My Neighbor is Bad News

21: Close Call

Cade was running a program on his laptop when he got the call and he didn't think as he rushed into his vehicle, racing out of the driveway. He knew, he knew that he should have gone with them but he had a deadline with the client. He also figured that he should have given her the freedom that she wanted without him on her like her father was.

He tightened his grip on the steering wheel and was making his way to where they were when he got a call that they were going to the hospital. He changed gears as he sped even faster to the hospital. He called the security detail to do a check up but he also wanted to check on Jenna. He knew that she was in good hands and right now he didn't trust himself to be calm. Instead, he called Lazarus who was at the warehouse and he was making his way there.

When he got there, he cracked his knuckles and he was so angry and relieved that they had the bastards before they got away. He found Lazarus who was watching from afar as they were "interrogating" the men but it was more along the lines of physically hurting the men into submission.

"Do we have anything?" He asked, wanting a piece of the action but he had to rein his anger in. He knew somehow it was tied back to the Giovannis. He just didn't find the connection yet. Lazarus watched as he knew that he was probably struggling as well. "We are fine here. We'll get the information that we need." He said as he looked at Cade. "Are you good?" He asked and Cade couldn't answer.

"Go to her, she needs you right now. Esmeralda says she wants to talk to the men." He said and Cade looked over to his father-in-law. He heard rumors that Esmeralda, for the petite innocent woman that she was, had a very convincing way of interrogation. He was curious to see what she would do but he knew that right now, he just wanted the men dead and Jenna in his arms. 

"If you need a second, I understand." He told Cade. "I'm sorry." He said as he looked to Lazarus. No matter the poker face that he held, he knew that he had to be worrying over his daughter and Cade felt guilty. "You left her in my care and this happens." He said, fisting his hands into fists so hard that he could have cut into his own palms.

"It happens. She's my daughter, I know how she is. You don't." He said and Cade felt the blow like a punch to his abdomen. "Jenna has always been a spitfire, she just needed the common sense and street knowledge to go along with it. That's why I like you for my daughter. In no way is this your fault. The detail informed me that she took a call outside and that's when they took her. You called her?" He asked and Cade gave him a confused look. "I didn't call." He said his voice trailing off.

"Jenna knows better than to answer unknown numbers. Someone had to know that she wouldn't answer, so they probably knew that she would answer yours. This wasn't random, it was methodical." He said. Cade nodded and he was already thinking to track where the call had come from and it had to be someone who knew both their numbers. He would change their number as soon as he went home.

"I'll be in to see her later. Don't take it hard." He said and Cade nodded before leaving. He was angry but not bloodthirsty. He was more mad at himself than he was at anyone else for letting this happened once more. Next time, he was going to up their security.

He got to the hospital and found her in a room surrounded by her mom and siblings. She was being checked and when she saw him, she ran over to hug him. Her body shook as she cried lightly. "Hey princess. How are you feeling?" He asked, his throat tight and guilt threatened to eat at him whole.

She looked to him and she had red rimmed eyes, a bruise on her cheek, a busted lip. "I just have a concussion." Jenna good him and he could see the dilation in her brown eyes. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. I should have been there. I promise you I was not the one who called you."

"It's okay. I'm here now and we'll catch the bastards. I believe in your tech savvy nature. I just wanna go home." She said and he looked over to Esmeralda who was moving away. "They want her under surveillance for the night to make sure that there is no lasting damage on top of waiting for the scan to come back." She answered and Jenna sighed. She knew they weren't going to let her go home but as long as Cade was with her, she felt safe. "You won't leave will you?" She asked him and he shook his head. "Don't count on it this time princess."

Cade had an overnight bag for the two of them as he grabbed his laptop as well. He made it back to the hospital just in time to find her having her hospital food dinner and she made a face at him. "Please tell me you have something better than this." She asked him and he held up a burger bag in which she gave him a look that meant he made the right choice in stopping by to grab her food. All their visitors were gone and her parents were in and they left together. Cade wondered if they were heading to the warehouse so he decided to ask her, "Do you know what it is that your mom does?"

Jenna was shoving a fry into her face as she thought about it. "She's a housewife for all I know. Why?" She said narrowing her eyes at him whilst eating to her hearts content. "Nothing, it's just, never mind." He said and Jenna was all ears now. He told her what they had said at the warehouse and she furrowed her eyebrows as she laughed. "Have you seen my mom? She's so petite, what do you think she does, bake them a pie until they tell her the truth? Or strangle them with their dirty laundry?" She laughed and Cade knew better than that. Looks were deceiving and if he truly believed she was something of an interrogator, he was sure it was true. He just didn't know what it was exactly she did to get the truth out of people.

"So, tell me, what is your goal here?" He said putting his feet up on the reclining chair. She gave him a look that he knew didn't exactly make sense. "Are you planning on taking over the family business, or do you have a goal in mind?" He asked and it truly baffled her as she really had to think about it. No one has asked her what she wanted or thought, so she couldn't answer right away. "I have been so caught up with wanting my independence I didn't think what I wanted to do once I had it. I genuinely liked working at the diner." She told him thinking back to when she was on her own. "That is out of the question." He said and she shrugged her shoulders. "I guess a business owner." She told him and he played with his fingers as he seemed to think about it. "What kind of business?" He asked her.

"I'm not sure. I like helping others and being in the diner with everyone in there made me realize that they need help. Lonnie was nice enough to keep them employed." She told him and he knew from the background check on the diner owner that she was clean. Except almost being killed by her husband was the last straw that eventually made her leave for good without turning back. "I would like to provide a safe haven for those in need, on top of giving them the opportunity and training that they might need to move on with their lives." She told him wondering if there was something like that. "Social work?" He asked her and she shrugged her shoulders. "Do you want to go to school?" He asked her and she nodded. "I can arrange for you to go to school, but it'll have to be twice a week. The rest you can do online classes. You'll also have details, don't forget that."

The way that she looked at him wonder why he wanted so hard to make her happy and he wasn't sure where the thought came from. "In the meantime you can do general classes until you figure out what it was you wanted to do."

Jenna smiles at him as her bottom lip quivered. "You would do that for me?" She asked him. The way she looked in her hospital gown sitting on the bed made him feel that this was twice now that she has been in the hospital. He glanced at the scar on her bicep and averted his eyes as he stole one of her fries. "Careful there Mr. O'Donnell, I might just fall in love with you." She joked but it was too late when the statement she made had already slipped passed her lips and was more serious than she would have liked.  Her cheeks were pink as she threw another fry into her mouth and looked away from him hoping he did not get the wrong idea or think that she may have proclaimed her love for him.