Free Never Go Home by L.T. Ryan

of us. The only thing that
could have helped was bringing Jessie back, and that couldn’t happen.
    “Looks like
you two are getting along again,” Sean said.
    I hadn’t
heard him come in. I released my right arm and stepped to the side. Deb rested
her head on my shoulder.
    Sean’s
expression changed when he saw the tears on his wife’s face. “What’d you say to
her?”
    I shook my
head.
    “It’s not
him,” Deb said. “We were talking about Jess.”
    Sean moved in
and took over for me.
    “I’ll leave
you two alone.” I grabbed my coffee and wandered around until I found the
living room.
    Kelly smiled
as I approached. It reminded me of Mia. Their mouths were shaped the same. The
dimple was the same. They got it from my mother. Kelly patted the empty seat on
the couch next to her and waved me forward. Bold for a nine year old.
    I sat next to
her. For twenty minutes we talked about school and sports. She’d played soccer
since the age of three and loved to watch football. She didn’t have a favorite
team. She just enjoyed the time with her dad. He didn’t bury his face in his
laptop or his phone when football was on the television. I tried to get her to
talk about boys. Fortunately, she didn’t.
    “Why haven’t
you been here before, Uncle Jack?”
    I sat back
and thought about how to answer the question. What could I tell her? My life is
too important? Too dangerous? Me and your dad and mom have issues? I glanced
over at her. Why hadn’t I come to see my niece? Last time was when she was
barely a toddler. None of the excuses made sense, and they wouldn’t cut it with
her.
    “Because I’m
a fool,” I said. “Just like that crazy duck-cow-fish thing on the TV.”
    She laughed.
I wrapped my arm around her and leaned back. Her little head rested against my
side.
    Sean stepped
into the room. “We should get going, Jack.”
    “How’s Deb?”
    “She’s good.”
He waved me forward.
    “Where are we
going?”
    “You’ll see.”
     

Chapter 13
    Leon had
scrambled back to his car when the Mercedes took off earlier that morning. By
the time he pulled out, the sedan rounded a corner. Leon made it to the main
road and the Mercedes was gone.
    He figured it’d
be back sooner or later, so he exited the neighborhood and parked on the
shoulder of Suncoast Blvd, about a hundred yards from Jack’s only way out.
    After about an
hour, the Mercedes had returned. Now he saw it again. Leon brought his
binoculars up and saw two men in the front seat. They were the same guys from
the night before. The Mercedes pulled out and traveled away from him.
    Leon shifted
into gear and merged onto Suncoast. He kept a fair bit of distance between
himself and the two men. His only job now was to keep an eye on Jack.
     

Chapter 14
    Though I hadn’t
been home in six years, everything looked the same. Trees, houses, fields,
stores. I watched the familiar terrain pass by at fifty miles per hour.
    “Not much has
changed around here,” I said.
    “Wait till we
get to town,” Sean said.
    “Different?”
    “A bit.” He
shook his head. “Actually, not much.”
    “Isn’t that the
same?”
    “Semantics.”
    “Whatever.” I
rolled down my window. The morning air was cool, but humid. It didn’t matter
what time of day or night it was down here. Humidity was a way of life.
    “Any chance we
can do some fishing?” Sean said.
    I shrugged. We
used to go all the time as kids. There were many nights dad told us to go catch
our dinner. If we came home empty handed, we didn’t eat. We both grew up to be
expert anglers. At some point, it lost its luster for me. Too slow.
    “Afraid I’ll
show you up?” Sean said.
    “I know you
will.” I saw the river to my right. “Is that what we’re doing?”
    “No.”
    “Then where are
we going?”
    “To see Dad.”
    I said nothing.
    We entered town
doing twenty-five. I rolled my window all the way down and rested my elbow on
the sill. I figured maybe I’d see someone I knew and could