Chapter 56: Chapter 56: Changing Circumstances

Carter

“I have to get that,” he said. “It’s probably my uncle, and it has to be important.”

“Go.” Allison sat up and scooted away.

He hurried to the kitchen counter. As he picked up the small mobile phone, which was a thin black brick in his hands, it took a moment to remember how to answer it. The button to answer the call was right in the middle. He pushed that button, then lifted the phone to his ear.

“Hello?”

“Carter?” It was his Uncle Eli. “Are you alone?”

He hadn’t heard his uncle’s smooth, comforting voice in over three months, not since the last time he’d checked in with his parents. They’d talked to him on this phone too, though obviously, they kept communication to a minimum to avoid rousing suspicion.

“I can talk,” Carter hedged.

“So you are not alone.”

He mentally debated for a moment. “No, but I trust her. We’re all good here.”

Uncle Eli sighed. “I suppose that was inevitable. Please tell me you’ve only told her the basics and not the whole story.”

Carter ignored the question. “Is Jenna okay? What about Mom and Dad?”

“Everyone here is fine. I’m calling because there’s been a change to your legal situation, one I’m not sure I entirely understand. Even so, I knew you needed to be told immediately.”

A change to his legal situation? Was the FBI actually coming all the way out here to arrest him? Given all the trouble this past month, that would be about right. “Just tell me.”

“Steven has dropped all charges against you.”

Carter just let dead air hang for a moment.

“Are you still there?” Uncle Eli asked.

“Sure,” he said quietly. “But could you say that again?”

He’d rammed his truck in Steven’s the day the bastard tried to shoot Jenna. Steven had also fired a shot at him in the driveway, but he couldn’t prove that, and it was easy to call it self defense. He had tackled the man into his trailer hitch and broken his spine... by accident.

He didn’t regret saving his sister from the abusive husband who intended to murder her. He just didn’t understand why the man would ever forgive him. This felt like a trap.

“I can’t explain Steven’s decision in any way that makes legal sense,” Uncle Eli continued calmly. “However, I can tell you that he has agreed to waive his right to press charges against you now and in the future. I’m getting all the documents drawn up personally, and I know a judge I trust to cross the t’s and dot the i’s. I have also obtained a personal assurance from the district attorney you will not be prosecuted for the attack.”

“Right,” Carter said quietly. “Because I did attack him.”

“That’s just lawyer speak,” Uncle Eli corrected. “No one here feels any different about what you did back then. He forced you into that confrontation, and Jenna and possibly her baby are alive because of you. As for Steven... it seems he’s decided not to be your problem any longer. I’ll need a week to ensure everything is settled, and then, if you’re ready...”

“I can come back home,” Carter said softly. He glanced at Allison on the couch.

Uncle Eli continued. “I know you’ll likely need some time to think about this, which is why I called you about it tonight. To be safe, you should remain where you are for the next week. Change nothing. Assuming Steven doesn’t change his mind and the attorney representing him doesn’t talk him out of it, I’ll let you know when everything is final here.”

“Thanks,” Carter said. “I mean... thanks for all this. Everything you’ve done.”

“You never have to thank me. I just hope you’re okay up there.”

Carter took another look at Allison, who sat now on the couch and watched him with a soft smile. “I’m doing just fine.”

“Good. Before we hang up, there’s someone else here who wants to talk to you.”

Carter frowned. “Someone...?”

“Hey, big bro.”

He blinked rapidly, then grinned wide. “Jenna?”

“No, it’s your other sister.” She gave him a beat to process. “So you’ve been shacking up? Is she hot? When do I get to tell her all my embarrassing stories about you?”

“You shouldn’t be talking to me.” Carter suddenly found himself worried about her again. “You’re not supposed to know where I am. No one is but my lawyer.”

“I don’t know where you are!” Jenna assured him cheerily. “Certainly not in a crappy apartment up north. Anyway, I’ll make this quick. I think Steven is telling the truth.”

“You talked to him?”

