“You’re awake.” Dillon stood in the doorway.
“Yeah.” Ian took deep pinching breathes and tried to ignore the ache.
“So is there a reason you’re road kill?” Dillon crossed his arms over his chest.
“Joined a new pack.” Ian sighed at his older brother who glared back at him.
“I can kill them. You know that.”
“Dillon, they’re my new pack and you know how this stuff is.”
“You’re still my baby brother and this is bullshit.” Dillon was pissed. Ian could see it in the way his jaw ticked.
“I’ll be fine. Can you shut the door?” Ian winced when the door slammed. He turned his head and read the number off the napkin then punched it into the phone.
Putting it to his ear he listened to it ring.
“Hola?” A soft feminine voice answered.
“Rosie?” Ian waited his heart in his throat as he prayed he had the right number and not some fake that she had given him.
“Si, Papi, this is Rosie. Who’s this?” More of the same low musical voice.
“This is Ian. I met you and Andy the other night at the club.” Ian listened carefully as the person on the other line shifted and fabric rustled.
“Oh. It’s you. What do you want?” The soft voice was gone replaced by an annoyed woman.
“What happened to your voice?” Ian stifled a laugh at the small woman who he remembered from the club.
“That’s my sexy voice. Not for you. Why are you calling please?” Sarcasm dripped from her words.
“I called because I’d like to talk to Andy. Can I have her phone number?” Ian smirked at Rosie’s ornery tone. He could just imagine how feisty she was in real life.
“Well, now that depends. I could give you her phone number… if you play your cards right. How long was your last relationship?”
“What?” Ian blinked at looked at the phone. Was she serious?
“Did I stutter? You heard me.” Rosie’s tone scalded his ears on the other end of the phone.
Ian hesitated, his heart a lump in his throat. What if she hung up on him? He swallowed hard and decided truth was better than a lie.
“I’ve never had a long term relationship.” Ian waited for her response.
“Um huh. When was the last time you had sex?”
Ian couldn’t believe she had just asked him that.
“Last week.” God, was he really answering all these crazy questions?
“Do you practice safe sex?” Rosie was very serious and Ian could tell this answer would make or break him in her book.
He had actually always practiced safe sex even though he couldn’t get anyone pregnant and wasn’t susceptible to most diseases. The big one, HIV, could still catch him up and he wasn’t about to risk getting that.
“Yes, always.” What did she think of him?
“Well, at least you’re honest.” Rosie laughed a little.
“How do you know I’m telling you the truth?” Ian couldn’t help but prod her even as a small part of his brain screamed at him to be quiet.
“I would know if you’re lying. It’s something I was born with. So I’m not giving you her number. You give me yours and I’ll give it to her.”
“How do I know you’ll give it to her?” Ian ground his teeth, all this jumping through hoops was about to make him cranky and the pain wasn’t helping put him in a better mood.
“I’m not a liar either. Give me the number. I’ll make sure she calls you.”
Ian recited his number and struggled to put the phone back on the receiver. Then he lay back on the pillows and closed his eyes. What an exhausting phone call.
***
Andy pulled off her heels and stared at the run in her nylon. Another pair of her good hose ruined. It aggravated her to no end. She locked her front door and dropped her purse on the couch as she pulled her dress over her head. She tossed it into the hamper bedside the door in the bedroom as she entered. Andy flipped on her light switch and as the room flooded with light stared in horror at her bedroom. Her bedroom window had been pulled out off the track, completely gone. The small hole gaped like an open mouth into the night. Her pillows had been slashed and stuffing was everywhere. The comforter was shredded into ribbons. All her clothes from her closet were on her floor also in shreds, her garters, nylons, clothes. God, everything’s ruined. A sob escaped as a tear ran down her check.
“Rich! You bastard!” Andy grabbed her dress out of the hamper and threw it back on over bra, panties, garters and hose as anger burned her chest. She tried to suck in a breath through her sobs, but she only succeeded in a hiccup. Andy headed to her cordless phone and swiped it off the counter then dialed 911.
“911. What is your emergency?” The voice on the other end was rough and masculine.
“Yes, my house has been broken into and they trashed my bedroom.” Andy recited her information for the person on the other end of the phone. Then she waited patiently for the officers to arrive.
The knock on the door brought her head around and time had passed by in a warp as she had stared at her bedroom, thoughts of tearing Rich apart racing through her head.
She opened the front door and a uniformed officer stood on the other side his partner beside him. He was tall and thin while his partner was short and a little rounder.
“Evening Ma’am. I’m Office Ochoa this is my partner Officer Whittier. We received a call about a break in.”
