After saying goodbye, Tara lowered the phone to her side as she met Jeff’s fiery gaze. “What’s wrong?”
He glanced at the cell in hergrip before looking her in the eyes. “Conklin is holding Evan hostage. They’re calling in SWAT.”
“Oh, shit.” Shoving the phone in her back pocket, she closed the gap between them and wrapped her arms around his waist. SWAT might act quickly once they got the signal, but setting up and scoping out the situation could take hours. They could be in for a long night. No, not they.Jeff. She was leaving.“I’m sorry.”
After an excruciating moment where he didn’t move, he slowly slid his arms around her shoulders and held her tightly. “He’s saying that Evan is his son and he’s not giving him up.”
She pulled back to look at Jeff. “What?” Hell. This had to be killing him.
Once the cops rescued Evan would they need proof that Jeff was his father? What if the guy was telling the truth? Did Jeffhave any rights?
“Is there a chance that he’s right?”
Jeff sighed and glared at the ceiling. “With Bridget, anything’s possible.” He pulled free and crossed his arms, not meeting Tara’s gaze. “Either way, I don’t care. I’m the one who loves him. Blood or not, he’s my son in every way that matters. And I’m his dad.”
Tara’s heart ripped open. How much more did Jeff and Evan have to suffer?Goddamned Bridget.
Jeff had to be out of his mind with worry. The person who mattered most to him in the world was in the hands of an armed man who’d clearly snapped. If Evan really was Roy’s, proof would be easy enough to obtain. Why would he take the boy hostage?
Jeff’s phone chimed and he tapped it, reading for a few seconds before he looked up and beat his fist against the wall. “Fuck.”
Now what? Tara didn’t dare approach. Not because she feared he’d hurt her, but because his closed body language warned away anyone with half a brain.
Behind the glass window, the woman stood with a frown. “Sir?”
Jeff immediately held out his hands and nodded. “Sorry. I—”
“We’ll go outside,” Tara said, scooping up her purse and grabbing Jeff’s hand to lead him to the exit.
He followedwithout protest as she tugged him toward a concrete bench positioned under a streetlamp that faced the roundabout drive in front of the station. Neither of them sat. Dropping her bag, she faced him. “What’s wrong?”
He clenched his fists and crossed his arms, staring at a spot over her shoulder. “Conklin called dispatch and confessed to killing Bridget.”
Tara gasped. That couldn’t be good.It meant the guy had little to lose now.
“She was pregnant again and he didn’t believe that he was the father.”
“Jesus.”
“Yeah.” Jeff squeezed the back of his neck. “Now, he’s trying to use Evan as a bargaining chip to escape going to jail.”
“That’s asinine. There’s no way this ends well for him.”
And Evan was in the crossfire.
God, how could Tara leave while Jeff was going throughthis? It was one thing to take off while he was waiting for the happy occasion of being reunited with his son, but now? To abandon him when he was suffering?
But what about Jenna? Her best friend. The one person who’d stood by Tara through all her shit over the years. They’d faced hell together and come out the other side, even though part of that hell had been of Tara’s making.
Jeff pacedand rubbed his face. “I’ve never felt more helpless in my life. I need to be there.” He jabbed at his phone. “If Olivia won’t tell me where he is…”
All Tara’s rationalizations went out the window. He was clearly hurting. She couldn’t walk away now.
She took his hand, tears threatening to crack her composure. So much pain. Maybe she could postpone her trip until morning. Just until Evan wassafe.
He has to be safe. Jeff needed a win.
Her phone dinged with a message from Mick.
