Chapter Sixteen
There’s no way I was born to just pay bills and die.
—Mel’s Motivational Blog
“Then the other office could go over in the opposite corner instead of making that a lobby area.”
Melanie rubbed her head. Livie and Jax opted to not go on a honeymoon, and got right back into the renovations. Time was money, literally. They were paying contractors and Zach was overseeing everything, so they didn’t want him tied up any longer than necessary.
“You can’t keep changing things,” Jax told Livie. “We don’t need another office, so let’s stick to the original plan and have this front area open for the lobby. We all liked the idea of some leather sofas and a few desks and chairs along the wall for work spaces.”
Melanie listened to their bantering back and forth and was glad she’d waited until her stomach settled before she came in. Tanner had left for his shift early and she’d been on her own for her morning sickness. Thankfully, he’d left water and crackers next to her side of the bed.
Her side of the bed. That was the point they were at in this relationship. Was that a label?
“Zach said he was going to start the heavy work in the kitchen today because that’s where the bulk of our renovations will be.” Jax shoved his hands in his pockets and rocked back on his heels. “He had to run out and get a few more things, but when he comes back, we need to go over anything you want changed now, because once he starts, there’s no going back.”
Livie nodded. “I know, I know. I’m just nervous and I don’t want to make a mistake in this. We’ve tied up so much of our money and now we have these grants.”
Melanie took a seat on the old, worn plaid sofa in the current lobby. “There’s nothing to worry about. Anything worth having is worth the risk, and I believe you guys are going to make this airport something your father would most definitely be proud of.”
Livie smiled. “I hope so.”
Melanie’s cell chimed from her purse. She reached across the sofa and pulled it out, only to find Neville’s assistant’s name staring back at her.
“Still having issues?” Livie asked. Apparently the heavy sigh and the eye roll gave away the unwanted caller.
“Nothing I can’t handle,” Melanie assured her. “Excuse me.”
Melanie stepped outside and around the corner where the building hadn’t been touched yet. No debris or equipment there, and complete privacy.
She swiped the screen. “Hello?”
“Melanie, so glad I caught you. Neville has scheduled a meeting with you next Tuesday at eleven.”
Taken aback, Melanie pulled the phone away and glared at it as if she’d heard the demand completely wrong.
“I’m not meeting with Neville.”
“He said you’d say that,” his assistant stated. “He did say he’d let you choose the meeting place, but Tuesday at eleven is his only opening for quite some time.”
Melanie snorted. Arrogant son of a bitch. He demands a meeting and acts like he’s doing her a favor by carving out this time.
“I’m not coming to Atlanta or anywhere else to meet,” Melanie reiterated. “I’m not going to answer any more of your calls or his. You can pass that along to him.”
“Um, he says that he has some information that you will want to know.”
Melanie stilled. “What type of information?”
“I’m not at liberty to say, but trust me when I tell you that you’ll want to hear him out.”
Melanie weighed her decision. What the hell was he up to now? This little impromptu meeting sure as hell wasn’t for her benefit, and he wasn’t giving her this supposed information because he was concerned about her. No, whatever game he was playing would benefit one person. Neville.
However, if she went and met with him face-to-face, maybe she could put this part of her past to rest once and for all. Perhaps he just needed to see that she was a different woman now. She was stronger, more determined than ever to own her life and put him behind her for good. He was used to the weak Melanie. He wouldn’t even recognize the woman she’d become.
“Fine,” Melanie conceded. “I’ll text him with the location.”
Melanie disconnected the call before his assistant could argue or ask for the location of the meeting. Pulling in a deep breath, Melanie had a knot of tension in her belly. Had she just made a date with the devil?
No matter. She wanted to get this over with. She wasn’t doing this for Neville, she was doing this for herself. To face her past one final time, to prove that she’d come out on top despite all she’d been through. To face the monster one last time.
Melanie gripped her phone and headed back inside. Livie and Jax were still discussing the office versus lobby, but Livie quickly turned her attention to Melanie.
“Everything okay?”
With a slight nod, Melanie smiled. “Fine. What can I do for you guys today?”
“I’m going to be in the kitchen with Zach when he arrives,” Jax stated. “I have no scheduled flights or lessons today.”
“I plan on picking Piper up from school in a bit and we’re going to do a little shopping. Care to join us?”
Melanie hadn’t been shopping for herself in some time, but she was also saving every last dollar that came in through her sites. Eventually she was going to have to get a place of her own and save for her baby.
“I think I’ll sit this one out,” she told her friend. “I have some work to get done if I’m not needed here.”
Livie tipped her head to the side. “What happened with the phone call?”
“Are you having trouble?” Jax asked, taking a step toward her.
“No, no trouble. I’ll just head back to the house and get some things done. If you need me, just text.”
Melanie turned to grab her purse from the sofa.
“Mel.”
Livie’s firm tone had Melanie turning back around. “I swear I’m fine. Go shopping. I’ll catch you the next time.”
