The Lost Days (Prairie Town Book 3) (3 page)

“Hello, Mrs. H. How are my babies?”

“Oh, they’re fine, dear.  They’re being perfect little angels.  Jamie was fussy earlier, but I gave her some ibuprofen and found a teething ring upstairs.  I cleaned it up and put it in the freezer; worked like a charm.  I told you it was her molars, didn’t I?”

“So, she’s okay now?” She couldn’t help but to worry.

“She’s fine, sweetheart.  She’s asleep.  Justin has been such a darling.  He wanted to help me put her down for her nap.  He sang to her and it was the sweetest thing!  You’ve got quite the little man.”

“He’s a good kid, huh?” She smiled.  “Tell them I love them, and I’ll be home just as soon as I can.  I’ve still got another four hours to get through.”

“Take your time, honey.  We’re having lots of fun here.  I just wanted to call and let you know what was going on.”

“Well, thank you so much.  I appreciate it.  I’ll talk to you later.”

“All right, dear.  Goodbye.”

She hung up just as Lydia returned, a worried frown plastered across her lovely face.

“Uh oh.  What’s going on?” She swallowed hard.  “It wasn’t...really about Callum, was it?”

“Not at all.” Lydia slid into her seat and stared at her.  “Laney was calling about Devin.  It was weird.”

“Devin?  Why on earth?”

She didn’t really know Devin as well as Lydia and her siblings did.  She remembered how awful he was in school and how badly he’d treated Johnny, but otherwise she’d avoided him like the plague.  Patrick hadn’t necessarily been fond of him either, and it seemed justifiable after what he’d put poor Laney through.

“Apparently his psychiatrist wants to perform some tests today and he needs us to be there.” Lydia sighed.  “So Laney, Jeb, Benji, and I have to be at the institute at 6 this evening.”

“Tests?  What kind of tests?  Is he really still playing the ‘I don’t remember being a complete and total douche’ card?”

“Yes, but the thing is Laney believes him.  She thinks he’s telling the truth.” Lydia shrugged her shoulders and sniffled.  “I can’t help but to believe her.  She’s told me the story about that night so many times, Kelly—why would Devin have helped them otherwise?”

“Because he didn’t want to go to jail?” She scoffed and rolled her eyes.  “Lydia, he’s a terrible, horrible person.  How can you so easily forget what he did to you when you were little?”

“What he did to me?” Lydia blinked.

“Um, I mean...what he did to Laney and Jeb and Johnny.” She dropped her gaze quickly, but it was too late.

“How long have you known?”

Shit!

“Kelly?”

Bracing herself for whatever was to come, she slowly lifted her head and stared at her friend apologetically.  She half expected Lydia to be furious, but she was surprised to find her smiling.

“What gave me away?”

“A lot of things.  Mostly on Christmas Eve – the way you reacted when I was talking about Johnny.  And let’s be honest, those eyes are undeniable.  I knew I knew you, I just needed a second to place you.”

“That identifiable, huh?” Lydia sighed and slowly shook her head, her eyes sparkling.  “I suppose I should have known.  We were close when we were younger, huh?  It’s hard to forget some people, no matter how much they may change.”

“I could never forget you.” Her hand found Lydia’s and she squeezed it gently.  “You were one of my best friends, Lydia.  I adored you then and I adore you now.  It never mattered to me, you know...”

“I do know that.  I know it now.” Lydia nodded firmly, and with conviction.  “I just...I guess I’m scared of people here knowing.  I don’t want them to remember that boy.”

“And they won’t.  Johnny McIntosh was just someone who used to live around here.  Besides, how can they even think about him when such a pretty girl resides in Prairie Town now, huh?”

Lydia’s cheeks heated up and she turned her head, laughing.  “Oh, stop it.”

“No, I’m serious!” She giggled, squeezing her hand.  “Lydia, you are insanely gorgeous. Like, you could be a super model if you wanted.  I’d kill to have your body.”

“I’m serious—stop it!  You’re embarrassing me.” Lydia glanced around and then sank down in her seat, burying her face into her baby blue infinity scarf.

“Oh, pfft.  Since when do you get embarrassed?” She grinned.  “Aren’t you supposed to be Tula’s campaign manager for the election?”

Tula, Lydia’s boss, was running for Mayor in Prairie Town.  If she won, she’d be Prairie Town’s first woman mayor.  Kelly prayed she’d win.

“I don’t have to do a lot in the public eye.  At least not yet.”

