Chapter 64: Chapter 13

JACE

Days have passed and Cami remains unconscious, but today they’re bringing her out of her coma. They’ve taken out most of her tubes, but she’s still hooked up to some machines. The bleeding in her brain has stopped and doesn’t seem to have caused any damage, but we won’t know for sure until she wakes up. I’ve been keeping a vigil by her side, only leaving to shower and change clothes at home.

This morning, just before I’m about to head back to the hospital, I pick up the ring. I’ve been bringing flowers and stuffed animals every day, wanting to ensure that if she wakes up, she’ll have plenty to look at. We’ve arranged the flowers and animals along the window sill, adding to the collection of gifts that others have brought.

When I get to the hospital, I see my parents sitting there, deep in conversation.

“They just administered the reversal drug, so she could wake up at any time. Maybe you should hold her hand and talk to her,” my dad suggests.

I nod in agreement, quickly taking Cami’s hand and leaning in close to whisper in her ear. Tears start to fall as I speak.

“Cami, baby, I need you! Please come back to me. Please, wake up. I can’t live without you.”

I bury my face in her hair, and that’s when I feel a slight squeeze from her hand.

“Jace?”

I look up quickly, watching as her eyes slowly flutter open. I can’t help myself—I start showering her face with kisses, earning a small giggle from her as she tries to push me away.

“Jace, I need to breathe!”

I sit back as the nurse and doctor come in, ready to remove the rest of her tubes and ask her some questions.

“Are you hungry, Cami?”

“I’m starving! And I really need to pee!”

“That’s a good sign. I’ll have some food brought up. We’ll let you use the bathroom, but we need to remove the catheter first. Then we’ll see if you can go on your own.”

We agree to their plan, and as soon as she’s free of all the tubes, I carry her to the bathroom. I help her as much as I can, which makes her blush, but it doesn’t bother me. Once we’re done, I clean her up and carry her back to the bed, helping her sit up.

“How long was I out?”

“Three days. They had to put you in a coma because you had a small brain bleed.”

“Jace, I was so scared!”

“I know, baby, but we’re taking care of it. Tamera is six states away and under surveillance. She’s been warned that if she comes back, she’ll be killed. We’ve been searching the town for your parents, and we’re still looking.”

“How did you know, Jace? How did you find me?”

“School cameras. I’m so sorry, Cami! I failed to protect you. I should have been more vigilant. I didn’t think they’d have help.”

“Jace, you couldn’t have known! I just want my parents.”

“Soon, baby, soon. We’ll find them and Mandy, and you and I will deal with them. Oh, I have something for you! Every day, I kept thinking about it sitting in our room, and how it should be on your finger.”

I reach into my pocket, get down on one knee, and open the box. She starts crying, and before I can even say anything, she screams yes, which makes her wince in pain. I didn’t really have a speech prepared, but I was ready to ramble if necessary.

“Oh yay! Look, we’re going to have a wedding soon!”

I’d completely forgotten they were still there! I look at Cami and blush as I stand up and slide the ring onto her finger. I lean in to give her a gentle kiss.

“Cami, thank you for giving me the honor of becoming your fiancé! I promise we’ll fix this and deal with it!”

While I’m talking to her, I hear my dad’s phone ring. He starts talking, but I’m too focused on Cami to notice that he’s trying to get my attention. When I finally look at him, he’s grinning from ear to ear.

“Nate found the parents!”

***

NATE

We’ve been at this shit for days! Combing through the damn town looking for these assholes. We’ve searched every damn corner and still can’t find them. There’s a small town about two hours away. We’ve got time, so I suggest to Tank, Frankie, and Jessie that we check it out. They agree, so we head out of town. We managed to find photos of her parents with Peggy’s help and have been showing them around, hoping for at least one lead.

After a two-hour drive, we arrive in the small town and stop to refuel before we start our search. Frankie fills up the tank while I go inside to talk to the clerk.

“Well, well, aren’t you a sight for sore eyes! What can I do for you, sugar? My name’s Aniyah.”

“Hi Aniyah, I’m hoping you can help me. I’m looking for these two people in the photos. Have you seen either of them?”

I watch her as she studies the photos, then looks back at me with a smile.

“Maybe I have, maybe I haven’t. What’s in it for me, mister?”

