AN: If you haven't read the earlier chapters recently, I recommend you reread because they have been updated with additional and improved content. And I would really appreciate your thoughts. Even if you hate the story, tell me.
WARNING: DOMESTIC VIOLENCE!!!! Non-Graphic
FYI: Ryan is only staying so he can make sure her husband doesn't leave until they determine the truth.
Part 103
The next morning, Ryan begrudgingly got up and put on a relatively nice outfit, a tight pair of jeans and a t-shirt. He still didn't want to go but he reminded himself it was for an old friend.
It helped that Johnny looked so good in his Sunday best. He licked his lips and kissed his husband. "Well, you clean up nice." He chuckled. It was just a blue suit but he was so used to Johnny in his leather jacket and jeans.
Johnny laughed and returned the kiss. "Almost as nice as you do." He smiled. "I promise, we won't stay for the service. I'm sure Alphonso will, and he can represent us." He chuckled. "Let's go downstairs. I've already got Neo dressed."
Ryan looked over at Neo in his little gray suit with his blue tie. "Well, look at you. You're gonna be a lady-killer one day," he hugged his son.
Neo laughed. "What is church?" He asked curiously.
The tiger shrugged. "It's a place where people who believe in God go to talk about God."
"And what is God?" Neo asked.
"Okay, guys, it's time to go," Johnny said as a way to deflect the question.
Ryan chuckled. "If you're really interested, ask Uncle Alphonso. He can explain it better than I can." He would not be one of those parents who tried to control what his children were allowed to believe. He just wouldn't go out of his way to get Neo interested.
Johnny smiled at his husband. "Very diplomatic," he teased.
———————
Down in the lobby, Rosita was talking with Gunter. "Oh, Gunter, thank you. I know Raquelle and Lancey enjoy it but the other kids will likely find it boring."
Gunter smiled. "It's my pleasure, Rosita. Eddie and I bought Easter eggs and candy and treats."
Ryan heard the conversation as they came out of the elevator. "What's going on?"
"Gunter and I are going to take the kids to the park for an Easter Egg hunt," Eddie explained, holding up an Easter basket filled with plastic multicolored eggs. "Neo, do you want to join us?"
Ryan looked down at Neo. "Would you like to go with your uncles or would you like to come to church with us."
"You're going?" Alphonso asked as he and Meena made their appearance.
He nodded. "Kind of… we're doing my dad a favor." He explained. "But Neo, if you'd prefer to go Easter egg hunting, go for it."
Neo looked uncertain. "Grandma and Grandpa are going to be there. But the egg hunt sounds like fun too. But I told them I'd come."
Eddie bit his lip, then an odd glimmer appeared. "Hey, I have a better idea. What if… we all met at the park after church? In the meantime, Gunter and I can work with the other kids on an idea we had last night."
"What kind of idea?" Meena asked, curiously.
The sheep shook his head. "That would be telling," he replied with an air of mystery.
Rosita giggled. "Well, you boys keep your secrets but mind you, we will find out." She teased.
Eddie chuckled. "We'll just say it's a surprise for all of the mothers. Then all he's missing is a rehearsal. We'll get Raquelle and Lancey in on it too but I know they want to go with Ash and Tyler." He looked at Gunter for approval of the plan.
The sow cooed. "Awww, that's so sweet, Eddie. Okay, we won't go trying to find out." She hugged him.
Johnny looked down at Neo. "How's that sound? Then you can do both church and the Easter egg hunt."
Neo smiled. "Thank you, Uncle Eddie." He really didn't care about rehearsal. He preferred to be in the audience.
The elevator dinged again and Marcus came out with Suki. Seeing his dad, Johnny remembered.
"Hey Dad!" He waved. "Are you guys coming to church with us?" He asked as he began leading him away.
Marcus nodded. "Your in-laws invited us and it feels the polite thing to do. Your sisters are still sleeping." He saw the serious expression on Johnny's face and he stood up straight. "What's wrong?"
Ryan joined him while Johnny filled his father in on Jackson's implied concerns and request. "Johnny just wants to see the best in everyone." He stroked his husband's hair. "I still think my father just wants to 'show me what I'm missing'," he rolled his eyes. "He'll never accept me for who I am…"
Marcus put a hand on his shoulder. "You don't need him."
Johnny nodded. "He's right. And it is possible that he's trying to break us up. It won't work and we'll just go no contact if that's the case. But I'd rather be sure that Chelsea isn't in some kind of trouble. I'd hate it if someone was being hurt and we could stop it and we didn't."
Marcus listened to his son's arguments. "Don't worry, son. We will come up with a plan if it's needed." He looked at Ryan. "Whatever the truth is, we will deal with it."
"I think we're just waiting for Ash and Tyler," Rosita said.
As if on cue, the elevator opened again and Ash led her kids off the elevator, flanked by the orangutan.
"Awww, Raquelle, what a pretty dress," Rosita complimented the little girl.
