Chosen (8 page)

Will eyed Jake with wariness. “He just ran out. Next time I’ll handcuff him to me.” His tone was shorter than he meant, but the bathroom incident still replayed in his head.

“Next time? There won’t
be
a next time.” She hurried toward the truck, dragging Jake behind her.

“Good.” Will had no desire to be alone with him anytime soon.

They climbed in the truck and got back on the highway. Emma was in a foul mood and Will had one to match. He checked the mirror and saw Jake smiling at him. Will looked back toward the road, the hair on his arms prickling.

Jake knew
. Maybe he was bluffing. Will cast another glance toward Jake, but he knew he wasn’t. Why would Jake let him take them to South Dakota if he knew the truth? Maybe the people in South Dakota weren’t bad. There was the possibility the South Dakota people would protect them.

I never said you were bad
. Jake’s words reverberated in Will’s mind like they had against the dirty bathroom walls. Boy, was that kid wrong. The last ten years of his life were drenched in filth. The things he’d done…some on the orders of other people, some on his own. There had been a time when he was good, back when he was the little boy with a dog named Rusty. Life was so simple when he was a kid. Will had believed in fairness and justice. He had believed in right and wrong. When he was a little boy, he believed in heroes. Then he went to Iraq. He had joined the service to be a hero, just like his dad. But he came back a pariah, with the dishonorable discharge to prove it.

In Will’s world, there were no such things as heroes.

Something happened between Jake and Will in the bathroom, but damned if Emma knew what it was. Jake acted like nothing was wrong. He played with his car and stuffed dog in the backseat, occasionally pointing out an amusing road sign or a road kill that caught his attention. Will, on the other hand, was in a dark mood. He alternated griping and wringing the steering wheel with both hands. He hadn’t said a single word since they left the reststop and Emma didn’t dare talk to him. Not that she had anything to say. Regardless, she didn’t want her neck wrung instead of the steering wheel.

Traffic increased as they got closer to Wichita. Will turned off an exit and pulled into the parking lot of a Cracker Barrel, still silently fuming. After they got out of the truck, Jake smiled and took Will’s hand. Although Will seemed reluctant to hold Jake’s hand, he accepted it anyway. Anxiety twisted in Emma’s chest as she watched Jake attach himself to Will.

The wait for a table was ten minutes so Jake asked Will to look around with him. Will raised his eyebrows at Emma for approval. She gave a reluctant nod and Jake pulled Will to the back of the store, leaving Emma to tag along.

Jake wandered to a pile of stuffed animals. He let go of Will’s hand, moving his fingers from animal to animal, lightly touching them. “I have a stuffed dog,” Jake said. “Since I can’t have a real one.”

“It’s not all fun, you know. Real dogs take a lot of work.” Will picked up a stuffed elephant and held it in his hands.

“Did Rusty take lots of work?”

“Sure, I had to feed him and water him and take him for walks after school.”

Emma was surprised to hear that Jake knew anything about Will having dog. They must have discussed it when she slept earlier. She wondered what else they had talked about.

“But I bet he loved you. Did he sleep on your bed?”

Focusing on the back wall, Will’s eyes glazed over. “Yeah, he did. He was a good dog.”

Will’s face became softer, more open. Emma had a hard time imagining Will as a little boy, but she was sure she caught a glimpse of what he must have looked like. She felt uncomfortable seeing this side of him, like a bystander overhearing a private conversation.

“If I had a dog, I would take really good care of it.”

Will put the stuffed animal down in the bin and ruffled Jake’s hair. “I’m sure you would.”

The color rose in Jake’s cheeks as he glanced up at Will, his eyes bright and shining. “I like you, Will.”

Will’s mouth opened and his eyebrows raised. The intercom overhead announced their table was ready and Will cleared his throat. “That’s us.”

Smiling up at Will, Jake took his hand, and led the way to the hostess. Jake’s short legs stretched to match Will’s strides. Emma followed behind them, wondering if she imagined what had transpired.

The hostess took them to a table in the back of the restaurant. Will sat down and Jake quickly slipped into the chair next to him. Emma sat on the opposite side, worried at Jake’s sudden attachment to Will. Jake had never been interested in any adult other than her.

