Safe and Sound (32 page)

 
Even as she thought it, Lola jumped to her feet; intuition telling her something wasn’t right.
She raced down the stairs, tripping over her feet and
falling
the last few steps. Lola twisted her wrist in the process, wincing and holding it to her chest as she ran.

 
“Jared!” she screamed, rain plastering her hair to her face, seeping through her clothes and shoes.
“Jared!”
It blurred Lola’s surroundings, making her disoriented for an instant.

 
Logic kicked in. O
f course he couldn’t hear her over the reverberation of barn
machinery
.

 
Lola slipped in the grass, caught herself with her elbow
; jarring the already injured arm
, and scrambled back to her feet, gravel crunching under her shoes. She banged open the barn door, the smell and sight of cows repelling her. It was dim in the building and it took Lola a moment to catch her bearings.

 
She wanted to shout his name, but
knew enough not
to upset the animals. Lola
stared at the cement walking slab in the middle of the cows, knowing that was the way to Jared. She took a deep brea
th, gathered
strength, and went in search of Jared.

 
Lola found him at the far end of the barn, knelt
beside
a monstrous being.
S
h
e didn’t want to scare him, to make any sudden movements to spook the cow.

 
“Jared,” she whispered in a hoarse voice. Her throat burned from
yell
ing earlier.

 
Jared jumped, knocking his head against a metal bar and cursing. He turned
said injured
head to glare at her. “
What?
” he asked in a clipped tone.

 
Lola opened her mouth, but no words came out.

 
Something in her face must have alerted him
all was not right
.
Jared’s features twisted from annoyance to concern. “Jack?”

 
“I came…to check on him. He’s…he’s not here.” Her teeth chattered together; she shivered from the cold.

 
Jared got to his feet. “What do you mean he’s not here? Where is he?”

 
“I don’t…I don’t know.
”

 
He slammed his hands on his hips and swore. “I think I know where he is.”
He stormed through the barn and Lola followed.

 
“Where?” she called after him, squinting
in the rain
to make out his receding figure in the rain.

 
Jared hopped into a
huge black
Dodge
truck
and looked down at her. “You stay here.”

 
Lola grabbed the door when he moved to shut it. “
No
,” she told him, determination clenching her jaw.

 
“I’m not arguing with you, Lola.”

 
“So don’t.”

 
For one tense moment their eyes collided. Jared looked away first. “Get in. You’re letting
rain water
into the truck.”

 
She ran around the truck,
grabbing it as she slipped in the grass
, and
quickly hauled herself into the vehicle before he could take off without her.

 
It was a short drive, neither talking. When the truck stopped outside Jack’s father’s house, Lola looked at Jared, confused.

 
“What are we doing here?”

  A
muscle ticked under Jared’s eye. “See that truck? That’d be mine.”

 
An old red pickup was parked in the driveway.
Lola’s stomach dropped.
Why would he come back here? It didn’t make any sense.

 
Dread propelled her from the vehicle. Jared stopped. “You wait in the truck.”

 
Lola stiffened her spine and looked him in the eye
, not even
bothering
to speak
.

 
Jared just sighed and shook his head, muttering something under his breath as they strode for the house.

 
A crash sounded from inside.
Jared took off at a sprint
and Lola was right behind him.

 
The sight that greeted stopped her short and took her breath away.
The kitchen table was broken down the middle, two uneven halves on the floor.
Papers littered the floor, as though a ha
n
d had swiped them off a counter or table.
It smelled like sweat and blood
and…
fear
.

 
Jared stood in the doorway to the living room
, not moving
.

 
There was a grunt, a sickening cracking sound.

 
“Jared—“

 
He raised a hand, not looking at her, and the words died on her lips.
What was he looking at? What was on the other side of Jared? Lola didn’t want to know, didn’t want to see, but found her feet moving regardless.

 
It happened in slow motion, but so very quickly as well.
It felt like Lola was watching a movie; a horror movie. It couldn’t be real.
But it was.

 
Lola gasped, hand to her mouth, sick feeling.

 
At first she thought it was Jack on the floor; it took a minute to sink in that Jack was on top.
The relief was palpable, dizzying.
Jack was okay, or as okay as he could
be
under the circumstances.

 
Jack
was straddling who Lola could only assume was his father’s limp form, pummeling his face.
The man was large, larger than Lola could have imagined, and yet he wasn’t fighting back. Was he dead?

 
She grabbed Jared’s arm and squeezed. “Jared, stop him. You have to stop him!”

