Through the Storm (The Montclair Brothers) (19 page)

After Robert made sure Guard Broken Back was gone, he got out his Pansy Bowling
Pencillette and began to write:

Dear Bitch Face Sucky Wife,

Your days are numbered. You'll get yours, Stupid Bitch! Walk out on me and ruin my freedom, I may get more time, but hopping across the seats to snap your Gangly Freakin' Neck will be worth it. Poor Dead Ass. See you in court you Cheater! I dream of what your Fat Melon will look like as it lulls to the side.

See you in court, Dead Woman!

Robert the King.

It took him a minute to find the address of Montclair Idiotic Drug Assholes, but once Robert did, he realized he'd forgotten to ask Guard Bow Back for an envelope.

"Guard!" he bellowed.

"What do you want, Preston? Maybe you want room service?" Good ole' Butter Nuts was making fun of him.
Seven eyes for being a Smart Ass.

"I need an envelope so I can mail this letter to my attorney."
Come inside the cell so I can do another act of community service
.

Without saying a word, Dumbass Horseshoe Boy walked away. A minute later he came back with an envelope.

"That's it, I'm busy. Put your damn letter in the envelope so I can take it." The Moron stood there and waited impatiently while Robert wrote the address on the front. He handed it to Pansy Balls.

Robert was proud of himself. He sat on his Shabby Tissue Mattress and thought about Bitch Wife's fear. He began to laugh when the guard approached the cell with a sheet of paper.

"What's that?" Robert got up and glared at the Girly Boy.

"It's called evidence. You're in a heap of shit, Preston. You're not allowed to contact the victims, let alone threaten them. Too bad Michigan doesn't have the death penalty." Freak Face had the nerve to laugh at him before swaying away like a Pansy Bowler.

"You're breaking my civil rights, Asshole!" Robert would definitely be telling his Crooked Face lawyer about this one. He could just picture all the dollar signs in his bank account.
Eight eyes for you Cumquat
!

Emma left the office of Dr. Mills with a spring in her step. It was her last scheduled appointment with her, and she'd said that no more visits were necessary unless Emma felt like she needed to come in. It was a long road to recovery from Robert's crimes, but she hardly ever had nightmares now, and she'd even gone back to work. She'd asked Tyler to keep everything low key when she'd finally returned, but of course, the Montclairs turn everything into a celebration. Walking into her office on her first day back, Emma had no idea that the staff had all gathered on the twelfth floor to surprise her. Jacob soon appeared, pulled her out into the hallway, and kissed her square on the mouth, a long wet kiss, right in front of everyone. She didn't mind, though. Their relationship had been blooming, and Tyler was right; she'd been afraid to get attached to Jacob, for fear of losing him. This was one of the serious issues that Emma had to work out with Dr. Mills. For one visit, she'd asked Jacob to come inside with her during her appointment, because there were some questions that only he could answer. Since coming back home, they'd avoided discussing any serious topics.

She was now officially living with Jacob, and Tyler had arranged
to have her apartment packed up and her belongings put into storage. When Emma was ready, she'd sort through her things, but she'd never again step foot in, what once was, her little home.

Jacob had taken her shopping for new clothes and had brought home wonderful surprises, but each time he'd spend money on Emma, she felt guilty, as her relationship with Jacob had turned platonic in the weeks after Robert. She couldn't deny the pull on her heartstrings when he was near, but she'd felt like there was a permanent wall between them back then. That's what the one particular session was about, and it'd stay in her mind forever:

"Thank you for coming with, Emma today." The doctor looked over at her. "Would you like to start?"

Emma didn't say anything for a minute. Finally, she broke the awkward silence. "Jacob, do you want to be with me just because of the trauma we went through?"

"I love you. That's the only answer I can give. I've given you the space you asked for, because I wanted you to have the time to heal, and maybe love me back. The situation we were in is behind us, Em, but I want you in my future. Even after all these months, my feelings for you have only grown stronger." He looked right into her eyes.

"I feel bad, Jacob, because I don't remember making love with you." Emma stared down at her hands.

Jacob sat quietly for a moment. The doctor interrupted his thoughts and encouraged him to respond.

"Does it bother you that Emma doesn't remember your intimate moment?"

