Page 51 of Rolling Thunder
“Your momma would know,” Bill said quietly to Kayla. “I’ll go talk to her.”
“Wait until I can go with you,” Evan said with authority. Everyone naturally deferred to him, even Kayla.
Jake took a long look at her, then caught his brother’s eye, jerking his head in her direction.
Evan scrutinized Kayla. She looked like she’d retreated inside herself to some safe place. She stared at the band of men in her kitchen as if from a distance even though they were right across the table. Guns were strewn across the kitchen table in various stages of being cleaned, loaded, checked, and assembled. She was a million miles away.
Taking his brother’s cue, Evan stood up and took her hand, sweeping her gently against him as he led her down the hall for a moment to talk to her privately.
“I shouldn’t have gotten you involved in this. Any of you,” she said, her voice thin.
He framed her face with his hands. She looked up at him as if from the bottom of the ocean. Her desperation was palpable.
“What if someone gets hurt? I can’t live with myself if any of you get hurt because of this.”
“It’s going to be all right. Trust me.” She nodded a little. He kissed her tenderly, trying to give her strength. “We need to go.”
CHAPTER 20
She held on to him tighter than she needed to on the motorcycle ride downtown. His fury toward Trent burned bright, and he would have loved nothing more than to exact his own revenge on the bastard. But she was right. If he did that, he risked going back to jail. And more importantly, she didn’t want him to do it.
He knew it was harder for her this way. She had to recount the story to strangers and turn her fate over to detectives and courts. She was doing this to protect the men in her life, because the only other way to stop Trent was to let him handle it the way his kind had for generations.
Whatever he was expecting at the police station, it wasn’t this. They were ushered to a room in the back that seemed to have been used as a classroom of sorts. It was full of rows of desks with attached chairs. The woman who brought them there was an attractive young officer who introduced herself as Officer Nicole Desmond.
He expected a long stare; he expected maybe even to be separated from Kayla. Here he was, looking like an ex-con, tattooed biker. And he was in the police station with his girl, who still had bruises on her. Nicole did offer them a solemn and thoughtful appraisal, but she also met his gaze.
“Why don’t you tell me what’s going on?” Nicole asked Kayla. Kayla looked to Evan, fidgeting as if she wished she had a cigarette.
“I’m not even sure where to start,” Kayla said finally. Officer Desmond listened attentively for nearly an hour as Kayla explained the complicated and twisted history between herself, her mother, Leanne, and Trent. At the mention of Trent’s name, however, a knowing look flashed across Nicole’s face. Evan had a feeling there was a big file with Trent’s name on it somewhere.
Evan had terrible misgivings about coming here. The police had certainly never helped him, but he wasn’t counting on someone like Nicole Desmond. She was bright, competent, and obviously angry about the injustices of Kayla’s story.
“Let me tell you something,” Nicole stated when Kayla had finally reached a stopping point. “We are gonna put a stop to this.” Then she looked at Evan, and he felt the full weight of her unwavering gaze. She meant what she said. She didn’t see him as an ex-con outlaw, and she didn’t see Kayla as a troublemaking stripper. Evan knew she saw the situation clearly as it was.
“We’re gonna get this guy. The first order of business is to get you a temporary injunction of protection. We’ll just file it for stalking, even though he’s done other things. It doesn’t matter, we only need one reason to file it. It’s good for fifteen days, then you’ll have to go to a hearing. If he comes near you while we’re putting the case together, we can arrest him on the spot, and we have another charge to pile on him.”
Kayla had a faraway stare like she wasn’t comprehending much.
“Kayla,” Officer Nicole said gently.
Kayla blinked and focused on her face.
“I know how these guys operate. First, he groomed you and tried to manipulate you into doing what he wanted. He probably said he loved you.” Kayla recoiled slightly, glancing at Evan. He squeezed her hand. Most needy teenaged girls thought that the first guy who showed real interest in them was something special, even when they were low-lifes like Trent. “That didn’t work as well as he hoped, so the rape was meant to demoralize you so he could get total control over you. He’s probably done it to a hundred other girls.”
Kayla glanced at Evan, her face crumpling, her lips quivering. “He’s had control of me all these years.”
“Not anymore,” Officer Nicole interjected. “Not on my watch.”
“Thank you.” Kayla reached impulsively across the table to grab Officer Nicole’s hand. Nicole placed her free hand over Kayla’s and squeezed.
“Let me get you some resources. There’s services to help girls get out of this life. And I know a rape crisis counselor who is excellent. You should talk to other people who understand.”
She stood to retrieve some pamphlets, and Evan felt weak with gratitude. He’d never had a good experience with cops, and he doubted Kayla had either. This powerhouse of a woman was a breath of fresh air and exactly what Kayla needed.
Armed with pamphlets and a restraining order, they made their way to the door.
Emerging from the air-conditioned police station back out into the blinding Florida heat was disorienting. Kayla was cold despite the blast of sun. It was as if she was lost inside a cold bubble where nothing could quite reach her.