Like father, like son.
After a heart-stopping moment of thinking it was the Devil’s, we quickly discovered a bunch of youths doing wheelies up and down the roads, and we let Axel watch for a few minutes as I got the suitcases in the car.
Karen’s dad had then distracted him with a teddy-shaped mini cake, and he was happy to be strapped into his car seat. He was now clapping along to Baby Shark on the radio and babbling his version of the lyrics, which included a lot of “mama, mama, mama” instead of the actual words, and I loved every minute of it, the way he babbled and kicked his little legs, innocent and carefree.
Baby Shark might be one of the most annoying songs in existence, but Axel alone had the ability to make it cute.
The mention of Baby Shark triggered a memory from the past, sending me back to that day I burned Dante’s leather jacket. My actions left his room stinking of smoke, and so Dante had climbed into my bed that night, refusing to sleep in his own room. He had been as naked as the day he was born, and of course, it was the first thing I had noticed. Especially when his skin touched mine.
“I’m a thirty-four-year-old man. Did you expect me to have Baby Shark pyjamas?”
Don’t think about it, Rachel. Stop fucking thinking about it!
Those days were long gone.
It’s funny really, because I thought those were the hard days. It seemed like there was so much drama and so much arguing.
They were nothing compared to what was to come.
“You doing okay there, kiddo?” Karen’s dad asked, and I silently sent blessings his way as a thanks for preventing me from taking yet another trip down memory lane.
“I’ll be better when we’re out of here,” I replied softly.
“Understandable,” he nodded, taking another sharp turn. It had been his idea to avoid the city centre, and hopefully the worst of the traffic cameras. It was making our journey longer, but at least it would make Hacksaw’s job more difficult when they inevitably traced my movements.
I had changed the plan ever so slightly. After seeing those motorbikes, it made me realise how easy it was for the Devils to creep up on us if they at all suspected me.
Instead of being driven straight to our destination, I was going to jump out around ten minutes away from Hayley’s house so that if Karen’s dad’s car was discovered, it wouldn’t lead all the way to the front door. Frank was going to drive to Hayley’s street and let me know if anyone was outside. He wasn’tplanning on stopping, but would drive past as though he was any other driver on the road, heading home after a long day at work. And then he would let me know if the coast was clear.
The other plan for me was to throw on a black wig from Halloween that I had hastily packed last minute and walk the rest of the way. Well.Iwould be walking. Axel would no doubt take two steps and decide he was done, forcing me to carry him the rest of the way. But if I was being honest, I didn’t mind in the slightest. I was so desperate to feel him in my arms, to reassure myself that he was still here, still mine, still within reach, that I would happily carry him without complaint.
“We’ll be there in around ten minutes, sweetheart,” Frank said, clicking the indicator for another left turn.
“I really appreciate this, Frank—”
“Stop it,” he interrupted, waving me away. “Anything for my two favourite people. Isn’t that right, Axe-Man?” he grinned at my son in the rear-view mirror. My son squealed back at him, kicking his little legs in excitement. He babbled some nonsense, earning himself a proud laugh from Frank.
And then, Frank shifted, his tone growing more serious. “Before I forget, I want you to have this,” he said, reaching into his door pocket to pull out an envelope, handing it to me out of view of the window.
I pulled it onto my lap, opening it quickly, only to protest the minute I saw the folds of money.
“I can’t—”
“You can, and you will. There’s also a number written on a piece of paper in there. You don’t have to worry about anyone else having it or the phone being bugged. Before I picked you up, I went into the shop and bought a pay-as-you-go SIM card, and that’s how it’ll stay. It’ll never be registered in anyone’s name, and you’ll be the only one to have the number. If you ever need us, you give us a ring. Karen will pick up a second-hand phoneon her way home tonight, and the SIM will sit in there, never to be used for anything other than you being in need.”
“Frank…” I breathed. “Thank you. Seriously. You don’t have to do all of this.”
“We’re not doing it because we have to. You’ve been good to our Karen. You’ve never done her wrong, and we won’t do you wrong, neither,” he said firmly, his tone leaving no room for negotiation.
I sniffed back the tears that came to my eyes and placed the envelope into my backpack before hauling it onto my knee when I realised where we were.
It’s showtime!
Frank pulled the car to a stop and looked back at Axel, and then at me sadly. “I mean it, lassie. Anything at all…”
“I will. I promise,” I said, leaning over to kiss his cheek. “You take care of yourself.”
“Aye. You too.”
