Freefall

by Tess Oliver

  “Yes, that’s what it was. But he’s gone now, Alex, so don’t worry.”

  “All right, Nana. Call me if you need me.” The words nearly stuck in my dry throat. Obviously, hearing the drastic change in my tone, Cassie looked up from her sandwich. “What’s the matter? Is Nana all right?”

  I nodded. My mind was shooting in every direction. “The girl who comes to sit with her didn’t show up today, that’s all.” I wrapped the sandwich back up. Hammond had figured everything out, and since it was no longer a secret, I took a chance on texting Scotlyn. There was no reply. That was all I needed. I was going to confront Hammond today and then Scotlyn was coming home with me. I wasn’t completely sure how it would all unfold, but there was no way she could stay with him anymore.

  The afternoon moved like molasses. I checked my phone every minute for a text from Scotlyn, hoping she’d find a way to let me know she was all right. I was still going under the assurance she’d given me that Hammond wouldn’t hurt her, but as the day wore on, I felt more uneasy. As the last client was leaving, Dray walked in.

  “The old man actually followed through on his promise. I have a phone interview for a longshoreman position down in Long Beach.” He laughed. “My mom should have left him years ago. It seems to have humbled the man into realizing that he was an asshole.” He stopped and looked at me. “You look like some punched you in the stomach.”

  “Yeah, sort of.”

  “What’s up?”

  I looked over at Cassie, and she put up her hands. “Again, I’m not interested in the sordid details of your dating life. I’m taking off a little early if that’s all right with you.”

  “No problem.”

  Dray followed me into the back while I cleaned up my tools. “You know how I had Scotlyn going over to sit with Nana during the day?”

  “You mentioned it, yeah.”

  “Hammond was waiting for her in front of Nana’s house today. I can’t reach Scotlyn.”

  “That’s not good. What are you going to do?”

  I stopped and thought about the question. “Hell if I know. If I just walk up to the house to try and talk to the asshole, he’ll probably have me arrested for trespassing or who knows maybe he’s got a gun. I need to get to Scotlyn somehow. I’ve got to get her out of there. I’m pretty sure he took her phone away.”

  “Then I guess we’ll just have to go over there and pound his face in. Then we push inside, grab the girl, and go,” Dray said with enthusiasm.

  “You really do need to get back in the ring. I’m hoping I can do this in a civilized way. I don’t want to put Scotlyn in any danger, and if I just drag her off Hammond isn’t going to just leave us alone to live happily ever after.”

  Dray looked like a kid who’d just been told he was getting coal in his Christmas stocking. “Damn, you are boring these days. I’m going to grab a water bottle from your fridge. They’re going to call me soon for the interview, and my phone gets much better reception on your office couch than on the Lucy.” He returned a few seconds later. “Cassie forgot her phone.” He handed it to me. “My head has taken too much pounding. I was just about to text her to tell her she forgot her phone then realized it would be kind of useless. I think I need to rest before they call.” He headed back into the office and closed the door behind him.

  I placed Cassie’s phone next to her computer. She had a key to the shop, and she’d probably come back for it soon. My strategy for taking Scotlyn from Hammond flipped around in my head while I finished cleaning up. Nothing brilliant came to me. I was going to head straight over there, and see if I could reason with him. And the more I pictured that in my head, the more ridiculous it seemed. But I had to try it this way first. After that, there was always Dray’s plan.

  Clean up in the shop was the boring part of the job, and I was glad to be done for the day. I’d been working nonstop since I’d opened Freefall a year ago, one of the drawbacks of owning your own business. The problems with Nana, and now with Scotlyn, made the idea of a few days off sound good.

  I heard Dray’s voice in the office, which meant his phone interview had begun. A job with the longshoremen was something he’d wanted for a long time. His father had worked down on the docks for years and made good money. The job fit Dray’s personality perfectly.

  I pulled the shop key out of my pocket and walked out to the front to lock up just as the door opened. Three big, unseemly looking dudes walked in. I’d never seen any of them in the shop before. “You’ll need to call to make an appointment,” I said to them, and then it appeared highly unlikely that they weren’t there for a tattoo. Apparently, Hammond had sent his minions over for a visit. So much for my civilized plan to go reason with him first. He obviously wanted to play dirty and that was fine by me.

