Jersey Heart

Sequel to Made To Be Broken

When the phone rang, Cage reached for it distractedly.

“Hello?” he murmured, hardly taking his attention from the invoices in front of him.

“Mister Hayden? This is Miss Jamison, Amy’s teacher? I need to speak with you after school today,” she said cryptically.

“Uh, sure. I’ll be there at 2:45 to pick Amy up, but I have to take her to soccer practice,” he told the teacher. “Would four be okay?”

“Perfect. I’ll speak with you then. Good bye.”

“Bye…” Confused, Cage hung up the phone and stared at it for a few minutes. It was only the first week of school. What could Amy’s teacher possibly have to say to him? His daughter wasn’t the type to get in trouble, and she was a good student.

He hadn’t met this teacher yet—it was Amy’s first year in this school and the teacher was new as well. When he had brought Amy to look around last year, she hadn’t yet been hired.

He shrugged, figuring he’d find out later. If something had happened, she surely would have told him already.

The rest of the afternoon passed quickly. Cage wasn’t working in his restaurant, but there was still plenty of things do around the house. He did the laundry, and cleaned up a bit before glancing at the clock.

1:45. Jogging up the stairs, Cage took a quick shower before throwing on a pair of khakis and a long-sleeve button down shirt.

At 2:40 he was sitting outside the school, his dog beside him as they waited for Amy. “Hi angel!” he greeted her, bending down to kiss her forehead. “How was school?”

“Okay, Daddy.”

“Good girl. Ready for soccer? Aunt Ellie’s going to take you tonight, I have a meeting.”

“Are you gonna come to my game on Sunday?”

Cage smiled as he led Amy towards the nursery classroom. “Of course I am. I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Have I missed a home game yet?”

His little girl grinned, and shook her head. “Do you think we’ll win?”

“I hope so, angel. Either way, want to go out for ice cream afterwards?”

Amy nodded happily, and Cage opened the nursery door.

“Daddy!” a shriek came before his younger daughter launched herself at him. He picked her up and hugged her close. It was hard to believe she had been so tiny when she had been born, just four years ago. She was perfectly healthy and normal now. Once she had turned two, she had grown like a weed to catch up to all the other girls her age. She was smart too, just like her big sister.

“Hi, Princess,” he said. Brooke gave him a wet kiss on the cheek.

“Muah!” she giggled. With a laugh, he took Amy’s hand and led his two children out to the car. Amy climbed in, and Cage buckled Brooke into her booster seat before jogging around the car to let himself in. It took only a few minutes to get to Ellie’s house.

Ellie, his aunt’s step-daughter, was the only family in the area that Cage had left. Aunt Catherine had moved away a few years back, to be closer to her husband’s family. Ellie was married, with a daughter a year older than Amy. Kylie and Amy played on the same soccer team, and had been best friends for years.

“Hi,” he greeted Ellie with a casual kiss on the cheek as he stepped out of the car. Amy ran inside immediately to find her friend, and Ellie swung little Brooke up into her arms. “Thanks for taking the kids. I’ll swing by after my meeting and get them.”

“It’s Friday. There’s no school tomorrow, Cage. Let them stay for dinner, and I told Kylie I’d take her to the movies after practice. It’ll take Amy’s mind off of everything. Brooke can stay here and keep Uncle Kyle company, right, honey?”

Brooke nodded, her arms wrapped around her aunt’s neck.

He nodded. “She seems to be handling it pretty well so far, but I guess we’ll see what tomorrow brings. Call me when they’re ready to come home then.”

“Will do. Who’s the meeting with?” Ellie asked curiously, shifting the toddler on her hip.

“Amy’s teacher,” he replied darkly.

“Is there something wrong?”

Cage shrugged. “Damned if I know. Woman called late this morning and told me to come by this afternoon. Wouldn’t say why. She didn’t seem to have the strongest people skills. Rather abrupt,” he said, irritation evident in his voice.

Ellie frowned thoughtfully. “What’s her name?”

“Miss Jamison.”

“Hmm, I don’t know her. Kylie had Mr. Wilson, but he retired.”

“Yeah, I know. I was hoping he’d hold out for another year, since Kylie liked him so much. Figured Amy could use a good teacher, her first year in the school.”

