10 Chapter 10

Jenna felt sick. She felt like a prostitute and she hadn’t even done anything yet. Even though she was sleeping in an entirely different room from Zach, she was still lying in a bed that belonged to him and wearing a silk nightie that he bought for her. Which was creepy as hell considering she hadn’t lived in the house for years. He kept all of her things exactly the way she left them. Even her toiletries had remained untouched on her makeup table. And the man accused her of having mental health issues.

She despised having to accept his charity. Charity that was bought with dirty money, given to him by rich clients that needed a smooth-talking lawyer to buy people off. She wished it had been his slimy business dealings that had finally driven her out of his home. No, it had been the mistress he’d taken up with as she’d struggled alone with postpartum depression after Lola’s birth. Afraid that people would talk, he hadn’t allowed her to seek medical help for her condition. She’d slipped further and further into the darkness of her depression until she’d finally decided to end it by swallowing a package of sleeping pills with a bottle of rum.

As she lay in the bed next to Lola’s bassinet slowly allowing the jagged edges of fuzziness in her vision to close in, she had the thought that the only person who would be left to take care of her daughter was an evil conscienceless bastard. And even though at the time Jenna thought she was the worst mother in the world, because depression is a mean bitch that tells you bullshit lies, she was leagues better than Zach. She had rolled off the bed and reached for the phone, fumbling with numb fingers.

The ambulance had arrived minutes later and rushed her to the hospital where her stomach had been pumped. There she had been assessed by medical professionals and given the medical intervention that she needed for postpartum depression. Not even 24 hours after she was released from the hospital, she sought the services of a divorce lawyer. And that was when the long agonizing battle for custody of her daughter began.

Zach never wanted to let her go. He’d been blindsided by the divorce and begged her to come back to him. When that didn’t work, he tried bullying her until she threatened him with a restraining order. A man in his position would be incredibly embarrassed by such legal action so he had backed off and trusted in his own clout to win the court over to his side.

She smiled into the bedding and thought about how she would get to see her daughter in the morning. He hadn’t let her see Lola tonight because it'd been past her bedtime when Jenna arrived, and he wanted to know what brought his ex-wife back to him looking for sanctuary. She had spilled the whole story to him, not bothering to hold anything back. The added strain and emotion helped to convince him that she was being truthful. She decided to use him if she could. He was a criminal lawyer. Even though he was scum, maybe he could help her.

She was certain he wanted her to sleep with him, but he’d restrained himself, showing her to one of the guest rooms instead. She’d cringed when he reappeared with one of her old negligees, a short black silk nightie with crisscrossing straps up both sides showing an indecent amount of thigh and side boob. His help would soon come with a hefty price tag. He never made a secret of his intentions during their court appearances and Lola’s supervised visits. He wanted his wife back.

She intended to be long gone before that happened.

Jenna didn’t know how long she’d been sleeping when the doorbell woke her up. She blinked sleepily and rolled on to her back rubbing a hand over her eyes and looking toward the window. It was still dark out. Yawning widely, she sat up.

Zach was stumbling in the hall swearing and, if she weren’t mistaken, pulling on a pair of pants. It wasn't unusual for him to get nighttime visitors. Crime didn't really run on a timeline and you never knew when someone powerful needed legal advice because his stupid nephew got charged with a DUI or something. Still, Jenna didn’t like having a visitor so close to her own arrival.

Sliding out of bed she reached for the barely-there matching silk robe that went with her nightie and crept noiselessly into the hallway. She knew just where to stand in the shadows at the top of the stairs so she could hear the conversation without being seen. Too many shady visitors from the past had taught her to be her vigilant.

"You know who I am?" she heard the words clearly from her vantage point and gasped as recognition crashed over her.

Zach cleared his throat. "Of course, Vincent Corey and Jared Lagos. There’s few in our circles that wouldn’t know of you."

Jenna watched in shock as Zach stood back to let the two men that had stalked and harassed her into his home. He couldn't know that they were the ones she had told him about. She hadn’t known their names. Well, she’d learned Jared’s name during their chat, but neither man’s full name, so she hadn’t been able to identify them. She felt Zack could be more careful about letting people into his home knowing she was in trouble. Vincent, the one that’d come to her home, that had kissed her and forced her to feel things, zeroed in on the staircase as though he could see her. Jenna pressed her spine back against the wall, melting further into the shadows.

"Please come into my office, we can discuss your business more comfortably in there," Zach tried to usher them into his spacious workroom.

"I don't think so," Vincent said coldly, refusing to move. "I prefer to speak right here."

"Alright… of course, ah, what brings you gentleman to my home at this hour?" Zach asked deferentially, clearly trying to understand the situation. He believed they were there for the same reason any other criminal element showed up at his door in the middle of the night.

"You have something that belongs to me," Vincent said with such loathing that a chill slithered down Jenna’s spine. She’d made a huge mistake in running to someone from her past. To a place where she could be traced. She should have left the city and just kept going. But she couldn’t bring herself to leave Lola behind!

Zach sounded extremely confused. "I’m not sure how that’s possible since we just met tonight. I believe you have me mistaken with someone else. Unless you mean - "

"Jenna," Vincent bit out.

"Fuck," Zach said, realizing exactly who she managed to tangle with. He probably knew better than her what she was up against. "You want my wife?"

"Ex-wife," Vincent snarled, his tattooed fingers curling into massive fists. Jared crossed is arms and glared at the lawyer, letting him know exactly how things were about to go down.

