Neeta turned squinty eyes to Betty. “What’s this got to do with you?”
Betty didn’t answer. She turned her back on Neeta and she looked at Tate, Jonas and me. “Use the house to get changed. Go on, Ned’ll let you in.” When none of us moved, she urged softly, “Get now, this boy here needs Tate.”
I came unstuck and started to shuffle Jonas to the lounges that had our stuff scattered around and it happened.
Neeta lunged for Jonas, grasping his arm and tugging him violently out of mine. So violently, I watched his shoulder wrench in an unnatural way and he let out a surprised but agonized cry of pain.
When this happened, everyone flew into motion.
Ned jumped in front of Tate. I bent and grabbed Jonas’s hand, my head filled with visions of Neeta and me playing tug of war with poor Jonas as the rope. I was about to let go and go after Neeta when Betty’s hand came up sharply and then down sharper, smacking Neeta’s forearm so hard the crack of it filled the air and she let Jonas go, emitting her own surprised, pained cry. I carefully pulled him to me and once I had him, I wrapped my arm around him again and stepped out of reach, twisting my body to shield Jonas as Neeta made another lunge but Betty got in her way.
“Step back, bitch!” Neeta shrieked at Betty.
“Honestly, Neeta? Is this how you want your son to remember you? Behavin’ like this?” Betty shook her head and continued, “Your mother must be rollin’ in her grave,” she said softly, Neeta’s face went slack and she stepped back as if she’d been struck. “Thank the good Lord, praise thank him, she never lived to see what you’ve become.”
“I can’t believe you’d say that to me,” Neeta whispered.
“And I can’t believe I just watched you handle your boy like that,” Betty returned. “Brenda was a good girl. She loved her babies. She’d do anything for them. She’d do anything for you. One thing I know sure as certain, she’d never touch you like that and she’d fight to the death if she knew anyone had done that to you. Right now, I just know, she’s rollin’ in her grave.”
Betty didn’t wait for Neeta to reply. She turned to me.
“Get him inside, hon,” she prompted.
Far faster than before, I scuttled Jonas and me around Neeta and Betty, placing my body in a way that I was using it to shield Jonas from Neeta. Once clear, I rushed the both of us to our loungers. Jonas and I shoved our stuff in the bags I’d packed as I heard Tate talking to both Shambles and Ned. I was hefting a bag over my shoulder when the bag was caught at the handles. I whirled, ready to do battle if it was Neeta, only to see Tate had taken it from me. He grabbed my hand but his eyes were on Jonas. He jerked his head toward Ned and Betty’s, Jonas took off on a dash and Tate dragged me with him as we followed.
Ned was there before us and he let us in. We took turns in their bathroom, me first. I peeled off my suit and tugged on my underwear, jeans shorts and t-shirt even though my body was still clammy with wet. I yanked out my flip flops, shoved my feet in them and exited the bathroom only to have Tate, a hand gentle in his back, shove Jonas in.
“Quick, Bub,” he muttered, his hand on the doorknob.
Jonas nodded and Tate shut the door.
I looked up at him. “You okay?”
“Forget me,” he said, his hand coming to curl around the side of my neck. “Get out to Shambles.”
I nodded, he gave me a squeeze and let me go.
I rushed to Shambles.
*
Tate, Jonas and I in the Explorer, Shambles following in his VW van, Neeta following Shambles in her Chrysler, pulled into the forecourt of the garage.
Tate stopped close to the office door, Shambles pulled in beside Tate on the driver’s side and Neeta pulled in beside Jonas and me.
Jonas and I hopped down just as Wood and Pop exited one of the bays and Stella walked out of the office.
I quickly moved Jonas to the hood of Tate’s SUV as Tate rounded it, his eyes on Stella.
“Need you to look after Jonas,” he stated and Stella must have read the mood for she asked not one question. She simply nodded, her eyes on Neeta.
“That won’t be necessary since I’m takin’ him home with me,” Neeta announced.
“What’s up, Buck?” Pop asked, ignoring Neeta, as Wood and Pop made it to our group and Shambles hit Tate’s side. Shambles looked impatient. Pop had his eyes glued to Tate. Wood had his gaze on Neeta.
“Man here’s woman is missin’,” Tate told Pop, jerking a thumb at Shambles. “She’s been gone since yesterday. I need to get out and see if I can help.”
“Did you call the cops, bud?” Stella asked Shambles, walking down the steps that led to the office.
“They say forty-eight hours,” Shambles answered her and turned directly to Tate. “Can we go?”
“Yeah,” Tate murmured and said to Stella, “Stell?”
“Don’t worry, Tate,” she answered his unasked question.