  One of the guys, with forearms as thick as my calves, walked up to the counter. “We aren’t here for any tattoos.”

  I looked down at his arm. “Yeah, I figured out you weren’t looking for a real tattoo artist once I saw that chicken scratch on your arm.” I knew I was in deep shit, so I decided to get a dig in about his crappy tattoos before they rendered me speechless.

  The guy’s nostrils flared making him even uglier. “You’ve got a big mouth for someone who’s about to be in a lot of pain.” He lifted his fist and made sure his bulky ring was pointing in the right direction.

  I looked at his arm and laughed. “Seriously, dude, did you draw those yourself? They’re almost as ugly as your fucked up face.”

  He lunged at me over the counter, and I ducked to the side. The glass creaked beneath his weight. He glanced down and obviously decided that falling through a glass counter would probably hurt. He slid off and motioned to his two buddies who’d just been spectators until now. I kicked the swinging door between the counters, and it smacked him on the knees, which only caused enough pain to make him more pissed. He reached across and grabbed the shoulder of my t-shirt and yanked me in front of the counter. I swung at him and managed to clip his jaw with my fist, but the second I brought my arm back for another swing, his buddy punched me in the back. The breath rushed out of me, and I sank to my knees gasping for air.

  “Pick him up,” the ring guy ordered.

  They yanked me to my feet, and I swung my leg out and got the guy in the gut. He doubled over for a second and then straightened with a face red with fury. “Hold him steady.” He straightened his ring again. His massive fist flew at my face. I turned to the side, but he slammed my jaw and mouth hard enough that my ears rang and everything went blurry for a second. I spit the blood out toward him. He threw his fist into my stomach, and I dropped to my knees again. My head was spinning with the pain.

  “Consider this a message from a mutual friend. Stay away from the girl. Pick him up again. I need to wash that grin off his face for good.”

  Once again, they dragged me to my feet, but I didn’t have enough balance left to kick out. I could feel warm blood trickling out of the side of my mouth as I glared at him. “You can tell that weasel, Hammond, that Scotlyn belongs with me. And I will take her from him.”

  He pulled his arm back, and I closed my eyes and braced for the pain. I heard the loud sickening thud of someone’s face being hit, but unless I was dead, it hadn’t been mine. The two guys holding me dropped their hold on my arms as I opened my eyes. Dray had the guy on the floor. Dray’s fist came down again and again on his face. Blood spurted in every direction. His buddies each outweighed Dray by fifty pounds, but they looked intimidated.

  “I was wondering if you were ever going to step out of that office.” I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand.

  Dray landed one more punch, and the guy looked like a rag doll in his grasp. “Had to finish the interview. I think they were impressed.”

  One of the other knuckleheads grabbed me again, and I managed to smack his head hard enough against the edge of the counter that he dropped to his knees. I swung around as the third guy grabbed Dray’s neck. Dray flipped around so fast I barely saw
him move. He had the guy pinned up against the wall in seconds. Tattoo examples fluttered down as Dray’s fist landed a punch that was solid enough to drop the guy to his face. I was enjoying watching the whole thing so much, I’d forgotten the guy I’d slammed against the counter. He’d recovered and wrapped his arm around my neck. Dray grabbed hold of his arm and wrenched it sharply behind him and then proceeded to flatten him.

  The front door swung open and Cassie walked in. The color drained from her face, and her eyes went round.

  “Run Cass,” I yelled.

  The guy on the floor lunged for Cassie, and before I could reach her, he had a gun pressed against her temple. Dray dropped his hold on the guy he was pummeling and lifted his hands in surrender. Cassie looked terrified, and I wanted to smash the guy’s head through the window.

  “I was told not to kill you, but I’m real tempted to take all of you out right now,” the guy with the gun mumbled from a swollen mouth.

  Dray stepped forward cautiously, and the guy backed up. “Look, just let her go. All of you can just walk out of here, and we’ll pretend like none of this happened. Just let her go.” There was a tremor in Dray’s voice. It was a sound I’d never heard before.

