Ocean breeze, p.27
Ocean Breeze, page 27
Jay closed his eyes, dropped her hand, and clenched his fists.
When he opened his eyes again, he saw red as he shouted, “Was it the same guy? The guy who’s stalking you? Did he attack you both times?”
Jamie jumped and instantly backed away from him.
“Was it the same guy?” he shouted again.
Jamie gave a little nod.
“Did he attack you that same weekend we started dating?” he demanded, clenching and unclenching his fists.
“Yes,” Jamie whispered, holding her arms tightly around her body.
“How?” Jay croaked. “What did he do to you?”
“It doesn’t matter now,” she began.
“What did he do to you?” he yelled, clenching his fists.
Jamie jumped again and took a few more steps away from him.
With a trembling voice she said, “That night you surprised me at Catches, and then we walked on the beach and we kissed in the hallway outside my apartment door. He was waiting for me inside my apartment. He broke in and was waiting for me.”
She clutched her forehead in the palm of her hand as she began to sob.
“Tell me what he did!” Jay demanded.
“Before I could turn on the lights, he punched me hard in my stomach,” Jamie sobbed. “He took me completely by surprise! Then he punched me in my right side and I fell to the floor. I couldn’t yell for you because he knocked the wind out of me.”
Jay was standing about two feet away. He began walking toward her, but she backed away from him. She held herself tightly as her feet rocked from side to side. He took another step toward her, but she backed away some more. He stood there helplessly watching her as she clutched her head and continued rocking herself.
“Is that enough, or do you need to hear more of the ugly details?” she hissed.
“Jamie, I…”
“I couldn’t get up and I couldn’t see where he was,” she continued as she held her forehead. “My apartment was pitch-black. I managed to crawl to my bedroom, but not before he kicked me in my side,” she choked, taking another step back when he took a step toward her. “I locked myself in my bedroom and called the police. He took off before the police got there.”
Jamie paused and massaged her forehead.
“That’s when I first met Officer Owens and Officer Garcia,” she added. “They made the building super give me a new apartment and made his staff move me. His maintenance staff left a ladder lying around outside and he used it to climb onto my deck and break inside.”
“Jamie, why didn’t you tell me?” he asked in complete bewilderment.
“Oh yeah, I can just imagine that conversation,” she responded sarcastically. “Jay, I’d love to be more than your friend. By the way, I’m raising my little sister and oops, I almost forgot to mention I’m being stalked by a madman! That would have gone over really well!”
Jay hung his head. He slowly took a step toward her.
Jamie took a step back, still holding her arms tightly around herself and rocking from side to side.
Why was she acting like this toward him? He never saw her act like this before. She was hostile, almost as if she was afraid of him, but that didn’t make any sense. She trusted him with her life. Why would she suddenly be afraid of him?
“If you knew he was in the area, why did you move to a different apartment in the same complex?” he asked. “Why didn’t you move farther away?”
b
Jamie clutched her forehead. “Oh great, are you going to yell at me some more now?” she screamed. “Are you going to tell me what an idiot I am for risking my little sister’s life by staying? I know she could have been killed because of my stupidity! I don’t need you to tell me that! I know I screwed everything up! If I had just stuck to the plan, none of us would be in this mess right now!” she screamed at the top of her lungs.
Jamie’s pounding head spun, her stomach flipped, her eyes were wide open but all she could see were stars. Her legs buckled beneath her and she was falling. She heard Jay yell her name, but he sounded far away. Her knees and shins hit the ground hard. Then strong arms grabbed her and eased the rest of her body softly to the ground. Her head pounded with such excruciating pain she couldn’t see clearly. The unfocused images she saw made her nauseous. She closed her eyes.
Jamie kept her eyes closed until her stomach settled. Then, she cautiously opened them, preparing herself for more unfocused images. Fortunately, she could see normally again, despite her splitting head. She was sitting upright on the ground, her legs stretched out in front of her. Jay sat next to her, his legs lying straight behind her, helping to support her back. His right arm was wrapped around her back. His left hand gently held her head against his shoulder. She smelled his salt air scent.
His hair tickled her cheek as he bent over her whispering, “I’m so sorry,” over and over again.
She normally would have found all these sensations extremely comforting, but not now. Instead, she snarled, “Are you done yelling at me?” and struggled desperately to get up.
Jay gently pulled her back, bent his head toward hers and kissed her softly on the lips.
“I’m not mad at you, Jamie. I wasn’t yelling at you. I didn’t even realize I was yelling. I-I was upset,” he stammered. “Thinking about all the horrible things that maniac did to you makes me a little nuts. I’m sorry I frightened you,” he apologized sheepishly as he stroked her hair. “I could never yell at you. I hope you know that.”
Jamie threw her arms around his neck and hugged him. She breathed in his wonderful salt air scent.
“Who used to yell at you?” he asked softly.
Jamie looked up at him and searched his eyes, wondering how he knew. “My father,” she said softly. “He used to yell at me and Carl a lot.”
Jay nodded slightly in understanding. “Did he ever hit you?”