“Nate Maxwell. How about you tell me where they are and I make it worth your while?”

She grins, her tongue darting out to wet her lips. Her gaze travels over me.

I beckon her closer, and she leans in eagerly.

“First off, I’m a married man. Secondly, how does ten thousand dollars sound? Cash talks, bullshit walks. What’s it gonna be, sugar?”

“Well, she’s a lucky woman! Any chance any of your buddies are single? Knowing my luck, probably not. Your two friends here visit the store across the street every day. They drive an old gray sedan.”

She steps out from behind the counter, pointing at the store.

“That’s their car, so they’re there right now, sugar. They stay somewhere outside of town.”

“Aniyah, you’re a lifesaver. If this pans out, I might have a friend who’d be interested in you! I noticed your southern accent. Can you cook?”

“Oh, honey, can I cook! I make some mean fried chicken, grits, and collard greens!”

I know just the person for her. I thank her and head outside to fill the guys in about the car. As we’re talking, we see them exit the store and head toward their car. They don’t notice us, so we all duck and hide. We watch as they back out slowly and start heading, presumably, to their house. We can’t let them get there. Who knows what kind of firepower they have there.

We all pile into our car, flooring it, and check our guns to make sure they’re loaded and ready.

“Remember, we need them alive! We can’t do this on the main road, so we’ll wait for the right moment. Don’t let them get back to their house!”

I quickly dial my dad.

“Nate, what’s going on, son?”

“We found them, Dad! They’re in Trenton! We’re going to get them soon. Send cars this way and make sure Ron’s in one. I have someone for him to meet.”

I hang up as we see them turn down a driveway. The moment they turn, Frankie guns it and quickly pulls in behind them, ramming them from behind. The impact knocks them off the driveway and pins them against a tree.

We all jump out, guns raised, as they scramble out of their car with guns of their own. Gunfire is exchanged, and when the dust settles, both Frankie and Tank have been hit, but not seriously. Her parents are on the ground, yelling.

I holster one of my guns and stride over to Toni, grabbing her by the hair and kicking her gun away to Jessie. I drag her, screaming, over to Mike and toss her next to him. Tank takes Mike’s gun and Frankie starts kicking him in the stomach. I crouch down in front of Toni, grabbing her by the hair to make her look at me while I press my gun to her temple.

“You stupid bitch, did you think we wouldn’t find you? Lucky for us, Cami survived! Guess who’s going to be pulling the trigger when we get back and she’s feeling better. You’re going to wish we’d killed you right here!”

I shove her away and tell them to tie them up and throw them in the back of the car. I text my dad our location as we approach the house. I enter and am immediately taken aback by what I see and smell.

I rush out and start vomiting in the front yard. I collect myself and rush back in to check their pulses. They’re weak, but they’re alive. The guys take one look inside and have to walk off, pulling out their phones. They’re probably calling for emergency services.

Frankie and Tank return to the car to grab Toni and Mike and drag them into the house. I can’t believe these people are Mandy’s parents. What a bunch of fucking sickos.

I stay with the two victims, checking on them, when I see Tank and Frankie have tied Toni and Mike to chairs and are forcing them to look at the scene. They struggle to look away, but their faces are held steady. I need to figure this out. I keep checking the victims; they’re barely alive, but they are alive. I have Jessie help me carefully lift them and move them outside.

Within minutes, we’ve moved them outside and we’re all breathing fresh air. But these boys reek of shit and piss. They look drugged and completely out of it. Whose kids are they? Did these fuckers actually have other kids that no one knew about? How did they hide them? The ambulances arrive with the police and quickly load them up and drive them to the local hospital. They don’t look older than maybe ten, which makes me sick to my stomach.

We bring Toni and Mike outside and stand with the cops, waiting for my dad. I don’t know what to do right now. We sit and talk about what will happen next, since we’ll deal with Toni and Mike after we get our answers.

So the cops leave with a hefty donation for their department. We stand and wait for a while when we see a bunch of SUVs start pulling down the driveway. When they park, my dad comes running up. He walks into the house and quickly exits, vomiting.

