The Bad Boys of Eden (144 page)

I have to believe that. But stupidly I ask, “What was it like…after you got out, Ryder?”

He clenches his fists. “I—I was different. My disappearance had been on the news and it was news when I got the little kid out. But I didn’t want anyone to think I was fucked up. So I tried to act normal.”

“How did I never hear anything about it?”

“That was my father,” he says. “He asked people not to discuss it for my sake. That’s why we stayed near Westingham. My mom wanted to move away—to somewhere where she wasn’t haunted by the memories. My father refused. He didn’t want to leave his business and start again. And he got a lot of business after that—maybe curiosity or notoriety, maybe people felt sorry for him. My dad said it was better we stayed where people knew why I was acting like a wacko and would sympathize. So we stayed and people didn’t talk about it, because my dad made them believe it would set me off like some kind of psycho. My dad thought I’d become a psycho, I know. Once he said it was my fault; that I should have been able to get away, like Xavier had.”

“Oh my God.” I’m furious at his father. How could he have thought such a thing? Is this why Ryder’s family is so distant to him? I bet it is guilt, not blame. But I’m still truly angry because Ryder’s parents should have been showering him with love.

Ryder looks out over the water. “I keep thinking there’s got to be a clue I can use to find Stanton. I’ve got to remember something that can help. I have to go back there, in my head, and remember fucking everything.”

My stomach dips. I realize what that means. We’re landing.

* * *

Even though I want to be searching for Jakey right
now
, I don’t know where to start.

“We should go and see your mother,” Ryder says.

“I want to be looking for our son,” I protest. I hug myself, as if my body will fly apart if I let go.

“I know.” Ryder puts his arm around me. “But we’ve got to figure out where to start.”

Police investigators met us on our arrival. So did the head of the private firm engaged by Vardalos. They have been combing the neighborhood and are searching the entire small town and its outskirts. Ryder told the cops and the investigators he was kept in a bungalow on the highway, and they are concentrating on buildings like that. Ones outside of the main part of town and fairly isolated.

I hear a whipping sound in the air and look up. A large black helicopter sets down on a landing pad and the moment it touches, a tall, dark-haired man jumps out.

Xavier!

Ducking the blade, he runs over. The first thing he does is hug me. “I’m so sorry, Tessa. But we will have Jakey home safe. And soon.” He looks to Ryder. Xavier bears cuts and bruises too, but his face looks nowhere near as mashed up as Ryder’s. “I’m sorry, King. If I could have given the police something to use all those years ago…I went to get help, and I did fucking nothing to help you. I didn’t even look at the plate number of the van.”

“It wasn’t your fault,” Ryder says.

“I think this man targeted Jakey to get revenge on Ryder,” I say. “He moved into the house next door to us six months ago. He’s been planning this for a long time.” Stanton knew he had to take Jakey away from his home, so he must have another place somewhere. It could be anything: a rented house, a deserted cabin, a warehouse. “Shouldn’t we see if he owns other property?”

Ryder shakes his head. “The cops will be doing that, and I asked Vardalos’s private investigators to look into that too. They’ve come up with nothing.”

Xavier takes my hand. “My car is here. I’ll take the both of you to Tessa’s home.”

I’m racking my brain. Is there anything Rob said to me or my mother that could give me a clue? Did he ever talk about a cottage? Another place where he lived—where did he say he moved from?

Now I realize he carefully said nothing concrete at all. He gave “details” about his life, but nothing that pinned down where he came from, where he could be now.

He claimed he’d retired from teaching but was that even true—I mean, was he ever a teacher? Was it all fake?

Rob Stanton said he’s sixty one. Ryder was twelve when he was abducted and that’s fifteen years ago. Stanton would have been forty-six. Could he have been a teacher then?

None of that helps us
now
.

We’ve arrived at my house.

Mom runs out toward the car, her face pale under the outdoor lights of our house. It’s past one in the morning. She’s wrapped in a robe.

“I’m so sorry. I feel like I brought this monster into our lives.” She hugs me.

“You didn’t. This monster abducted Ryder fifteen years ago.” I hold my mother tightly. Together we manage to get inside the house. A female detective is there, in our house. She asks me questions, though I say desperately, “I don’t know what can help find my son!”

