Remember To Forget

39

The moment Jonathan dropped the call from Katherine's head mistress.

Laura was pacing through the bedroom, her hands on her waist and her lips kept muttering words only she could understand.

Jonathan's stance was maddening, his fingers dug into his palm, his angered focus deflected when he heard a crash.

He looked at the splintered glass on the ground, Laura was panicking and she had knocked down a frame.

Her shoulders shivered, her breath shook with fear and her eyes were closed in bodily suffering.

Or was it mental.

Jonathan crouched to his wife, he took her visage into his reddened palms.

"Deep breaths baby, deep breaths. It's okay. Do what I do okay." Jonathan inhaled to exhale and as hard as it was for Laura to focus, she did as he said and her breathing became even but her fingers still shook fiercely and her eyes lacked focus.

"Baby you need to stay calm okay. I'm here baby. Call out four objects in the room. Come on love." Jonathan held her hands and he planted kisses to her knuckles.

"I... can't... I don't know.." Laura's voice sounded agitated and frightened. "He's got our baby girl Jonathan. Our baby girl. That bastard has her and we were just sitting here solving a stupid riddle! She must be so scared."

Jonathan didn't disagree with her, he couldn't because his thoughts aligned to her words. "For now baby, I need you to be calm. Four objects baby. Let's go, for Katey okay."

He knew he had her attention when she began to take in deep breaths and her orbs looked around.

Breathe in. "A bed."

Breathe out. "A door."

Breathe in. "A barbie doll."

They both smiled at her third answer, "One more baby. "

Breathe out. She took a moment to exhale slowly, "You. I see you."

Jonathan felt a lump of emotion clutch his gullet, he fucking love this woman.

"Yes baby. I'm here. I'm always here. It's going to be okay. I'll get your pills. You are just recovering and all this is too much, but if we do it together then we are good." He helped her up by her waist and pulled her into his arms for a hug.

His head rested at the nape of her neck. He needed to be strong for this woman. He could feel her rub his back. It was a reassurance that they would be strong together.

"Let's go get our daughter and your mom."

They walked downstairs into the palor, hand in hand, prepared to drop the news to their family.

Their entrance attracted every pair of eyes in the room.

"You guys good?" Jackson was the first to speak everyone's mind.

"We will be but we have good news and bad news." Laura answered her brother in - law as she sat beside her husband. She knew Jonathan was probably staring at her confused.

"There has been a lot of bad news, so start with that anyway.". John, who had a can of beer in his hand, gestured for Laura to speak.

"The bad news is that Marcus has Katherine. Her school called Jonathan to tell him she didn't make it to school at all today." Laura paused to give everyone a chance to scream, curse out, pace madly or maybe get a panic attack.

Fucking bastard!
He's going to die by my hands!
Not my little princess!
What a stupid school!
How the fuck did this happen!?