I was speechless. My heart cartwheeled in my chest as my daughter shrieked on the other end of the line.
Thank God I was on autopilot, backing the car out of the carport.
“I’m here. Don’t worry about what that means, honey,” I told her, and then told myself to not worry either. Aston was there ... he would protect her, right?
He hadn’t stood up to his dad in the past, though.
“Mom, listen. I’m trying to tell you what happened. Dad got so mad, he stood up and punched Peter in the face. Blood sprayed everywhere. I think his nose is broken. Dad’s fine, though, but the restaurant called the police, and they took Dad with them after Peter said he was going to press charges. What does that mean?”
“I’m on my way, sweetie. Sit down and order a Coke. I’ll be right there. Promise.” My voice was steady, but I was anything but calm.
What kind of person told their granddaughter they would get rid of them?
And what would happen to Aston’s witness now that he was in jail? His preliminary hearing was in thirty-six hours.
Just as I was pulling into the shopping center, my phone rang through the Bluetooth.
“Hello?” I said without glancing at Caller ID.
“Bex, it’s me.”
“What the hell, Aston?”
“I’m sorry. Things got carried away. My dad’s a prick, you know.”
“Um, yeah, I can’t talk. I’m parking now at the restaurant to get Piper. She’s scared half to death because your father said he’s going to get rid of her. Do you understand what that does to a young girl?”
“Fuck, Bex, that’s why I’m sitting where I am. I wanted to kill him with my bare hands. It’s because of the witness. He’s trying to quash it.”
“You know what, Aston? I don’t care.”
I’d spent the better part of a week worrying, and then Aston hauled off and acted like a testosterone-filled teen. And how the hell did his father get off talking to my daughter like that? Rationally, I knew Aston couldn’t control Peter, but my mom guard had shot up and wasn’t going down.
“You go deal with your own mess of a life, Aston. And I’ll deal with the monsoon of disappointment that, once again, you left in your wake.”
I disconnected the call and tossed my phone in my purse, determined to rid myself of Aston Prescott for good.
Aston
“Listen to me!” I pounded my fist onto the desk.
“Aston, that’s not helping anything,” Aidan said, grabbing my arm, and I shrugged him off me.
“Look,” I said to Dan, the police officer. “Do you have kids? Because I’m not a violent man. But my father threatened his own granddaughter. Do you hear me? And that’s not called for—that’s wrong in anyone’s book.”
Stuck in an interrogation room this time, I stood up and paced, but at least I wasn’t going to a holding cell like I did before.
“I understand my father wants to press charges, but that’s because he wants to silence me. I have a key piece of evidence in the trial against me, and he doesn’t want me to use it. We need to secure that first. Then, do what you want with me—”
“Let me talk,” Aidan said, interrupting me. “Dan, let’s have the chief come in, and we’ll discuss this. Aston was defending his daughter, and he could also press charges against his father for threatening a minor. The man is unstable, for sure, perhaps not totally right in the head. Anyway, I spoke to the chief on the matter of our evidence, and he’s dealing with this, and then I’m sure he’ll be in. In the meantime, let’s all calm down.”
“Oh yeah, I’ll calm down,” I said, pacing. “The woman I’ve been in love with for fifteen years is mad at me. Again. The daughter I only recently got to know is accosted by my father and then witnesses me pummel him. And, oh yeah, I’m on trial for drug trafficking. Sure, I’ll calm down.”
I leaned against the wall and looked down at myself, my Polo wrinkled, my jeans tight and hot. I was a mess. Taking a deep breath, I tried to control myself. I had to get a handle on things, because I might have just blown everything.
Fuck, I whispered to myself, flexing my aching hand.I shouldn’t have done that.
“Okay, Mr. Prescott,” the chief said as he walked into the room, stealing all the air. “I used to see you once a year when you donated money. Now I see you all the time. No offense, but I’d like to stop seeing you.”