The waitress took their drink orders and Emma realized she only had forty dollars left after lunch. She ordered water for her and Jake as he began to color on his kids’ menu.

“Jake, we’re going to share something, okay?”

Jake’s gaze lifted, crayon in mid-stroke. “But I want chicken.”

Leaning over, Emma lowered her voice. “We can get chicken. We just need to share.”

Will looked up from his menu. “How much money do you have?”

Her cheeks grew warm as she bristled with embarrassment.

Will saw her hesitation. “Emma, let him get chicken strips. I’ll buy your dinner.”

“Thanks, Will, but that’s not really necessary. I can take care of it.”

Will winked then leered at her with his cocky smile. “No worries. I can collect on it later.”

Emma should have been offended, but the image of Will talking about his dog while rubbing Jake’s head ruined it. It occurred to her that perhaps Will was a lot of bluff. “Yeah, I bet you’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

He smiled and raised his eyebrows. “Are you accepting my offer?”

“Not hardly.” Emma rolled her eyes and hid behind her menu.

Pushing the menu down, he leaned toward her. “I’m serious, Emma.” He sounded sincere. She wondered why he was being so nice.

Emma gave him a cautious grin. “About the dinner or the payback?”

Will laughed and sat back up. “Dinner, of course. You have baggage and all.” He leaned his head toward Jake who devoted his attention to their conversation.

“Will, really…”

The waitress came back and Will ordered his own dinner and Jake’s chicken and a glass of chocolate milk. He turned to Emma. “And the lady?”

She ordered salad and handed the menu to the waitress. As she walked off with their order, Will asked, “A salad? Really?”

“Maybe I like leafy green vegetables.”

“I hope so. It’s too late to impress me with how little you eat after watching you inhale lunch.”

Emma scowled. Jake put his crayons down and asked Will to play the golf-tee-peg game.

“You ever played this game before?” Will asked as he grabbed the triangle and moved it between them.

“A couple of times.”

“I’m pretty good, so don’t expect me to be easy on you.”

“Okay, I’ll go first.”

“Fair enough”

Jake bent over the triangle studying which peg to move. He moved a peg and looked up at Will. “Your turn.”

After Will examined the board, he performed a series of moves and removed several pegs.

Jake’s mouth dropped in surprise. “How’d you do that?”

“Strategy.”

The tip of Jake’s tongue peeked out of the corner or his mouth. Classic Jake trademark look of concentration, Emma thought to herself. He removed a couple of pegs and sat back, watching Will with an eager gleam in his eyes.

The corner of Will’s mouth lifted slightly. He removed six more pegs, giving Jake a wink as he sat up.

Emma worried that Jake might get frustrated by Will’s slaughter, but he seemed more determined to beat him. Jake removed a single peg. Will finished him off on his next turn.

“How’d you do that?” Jake gaped.

“I told you, strategy.”

“Will you teach me?” Adoration shone from his eyes.

“Ah.” Will hesitated. “I guess.”

They reset the pegs in the wooden block and Will tutored Jake on where to move his pegs to get the most moves. After they finished the second game, Jake begged to play again. Emma watched, surprised by Will’s patience and tolerance. The food arrived in the middle of the match, not that it slowed them down.

“Jake, that’s the last round and then you need to eat.”

His mouth pursed in a pout.

“Your mom’s right. After you finish eating your chicken, we’ll play another game.”

Jake’s face brightened and he dug into his food.

Will and Emma ate in silence, his foul mood now gone. She almost regretted yelling at him earlier. Jake could be impulsive and Lord knew when he decided to do something, he did it. He probably just ran out without Will. Plus, Jake hadn’t sensed the Bad Men, even if she felt uneasy. Jake crammed dinner in his mouth, trying to hurry so he could play.

“Slow down there, big guy. I’m not going anywhere,” Will laughed.

Jake slowed down, but not much. “Done!” he mumbled through a mouthful of food after stuffing the last piece in his mouth.

“I’m not, so you still have to wait.”

Emma expected Jake to pout again, but instead he fingered the pegs, practicing moves. Will’s mouth lifted into a small grin as he shifted his eyes to catch a glimpse of Jake.

“Thanks,” Emma mouthed.

Will winked. “I’ll collect later.”

Shaking her head, she turned her attention to her food.

