AJ's Salvation

AJ’S SALVATION

Sam Destiny

Copyright © 2015 Sam Destiny

KINDLE EDITION

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be copied or reproduced without written consent of the author.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual events, places or people, living or dead, is coincidental.

Cover Copyright ©
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Edited by Jenny Sims at
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For here I lie completely broken,

And you came with your healing touch,

Not many words between us spoken,

Yet you made me smile and such.

To my best friend Yvi, who always makes me feel better.

Together forever, never apart,

maybe in distance, but never at heart.

Alessia looked at the guy who wanted to change her life forever. She was packed and ready to leave for college and start her new adventure, yet right now, she was hesitating. 

"You never bothered to speak to me," she accused, her heart breaking at all the times she had looked at her brother's best friend and longed for him just to acknowledge her. 

"You never planned to come back here, Aly. You’re the perfect choice. Just go. You already told everyone bye! Everyone who matters knows you’re leaving. And everyone who matters knows you and I never had anything going on. Ever. Please."

Alessia couldn't get herself to look at what he was carrying, so she focused on the face she had seen so many times during the day and touched so many times during her dreams. The bundle in the carry-on babbled quietly and she watched as Jam placed it on the floor. A baby. Aly had just turned eighteen, and her life was supposed to begin. She wanted to leave because her heart couldn't get over being in love with Jamison, and now, he stood in front of her with a plea like
this
.

"Jam, you have no idea what you’re asking," she pleaded, her throat feeling dry.

"You know Collene. She'll never stop treating him as she does now. And you know her father. I can't take him anywhere because they'd forever hunt me. You, on the other hand ... you’re the only logical option for me." 

“Treating him how?” Alessia asked, almost afraid of the answer.

Jamison knelt next to the carry-on, opening the light green blanket before carefully pulling up the baby boy’s shirt. The sight of the black and blue little body made Alessia gasp. "No," she almost sobbed, her heart breaking. She knew Collene had a rather violent streak, but she never thought the woman would hit her own child. 

"They’re going to say I beat him. Her whole family will attest to it. You need to take him far away."

"You’re asking me to kidnap a child," she replied, outrage clear in her voice. 

"I'm asking you to save his life," Jam answered, and she shook her head, hugging herself. She simply should have kept going once she had spotted him on the side of the road. Aly should have told herself not to care when he had flagged her down in the middle of some forest, but it was Jam and she hadn’t been able to ignore the bag and baby at his side, either. Her heart had started a wild rhythm. In her mind, she had told herself that maybe, just maybe, he had finally realized he loved her and now wanted her to come with her. 

She would have taken him in a heartbeat.

Collene Karmison was the mayor's daughter, and they ruled the city as if they were kings and queens. Corruption was rich in their hometown of Townsend, but Alessia had always stayed out of Collene's way. Being a nice girl and just average looking had always kept her safe from attacks, but she had heard about them and had seen the victims, too. It had always been a mystery to her why someone like Jamison had slept with Collene. A mistake, which had ended badly for him, if she considered where they stood now.

"They can't lock you up for that. You don't even love her." She tried to reason with him, but he just choked out a cold laugh. He knew just as well as she did that they'd be able to do whatever they wanted to him. It was the only reason she considered this craziness at all. "Do they know you have him?"

"The nanny left him on the doorstep to get his bottle of milk. No one knows where he is. I need to get back soon or they’ll know something’s off. You need to make a decision now."

"My life is over if they ever realize where your child is," she argued, and finally, the green eyes clouded with unsheltered grief.

"I know. I’m sorry for asking. You don't deserve to clean up my mess for me," Jam agreed, and it was what made Alessia move forward and reach for the baby boy. She wasn't even sure the little guy had a name yet since Jamison and Collene had fought over it for the last four months. 

"What's his name?" she wondered, and Jam kissed the little boy's forehead before taking the tiny bundle out of his carry-on and giving it to her.

"He's yours. You name him. It doesn't matter what Collene called him. It doesn't matter what I'd call him. He's your boy now." It was more than obvious how much it hurt Jamison to let his son go, but that didn't matter. 

He put the bag in her car, another addition to fill the last spot she had left before he placed the carry-on as a car seat in the front. "Ditch it and buy a new one tomorrow. You should be far enough by then to switch the seats. Make sure to keep him safe and warm," Jam demanded, his request without much heat, though. 

"Come with us," she pleaded. There never had been an ounce of hope for them, but she was desperate now. A child would keep them together. Maybe she could get her chance with Jam finally. Then another thought occurred to her. "How in the world will I be able to afford a child?" 

Finally, the smallest of smiles lifted the corner of his mouth. "You'll figure it out. Leave now, or you'll never go."

She nodded. He didn't even bother to take her in his arms as a thank you or as a way of saying good-bye. Instead, he just held open her door and watched as she slipped behind the wheel.

Aly started the car after strapping in the little boy. Driving was something she knew how to do, so her body needed no real input. Her mind was racing. She needed a name for the boy and a story to go with it.

In her rearview mirror, she saw Jamison shrink away. He looked like a broken man, and as much as Alessia wanted to go back, she forced herself to move forward. She knew this could ruin her life faster than a Ferrari could get to a hundred, but he was her weakness and the boy next to her actually gave her a reason to go through with it. No kid ever deserved to be beaten. 

“Oh God, Jam, please tell me you didn’t lie to me,” she whispered as the thought hit her. Now it was too late to turn back, though. She had more or less kidnapped a child, and she knew returning now would not change anything at all.

Jamison ran a hand through his blond curls, feeling relief like never before. His son was out of danger. As much as he felt guilty for bringing the only girl he had ever loved in this life, the boy was all that mattered.

Turning away, he walked back to his car, which he had hidden in the forest. He had waited for quite some time, so he was freezing, but he was sure it was well worth it in the end. 

His beat-up truck was just as cold as he felt as he sank back into the seat. His hands were shaking, and he wished it were because he had handed over his only child. Deep down, he knew it was because it had taken everything in him not to kiss Alessia at least once in his life. 

“You did the right thing.” Even though Jamison had known he wasn’t alone, he still jumped. 

“Greg,” he murmured, watching Aly’s brother and his best friend from the corner of his eye. 

“Still here. I was with you when we got here, remember?” Of course, Jamison remembered since Greg had been his plan B. Just then, something hit him.

“You didn’t bring a bag. You were ready to run with my son without anything but the clothes you’re wearing?”

“Alessia has loved you for as long as I can think. I had no doubt she was going to take him from you, especially not after seeing the little boy’s injuries.” Jamison wasn’t surprised. After all, that was, too, what convinced Greg to tag along. “How exactly did that happen anyway?”

Jamison closed his eyes; still seeing the way Collene had grabbed the baby and shaken him until Jamison had feared his little boy would end up dead. Taking him from her without hurting his son any more had almost been impossible.

“She used to hit him when he wouldn’t stop screaming. And I told her she needed to stop that, so she started to shake him. I can still see her fingers digging into his tiny body, and …” A shiver passed through him, and Greg interrupted him with a gesture. 

“He’ll have the best home any boy can get. Be sure of it,” he promised, reminding Jamison he had just saved his baby more pain. 

“No doubt about that,” he agreed. “Collene will be pissed … immensely so.”

“You finally can move out. She no longer has any leverage on you,” Greg commented, and Jamison only nodded.

“Good-bye,” he whispered. Then he started his car and headed back into hell. But now, it had become just that tiny bit more bearable.