The Beast And His Belle

Chapter 15

"I-I'm sorry, I have to go see my father," Belle frantically rose from her seat.
"Let me go with you." Jackson had already waved the waitress over and called for the car knowing their next stop was going to be her father before she even got off the phone. There was no way in hell he would let Belle go into the building alone knowing Andre could be there.

To think Belle was nervously picking at her nails on the way to the dress shop was an understatement now that they were on their way to her see her father. Jackson hadn't judged her when she spoke of her father's disability but it's a whole other thing entirely to see it first hand. She nervously glanced over to Jackson and he caught the panic in her eyes.
"You're going to see him at his worst if he hasn't been taking his medicine," Belle admitted with a fearful lump of tears in her throat. Jackson reached his hand over and pried her fiddling fingers off each other, intertwining them with his.  He didn't quite know what to say that would comfort her but he knew one thing was certain in his mind.
"I'll be right there with you. I'm not going anywhere."

"Daddy, what's wrong? Why aren't you taking your medicine?" Belle asked the second she swung the apartment door open.
She ran over and consoled Julien as Jackson looked around the place Belle had called home for years. The place was small and old. The once white walls had turned a faded yellowish color and all the appliances looked out of date. His eyes were drawn to the bright yellow slip and the capitalized words that read EVICTION NOTICE! His teeth gnawed together as he suppressed his anger knowing Andre was without a doubt responsible for this.
"I-I-I-I neeeed to finish Belle. I was s-so close, I-I-I-I could f-feel it!" Julien said.
"Daddy, please. It's out of your hands now," she sighed solemnly as she rubbed his back trying to calm him down. Jackson stepped towards her with his own worry.
"What is he talking about?" Jackson asked.
"The accounts. His work. It's-it's like a trigger in his brain, once he starts something, he has to keep going until it's complete. Like finishing a puzzle and having one missing piece. It eats at him somehow." Belle explained. Jackson silently crouched down to look into Julien's eyes.
"Julien, I'm Jackson Mason. What can I do to help you?" Jackson asked as Julien was slumped over holding his head in his hands.
"I-I-I s-swear I didn't take the money, M-Mr. Mason. I c-can find out wh-who did. I just n-neeeed to finish my work."
"Do you think you're able to work from here?"
"Y-yes, b-but Mr. B-Beaudelaire is e-evicting us. I-I-I don't know wh-why, I've kept up the p-payments of rent."
Resting a gentle hand on Julien's shoulder, Jackson said to him, "You let me worry about Mr. Beaudelaire, alright? And I'm going to head to the office and bring you back copies of all our accounts. But you must promise Belle you'll take your medicine. She worries about you, you know," Jackson glanced up at her as she stared back in awe.
"I-I w-worry about her too," Julien said bringing Jackson's focus back to him.
"Well, I promise you I'll take good care of her if you promise to take care of yourself."
"I w-will. Th-thank you, Mr. Mason. I-I will f-find wh-who did this, I pro-promise."
"Please, no need to thank me. It's me who thanks you for all your efforts and dedication. But most importantly, we just want to see you feeling better." He patted his shoulder gently as he rose from his crouched position and faced an astonished Belle.
"You don't think it was my father who took the money?"
"No, I don't. I'm sorry I ever believed he did in the first place. I see now he's a good man with the best intentions."
"Thank you, Jack." She genuinely took his hands in hers but he shied away almost ashamed.
"No, please. You shouldn't be thanking me at all. If I had just believed you in the first place, you wouldn't have had to marry me," he said sorrowfully.
"Then I would've missed all the adventure, now wouldn't I?" she said with a reassuring smile.
"I suppose so," he smiled back weakly and mostly kept to himself while they stayed a while so Belle could tend to Julien and spend some time with him.
"Are you ready to go?" Jackson asked after a while and with a nod, she turned back to her father who was staring at her and Jack with a loving glow in his eye.
"Bye Daddy, I love you."
"I love you, my flower."
And out of natural instinct, she saw Jackson's hand reached out for hers and grabbed it, interlocking their fingers as they made their way out of the apartment.