Page 161 of Sins of the Father

“It can take up to twelve hours but normally within four to eight hours.”

“Maximillion said she’d be in his bed tonight,” I blurt out, and my nausea grows.

“Ugh,” Quinn cringes. “He’s so disgusting.”

“He won’t let her sit. I bet she’s released sooner.”

“I’m going to go in. Steven, come with me,” Jamison directs.

We go inside and wait until we can post the bail. Jamison takes care of it, and within minutes, as I expected, my mom walks out the door, in her clothes from the day she was arrested. As soon as she sees me, her face crumples. I quickly pull her into me and hold her as she sobs.

“Shh. You’re okay. Let’s get out of here.”

She straightens out and sniffles.

I quickly lead her out to the car, and the three of us get in.

“Mom, are you okay?” Quinn asks, and tears trickle down her cheek.

They embrace.

“I’m fine,” my mom says.

My phone rings. New rage cyclones in my blood. “It’s him,” I seethe.

My mother nervously stares at the phone.

I send it to voice mail. The car pulls out of the parking lot.

He calls several more times, but each time I don’t answer.

“Give me the phone,” my mother says.

“No.”

“Steven—”

“You haven’t even been out of jail for ten minutes.”

“Your father won’t stop until I talk to him.”

“Stop calling him our father,” Quinn cries out.

Silence fills the air. All I can wonder is if Quinn is right. Is my mother going to run back to him and be in his bed tonight, only hours after he put her in jail?

“If you go back to him—”

“I’m not going back to him. But he needs to stop. He won’t stop until I—”

The phone rings again, and my mother reaches for it, but I turn it off.

“Steven, you don’t know what you’re doing. This won’t help matters. I know him and how he is. He’s relentless and—”

Quinn’s phone rings. “Are you kidding me?”

“I told you. He isn’t going to stop until he speaks with me.”

“Too bad. Let him panic.” Quinn turns off her phone, too.

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