That instinct, which woke up back then with Bay at my side, simply faded when he vanished from my life and I don’t get why. It feels like the opposite should have happened. I should be nesting more robustly, seeking refuge inside the structure, but no.
Thinking about it alone makes me tired. Today I’m too weak to dig into it properly, so I leave it for later.
Fortunately, my condition improves slightly in the evening, and in the morning it is already bearable.
When I am relaxing in bed the next morning, recovering my strength and playing a pleasant game of chess on my tablet, I hear knocking at the door.
I always react nervously when I hear the sound, so I jump up and run downstairs with that familiar anxious shiver. I glance at the intercom and cannot believe my own eyes.
I quickly open the door.
Jared is standing there with little Tommy on his shoulder.
His eyes are shadowed, one clearly bruised, his face swollen. I feel the urge to curse under my breath.
Little Tommy is clinging to his shoulder with his tiny arms, but thankfully he brightens a bit when he sees me.
"Oh my goodness, Jared, what happened!"
"Haven’t you read the news? It’s over," Jared whispers as he walks inside. Only then do I notice the suitcases standing behind him and I blink in confusion, but still, I grab them and pull inside, then shut the door.
Jared looks like he is about to collapse to the floor, so I quickly lift little Tommy from his arms.
"Hey, sit down and tell me what happened…"
Tommy fortunately remembers me, we saw each other barely a month ago.
Jared sinks onto the sofa, but he looks like he might slide off it at any moment.
"Mark was arrested. He’s in holding right now. There are serious charges against him, rapes of multiple omegas, sexual exploitation of coworkers, harassment…"
I quickly set Tommy down on the big pouf in the corner by the window. He loved it during his last visit and immediately starts bouncing on it. A child his age needs so little.
Jared continues, "He hid it from me all these years, I had no idea about any of those situations. Yes, I took the beatings, but I could somehow deal with that, yet this… this is simply too much. His political career is over, he will go to prison for years, everything has collapsed, and I am left with nothing."
"I don’t understand. How with nothing? You were his husband for five years, you have a child, surely you are entitled to something legally."
"We signed a prenup stating I would not claim any right to his assets."
"For heaven's sake, what about Tommy?"
"From what my lawyer says, the most I can get is five thousand a month from Mark’s shares in the company he owns, but his personal assets will go toward compensation for his victims. His brother owns half the company and he will be the one paying the money, but I personally will get nothing."
I exhale in relief. "My goodness, Jared," I sigh. "Five thousand is not that bad, you will be able to survive on that even in the city. I literally lived on six hundred dollars after I stoppedaccepting money from Bay, and I still managed to feed myself, though very modestly."
"Maybe I sound spoiled," Jared whispers, "and maybe people will think I got used to a certain lifestyle, but this is mostly about wanting to give Tommy a safe life, and for that I need money. I am terrified of what will happen now, I fear that the people from my past will appear again, that they will threaten me, that they will knock on my door and I will not be able to escape. And without money, real money, I will be their victim."
I fall silent for a moment.
Joyful squeals pull my attention away. I look at little Tommy, this innocent child who does not understand the situation his dad has found himself in. He’s playing now, sliding off the pouf and climbing back onto it, drumming his hands against it.
"There is another option," I whisper. "You can find yourself a protector who will keep you safe."
I know what I’m talking about. After all, I have one.
Jared lifts his head and looks at me for a moment.
"Funny you say that," he whispers and tilts his head slightly. "There is something I need to tell you. In very dramatic circumstances I received the contact information of a person who apparently has a talent for finding people’s True Mates."
