K I E R O N

Chapter |13| Trying to Exist

J A C O B ' S P. O. V

I'm in hell. This can't be real. My son kidn*pped in broad f*****g daylight and me mere metres away from him as those bastards take him away.

I'm reliving the entire thing over and over again, kicking myself for not being faster, not fighting harder.

I swear this is a nightmare, but every time I pinch myself and open my eyes, I'm back here.

Surrounded by chaos, stuck in the background of it all, powerless to do anything to stop it.

Instead, I'm forced to sit on the plush leather couch in Kieron's family mansion. Forced to do nothing but idly wait until someone gives me something to do.

Searching the streets is useless, and trust me, that's all I've been doing these past few hours until Kieron dragged me here.

My son has been missing for 5 hours.

There's been one ominous threat stating he has Ripley. Yes you f*****g bastard, I know you kidn*pped my kid, and then nothing.

Pure silence which is worse than if they were being demanding f**k heads.

It's money they want. Right? It has to be, it always is, and with mine and Kieron's collected net worth, we are ripe targets for them.

There's one thing I don't understand though.

"Why can't we call the police?"

The entire frantic freezes, silence befalling the mayhem. I recognise most of the people in here, Kieron's family, but the other strangers dotted around I'm assuming are in close connection with the family business.

Even Kiara raced here to help despite her piles of work that is continuously stacking up.

Sighing, she rubs her eyes, stress marring the fine lines that crease her forehead and she gently approaches me, as though I'm bound to implode at any moment.

"These people are common thugs. They're criminals that we hire to deal drugs in the streets. The middle man essentially, and well, we managed to track to the licence plate to a man that lives in the Bronx. His brother was one of those criminals we hired, but his gang created problems. Problems that couldn't be solve as long as they were still alive. Kieron and Kai managed to kill the others but this one...got away. Telling the police wouldn't help anything, it would just complicate stuff and we would spend more time defending ourselves than finding Ripley, which I promise you, I will do."

There's a certain amount of relief that she's the one in charge. Her confidence emanates hope that I was otherwise starkly lacking.

Suddenly Kieron's phone rings. One of the strangers yanks open his computer lid and connects the phone via a wire whilst Kieron tentatively presses answer.

"We want twenty million placed in a bin just outside of the warehouse on Dock street. No guns, no cameras simply you and a bag. We will be watching and any sign of others, I'll put a bullet in the little one's mouth."

Forcing my mouth shut, I let my palms bleed, taking the wrath that I use to dig my nails in hard rather than screaming down the phone.

"We want proof he's not hurt. Send regular pictures every half an hour and then one right before the final drop. I want Ripley delivered safely to me as soon as the money is dropped."

"No. The kid goes once I have the money."

"That isn't going to work." I've never heard Kieron speak with such venom lacing his tongue. The veins on his hand pop out as he struggles not to c***k the phone in two.

"Too bad. I have the kid, so I'm in charge."

Cursing, he closes his eyes for a moment, before exhaling calmly. "Have Ripley be at the docks. I'll drop the money and walk straight there, that gives your three minutes to get the money and get the f**k out of there."

The bastard thinks about it. "Fine. Done. Drop will be tomorrow morning at five am."

"No-" The call shuts off, and the realisation that Ripley will stay the night there, with them, makes me blood burn with a pain I've never experienced before.

A fresh wave of tears threatens to spill over that I can't contain. Hitting me again and again until I become an embarrassing mess of tears and snot.

"Guys, clear the room." Kiara's voice echos, the sounds of footsteps departing doing little to ease the overwhelming agony created by the fissure left without Rip.

The couch dips as a body wraps itself around mine. "I'm sorry Charming, I promise I'll get him back to you. I promise."

Nothing will ease the pain so I lean into him instead, attempting to soothe his own guilt and pain.

"I know, I know you will." He would go to the ends of the Earth just for us. That much has always been clear.

His own tears mingle with mine, their salty taste proving a slither of relief knowing I'm not in this alone.

"Guys, I know this is incredibly hard right now but we need to talk about what's going to happen tomorrow."

"What do you mean?" I wipe my face and nose with the tissues Kai passes over. "I thought Kieron was doing the drop and then he would get Ripley."

Looking around, I realise the room has been limited to only a select few family members.

Kai, Aaron and Kiara.

"He will, but these men, they won't just stop at that. They'll want more money eventually when they blow throw all that, and they'll know exactly how to get it. Ripley will always be the target as long as they're alive."

"This is my fault." Kieron determines. "I should kill him."

Kiara settles next to him, her hand squeezing his. "It's not your fault. Not at all. It's mine, my loose ends, my responsibility. I'm the leader, remember, I take the blame for this, not you, and Jacob I'm so sorry that you got dragged into this."

"So what happens then?" As long as Ripley was safe, that was all that mattered.

"Aaron and Kai will be there, and I'll get Mia to hack into the cctv cameras around the area, but no doubt they chose somewhere there won't be any. I'm guessing the same van so that will be the target and as soon as Ripley is safe, we will kill then. I promise nothing will happen until he's in Kieron's arms."

The plan fits perfectly, except for one thing.

"What about me? I'm not just sitting around whilst my son is danger."

She spares a nervous glance to Kieron, who is yet to make eye contact with me. "Charming, I don't think..."

