REprisal - Kathy Coopmans Page 0,31

so sure it worked? We all know those surgeries are not 100%.”

The question is barely out of my mouth before I hear a strangled cry from behind me.

I twist around to look at my mother, who is now crying uncontrollably.

“Mom.”

I stand, go to her, and bend down to embrace her.

“I can’t take anymore,” she sobs. “I know you all hate Trent and you have every right to, but please stop. For God’s sake, please. He’s my son too, and this… it’s killing me to sit here and listen to all of this. I just can’t do this anymore.”

“Shh, Mom,” I whisper. I hold her as hot tears cascade down her face, landing on her flowery dress. Someone hands me a box of Kleenex and for the first time in my life, I console my fragile mother who has carried more burden, guilt, and shame through this entire thing than the rest of us combined.

She places her unsteady hand on my cheek.

“Thank you, son,” she murmurs.

“Do you want something to drink, Melody?” asks the Chief.

I’ve been so selfish and consumed with my own thoughts today, I have not once thought about what this is doing to her. I grab hold of the back of the chair I was sitting in and pull it back to sit next this strong and brave woman who has lived most of her life in hell. I clasp her hand in mine. She places her other over the top, gently squeezing.

“I would love something to drink, please.” she replies through her still trembling lips. “But first I believe my son asked a question before I broke down, and he has the right to an answer.”

“Right.” The chief nods. “I only have Hollis’s word. That’s all I’ve got until we get our hands on either his ex-wife or your brother. I will tell you this, though. That man in there is telling me the truth. He is so eaten up with guilt from this whole thing that he’ll most likely die from it before he dies from spending the rest of his life in prison.”

“That motherfucker is here? I want to see him!”

“Turner. You can’t.”

Zack stands and approaches me.

“That’s bullshit! I…”

“I know. I know,” he says, then pulls me in for a meaningful, much- needed brotherly hug. “I want to rip his damn heart out just as much as you do, but we can’t. All we can do is wait until we hear from the FBI that they have Tina and Trent in custody and that Clove is with them and safe.”

It’s at that precise instant I pull away from Zack, survey the family and friends surrounding me, and ask the one question I should have asked from the very beginning.

“What’s my daughter’s name?”

Chapter Eleven

Clove

“Journey!” I scream. Oh God.

My head is throbbing as if it is being compressed between two heavy bricks.

“Journey!” I scream again.

Where is she? Where am I? Son of a bitch! I can’t move my legs or my arms. It’s so dark. Panic shoots through me. I rotate my head nervously to the left and then to the right.

I wiggle my legs and hands profusely trying to break free. They are taped so damn tight they won’t budge. I lift my hands, trying to bring them to my mouth to chew the tape free when they smack against the top of this confined space.

“Oh, my God.”

The bitch has me in the trunk of her car. My daughter! Does she have her? How long have I been out?

“You fucking bitch! I am going to kill you! Give me back my baby!”

I cannot control my scared tears any longer. Sudden fear runs up and down my entire body. The loneliness I have felt for so long kicks in, the darkness from this trunk making it so much worse. Not having my little girl with me triples it.

I cry for the longest time, listening to myself and the sound of the car zooming down the road. I have no idea where we are or how long I have been out.

And Trent. My mind goes to him, too. That crazy bitch shot him. Is he dead? Even after his role in all of this, I don’t want him to die. I may have thought I hated him for what he has done, but I don’t. His may be a sick and twisted kind of love, one I never reciprocated and never will, but I know without a shadow of a doubt he cares deeply for me.

I choke on