Fight for Love (7 page)

10

Sean

“What the hell is going on?” I snapped. “I should be able to leave now. They either have a case or they don’t.”

“The police can pretty much do whatever they want if they get it signed by a judge,” Bill said.

I grabbed my hair with my hands. “This is bullshit.”

“You are lucky that you aren’t being taken to trial.”

“But I still could be.”

“But at least that didn’t happen today.”

“I may not officially be in prison, but I have no freedoms or rights. I’m basically in jail already.”

Bill folded his hands on the desk. “We’ll get through this.”

“Don’t pull that lawyer shit on me. If they have enough reason to keep me here, they obviously have strong evidence.”

“Probably.”

I sighed. “This is unbelievable.”

“We have a strong case, Sean. We have a good shot of getting you off.”

“That’s not a guarantee.”

“I’m sorry.”

The door opened and the officer looked at us. “You have visitors.”

“Send them away,” I snapped.

My mom and dad walked in, ignoring my comment.

My dad shook hands with Bill. “Hey.”

My mom nodded to my lawyer then took a seat across from me. “We ran into Scarlet,” she said with a dark tone.

I felt my mood change. “What? Where? How is she?”

“She just barged into our home like she owned the place.”

I didn’t like my mother’s tone. “I told her to go there and showed her where the spare key was.”

“It was still very rude. All she had to do was call and ask for permission.”

“She’s family. Why would she have to ask for permission?” I snapped.

My father raised his hand. “There will be no yelling.”

I glared at him then looked back at my mother. “How is she?”

“She seems fine.”

“Fine?” I asked.

“Mike took them back to his apartment,” my mom said angrily. “After he yelled and thoroughly embarrassed me.”

“What did he say?”

“It’s not important.”

I felt my palms sweat at the revelation. I didn’t like Scarlet being with my brother. That made me very uncomfortable. I trus
ted Carl more than I trusted him. I pretty much hated him. Scarlet promised me she wouldn’t be alone with him. I knew she wouldn’t break her word. Perhaps they went their separate ways. But I knew Ryan was with her so she must be safe. My brother’s proximity still made me uneasy. “How did she look?”

“Stressed,” my dad said. “She’s just worried about you.”

I nodded. “I wish I could see her.”

“She hasn’t even co
me to visit you” my mom asked incredulously.

“I asked her not to,” I said quickly. “Otherwise she would be here in a heartbeat.
”

My mom crossed her arms over her chest and gave me a disapproving look. I’ve never wanted to slap my mother before but I wanted to slap her now.

The officer came back. “You have two more visitors.” He looked at the crowd. “One of you needs to leave.”

Bill immediately stood up. “I’ll give you some privacy.”

I would prefer Bill to stay rather than my mom but I said nothing. He left through the door then two more people entered. It was Bryan and Penelope. I felt my skin prickle with annoyance.

As soon as Penelope walked in, my mom’s eyes brightened like it was Christmas morning. She jumped from her seat and held Penelope for a long moment, squealing in delight. I felt the bile rise into my throat. I felt like it was a huge slap in the face to Scarlet. Ever since Scarlet had become my
fiancé, my mom acted like she was nothing but trash.

“It’s so sweet of you to come,” my mom said as she look
ed at her. “And you look so great.”

“Thank
s,” Penelope said with that fake smile she always wore. “I know Sean needs all the support.”

I rolled my eyes.

Penelope nodded to Bryan. “This is my husband, Brian.”

My mom looked like the world had ended. “Oh. You’re married?”

“Yeah,” Penelope said. “For a few months now.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Brian said as he shook her hand.

My mom regained her composure. “Yes, of course. You too.” She looked back at Penelope. “I miss you so much, dear.”

“I know,” Penelope said sadly. “I miss you too.”

“I wish things had worked out between you and Sean.”

Penelope looked uncomfortable. “Yeah, it was unfortunate we couldn’t work it out. But he seems very happy with Scarlet.”

I was shocked that Penelope said something in Scarlet’s defense. That was totally out of her character.

“Yeah,” my mom said non-commit
tedly.