I move to my feet, putting as much distance between us as I can muster.

"Don't f*****g do that. Belittle me because I'm not apart of this world like you are, but guess what I won't hesitate to kill a f*****g man that hurts my kid. The only reason you're making the drop is because they requested you."

He matches my anger with his own stance and glare. "I can't have you in danger too. I won't be able to focus knowing you're out there. Please, but stay here, stay with Kiara and I will bring him home safe."

Every part of me is screaming aloud to fight back, to demand to be there, to kill them with my own bare hands, but it's the desperation in his eyes that forces me to back down.

It's my own heart that squeezes at the sight telling me to simply trust him.

"Fine. I'll stay back." I walk away, soul tearing in half for the two people I love most in this world.

***

I lay awake on the bed, staring the abyss of darkness that shrouds the room. The door clicks open, unwanted light filtering for a moment until Kieron closes it.

The guest bedroom at the Romano mansion is nothing less than that of a five star hotel room. Gabi even keeps tiny chocolates on the bedside table, one's Ripley can't get enough of.

"We've set everything up. In four hours, we'll get him back." The bed sinks, moulding to his shape.

He hesitates sitting back, as though I'm a bomb bound to go off at the slightest touch. "I won't bite."

I think the comment might me smile at least, but nothing can penetrate the sinking fear that drowns my usual optimism. "I'm sorry."

I can't even count the amount of times he has apologised. Guilt is a powerful emotion, enough to bring down those as strong as Kieron.

We've both become shells of our former selves without Ripley, so much that I fear if our relationship will ever be the same.

"Please done apologise again. It wasn't your fault."

"I dragged you both here. I knew how dark my family was, how their legacy manages to quell all the happiness we managed to create."

"Kieron. I love you, Ripley-" I struggle to contain a broken sob, choking on it instead. "Ripley loves you. This family doesn't exist without you, and like everything, we will do this together, take the blame together."

Settling his head on my shoulder, I exhale, sinking back against the plush headboard. The digital clock read 1:24.

Funny how slow times can goes when you don't want it to. When every part of you is screaming at the universe to either rewind or fast forward.

"I won't sleep." He mutters, the exhaustion lacing thick in his voice.

"Me either. We can both brave the world as zombies together."

That earns one tired laugh that depletes as reality settles over us again. "It's so quiet without him." I realise. "I used to crave this silence you know, when Ripley was a baby. He would just scream and scream, it felt scarier when it was just me looking after him. Like anything I did would imprint on him. For once, I had a responsibility that I would never let go of."

Kieron pressed his lips against my bare shoulder, our fingers intwined between us. "I wish I could have been there from the start."

"Being a parent means showing up from the moment you enter their life. Blood doesn't matter."

It was scary the life we had created already. Our relationship was embarking on six months, yet I knew that Kieron would be the other parent that Ripley had always craved.

***

"Stay here. Please don't follow us." Although my feet itch to ignore my boyfriend's warnings, I force myself still.

At least I'll be doing something.

I nod once, drawing him into a tight hug. Tears blur my vision, using all my strength to tear away from him. "Be careful."

Watching him walk away causes the harsh reality to dawn over me. They could die. Both of them, both parts of me could leave and I'm powerless to stop it.

I only f*****g pray that Kiara Romano knows what she's doing.

"This is Aaron and Kai's feed. Then Tristan's," Her husband, the both of which I met at the ripe of dawn a mere hour ago. "He's a little closer to the docks since it's less likely they'll recognise him."

"And Kieron?"

She points to a monitor on the far left. "It's more obscure because it's on the lapel of there jacket. I wanted to be extra careful."

Because it's my son's life that hangs in the balance. f**k.

"Here," Kiara passes me a cup, steam billowing from the top.

"Coffee?" I smell the liquid. Not coffee.

"Masala tea. It'll calm the nerves. Just relax, I know it's hard but working yourself up will just make you feel worse. The plan will work."

Right, the plan. Kieron makes the drop, and as soon as he has Ripley, the others strike.

Everything is going smoothly, though my heart races at a hundred miles an hour with every step Kieron takes towards the trash can.

The money is dumped. Apparently pocket change to the Romanos, though it would have caused a huge dent in my bank account.

There's a hidden tracker in the bag in case they can't catch the bastard in time. I can't lie and say I don't want to be the one to kill him, but I know it would destroy Kieron to see me like that.

"So Ripley should be at the docks. Right? Just a few minutes and he'll be there." The feed is already blurred, becoming more distorted as Kieron gets closer to the water.

Then suddenly a tiny green beep on the monitor starts to grow louder. "They've taken the money and they're walking...wait," The dot starts to move towards towards the water.

"What's going on?" Kiara frantically calls Aaron, whilst Mia attempts to reach Kieron.

He won't pick up though, because there in the distance is a blurry figure that I would know anywhere as my son.

Kieron begins to sprint, the feed becoming delayed but he's there. He's got him and finally I feel like I can breathe, letting oxygen inflate my lungs once again.

Then everything comes crashing down.

The dot is right on them and Kieron has no idea. He's focused entirely on Ripley, checking him for any injuries, holding him closer so when the bastard shoves them both, there's nothing I can do but watch them both fall.

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A/N: What do you think will happen to Kieron and Ripley now?