  The guy holding the gun to Cassie’s head looked at his buddies, and there was a long tense moment of silence. He motioned for them to get out and they raced through the door without looking back. The gunman threw Cassie into Dray’s arms and ran.

  Cassie broke into sobs, and Dray held on tightly to her. “I’ve got you, Baby, I’ve got you. Don’t cry.” He lifted her face with his hands and kissed her forehead, chin, and nose. “I was never going to let anything happen to you, Baby. Never.” Then he kissed her hard on her lips.

  I locked the front door and looked out the window. There was no sign of them anymore.

  Dray held Cassie in his arms as if she was a priceless treasure, and I think he had just come to the realization that she was exactly that. I walked past them to get my phone. “It’s about damn time, you two.”

  Cassie laughed between her tears.

  “Some of us like to take it slow, play hard to get, you know,” Dray called to me. “Who are you calling?”

  “First, I’m calling Diana to go pick up Nana and take her home for a few days. And then I’m going to try Scotlyn’s number one more time. If she doesn’t answer I’m heading over to Hammond’s.”

  Dray dropped his arm around Cassie’s shoulder, and a huge grin spread across his face. “Do you mean we’re not done thumping heads yet?”

  “I think the real thumping has yet to begin.” I sent a text to Scotlyn but as I’d expected, there was no reply.

  Dray pulled Cassie’s face closer and kissed her cheek. “Whooee what an awesome fucking day this has been. Is this what they mean by Christmas in July?”

  Cassie rolled her eyes. “You guys need to be careful. They had guns remember? I don’t think you can thump the head of a guy holding a gun. Why don’t you just call the police?”

  “We have no proof that Hammond sent those guys. They were careful not to mention his name.” My phone rang and my heart sped up, but it was Clutch. “I’m having the shittiest damn day.” Clutch went right into his rant not waiting for my response. “First, the buyer pulls out of the Pontiac deal. Then the mechanic at the motor shop says the Corvette needs a whole new engine, and just now, Taylor rode past me on the back of some jerk’s motorcycle. So much for her keeping out of trouble. Now she’ll get sent to boarding school for sure. Shitty damn day.”

  “I feel your pain, Bro,” I said. “Do you feel like pounding some faces? Dray and I are just heading out to engage in some head thumping if you’d like to join us.”

  There was a pause. “Where should I meet you?”

  “Meet us at Freefall. We’ll wait for you.”

  “Give me ten minutes.”

  Cassie fashioned some ice packs out of plastic bags and ice. She pressed one against the side of my mouth, and I pulled away at first. “That almost hurts more.”

  “Too bad. You’ll swell up if you don’t ice it.” She squinted through her thick lenses. “That guy left an imprint of his ring right below your lip.” She lifted the ice bag again. “Hold this. If you can take a fist in your face, you can endure the ice bag for heaven’s sake.”

  Dray was in the office with a bag of ice on his knuckles. Skilled fighter that he was, he’d managed to escape without a scratch. I looked down at Cassie and a smile fought to break free on my face but it was too painful. “So, how are you feeling?”

  She knew exactly what I was referring to but evaded the real meaning behind my question. “I’m still shaking on the inside. I’ve never had a gun pressed to my head. Hopefully, I won’t ever again.”

  “Come on, Cass, you know what I’m asking about.”

  She sighed. “Just what I needed— the stress of having Dray as my boyfriend.” Then she looked up at me. “I’m still having trouble grasping it.” She moved my wrist so that the bag of ice was closer to the swelling. “You’re kind of defeating the purpose of the ice. Keep it here. And you, Boss, you could have any woman you want, and you pick the girl who comes with her own band of thugs. Nice choice.”

  “You know I prefer a little danger in my relationships.”

  She grew quiet for a second. “Seriously, you guys need to be careful.”

  “We will. The guy she’s with is a weasel, and I’ve got a plan.”

  “I think my ice is melting,” Dray called from the back room.

  Cassie rolled her eyes.

  I sucked in a breath as I moved the ice against the tear in my bottom lip. “Hey, you wanted him.”

