Tucker

 

“What do you mean, he’s gone?” Dare asks.

“I went to check on him and his front door was unlocked, but all of his stuff—his clothes and furniture—everything is gone. Like he disappeared off the face of the earth.”

“Any signs of foul play? Blood, anything broken?”

“No.” Justus rubs his chin. “Just an empty house. His trashcan outside reeked so I checked it out. Looked like he just dumped the contents of his fridge in there.”

“Unbelievable,” Dare spits.

“He just…moved out?” Landon says.

Justus nods. “Looks like it.”

“All right,” Landon says. “Let’s get to ISH and try to track him.”

Leah nods and gives me a hug when I tell her, “I’m going with them. Take the car. I’ll ride with Dare.”

“I’m going home. Call me when you know something,” she pleads.

“I will.” I give her a kiss and then join Dare in his car.

When we’re pulling into the house ISH uses as their base, I ask, “How can you track him? Or is it too technological for me to grasp?” Computers have never been my thing.

We get out and hurry across the driveway. “We have multiple ways. First, we’ve installed tracking apps on all of our phones in case something happens to us. With our job, you can’t be too safe and it’s already saved Landon’s life once. Jeremy knows it’s on there so if he’s trying to disappear, he can just remove it. But there are other ways.” He smirks at me. “And those are too complicated to explain quickly.”

“You think this is because of Frannie?”

“I’d bet my ass on it. Women make us do crazy shit.”

“Tell me about it.”

Landon and Justus are right behind me and they both jump on a computer while Dare grabs a laptop and sits on the couch. We aren’t kept in suspense long when Justus says, “I’ve got him. His phone is on. It’s tracking him now.”

Landon looks at Dare. “He knows we can track him. He won’t answer his phone. Why would he leave it on? Does he want us to find him? Do you think someone has him?”

“No, I think he’s grieving and not thinking clearly.”

Leaning against the wall, I mumble, “He’s trying to run from the pain.”

All eyes turn to me, and I shrug. “I’ve been there.”

Justus’s computer bings and he looks up. “Illinois? He’s in southern Illinois. Who the hell does he know there?”

They all look at me as if I might have another answer for them. “Probably no one. I imagine that’s the point.”

Landon tries calling him, but his phone goes straight to voicemail, same as it did for Justus. “We have to go after him,” Landon says.

Dare sighs. “It’s about a five hour drive from here. It could be light when we get there.”

“Run me by my house to grab my suit,” he says. “I’m going.”

“So am I,” I volunteer.

“We’re all going. Let’s go let the girls know.”

We all ride with Landon, since his new SUV has windows that filter out the harmful sun rays. His suit is draped over the rear seat.

I promise Leah I’ll let her know something as soon as I can and within the hour, we’re on the road. Landon insists on driving, and we manage to make it to the small town about an hour before daylight.

“Take the next right,” Dare tells Landon, watching the navigator. “There,” he says, when we pull up to a two story lake house.

“Well, he’s not roughing it,” I remark, and Justus laughs.

“He’s a trust fund kid. Parents are loaded. He probably had plenty of locations to choose from.”

When we park around the side of the house, I instantly understand why he chose this place. The sky is just beginning to lighten, and the place is beautiful. A short trail from his side yard leads down to a wooden dock with a small boat floating beside it. It’s a peaceful place to escape, much like my farmhouse.

Dare bangs on the door until he nearly shakes it off of the hinges, but no one answers. Finally, he gives it a hard jerk, breaking whatever flimsy lock was holding it shut.

We step into a dimly lit living room. “Really? You had to break the fucking lock?” Jeremy gripes.

He’s sitting on the couch, his feet propped on the coffee table like all of this is just normal.

“Wouldn’t have had to if you’d answer the fucking door.”

Crossing his feet, he stares up at us, his face impassive. “I would’ve thought moving three hundred miles away would discourage company.”

“Now you know better,” Justus says, walking around and turning on lights. “Damn, this place is nice. Whose is it?”

“Mine.”

Returning from his little tour, Justus stands in front of Jeremy, glaring at him. “What the fuck, Jer?”

Jeremy just stares back, stone faced.

“We drive all night to find your ass, and you have nothing to say.”

“I didn’t want to be found. Get the fuck out and leave me alone.”

Dare chuckles. “Not going to happen. Why did you run? You knew we could find you.”

Jeremy gets to his feet and opens the curtains overlooking the lake. The sun is just breaking the horizon and Landon slips out the door to get his suit. “You found me because I wasn’t hiding. I just want to be left alone. I don’t have any projects started for ISH. Seemed like a good time to get away for a while.”

Justus sits on his couch. “Getting away for a while generally doesn’t include moving all your shit.”

“This place wasn’t furnished. And I like my shit.” Jeremy paces the room. “Now, you can all see I haven’t been kidnapped and murdered, so you can go.”

