BEVERLY AND GREGORY opened the door as she headed back into the house.
Beverly held Calvin and Bear-Bear in her arms, while Gregory cradled Jake.
“Your house is a crime scene now,” Beverly said. “Calvin and Jake are going to stay with us for a few days until things calm down. I think it’s better for everyone. Right, Calvin?”
Calvin nodded sleepy assent.
Julia looked to the dog, wriggling in Gregory’s arms. “Are you going to be all right with the dog there? What’s your cat going to do?”
“Adjust,” Beverly said tartly. “Just like the rest of us.” Her voice softened. “Your little dog has already seen one crime committed in this house. Now another. I can’t imagine leaving him here. Don’t worry, we’ll take good care of him. We’ll probably be asleep when you get done here.”
“Or we might not even see you until tomorrow.” Gregory, twinkling again.
Julia gawked at him. Whatever was he talking about? She knew the police would let her wait until morning to give a full statement. Crime victims’ memories were notoriously scattered and unreliable immediately after a traumatic event. The police would like her to be well rested as much as she’d like it herself.
Gregory looked down the walk. She followed his gaze.
Dom stood by the gate.
“Claudette called me. Beverly too.”
His voice sounded muffled, far away.
Julia had collapsed into his arms, burrowing her face into the slick fabric of his spring-weight down jacket. She knew she’d be embarrassed later about her movie-cliché near-swoon, but everything caught up with her when she saw him—the attack on Angie, the danger to her and Calvin, the revelations of Wayne’s desperate perfidy.
He held her close, murmuring nonsense words until she stopped shuddering.
“They told me a little bit about what happened. You can tell me the rest later. But for now, let’s go home.”
She pulled back. “Home? Whose home?”
“Mine. Beverly knows you’ll probably stay there tonight. In fact, she suggested it.”
“Absolutely not.” Strength returned, stiffening her spine, tensing her jaw. “I need to be with Calvin. Dom, he threatened him. I was afraid he was going to kill my son before my very eyes.”
She freed herself from his embrace and headed down the street after Beverly and Gregory and Calvin, almost running. Dom caught up with her after a few paces, reaching for her hand and swinging her to face him.
“Beverly’s right. She’s afraid—let’s see, how did she put it? That you’ll cling to Calvin every waking moment and scare him even further. Her aim is to get him back into a routine as quickly as possible.”
“No.” Julia shook her head, but her steps slowed.
“Trust me on this one, Julia. I taught school for years, and I’ve been a principal for even longer. I’ve seen kids in every situation imaginable, kids who’ve lost parents, siblings, friends. Kids who’ve been abused—physically, sexually, emotionally. The last thing they need after something like this is for their whole world to change. Calvin needs to see tonight as an aberration; to know that life goes on as normal. Beverly left voice mails for both his teacher and his principal, explaining the bare basics of the situation so they’ll be prepared. Calvin will be taken care of. It’s you everyone’s worried about.”
“I’ll be fine.” Her knee-jerk response, so patently untrue, would be laughable under any other circumstances. “Besides, what about Susan and the custody case?”
“The hell with Susan. Something I should have said right away. If Elena really wants to live with her mother because of this, I’ll survive. But I don’t think she will. I’m just sorry I didn’t stand up to Susan earlier.” He took both her hands and looked into her eyes. “I’m sorry, Julia.”
Words that, at this moment, meant even more than I love you.
Or maybe it was the same thing.