“But election time is coming up soon.  You’ll be doing a lot more by then.” She glanced at her plate of nearly untouched food and frowned.  “What a waste of eight dollars, huh?”

“Nonsense.  I’m buying.”

“I don’t think so.  I—”

“I dragged you all the way out here to cry about my problems, Kelly.  And once again you’ve talked sense into me.  The least I can do is pay for your food, okay?  Please don’t argue with me.” She jutted her bottom lip out and gave her best puppy dog eyes.

Rolling her eyes, Kelly caved.  “Fine.  But next time’s on me, all right?”

“Agreed.  Hey, can I ask you something?”

“Of course.  Anything.”

“Will you come with me this evening, to the institute?  I don’t know when Callum will come home and I don’t want to go alone.”

Even though she knew good and well Laney, Jeb, and Benji would be there, she also knew she couldn’t say no to her friend.

“All right.  I’ll have to call Mrs. Harrington and see if she can stay a few more hours, but I’ll come with you, Lydia.  I promise.”

“Thanks.” Lydia beamed and grabbed for her hand again, squeezing it as tightly as she could.  “You’re such a good friend, Kelly.  I’m lucky to have you.”

And I’m lucky to have you.
  She thought as she squeezed her friend’s hand in return.

If only she knew what her promise to her friend would mean when 6 o’clock rolled around.

—————

D
evin

Doctor Thompson hadn’t been kidding when he said he wanted to do a series of tests.  Devin had already seen his mother and father, people he did not recognize, and he’d been interrogated about his past.

It didn’t do much good though; he didn’t remember anything and couldn’t answer the questions they asked.  His father, as he learned, was an impatient man and didn’t like it when things didn’t go his way.

His mother, however, seemed very sad when she asked questions about his childhood and he couldn’t confirm them.  It sucked not being able to remember the vacations they’d gone on together, or his favorite book as a kid.

Watching her walk away in tears didn’t help a damn thing.

It made him feel worse.

And then came his older brothers.  He had three of them, apparently.  Lucas, Roy, and Charlie.  It was weird to be around them because he could see the family resemblance, but when it came to personalities, they couldn’t have been any more different.

Charlie was the oldest and he kept asking weird questions about Jebson McIntosh—Devin totally didn’t understand.  It was easy to see Charlie held a grudge against the guy, but Devin wasn’t sure why.  What had Jeb ever done to them?  To him?

It was exhausting and all he wanted to do was go to bed.  Couldn’t he just forget the ‘tests’ and go to sleep?  Maybe Doctor Thompson had been wrong...

But then six o’clock rolled around and his final test arrived.  He was surprised when Laney, her boyfriend, and three other people walked in.  He didn’t know the man and two women accompanying Laney and Benji, but he stood to greet them anyway.

“Devin, this is Lydia McIntosh—Laney’s sister,” Doctor Thompson said.

“Hello.  It’s nice to meet you.” He shook her hand and noted how her smile seemed forced.  Did she recognize him?  Had he done something to her, too?

“And this is Jebson McIntosh.  He’s Laney’s brother.”

“Nice to meet you.” He reached for Jebson’s hand and felt waves of embarrassment wash over him when the guy completely ignored him.

“And this is Kelly Spencer.  She’s a friend of the family.”

His eyes landed on the seemingly reserved blonde and his heart skipped a beat.  She may have been the prettiest thing he’d ever seen.

“Hello.” He extended his hand to her and waited, hoping she wouldn’t shoot him down.  “It’s very nice to meet you, Ma’am.”

“Ma’am?” She echoed softly, accepting his handshake.  “Please, just call me Kelly, Devin.  We graduated together for goodness sake.”

“Did we?” He laughed nervously and released her hand—even though he didn’t want to.  “Forgive me for not remembering that, Kelly.”

“It’s okay.” She gave him a small smile and then took her seat across from him, just like the others.

“You’re here tonight because I’d like to conduct a study about Devin.  You remember a troubled young man who may have been an instigator.” Doctor Thompson pulled out his seat and eased into it, glancing at them, one by one.  “But Devin doesn’t remember being that person.  I’d like for each of you to ask him a question and then listen to his response.  I think you’ll see that he’s a changed man.”

Jebson coughed into his fist and Devin was certain he heard the word ‘bullshit’.

“Laney, I’d like to start with you.  You’re the most familiar with Mr. Rose, yes?”

“Yes.” Laney nodded, pushing some hair away from her face.  “Devin and I used to date.”

“Did you?” Mr. Thompson glanced at Devin and lifted an eyebrow.  “Do you remember dating Miss McIntosh?”

