city. Not for long. He'd take his time moving south. I was certain that was where he was going and I was letting him go.
For now.
* * *
My office doorbanged open and— "Your brother broke Tom."
I glanced up from the report on my screen to find my wife standing in the doorway, her hands on her hips and murder on her face. "He did what?"
"He broke Tom," she yelled, enunciating every word.
"In the three days since he's been gone? Or at some other point?"
"Both.Both.Whatever happened before he ran out of here on Tuesday morning and every day since then."
"And you determined this during your meeting with Tom this morning?" I asked.
Shannon flailed her arms out. "If you think I needed to see him with dark circles and bloodshot eyes and looking fully disheveled, wearing a tie that doesn't coordinate with his shirt and socks, to know he's broken, then yes, Will, I determined that during our Friday morning meeting. The truth is, I've known this for the past two weeks, before Wes left. I don't know what went down between them but I can hear it in Tom's emails and I can sense it in the way he flags documents for my signature."
I knew I'd regret asking, but— "You can sense it in the way he flags documents?"
She cocked her hip and folded her arms over her chest. "Yes, Will. I can. That's how well I know him."
I held my hands out, let them fall to my lap. "What would you suggest I do, peanut?"
Tears filled her eyes. "I want you to dosomething. I want you to fix it."
It took one breath to spring out of my seat and round the desk, and take her in my arms.
Several things were true at this moment. One, Shannon had a wagonload of worries right now. At Annabelle's most recent checkup, the pediatrician voiced concerns about her being a touch underweight. That meant Shannon didn't go more than ninety minutes without nursing the baby, which left her completely exhausted. Patrick and Andy's wedding was planned for tomorrow evening and my wife didn't know how to let anyone get married without her deep involvement in every element of the event. Add to those issues Tom wearing his emotional state on his sleeve and Shannon couldn't pick a fire to put out first.
Two, there was nothing I wouldn't do for my wife. If I had to devote the next year to finding Tom a superior alternative to my bonehead brother, I would.
And three, she knew my tricks and tactics. She knew I could find Wes and plank-march his ass to Tom's doorstep.
I smoothed my hand down her ponytail. "Let me make some calls. Okay? I'll see what I can do."
She pressed her palms to my chest, sniffled. "All right. I need to feed Annabelle again."
"I'll make these calls and then I'm taking the baby so you can have some rest." I kissed her forehead. It wasn't going to do any good if Annabelle gained half a pound but Shannon had run herself into the ground in the process.
She stepped back, lifting her hands to her hair to retie her ponytail. "I'll sleep with Annabelle."
