Page 18 of The Devoted Husband

Memphis may have been out of Jones’s jurisdiction, but he was taking photos and documenting Sade’s every move. On the off chance she did something to incriminate herself, Jones wanted to be the one to catch her.

Jones was tired of people getting away with crimes because the police didn’t want to put in the work. That would end with Sade. He was sure of it.

Dante

For the entire ten miles that Dante jogged, Sade was heavy on his mind and heart. He had the means and resources to find her but decided to give her space—for a while. It was silly of him to think it would be easy to get to their happily ever after. Since their teenage years, Sade had to watch him build a family and life with her sister. Their fate would have been different if she had expressed her desire for him before he got Imani pregnant. But Dante couldn’t blame Sade for her hesitance because he’d also been tightlipped about his feelings for her.

After plopping down on the bench, Dante fought to catch his breath. He drank some water, removed his headphones, and poured the rest atop his head. Looking out into the bustling branches and bright sun, Dante laughed under his breath.

I really miss my girl.

Dante pulled his phone out to text Sade, and at the sight of two missed calls from her grandfather, he quickly called Barron back. Sitting lower on the bench, he draped his arm across it and settled in for the unexpected call.

“Hello?” Barron answered.

“Hey, Grandpa. You called?”

“Yeah. Couple things I wanna talk to you about.” Dante nodded silently. “But first, how’s New York treating you?”

“I’m actually in Baltimore now. I can’t really stay in one place for too long without going crazy thinking about your granddaughter.”

Barron chuckled. “Which one?”

Returning his laughter, Dante used his free hand to wipe his face and head. “Sade, of course.”

“Hmm. Well, I wanna talk to you about her too, but first, Imani. Did Sade call and let you know someone attacked her in prison?”

With a frown, Dante stood and began to pace as his heart dropped. Regardless of how things played out between him and his ex-wife, Dante would never want any harm to come to her physically.

“No, she didn’t. Is she all right?”

“She’s...hanging in there, but it’s bad, son. She’s in a medically induced coma because of the swelling on her brain.”

“What?What the hell happened?”

“We don’t know. Conveniently, the warden had no video footage of the attack, and no one was in the room when Imani was found. All we can do is wait until she wakes up to tell us what happened.”

“Damn. I hate to hear that. How are the twins taking it? Were they able to see her?”

“No, no one has. Sade is working on it, which may be why she didn’t reach out to you.”

“Honestly, Grandpa, she probably won’t tell me even when she has the time. Unless I blow her up until she can’t take it anymore, she’s not talking to me.”

“I need you to change that.”

Dante’s feet stopped moving. “Is she okay?”

“She is . . . but . . . I’m concerned.”

“About what?”

“She’s been acting distant or hesitant, even when in the same room as us. Like she’s holding something back. And Atlas has been hanging around her a little too much for my liking.”

“Wait.” Chuckling, Dante ran his fingers down the corners of his mouth. “Atlas? Adam’s cousin? The one who ran me off the road and didn’t have to do a day in prison for it because he snitched?”

“That one. Now, I don’t know what’s going on between them, but when we were out with the twins earlier, Sade seemed extremely uncomfortable around him. She didn’t know how he found out where she was. She left us and said she would have her phone and car checked out to see if he’s put some kind of tracker on it.”

“I think I’m missing something. For what reason would Atlas be stalking Sade? She’s been apart from me for what...a little over a month? Has she moved on with him?”

---