After another round, Will paid the bill and Emma tried to ignore the shame that burned in her gut. They walked through the store on the way out and Will headed to the toy area. Jake and Emma tagged behind.

“Where are you going?”

Will didn’t answer. Instead, he found a packaged peg game and handed it to Jake. “Here, I’ll get you one of these and you can practice. We’ll see if you can beat me next time.”

Jake broke into a huge grin. “Really?” He threw his arms around Will’s legs, nearly tackling him. “Thank you, Will!”

Will’s mouth dropped then he rubbed Jake’s head with a couple of swipes and looked away. “Hey, no problem. Why don’t you pick out something else to play with, too? Tomorrow’s going to be a long day of driving.”

Guilt washed through Emma in waves, lapping at the little confidence she had left in her mothering skills. While grateful for Will’s generosity, it only reinforced that she couldn’t provide for her own son. “Will, you really don’t have to do this…”

“I’m doing this for me,” he growled and turned to watch Jake searching the shelves. “I’m worried he’ll bug the shit out of me if he doesn’t have something to do.”

“Can I get a book instead?” Jake asked, thumbing through a basket.

“Yeah, sure. Whatever you want.” His tone was short. “Just pick it out and let’s get out of here.” Will stormed off toward the register.

Emma worried Jake’s feelings would be hurt by Will’s sudden mood change, but Jake didn’t seem to notice, his eyes shining with happiness.

He wasn’t sure what to make of this kid. One minute he freaked Will out; the next he wormed his way into Will’s softer side. He was just as surprised as Emma that he bought the peg game and book for Jake. This kid was getting to him.

This was why he didn’t work with kids.

His bad mood returned. He glanced over at a confused Emma. His mood was flip-flopping like a woman with PMS.
Get a goddamned grip
.

Emma moaned lightly. Her face was strained when he shifted his gaze over to her. “Are you okay?”

“I don’t know. Something’s wrong.”

Will glanced over his shoulder. “Jake? Do you sense anything?”

Jake had been practicing the peg game and looked up surprised. “No.”

Maybe Emma was a hypochondriac. Jake seemed to be the guy in charge, still a hard concept to swallow. He didn’t seem worried, so Will didn’t see any reason to worry either.

Will checked his GPS. “Salina’s only an hour and a half away. We can spend the night there.”

“Sure, whatever,” Emma mumbled, her face turned to the window.

They drove the next hour in silence. Jake played with his peg game in the backseat until he announced he had to go to the bathroom.

“We’re almost there. Can you wait?” Will asked.

“I dunno.” He sounded unsure. Will decided it was best to pull over at the next stop. He sure didn’t want the kid peeing on the backseat. He exited, driving past the truck weigh station and to the rest area. The setting sun cast long shadows across the almost empty parking lot.

“Something’s wrong,” Emma said, her voice tight.

“Jake?” Will whipped his head over his shoulder.

Jake shook his head, confused. “I don’t see anything.”

“Can you park in a space in front of the bathroom?
Please
?”

“Sure, why not?” He drove closer to the restroom entrance and parked in a space. “How’s this?”

Emma looked around the parking lot, her eyes wide and her mouth drawn. “Thanks.”

Emma’s really losing it
. Will opened the door.

“Jake’s coming with me this time.”

“Fine by me.” He had no desire to spend any more quality time in the restroom with Jake.

Clutching her purse to her side, she grabbed Jake’s hand.

“Let’s make this quick.” Will leaned against the truck and watched her drag Jake into the restroom entrance about twenty feet away. He opened the back door, reached under the backseat and pulled out the metal case, deciding it was better to be prepared. He reloaded his rifle and tucked it beneath a blanket under the seat. The gun on his ankle was loaded, ammo under the driver’s seat.

A family emerged from the restrooms and wandered back to their car. Will turned to watch them get in their car. A black SUV appeared out of the corner of his eye on the passenger side. He tensed. There were a million black SUVs out there. Seeing one didn’t mean anything. Then another pulled in behind it. Will grabbed his rifle.

“Emma!”

The Navigators advanced toward them as the car with the family pulled away. Will cast a quick glance toward the bathroom entrance. Emma stood in the doorway alone, the color drained from her face. “Jake says they’re coming!” she shouted.

No shit
. So much for Jake as an early warning system.