“Fuck, really? When?” I feel dread. “That’s River’s case worker.”
Jake’s face grows serious. “He didn’t say.”
I dig my cell out of my uniform pocket and find Manuel’s number in my contacts. He picks up on the third ring. “Hi Manuel. It’s Logan Hawkins.”
“Logan…you are a hard man to find.”
“Well, you know my shifts can be crazy.”
“And you aren’t living at your apartment,” Manuel says. “I’ve been by more than once.”
“Sorry.” Fuck. I’m busted. “I’ve been at my friend’s for a couple days. Is something wrong?”
“You tell me,” he replies. “Did you walk out on River in the middle of the night and leave him with some strange woman?”
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
“No. I left him with my landlord for ten minutes because the house across the street was in flames, and I wanted to make sure the owner didn’t need medical attention,” I say calmly but I want to direct every cuss word I know at my ex, because it was clearly Bethany who called Manuel.
“Logan, I’ll be honest with you,” he sighs like a disappointed parent. “Bethany is filing for an injunction to change the custody arrangement and take away your overnights.”
“Because the landlord babysat him for ten minutes?” I ask furious. “Are you kidding me?”
“She says she also found out that you were involved in a car crash that killed someone,” Manuel replies, his voice low and filled with concerned.
“I…how the hell does she know that?” I realize it’s an admission as well as question, but I am not running from that.
Manuel’s tone is oozing with disappointment. “Logan, your entire legal history was supposed to be shared with me. This is a big lie. One of the biggest.”
“I was never charged with a crime. I wasn’t driving. I wasn’t a conscious participant,” I argue but I know, without a shadow of a doubt, it’s useless.
“Look, it’s enough to get her an emergency hearing. You can present the specifics there,” Manuel replies. “But you’re not living in your house full-time, you’re leaving River with people he doesn’t know, and you’re disobeying some simple rules Bethany had laid out for you like no visitors other than family. So I’ve got to be honest. This doesn’t look good for you, Logan.”
“I didn’t plan on the house next door going up in flames.”
“Look,” Manuel says flatly. “My main concern here is that if you’re going to have River on overnights, you need to have a stable, consistent home base, and you don’t seem to have that.”
“I’m still renting the apartment,” I argue. “I mean, for now.”
“For now isn’t a consistent home, Logan,” Manuel explains. “Look, until the hearing I’m suspending River’s overnight visits.”
“Well, when is the hearing?”
“I’ll email you as soon as I know. We can probably get one before new year’s.” He sighs. “Look, I like you Logan, which is why I had to call you and talk to you about this instead of just emailing you. But this…well, you’ll need character witnesses to prove that what happened with that accident is not who you are now. It’s not who you will ever be again.”
He hangs up, and I am shaking with rage. “They suspended my overnights with River. Bethany somehow found out about the car crash.”
For the first time in a very long time, I want a drink. I want twenty. I look up at Jake. “I’d like to take you up on that offer. I need to go to a meeting. I’m losing everything right now, including my grip on sobriety.”
“Go. Do you need me to drive you?”
“No. But thanks,” I stop and hug him. He hugs me back tightly. “Can you make Cap understand?”
“Of course,” he says back. “Go.”
I take off in a jog to the changing room, texting Cookie on the way to see if she’s heading to the meeting at the church nearby. She texts back almost immediately and says she will meet me there. I hate leaving work early, but I would be no good to anyone at work in my current state of mind. When I get out to the parking lot, a horn lets out a short honk. I turn and see Terra’s Ford F150. Yeah, the tiniest Hawkins drives the biggest vehicle. Her window drops. “Get in.”
“I’m going to—”