Ryder tells me they’ve received tips and the police are checking them out.

“Stanton bribed Jakey with toys,” I tell the police detective—Detective Kate Shear is her name. I keep thinking of Kate from the TV show
Castle
, though Detective Shear has cropped dark hair, and she’s short and square in stature.

“They’ve been bagged and have gone to our lab,” Shear tells me.

But Mom suddenly bolts up from her chair. “I missed one,” she says. “Rob gave it to Jakey the day after you left, Tessa. Jakey was crying that it was lost, but I see it now. I see it under the edge of the sofa.”

Ryder lunges and pulls out a black plastic model of a horse. It’s very detailed and Jakey loves animals of all kinds.

“It looks new,” Ryder says.

Xavier looks at Ryder. “You remember that model shop outside of Westingham? The old guy who ran it was an avid collector. Remember we used to ride out there to look at stuff?”

“The old guy always thought we were going to shoplift.” Ryder stares at the plastic horse in his hand. “He had sets of these. Miniature animals and soldiers.”

He looks up. “Either Stanton went out there deliberately to buy this or he’s got a place near there—” Ryder breaks off. “I’m going out there.”

“The store is closed. It’s the middle of the night,” Xavier points out.

“I need to do something,” Ryder says.

“I’m coming too,” I say.

* * *

The shop is called
Howard’s Modeling Supplies
. Once we’re out there, Ryder and I, standing in the parking lot, I feel swamped with despair.

What did I hope to find?

The store is on a highway that leads into town. There couldn’t have been much here fifteen years ago. Now, there’s a subdivision on one side of the road.

“He must have a place further out of town,” I say desperately. “He wouldn’t want to be close to so many houses, would he?”

Ryder clasps my hand. My hand feels ice-cold and his is strong and reassuring. “It’s probably along this road,” Ryder says.

“But it could be anywhere along the road. Anywhere. Or on a side road. It might not even be near here at all.” My voice rises in panic. But I know one thing—if I didn’t have Ryder with me, I couldn’t face this at all. I think my mind would have snapped.

In my heart, I believe we won’t lose Jakey, because I believe in Ryder.

Most of the houses are dark, since it’s so late. Ryder drives slowly along the highway and we peer at each house we pass. Jakey could be in any one of—

Ryder suddenly mutters, “Shit!”

He cranks the wheel, making us skid and turn in the middle of the road. I cry out in surprise and grip the door handle.

“The house we just passed—it had no lights on. No outdoor lights at all. There was plywood over some of the windows.”

“You saw that?”

“Yeah, but my brain didn’t register it at first. Stanton did that at the bungalow. He covered up the basement windows so no light would show; so no one would see in and we couldn’t get out.”

He cuts the lights and drives slowly into the yard of a non-descript, high-ranch style bungalow. Unlike the other houses, the outdoor lights are off, plunging everything into darkness, except for the moonlight. Drapes are tightly drawn across the living room windows. The front basement windows have grilles on them and are pitch black. But on the side windows, I see the plywood screwed in place.

Ryder whispers, “Stay here.”

I do, long enough to phone my house and tell Detective Shear where we are. Then I look back at the house and gasp. Ryder is approaching it, moving stealthily.

Now I can see there is a faint glimmer of light at the edge of one of the plywood panels. Someone is in the basement with a light on.

There’s a side door, I realize, at the level of the driveway. Ryder reaches it, and he opens the screen door as I move toward him. Then he lifts his leg and slams his boot into the inside door. The door flies in.

My heart almost stops. Jakey! Stanton has to know we’re here, if he’s in the basement.

I race after Ryder. When I stumble in the doorway, I see him at the bottom of the stairs. Ryder has stopped dead, but his hands are clenched in fists.

Now I understand why he has trained and fought so obsessively. He was preparing for this moment.

He was preparing to kill the man who abducted him.

Ryder takes a step into the basement.

Holding my breath, I stop on the threshold. I can see Rob Stanton. He’s on his feet, facing Ryder. He’s grinning confidently. “You always were too fucking smart for your own good, Ryder. But this time, I won’t hesitate to shoot you.”

