Page 28 of Holding On

“He … he fucking assaulted my little sister? What did he do? Where is she?”

“She’s safe now, I’m with her. I know she would prefer to have you with her as well; you need to get here as soon as possible.” I really don’t want to explain her injuries to him right now. I don’t know that he would be calm enough to get on a jet for the necessary flight.

“I’ll be wheels up within an hour. Can I talk to her?”

“She’s with the police right now but I can ask.”

“No, let her finish that. Tell her I’m coming and that I love her. She can call me whenever it works for her once I’m in the air.”

I look over and my eyes meet Tinsley’s, who is still talking to one of the police officers. She wipes away a rogue tear before looking back to the officer. “We’ll see you soon.”

“Jack?”

“Yeah, man.”

“I want him destroyed. I want him removed from every aspect of her life and career, and I want her fucking protected. I dropped the ball if this happened, and it will not happen again, do you hear me?” My easy and carefree friend is overcome with rage, but I understand everything he’s saying—and not saying.

We failed Tinsley.

But that will not happen again.

We won’t just be blacklisting Rick from all things Lux—we will demolish any opportunity he could ever have to work in this industry again. I sigh and rub a hand over my face. It’s going to be a long ass night, but we will do whatever needs to happen before I rest. “I understand. I’m going to call Daphne tonight and get the ball rolling.”

“Thanks, Jack. I’ll call Daph when we’re in the air as well. I know my sister is in good hands if you’re with her.”

“I’ve got her, man. I won’t leave her side.” Wells can think I’m here because he’s my best friend, and I would be if that was the whole picture, but the reality is that Tinsley is so much more than just my best friend’s little sister.

“Jack … you’re coming with us, right?” Tinsley asks as the EMT starts to lead them out of the room. She reaches a hand out toward me.

“Of course, I’m here, Tinsley.” I take her hand and pull her into me, tucking her under my arm to my side, and I don’t stop myself from kissing the top of her head. Rick hurt her, but she’s okay—or she will be. I’ll make sure of it.

Two hours later, Tinsley’s wheeled back into the private room at the local hospital after her CT scan. When we arrived at the hospital, Jett had already arranged a private room on the VIP floor with an entire team of the best doctors in the city, so while the paparazzi hounds the exterior of the hospital, no one can bother her here. As the nurse gets Tinsley settled back in her bed, I struggle to just sit and watch, quickly jumping up to help her move back into bed. “I’m okay, Jack. I’ve got this.” She squeezes my hand, but I’m done listening to how it’s not that bad. If she tells me one more time that this isn’t that bad, I am going to lose my shit in an epic way because if this—her lying in a hospital bed—isn’t that bad, what did really bad look like?

And how many times was it bad?

And what about when it was horrible?

I take a deep breath through my nose and try to control my anger. This is not the place to spiral down that train of thought. I can let my anger flow the next time I’m in the dojo, but that is not helpful right here and now.

My knee bounces as I struggle to sit and wait. It’s a little after ten p.m. and Wells should be arriving early tomorrow morning, but earlier, Tinsley spoke to him briefly before she had to get her chest x-rays taken. As soon as the doctors clear her, Tinsley has already expressed she wants to leave the hospital as soon as possible. Allie was checked out and given the all-clear by one of the doctors upon our arrival and hasn’t left the chair next to Tinsley’s bedside.

“Knock, knock.” I turn and see Pippa Lawrence walk into Tinsley’s room. Pippa’s brother Theo is dating my sister Savannah, and Pippa represented Savannah in her divorce earlier this year. Proving that it is indeed a small world, Pippa was also college roommates and is still best friends with our attorney Daphne Cromwell, who recommended Pippa for Savannah’s divorce proceedings. Pippa helps her brother Theo run the Forrest Falls branch of the prominent Smith and Harrington law firm based out of Nashville.

“I hope I’m not intruding. Jett let me in,” she says to me as I stand to shake her hand. I spoke to Daphne while Tinsley was having her CT scan done, and she told me she was taking a flight from New York to Nashville but would see if Pippa could come to the hospital to have legal counsel present. I could’ve called one of our attorneys from the firm we work with here in Nashville, but I trust Daphne without hesitation, so if she wants to bring Pippa in on this, I will defer to her. We will do whatever we need to do to protect Tinsley.

“Hi, Tinsley. My name is Pippa Lawrence. How are you feeling?” Pippa’s heels click softly as she moves to the foot of Tinsley’s bed, still giving her plenty of room. Tinsley looks to me for an explanation with slightly panicked eyes. I know she’s been very worried about all this getting out, and I don’t have the heart to tell her that the fact that something happened tonight is already being reported everywhere, but no one has the full story. I will do everything I can to ensure that will only happen if that’s what Tinsley wants.

“Tinsley, Pippa is an attorney that is also good friends with our attorney Daphne Cromwell, the one Wells mentioned is flying in from New York as we speak. I trust Daphne and I trust Pippa, okay?” I wait for Tinsley to nod before initially moving back to my seat by the window, but Tinsley tenses up as I move away, so instead, I move to her bedside opposite Allie and take the chair there, and I don’t miss how Tinsley seems to relax just slightly with me near.

“If Jack says I can trust you, then I know I can,” Tinsley offers while looking at her hands.

“Like Jack said, I’m an attorney. I actually represented Jack’s sister in her divorce.” This statement catches Tinsley’s attention and she relaxes a little more. Good. She needs to know I won’t bring people around her if I don’t trust them. “Daphne is on her way here to go through all of this, but I’m just stepping in until she can be here and putting a few things in motion.”

“What’s going to happen?” Tinsley asks without looking up. “How long until he gets out?”

Pippa shifts her long ponytail over her shoulder as she responds, “My understanding is that Rick Wilson was booked on charges of domestic assault and will see a judge sometime tomorrow to determine bail. I have already put in a formal request that there be a no-contact order as a condition of that bond, should the judge grant it. His sister was booked on charges of assault against a law enforcement officer and will go before a judge tomorrow as well. Apparently, when they tried to initially place Rick in handcuffs, she kicked, scratched, and tried to punch an officer. A source told me that because she struck the officers while they were performing official duties, Debbie Jo’s charges may be escalated to Assault Against a Law Enforcement Officer.”

“But, Rick … he … he can’t contact me? It … it can’t be that easy.” Tinsley looks from Pippa to Allie and back. “You don’t understand. He always gets to me. I can’t get away from him. He says he owns me.”