Raquelle twirled around in her sky-blue dress with a big grin. "Thank you, Aunt Rosita. Mommy helped me pick it out."
"And Lancey, you look so grown up," the sow smiled at him.
The little porcupine hugged her. "Thank you, Aunt Rosita. Are you going to church with us?" He asked.
"I sure am. We want to help Johnny look good for his in-laws," she teased good-naturedly. The gorilla smiled at her.
Alphonso looked at Ryan. "It's good of you to come too." He quietly whispered to his friend. "If you need to leave, I'll cover for you."
Ryan nodded. "Thanks, pal."
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The church was small but it looked like the entire small town had showed up for the service. The Hunters were waiting outside when the large van pulled up and everyone got out.
"Good morning, Happy Easter," Katherine said as she hugged her son and son-in-law. Neo darted over for hugs as well, making her laugh.
Jackson looked at Ryan. "Thanks for coming. Did Johnny fill you in?"
Ryan sighed. "Yeah, but Dad… look, if this is just some sort of play to try and…"
Jackson held up his hand. "Thomas! Good morning." He said as a well-dressed leopard approached the entrance. "Where are Chelsea and René?"
The leopard chuckled. "Well, apparently they went to a show last night and didn't get home until very late. They're still sleeping it off."
Ryan frowned. "Really? The show didn't go that late… and she left pretty much right after the meet and greet."
The leopard looked the tiger up and down. "And who are you?"
"Sorry, Thomas, this is my son, Ryan," Jackson explained. "This is Chelsea's husband, Thomas Rhoads. Ryan and Chelsea were close in high school."
The leopard frowned deeply, setting Ryan's fur on edge. "How close?"
Johnny threw himself over Ryan's shoulder. "Hi, I'm Johnny, Ryan's husband. It's nice to meet you." He offered his hand.
The other man let the frown go and shook the hand. Johnny squeezed just a little bit tighter than necessary. "I… see…" The leopard took back his hand and shook it out a little.
Marcus studied the severe-looking leopard in his suit. "So your wife and daughter chose to stay home on Easter morning?" He saw Jackson glaring at Thomas.
Thomas nodded. "She and René were excused after their outing last night. She said she won two tickets to Mary Poppins."
Rosita smiled. "Yes, she was our winner. Sorry, we're actually with the troupe who performed last night." She played along. She was getting all kinds of red flags from this guy.
The church bells rang and they started heading in. Marcus pretended to admire one of the decorative pieces as Thomas headed for the sanctuary. Once he was out of earshot, he, Ryan and Johnny went to Jackson.
"Chelsea told me that she'd be here," the older Tiger explained. "It's Easter and she said her daughter had a brand new dress and everything."
Ryan sighed. "Why didn't you tell me there was a problem, Dad?"
"I couldn't, she made me promise that I wouldn't tell anyone. But I couldn't leave her in that situation and I knew you could help her," Jackson explained. "She assured me that she was going to be here this morning."
Marcus sighed. "Jackson, what's her address?" He put the address Jackson gave him into a text message to Barry. "Barry and Stan are going to do a wellness check. If she's legit just tired after last night, then okay. If we find out you're right, then we will get her and her daughter out of there and back to our hotel," he promised. He drew nearer and whispered. "But heaven help you if I find out this is just a ploy to try and drive a wedge between our sons."
The tiger nodded. "I may never fully approve of my son's choices but I understand that they are his to make. And… I'll love him regardless. I simply want to help Chelsea and her daughter."
The gorilla studied Jackson closely. "I just hope you are telling the truth because it won't end well for you if you're not."
———————
On Marcus' orders, the two gorillas drove to the address in the text message. Barry and Stan were immediately confused.
The house looked normal at the start but there were bars on the windows and the front door had a large padlock on it. Barry knocked on the door. There was no answer.
"Wait here, chuck, I'll check the back," Stan said. He went around the back of the craftsman home and hopped the fence with ease. He found a sliding glass back door that was also padlocked. "Locked back here too, chuck." He said into his walkie.
Barry nodded and sent a photo and text to his brother. He was mad and ready to raise hell but he needed to wait for his big brother.
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In the sanctuary, Ryan and Johnny sat on one side of the leopard while Marcus sat on the other, effectively making sure he couldn't just leave. Alphonso sat behind him.
The leopard turned his head. "You really let your wife wear a hoodie and jeans?" He asked. "To church?"
"Let?" Alphonso asked. "I don't control how Meena dresses. She's perfectly capable of choosing her wardrobe."
"Be careful giving her too much control. You're obviously young," he whispered. "You're new to married life. You need to remember that you are the man in the relationship. You are the one in charge."
Alphonso's lip twitched for just a moment before he bust out laughing. "Oh my goodness, is that really what you think? Don't you trust your wife?"
"Women, by nature, cannot be trusted," Thomas replied. "Mark my words. Today it's jeans and hoodies to church, tomorrow, she's dancing on a pole and selling her body."
