Falling Into Blue
Page 15
“We think it’s a good idea for you to stay in a hotel somewhere out of the area until we can figure all of this out and talk to more witnesses so we can charge him with another attempt at your life and have the prison put him in solitary confinement so he can’t order any more attempts at you or your family.”
Agree to everything. Just agree and nod, Jaycee. First chance, I’ll take off.
“Okay, I understand. Can I see my grandma before I leave?” I ask as I step away from Max. Max—I have to end it with him before he gets hurt.
“I’m going with her,” I finally hear Max say and he reaches for me but I jerk away and walk towards Jake. “What are you doing, Jaycee?”
Oh my God. Can I do this? I have to do this, for him.
“Max, this is a family matter and well, you’re not family. You should probably leave,” I say, and I turn around to see Jesse and Nash who were standing behind me, staring at me with sympathy. They know what I’m doing. “Dad, y’all need to stay with Grandma…”
“What the fuck, Jayc? I know what you’re doing. Don’t,” Max says, and he starts towards me but Jake steps in front of him and blocks him from me. “Move, Jake,” he roars and starts to move around Jake but all my brothers move together to make a barrier because they know in two more seconds I’m going to break. “Jaycee, I understand you’re scared but…”
“Go home, Max. Right now, you being in the mix, your presence is just adding to my confusion. Maybe when all this is over we can try to be friends or something but please, my family and I need to discuss this and I don’t have the time or desire to go over the many reasons you need to leave,” and I turn my back.
“Jaycee don’t play with me. This is fucked up.” When I don’t move or say anything, he starts towards the door. “Jayc?” he says, and when I don’t say anything he turns and jerks open the door so hard it slams into the wall and it makes my body jerk.
“Holy hell,” I say, and I fall to the floor, crying and holding my stomach. “I want him back but I can’t have him, can I?” Not now and probably not ever.
Chase squats down in front of me and puts his hands on my shoulders. “Jaycee, are you sure? I understand why you think you needed to do that, we all do, but the reasoning going on in your head,” and he shakes his head. “Well, I just I don’t think that was the right choice.” He picks me up and pulls me into a hug. “But hell if I know what the right choice is,” and he sighs and lays his chin on top of my head. “We’ll figure something out.”
“I didn’t have a choice, right?” I ask, and I look at everyone looking sad and Abigail is silently crying. “Sissy, I think he was in love with you,” she says, and I just look to the floor because there was no thinking for me, I am in love with Maxwell “Blue” Bradshaw and always have been.
In the next couple of hours I say goodbye to my grandma while she sleeps and I hug my family and tell them not to worry. The police tell everyone once they get me set up somewhere, they’ll get word as to where I am and my brothers and everyone can come up to see me, but to give it a couple of days, because plans have to be made.
In that moment I know exactly where I want to go and as we head to the store so I can buy some clothes since mine are almost surely ruined from the fire or smoke or water, they start making calls to set things up. It’s going to take a couple of days before it’s ready for my arrival.
Four days later, when it’s ready and the detectives feel it’s safe, we pull up at my family’s cabin at the lake. I haven’t been here since my grandpa’s collapse but it’s the only place I want to be right now. As we pull up the slight incline and I jostle around in the back seat, I look out the window at the field. Because of the season it’s brown, but my memories flash back to when the field was blue with waves of beautiful blue bonnets. I smile because I feel safe here. I’m at my favorite place in the world, but my heart is still back with Max. I have to keep reminding myself I’m doing this for him and for my family.
We all get out and the detectives grab my bags from the trunk and as we walk towards the cabin door we notice a motorcycle parked in the shadows, close to the garage. I stop and stare and look to the detectives and to the cabin. I look back to the cabin and it’s lit up and I can see someone moving around inside. I look at the detectives in question, and Sergeant Taylor explains, “You’re going to need protection 24/7 and after what happened we weren’t sure how comfortable you’d be with a virtual stranger so we talked with your family on suggestions and this is what they suggested. Or, who they suggested and he’s trained and will be able to protect you.” They start moving closer to the door and step back for me to open it and when I do I send up a prayer. Thank you, Jesus.
