Fall For My Ex’s Mafia Dad
Chapter 199

Kent can tell when things get a little dicey on the thirty-minute drive to the coast because Jerome's whole body goes tense.

"Shit, shit," Jerome murmurs once, his eyes darting to the side towards what Kent assumes is a police vehicle.

"Do we have any weapons?" Kent asks, keeping his voice low.

"Glove box," Jerome replies, working hard not to move his lips. "But...not yet, all right? I don't know what they're..."

Kent watches Jerome's head move as whatever vehicle it was moves past their sedan, which is studiously driving the speed limit. Jerome lets out a deep breath.

"Okay," Jerome says, nodding. "I think it's just...a normal highway patrol."

Kent nods, tense but...well, he's done this sort of thing before. He knows that there's no benefit to panicking before there's a reason to panic. They drive a few minutes in silence before Kent speaks again.

"Jerome," he starts, and Jerome glances down at him, letting him know that he's listening. "Why haven't we met more cops on this trip? We were on those horses for two hours - the highways should be crawling with cops looking for me."

Jerome smirks a little and shakes his head. "I feel like you know the answer to this one too, Kent," he says.

"Is it because the answer is the same as all your other ones?" Kent asks.

"Yup," Jerome says, laughing a little. "She set up a diversion. Had Ivan and every spare cop he could muster chasing Daniel's car across the state. They've probably figured it out by now but," he shrugs, "we have enough of a lead that Ivan and all of his buddies are at least an hour away. We've only got highway patrols out looking on this side of the state. And we're gambling that they don't know, specifically, to look for me in the driver's seat."

"One hell of a gamble," Kent murmurs.

"Yeah, well," Jerome says, slowing the car as he pulls up to a gate at their apparent destination. Then he grins down at Kent. "Looks like it worked, didn't it?"

"Shit," Kent says, starting to sit up as Jerome rolls down his window and leans out, punching a code into a keypad and opening a gate. As they drive through, Kent looks around the shipping port, not truly surprised at the location but a little more impressed than he expected to be. "What is all this?"

"It's our ride," Jerome says, lifting his chin towards a gigantic cargo ship looming above them, blocking out the sky above. "And if everything went according to plan...we should be the last to arrive."

Jerome pulls into an empty parking spot as Kent looks around the completely dead lot. It was...god, the whole thing had just been so smooth. Even though it had started with a crash, every piece fell into place so neatly after that. It was...gorgeously done, but... Is it too easy?

Kent feels a wariness curl inside of him. It should be harder than this, more complicated. Something in him is waiting for someone to burst out, to grab him, to drag him back to the prison.

Kent looks over the roof at Jerome after they climb out. "This is...too easy."

Jerome just shrugs. "That's because you're not seeing the months of prep that went into it. She gave it everything she had, planning this, Kent. She wanted it to be smooth. And it's not done yet." Jerome nods towards the ship. "We still have to get on board. And not get attacked by international customs or pirates or something."

"Well," Kent says, shaking his head and shutting the sedan's door. "I guess...it's a risk I'm willing to take."

Jerome nods, heading towards the set of metal stairs that leads towards the ship. But he stops, and turns when he realizes that Kent isn't following. "What?" Jerome asks, confused.

"They're on there already?" Kent asks, nodding towards the ship as he stands at the bottom of the stairs. "Daniel? Fay?"

Jerome just laughs a little, shaking his head. "They're supposed to be! But there's only one way to find out. Come on!"

Kent shakes his head, sighing and following Jerome, his stomach turning with anxiety in a way that it absolutely never does. Not even when he was arrested, months ago, did he feel like this. And Daniel Daniel he's not worried about -

But Fay...having to face her, after how he treated her the last time he saw her...

God, he owes her everything now. And it's not that he minds the debt but...how could he ever repay it? And why would she ever forgive him?