“You don’t even know anyone here,” Landon says, stepping back inside.

Jeremy runs his hands through his hair. “That’s the fucking point!” He turns to me. “You should be able to understand.”

He’s right. I do. He’s dealing with a loss and feels overwhelmed by people watching him grieve. “I do understand. You have to understand why we’d want to make sure you haven’t jumped off the deep end.”

“Yeah,” he grumbles. His gaze meets Dare’s in a challenging look. “I’m not coming back. Not until I’m ready.”

After a few moments of silence, Dare speaks up, “Fine. If that’s what you want. You need a break. We get it. You didn’t have to go about it so…dramatically, but it’s your choice.”

“Thank you!” Jeremy flops into a recliner. “Shut the door behind you.”

“But,” Dare continues, drawing another glare from Jeremy. “We still want to know you’re okay. You’d do the same damn thing if you were in our shoes. So, we’ll leave, but you need to keep in touch.”

Jeremy shakes his head, and I add, “We’re not talking about long heart to heart talks while we paint our fingernails for fuck’s sake. Just answer a text or message each week. Let us know you’re alive and we won’t show back up to haunt you.” I look around at the other guys to see if they agree with the arrangement.

After a few moments, Jeremy nods. “I may work on a few things from here as well. I’m not leaving ISH.”

“Damn right you’re not,” Justus says. “Shit is just getting good. Tucker is totally nailing Dare’s sister.”

A snort of laughter leaps from Jeremy and he grins for the first time since we arrived. “You’re going to end up fed to your own pigs,” he tells me.

“We have an understanding.”

Jeremy glances at Dare who is glaring at me. “Yeah, I can see that.”

Landon stands in front of the window, looking out over the lake. “Zoe is devastated too. There’s going to be a memorial outside the mall next week to honor the twenty-two people who were killed. They’re releasing balloons with the victim’s names on them.” He turns to Jeremy. “It might be good for you to join us.”

“No fucking balloon is going to bring her back,” he snaps. “This is the shit I want to avoid. Everyone wants to talk about it or do something. There’s nothing anyone can do and I don’t want to talk about her.”

He gets to his feet. “I said I’d keep in touch. Now, please, get the fuck out so I can go back to sleep.”

Dare nods, and we all head back to the car.

“It doesn’t feel right,” Justus says after an hour of silence. “Just leaving him five hours away.”

“Sometimes a man has to stand on his own. Has to assure himself he can still do it. He’ll come back when he’s ready,” I tell him.

“Too bad the girls aren’t going to accept that as an answer,” Landon replies.

Dare guides us onto another highway. “They’ll have to.”

It’s a little after noon when I make it back to Leah’s and she’s asleep on her couch. She must’ve tried to wait up for me. I need to go to my place to take care of the animals, so I decide not to wake her. She stirs a little when I spread a blanket over her, but doesn’t wake. I leave a note on the table telling her where I am and inviting her to join me.

If there’s one thing the military taught me it was stamina, so I’m no stranger to pulling an all nighter. I must be getting old because by the time I get home, feed the animals and let the goats out to graze, I’m exhausted. My boots get kicked off at the door, I flop onto the couch, and my eyes slam shut.

“Hey.” Leah’s soft voice in my ear wakes me. “I wasn’t going to get you up, but Zoe wants to bring Colin and Ethan out to see the place.”

I reach up and pull her down into my arms. “When did you get here?”

“A few minutes ago. Zoe said Jeremy isn’t coming back.”

“Not right away,” I reply, kissing her forehead. “He needs some time, but we’re going to check in on him whether he likes it or not.”

“Good,” she mumbles. My hands wander down to cup her ass. “Mmm, you wake up awful handsy.” Her lips find mine and she dips her tongue into my mouth. I shift us so she’s straddling me and kiss her the way I know she loves, deep and slow.

“Do we have time for a quickie before they show up?” I ask, ready to drag her upstairs.

The bang of car doors slamming answers my question.

“Damn it,” she breathes, and we laugh.

“Later.” I smack her ass and she squeals, hopping off of me.

I show Ethan and Colin around and explain everything to them. Colin has actually worked on a farm and was a part of 4-H so he’s pretty familiar with most of it. They’re both thrilled to have a place to themselves for a while.

They spend the night with us, and in the morning, I load up the wooden bench and bed frame I just finished. I’ve called the stores that sell for me and had them stop taking orders for a couple of months. The guy I hired to help out can fill the orders we already have, and I plan to be back here by the time that’s done.

“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” Leah asks, leaning against my truck. “I don’t like you putting your life on hold for mine.”

She’s so damned sweet. “I’m taking a two month vacation to be with my woman. It’s too late for you to back out now,” I tease.

“What are we going to do after the two months?”