Melanie headed out of the building to the car that she’d become used to. Her simple life here in Haven was clicking into place one portion at a time. She didn’t want anyone to know about the meeting with Neville. They’d try to talk her out of it.
But she needed to go. She had to, for herself. There was something therapeutic about knowing he held no power over her anymore, and a thrill of strength shot through her because soon he would realize it as well.
She had greater things planned for her life, for her baby’s life. And quite possibly a future with a man she’d fallen in love with.
* * *
Tanner pulled his patrol car up next to the curb a block away from the bank where currently a deranged man inside was waving a gun around and demanding money. The alarm had come through only six minutes ago, but those six minutes must seem like a lifetime to the innocent bystanders inside.
Ducking alongside his car, he moved toward one of the other officers on the scene. “How many hostages?”
“We have a teller inside the boardroom. She closed the door and the blinds as soon as the guy started yelling demands.” The officer pointed toward one of the windows. “That’s the room right there. She’s in the utility closet in there on her cell phone. She can hear a little, but she’s been giving us updates.”
Well, at least they had someone inside. But damn it, things like this didn’t happen in Haven. Tanner stared at the building, blinking against the bright afternoon sun despite having his sunglasses on.
“Just one armed gunman?” he asked.
“Yes. Other than wanting the money from the vault, he hasn’t made demands to us or tried to contact anyone outside.”
He would. No doubt the guy would try to use an innocent as a bartering ploy to escape safely. Tanner’s main objective here was to make sure each and every person got out of that bank safely.
So far there were four deputies and three officers on hand. Over his radio he heard requests for more backup from neighboring towns. The place needed to be completely surrounded.
“Captain is calling in now,” the other officer said.
Making contact with the gunman was imperative from the start. Any good negotiator could get him talking, play to his sympathetic side, and try to pretend to understand where the suspect was coming from.
Tanner’s gut tightened. He didn’t like the waiting game, it only made his anxiety that much worse. He focused on his breathing, on looking ahead to an outcome where everyone remained safe and unharmed. He refused to think any other way.
He glanced down the row of police cars lined up against the curb facing the bank. His captain was on the phone and it was only a matter of time before they knew more and could make a plan of action.
“Damn it.” The other officer pointed over Tanner’s shoulder. “The media is here.”
Not what they needed right now. Having even more innocent people around was never good. Besides, they didn’t need this on the news or all over social media because the trickle effect would be hell. Once family members realized their loved ones were inside, then they’d come down, too.
Tanner remained crouched behind the car, but patted his buddy on the shoulder. “I’ll go to them.”
Someone had to field them and keep them at a safe distance. Already two other officers were sectioning off the area and pushing the journalists back.
“If you all could hold the photos and reporting for just a bit,” Tanner yelled to the growing group. “We promise to give a full statement shortly, but we don’t want to cause more havoc than necessary and we need to focus on the situation inside.”
“So there is a gunman with hostages?” one young female reporter asked. She had her cell pointed toward him and Tanner had to resist the urge to jerk it from her hands. She was only doing her job; unfortunately it interfered with his.
“No comment. A statement will come shortly, like I said. We need you to stay back.”
Without another word, he headed back to the shield of cars and hunkered back down. “What did we learn?”
“Captain says the guy is slurring his words, most likely strung out or drunk.” The officer kept his attention on the building as he spoke. “We learned he recently lost his job at the factory over in Silas and he needs money for his family.”
Tanner couldn’t even imagine the desperation that guy felt, but there was a right way and a wrong way to go about fixing your life when you were thrown for a loop. Breaking the law was definitely not the right way.
Added to that, if he’d been drinking or using any substances, he was most certainly unstable and they needed to get the hostages out of there now.
“Captain asked for him to release one hostage in good faith, but the gunman hung up,” the officer went on. “We have learned his name is Marshall Malone. We’re trying to reach his wife now, and hopefully she can call in and talk him out.”
Another way to appeal to their compassionate side. All they had to do was get someone down here who knew him personally and could hopefully use the right words to end this situation.
Despite its being December, between Tanner’s uniform and his Kevlar vest, the afternoon sun was starting to take its toll. Sweat rolled down his face, but he never took his eyes off the bank. He wondered what the situation was inside, prayed that they’d all go home at the end of the day.
Dread curled inside him as he thought of Melanie. If she saw this on the news or through social media . . . damn it. She lived on social media, and there was no way to prevent her from seeing this robbery in progress. He couldn’t exactly take time to text and assure her he was fine.
The last thing he wanted was for her to be stressed, and this would no doubt terrify her.
Tanner had to remain focused, though. Those people inside were his top priority. He would have to worry about Melanie later, and this was the first time he truly hated putting his job ahead of his family.
This was also the first time he could truly admit that he was falling in love with her. He’d never wanted to put anyone ahead of his job before, but he’d give anything to reassure her right now. Anything to alleviate the fear she no doubt had, or would soon when she discovered what was happening.
As the crowd gathered along the perimeter of the roped-off area, he willed himself to remain in the moment and make it his mission to bring every single hostage out safely.
