Page 43 of The Thief
I sighed, running my hand over my jaw before looking back up at them both.
“There was someone there, in the bank. Someone I knew from years ago. Another hostage and her daughter. They’re on my mind. That’s all.”
Adam came to sit next to me. “Is it Jess you’re worried about? The one you were talking about back at the station?”
I nodded.
“She’s Alfie’s daughter,” I said. “You know, Alfie Porter. From the unit.”
“I remember Alfie,” Adam replied, recognition for what that man had meant to all of us back then shone in his eyes. “I don’t remember his daughter though.”
I wasn’t in the mood for a trip down memory lane, so I justshrugged, told him I’d known her because we attended the same school before I got kicked out, and left it at that. As usual, Adam didn’t push it. He knew when to leave well enough alone.
“Why don’t you go and see her?” Liv asked.
I took another deep breath.
“I don’t know. I want to.”
“Then do it,” Liv urged. “Do you know where she lives?”
I gave a low, ironic laugh at her naivety. “Do I know where she lives? Of course I do. I could track down anyone, anytime, any day. I found out where she was as soon as we got back.”
“Then what are you waiting for? Go and see her. Put your mind at rest.”
I heard Adam blow out a breath, and when he said, “Maybe leave it for a few days,” I had to agree with him. I didn’t want to, but common sense was screaming at me to listen to my oldest friend.
“Why should he?” Liv questioned.
“Because he spoke to her brother not long ago. Because they’re stopping at her mum’s. And because they might want to forget about what happened for a while. You heard Ty. She’s got a little girl. They need to focus on her. Rocking up there now might not be the best idea. Sometimes, it’s better to let the dust settle.”
Liv hummed. “You know, just for once, I’m gonna say I think my husband might be right.”
“I’ve never known him to be wrong,” I replied. “Not often, anyway.”
“In situations like this, there is no right or wrong,” Adam stated. “Only decisions. Whether those are bad ones or not, depends entirely on you... and her. But if you act from the heart, it can’t be wrong. If you stay true to yourself, it’ll always be right.”
“Check out my husband, the philosopher.” Liv grinned at him with love shining in her eyes.
“I’m just speaking the truth,” he replied, then addressing me, he said, “Go to her. But go when she’s had a chance to process some of what has happened, if that’s at all possible. Right now, she’ll be in shock. But she has family around her, a safety net. You don’t want to get in the way of that. But in time, she’ll want to talk to someone that understands what she went through. And that someone will be you.”
It took three whole days before I drove myself crazy and gave up waiting. I knew she’d stayed with her family for a while, but earlier today, through my own ‘research’, I’d found out she’d gone back to her own house. And the thought of her being there, on her own with Ava, didn’t sit right with me.
I also found out that she’d started to take Ava to nursery again, trying to get her life back to normal. I had my ways of watching them. I’d never let on, but I did.
So, that afternoon, I drove across town to the new estate where she lived. I pulled up outside their neat little end-terraced house and sat outside, debating whether I was doing the right thing.
Peering up at the house, I could see the pink curtains and cuddly toys in the window of Ava’s bedroom. They were inside right now. I knew that. They’d returned from a quick shopping trip about an hour ago. But I hadn’t seen them at the windows,and they didn’t know I was here.
I wasn’t the kind of guy to get nervous, but sitting in my car, that’s how I felt. I couldn’t seem to focus. I was second-guessing myself, and that in itself was pissing me off. So I fought that shit down and opened the car door, got out and slammed it shut. Then I walked down the short path to their front door, knocking on the black polished wood before standing back and putting my hands in my pockets.
Looking around, I could see it was a quiet, peaceful area, with clean, well-kept houses and tended gardens. Flowers growing, birds chirping. It was the kind of area a girl like Ava deserved to grow up in. Then, a boulder of regret hit my stomach. Maybe that wouldn’t be the case anymore, because that peace had been shattered a few days ago. She’d learned at too young an age that life was cruel. And I hated that for her. For Jess, too. It wasn’t fair.
I heard the faint sound of footsteps coming from inside, and then the door swung open. I stood there, waiting, looking at Jess as she stared back at me wide-eyed. Her hair was in a messy bun, and she was barefoot, wearing a white T-shirt and grey sweats, and I swore on my life I’d never seen anyone look as beautiful as she did. But when her eyes grew teary, I started to question whether I’d done the right thing coming here.
“Tyler,” she said in a breathless gasp. Then, growing more tearful, she put her hand over her mouth. “Oh my God. I can’t believe you’re here.”
Chapter Seventeen