  “I guess I’m just as nuts as you.” She turned to walk back into the office.

  “Cassie.”

  She turned back. “Yeah?”

  “Have Dray walk you out to your car, and cancel all the appointments for the next few days. Use your computer at home. Stay away from the shop until I tell you to come back. Tell people I had to leave town on a family emergency.” Her face paled some as I spoke. “Just until this all blows over.”

  She nodded and disappeared into the office. I lifted my shirt and stuck the bag of ice against the tender spot on my back. It hurt more than anything else. Cassie and Dray emerged from the office.

  Cassie big eyes blinked at me through her thick lenses a few times and then they walked out. A few minutes later the door swung open, and Clutch walked inside. His mouth was hanging open.

  “It’s not as bad as it looks,” I said.

  “Huh? Oh that. Yeah, you look like crap.” He glanced back out the window. “Maybe I’ve just been out in the sun too much today, but I could swear I just saw Dray kissing Cassie. And it wasn’t just a ‘gee thanks for being a friend’ kiss.”

  “It’s not the sun,” I assured him. “It’s a long story, but let’s just say our friend has finally come to his senses, despite the concussions.”

  Clutch looked slightly disappointed at the prospect that Dray had finally given in. “Poor sap.”

  “I think worse things could have happened. Anyhow, you and Dray are going to follow me in your car. He’ll tell you all about it on the way.”

  Dray walked back inside. “My knuckles are feeling better. Let’s roll.”

  CHAPTER 26

  Scotlyn

  Between the crying, the stress, and the fact that I hadn’t eaten all day, my head was pounding. I’d wandered aimlessly around the bedroom waiting for the aspirin to take effect and decided to go downstairs and stomach the company long enough to grab a bowl of cereal.

  Lincoln’s voice floated up from the television room, and it sounded more irritating than ever. I had planned to rush in and out, but the topic stopped me cold in my tracks.

  “Did you hear from those morons yet?” Lincoln asked.

  “They said they left the guy in a bloody heap.”

  I grabbed hold of the banister to keep the dizziness from rolling me down the stairs. I sat down on the step to clear my
head. The front door was at the bottom of the steps, and Lincoln was in the other room. I was still unsteady on my feet, but I headed back upstairs for my shoes and the money I had stashed in my nightstand. I just needed to get clear of the house.

  My hands shook as I tucked the bills into my pocket and pulled on my running shoes. I tiptoed to the landing. Halfway down the stairs, the front door was in view. Freedom was twenty steps away. Lincoln met me at the landing, and it took all my strength not to cry with disappointment.

  “Going somewhere?”

  I slid past him to the kitchen and acted as if I had just been coming downstairs to eat. He followed me. I ignored him as I grabbed down a bowl and a box of cereal.

  To add to the misery, Grady joined us in the kitchen. He opened the refrigerator and pulled out a beer. “Colton just texted me. The shipment arrived. It’s a good thing that the Stingray Beer Company went out of business, or we wouldn’t have had a warehouse to—”

  “Shut the hell up, you idiot,” Lincoln’s sharp voice ricocheted off the appliances. I could feel his eyes on me, but I pretended to be interested in my cereal bowl. “She can hear, remember?”

  “Yeah, yeah, I always forget.”

  I picked up the bowl and went upstairs. After hearing Grady talk about Nix, I’d lost my appetite, but I decided to force myself to eat. I needed my strength. I took a small duffle bag from the closet. I quickly filled it with things I would need and the picture of my family. I wanted to be ready because when the moment presented itself, I was going to leave Lincoln’s prison forever.

  ***

  If I poked my head out into the hallway and listened carefully, I could tell which room Lincoln occupied. If he returned to the kitchen, I could easily get to the door without him hearing me, but for at the moment, their voices were coming from the living room. It would be impossible to dash to the door unseen. My hopes were smashed some when I stuck my head out into the hallway for the third time and realized another voice had been added the mix. It was Grady’s friend. Now I would need all three of them to go into the kitchen at the same time, which made my prospects of escape grim. I had to leave though. Even if it meant walking out of the house at midnight, I would be free of Lincoln by morning.