Page 38 of The Love Duet
Anyway, the phone was ringing in my ear now, and I knew that I was going to have to make one more phone call after this one.Even though Tullie and I were no longer married, we still lived in the same town, and it’d only be a matter of time before he heard about what happened.
“Mom?”
Leah’s voice sounded alert and worried, and as her mother, I didn’t like hearing her like that.“I’m fine,” I quickly assured her.“I’m safe, and I’m home.”
“What happened?”she asked, still sounding worried.“You wouldn’t be calling me this late if something hadn’t happened.”
“I was checking the locks before I went to bed tonight, and some...some guy came out of nowhere and attacked me.”
“Oh, my God,” she cried out.“Oh, my God...Mom, I’m on my way-”
“Leah, calm down,” I instructed, using my mom voice to reassure her that I was okay.“Honey, I’m fine.”
“I don’t care,” she said.“I’m coming home-”
“Leah, honey, listen to me,” I ordered.“I am okay.I promise you.”
After a few seconds, she asked, “Well...well, what happened?”
Even though my nerves were still a bit shot, as calmly as I could, I told Leah everything that’d happened to the best of my recollection.Admittedly, some of the details were rather blurry, and I was still hearing phantom noises throughout the house, but I didn’t need Leah racing home when I knew that I was going to need some time to fully process what’d had happened.
When I was finished, she asked, “So...they’re keeping him in jail, right?”
“I believe so,” I answered.“I’ll also be calling first thing in the morning to get as much information on what happens next that I can.”
“And what about Dad?Have you called Dad?”
“Not yet, but I will,” I promised.“I don’t want him hearing it from anyone else, either.”
“Mom, I don’t feel right-”
“Leah, you coming home isn’t going to change what happened,” I pointed out.“And as much as I love and appreciate you wanting to be here for me, you’re coming home soon enough.”
“I can cancel the trip,” she offered.“Plus, with Dad’s promotion-”
“Leah, honey,” I said, interrupting her.“You’ll be home in a few weeks, and we don’t even know if your dad has gotten the promotion yet.I promise you, if anything else happens, I will let you know if you need to come home.”
“Mom, I don’t feel right about this,” she replied brokenly.“I mean, you were attacked in your own home, and you’re acting like it’s no big deal.”
“I’m not acting like that at all,” I assured her.“I’m just...panic just leads to more panic, and I don’t want that.I want to approach this calmly and reasonably, and rather than freak out over what could have happened, I want to focus on how lucky I am that it wasn’t worse.”
After another few seconds of silence, she said, “Yeah, you’re right.We should be counting our blessings that nothing worse happened.”
“I’m also going to get cameras to make us all feel better,” I informed her.
“Well, that will definitely make me feel better,” she retorted.“Plus, I can’t see Dad not insisting on it once he finds out.”
“Which means that I should probably call him now,” I chuckled.
“And...and the homeless guy?”she asked tentatively.“Are you sure that’s a good idea?I mean, not for nothing, no matter that he saved you, I can’t see Dad okay with this.”
“Your Dad’s main concern will be your safety, so the most that he’ll do is insist that you stay with him when you come home, and I don’t think that’s a bad idea,” I told her, and I knew my daughter well enough to know that she was ready to object.“At least, until we find out what they’re going to do with the guy that attacked me.”
“Mom, c’mon...”she whined, bringing a smile to my face.“If I go stay with Dad, he’s going to make me help him pack and move if he gets that promotion, and we both know that he’ll get it.”
“I love you, Leah,” I said, appreciating how she was trying to lighten the mood for me.Leah was good at reading the room, and so she knew that having her panic was just going to stress me out more.
“Look, it’s late, and I still have to call your father,” I sighed.“But I promise you that I’m fine, and I can also assure you that Josiah isn’t a threat in the least.”
