Page 34

CHAPTER 34

ELI

I hadn’t meant to be on the old side of campus today. I volunteered to check the pool’s schedule and see when the next time the cheer squad could reserve it is. When I walked by Mo’s aftercare toward the old campus center, the playground was empty. From the distance, as I walked back toward the rest of campus, it was still empty.

There are always people milling about. Since it’s the afternoon, there were people coming and going from aftercare. I honestly didn’t think anything of it since I knew Edin would be picking up Mo at five. He’d hinted I could meet him here if I wanted and we’d pick Mo up together and walk home together.

I agreed, though I planned to meet him at the arena. Those extra few minutes in his company were worth the additional steps.

My attention was on my phone as I walked past the empty playground, once again checking my conversation thread with Edin. I dragged the chat to see the little circle, saying it was looking for new texts. I wasn’t surprised there weren’t any. Edin’s told me before that he silences his phone when he’s working out, otherwise he’s far too easily distracted.

“ELI! Help me!”

My heart fucking stops when I hear Mo’s screams. I spin back toward the aftercare building and see her struggling with… Edin’s mother, who’s trying to convince her to go with her. The woman who brought Mo out is looking on with horror. Mo continues to scream all the words Edin told her to as she fights.

Her eyes turn to me, pleadingly. Filled with big tears. “Eli!” she cries.

I run toward her. Mo breaks free of Edin’s mother’s hold and sprints to me. I catch her in my arms and grip her tightly. “She’s trying to take me away, Eli.” Her hold on me is tight.

“Don’t let go, Mo. I’ll get in touch with your dad.”

Her arms and legs wrap around me like a koala. One of my arms grips her tightly. Edin’s mother is there, trying to pry her away from me. Mo’s trying not to scream again as her heels and nails dig into me.

I don’t even address this woman throwing all sorts of gross accusations at me. I turn toward the small crowd that’s gathered in the entrance of the aftercare building. “Call the police. On yourselves, and the fact she’s trying to kidnap this child.”

Edin’s phone goes to voicemail. Frustrated, I dial again. And then a third time. I spin around, jerking Mo from the stupid lady’s hands. Mo screams at her not to touch her. That it’s a bad touch. I try not to smile at the words.

How do I get in touch with Edin? It would take me far too long to track down the arena number and then someone to find Edin. I need… Coach.

“Keep screaming at her, Mo,” I say as I dial Kelsey.

Thankfully, she answers. Her greeting is cut off when she hears Mo’s screams. “Kelsey, I need you to call your father and tell him to get Edin from the gym. There’s an emergency at his daughter’s aftercare.”

“Okay,” Kelsey says immediately and hangs up.

“Good job, Mo. Keep screaming.”

She does as I call Zeke. He answers, but before he gets a chance to speak, Mo’s screams cut him off. “STOP TOUCHING ME. STOP TRYING TO STEAL ME!”

“Do you know where the aftercare building is?” I ask Zeke.

“…Yes.”

“I need you here, please.”

“On my way.”

I pocket my phone and wait. Campus security shows up just before Edin comes running across the campus. A relieved breath puffs from my lungs when I see him and wrap both my arms tightly around Mo.

“Daddy’s coming,” I tell her.

Then he’s there. Everything happens in a daze. I hear his words, but I’m so fucking relieved he’s here that I barely hear what he’s saying. And his mother nags incessantly, she just doesn’t shut up. Then I listen to Mo on the phone, telling Dak through tears that they need him to come to campus with the file.

“I don’t know what it means, Uncle Dak. Daddy didn’t tell me what file. But he needs you to bring it. Please hurry; she tried to take me right from school and they were going to give me to her!”

I grip her a little tighter as she rambles through her fear.

The police arrive. Minutes pass and my brother arrives. Then Sparrow is next to us, assuring Mo that everything is okay. More and more people surround us. The only time I truly tune into what those around me are saying is when a police officer comes to ask Mo some questions. My heart breaks a little more with every word out of her mouth as she describes what happened and then why she doesn’t want to go back to her mother. What it was like with her mother. How sick her father was when they were there.

At one point, with tears in my eyes, I meet Sparrow’s eyes. There’s a tear trailing down his cheek too as he soothingly rubs Mo’s back. We don’t speak as Mo continues to cry through everything she tells the officer.

What feels like a year later, Edin and Dak return to us. Edin takes Mo and hugs her for a very long time. Neither of them say anything.

Finally, Mo asks, “Are they going to make me go with her?”