"At first it did. I thought maybe she'd made love with me out of pity, but it doesn't worry me now. She'd been devastated. If I could go back, I wouldn't have put her in that position. I should have known better." Jacob's face reddened. He turned to Emma and lifted her hand. "I don't want what happened in the past to ruin what we could have. The next time I make love to you, I want you to remember it. I want you to want me. It's not about sex, Emma. It's about going through each day, knowing I have the one woman I've wanted in my life for a very long time."

"But you seem sad when you're around me, Jacob." Emma pulled her hand back.

"I hear your name, see your face, listen to your laugh, and my heart melts, and yes it makes me sad to be this close to you, and not give you the comfort I'd like to give, or say the words I'd like to say. I want us to start over, and it hurts me to know you only see me as a friend. If that's all I can get, then that's what I'll take." Jacob turned to look into her eyes. "I want us to be in love with each other."

Emma wiped at her eyes. "I thought maybe you only wanted me as a friend because so much had happened. I feel like damaged goods, and on top of that, I'm afraid to become close to you. As you
laid unconscious, I began to grieve the loss of you. Thoughts of you being gone from my life forever, paralyzed me."

Jacob stood up, pulled Emma from her chair,
led her from the office and outside. He wrapped his strong arms around her, pressing his mouth to hers.

Emma immediately stiffened and backed up. She watched as Jacob stood there. He removed the scarf
from around his neck, put it around her, then extended his arms out to his sides. "It's cold out here and people are going to stare at us, but if you love me, Emma, come to me. Place your mouth on mine, and let me show you just how alive I am."

A small sob escaped her, as she quickly stepped forward and kissed Jacob with all she had to give.

∞  ∞  ∞  ∞

Tyler couldn't sleep, as he felt Renee toss and turn all night. Finally he got up to put on a pot of coffee, and found Brian sitting in the kitchen. His elbow was on the table, and his chin was in his hand.

"You're up awfully early. We don't have to leave for a few hours
yet." Tyler walked over and ruffled his hair.

"I'm not looking forward to today. Renee has to face Robert, and so do the rest of us. I mean, he shot us." Brian averted his eyes.

"You're not going to go through this alone, and neither is Renee. We'll all be there." The last thing he wanted was for everyone to become so distraught, that they'd hesitate to say what needed to be said.

Brian got up and poured himself some cereal, but he only took a couple of bites before setting the bowl in the sink. A few minutes later, Renee came downstairs. She walked right over to Tyler and buried her face in his chest.

"I'm gonna hit the shower," said Brian as he walked over and patted Renee's shoulder."

Tyler looked down at her. "Listen to me, Honey.
Now's your chance to fight back. You're not running anymore, because there's no way he can chase you now. Remember what Vincent told us. We'll each have to stay outside of the courtroom until we're done testifying. You'll be called first. I'm sorry we can't be in the courtroom with you, but you go up to the stand and blast the guy for all of us. When you're finished you can stay in there. Robert started this fight with you when you were alone, but we will finish it as a group." Tyler held her in his arms.

"What if I fall apart?" Renee began to weep.

"You won't. You'll be strong, and help lock him away for the rest of his life. Remember, the harder you fight today, the safer we'll all be in the end. If you don't think you have enough courage to fight for yourself, then fight for Brian." He wiped away her tears.

Tyler could only imagine the struggles they were all going to face, when having to recall the night of the fire and the shooting. If the breath was going to get kicked out of them, it'd be then.

While Renee was getting ready, Tyler called Sean. He seriously doubted it was too early to call any of his brothers. They'd probably gotten as much sleep as he did. Sean picked up on the second ring.

"You okay, Brother?" asked Tyler. Sean's voice sounded clear, so he knew he'd been up for a while, if not all night.

"Yeah," replied Sean, as he lowered his voice to a whisper. "Vinnie stayed here last night. I think he's still messed up, Ty. He won't talk about it. Says he's fine but I don't think that's the case." Sean spoke quietly.

"The best cure for all of us will be Robert getting locked up and putting the trial behind us." Tyler suspected Vinnie wasn't doing too well. He was working like a maniac lately, which was his escape when his personal life got crazy. "Let me
talk to him for a minute." Tyler wished he was talking to his brothers face to face.

"Hey, Ty, are you ready for today?" Vincent's voice sounded chipper, but Tyler knew it was a front.

"Vinnie, when this is all over, we can move on. This has been a struggle for all of us. I realize you're trying to be as brave as you can be, which will help you when you testify, but after Robert's locked away, I want you and I to get together. There's no shame in being messed up over what happened. Remember when I begged the doctor to save Jacob? Trust me, we all know what it's like to become extremely vulnerable. You were there for all of us, even stepping in when I was a wreck, so now it's my turn to be there for you. Lean on your brothers, Vinnie. We take care of our own, remember?"