“She’ll do fine, Cage. The school wouldn’t hire a crap teacher.”

“Yeah, I know. I’m not that worried. I just don’t know what she could have to say to me, that required such a sudden meeting. I mean, the kids have only been in school for a week.” Cage had hoped that Amy would have time to adjust before the anniversary of her mother’s death came around, but he supposed it couldn’t be helped. This year was a slight improvement…Bethany had died on Amy’s first day of school, four years ago.

“Go find out. I’ll call you later.”

“Thanks, Elle,” he replied. He gave Brooke a quick kiss, then let himself back into his car.

He strummed the steering wheel anxiously as he headed back towards the school. He hoped he hadn’t made a mistake enrolling Amy in a new school, even if it was what she had wanted. He thought it would be a good year to do it. Brooke was there as well, going to school for the first time. The girls were together, which he liked. The public school’s nursery class was in a separate building, clear across town.

--

The school was practically deserted. Most of the classrooms were darkened, and he found Amy’s classroom easily.

He knocked lightly on the door. “Miss Jamison?”

“Come in, Mr. Hayden.”

She was seated at her desk, and as he stepped inside, Cage took a minute to look her over. She was a small woman, with short blonde hair and hazel eyes. She looked a little tomboyish, and she couldn’t have been more than a couple years out of college. She was wearing a blazer over a pink, feminine blouse.

He stuck his hand out. “Nice to meet you,” he said politely. “Everything okay with my girl?” He took a seat in one of the little desks, folding his lanky legs underneath it.

“I’m worried about her. Something’s not right,” the teacher said bluntly.

“Amy’s seemed fine at home. Everything’s normal. She’s eating, playing soccer, fighting with her sister…all the good stuff. What’s going on?” he asked with a concerned frown.

Her next words shocked him.

“Normal children don’t cry in school for days at a time. They don’t sit by themselves in a corner while everyone else is playing. She doesn’t talk, doesn’t participate in class, doesn’t seem to have or want any friends, and worst of all, she has a burn on her arm, and when I ask her where it came from, she ignores me.”

His blood boiled, and out of her sight, he clenched his hand into a fist. His gaze met hers, and if looks could kill, she’d be dead. “Don’t you ever accuse me of abusing my daughter. Don’t,” he snapped, his voice low and deadly.

“It’s my job to look out for the welfare of the child! There’s something wrong and I’m going to figure out what it is. I’d like to speak with you and her mother together so we can get to the bottom of the situation.”

“Her mother can’t come here,” Cage said shortly. He’d be damned if he’d give this woman an explanation without a fight, after the way she had practically attacked him.

“Fine, then I’ll go to her.” Standing, Jersey grabbed her purse. “Will you give me the address or should I start going through the files in the office? Either way, I intend to get to the bottom of this tonight.”

Cage hesitated. “Fine, I’ll give you an address. Good luck getting her to talk,” he growled. “Because there’s nothing to talk about. I don’t abuse my children.”

“It’s my job to investigate the matter.”

“No, it’s not. It’s your job to educate, not play cops and robbers.”

“I will look into the matter, but I won’t hesitate to inform the authorities if I feel it’s necessary.” Firmly, she placed a pen and a piece of paper in front of him, and stood there, her arms crossed over her chest and her hazel eyes spitting fire at him.

“You want to look into it? Fine—there’s nothing there for you to find. If you stir this up and cause a problem, not only will my kids be leaving this school,” he threatened, “but their cousin will as well. And I’ll let you explain to the headmaster why you’re the reason for three kids leaving. I don’t know what you’re accustomed to, but I am not one of those filthy rich absentee fathers that you can just walk right over.” Cage quickly scribbled an address down on the piece of scrap paper and threw it across the desk. Spinning on his heel, he left the room in a fury.

AN: Told you I'd have this out soon. For those of you who missed the memo, this is the sequel to Made to be Broken. I suggest you check that one out first. This could probably be read as a stand alone, but it'll be much more fun if you read the first part.

For those of you who absolutely hated MTTB and are die-hard romantics, I think you'll be pleased with me in this story.

Let me know what you think of this first chapter. Obviously, the good stuff has yet to come.

Thanks,

Ashley