“We’ll figure something out.” I honestly have no idea. I’m hoping the school she works for will be able to find a replacement before then and she’ll move in with me. “Come on.” I open her door and watch as she climbs inside. “There’s someone I want you to meet.”

As I’d hoped, Mona is working when we pull up to Keith’s furniture to unload my work. Her face lights up and she cackles when I walk in with my arm around Leah. “I’m glad to see you took my advice,” she says, grinning.

Turning to Leah, she says, “This must be the baby.”

Leah’s brow furrows and she looks up at me. “Baby?”

“The first time I saw you together, he tried to tell me he was babysitting for a friend. Like I’m too old to see through that,” she laughs.

Leah’s lips twist and she shakes her head at me. “Well, he still calls me kid sometimes.” She reaches to shake Mona’s hand. “I’m Leah.”

“Mona,” she replies with a laugh. “He looked so miserable last time I saw him. All smiles now, though. I’m happy to meet you. Keep that man in line. Ain’t too many out there like him.”

Leah smiles at her. “I’m well aware. I won’t let him out of my sight.”

We chat for a few minutes after I get everything unloaded. On the way back to the truck, Leah shoves me.

“What?”

“Babysitting me?”

“You are young,” I chuckle.

“You’re the one who likes to suck on nipples.”

Laughing, I hop into my truck. “Only yours, sweetheart.”

 

* * * *

 

Leah pulls at her dress. “Do you think this looks okay?”

Okay? I want to tear it off of her. “You look beautiful,” I assure her.

“Is it appropriate though?” She turns and looks in the mirror.

She’s nervous and upset and it doesn’t really have anything to do with the dress. We’re getting ready to go to a memorial being held at the mall where the shooting took place. Now that the investigation is complete, they want to give the family and friends a chance to mourn and say goodbye.

“Sweetheart.” I cup her face in my hands. “It doesn’t matter what you wear. This isn’t a funeral and no one is going to judge. Wear whatever makes you comfortable. I’m sure Frannie wouldn’t mind.”

Her entire face lights up when she smiles. “Frannie practically lived in jeans and tee shirts.”

“There you go.”

When we leave a few minutes later, she’s dressed in jeans and a baby blue tee.

If I’m dreading this, I can’t imagine how hard it is for Leah and the others who survived it. She’s chewing her nails to the bone when I park in the lot, and I brush her hand away from her face.

Wide eyes meet mine. “I can’t go inside. The elevator. I don’t want to see it. Or the food court. There was so much blood.”

“We aren’t going inside. The memorial is being held in the field on the north side.” I point to our right. “See?”

A crowd is starting to gather and two people are filling balloons from helium tanks and handing them out. Another person is distributing candles in little paper holders. “Leah, if you want to go home…”

“No. I’m all right.” She hops out of the car, and I grab her hand as we walk across the lot.

The side of the mall is plastered with large pictures of the victims, ranging in age from sixteen to fifty-five. Zoe and Landon approach with Sadie and Justus right behind them. Leah holds up until Zoe walks up to Frannie’s picture and bursts into tears.

Tears stream down Leah’s face as she rushes to Zoe, and hugs her. Sadie joins them and they just stand there and cry together for a few moments.

I nod at Dare and Justus, and we walk over to get the balloons and candles.

The man filling the balloons gestures to the table beside him. “Feel free to borrow a marker if you’d like to write on it,” he tells us.

The girls each collect a candle to hold, and we all walk toward the back of the field, letting others through to the balloons and candles.

“Are you okay?” I ask Leah, and she nods. I hand her a marker and offer the balloon. “Do you want to write anything on it? They’re going to be released at the end of the memorial.”

Placing the unlit candle at her feet, she writes Frannie’s name on the balloon and the words Be Happy underneath. “I didn’t know what else to say,” she murmurs, handing me the marker.

“It says all it needs to, sweetheart,” I assure her.

She hands the marker to Zoe and picks the candle back up.

Whoever planned the memorial did really well. Friends and family of the victims have a chance to talk about their lost loved ones. Frannie’s mother shows up and says a few words, but she’s too frail to stay long. With candles burning in our hands, we stand and listen as the lives of twenty-two people are celebrated and their unnecessary deaths mourned.

A lump forms in my throat when I realize how easily I could be standing here looking at a picture of Leah or writing her name on a balloon. Chance. It’s only by chance that she survived, and I’m so grateful. It’s terrifying how quickly everything can be taken away from you for no reason. Anyone can be going along with their lives one second and dying on a convenience store floor the next. I won’t take one second of my life with Leah for granted.

After the families speak, they announce it’s time to launch the balloons. “Be Still” by The Fray begins to play through the speakers and there’s not a dry eye anywhere. I stand behind Leah, with my arm around her middle as she looks up and releases her balloon.

We stand there, watching the early evening sky speckled with color while the music fills the night.