Edin’s arms tighten. “I will hide you away if they try. But no, you’re not going anywhere.”

“Let’s go back to our house,” Dak says quietly.

If I’m not mistaken, that’s Mo’s legal residence, according to her paperwork. That’s probably a much better place for her to be while we get this sorted, anyway. I’m sure there will be a lot of questions if they learn she lives in a frat house with more than forty men.

Even saying it in my head makes me flinch.

I don’t move as they start to walk away, unsure if I’m supposed to go with them. Zeke takes my hand, and we watch as they head for the car.

“Eli?” Mo calls, picking up her head to look at me.

Edin turns and Mo twists in his arms. “You don’t have to come with us if you don’t want to,” he says quietly. I’ve known him long enough to recognize the hurt in his voice.

I squeeze Zeke’s hand and let it go. “I’ll call you later.”

Zeke nods.

“Thank you for coming.”

He nods again.

I catch up and wrap my arm around Edin from behind. “I definitely want to come. I wasn’t sure if you wanted me to. That’s all.”

He nods. “I want you to.”

Mo agrees.

We squeeze into Dak and Sparrow’s car for the short ride to their house. They live just outside of campus in a cute house on a beautiful street. Even in the dark, I can tell it’s a perfect little neighborhood.

Edin’s in the middle of the backseat, and I hold him as much as I can. He’s still shaken. I can feel it in how tense he is.

“Daddy, are you going to be sick again?” Mo asks.

Edin looks at her, frowning. “What do you mean?”

“Like you were when we lived with Mommy.”

Edin bows his head. “No, Morgan. I’m not going to get sick again. I promise. Everything is okay.”

Mo leans her head on his shoulder. Edin lays his head on hers, his eyes meeting Dak’s, who’s turned around in his seat. Then he looks at me. I grip his hand. His answering hold is a vise.

Sparrow orders food when we get back and we cuddle up on the couch. I’m not sure how big Edin is on public displays of affection, nor whether he’d count it PDA with only Dak and Sparrow there to see, but I take a chance and pull him and Mo into my arms the way I do when we cuddle on his bed together to watch movies.

They both settle into my hold, and I hug them as tightly as I can. It feels surreal. Like we were inside a true crime show.

We don’t talk much. We eat in silence. Mo falls asleep in our arms shortly after. When she’s been asleep for a while, Edin gently shifts, so he can look at me. “I’m sorry. I do want you here, and I didn’t mean to make you feel like I didn’t.”

I kiss his lips softly. “It’s okay. It’s been a day. I didn’t want to impose on you when I know you’re struggling.”

“I struggle easier when you’re with me.” He tilts his head. “I think that came out wrong.”

Grinning, I rest my forehead against his.

“Whatever you need, Edin.”

He sighs.

“I think you should stay here for a few days,” Sparrow says. “Maybe a while longer. I’m not sure if living in the frat house is the kind of situation that’s going to work in our favor.”

Edin nods. “I know. It was probably always an irresponsible decision.”

“No,” Dak disagrees. “Mo’s thrived in that house. Anyone who knows her can see that. However, it’s not something the courts will likely believe, and we don’t want to give your mother anything that she can possibly use against you.”

“Yeah, I know. We’ll move back in here if you don’t mind.”

“We never minded,” Sparrow says. “We love having you here.”

Edin smiles, but it’s not genuine. He feels like an imposition. “There are… things that aren’t going to bode well for me. Like how I make money to support her. That’s why I think you need to keep custody.”

“This is going to get a little personal, but how much money do you have saved up?” Dak asks.

Edin shakes his head. “I think I’m close to 10K.”

“Can you take a break for a while?”

“Christmas. Then her birthday… I have to pay for aftercare monthly, though I’m not sure I’m comfortable leaving her there now.”

“Definitely not,” I say and then press my lips together. “Not that I have any say in this. Sorry.”

Edin smirks, glancing at me. “You kept my daughter from being kidnapped. I think you can have an opinion.”

“I will never let anyone hurt either of you,” I murmur, pressing my lips against his temple.

He takes a shaky breath and nods. “Thank you for being there.”

“It was completely accidental. I was coming back from signing out the pool for the squad. I… wouldn’t have even looked over if she hadn’t screamed my name.” I shake my head, realizing how I might have gone by, completely oblivious if she hadn’t spotted me. The thought of that is terrifying. How completely caught up in my own thoughts I’d been. I’d have walked right by a child abduction and not even realized it!