He laughed even harder. "If you knew Meena, you wouldn't even suggest it. Do you really believe that's how God wants you to treat your spouse?"
"'Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.' Ephesians 5:22 NIV," Thomas recited.
Alphonso grinned. "'In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.' Ephesians 5:28."
Ryan leaned over and whispered, "Don't get into a Bible battle with Alfonso. You will lose." He warned. That day, he was particularly grateful for Alphonso.
Meena smirked. "Yeah, Alphonso is even going to be the new youth pastor at our church. I'm so proud of him." She leaned against her husband.
He frowned and stood up. "Excuse me, I'm changing seats."
He tried to get out but neither Ryan or Marcus would stand. Marcus glared at him. "Service is about to start. Sit back down." His tone was the same tone Johnny had heard him use with Crystal.
Marcus was glad Suki, Nooshy and Porsha chose to stay back to help Eddie and Gunter take care of the babies while they worked with the kids. He sent a text to Suki. He smiled when she hearted the text. Another text went to Barry.
———————
Barry looked at his phone. "We're a-go, chuck." He gripped the padlock on the front door and it shattered. He went inside.
"Mrs. Rhoads! René! Can either of you hear me?" He called through the house. He took pictures of the whole house. "My name is Barry, I'm a friend of Ryan and Johnny! I'm here to help!" He couldn't find either of them. He went into the kitchen, where Stan was looking at a door with another padlock. He took a photo and nodded.
His partner stattered it as easily as they'd crushed the first two. Stan yanked the door completely off of its hinges. The door led to a staircase that led down into the basement. "Mrs. Rhoads! Are you down there? We are here to help." He led the way down the stairs and into the basement.
"Help!" A small cry came from the basement. "We're in here!"
Barry's mouth hit the ground when they went into the main room of the basement. A cage sat in the middle and inside the cage was the young leopardess unconscious. The little girl was outside the cage but unwilling to leave her mother's side. "Oh my gosh!"
"You're here to help us?" The child asked with no small amount of fear.
Stan nodded. "Worry not, you are completely safe. I'm Stan and this is Barry. Do you remember Johnny? From last night?"
She nodded. "Yeah. In Mary Poppins. Daddy was so mad at us for going. He hurt Mommy and he locked us down here. He said he might let us out when he gets home." She cried.
"You're safe now," Barry promised. "Your Uncle Ryan is even sitting through church so we can get you both out. Is there anyone else we should know about besides you and your mum?" He asked
She shook her head. "Just me and mommy." She trembled like a leaf.
Stan grabbed the door of the cage and pulled with all of his might. The cage broke with a crashing sound. The feline in the bed moaned and opened her eyes. "What?"
"It's alright, I'm a friend. Ryan sent us to get you out," he said.
Her eye was swollen and she was bruised. "Thomas used to be… so wonderful. Until we got married and I had René. Then he changed out of nowhere…" she admitted.
Stan picked her up while Barry picked up the child and put her on his shoulders. "We take nothing but don't worry, you'll be taken care of." He promised.
She nodded. "Thank you. I can't… I can't take it anymore… but he promised to take René from me if I tried to leave. I can't leave him with her." She wept.
"Don't worry, you're safe. We promise you," Stan stroked her hair gently. "Uncle Stan and Barry are here."
"How'd you find out?" Chelsea asked suspiciously.
Barry chuckled. "Mr. Hunter clued us in and we engineered a rescue operation. They're detaining your husband as we speak." He said while he took multiple photographs of the scene. "Don't worry about a thing. You are free, you and your daughter."
She smiled and wept. "Thank you. If you mean that, thank you."
Together, they carried them to the van. Barry sent another text to Marcus. "Safe! Headed to higher ground." He included all of the photographs.
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The preacher was wrapping up the sermon and starting the prayer when Marcus got the message. He slyly reviewed the time-stamped pictures. He sent them to Johnny and Ryan.
Ryan and Johnny's phones buzzed and they read the message. Ryan sighed. He looked down the row to his father, who nodded. He sighed. He might owe his father an apology. He looked at his husband. He owed Johnny an apology too, for doubting his instincts.
After the pastor dismissed the congregation Johnny, Ryan and Marcus surrounded the leopard.
Softly, but no less menacing, Marcus whispered. "You have one chance to walk away from this. It's Easter, after all."
"What's going on?" Thomas asked, trembling against his will.
"Play dumb all you like. We have proof of what you've done and you have one chance to escape punishment," he vowed. "We have them safe and sound, far away from you." Or they would be soon. "And there's only one way this ends well for you. Do you understand? Failure to comply will result in this evidence being sent to everyone in this church."
He nodded with terror. "Yes sir." He growled. Who were these men? What would they do to him?
AN: Ending the chapter here. Please review. I will start part 104 tomorrow. I promise, this subplot is almost done. I have a plan for Chelsea in the second season.