Page 99 of Clash

“The bad place.”

“And how does that make you feel?” she asked me.

“Sad. I loved my daddy, but I don’t think he loved me or Mommy.”

“I’m sure he loved you, Alex. He just had a hard time showing it to you.”

I looked up at her face, counting in my head the wrinkles around her eyes. There were exactly five, because that’s how high I could count up to. It was a pretty big number.

“Do you think Mr. Clash will be nicer to my mommy?”

“I do. Mr. Clash seems to really care about your mommy, and you.”

That made me smile. “I think so too. He always smiles when I’m around.”

“That’s because you’re a very loving kid who makes everyone smile.”

Another thought popped in my head, and I started frowning again. “Miss Bessie, do you think Mr. Clash killed my daddy?”

She gasped. But I could tell she did. I did too.

“It’s okay. I know he did. He did it to protect my mommy, and even though that makes me sad, I’m not going to tell anyone about it, because I know it will get him in trouble, and then maybe he won’t be my daddy someday. He’d make a better daddy than my real daddy, that’s for sure.”

“Why do you say that?” Miss Bessie asked, taking me to the back bedroom.

“Because he makes my mommy smile. Mommy never smiled with my daddy. Not once. But she always smiles at me. She doesn’t have sad eyes anymore, either. Just happy ones.”

Miss Bessie gave me a warm smile, helping me settle into bed.

“Don’t think about it too much, okay?”

“I’ll try not to.”

“It’s okay to be sad about your daddy, Alex. But it’s also okay to be kind of happy. Now you and your mommy don’t have to be afraid anymore.”

“I know, Miss Bessie. That’s because Mr. Clash is here to protect us.” Yawning, I added, “I’m tired. Can I go to bed now?”

She gave me a kiss on the head, then got up from the bed. “Of course, Alex. Have a good sleep.”

“Okay, Miss Bessie.”

My eyes started to feel like they had big rocks on them. I could barely keep them open. I did my best to keep them open until she left the room, but before she did, she picked up a picture off the dresser and stared at it.

I’d seen the picture before. It was of her and a man. She was wearing a white dress, and he was in a funny colored blue suit.

“We did it, Roger. We brought another young couple together. This time, I think we got things right.”

She placed the picture back down on the dresser, and as my eyes fluttered closed, snuggling Skittles close to my body, I saw Miss Bessie move into the living room, collapse into her big recliner, and fall fast asleep.

Epilogue

A few months later

Today was the day I finally get to introduce Gina officially to my club. They all understood why I kept her away, knowing that with her situation, throwing her straight into club life was never going to be an option.

She was my plus one and a half. Snyder gave me the okay to bring both her and Alex to his and Shasta’s wedding. It seemed kind of crazy to be at this point in my life. If you had asked me ten months ago where I thought I’d be at this point in time, it wouldn’t be walking hand-in hand with the most beautiful woman in the world, while in my other arm I held the best kid ever.

Alex was chattering away, telling me all about how he was excited to start school in a few weeks.