When I walk in the door, even through tears falling from my eyes I can see he’s pissed and doesn’t want to be here, and that breaks my heart even more. I ruined it. I’ve lost him. I’ve lost Max.
Chapter 24
After the detectives see me in with my bags and shake hands with Max, they wait for me to get settled and we all move to sit at the small kitchen table. Captain Walters starts going over instructions they will need us to follow in order to stay safe and then what’s going to happen on their end. He explains that they’ve released a statement to the media in regards to the fire in hopes to provoke talk and a reaction from Rocky. They’ve said I’m in the hospital with severe smoke inhalation and burns, and that my grandma was severely injured in the fire and in ICU. They ask us to stay up here and not head back into San Antonio, not only to keep me safe but also so we don’t run the risk of someone seeing me.
My family will be kept updated and can come up to visit but they need to get a feel on the situation with Rocky trying to come after me first. They tell me to make sure I have a phone with me at all times and to keep it charged. Sergeant Taylor gives me his and Captain Walters’ cell phone numbers to program into my phone and invite me to use them if I ever need anything. As they start to rise from their chairs, Captain Walters stops midway and then sits back down so Sergeant Taylor follows and sits too. Captain Walters is sitting to my left and he turns to face me. “May I call you Jaycee?” I look over at him. “Of course, yes, please,” I encourage and look to Sergeant Taylor, giving him the same invitation. Sergeant Taylor gives me a soft smile and we all turn to Captain Walters as he starts to talk. This is the first time I guess I’ve seen them as people.
I look back to Sergeant Taylor as we wait for Captain Walters to speak. Sergeant Taylor isn’t as tall as the men in my family or Max, but he’s not short. I’m not sure of his build because I’ve only seen him in suits but he has shaggy blonde hair and a beard. His eyes are a soft blue. He looks to be not much older than me but his eyes, like mine, probably reveal we’ve seen more than our share of pain and then I look to Captain Walters and really focus. I note his graying hair along his temples of his dark brown hair. He’s very tall and muscular. He has beautiful green eyes and a beautiful, kind smile. I guess I’ve never noticed because no one has been smiling too much around me. I give him my full attention when he starts to speak.
“Jaycee, I spent twenty-six years in the Air Force working in OSI as an investigator.” When I look confused he smiles and explains, “Office of Special Investigations.” He pauses then says, “I’ve investigated many crimes over those years from small time to big time but Jaycee, what happened to you…” and he shakes his head in anger. “What that bastard did? He’s going down for it. We’re going to make sure of it.” He looks to Sergeant Taylor and back to me and says, “I’m going to make sure of it.” He looks over my head to the wall and then back to me.
“Scarlett,” he smiles. “My daughter, Scarlett. Her name fit her perfectly. She was beautiful and fun, always full of life and attitude but had the most beautiful heart and beautiful bright green eyes. She was constantly trying to save the world, one person at a time. Being a military daughter all her life and growing up on military bases, she’d lived in private
communities surrounded by gates and guards. She felt safe. I thought she was safe,” he lowers his head and clears his throat and then looks back to me. “I was days away from my official first day of retirement we were all excited to settle down in Texas. She loved it here. Loved San Antonio and the Riverwalk. She and her friends spent their summer days floating down the river on tubes.
She was finishing up the last few days of her sophomore year at UTSA when she was traveling back to our home in Garden Ridge. We’d just bought the house two months before. This was the first time she’d lived outside the walls of a military base. A couple of neighbors driving by saw she’d stopped two blocks away from our home to help a couple of guys whose car appeared to be having trouble. Jaycee, she was not a stupid girl, but she was raised around trustworthy people like you were. Believing that all people are fundamentally good, if she saw someone in pain or need, she tried to help them. She didn’t believe in monsters, Jaycee. I’m sorry to scare you, but I’m going to be blunt because you need to know. Monsters may just be people, but they’re very real. Scarlett’s body was found in the wooded area of a park just a few yards away from the swings. She had been violated and then strangled. Her mother and I didn’t even know she was missing when I got the call at work to come home. Detectives were waiting and told me what happened. After my retirement from the military with Scarlett being grown, my wife and I had planned on traveling but after the Scarlett’s murder, I went down to the SAPD and applied for a job. When I found out I was hired, I started working for them the day after my retirement from the military. Do you understand why, Jaycee?”