My brain suddenly absorbs two horrific things. Jakey is lying on a sagging beige couch that is along the back wall, tied hand and foot. And Stanton is leveling a gun at Ryder’s heart.

Chapter Nine

The Confrontation

Jakey sees Ryder and cries out, “Daddy! I want to go home!”

What should I do? I’ve called the police, so I don’t need to run and get help. Maybe I could get a weapon and I could do something to Stanton, knock him out, distract him…but I’m too scared to leave Jakey and Ryder. Too terrified I’ll only fail, and too horrified to be away from my son for another second. Then I hear Jakey’s tiny, frightened voice cry, “Mommy!”

He saw me. Now Rob Stanton knows I am there. Stanton’s cruel, smug eyes lock on mine though he continues to point the gun at Ryder’s chest. Ryder jerks around and when I see his eyes, I am frozen with fear. They look so filled with intense sorrow.

He thinks he’s going to die.

I want to be sick. I have to hold it together. For Jakey and for Ryder.

“Come in, Tessa,” Stanton says. “I assume the police are on their way?”

I try to read his tone. Shouldn’t he be afraid? Why does he sound so calm? What does he intend to do?

I can’t believe I ever thought Stanton was a handsome, decent man—a potential mate for my mom. His eyes glow with sick pleasure. He’s smirking at me, absolutely thrilled by the horror he’s creating. He’s thrilled to be destroying Jakey.

I want to run to him and tear him apart with my bare hands, but I know he’d shoot me. Then Ryder. Then he’d do things to Jakey…

I don’t speak but I take a step forward, even though I’m sick and shaky with fear. I want to get to Jakey—I
need
to get to my son—even if I die in the attempt.

Once I start moving, Stanton ignores me. He shifts his focus entirely on Rider. His sick grin widens—

Suddenly the gun in his hand goes off. He pulled the trigger. My heart almost stops. Ryder!

Ryder’s falling to the side. It must be the impact of the shot. He could die and I’m shaking in shock and I run toward him—

With a roar, Ryder leaps on top of Stanton and rips the gun from the bastard’s hand. He moves so fast, like he does in the ring and takes Stanton by surprise. I hear a sickening crack and Stanton howls in agony. Somehow the shot missed Ryder—or Ryder’s split-second reactions from fighting saved his life, and he evaded a bullet by a sheer, freaking miracle.

Ryder’s fists pound Stanton’s head. There’s blood everywhere. Jakey screams and I rush into the basement to our son. He looks so normal, so okay, but my heart thunders and I’m so afraid he’s not okay. I gather him in my arms and bury my face for one second in his thick blond hair. Then I wheel around and run for the basement stairs. I’m not hanging around where Stanton can get at us. I sprint like a wild woman, so fast I’m going to puke, and I run past Ryder and Stanton to get Jakey to safety.

Sirens scream outside. I reach the bottom of the basement stairs and realize what Ryder intends to do. Beat Stanton to death—

“You fucking monster,” Ryder growls and Stanton’s face is almost unrecognizable as human. He’s screaming and sobbing, trying feebly to fight Ryder off.

“Ryder, you can’t kill him,” I cry. “You don’t need to do this. The police are almost here. Please. Please.”

Ryder stops hitting Stanton, but he has the monster pinned down. “Where are the other kids’ bodies? Tell me where you buried them, you asshole, or I will kill you.”

Stanton laughs. A sick, pathetic laugh.

Ryder raises his fist—

“No, Ryder!” But I realize this is what he’s yearned for ever since he was abducted. Vengeance.

I set Jakey on the stairs and I run toward Ryder. “No. You’ll go to prison. I don’t want to lose you. Don’t do this!”

Ryder lowers his fist. Holding Stanton down, he looks at me. His face still bears the punishment from his fight. “I want to make sure he never does this to anyone else. He messed with my kid. And he’s got to pay.”

“But I don’t want
you
to pay.”

Then the basement is filled with cops, weapons drawn. Stanton is so bloodied and battered, he can barely move. They have to call for an ambulance.

Ryder had stopped hitting Stanton—for me. He fought against the revenge he’d wanted for years and he did it for me.

