Page 88 of Beneath the Scars
“Are you sure? I don’t want you to feel like I’m trying to take your family. That’s never what I intended. Honestly, when I reached out to Addie, I expected to be back in Greensboro with a job by now.”
“Let me guess, Hope and Levi have given you every reason to stay.”
Zane laughs. “Oh, yeah. They’ve made it very clear that I would be an idiot to leave. Hope’s actually trying to convince me to help them out when Eliza has her baby.”
“That’s not a bad idea.”
Zane’s eyes bug out. “Me, help with flowers? You saw how terrible I was the last time I helped out.”
I snort. It took Zane a significant amount of time to figure out how to tie the ribbon into a decent bow for the centerpiece vases. “You’ll get the hang of it. Maybe you could focus on their social media stuff.”
Vulnerability flashes in his eyes as he bites his lip. He looks exactly as he did when he was little. “I’ve actually been thinking about going to the police academy. Much to my disagreement, Hope and Levi won’t let me pay for anything, so I think I could afford to go. If I worked at the flower shop, I’d make enough money to commute to Greensboro.”
“And being a police officer is what you want?”
His nod is decisive. “Even if I can’t get a job in town, I’m sure I could find one in Greensboro.”
“Then we’ll do what’s necessary to get you into the academy.”
Zane’s beaming smile makes me smile in return. I flick my head toward the front door. “Come on, let’s go.”
Zane follows me back down the hallway, and he grabs his wallet and keys from the table by the door. We get into my truck and head over to Donna’s, where the guys have all met up.
Every couple of months, instead of doing a family barbecue, we have girls’ and guys’ nights. Most of the time, we don’t last very long apart, and we end up crashing whatever the girls are doing.
When I was a teenager, I always thought my parents were a bunch of saps. How could they not go longer than an hour or two without their partners? Now that I have Addie waiting for me, I understand a whole lot better.
“Is Addie doing okay after everything?” Zane asks.
“She’s doing even better than I expected, but she still struggles with flashbacks.”
Telling the family about Addie being assaulted went about as you’d expect. Ryan was the only person who saw through our made-up story immediately. He knows us both too well to believe the lie, and in the end, Addie told him that he truly wouldn’t want to know the details. He trusted that we were telling him all the important parts.
The rest of the family bought it without any issue. They were all appalled at Ronnie’s behavior and glad that it had a swift resolution.
The police informed us that both Ronnie and Samantha agreed to plead guilty to receive lesser sentences. Samantha was charged with accessory after the fact in exchange for three years in prison. Apparently, she could’ve gotten up to six since she helped Ronnie commit a felony.
Ronnie was charged with second-degree kidnapping—instead of first-degree—and a misdemeanor assault charge. They also tacked on a few others for impersonation, and she ultimately was sentenced to a total of seven years in prison to be served consecutively.
They’ll both be eligible for parole and will likely get out before the end of their sentences, but the prosecutor made it seem like they were completely regretful of their actions.
I’m not convinced they feel bad about what they did. Samantha might, but I’d bet Ronnie is more upset about the consequences than her actions. Addie told me it doesn’t matter in the end, as long as they serve some time for the choices they made.
I’m so proud of how she’s handled the whole situation.
She’s been working with my trauma therapist to help her deal with the memories. We’ve also seen the therapist together to ensure our relationship isn’t hindered by our traumas. It’s helped more than I expected it to.
Pulling into the parking lot of Donna’s, I manage to find a spot right away. I thought it might be awkward, walking in with Zane, but it’s oddly natural. Maybe the distance and time to process have done more than I thought.
Opening the door, we walk into a wall of noise.
Donna’s Bar is the only place to get a good drink on the weekends, so half the town is probably here tonight.
I see Dad and Uncle Cooper across the room, as well as Carson, Ryan, Uncle Levi, and Teddy. They threw several tables together to fit all of us. It seems almost the whole crew came to hang out.
Uncle Cooper greets Zane when we get up to the table. “Welcome to your first guys’ night.”
Zane smiles shyly. “Happy to be here.”
