Kayla felt her hand tighten around Kim's. Lawrence is free? How could that be?
"I don't understand," Jen said. "Lawrence was sentenced to six months. It's only been three."
Roman sighed. "He got paroled today. He-"
"Wait a minute!" That was Jack. "His parole hearing isn't for a few more weeks. That's what the DA told Jen, so she'd know when and could attend." He looked baffled and turned to Jen. "Wasn't that what Glynnis told us?"
"Somehow, he got it moved up." Roman scowled, cutting off the question he must have known was coming. "I don't know how. He must have paid someone off."
Kayla tried to control her fear, as she turned toward Steve. She remembered how angry and scared she had been when Steve told her he had confronted Lawrence at the jail and, then again, when he told her about breaking into Lawrence's house.
What will he do with Lawrence free?
As if mocking her thoughts, Steve chose that moment to speak, his voice low and dangerous. "What's the big deal? He was going to get out in a few months anyway. Now that he's out, maybe he can finally get the punishment he really deserves."
"Don't even think about it, Johnson," Roman warned.
"Why not?" Steve growled. "After what he did to me. After what I went through-" Stopping abruptly, Steve broke off whatever he was going to say. He clearly did not want to reveal the details of his captivity to the entire room. In a more controlled tone, he continued, "After what he put all of you through, he deserves to pay."
On the opposite side of the table, Julie said, "Roman . . . Steve has a point. I mean . . . look at us. Lawrence Alamain nearly killed most of us. It wasn't right that he only got a few months."
"You know we didn't have enough evidence to prove Lawrence intended to kill you," Roman replied. "Just like Shane and Bo couldn't find enough evidence at Lawrence's villa to prove he was responsible for the boat explosion." He looked at Steve. "You don't remember anything about that night that might give us evidence against Lawrence, do you?"
Kayla could see that Steve was disappointed when he had to admit, "No. . . . I don't remember anything from that night after leaving Wings."
Roman looked equally disappointed. "Well, there's nothing we can do except keep an eye on Lawrence. I'll have some men track his every move. He's not going to hurt anyone in Salem, not while I'm Police Commander." He gave Steve a pointed look. "And you'd better remember that this is a job for the Salem P.D. I don't want you doing anything stupid." He then spun toward Bo. "And that goes just as much for you, little brother. If I find out you've been out to Alamain's house, you'll be sorry. Leave this for the cops."
Steve began to pace, and Kayla could see his frustration. She started to get up, but Kim grabbed her hand. Turning, Kayla saw how pale Kim was, but she could not read the expression on Kim's face.
"Kim?" she asked.
Kim stared blankly across the room. "What if he thinks we. . . . What if-" She suddenly slapped her hand over her mouth and her eyes widened.
"What?" Kayla asked. Then she realized what Kim meant. When Lawrence had gone to prison, Kim was living at his house. Did he still think Kim had feelings for him? Did he expect her to come back to him? She tried to calm Kim. "At this point, he's got to know you wouldn't go near him with a ten-foot pole."
"No," Kim said, shaking her head. "That's not it."
"Then what is?" Julie was still sitting across the table and had obviously turned her attention to Kayla and Kim.
Kim looked at both of them. "Cal. . . . What if Lawrence was behind Cal?"
"What do you mean?" Julie asked, but Kayla understood what Kim meant. Cal had somehow escaped from prison in Alaska without anyone getting wind of it. And the warden had disappeared. That was the type of thing Kayla could definitely see Lawrence doing.
"But why?" Kayla asked. "Why would Lawrence arrange for Cal to escape?"
"Isn't it obvious?" That came from Jack, who had stepped close to the table.
"What's obvious, Jackson?" Steve asked, coming over.
Kayla hated when Jack got one of those know-it-all looks on his face. But then there was a lot about Jack that made her uncomfortable and probably always would be.
"Go ahead, Jack," Kim said. She sounded like she was encouraging him to answer the question.
"Look, I don't know for sure," Jack said, tempering expectations. But at Steve's eye-roll, Jack realized he was not going to escape without responding. "Fine. What's the best way to distract us from following Lawrence and finding out about his parole hearing?" He looked around, and Kayla saw Julie nod. Kayla understood too.
"Make us worry about someone we love," she said aloud.
"Exactamundo," Jack added. "And while we're all focused on the kidnapping, Lawrence gets his parole hearing changed and none of us even notices."
Kayla shook her head a little. "I don't know, Jack. Lawrence wasn't even here when Cal went to prison."
But Jack would not be dissuaded. "Like Lawrence couldn't find out about Cal? All he needs is to check some back issues of the Spectator."
Roman stepped in at that point. "Stop it, Jack. The ISA's had Lawrence under surveillance ever since he went to prison. And before anyone says anything about the ISA, it was Shane who was in charge of the investigation. He told me he was watching Lawrence, and Cal's attacks on Kimmie started before Shane was arrested. If there was any evidence that Lawrence arranged for Cal's escape, Shane would've found it."
It was Bo's turn to speak. "Don't you worry about ol' Larry, either, sis," he said to Kim. "If he comes near you . . . well, whatever Roman has planned for me, I'll make sure Lawrence gets a lot worse."
Kayla squeezed Kim's hand and stood up from the table. She walked over to Steve, who was still agitated and angry. Kayla knew she had to nip this in the bud. Taking his hands, she pulled him aside.
"Listen to Roman, Steve," she said softly. "You'll just get into trouble if you try to go after Lawrence. I've seen how he operates. Just let it go. . . . Let the police handle it. Roman will make sure nothing happens."
"You really believe he can do that, Sweetness?" Steve asked with a pointed look. Kayla had no answer. She knew as well anyone that there were no guarantees where Lawrence was concerned. Seeing her silence, Steve nodded. "You know the truth as well as I do." Turning away, he grumbled. "I can't believe he got away with this. If only I could remember something about that explosion. Maybe there was a clue or something."
Kayla reached up and touched his cheek. "I'm sure if there was something, you'd have remembered it. It's okay. All I care about is that you're back and you're safe. As for Lawrence, we'll all just have to be on our guard, and I'm sure Roman will be watching him like a hawk."
"Well, Abe's going to cover that for the next little while," Roman said from behind her. Turning, Kayla saw Roman run a hand through his hair. "Marlena and I are taking off tomorrow for San Cristobal. We can't really put it off any longer."
"You're leaving now?" Steve asked. "Shane's still in a coma and now Alamain's out, and you're leaving?"
Kayla turned back to Steve and stepped between him and Roman. "I'm sure Roman doesn't want to go right now, but he's right. He and Marlena have put this off for a few weeks already." Kayla sighed. Silently, she agreed with Steve and wanted her brother nearby, but she also knew that he and Marlena believed San Cristobal held the key to unlocking her memories. "They have to get on with their lives. We all need to."
With a sigh, Kayla looked at Steve, who was scowling. Could he let things lie? She knew his hatred of Lawrence ran deep, and she could not really blame him. But she trembled at the thought of what it might cost them if Steve pursued Lawrence alone.
Putting a hand on his arm, she said, "Come on, Steve. Let's go home. We'll let the police handle Lawrence." She hoped that sounded confident.
But, inside, she felt that gnawing fear rising again. They needed to get on with their lives, but she wondered if that would ever be possible, especially now with Lawrence Alamain free. Deep down a voice was telling her that more danger was just around the corner.