I collect myself and walk back in, immediately hit with nausea again. The smell is horrendous. I start opening windows and doors to try to air out the smell. We start looking through papers, hoping to find any kind of information, but we still have no clue who these kids are. I walk back out and stand in front of Toni and Mike, explaining to my dad what we found. He’s clenching his jaw, ready to deal with this here and now.

“Who the fuck are those kids? Someone better fucking answer me!”

“Screw you, man!”

I stride over, landing a punch in his gut and another across his face, breaking his nose. Angie, one of our guards, steps forward, a smirk playing on her lips as she looks at the woman.

“Listen, Toni, I don’t hit women and I’d kill anyone who does. But that’s why we have female guards. We’re going to get answers, and we’ll wait as long as it takes.”

Angie starts to lay into Toni while Tank takes on Mike. It doesn’t take long before Toni caves.

“Okay, okay, I’ll talk. Just stop, please!”

I watch as Angie steps back, allowing Toni to spit blood onto the ground. We all wait patiently for her to start talking.

“Those kids are ours. We’re screw-ups, we know. We thought if we kept them drugged, they’d stay with us. We hid them with a friend and visited occasionally. When Cami left, we took them back, paid off our friends.

“We moved here hoping to start over, but we fell back into our old habits. They’re Cami and Mandy’s brothers. Peggy never knew about them, we had them in secret. They’re twins, about to turn eleven.”

I feel sick to my stomach. I glance at my dad, his jaw clenched tight. How could parents do this to their kids? What did these kids do to deserve such trash? I turn to walk away, the situation reminding me of our time with Scott. How quickly things can go from normal to hell. I need to get these kids. I turn to my dad, only to find him standing right next to me.

“Take whoever you need. Go get those kids. We’ll take these two back to the basement. I can’t promise they’ll be in good shape, Angie looks like she wants another round. But we’ll keep them alive for Cami and Mandy. Go get their brothers.”

I nod, grabbing Jessie, Ron, Jesus, and Frankie. I instruct Frankie to head back to the gas station. As we pull up, I motion for Ron to follow me. We walk in to find Aniyah crying in the doorway of what appears to be an office. She’s being yelled at by some guy, so we wait to see what’s happening.

Before we can react, we hear a smack and see her fall to the ground. Ron and I draw our guns and rush around the corner. He scoops up Aniyah while I grab the guy by the collar, pressing my gun to his head.

“She quits today! You’re lucky I’m in a good mood. Touch a woman again and it’ll be worse for you next time!”

I shoot him in the leg, then turn to the other employees.

“If he touches another woman, call Nate Maxwell. I’ll be back, and when I do, you better run, asshole!”

I turn to see Ron smiling down at Aniyah. I knew it! He grins at me, picks her up, throws her over his shoulder, and carries her to the car. She squeals like a child, earning a few swats on her behind. As we exit, the guys jump out of the car, their smiles broadening when they see Ron carrying his girl.

He sets her down and she looks up at him, smiling.

“Well, look at you, sugar. I think we’re going to get along just fine. I can’t wait to cook some of my southern dishes for you. You look like you enjoy good food.”

“Oh, can I marry you now, darlin’? I miss good southern cooking out here. You look like you can whip up some delicious meals.”

“Oh, aren’t you sweet! As long as you’re hungry, I’ll be cooking.”

“Okay, as much as I hate to interrupt this moment, we need to get to the hospital for the kids.”

We all pile into the car, Aniyah hopping onto Ron’s lap so we can all fit. On the way to the hospital, I make a three-way call with the lawyer and Mandy.

“Andy, we need a judge to sign off on Mandy becoming their guardian. The hospital won’t talk to me, I’m sure. Mandy, you need to get these papers and come to the hospital. Jessie and I will be waiting. Have Kyle bring you and the papers. Have Luis and Carlos bring a second car so we can take the kids home.”

I hang up as we pull into the hospital parking lot. Jessie and I rush in, asking to speak with a doctor.

“I know you can’t tell me anything. Their sister, my wife, is getting custody papers from a judge. I just need to know if they’re stable.”

“Nate, right? I’m Dr. Yu. I’m sorry, but my hands are tied. As soon as you have the papers, we can fill you in.”

“Okay, we’ll wait.” Just as we sit down, I get a text from Mandy saying she’s on her way with the papers. I text her the hospital’s address and wait for her to arrive.