“He sent me a letter,” Jenna said. “Several, actually, after I burned the first few.”

“What was in the one you didn’t burn?”

“A sob story. He apologized for everything, including the attempted murder, though obviously, that doesn’t make it better.”

“No, it does not.”

“He claims he snapped that day. He says he wasn’t in his right mind, that it was the booze, that he hasn’t had a drink in months and doesn’t plan to. He said all the time in a chair has let him work on himself. He also wants supervised visitation with little Stevie, and I can’t exactly stop that without starting a huge custody battle. And... Stevie does miss his father.”

Carter didn’t like the sound of that. “You sure you can leave him alone with your kid?”

“We’re not getting back together,” Jenna said firmly. “And Stevie won’t ever be alone with him. But so long as Steven doesn’t press any charges against you, which he’s agreed to promise, we’re going to try to at least be civil to each other for the sake of our kid.”

“That’s...” Carter sighed. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Really?” Jenna snorted. “I can’t think of anything that could go wrong.”

“But it’s your decision, not mine.”

“No shit, Sherlock.” Jenna sounded amused, not angry. “I’m not going into this blind, and he’s got a long way to go before I’m willing to speak him again. Maybe I never will be. But... you know.” She sighed heavily. “It would be nice to have all this behind us. I really miss you.”

“Yeah,” Carter said. “I miss you too.”

“So who’s your new chick? Where’d you two meet? How did you two meet? And just how much did you lean on the fugitive bad boy angle?”

Carter sighed. “I’m so glad you’re doing okay.”

“Thanks to you. Uncle Eli is waving his hand below his neck like I need to hang up now. You’re off the hook this time, but after you come home, you’re giving me all the details about your new lady friend. And we’re going out for some beer.”

“Sure,” Carter said quietly. “You can count on that.”

“Stay safe, big bro. Love you.”

“Love you too,” Carter whispered.

It took him a moment to realize the phone call had ended. With a mobile phone, there wasn’t a dial tone. He checked it one last time to make sure there was nothing connected, plugged it back into the charger on the kitchen counter, and looked to the couch.

Allison waited there. She patted the seat beside her. “Would you like to talk?”

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He took one shuddering breath. “I think I might need a little of that.”

Soon she ended up sitting on the couch and he ended up on his back with his head in her lap. He wasn’t entirely sure how that happened. He just knew it felt really good.

Allison smiled down at him, gently and repeatedly brushing her fingers through his hair, and nodded. “You do not trust this latest change in your legal circumstances.”

“No, I don’t.”

“Could it be a  trap? I do not know much about your legal system.”

“I mean, Uncle Eli knows about it.” Carter frowned. “If he’s confident he can set things up so Steven can’t go back on this word, I trust him. It really could be over. I imagine Steven’s parents could still sue me in civil court, maybe, but I’m assuming Eli has that covered.”

“So I could meet your parents? And your sister?”

For the first time since the phone call, Carter smiled. “You’d like that?”

“I am your partner,” Allison reminded him patiently. “And yes, I would like to meet the people who shaped you. I am in love with the shape they made.”

Carter stared up at her and grinned. “That’s both cute and... like physically?”

“Your mind. They helped shape your mind. That is how we see things.”

“You won’t miss Miss Ellen? And Izzy?”

“I will, very much,” Allison said. “Miss Ellen is so kind, and she has been good to me this month. But she also made it clear I need only work until I was safe, and I am safe now. With you.” She brushed his cheek. “As for Izzy... she could visit us in Texas?”

“Right,” he agreed. “Still... I can’t see an asshole like Steven ever doing this out of some random change of heart. He hasn’t changed. He must have an angle.”

“Perhaps, after evaluating his chances, he has simply changed his goals?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“You have successfully evaded retaliation for six months. It may now be clear to him you could evade indefinitely. If he has realized he cannot succeed in his goal of having you prosecuted for your actions to save your sister, perhaps he is now focused on seeing his child instead.”