“Jakey,” Ryder breaths. He drags me over to the stairs, then we both drop on either side of our son. Ryder rips off the cords around Jakey’s wrists and ankles. When he gathers Jakey in his arms, buries his face in our little boy’s neck and sobs, I almost collapse.

I hurry to his side and rest my hand on his shoulder. “It’s okay, Ryder. It’s over.”

He’s muttering words. Suddenly I realize what it is. “I’m so sorry, Jakey. So sorry.”

“Daddy.” Jakey starts to cry.

Ryder strokes his slim back. “No, baby, don’t cry. Daddy was just scared. But everything is okay now. You’re safe. You’ll always be safe.”

“Yes, you will,” I say. “Because Daddy is going to be living with us now. If he wants to.”

Ryder turns to me. “Tessa, are you sure?”

“I love you, Ryder. I thought I loved you before, when we first got married, but now I know that was like a match compared to a lightning strike. You are my hero, Ryder. The most amazing man in the world.”

“Daddy is going to come home, Mommy?” Jakey asks.

“Yes,” I whisper.

More sirens shriek through the night. And suddenly there are EMT guys around us. They want to ensure Jakey is okay. Detective Shear says we should take Jakey to the hospital.

Ryder helps me up in the back of the second ambulance. The other one has already gone with Rob Stanton. He holds my hand and his palm feels wet, sticky. I pull my hand free, grab his wrist and turn his hand over so it’s in the light.

“You’re bleeding. Ryder! For god’s sake, you were hit.”

God, god. He can’t be badly hurt. I can’t stand it. I shout, “He’s been shot,” before I realize I’ve stupidly scared Jakey. He sniffles and I sit on the bench beside him—he’s on a gurney—and stroke him. “It’s going to be okay, Jakey.

Through the open doors, I see Ryder jerk up his shirt, which has a huge, dark circle of blood on the side. “It grazed me,” he said. “Hurts like hell. But worth it to get the chance to hurt Stanton a hell of a lot more.”

The EMT guys take a look at him, and then Ryder is in the ambulance beside me, holding a pad to his wound.

“Everything is going to be okay, Tessa,” he says.

“I’m with the two guys I love most in the world,” I breathe. “It has to be okay.”

* * *

“The ocean is huge!” Jakey declares. “But I don’t see a triangle. Daddy said there is a triangle in the ocean, but there’s just water. Lots of water. And cool waves, Mommy.”

“It’s called the Bermuda Triangle, Jakey,” Ryder says. “It’s an imaginary triangle.” Pointing down, Ryder explains the location of the famous mysterious triangle.

Strapped into a booster seat on the puddle jumper, Jakey peers down at the swells of the Atlantic, following Ryder’s every word. I have to admit I’m nervous—my entire family is returning to the island of Eden. This was Ryder’s idea. Now I wonder if the fates will do something terrible because my whole family—my mom, Ryder, Jakey—are on the one small plane flying in the Bermuda Triangle.

Eden is filled with positive magic, the brochure promised me. I remember reading that on the day I flew out for my decadent vacation. That was two months ago.

A lot has happened since then. Jakey was kept in hospital for two days for observation. Thankfully, there were no signs of sexual assault. Jakey explained that Rob Stanton had cuddled him but hadn’t touched him in “wrong” places. From what Ryder told me, I realized Stanton liked to draw out the anticipation with his victim. He had done that with Jakey, which meant he had not assaulted Jakey before we found him.

Ryder’s wound wasn’t bad, thank God. He was stitched up in the hospital and when he was released he stayed by my side in Jakey’s hospital room until we all went home together.

As for Stanton, whose real name was Kenneth Williams…

Ryder beat him badly, but Stanton survived. The bastard was recovering from his wounds and transferred to prison. But on his first night there, he had a massive heart attack. They tried to save him, but failed.

A massive excavation was started on the land around the bungalow. After Ryder’s escape, Stanton had left the area, but he returned once he’d learned Ryder had a little boy. Taking Jakey was a warped revenge he’d plotted to pay Ryder back for getting free. Sadly, the excavation turned up bodies buried in back of the property, but many families also got closure.

For many nights Ryder held me while I cried. I cried for those poor children. I cried for Jakey when I thought of how scared he must have been and what could have happened to him if we hadn’t found him.

