Page 69 of The Candle Palace (Jamison Valley 6)
For that, he deserved to suffer in jail.
Milo’s heat hit my back as he placed his arms on my shoulders. “They’re done talking to your mom.”
“Will you take him to jail?” I asked the officer.
He nodded. “Yes.”
I locked eyes with Denny, making sure my voice was loud and clear. “Good.”
Without giving him another moment, I walked over to where Mom was standing in front of the house. She was weeping into the sleeve of her robe.
“I can’t believe this,” she said when I stood by her side. “I was asleep and woke up to this huge crash and the house shaking. I thought it was an earthquake. I came down the hall and there was a hole in the house and Denny was stumbling his way out of the truck.”
“He needs help, Mom.”
“I’ll talk to him.”
“No, this needs more than talk.” I crossed my arms over my chest. Behind her, Milo gave me a reassuring nod. “This needs action. I don’t think you should bail him out of jail.”
“What?” Her eyes bulged. “He can’t stay in jail.”
“Why not? It’s not like he has a house to come home to.” I threw my arm wide toward the chaos behind me. “Maybe a few days in jail to think about this and sober up will do him some good.”
“It was an accident, Sara. He didn’t mean to crash into the house.”
“An accident? How can you—” I stopped myself.
Why was I wasting my breath arguing with her? The minute she was able, she’d have Denny out of that jail cell and into a cozy hotel room. We were standing in the yard, in the freezing cold, in the middle of the night next to a house in shambles, and she was defending him.
“I give up.” I shook my head. “I don’t want to fight tonight. Come on. You can sleep on my couch.”
“Oh, um . . . that’s okay.” She looked up at Milo. “You have a full place. I’m Abby, by the way.”
He shook her hand. “Milo Phillips.”
“Nice to meet you. So you’re Sara’s boyfriend?”
“That’s right.”
She leaned in closer to me. “You didn’t tell me you were seeing someone.”
No, I hadn’t told her about Milo. Instead, my recent conversations with her had been about Denny and his addictions. It hadn’t been the time to discuss my love life.
Now wasn’t either.
“We should get going, Mom.”
She needed warmer clothes and it wasn’t like she could go inside, pack up her toiletries and an overnight bag. At least at my place, she could borrow some clothes to wear tomorrow until we figured out what to do about the house.
“Did the officers say you needed to stay longer?” Milo asked her.
“I can leave. But I don’t want to impose. You guys go. I have a place to stay.”
“Where? A hotel? That’s silly. Why don’t you want to stay with us?”
She stayed quiet, dropping her chin to avoid my stare.
“Abby!”