I didn’t realize it, but I had tears running down my cheeks and Max and Sergeant Taylor had their heads down. “Yes, I understand,” I say softly and he reaches out and takes my hand. “I wasn’t able to save her. I didn’t warn her. I didn’t see it coming. I see it coming with you and I’m going to do everything I can to make sure you’re safe, okay?” he says, and I nod yes while wiping tears from my face. “So please, do not, no matter what, go anywhere without Max or talk to any strangers. Promise me?” I nod my head again but finally clear my throat and speak, “Yes, I promise. I’m so sorry for your loss Captain Walters. What happened to the people that did that to your daughter?” His hand grips mine tightly as he says, “We never caught anyone. They were careful. It was a stolen car and it was found torched. But I’ll never give up looking. Luckily with you, we know who the threat is, and he’s in custody.” He pauses and smiles. “You remind me a lot of her, Jaycee. Your kind green eyes are familiar but it’s the inside, your hearts are both beautiful and kind,” he says and he smiles and rises from his chair and so does Sergeant Taylor.
“From what I understand, Max is going to give you some lessons with the gun and do some target practice. It’ll be good for you to learn, Jaycee,” Sergeant Taylor says as he reaches out and shakes Max’s hand and then puts it to my arm and squeezes. “Stay safe,” he says and he walks out the door to the vehicle and waits for Captain Walters. I stand looking up at this brave man that has suffered too much loss for a father and I step up to him and hug him and immediately he hugs me back tightly. “Listen to Max and practice your shooting. We’ll call you tomorrow and be back soon,” he says and he releases me with one final squeeze and shakes Max’s hand, turns and leaves. I hear the car doors slam and the engine start and I watch the headlights travel across the wall of the room as they back down the incline and get back on the road in front of the cabin.
When I turn back, Max is sitting back at the little table with his hands clasped and he’s looking at anything but me and that really hurts. “Max, I’m so…” he cuts me off. “You’re sorry? For what?” He looks at me and tilts his head with an angry look on his face. “What exactly are you sorry for? That could have been you. You could have ended up like his daughter, trying to save all of us.” He slowly stands and walks to the kitchen window and looks out just like my grandpa used to do. He’s wearing faded jeans and the hem is frayed where the heel of his motorcycle boots are stepping on them and they hang loose on his hips. I see he’s wearing a thick black leather belt with a silver buckle and as my eyes keep moving up, I see he’s wearing an old blue checkered flannel unbuttoned over a white t-shirt. His neck, it’s not thin by any means, but it’s not too thick and his jaw, it’s very strong and his almost black hair is getting a little long for military standards. I noticed when I kissed him a week ago his whiskers were starting to come out, but now, he has a goatee. His already olive skin has been slightly kissed by the sun and he looks good.
He turns to look at me for a few seconds before walking towards me. “What are you sorry for, Jaycee? God dammit. That could have been you!” He stops and almost yells a few inches from me and looks down into my eyes. “I’m a man, Jayc. A fucking man. You didn’t trust me to protect you,” he says. Oh no, I can’t have him believing that. That’s not true. But I stand frozen, listening to him. “Rocky is a fucking piece of shit coward who beats on women and preys on the weak,” he steps a little closer, “I’m a goddamn man, a fucking soldier, and a good one.” He hits his hand to his chest. “I protect women and the weak and I would have protected you, but you didn’t trust me. Do you know what it would do to me if what happened to his daughter happened to you?” he asks, and he turns and walks off and out the back cabin door.
He’s been walking around outside for a while, so I decide to start getting ready for bed and I begin looking through the bags to find something to wear to bed. A camisole and loose PJ bottoms are really the only thing there is, so I grab them and my toothbrush and toothpaste and go into the restroom and wash my face and brush my teeth. After I change, I start to brush out my hair but now that my adrenaline is wearing off, I’m starting to break thinking about everything that happened earlier. I can’t lose Max. I have to try and explain why I said the things I said.