“I don’t like how plausible that sounds,” Carter said grimly. “I just hope Jenna is right.”

“About what?”

“That he wouldn’t hurt little Stevie. That man put a woman half his size in the hospital. I don’t trust him. I won’t ever trust him.”

“Nor should you,” Allison agreed. “But if you are there to watch over them...”

“Yeah,” Carter agreed softly. “Back in Texas, I can be there to watch over them both.”

“I wish to be with you wherever you wish to be,” Allison assured him. “If you wish to stay here in Pennsylvania, I will happily continue to work at Two Times Around. If you wish to return to Texas, so long as you take me with you, I will also be thrilled.”

“Like I’d ever leave you here,” Carter said dryly. “Still, it gets kind of hot.”

“I can withstand a number of temperature extremes.”

“But our ice cream is really good.”

“Better than Dark Chocolate?”

“I mean, our Dark Chocolate is better than the Dark Chocolate here.”

“I want to go Texas with you,” Allison said immediately.

Carter reached up to touch her chin. “Plus, I don’t want to make sandwiches for the rest of my life. That was never the plan.”

“What is?”

“I don’t really know.” Carter stared at the ceiling as the possibility of a life beyond this simple apartment and his daily grind became real again. “My buddy Alex always said I should be an accountant, but fuck that. Just because I can do math doesn’t mean I like it.”

“But as a person who is not a fugitive, you will be able to figure that out.”

“Yeah,” Carter agreed. “And, hey. Maybe we could take a road trip together.”

She tilted her head. “To where?”

“Just anywhere. It’s a long drive back to drive back to Texas, but we could ride across the states and see stuff. Sleep at cheap motels, eat greasy diner food, take pictures of local landmarks. We can even take turns driving if we can get you a fake license.” Carter pondered. “I might even know a guy back home who could do that.”

“And on this road trip, we would still be having sex?”

Carter laughed at her surprisingly plaintive question. “As often as you want it. In every state. Why should Larika be the only one who gets a world sex tour?”

“I am glad she is going to have so much fun,” Allison said. “But I prefer quality of quantity. Also, she never gets to overlap with anyone.”

“Overlapping is fun,” Carter agreed. “So speaking of...”

“Yes,” Allison said immediately. “I would like you to fuck me. Now if you feel up to it.”

“You want to do that special trick? How much energy to you need?”

“We should not repeat that tonight,” Allison said firmly. “Larika and I already took you to your limit last night in our ship. Your stamina and resilience is remarkable, but I fear to stress your body after your recent trauma. One time, tonight, will be more than enough.”

Carter lightly gripped her chin and grinned. “Oh, we’ll just see about that.”

THE END

 

 

Author’s Note

This wraps up the first arc for Syren’s Song. This book was a first for me. While I’ve written plenty of SFF and even had characters eagerly and lovingly fuck, I always went with a fade to black. There was never any need to add explicit sex, but I thought it'd be fun to write.

Before this I’d never written romance, and I’d only (rarely) written smut. Given how well Elliott Kay combines those elements with urban fantasy, I decided I wanted to take a swing at both in scifi. This book is the result, and if you’ve read to end, I hope you enjoyed it!

For now, I have several other (paying) projects that demand my attention, which means I may not get back to these characters for some time or possibly, ever. This isn’t because I don’t enjoy writing them, but simply because I have other books to write. For that reason, I’ve done my best to leave Allison and Carter in a good place with a bright future.

If there’s enough interest, however, I will definitely think about writing a new arc, picking up with when Carter and Allison arrive back in Texas and deal with more shenanigans while, obviously, continuing to have lots of satisfying sex.

If that’s something you’d really like to see at some point, let me know in the comments. I may just write it when I have an opening in my schedule. And if I do publish anything new, I’ll do so under this same account, so you can also follow it for any updates.

Finally, since there wasn't actually any fucking in the last week, I’ve also written a bonus scene with actual sex! I'll post that Monday.

Until next time, this is Danny Rogan, signing off.

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