"Yeah, okay." His voice cracked.

"I love you, Vin. We can do this." Tyler felt a lump in his throat. As soon as he hung up with Vincent, Jacob called.

"Let's beat some ass today, Ty." Jacob sounded weary.

"We will. Are you hanging in there?" Tyler had a short flashback of his brother in the back of the van. His eyes began to burn.

"Yeah.
Emma's being super supportive. I'll see you at the courthouse."

The
Montclairs were a strong and proud family. They didn't work so hard to rebuild, just to be knocked down again. It was time to face things head on, and then come out on the other side, better than ever.

∞  ∞  ∞  ∞

Tyler found a parking spot, but it wasn't easy. There was a long line of people trying to get inside to watch the trial, and he worried that all the spectators and reporters would frighten, Brian. Thankfully, there wouldn't be any cameras allowed at the trial.

Once inside, the bailiff escorted them all to a private room to wait. Thirty minutes later, he returned to take Renee into the courtroom. Tyler gave her a quick hug, and so did Emma. In so many words, they'd all told her to stand her ground and be strong. It was killing him not to be able to go inside with Renee, but he knew better than to do anything to jeopardize the case.

"She'll be just fine." Emma hugged Tyler. "We talked yesterday, and she's ready to face him."

"This morning she was a nervous wreck. Maybe someone will kill the bastard in prison." Tyler balled up his fists at his sides.

"It's possible that not all of us will testify today," explained Vincent. "It depends on how much the defense wants to throw at us. Just remember to only answer his questions, nothing more and nothing
less. Robert's attorney is a guy named Abbot Knowles. He's pretty predictable."

"I hope he goes easy on Renee." Tyler stood up and began to pace.

"He's not going to go easy on any of us, because it's his job not to." Vincent stood up and patted his back. "But that doesn't mean Robert has a leg to stand on. Nothing will happen in there that we can't handle."

"You're right, but I just hope Renee can." Tyler let out a long breath of air. "He can't get loose in there can he?"

∞  ∞  ∞  ∞

Renee was sworn in, and then sat in the witness box. She didn't even look at Robert. William Furrow approached her.

"May I call you, Renee?" he asked.

"Yes," she replied.

"Stupid Whore!" yelled Robert.

Judge Weddle lowered his glasses. "Mr. Knowles, please control your client."

Knowles could be seen whispering to Robert.

"I don't give a shit! I'll bust your head open and snap your neck!" Robert shook his attorney off his arm.

"Mr. Preston, if you can't be quiet, I'll have you removed from this courtroom!" Judge Weddle stated very firmly.

"Kiss my ass! What happened? Did you screw her too?!" Robert laughed while the bailiffs escorted him back to his cell.

Renee sighed with relief. Robert looked so different from when she'd seen his picture in the paper, after he'd been arrested. He'd looked stronger, in better shape, but he still had that same damn smile as when he was photographed. The Robert she saw today was the most pathetic looking person she'd ever seen. His hair was in disarray, and he was even thinner and more disheveled looking.

Her testimony and questions from the prosecutor had gone just fine, and then the defense attorney came at her with a barrage of questions.

"So you didn't see Robert Preston start the fire, nor were you conscious to see who had shot you," stated Knowles. "Is that correct?"

"Yes. But he'd threatened to kill me on many occasions. That's why I was running." Renee felt anger begin to rise.

"You're accusing someone of assaulting you, and you didn't even see your attacker. Please stick to the questions." Knowles wrote something down on a piece of paper.

It was bad enough that Robert had attacked her, but now she had to put up with it from this man.

"Is it true you were having an intimate relationship behind your
husband's
back while you were still married?"

"We were separated and I was saving money to pay for a divorce."
Oh my God.
Renee was seething.

"Answer my question." Knowles was hammering her.

"Yes, I was still legally married, but Robert and I hadn't been intimate in years." Her face felt like it was on fire, she was so mad.

After two hours, Renee was allowed to step down. She had no idea why the system allowed victims to be openly attacked in a courtroom. She was glad that Robert wasn't there to get pleasure from her cross examination.

Tyler came in next. He glanced at her and she nodded at him. It was the only way she could communicate that she had faith in him. The questions from the prosecutor went just as well for him as they had with her, but once again, Knowles went after him.