Jenna’s head spun as she watched the showdown in the lobby of her husband’s mansion. She knew realistically that there was going to be one outcome. Despite his obsession with her, Zach would have no choice but to let her go. He had a keen sense of self-preservation that would put his safety above her well-being.

Fuck that. She wasn’t going to stand here and meekly listen to them hash out her fate. She was getting the hell out of there and she was taking her daughter with her. Even though she didn’t have a clue where she was going or how she would get there, she wasn’t leaving Lola to spend one more day with her terrible excuse for a human-being of a father.

Turning swiftly on the stairs, Jenna went tearing toward Lola’s room at the end of the hall. Though, at three-years-old, Lola was outgrowing her crib, she wasn't willing to give up her bed quite yet. It appeared as though Zach had taken Jenna’s suggestion at their last supervised meeting and lowered the side a foot so the little girl could climb in and out on her own. Lola was sprawled out on her back with all four limbs in completely incongruous directions that any other time would have Jenna bursting with laughter. Instead she rapidly gathered the soft unicorn patterned blanket around the soundly sleeping child and lifted her.

Lola didn’t wake as Jenna hurried down the back stairway. She was both pleased and amazed that she was able to make it silently through the dark house with her sleeping child. She hoped Zach hadn’t changed the code to the garage and that there was still a set of keys to her old Mercedes in the maintenance shed. If she could actually get out of town that easily she would spend the rest of her life living like Mother Teresa, dedicating her life to making Lola happy. In Mexico. Or Canada. Whichever border was easier to cross unnoticed in a stolen Mercedes.

She shifted Lola’s weight onto her shoulder, unlocked the kitchen door and slipped out into the darkness. A heavy hand came down on her shoulder drawing a stifled scream from her. Her eyes flew up into the face of a man she’d never met before but knew to her bones belonged to Vincent Corey. His eyes pierced her in the darkness and then fell to Lola who was still sleeping but beginning to murmur restlessly against Jenna’s breast. He lifted a finger to his rugged face in a gesture that she should be quiet. Then he shifted his hand to circle her upper arm and push her back into the house.

He gave her a gentle shove, closed the door behind them and then indicated she should lead the way. He didn’t let her go. She understood. He wanted her to go back to the front door where the trio of men were negotiating her surrender. Bowing her shoulders slightly, Jenna nodded. What else could she do? She didn’t want Lola to wake up during this unholy mess and become upset.

Vincent’s eyes narrowed immediately on Jenna as she emerged from the back of the house barefoot, wearing a sheer black lace wrap and holding a sleeping bundle. His body tightened subtly and he raised a questioning brow toward his man.

"Caught her leaving out the back door. I’d guess she was heading for the garage," the guy grunted quietly.

Vincent gave his man’s hand a pointed look, which he immediately removed from Jenna’s arm and then he stepped away from her. Zach stared at her for a moment and then back at Vincent, frustration etching his features. She knew what he was thinking. She had finally been within his grasp, asleep under his roof once more and in need of his help. Now she was being torn from him and he would have to let her go without complaint.

With a heavy sigh, he approached Jenna and reached for Lola. "I’ll take her."

Panic filled Jenna. She hadn’t even spent time with her daughter. Her arms tightened involuntarily around her baby and her eyes squeezed tightly shut as the unfairness of the situation crashed over her. She felt Zach’s hands tug at her and she took a quick step away from him shaking her head.

"Please," she whispered faintly.

Her anguished eyes flew open and met the hard ones of Vincent Corey. She gasped at what she saw there. The blazing fury and possession crashed through her, weakening her knees until Jenna found her legs sinking underneath her, unable to hold her weight. Tears of humiliation welled up in her blue eyes and spilled over as she collapsed, the cold marble floor pressing against her bare legs.

"The child comes to."

All eyes went to Vincent, who stood staring down at Jenna, his expression indecipherable. He wrapped his fingers around her arm and pulled her to her feet, careful not to jostle her baby. His eyes flickered over the sleeping child before returning to her face. Jenna’s shocked gaze didn’t leave his face. The blood drained from her cheeks and she shook her head frantically, her eyes wild.

"You… you can’t have her!" she cried hoarsely, clutching Lola tightly and trying unsuccessfully to step away from him. His fingers tightened on her arm and he pulled her back into his space.

"What the fuck is your problem?" he grunted, shaking her by the arm. "I’m taking you with me and if you don't want to go without her, then she goes with us."

"I remember what you said to me," she hissed up at him, anger seething from her every pore. "You said you’ll make me a slave, use me up and throw me away. I’m not going to let you have Lola, you fucker!"

Lola murmured and shifted in Jenna’s tight hold. Jenna loosened her arms and kissed the girl’s downy head. Once her daughter settled he leaned down, oblivious to the audience witnessing their tension and snarled in her face, "I don’t want the kid, Jenna Campbell, I want you. Leave the kid, or bring her along, I don’t fucking care, but decide now."

She stared up at him with utter hate and spat, "She comes."

Vincent jerked him head in a nod and turned to his guy. "Go get the kid’s stuff."

"You can't take my daughter," Zach protested. "I have custody!"

Vincent turned glacial eyes toward Jenna’s ex-husband. "We both know your daughter was a weak excuse to see Jenna once a week. That’s not going to happen again. My lawyers will be in touch before the week is out. Trust me, you don’t want to fight this."

Vincent turned away from Zach without waiting to hear a reply. Jenna didn’t get a chance to see how Zach took Vince’s ultimatum because Jared closed in behind her, protecting their backs. She clutched Lola tightly against her chest and followed Vincent.