Glancing back and forth between the two of them, Devin swallowed hard and slowly shook his head.  “No, Sir.  I don’t remember that.  But I wish I could.  I’d give anything to remember something right now.”

Again, Jebson coughed and Devin stared at him.

“Sorry.  Need some water,” Jebson mumbled, earning a look of dismay from his sisters.

“And Mr. Palmer, is it?” Doctor Thompson asked as he focused his attention on Laney’s boyfriend.  “Can you tell me how you know Mr. Rose?”

“I sure can.”

Uh oh.  Devin did not like the way Laney’s boyfriend was staring at him; that was a look of pure hatred.  He sank down in his seat and braced himself, as best as he could, for whatever truth he was about to learn.

“I met Devin on the night he and his girlfriend, Mia, kidnapped Laney and me and held us for ransom.  They wanted a million dollars for us, and they almost got it.”

Shit.
  He dropped his gaze to the table and swallowed the painful lump in his throat.  It just didn’t seem real.  How could he be capable of such a thing?

“...And then we wrecked and I guess that’s when he bumped his head, because I know good and well Laney, and I probably wouldn’t be here—I know
I
wouldn’t be here—if it hadn’t been for Devin saving me that night.”

His eyes snapped back up to Benji’s and the glare he’d witnessed earlier was gone.  Instead, he was met with an understanding of some sort.  Could it be that Benji forgave him for that night—for whatever his past self had done?

“Thank you, Mr. Palmer.  I know it must be incredibly difficult to relive that night, but I appreciate you sharing your story.” The doctor cleared his throat and rummaged through some papers, the wrinkles on his forehead growing excessively as he furrowed his eyebrows.  “Mr. McIntosh?”

Jebson sat up straight and nodded.  “That’s me.”

Oh, God...

“Can you please tell me how you know Mr. Rose?”

Here it comes...

“Hell yeah, I’ll tell you.  That little bastard has tormented my family since he was old enough to talk.” The vein in his neck bulged as he stared at him, and Devin knew—he just knew—that Jebson was about to open an entirely new can of worms.  “Little sum’bitch harassed my...”—he glanced down and then cracked his neck—“my sister when we were kids.  He beat her up every chance he got; he made her life pure hell.”

“What?” Devin’s eyes widened.  “That’s absurd! I’d never hit a woman.  Y-you...no, that isn’t right. Doc, that isn’t right!”

“Calm down, Devin.  Listen to what he has to say.  This is crucial for your recovery.”

Bullshit.

“And don’t say you wouldn’t hit a girl because you gave Laney a nice bruise on her cheek the night you kidnapped her.  Don’t fucking lie to me, Devin.  I
know
you.  I remember every shitty thing you’ve done to my family and you deserve to go to prison, you rat bastard!”

Jebson launched across the table and Devin didn’t stand a chance.  His chair broke and two hundred and sixty-five pounds of pure muscle landed on top of him, knocking the air from his lungs.

“You deserve prison, you hear me?  Your days of hurting my sisters are over, Devin! You piece of shit!”

All he could do was squeeze his eyes shut and pray it would be over soon.  The pain he felt from each punch to his gut and face paled in comparison to the pain he felt in his soul.

A man would not react with such hate if he hadn’t been shown such hate in the past.  Maybe he really was the monster people claimed him to be.

Maybe he deserved this.

“Jeb! Stop!” Laney wailed.  “You’re going to kill him!”

“Mr. McIntosh, get a hold of yourself!” The doctor demanded.

Just kill me already.
  Devin thought as tears leaked from his eyes, mixing with the blood smeared across his face. 
This isn’t a life I want.

Jeb was suddenly dragged off him and through the blur of his tears, he saw another man—one he didn’t know—clutching Jeb in a bear hug from behind.

“Get a hold of yourself, Jeb,” the guy hissed in his ear.  “This is
not
how we handle things, okay?  Just calm the hell down.”

Jeb breathed heavily, his broad chest moving up and down with each gulp of air as his eyes, so full of fury, remained focused on Devin.

“Callum!” Lydia gasped.  “You came.”

“Of course I came, baby,” the man replied as he released his grasp on Jeb and then patted his shoulder.  “Somebody has to keep this gorilla on a leash, right?”

Nervous chuckles sounded from Benji and Lydia, but Laney didn’t find it humorous.

Hell, Devin didn’t find it to be funny either. 

His eyes wandered around the room and landed on the pretty girl who had accompanied them—Kelly was her name.  She seemed so sad about the situation, maybe even a little sympathetic.