Page 175 of Broken
Janey’s gone. Gone forever.
Her heart clenched, the familiar pang shot through her. While she’d told herself that she and Janey could have overpowered their abductor and escaped, she knew the serial killer would have murdered them both.
Emotion gripped her throat while tears pricked her eyes. The past had managed to creep into her perfect day, drowning her in sorrow and regret. Prescott slowed the yacht and she turned toward him.
His brows knitted together. “What’s going on, babe?”
She pasted on a smile. “This is amazing.”
“Talk to me,” he said.
“Just thinking, but I’m fine, really.”
“I want to see Loki and NanaPapa.” Ethan started wriggling off her lap.
“Nice try.” She tightened her grip on him. “We have to wait for Uncle Prescott before we climb down the ladder.”
“No! You’re a stupid buttweiner.”
Prescott slowed the boat to an idle. “No name-calling Ethan.”
“I want to go down.”
“We donottalk to each other like that. What could you say to Jack that would be kind?”
“I want to see NanaPapa and Loki.” He shot Prescott a big smile.
“What about please?” Prescott asked.
“Please,” Ethan mimicked.
“What does buttweiner mean?” Prescott pressed.
“I can’t know, but my friend says it.”
“It’snota word we use, Ethan. Jack has been so nice to you. Do you think that was a kind thing to call her?”
“I want to get down,” he repeated.
“Right, I got that,” Prescott said. “No name calling. Do you understand?”
Ethan stared at him while another showdown of wills played out. After several seconds, Ethan turned to Jack. “You’re nice.”
“Thank you,” she replied.
“When we say something that’s mean, we can say ‘I’m sorry’ if we think we made a mistake.”
“I’m sorry. Can I go down, please?”
“Absolutely.” Jacqueline set him on his feet.
Prescott collected Ethan in his arms and retreated down the ladder. A few seconds later, he returned with Loki.
“I see the trade-off was a success,” she said.
He set the dog on the floor and handed her the leash. “I won’t tolerate disrespect. How’d I do, boss?”
She pushed out of the seat, kissed him. “You’re incredible with Ethan.” Then, she kissed him again. “With Loki,andwith me.”