“Not until I was older,” she whispered. “How did you know?”
“I’ve been there,” he answered as his eyes filled with tears.
“How’s your head?” he whispered.
“Not so good.”
“Okay. Let’s just sit here for a while and see if we can make it feel better,” he soothed as he gently pushed her head back onto his shoulder.
With his right hand, he massaged the back of her neck.
“Sorry I kissed you. You wouldn’t listen to me, so I had to do something to get your attention.”
“You got my attention all right,” she said with a grin.
“Did you like it?” he whispered mischievously in her ear, sending chills down her spine.
“I did,” she whispered back, trying hard to relax her tense muscles.
She adjusted her tired head on his shoulder and pressed her pounding forehead against his neck. She closed her eyes and listened to the rhythm of his heartbeat thumping beneath her.
They sat there in silence for a few minutes.
“Does talking make it hurt?” Jay asked softly.
“I’ll be okay as long as I don’t talk too loudly.”
“Will you tell me what that was all about?”
“Which part?” she asked.
“The part about you’re being an idiot and not sticking to the plan. You’re not an idiot by the way. Those are your words, not mine,” he said as he continued to rub the back of her tense neck.
Jamie took a breath and exhaled slowly. She closed her eyes and watched as past events unfolded in her mind’s eye.
“Before Carl moved out to California, he helped April and me move here to Cocoa Beach from St. Petersburg. We hoped if we moved to the opposite coast, it would throw the stalker off and he wouldn’t be able to find us. We chose Cocoa Beach, because Gran lives here and she would be able to help me with April. I couldn’t take care of her and go to school and work without someone I trusted to help me.”
Jamie paused, finding it difficult to focus with such a throbbing headache.
“You don’t have to tell me about this if you don’t want to,” Jay whispered into her hair.
“No, it’s okay. I want to tell you. I was always afraid he might find us one day. “After living here for nine months with no sign of him, I hoped maybe he gave up looking for us. I started to let my defenses down and I let you into my life.”
She picked her head up and smiled at Jay.
“That night we kissed was the most amazing night of my life. I wanted to kiss you so badly, but I was afraid he was still out there, waiting to ruin my life some more. I took a chance and kissed you and I’m so glad I did. Immediately after that moment he caught me completely off guard and attacked me.”
Jay wiped away the tear running down her cheek and held her tightly in his arms.
Jamie rested her aching head on his shoulder once more. This conversation wasn’t helping her head, but she wanted to explain all this to Jay. He had a right to know. She owed him that.
“Before Carl moved to California, we covered all our bases. We were taking a big risk by separating and Carl wanted to make sure April and I would be safe. We devised a back-up plan. Carl made me promise if for any reason it was no longer safe for us to live in Cocoa Beach, we would move immediately. We chose Tallahassee as our back-up city. We thought moving to the Panhandle might throw him off and give us more time to buy a house in California. We picked out an apartment complex there and found a restaurant nearby where I could work.”
She felt Jay’s body stiffen.
“Why didn’t you move to Tallahassee?” he asked softly.
“I was going to,” she whispered. “I ended our relationship and was making arrangements to rent an apartment and move there.”
“What stopped you?” he asked nervously.
“You,” she whispered. “You surprised me in the library and wanted an explanation. I didn’t realize you cared about me that deeply. When I saw what my ending our relationship was doing to you, I couldn’t go through with it. I couldn’t cause you that kind of pain.”
Jay buried his head in her hair and hugged her.
Jamie clung to his chest.
“So, I changed the plan. I thought moving to a different apartment in the same complex might confuse him and buy me some time. It worked for three weeks.”
“Buy you some time for what?” he asked.
“To spend with you.”
Tears pooled in Jay’s eyes. “You - you lived in terror for me?” he choked.
She nodded.
“You knew he was coming for you. You had two deadbolts installed on your bedroom door and played a game with April to teach her how to lock and unlock them. In case something happened to you, you packed her a backpack with everything she’d need for several days. You included your grandmother’s name, address, and phone number inside along with detailed directions showing how to get to her house. You were exhausted because you couldn’t sleep at night. You knew he would attack at night,” Jay choked.
Jamie nodded again.
“I was so scared, Jay. Every night I lay in bed with April in the bed next to mine and the bedroom door bolted shut, holding my phone in my hand. I lay there waiting for him every night. I knew he would come eventually,” she said just above a whisper as she trembled against him.
"
Jay struggled to hold back the tears that were filling his eyes. Last night he hadn’t slept at all knowing there was a stalker looking for Jamie and knowing his house was relatively unprotected. He couldn‘t imagine spending every night like that, especially not with a little girl in his care. Jamie had a choice. She could have moved far away to Tallahassee where she and April would be safe. But she chose to stay for him instead.
“You don’t have to be afraid anymore, Jamie. I promise you’re safe now. I won’t let this maniac or anyone else ever hurt you again. I promise,” he whispered into her beautiful hair.
“You did everything you could to protect April. You were even prepared to sacrifice yourself. When he did eventually attack, you chose to stay outside your bedroom to protect her. You knew I would be there in a few minutes and you were trying to buy her some more time. Why Jamie? Why did you risk your life for me?” he choked.