I was fed up with this bullshit. I stood up and marched to them. “You wanna know why Penelope and I broke up?” I yelled, spit flying from my mouth. My mom backed up, shocked by the emotion in my voice. My dad rose from the chair but he didn’t grab me. “Because Penelope was fucking some other guy for months while we were together. When we finally broke up, you know who was there for me? Scarlet, not Penelope! Scarlet got me back on my feet. She was the one who loved me and took care of me while I dealt
with the heartbreak and grief. And when Penelope lied to me and said she was carrying my child, I took her back because it was the right thing to do, to be a family. So being the idiot that I was, I left Scarlet, broke her heart, and fulfilled my responsibility. When I found she was a fucking liar, I left her and almost killed myself, practically overdosing on painkillers. While I lay in bed, the room spinning, Penelope sat on her ass and did nothing. She didn’t give a shit at all about me. Who did? Scarlet did. Scarlet! I moved to Seattle because I had to be with her. I refused to let her go again. She loved me so much that she actually took me back after all of that shit that Penelope did to both of us.” My mom stared at Penelope then back at me, saying nothing. “And I shouldn’t have had to tell you why the fuck we broke up just so you would like Scarlet. It’s fucking bullshit. Scarlet doesn’t deserve to be treated that way, clearly favoring Penelope over her. I didn’t tell you the truth because I don’t want you to hate Penelope like I do.” Penelope crossed her arms over her chest and averted her gaze, completely uncomfortable. I glared at my mom and took a step back. “I want you to get out and I don’t want you to visit me ever again. I mean it.”

My mom held her hands together, fidgeting in place. I couldn’t read her expression, but I knew her mind was racing, processing ev
erything I just said to her. Bryan comforted Penelope, wrapping his arm around her, while my dad crossed his arms over his chest and looked at the floor.

“I’m so goddman lucky that
Scarlet has put up with this bullshit from you for so long. And when it comes down to it, you were wrong. Scarlet will be my wife, the mother of my children, and my family. If I have to choose between the two of you, it’s her. It’s always been her. She’s already suffered so much without a family and I don’t need to make her suffer anymore. I want you to leave and don’t come back.”

My mom looked at me, emotion in her eyes. “I—I’m sorry, Sean.”

“That means less than nothing to me,” I snapped. “Go. You aren’t welcome here. Now you know how Scarlet feels every time she’s around you.”

“Sean, I’m sorry,” she said quickly.

“I don’t give a shit!”

My dad stepped forward, his hands raised. “She said she was sorry.”

“And now everything is okay?”  I asked incredulously. “I shouldn’t have had to explain the events of my personal life to you. I shouldn’t have to justify my love for Scarlet. You should have loved her like your own daughter the moment I told you that I loved her. She’s the love of my life, my everything. I can’t live without her. That should be more than enough. Even after the way you treated her a few weeks ago, she still agreed to get married at home because it’s what I wanted. She didn’t want to do it, but she sacrificed that for me. Now it’s off. Forget it. We are having a small wedding with just a few people. And no, you aren’t invited.” My mom’s eyes got teary. “Your emotion means nothing to me. Now please leave.”

My mom covered her face then left the room, her sobs amplifying in the hallway. My dad stared at me for a long moment, disappointment evident on his face, then he followed her outside. Penelope shift
ed her weight next to Bryan, who held her close.

“I want you to leave too.”

Penelope looked at me. “I really just wanted to help.”

“You aren’t in my life anymore. Scarlet is the only one who is. Now go and don’t ever come back. My family hates you as much as I do.”

Bryan guided her to the door then left, disappearing from the room. The silence was appreciated. I knew I was an asshole to my mom but I didn’t care at the moment. I was too angry to bottle my emotions. I tried to spare Penelope the humiliation of her actions, but I didn’t have a choice. It was either protect Penelope’s reputation or continue to let Scarlet suffer for something she didn’t do. Of course I picked Scarlet. I still felt like an asshole for waiting for so long. I was thankful that Scarlet loved me unconditionally. If she was smart she would have left me a long time ago. I was lucky that she wasn’t.

11

Scarlet

“So I was thinking,” Janice said as she ate her cereal at the table. “Why don’t we go see my parents?”

Mike was sitting next to me, drinking his coffee but not eating any breakfast. When I woke up this morning, he was sleeping on the other couch. Having him near me helped me sleep because he reminded me of Sean. I wasn’t attracted to him like I was to Sean, but his brotherly loved felt warm and safe. I didn’t know the crimes he committed against Sean, but his guilt seemed genuine. It seemed like he wanted to fix their damaged relationship. And when he apologized to
me and said he was sorry, I knew he meant it. He really did love me like a sister. Since I had such an amazing relationship with Ryan, I wanted Sean to have that same love from Mike. I hoped they could work everything out.