Then, once he was home safe himself, he’d tell Melanie how he truly felt.
* * *
Melanie couldn’t tear her eyes from the screen. The news report had a camera pointed right toward the bank in town, and she’d already spotted Tanner. He hadn’t moved in so long, but at least he was safe. For now.
She’d been in the middle of finishing up her scheduled blogs for next week when she’d scrolled through her phone to check on something from her social media page. That’s when she’d seen the images from random folks who stood in the crowd and had uploaded phone pics of the events.
Her stomach had dropped and everything else had been forgotten. The blog, her work, literally everything ceased to exist.
She sat right on the floor of Tanner’s living room with her legs crossed and her eyes glued to the television. Her heart raced like mad, but she tried to tell herself that as long as she could see his back on the screen, then he was fine.
But at some point this would all come to an end and she hoped he came home safe. Just the thought of something happening to him ripped her heart in two.
How had she ever compared him to Neville? When she had first met Tanner, she assumed he used his position on the force to be controlling and powerful. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. This man put his life on the line every single day, and she hadn’t realized until now just how valuable he was in her life.
Her cell rang, but she ignored it. She didn’t care who was calling, she needed to keep her eyes on this screen.
Melanie wasn’t sure how long she’d watched, but the next thing she knew the front door opened and closed.
“Mel.”
Livie’s voice pulled her from the screen. “The living room.”
Moments later Livie and Jade took a seat on either side of her. Of course they’d be here. She hadn’t even thought to call them for help so she wouldn’t be alone. All her thoughts had been on Tanner.
“He’ll be fine,” Jade assured her. “This is his job.”
Yeah, that’s the part that scared Melanie the most.
“Jax and Cash are heading down,” Livie said, taking Melanie’s hand in hers for support. “They’re staying back, but they wanted to be there to help crowd control.”
“Why is this taking so long?” Melanie muttered. “Can’t they just go in and get the guy?”
“In theory that sounds great.” Jade rubbed her hand up and down Melanie’s back. “This will take some time, but we’re right here for you. Tanner is going to be fine. He’s a smart cop.”
The instant burn in her throat and nose gave Melanie about a minute’s warning before the tears started falling. She had no clue how to keep her emotions at bay, so she opted to just let them go.
“You’re going to need to remain calm,” Livie said. “Think of the baby. Think of Tanner. He wouldn’t want you getting this upset, right? Wouldn’t he tell you there’s nothing to worry about and he’ll be fine?”
Melanie sniffed and nodded. “He would. Damn it, I just feel so helpless doing nothing but waiting and watching.”
“Honestly, that’s all the cops are doing, too,” Jade added. “They’re waiting and watching for this guy to make a move or give himself up.”
Melanie concentrated on breathing slowly, on remaining as calm as she could for the baby. “I just want to do something.”
“What were you doing before the news broke?” Livie asked.
“I was working on my blogs and getting them scheduled for the next week, and then I was going to attempt to make dinner.”
Jade laughed. “Wow. You really are getting into this whole domestic life. What were you going to make?”
“Well, I’m usually only good at throwing things together and winging it for experiments to use on my blog. But I thought I’d make an actual dinner that didn’t involve kale or spinach.” She smiled, thinking of how she’d been so eager to surprise Tanner. “He’s more of a meat-and-potatoes type of guy.”
“Most Southern guys are,” Livie chimed in. “It’s how they were raised.”
Jade patted Melanie’s knee. “Why don’t we start dinner. Tanner is going to be tired and hungry when he gets home.”
Melanie stared at the television. “I should call his mom,” she muttered. “I’m sure she’s heard, but I feel like I need to call her.”
“You go call her.” Livie came to her feet. “Jade and I will start dinner, and you need to remain calm. Okay? Everything will work out and Tanner will be home before you know it.”
Melanie nodded. At least there was a plan.
Jade stood up and extended her hand to help Melanie to her feet. “Thanks, guys,” Melanie said, looking from one concerned friend to the other. “I’m glad I’m not alone.”
“We wouldn’t let you be alone,” Livie told her. “Now go call his mom.”
With Teresa living an hour away, Melanie wasn’t sure if she’d heard the news or not, but she needed to be informed. Melanie used her cell and sat on the sofa, making sure to keep her eyes locked on the television for any new updates.
She waited, but the phone just kept ringing. Ultimately, Melanie ended up leaving a message to call back. She really didn’t want to discuss the situation over voicemail.
Soon, tempting scents started wafting from the kitchen. A news anchor stood in front of the camera and gave an update that the cops were in negotiations with the gunman. Moments later in the background, Melanie saw two women running from the front of the bank. Tanner and another officer ran up to meet them and escorted them to safety.
The sun was starting to set. Who knew how much longer this would go on, but Melanie would be right here waiting for Tanner to come home. Because as soon as he walked through that door, she was going to tell him she loved him. There were no doubts and there was no promise of another day. If she wanted him to know how she felt, she couldn’t hold off any longer.