I wipe my face and walk back into the main room where the beds are. I start towards the full bed where my grandparents slept, but before I can pull back the covers Max comes in the door. I stop moving, but I don’t turn around because I don’t want to see his anger again so I keep my back to him. I’ll give him tonight to calm down and try to talk to him in the morning, but I feel him walk up behind me. He wraps his arms around my waist and pulls my back to his front and holds me close. The tears break free. “Max, I’m so sorry. I just didn’t want you to get hurt. I didn’t want to lose you but I thought it was best to set you free. I couldn’t live with myself if something happened to you because of me, because of this monster I brought to the door,” I say, and he pulls me closer. I lean into him and I bring my arms up and lay them across his on my stomach. He lowers his head down to my ear and brushes the hair off my shoulder with his chin. He brings his lips back to my ear and softly says, “Hush, Jaycee, I’m sorry. I know. I know, but you can’t set me free. It’s impossible. I’ll never be free if I’m not with you and I’d never forgive myself if something happened to you. I can kill your monsters, trust me,” he says, and I turn in his arms, but before he can say anything else I lean up and bring my mouth to his.
For a second he’s surprised, but then he starts kissing me back and I mean kissing. It’s wet and hungry. He slips his tongue across mine and I nip at his lip and he moans. That’s it, it’s on. His hands start sliding up my back as I push the sleeves of his flannel off his shoulders and down his arms until it falls to the floor and then I slip my hands under his t-shirt and as I slide my hands up his chest, I take it with me. I keep going until he lifts his arms and I reach up on my tiptoes to pull it over his head and drop it to the ground. I keep my hands on his chest and lean in and kiss it. When I taste him with my tongue I moan at how good he tastes. He jolts and I feel his hand tighten on my hips as he lifts one to cup the back of my head.
I keep going up and when I reach his neck, I kiss, lick, and softly bite on it and then my hands go back down to the front of his jeans and I rub my hand across him and I can feel he’s hard. He grabs m
y wrist and groans like he’s in pain. “Jaycee...wait,” he says, and his head falls forward as I continue to stroke him. “You don’t have to do this,” he says as his hips push himself into my hand. “I want you Max. Please,” I say and I kiss his chest again and start making my way down but he pulls me back up and kisses me softly but wet and hungry. When he pulls back he puts his hands to the hem of my camisole and pulls it up, over my head and off. He drops it on the floor next to his shirts. Then he unties my PJ bottoms and because they’re loose, they fall to the floor. He steps back a little and looks into my eyes and then his hands go to my panties and he pushes them down my legs and he stands back up. He pulls me back to him to step out of them.
“You’re so beautiful Jayc. More than I imagined.” He brings his hands to my breasts and then softly rubs them as they grow hard and then he leans down and kisses them, making my knees grow weak. He feels me giving in and pushes me back to lie on the bed and he follows me down and starts kissing me again. One of his blue-jeaned thighs falls between my legs and as we move, it’s rubbing up and down. I’m about to lose my mind. He’s kissing my lips and then down to my neck and back while his hand travels down my belly until he reaches me and starts rubbing his finger around in a circle, then down until he enters me a little and then back up and circles me again. I’m going crazy and I’m lifting my hips so his finger will go deeper and the pressure will be harder but when I do that, he pulls back and keeps it the same. I reach down for his belt buckle and undo it and rip it apart. I unbutton his jeans and slip my hand in and feel him and he feels like he’s on fire. As I stroke him up and down, his finger starts entering me deeper.
Finally neither one of us can take it anymore. He stands up and pulls his jeans off and puts a knee to the bed but before he can lay down, I come forward and do something I’ve never done. I make my way down and take him in my mouth. I have to taste him. He groans and wraps his hands in my hair and starts to gently thrust his hips as he keeps my head still. I keep running my mouth and tongue up and down him and all the sudden he pulls me back by my hair abruptly. When I look to see what happened, he says, “Gotta stop. I’m close and I want to come inside you. Lay down,” he says, and he gently pushes me back and crawls on top of me, kissing me again. His fingers find me again and start teasing me in and out and then up and he makes slow circles until I’m finally begging for him to be inside of me. “Max, please, now.”