Ryan stopped eating and looked at Janice. “Now?”

“Well we are here with nothing to do. Why not?”  She looked at me. “Do you mind?”

“Not at all,” I said. “You’re right. There’s nothing for us to do.”

Mike nodded. “I don’t think it’ll be a problem.”

Janice looked back at Ryan and saw the hesitation on his face. “Unless you aren’t ready.”

“Baby, I’m ready,” he said as he looked her straight in the eye. “I’m just nervous. Don’t confuse it with indecision.”

“Wait, it’s been three days. Sean should be out by now,” I said.

“Or he’s going to court,” Mike said.

I took out my phone and called him but it was off. That wasn’t a good sign.

Mike left the kitchen. “I’ll call my parents.”

I abandoned my cereal, no longer hungry.

Ryan looked at me. “If he’s out, we don’t have to see Janice’s parents.”

I said nothing, having nothing to say.

“So, is everything okay between you and Mike?” Janice asked.

“Yeah, I think so. He said he was sorry and I believe him.”

“Did he tell you what he did?” Ryan asked.

“No, but I’m going to make them work it out anyway. They are brothers.”

Ryan shook his head. “You of all people know that doesn’t mean anything.

“They are different situations. I know Mike and Sean used to be close. They still love each other.”

Ryan shrugged. “We’ll see.”

Mike came back to the table. “Good news and bad news. Which do you want first?” he said as he looked at me.

I felt my heart accelerate. “Bad,” I said quietly.

“Sean is being detained longer, but he isn’t necessarily being put on trial.”

I exhaled the breath I was holding. “So he could still be released?”

“Yeah.”

“That isn’t so bad.”

“Are you ready for the good news?” he said with a smile. The look made me grin. He had the same twinkle in his eye that Sean did.

“I would love to hear some good news.”

“So Penelope came to visit Sean when my parents were there.”

“I don’t like the sound of this,” I said.

“Wait, it gets better,” Mike said. “So my mom was so happy to see Penelope and she was hugging her, telling her she missed her, and all this girly stuff. Apparently, Sean just flipped out, yelled at our mom,
told her the truth about Penelope, made her cry, and told her he didn’t want to see her again because he was sick of the way she was treating you. Pretty awesome, huh?”

“Bout time,” Ryan snapped.

I was speechless. “He did that?”

Mike nodded. “That’s what my dad said. Mom’s been shaken about it since it happened. She thinks she lost Sean forever.”

I didn’t know how I felt about it. I was glad Sean stood up for me and finally revealed the truth about Penelope, but I also felt horrible for the way Sean’s mom must feel. That was a heavy bomb to be dropped. She probably felt stupid now.

“Mom had it coming,” Mike said.

“She must hate me even more.”

Ryan raised an eyebrow. “Why? This was all her fault. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“But I still feel bad. I know how much she loves Sean.”

“Then she should have loved you just as much,” Ryan argued. “Don’t feel bad for her, Scar. She was a total bitch to you yesterday.
I don’t give a shit how hurt she is.”

I spun my spoon in my bowl. I thought I would be happy when this day finally came, but I didn’t. Now I felt guilty, mean, and spiteful. I never wanted to hurt Sean’s mom. I just wanted her to accept me and love me like she did with Penelope.

Ryan grabbed my hand on the table. “Look at me.”

I did.

“It’s not your fault. Don’t you dare feel bad. If she wants to make it right, she will.”

“Okay,” I said quietly.

He released my hand and grabbed his spoon again.

“I really want to talk to Sean,” I said with a sigh. “I need to talk to him.”

“I don’t know how we can arrange that,” Mike said.

“How did he call you last time?” Ryan asked.

“He used Penelope’s phone.”

Mike nodded. “He must have used it because she was visiting him and she already had your number.”

I looked at Mike, silently begging him.

He sighed. “He isn’t going to want to see me.”

“Please. I need to speak to my fiancé.”

“I probably won’t even get in.”

I stared him down.

‘Fine,” he said with a sigh. “I’ll do it.”

I jumped from my seat and hugged him. “Thank you so much.”

He flinched as I embraced him. He didn’t return the affection but he didn’t push me away either. “Thank you so much.”

He patted me on the back awkwardly. “I would do anything for my sister.”