“You can’t buy a child. We won’t let you.” Of all the people, I was shocked to see it was Wesley who spoke to the parents of the other children. His words had a vehemence that I hadn’t expected from the usually subdued man.
“We—I think there was some sort of misunderstanding. We were under the assumption—” the mother started.
“We don’t want any problems. Nothing has been signed,” the man I recognized as the father said, appearing at her side.
How quickly they gave up fighting for a child they supposedly wanted was so bad.
“Just, listen. Please. Can you take this somewhere else?” The mother glanced across the sprawled-out suburban neighborhood. Several neighbors were pretending to wash their cars or walk their dogs to glimpse the action.
Collette came barreling out and into my legs a moment later. “Frankie!”
I almost fell over. She was still wearing the same clothes. It hadn’t even been twenty-four hours, but I had been so afraid she would have been hurt. She could have been so hurt. I shuddered in a breath as I squeezed her, my heart hammering, close to tears but keeping my strength just a little bit longer.
As soon as she was in my arms, the family quickly gathered and went inside. The door slammed, and the lock clicked loudly into place.
“We’re leaving.” I stood, unsteady with Collette in my arms. It wasn’t easy. She was over half as tall as me now.
Wesley glared at the parents, and something told me he had done his own research into this “family,” and this wasn’t the last they’d hear from him. But at that moment, all I cared about was the little girl in my arms who smelled like someone else’s home and needed me, chose me.
“No. No!” Joey screamed and took turns between yelling at us and banging on the front door. Nobody in the house responded, and I suspected we were moments away from having the police show up.
“Joey, we are leaving. You can come with us, and we can figure out a plan, or you can go your own way,” I said, one arm balancing Collette and the other wrapped around Harrison.
“What about my money?” she screamed. “You think that I’m going to give up that easily?”
Harrison finally spoke. “If money is all you care about, then we’ll get you some. You’ve already lost the biggest treasure you had.” He gently took Collette from my shaking arms and held her fiercely. I stepped closer to both of them, and he pulled me in, still balancing Collette. I wrapped myself around her, another protective layer. Poor Collette tucked her head on his shoulder and looked at me with wide, confused eyes.
“It’s okay, baby,” I smiled at her, talking softly and just to her. “You’re safe. And we’re going home, okay?”
She nodded sadly before burrowing her face back into Harrison’s neck. Kate handed me a blanket, and I tossed it over her to protect her from the cold and stress of the situation.
“Fuck off,” Joey spat at him. Then turned to me. “You think I don’t know about George and the book? You think you can just cut me a little check and send me away because I’m just some idiot? If I go to the press and tell them who is really writing that story, I’d make ten times as much as they were offering.”
Harrison and I stilled. We were so close to leaving. Dread locked my feet in place. The book seemed so far away. I never thought she’d pull out this last-minute bargaining chip in a million years. George was another victim of her manipulation, and I wasn’t sure how to make this better.
I looked at the others, all sharing equally somber combinations of worry and not quite hidden anger as we looked at one another. George leaned over and whispered to Emma.
If I could have protected Harrison and his friends from this, I would have, but they chose to be here. Standing there with the man I loved and the people who loved him because they were his family and, by extension, mine. I felt like I belonged to a group that loved unconditionally, a family formed through pure love in a way that wasn’t beholden like blood family was.
I belonged.
“Fuck all of you. I’m taking my daughter, and I’m telling everyone that Frankie is the one writing this book.” Joey stomped and moved to walk down the sidewalk past us.
I glanced at the others. We knew we had very few legal rights. I couldn’t hurt George’s book, but I wouldn’t lose Collette.
Harrison squeezed my hand. I had been fighting for so long. My brain raced to think of a new plan or some distraction to keep her away. I didn’t know what to do.