But I always knew Ryder would fight to save him. Fight with every fibre of his being.

I cried for Ryder too. For the horror he’d lived through. And I cried because I loved him and admired him for the strength he’d had as young as twelve—the strength to save himself and another innocent boy.

When I watched Ryder confront Stanton to save Jakey, I knew how deeply and intensely I loved Ryder. I cared about Xavier, but it was Ryder I loved.

Suddenly, the interior of the small plane darkens and I let out a small cry of surprise. Grey clouds surround the plane. Ryder holds my hand. His fingers stroke mine, soothingly, and I don’t want to panic in front of Jakey.

Joely lowers her altitude and we fly below a growing mass of dark clouds.

“It looks like we’re going to get more than rain on our wedding day this time. I think we’re going to get a full-fledged storm.” I try to act light-hearted even as I panic inside. We’re flying into a storm. In the triangle. Even if we make it to the island, I imagine us hit by hurricane-force winds. I imagine my dress being shredded as I cling to a palm tree for dear life.

“Don’t worry,” Ryder says. “I think we’re going to get our happy ending.”

Joely flies up into the dark clouds and I have to close my eyes. I squeeze Ryder’s hand. Then we drop, below the clouds. Around us, the ocean is lit up by late afternoon sunlight, and ahead, like a jewel in a crown, sits Eden and its fairy tale castle.

* * *

I’m in a different room at the Eden resort, but in the same beautiful 19th century English country house. This time it’s a three-bedroom suite and I’m sharing it with Mom and Jakey. Mom loves the room and she deserves a vacation. She blames herself for not recognizing Stanton was evil, even though I keep assuring her she is not at fault.

We put Jakey to bed for a nap, then Mom and I share a chilled bottle of wine. I could have had a female stag party before my wedding or a bridal shower. But that seemed wrong since I did that all once before, and it’s my husband that I’m re-marrying. And since Ryder and I were only separated, not divorced, this ceremony is more for…the romance of it.

Mom and I go out on the balcony as the sun sets, bathing the ocean in a last spray of gold. The sky is already violet and lavender, streaked with red.

Mom sips her wine. “I always knew you and Ryder belonged together. I am so happy you came to your senses and took him back.”

“Mom,” I protest, “We worked things out because Ryder confided in me. Once I knew what he’d been through, I understood everything.” And because he told me, we saved Jakey’s life.

She leans on the balcony railing. From here we see the reef, then the dark blue stretch of ocean.

“I did the right thing.” I glance at her. “Are you certain you don’t mind watching Jakey tonight?”

“Of course not. Mr. Vardalos has arranged a delightful evening for Jakey and me. But it is bad luck for a groom to see the bride before the wedding.”

But I see she’s smiling. She’s teasing me.

“I think the magic of Eden will ensure it isn’t bad luck.” I hug Mom, set down my empty glass, then I hurry downstairs. When I reach the pool, I don’t see Ryder. But Xavier is there.

He came to be Ryder’s best man.

I walk up to him. “Hi,” I say, suddenly feeling awkward. With rescuing Jakey, being at the hospital, and dealing with the police over Rob Stanton, I haven’t really talked to Xavier.

“Hi, Tessa. Good to be back on Eden with you.”

I wince. Because this time there isn’t going to be a competition. Or sex between the three of us.

“I’m sorry,” I say quickly, before I lose my nerve. “I should have told you I realized I needed to be with Ryder. I am so sorry that you found out when Ryder asked you to come here as his best man.”

I expect he’ll walk away from me. I must have hurt him. But Xavier says, “Can I hug you, Tessa?”

I walk into his embrace. He whispers, “God, I love you. I knew what Ryder had been through and that’s why, when we were teenagers, I didn’t pursue you. I felt I owed him, because he was the one who got taken. But you love him and he loves you with his heart and soul. He’s worthy of you. You’re happy, Tessa. And because I love you so much, I’m glad you’re happy.”

I gaze up at him. Xavier is so gorgeous and such an incredible man. “Thank you. I want you to find happiness too. I fear you waited for me and I’m scared that I’ve cost you years of happiness.”