Wanting More (Mitchell Family #5)(59)
Author: Jennifer Foor

You don’t know shit!

I know enough to hate you. You make me sick. I’ve waited for months to get away from you. Knowing I could have gotten rid of you years ago, makes me hate you even more. Stay out of my life and away from my family.

Your family? Are you speaking about your father, or your boyfriend?

I almost dropped the phone on the floor. This wasn’t happening.

I don’t know what you’re talking about. There is no boyfriend.

I had to protect Conner.

I’ve been following you and him for months. Quit your lying. You think I didn’t know you were meeting him at that hotel and spending the night? You think I didn’t notice that something had changed about you? For seven years I dealt with your shit. You really think I’m just going to let you go? You’re right about one thing. After tonight, there will be no boyfriend.

The line went dead.

Panic set in and I began dialing Conner’s number. When he didn’t answer, I tried Miranda. I feared the worst and thought about the innocent people that Rick was threatening. I had to get to them.

The garage at my father’s house wasn’t connected to the main house, so I threw my coat to hang over my shoulders and walked through the sleet to start my car and let it warm up.

When I got back into the house, I bent over to grab my purse and someone grabbed me from behind. Because it startled me, I jumped and caused myself to fall on the floor. I landed on my hands and immediately began to stand up and move away from who grabbed me.

As I backed up and turned around, Rick stood in front of me. “Did you miss me, baby?”

I held my hands up. “Rick please. Please don’t hurt me.” I looked over at the counter top and saw my cellphone blinking. Conner must have called when I went outside.

Rick looked over and grabbed the phone. “Looks like the boyfriend is looking for you. “He took my phone and tossed it across the room. “Guess you won’t be seeing him for Christmas.”

I was crying within, scared for my life. “Please just tell me what you want. Why won’t you let me go? What is it Rick? Why can’t I leave?”

He leaned down and got in my face. “I will lose everything! You don’t know what that’s like because you’ve never had shit. I won’t let you drag me through the mud.”

“I’m not dragging you through anything. I just wanted to be happy.”

He grabbed me by my hair and picked me up. “You’re not going to take everything from me, Amy. I won’t let you.”

I was really freaking out, He was hurting me, but I was afraid to cry. “Rick, just tell me what you want.”

“I want you to give me the money, Amy.”

I was so confused, but as he stood there, threatening my life, my instinct was to grab my stomach. He shoved me across the room. I stopped myself from slamming into the cabinets. “Please, don’t hurt me, Rick. I don’t know about any money. I swear.”

“Bullshit! You’re father had to have told you by now.” He walked closer to me and I tried to run, but he grabbed my arm and slapped me in the face, hitting my nose. “You’re going to come home with me and writing me a check for the whole fifty thousand, or I’m going to make sure you never see your boyfriend again and he never gets to see that child you’re carrying.”

Oh no!

I kicked him in between the legs as hard as my leg would fly. He went falling down on my father’s kitchen floor and I ran straight to my car.

I started my journey from my father’s to the Mitchell Farm around nine at night. The roads were horrible and without a coat or a phone, I was sure I was going to freeze to death on the side of the road somewhere. I knew Rick was going to come to Conner’s house, but I had to warn them. I couldn’t let a family that I adored, be in danger. I could never forgive myself if that happened.

By midnight, I’d made it into town, but I had to drive around five miles an hour to keep from sliding into a ditch. The fifteen minute drive from town to the farm turned out to take another hour. There were no street lights, so when I came up to the farm, I missed the turn and slammed on my breaks. My car slid and hit a culvert, before coming to a stop on the side of the road. I tried to turn it around, but one of my tires was all jacked up and it wouldn’t move.

I was freezing and it was both snowing and sleeting even harder than before. I sat in my car for the longest time, but it got colder and I would eventually run out of gas. When I saw headlights in the distance, I started to wonder if it was Rick coming after me.

I laid on my horn over and over, praying that someone would hear it and come to my rescue. If I had to run the quarter mile up the driveway I would, but I didn’t want to take the chance of falling and hurting the baby.

Ten minutes from the time I started blowing the horn, I saw headlights heading in my direction. Nothing could have compared to the feeling when Conner opened my car door. “What the hell are you doin’ here?”

“It’s Rick, he found me at my dad’s. He says I have to go home to him and if I didn’t he was going to come after me and your family. He threw my phone against the wall and broke it. I was so scared that something would happen to you. I got away from him and came to you.”

I heard Ty saying something behind him, but I didn’t know what it was.

“I got this. Go ahead up. We’ll just leave the car here and pull it with the tractor tomorrow.” Conner took off his coat and wrapped it around me. We walked to the four-wheeler and he held me tightly as we drove up to the house. He kissed me on my head several times before picking me up and carrying me in the house. I could feel the warmth right away, but kept my head tight in Conner’s chest.

“Conner, what is going on?” I could hear Miranda asking. I just couldn’t face her yet. There was so much that I didn’t understand.

“Not tonight, sis. Just let it go for tonight.” Conner walked us into his room and laid me down on the bed. He crouched down over me and kissed me on the lips. “You shouldn’t have drove in that mess, darlin’. I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you.” He threw me some clothes. “Put these on and get warm. I’ll get you some of my sister’s clothes tomorrow mornin’.”

I thought about being here with Conner and his family. Not only would I have to explain why I came, but also why they were all in danger if I was there. “Conner, I can’t stay.”

Chapter 37

Conner