Page 16 of Having HIs Back
“Yes, it is. Henry was able to confirm our prime suspect, and now he is going to move from a person of interest to someone I get an arrest warrant for. All we need is the DNA, which is going to prove he’s the….” Brian stopped because he did not want to go there. They both knew what Chuck had done, and he didn’t need to repeat it. “And this case was solved all because of the actions of a six-year-old.”
“Excuse me?” Kerry said.
“Yeah. Think about it. Henry was scared, and he let Pebbles out. Pebbles bit Caroline’s attacker and got his blood on his coat. Because of that, we have DNA… and Henry identified him. Your nephew is a hero. I think the police department ought to… I don’t know….”
“You can’t give him what he truly wants,” Kerry said, knowing that all the boys would want for a long time was their mother back.
“I know.” Brian said softly. “But I can make sure that they have their Uncle Kerry to look after them and love them. Chuck is not going to get his criminal hands on Phillip, and those boys will grow up learning what love is from you. And they’ll hear stores about their mom.” Brian swallowed hard, and Kerry placed his hands on either side of Brian’s head, his palms against his scratchy cheeks as he drew him closer.
Kerry wasn’t sure if this was the right thing to do, but he drew him in and kissed him. He had intended to be gentle, but Brian closed his arms around him, holding him tight, and the kiss deepened within seconds to a red-hot sizzle that stopped all of Kerry’s thoughts in an instant. Somewhere deep down, he knew he shouldn’t be doing this, but fuck it all. Brian was hot as hell, and this dance they’d been doing needed to come to some sort of conclusion.
His entire body quivered with heat and excitement. Kerry pressed Brian back against the cushions, determined to take advantage of this moment.
“Uncle Kerry…,” Henry called. Kerry backed away and rubbed his mouth, kickstarting his brain as Henry barreled into the room, Pebbles right behind him. “Can I have another cookie?”
“Not right now. But later.”
He climbed onto the sofa and then sat on Kerry’s lap.
“What is it?”
“Where’s Phillip? Pebbles misses him.”
Kerry nodded. “He’s next door at Miss Karen’s. He’ll be back home really soon.” Kerry hugged him tight. “What do you want to have for dinner?” The juxtaposition of what he and Henry had talked about earlier seemed out of place with those kinds of questions, and yet they all needed as much normalcy as possible right now.
“Pizza.” Henry’s favorite.
“What do you want on it?” Kerry asked, already pretty sure he knew the answer.
“Cheesy with pepperonis.” He grinned. “Phillip wants cheese.”
“Okay.” He turned to Brian. “Do you want to stay?”
Brian was already standing. “I can’t. I have a number of things that I have to do, but can I come by later?”
“Certainly,” Kerry told him with a smile. “Let me know if there is anything that you need from us.”
“Just keep the doors and windows locked and your phone close by.” Brian seemed as though he had more to say, but probably didn’t want to say what he needed to in front of Henry. Brian said goodbye, and almost as soon as he left, Kerry’s phone dinged with a message.Charlie may make a play for Phillip. He’s desperate, and soon, he’s going to find out that we are on to him. By then he isn’t going to have much to lose. So, call right away if anything happens. Get Phillip from the neighbor and hunker down until we get him in custody.
Okay, Kerry sent in response before taking Henry’s hand. “Let’s go get Phillip.”
They left the house, locking up before going next door. Kerry knocked, and Karen answered the door. “Phillip,” she called back into the house. “Your uncle is here.”
Phillip raced over and hugged Henry. “She has lots of Legos,” Phillip reported.
“Thank you for watching him. Everything went really well.” He kept his tone light, not wanting to upset the boys.
“Good. Do they have everything they need?” It was like they were speaking in a kind of code.
“Yes.” He thanked her again and took both boys home. Pebbles was waiting for them, full of energy, greeting the boys like they had been gone for days. They all hurried off to play, and Kerry tried not to pace the house nervously as he waited for Brian to call. He hoped like hell that they were able to get Charlie in custody soon, but Brian was right. They weren’t going to be able to arrest the guy just based on what Henry had told him. They needed enough that Henry didn’t need to be involved at all.
Still, they were moving forward and getting closer to answers. It was up to the crime lab to provide them with the ammunition they needed.
“Let’s order pizza for dinner.” That got him smiles and even an excited bark from Pebbles.
“Uncle Kerry,”Phillip cried as he hurried up to him. “Why is someone outside?”
The pizza had arrived for dinner not half an hour ago. Kerry had checked when answering the door, and there had been no one there. Shit, when was all this going to be over? He was getting tired of feeling like he was on the edge all the time.