“Because for the first time in a very long time I had a friend and I was happy,” she explained.
Jay wanted to kiss her more now than he had ever before. He wouldn’t dare though. He had already broken her rule once that afternoon. Kissing her a second time with her in such a vulnerable position would definitely be pushing his luck. He opted instead to hug her tightly and kiss her head several times.
“I can’t believe you did that for me,” he whispered.
“Why is it so hard to believe I couldn’t leave you?” she asked.
Jay hung his head and wiped at his eyes.
“All my life, the people I’ve loved have left me,” he began. “First my father, then my mother, then my grandparents, then my mother again. But you, you barely knew me and you risked your life and your sister’s life staying here for me.”
Jamie looked up at him, her eyes filled with tears. “I’m so sorry, Jay. I didn’t know.”
“I don’t think you’re an idiot for choosing to stay here. I understand why you did,” he soothed, thinking about how extremely lonely and unhappy Jamie must have been before she met him.
“Does Carl know?” he asked.
“I didn’t tell him about the first attack until two days ago when you encouraged me to tell him the truth. That’s why I kept apologizing to him on the phone at the hospital.”
That explained a lot. At the hospital, he thought Carl was blaming Jamie for being attacked. In reality, she was apologizing for putting herself and their little sister in danger.
“Was Carl mad at you when you told him you were attacked before but decided not to move to Tallahassee?” he asked.
“No. He was upset, but he understood. He’s just as lonely as I was,” she said softly while she rubbed her temple.
“If Carl and I understand why you decided to change the plan and stay here, why are you carrying around such guilt inside yourself?” Jay asked as he stroked her hair.
“Because April could have been killed!,” she exclaimed, suddenly lifting her head off his shoulder, wincing in pain, then immediately clutching her head in her palm. “I put her in danger! I risked her life!”
Jay gently pushed her head against his shoulder once more and wrapped her in his arms.
“April’s fine,” he soothed as he massaged her neck with one hand and stroked her hair with the other. “He didn’t touch a hair on her head, thanks to you. Stop being so hard on yourself. You need to let it go, Jamie. This guilt is tearing you up inside. You need to let it go.”
After several minutes passed, Jamie whispered, “Can I ask you something?”
“Of course.”
“What did you mean when you said your grandparents left you? I thought they were killed in a car accident.”
Jay took a moment then answered solemnly, “They were, but when you’re fourteen years old and the only family you’ve ever known is suddenly gone, you feel like you’ve been left behind.”
Jamie hugged him tightly, pressing his head against her own. She suddenly let out a little gasp.
Jay looked at her face in alarm and followed her gaze to her extended legs. “Oh, Christ!” he exclaimed. “Can you sit up by yourself so I can take a look?”
Jamie nodded. He got up and knelt next to her legs. When she fell, her knees and shins hit the ground hard. He was so concerned with her head he hadn’t thought to check her legs. They were caked in dried blood and dirt. Several of her wounds had opened up on impact. It looked as though her knees got the worst of it. He was sure underneath all that mess she had added some new bruises to her collection. There wasn’t anything he could do about her legs out there. He had to get her back to the house.
“How are they?” Jamie asked worriedly.
“I think they probably look worse than they actually are. How do they feel?” he asked, noting her pale complexion and her hand pressed to her forehead.
“They’re throbbing.”
“If I help you, do you think you can stand up?” he asked.
She nodded.
Jay wrapped her right arm around his shoulders and wrapped his left arm around her waist. He slowly helped her stand.
She sagged against him.
“It’s okay, I’ve got you,” he said. “Can you put any weight on your legs?” he asked.
Jamie stood firmly on both of her legs. “They’re just sore.”
“Good,” Jay said with a sigh of relief. “Let’s get you home.” He gently scooped her up in his arms with relative ease.
Jamie smiled his smile. She clung to his shoulders with her right hand, held his cheek with her left and softly kissed his neck several times. She nestled against his chest and rested her head on his shoulder.
Jay loved holding her in his arms. He planned to take his time walking back to the house.
TWENTY-Five
The Housing Crisis
b
Jamie was vaguely aware of muffled voices nearby. “How long has she been asleep?” a woman’s voice asked.
“A little over fourteen hours,” Jay responded.
She recognized his voice at once. Who was he talking to? she wondered. The excruciating pain in her head she had experienced hours earlier was now a dull headache. She opened her eyes and saw Jay and Jenny standing in the living room, speaking quietly.
“Jenny?” Jamie called as she tried to sit up.
Both Jay and Jenny looked in her direction, saw that she was awake and walked toward her.
“Hey,” Jay greeted her, smiling as he sat down on the edge of the bed and helped her sit up.
Jamie’s head spun and her stomach flipped. She gripped the mattress tightly and closed her eyes.
She felt Jay support her back with one hand while he reached around to the back of her neck and gently massaged it with his other hand.
“Jenny came over to help get you cleaned up and change the bandages on your arm,” he explained.