 
“He needs
to do this,” was the low reply.

 
“He’s going to
kill
him.”
Lola didn’t care about Jack’s father; a man he’d never even deemed important enough to name in front of Lola, but Jack wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he murdered a man, however deserving the person was of it.

 
“This is for Isabelle. This is for
me
,” Jack vehemently declared
, landing another punch to a face that no longer looked like a face. The sound of flesh hitting flesh t
urned Lola’s stomach.

 
Jared moved then. He crouched beside Jack. “Jack. That’s enough.”

 
Jack shook him off, not even looking at him. “It’s not enough. It’ll never be enough,” he muttered.

 
Lola watched the man she loved, consumed with hate; saw him losing himself, and reacted. She had to save him. He’d saved her. She had to reach him somehow.

 
“
Jack,” she whispered
, kneeling beside him
.
She ignored the unconscious man
trapped
under Jack, refused to look at him.

 
He paused
then
, turned his head.
Jack’s
eyes blazed with vengeance
, an unholy gleam
; his face different shades of yellow and purple. Jack’s chest heaved up and down, up and down, as he crouched there, looking at her but not really
seeing
her.
He looked scary, beautiful, an avenging
angel
.

 
Lola’s throat choked up. “
Jack.
” She reached a hand out, touched a fresh cut on his already battered face.
“I love you.”

 
Jack’s eyes cleared and it was him again. His shoulders slumped forward as he hung his head. He got off the man
and, on his knees; proud and unremorseful,
he faced Lola.
She was vaguely aware of Jared moving the man none too gently, of looking him over.

 
She reached for him, held his head against her chest. His arms slowly raised, his hands barely touching her, as though afraid she would disappear if he held her too close. Then Jack crushed her to him, something wet and warm dripping down her skin.
Tears.

 
Jack was crying.

 
Lola’s lips trembled. She put her chin against his soft hair
,
her own grief quietly falling down her cheeks
.

 
Jared caught her eye, motioned that he would be outside.

 
“I love you, Jack. I love you so much,” she whispered brokenly.

 
Jack didn’t respond, but his
grip
on her
tightened; his arms fully cocooned her to him
, telling her without words
he would never let her go.

 
And I’ll never let you go.

16

 
“I don’t have to tell you that
was
stupid.”

 
Jack sat on the couch, watching Jared pace before him. Lola sat beside him, an arm around his waist.
She was thinking th
e same thing
, but didn’t necessarily agree that right
now
was the time to discuss it.

 
“And yet you just did.”

 
Lola gave Jack a slight squeeze
; a warning. Jared was stopped in front of Jack, scowl in place.
Jared and Jack were like two firecrackers when they arguing; one little
spark
and they both went off.

 
“Nobody likes a smartass. He can press charges against you. You’re eighteen. Then what? Then you lose Isabelle anyway.”

 
It was true. Lola had thought the same thing just moments ago.

 
Jack shot to his feet, as tall and rangy as Jared. “I had to do it.
For my peace of mind.”

 
“You had to beat the crap out of your dad for your peace of mind?”

 
“
Yes.
I felt helpless, unable to fight for myself and Isabelle
, unable to protect us
.
It was killing me, tearing me up inside.
” Jack strode to the window, back to Jared and Lola. His shoulders were tense, his hands in fists at his sides. Lola watched as his back muscles contracted und
er the thin black shirt he wore.

 
“I had to do something. And I’m glad I did. Now he knows what I felt all tho
se times he raised his hand to m
e.
”

 
She understood. Sometimes all you
had left was the fight within yourself, the fight to survive
, whatever it took
.
Sometimes you had to seek your own form of justice
in order to move on
.

 
“He won’t go to the police. He won’t fight me getting guardianship over Isabelle. We won’t ever see him again.” His words were firm, spoken with conviction.

 
“How do you know, Jack?” Lola asked, wanting it to be true.

 
Jack spun around, pinned her with his heated gaze. “Because I told him if he did, I’d air all his dirty little secrets.
I’d tell the entire world about the years of abuse.
He knows I meant it.
He’s scared.
And a coward.
He won’t talk.”

 
“I hope you’re right,” Jared said.

 
“I am.”

 
Jared and Jack stared at each other for a long moment. Jared finally nodded. “Okay. I
gotta
get back to my chores.” He turned to Lola. “Shouldn’t you be getting back to school?”

 
Lola jumped up. “Um, yeah, I should.”
She walked over to Jack, touched his bruised cheek. “I’m so proud of you,” Lola told him quietly.