Kent hangs his head a little, worried as he climbs the long series of winding steps and ramps that lead to the lowest open deck. He only raises his head when he finally reaches the gate, seeing an unfamiliar man - a sailor, he realizes - standing waiting for him. "Last to board," the sailor says in a heavy accent that Kent can't quite place, nodding harshly after Kent steps onto the deck. The sailor closes the gate, pressing a button that detaches the staircase. "No one else. We sail now, immediate." Then he points down the line of the deck.

When Kent follows his gaze, he blinks in surprise to see...

Daniel, his kid, his arms wrapped around Jerome, laughing.

Kent stares at the two of them as they grin into each other's faces, each clearly thrilled to see the other, to have had their plan - that they apparently slaved over for months - finally come to fruition. Kent watches as Daniel places a fond hand on Jerome's cheek, gazing at him, laughing at something he says.

And then Daniel turns his face to his father, and his smile broadens.

And something in Kent cracks as he stares at his son, who begins to stride across the deck to him.

Daniel, his kid, his child - who he's never been close enough to, who he's never been...been able to tell how much he loves him. But who somehow did all of this -

Saved him- pulled him out of that prison where he was absolutely going to be murdered, after everything he told to the police about the Russians -

His son, who deserved a better father, has saved him -

"Dad," Daniel breathes, throwing his arms around his father, holding him tight. Kent falls back a step at the force of his son's greeting, but then his own arms close behind Daniel and a laugh breaks out of his throat.

"Hey kid," Kent whispers, one arm going tight around Daniel's back, the other cradling the back of his head, his fingers buried in the soft fuzz of his son's dark hair. Kent exhales a heavy breath, squeezing his eyes shut as he holds Daniel close. "Hey," he says again, at a loss for words.

"I can't believe it worked," Daniel laughs, pulling back a little and grinning at his dad.

"What, you had doubts? Jerome didn't."

Daniel just laughs. "Jerome likes a little unpredictability in his life. You should have seen how he wanted to do this - guns blazing, fight and flight kind of stuff. Fay and I had to really talk him down."

Kent laughs, studying his son's face, but then he can't help but look beyond him - seeking another figure. Smaller, with bright hair -

"She's downstairs," Daniel says after a moment, his voice soft. Kent turns to see a knowing smile on Daniel's face.

"Why?" Kent asks, frowning. Because the Fay he knows - he can't believe she wasn't at the rail watching him climb the steps. Not that he expected her to be - or wanted her to -

"She had a hard day, dad," Daniel says, his face falling a little bit. "And -"

"Wait, what? What was hard?"

"Dad," Daniel sighs, looking at Kent a little sadly. "Just... let her tell you, all right? And she got hit with some morning sickness as soon as we got on the boat. She's down in the little cabin -" "Where?" Kent demands, already moving down the deck, looking for a door.

"Down one flight!" Daniel calls as Jerome pulls open the door in the wall that he's looking for. Kent nods to him as he passes through. "Cabin 4 - you won't miss it!"

Kent nods again, mostly to himself, as he picks a direction - he doesn't care which - and strides down the hall, looking for a set of stairs. He finds it at the end of the hall and jogs down, his mind only on her. As he turns towards the door to the deck below Kent feels the entire boat shudder and takes a second to steady himself, raising his eyebrows.

Apparently, the sailor wasn't kidding - the ship is sailing now.

As soon as Kent adjusts to the movement he's again striding down the narrow hall, counting down the doors - 7...6...5...

And then he's there. Cabin four.

Kent grabs the handle, turns it, pushes open the door and steps into the room - not even breathing as he looks -

But. God damn it, where is she?

The cabin's small- there's barely room for a bed. Kent knows it's the right room - there are some objects that just scream Fay scattered around - a hairbrush with a few red hairs, a satchel with some books tossed on the bed, even a pair of expensive pumps which she clearly kicked off, sick of them. Kent crosses the room in a few strides, peering into the small attached bathroom but... Nowhere.

Shit.

Shit.

Panic hits Kent - why isn't she here?

Was there...did someone take her off the ship? Did she...

Kent's breathing starts to come hard as he heads back for the door, throwing it open and looking frantically down the hall.