out. I had one moment of clarity when I realized that I was rolling around on the floor in a most undignified way fighting a woman almost twice my age.
The realization set in, and I burst into tears. What the hell happened to my life? I heard a voice in the doorway and stopped fighting long enough to glance that way only to get a shock. I tried getting to my feet when I saw Calen standing there. It didn’t matter why he was here, “you came.”
I started to reach out to him when I made it to the door, but then I saw who else was there, and it felt like the bottom just dropped out. “What are you doing here?” His mom and Giselle were standing there, staring as if I were some anomaly they haven’t ever seen before.
Calen
“Nope!” I saw the intent in Dana’s eyes and blocked her when she tried getting past me to my wife. I couldn’t believe that the woman standing in front of me was the same one I’d known for the past fourteen years, give or take. She looked as if she’d aged ten years in the last day or so, and I could tell from her bloodshot eyes and the way she looked around like a cornered rodent that she was high on something.
I had no words, so I just shook my head in disgust and turned on my heel to leave. I should’ve known these two were up to something when mom nudged Giselle, but my woman is not the confrontational type, at least before today she wasn’t, so I didn’t put two and two together until she ducked under the arm I went to put around her shoulder and rushed towards the doorway where Dana was still standing hurling insults.
The sound of her hand landing open palm across Dana’s face was loud in the hallway, and she looked just as surprised by the attack as I was. “That’s for my son who you robbed of a whole year of his father’s love. If you come near my family again, I’ll bury you somewhere they’d never find you.” She looked at mom, who gave her a pleased nod and a smile before holding her hand out.
“Come along, daughter dear, we have a vow renewal ceremony to plan. I think the garden would be perfect, and we’d better get on it right away before my granddaughter gets here. Please let this one be a girl; otherwise, we two Addison women will be outnumbered.”
From the look on Dana’s face at the words, I’m sure mom deliberately said loud enough for her to hear; there wasn’t much worse I could do to her. When she looked at me, I felt just a little bit sad for the girl I used to know, until my eyes fell on Ann, the woman she’d clasped hands with to destroy my family. “I’ll do you one last favor for old time’s sake. You should leave town before those two come up with ways to run you out of here.”
I’m pretty sure that that would be mom’s next move. The truth is I was doing this more for my wife and mother than her. While I was busy making calls in the car, those two had had their heads together, and though I’d only caught bits and pieces of their conversation, it was enough to warn me that no good could come from that alliance.
Not sure I should let my wife hang around mom too much. They were close before, but this time around, they seem to have forged some kind of bond that transcends what they once shared. As much as I don’t give a shit about Dana, I don’t want either of the women I’m responsible for getting their hands dirty on her.
I spared one glance for Ann, who should be thinking of the shit storm that’s about to fall on her head instead of being here fighting a losing battle. My call in the car was to Silas, who was even now editing the recording from Giselle’s apartment to pass on to the cops.
I’m not sure if Ann was too far-gone to realize that she’d admitted to killing her husband or if she really believed that I’d hide that shit to spare my family name. Whatever the case, she’s in for a rude awakening. I’d told Silas to put a rush on the recording and send it over to his guy on the force. Now