You helped me move out of his house. Remember?”
He nodded. “But that was just a few months ago,” he said. “It wasn’t that long at all.”
“Yes, it was,” she said, “I was pregnant. Remember?”
“Yes,” he said, “you were pregnant.” He looked at her belly and said, “What happened to the baby?”
At that point, she realized that he really wasn’t all there. She looked over at Greyson, who shrugged.
“There’s not any real talking to him now.”
“I know,” she whispered. “I’m so sorry.”
“I’m not,” Greyson said. “What about Frank, Jensen? How did you get him into this?”
“He needed money,” he said. “That’s the one thing I have now, thanks to my brother.”
“So you paid him to come stalk her? And to kidnap her son?”
“Well, he was supposed to bring the boy to me,” he said. “He’s my son after all.”
At that statement, she gasped, then stared at him in fascination. “You do know that George was his father, right?”
“No. No. No. I am George,” he said. “My brother is gone. I’m now in George’s life. It’s his house. It’s his bank accounts. It’s his car. They’re all mine now,” he said, with a beautiful smile. “And so is my son.”
Chapter 18
When the cops came and finally took Jensen away, she heard about Frank, who had been left out in the yard. Greyson led the men to the backyard and showed them the man tied up there. They brought him back to the house. Greyson had also taped the entire conversation with Jensen and shared that with the police.
The cops listened to it and shook their heads. “This guy will never stand trial. The judge will declare him unfit in a heartbeat.”
“I know,” Greyson said. “I’m not sure he’s sane enough to even be left on his own.”
“But it wasn’t him who attacked the cops earlier, right?”
“No. He wasn’t the one who escaped their custody. I suppose it’s possible Jensen helped Frank,” Greyson said, “but I honestly don’t know. The cops were outside at that point, taking away their prisoner.”
Suddenly shouts and cries came from outside. They looked at each other in horror and raced outside. The paramedics were desperately trying to work on a man on the ground.
“What’s the matter?” the cops yelled.
“He pulled a razor blade from his waistband,” a paramedic replied. “But, instead of attacking us, he slashed his throat. He hit an artery.” An edge of panic was in his voice as they worked to try to save Jensen.
Jessica stood on the front steps, looking at the scene in shock.
Greyson came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, tugging her against him.
She realized Kona was nestled up against their side, and she dropped a hand to Kona’s head, then moved it to cuddle closer to Greyson. “Dear God,” she said. “When will this be over?”
“Now,” Greyson said. “There’s too much blood loss for him to survive. They have to try, but he’s done.”
She shook her head. “Is it wrong for me to be okay with that?”
“It’s easier, but it’s also very difficult,” he said. “I’ve seen a lot of people suffer after returning from war. Unfortunately this kind of mental instability is often the result.”
“That’s terrible,” she whispered.
Another ambulance arrived and several more cops as well. They were pushing back the crowd that was gathering outside. He’d pulled her inside and said, “Come on. Let’s go up and spend some time with Danny and remember what life’s all about. Not to mention clean up your bed so you can sleep tonight.”
She looked up at him, her tears rising and a knot in her throat. When they raced upstairs, they found Danny right where she’d left him, sleeping in the closet. Greyson looked at him for a long moment. “The innocence of youth.”
“I know,” she whispered. “I almost hate to disturb him. Are we done with the cops?”
“For a little bit,” he said. “We’ve given them all the statements we need to tonight. We’ll have to deal with them later though. But this chaos outside isn’t anything we need to be involved in.”
“No,” she whispered.
He led her to the bedroom where he efficiently stipped off the bedding and with her help remade it.
“I wasn’t sure I’d be able to sleep here again, but the whole energy has shifted now. Plus with the mess cleaned up …”
“Not to mention, it’s over. You can stop being afraid. You get your life back now and can move on.”
She looked up at him, wrapped her arms around his neck, and said, “Could