“It’s not a lie, sweetheart,” he calls out. “Ask Blane. Tell him to quit treating you like a child.”
“Mom would never do something like that.” She shakes her head quickly as tears roll down her face.
“Taylor,” I say softly trying to get her attention. I knew this was a bad idea.
She looks up at me with a tear-streaked face. “She wouldn’t …” She swallows. “My mom wouldn’t have done that to herself. She loved us.” It breaks my heart. I wish I could tell her she’s right. I have no doubt her mother loved her, but I can’t speak for her. “She also loved herself.”
“There’s no greater love than addiction,” her father spits.
I feel her body stiffen under my hands, and her dark blue eyes narrow on her father as she looks past me. “You’ve proven that time and time again, Father.” She yanks her body out of my hands and takes a step toward him. He has the audacity to smirk at her. As if he truly believes he’s winning an argument with her. “You know, Blane thinks you can change. He thinks there is still hope for you, but I know the truth.” The smirk drops off his face. “I know you’re never going to change. I know you will always place yourself ahead of anyone else.”
“I have to!” he shouts.
“But you didn’t,” she cries out. “I tried so many times, Dad. I ran to you when you called at two in the morning. I drove hours to pick you up when you had no one to call.” She reaches up and wipes the tears from her face. “I gave you money when you called crying that you owed someone and they were after you. Where were you, Dad? Where were you when Blane and I needed you? You missed graduations. You missed birthdays. You were never there when I needed you after Mom passed,” she cries.
He hangs his head and takes a deep breath. When he looks back up at her, he has tears in his eyes. And I wanna punch him in the fucking face. He’s playing her. She’s the only one in this room who doesn’t see it. “Your mother was my world,” he whispers. “When she died, I didn’t want to live anymore.”
I feel a tightness in my chest at his statement. It reminds me of my parents. And that makes me want to punch him twice because I know he’s full of shit. He may have loved her, but like he said, there’s no better love than addiction.
“Not even for Blane and me?” she whispers.
He shakes his head. “You two were a constant reminder of what I lost.”
A sob wracks her body, and she places her hand over her mouth. “I want you to change, Dad. Please,” she begs. “Prove me wrong and show us that you want to change.”
“I can’t,” he says without hesitation. “And I don’t want to.”
She shakes her head in disappointment and then squares her shoulders. “Then I have nothing left to say. Good-bye, Dad.” She spins around, and with tears rolling down her face, she walks out the door.
“Taylor!” he yells as he chases after her. I slam the door shut, and he runs into it, pounding his chained fists on the metal door. “You little bitch …”
I grind my teeth as I fist my hands down by my side. “She’s done with you,” I announce flatly. He spins around on me. “But I’m not done with you.” I bring my fist back and punch the fucker in the face.
***
“You punched a cuffed man in the face?” Jones yells in my ear. “What in the fuck were you thinking?” he demands.
I slide a glance over at Taylor as she sleeps in the backseat of my truck. Miller snorts from the passenger seat, and I glare at him. “I did what needed to be done, sir.”
“Godammit, Case,” he snaps. “You always say that, but it always seems to cause more fucking problems than good.”
“You’re welcome,” I say with a smirk, and Miller throws his head back laughing.
“Case! Stop being an arrogant son of a bitch! What if he wants to press charges?”
“He won’t,” I say matter-of-factly.
He sighs. “Do I wanna ask how you know that?”
“Better if you don’t, sir.” I know all the men who work at Pekin. He doesn’t stand a chance against what I can have done to him. And if he ever tries to contact Taylor again, I may just make him disappear … just because I can.
“Jesus Christ,” he hisses. “Just get your ass back here and I expect you and Miller tomorrow at noon.” The line goes dead, and I throw my phone down in the center console.
“Well, that didn’t go as planned.” Miller sighs.
“It went about as good as I had imagined it would.” I look at her again, and I can’t help but feel proud of her. I know her heart is hurting, but she stood up for herself. She went and saw for herself what she needed, and she didn’t back down. I was afraid she was going to fall for his shit, but she held her own. That’s my girl!
“Do you think he’ll talk? Rat you out?”
