Catch Me

Prologue

Jacobs glanced over at his wife while she folded their laundry. Every time he looked at her brought him back to the first time. The first time he met her, the first time she dazzled him with her megawatt smile, the first time she stole his heart. That was twenty years ago and was still true. Kim Weingard was the love of his life and the mother of their two beautiful children. It was because of his children, his wife, her smile, that he found a reason to get out of bed again and again. Only that smile wasn't there that day. There was no light, no glimmer of hope, no sparkle.

"Kim, honey, what's wrong?" Jacobs stopped folding the shirt and turned his full attention to her.

"We have to move again." Kim threw down the shirt and shoved herself onto the bed with a sigh. Jacobs moved behind her and started to massage her shoulders, calming her down slightly. He knew her aggravation stemmed from not wanting to move again, not wanting to move the children again. He was against the idea of moving as well, but there was no other alternative, not with the lifestyle they had.

"You know it's for the best. Frank can't find them. Not now, not ever." At his words, Kim hung her head. Not in shame, but in defeat. She was tired of moving, but she would do whatever it took to keep their kids safe. Even if that meant moving them every ten months.

"I know, I know. But can't we stay just a little while longer? I saw Emersyn laugh yesterday with that Clarke boy. When was the last time Emmy had a friend?" Kim talked with a slight whine in her voice.

"It's because Emmy made a friend that we have to move. She knows the rules, so do you. No close friends, no secrets from the family, and absolutely no telling secrets to strangers. It's for their own good." Jacobs said.

"You say no secrets from the family and yet we are harboring the biggest secret of all. I can't do it anymore. I want my kids back. I want my life back. I want to be normal again." Kim let a single tear glide down her cheek.

Jacobs gently grabbed Kim's face with both of his hands and turned her head in his direction. "Kim, there was never a day you were normal, so you can't be normal again. Plus why would you want to be normal? It's so boring."

Kim gave a short laugh followed by a fleeting smile. She still had her doubts about moving but she knew it was for the kids. With a sigh, she finished folding the close in the basket and then went to go gather the kids for dinner. Jacobs continued to pack wishing there was something he could do. Jacobs was quieter than usual for dinner that night, lost in his mind.

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Dinner was done, dishes were cleaned, and the twins, Alec and Emersyn, were sent to go finish the rest of their chores. Jacobs and Kim sat on the ugly beige living room couch discussing anything and everything except for the move. Halfway through their argument about which ice cream flavor was the best, Emersyn walked into the room. Kim looked over at her daughter and smiled, "Hey Emmy, did you finish your chores?"

"Yup and I won twenty bucks from Alec." Emersyn smiled proudly as if that were some big accomplishment. Kim supposed in her case it was, Alec was stingy with his money. She gave Emersyn a funny look.

"And how did you manage to coarse money from your brother?"

"I, um, I may have insulted his cleaning abilities and then bet him a twenty that I could finish my chores before him." Emersyn gave her mom a sheepish smile. Kim in return gave her the classic scolding mom look. Eyebrows raised, head tilted, arms crossed. Emersyn wasn't regretful of what she did, but she realized she was showing a little too much pride for her parents to have been proud of her. "Fine. I'll go give the money back."

"Hold on, you can keep the money." Kim looked over and Jacobs with surprise but he kept going. "This is a good lesson for both of you." Confused but not willing to question it Emersyn gave her dad a quick kiss on the cheek and a smile before heading upstairs.

"It's a good lesson? What exactly was the lesson here?" Kim turned her disapproving mom face on him.

"There wasn't one. Honey, they're kids, let them have their fun before it's too late." Jacobs slid over to Kim on the couch and threw his arm around her waist and pulled her close. "Now what do you say we pick up some ice cream from the store and relax with The Princess Bride?" He gave her a gentle kiss on the shoulder, moving up to her neck, her cheek, her lips.

"Hmm. I'm still mad but you know I can't turn down ice cream." Kim sighed and leaned into the warm comforting hold of her husband. "Should we ask the kids if they want some too?"

"Yes. The last time Alec saw ice cream in the house and didn't get any he took twenty-five dollars from my wallet and bought a pizza and ice cream." Kim let out a soft chuckle.

Thirty minutes later Kim and Jacobs were in their minivan-driving home from Walmart after picking up three different ice cream flavors. Frank Sinatra's "Come Fly With Me" crackled through the radio. Jacobs's hand snuck across the center console and grabbed Kim's. Smiles lit their faces in remembrance of the first time they danced to that song.

They were crossing an intersection when it happened. A blazing red semi-truck blew the light and t-boned them from the passenger side. The car flipped several times going down a slight incline, like a slinky flipping down the stairs. Jacobs was groggy but still conscious enough to take in his surroundings. Kim lay passed out next to him and the crushed metal pinned his legs. The semi was gone, in its place stood two people that he could see clearly. He gently took his hand out of Kim's and started to look for a pulse. The two people drew closer but they were too far away for Jacobs to mak out any details about their features. More concerned with his wife he ignored them and continued his search for a pulse.

A tear sprung to his eye when he couldn't find one. He could feel his life slipping away but he looked at his wife one more time. Even in the accident, she was the most beautiful person he had ever met. Her hair, normally a rich chocolate brown, was caked in blood from a visible cut on her forehead. Jacobs placed a gentle hand against her cheek and he memorized her. Not just her face or her body, but her. He memorized the way she made him laugh, the way she would wiggle her eyebrows because she knew it would get a rise out of him. He memorized the way she talked passionately about their job despite the dangers. He memorized the way she relaxed with the kids after a hard day.

Jacobs let out a choked breath and held in his cry of agony. Paying more attention to his surroundings, he was finally able to identify the two people in the street. He let out a sharp curse and grabbed his phone from his back pocket. His fingers worked independently from his body as he pressed speed-dial two and hung up after two rings. He did this two more times before he shoved the phone somewhere in the metal of the car. Again the two people walked closer. Off in the distance sirens could be heard, but they were too late. Before they could walk any further, Jacobs took his final breath.