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“If you need anything, text me or Matt. We’ll get it for you on the way back. Or Jessa. She’s coming back here tonight with Matt. You can text her instead if you want to.”
Did he imagine the flash of anger in her eyes? Why would she be mad? It made no sense, so Jax dismissed the thought. She was probably uncomfortable staying here alone. Rock would be here, and their security system surpassed any high quality residential system, though. He couldn’t watch over both Seyla and his uncle at the hospital. Not a good strategy. Like it or not, this would be the safest place for her right now.
Jax jogged to the front door and readied the alarm with Seyla trailing behind him. “I’ll be back soon.”
He shut the front door at precisely the same moment she said, “But—”
Right now, he had to take care of Uncle Sam. He’d failed him. Again.
/////
Jax dragged a hand over the hard planes of his face and hauled his exhausted frame out of the truck. His head and shoulder throbbed in rhythm. He checked his messages, then slid the new cell phone he’d bought into his back pocket. The nurse had called again to check on him. Once again, she’d offered to call in pain medication. He’d refused. He couldn’t afford to be incapacitated right now.
Jax’s body ached in protest after sitting in a chair in Uncle Sam’s room for the majority of the night with Ellen, comforting her while his uncle underwent numerous tests. Early this morning, the doctors had determined he sustained minimal damage, which came as a relief. However, it shouldn’t have happened in the first place. They released him, though. Another good sign. Jax checked the road again. They should arrive any minute.
He stared at his uncle’s house in front of him. Sunlight glinted off the windows. The reflection off the siding’s white paint ramped up the pain in his head, stabbing his tired eyes. He squeezed them shut for a minute and opened them again, hoping the house’s assault on his retinas would let up. No such luck. He’d made it to the top of three of the four steps when Jessa opened the door. Matt stood behind her. Their angry, accusatory faces rivaled the house’s glaring assault.
Rock attempted to nose his way out from between their knees until Matt closed the door behind them. There went his only ally.
Shocked by the downright hostile reception, Jax halted his steps. “What’s wrong?”
Jessa frowned at him. “Seyla left. Because of you. If anything happens to her, it’s on your head. How could you invite her into your home knowing you were going to stab her in the back the next morning?” She stalked over to him and pushed the morning paper into his chest.
Jax looked to Matt, who refused to meet his gaze. He agreed with Jessa. That hurt.
His hand closed over the paper and unfolded it. “Community Stalked by Escaped Animal Sanctuary Predator Again: Are We Safe?” A lead weight dropped into his gut. Oh no. He read through the entire article Victor Soros had written that would signal the death of the facility following the public outcry. Nausea rolled through him when he spotted his name and credentials, followed by the statement, “The sanctuary has some safety issues.” Minutes passed in awkward silence until Jax recalled his comment outside the sanctuary the day Seyla got trapped in the jaguar’s enclosure.
So Victor Soros had found a story after all. And he’d leveraged Jax’s expertise to bolster it.
His shoulders dropped. He heaved a weary sigh. “Guys, I made that comment after I visited the sanctuary the first time. After I witnessed Seyla trapped in that cat’s enclosure. I was upset. Besides, he only printed part of my statement. I also mentioned the sanctuary was addressing the issues and that they care about the public’s safety in addition to the animals’ welfare.”
Did he believe that, though? The thought jabbed at his sternum like a rifle butt. He rubbed at his chest in an effort to dispel it.
Jessa pointed at the paper. “My son’s babysitter had to pick him up from school today because a classmate told him about that article. He told Nate his mom would lose her job and go tojail soon. Nate was in tears, thinking we’d have to move again or that he’d lose the one parent he had left.”
Her words cut deep into Jax’s soul. He understood the pain of losing a parent. The fear-laced pain of losing your home. He’d been that boy. Cried those tears. What he didn’t know was the fierce, protective love of a mother who’d come at him, guns blazing, in defense of her son. A son he helped to hurt. The fact that he’d caused that young boy’s pain delivered a crushing blow he hadn’t anticipated. However, it was his mother’s response that set off a bomb in his chest.
“He’d finally come out of his shell after losing his dad, and now this.” Jessa’s voice wobbled. Matt put an arm around her, pulling her into his side. She bit her lip, dropped her head and took a shuddering breath, then met Jax’s gaze again. “Do you have any idea how much damage you and Victor have done?”
He did. All too well. At the same time, he was glad her son had a mother like her. The memory of his own screaming, “You’ve ruined everything!” at his back while the caseworker ushered him away played in a loop in his head as Jessa talked.
Jax opened his mouth to apologize.
Gravel crunched behind him and he spun around.
Ellen’s white electric car slowed to a stop. She and Uncle Sam got out. His uncle frowned at him, a paper rolled into a tube in one hand.
So he’d read the article, too.
Jax groaned. He shut his eyes and squeezed the bridge of his nose, dreading the oncoming lecture.
His uncle wasted no time getting to the point. He shook the paper. “What’s the meaning of this, Jax?”
“I know. I know. I’ll think of a way to fix it.” He didn’t want him to get upset again.
“I think it’s too late. Or was that the intention?” Jessa mumbled.
Ellen came over to Jax and hugged him. “I know your heart was in the right place, honey. And I know you’re the right person to help, too. After all, security and defensive training are your specialties. Who better than you to help the sanctuary protect itself and the animals?” She smiled up at him. Jax knew he was caught.
