To Deal With It

chapter eighteen

Eighteen

Ethan pov:

I really am a dick head. How could I just be so stupid? I was sickened with myself. I got my entire pack arrested, and here we were in huge cell.

Only one who was missing was Jay. She and Declan had rushed to me, but I had shoved her away, telling her she was the only one who could get us out. Then, of course, being Jay, she had later tried to convince an officer that she was in the pack to, but thankfully he hadn’t believed her. I couldn’t get the image of Jay’s tears going down her cheeks.

I had been leaning on the cars, but now I turned around to face my pack, all twenty members. “Guys…I’m sorry I landed you in here.”

Their eyes snapped up to me disbelievingly and shocked, and it made my own drift back down to the ground. “I was the one who made all this happen. I dragged you all down with me. I’m such a dick.”

Darrel stood up from the bench and shook his head. “I don’t about the rest of you, but I think that you don’t need to apologize.”

All the guys murmured an agreement, and I half smiled. “Thanks guys, but I still think it’s all my fault.”

“Half bro,” Declan began, “We chose to follow you. Our choice, not yours. And it’s not your fault….completely.”

I chuckled along with the others then gripped his shoulder. “Thanks guy. That means a lot.”

Suddenly, we heard muffled shouting outside the stone walls. Darrel put his ear to the wall then straighten. “I know that raised voice. It’s Jay!”

Everyone straightened up and stared at the door beyond the bars that cut the room in half. We waited and waited until five minutes later, an officer opened the door and gruffly informed us, “You have a visitor.”

Then stormed in Jay with a pissed off but relieved expression. The officer warned her, “You had five minutes, now you have four.”

She nodded, giving an expressionless look, but when he had his back to her, she did the fuck finger then turned to us. The officer called out, “Two and half minutes!”

He shut the door just as Jay snapped, “Are you fucking serious?”

Then she shook her head then strode over to our cell wall, still in her party dress. I smiled. “Hey Jay.”

She watched me with that pissed look. “If I could slap you right now, I would gladly do so.”

“Does that mean you’re not worried about at all?” Jag put a hand to his heart as he gave her puppy dog eyes. Oooh, those were good eyes; you didn’t want to have to see them. Jay sighed like she was our parent. “You guys, honestly… Why did you say you never saw me before, Ethan?”

“Probably because you’re the one with the rich uncle that could get us bailed,” Darrel naïvely suggested with half a smirk. Every one of us shot him a glare and chastised, “Darrel!”

He just shrugged as I shook my head then looked at Jay, who had an amused smile on her face. “That’s not why.”

“It’s part of why, though, right?”

“You know me too well,” I muttered under my breath, and she nodded. “I guess it is for the best. You’re already in luck. I got you a fair trial. Don’t worry, pack brothers. I’m getting you out of the joint.”

“That’s reassuring,” Milo commented, and the rest of grunted agreement. Jay nodded then caught Declan’s eye; he had been gazing at her the entire time. She stepped forward and held out her hand for him to grasp, which he did. They kissed right in front of us, but thankfully they didn’t drag it on like they had in the club. What? Did they think that people couldn’t see them up there?

Jay nodded. “I’m definitely getting you guys out of here. Cal’s gonna help us out.”

My eyes widened. “Cal is? Are you serious? I wouldn’t think he’d like the idea of you and him helping outlaws like us.”

Jay grinned quite amusingly. “He likes you a lot. That’s why he’s helping.”

“Just because he likes us? The man is insane,” John muttered, shaking his head. I nodded. “But he’s a good man. Let him know we’re grateful.”

“Don’t be yet,” she warned. “Not until trial is over.”

I nodded. “So? What’s the game plan?”

“Here’s the thing,” she started but was cut off when an officer and Cal came with the door flying open. The officer grunted, “Time’s up.”

Jay went a fierce argument with the office, and he had to end up dragging her by her elbow out of the room. She looked back at us pleadingly, but we just smiled back for her. Then I noticed she was gazing at Declan only, and he returned it equally. She called out, “Declan, I—”

But the door shut tight before she could utter out the words that would’ve made this whole night a little better. Great, just great.

***

Trial day. 

I felt like a nervous wreck, which is not a common thing for me. I kept telling myself in my head, Jay’s gonna get us out, but it didn’t settle my anxiety one bit. I didn’t want to say it, but I knew we were doomed. It was too late for us. This is our end.

I sat up front in the table before the judge, who was not here, since I was the leader, and the rest of the pack was behind a small wooden fence and me. They had my back, but the question was: did I have theirs?

Cal was next to me in his crisply clean suit; he convinced all of us to wear just about the same, so we’d be presentable. The chief policeman was our opponent in this, and you’d never guess who else was with him. No-good, shit-filled, sleazy Yalow. The dick was smirking at me; I guess he had more influence in the police department than I did. Damn it.

The doors opened, and there was Jay with another man and then a whole lot of other people behind them, all business officials by the looks of it. Jay and the man with the briefcase came and joined Cal and I. I whispered to Jay quickly, “What are you planning, Jay?”

“You’ll see.”

I shrugged then eyed her attire. She wore an ash grey pencil skirt, a crisp white blouse, and even black heels; she even had rectangular glasses. I humorlessly and quietly told her, “You look official.”

She gave me a smile, her face more visible since her hair was pulled back from it. “I have to be.”

I nodded and was about to carry on our conversation when the baler announced, “All rise! The honorable Judge Nettles…”

“You may sit,” Judge Nettles dismissed as she took her seat in her black robe. Oh, crap… She met my eyes and her face went to disbelief. “Ethan?”

I smiled sheepishly. “Hey Marissa. Long time, no seen, eh?”

She sighed while rolling her eyes and shaking her head. I heard Toni inquire to me quietly, “You know her?”

“My cousin,” I chuckled softly while I shifted in my chair. My own cousin is gonna have to ship my ass to the big house. Well, this was certainly going to be awkward.