Is that how caught up in our own shit we’ve become these days?

“I don’t care why you were nearby,” Edin says, shaking his head. “I’m so fucking grateful that you were.”

I hug him tightly and for a minute, the four of us sit in silence with Mo sleeping quietly. Minutes pass again before anyone speaks.

“You know I stay home for work,” Sparrow says, his voice quiet. As if he doesn’t want to speak too loudly and break the fragile peace around us. “Take her out of that place. She can come here. We’ll sign her up for some activities to make sure she still gets lots of interaction outside of school.”

“As much as she’s going to love living here again, she’s going to be heartbroken to move out of the frat house,” Edin admits. His fingers move softly through her hair.

“We’ll create lots of reasons to visit them and for them to visit her,” I offer. “I have a feeling they’re going to be just as heartbroken, but I know they’re going to understand why the move is necessary.”

He nods slowly and then rests his head against mine.

After a while, Sparrow turns the television on low. We remain in the living room until it’s late. When we move upstairs, Edin is hesitant to bring Mo to her own bed.

I can’t imagine how scared he must feel. That could have gone very differently. Kids are abducted every single day around the world. Edin could have lost his daughter.

“We can bring her in with us,” I say as he stands in the hall in front of a room that’s very clearly Mo’s.

Edin takes a deep breath. He sways forward as if he’s going into her room, but eventually turns with her in his arms and leads us into a different room.

This room looks like it has much more personality than his room at the frat. I can see many more glimpses here that are representative of Edin than I’ve seen anywhere else. Hockey and pictures of Mo everywhere. There’s a framed piece of art on the wall.

I pull back the blankets on Edin’s bed. It’s bigger than the one at the frat. He crawls on and gently lays down Mo. Her little face scrunches in her sleep before her eyes flutter open. “Daddy?”

“I’m right here.”

“I don’t want to go to bed.”

He brushes her hair back. “You’re going to stay with us tonight. We’re just going to change.”

“I don’t want to be alone,” she whispers.

“Okay. We’ll take turns changing.”

Mo nods, her eyes closing again. Edin looks up at me. “There are clothes in the drawers,” he tells me quietly. “You can wear whatever.”

I lean down and kiss the top of his head. He leans against my stomach. “It will be all right, Edin. You need to believe that, too.”

Edin holds his breath. I don’t move until he exhales. I’m not sure he actually agrees when he subtly nods against my stomach. His grip on my legs is tight. I’m about ready to crawl into bed without changing just so I don’t have to leave him.

I don’t. I’m responsible and use the bathroom to change and find an unopened pack of four toothbrushes. Then I come back and crawl into bed, resting my hand on Mo’s so she knows she’s not alone if she wakes up again.

It’s not long before Edin is back. He shuts the door and turns off the light. The bed shifts as he climbs over me. He pulls Mo into his arms and then snuggles back into my chest. I wrap them both up.

“Thank you,” Edin whispers. “I’d have lost it if she’d gotten Mo.”

“I’m so thankful I was there,” I whisper back.

“Me too. I hope I have the opportunity to shred that fucking aftercare. She’s not on the approved pick-up list. That means no one even fucking checked!”

“We’ll do whatever we can to make sure they’re reprimanded to the fullest extent possible.”

Edin’s quiet. I think maybe the conversation is over, but he shifts so he can look at me. “We?” he repeats.

“We,” I agree. “Haven’t you figured it out yet?” I kiss his lips and continue to do so between each of my next words. “I’m never going anywhere. You’re mine. Mo is mine. I’m keeping you. It’s we from now on.”

He releases a heavy breath. I know he needs a minute to let the horror of the day catch up with him, but he’s not going to do so with Mo in the room. Not when there’s a chance she’ll wake up and see it. He wants to stay strong for her. It’ll be harder to convince her that everything is going to be okay if she sees how afraid he is.

His hand comes up and tangles into my hair. “Eli, if you say you’re not leaving, I need you to mean that and not take it back. I just… don’t have the strength or mental capacity to hurt again. Not that deeply.”

“I will never leave. We’re going to be buried just like this.”

His huff of laughter is watery.

“I mean it,” I assure him. “I know trusting someone with your vulnerability is difficult. Trusting someone with your daughter is difficult. I will never stop proving to you that you can trust me with the most precious things in your life. Including your heart.”

Edin nods, sniffing. “We,” he finally agrees. “The three of us.”

“Yes. Always.”