“Yes, Officer. Please come in.” Andy unlocked the security gate and let the officers in. “This way.” She led them to the bedroom.
The officers appraised the situation and asked to look around out back.
Andy’s body shook as she surveyed the damage again. The whole room seemed suddenly colder than before. She really wasn’t safe here. Shaking Andy brought her hand to her mouth and bit back the urge to scream. She needed an alarm system and more bars on all the windows. Like now. She couldn’t live life like this in fear, in the horror that Rich had weaved around her like a spider’s web. Tears burned her eyes and one streaked quickly down her face. Her whole life was slowly falling apart in front of her eyes. Trembling she brushed the tears away with the back of her hand.
“Ma’am? Are you all right? You’re shaking.” The shorter officer stared at her as her whole body trembled.
“I just need to sit down. This is all too much.” Andy’s arms circled her body, trying to preserve some of her warmth as the officer walked away from her. Damn Rich for tearing up her life again. Andy sat down at the kitchen table as the phone rang.
“Hello?” Andy hoped her voice didn’t shake with the sadness that spilled inside her stomach like acid.
“Andy? It’s Rosie.” The voice of her childhood friend was a soothing balm on her soul and she sighed in relief.
“I need your brothers in a little bit. Rich broke in and smashed up my bedroom. My window’s on the ground.” Andy leaned against the table and dropped her head into her hand.
“What you need is a big ass dog that will bite his balls off if he gets in the back yard again. I’m bringing Dallas over this time and you can’t talk me out of it any more. I know he’s my baby but you need him more than I do right now. Call me when the cops leave.” Rosie hung up and Andy tried not to shiver. Dallas was Rosie’s Pitt Bull that her brothers had bought to protect her. He had a bad temper and hated most everybody. He was perfect.
The Officers took awhile. As they finished they came back to the kitchen.
“We fingerprinted your window, but unfortunately there were no prints. Do you have any idea who might have done this?” Officer Ochoa had a notepad in his hand.
“Yes, I have a restraining order against my ex-boyfriend, Richard Albright. He’s been harassing me and I wouldn’t be surprised if he had done this. I think he stole my shotgun.” Andy gave the Officer his last known address. She prayed that they could somehow link him to this and get him away from her for a while. She could use the peace of mind that Rich being locke
d up would bring. Thinking about him having her shotgun made her stomach churn.
“You shouldn’t stay here alone tonight. Do you have some family you can call?” Officer Ochoa closed his notebook and put it in his pocket.
“My best friend is coming over and she’s bringing her brother. He’s a contractor. He’ll help fix the window for tonight.” Andy ran her fingers through her hair.
“Alright then we’re going to leave.”
“Thank you, Officer Ochoa.” Andy walked the officers to the door then locked the doors tight. She called Rosie as she walked back into her bedroom. Now in addition to the shredded clothes there was black fingerprint dust on everything. After Andy was sure Rosie was on the way she sat on the end of the bed and stared at the mess. Anger surged through her veins hot and molten. How dare he ruin my stuff. She had worked hard for her things and he had come in and tore them up like so much trash.
Andy stood up and picked up the shredded clothing from the floor piece by mutilated piece. Her favorite skirt… ruined. Her favorite dress… destroyed. The increasing violence in Rich scared her. The signs of his abuse were obvious and they would escalate if the pattern was right. He had lulled after he had broken her arm and begged forgiveness, now he climbed again. Soon he would crest and she feared he would try to kill her this time. Andy piled the clothes in the center of the room and all her underwear were missing. She went to the kitchen for a large trash bag when a knock sounded on the door. Panic twisted around her chest in a tight hold.
“Who is it?” Andy’s heart beat hard as she waited to see who was on the other side.
“It’s Rosie.” Rosie’s voice was a welcome sound.
Andy opened the door to find Rosie holding Dallas by the leash and her oldest brother Manuel behind the security gate.
“Come in.” Andy stepped back to let them in.
“I’ll just put Dallas out back.” Rosie walked the dog through the house.
“Rosie said you needed some help with the windows.” Manuel was almost six foot tall with dark hair and caramel skin. Truth be told Andy had a crush on him growing up. His chocolate brown eyes had always been so gorgeous she always wanted to stare deep into them, but he was married.
“Yeah, Rich knocked out my bedroom window. He keeps smashing windows and breaking in. Can you put bars on the windows in the back and maybe a security gate on the back door? Do you know anyone that does security systems?” The questions just rolled out of Andy’s mouth. Maybe if she had those things her home would be safer.
“Sure, I can hook you up. Are you going to be home tomorrow? We can get it done first thing.” Manuel stared past Andy at the bedroom and seemed to survey the mess.
“Yeah. I’m going to have to get new clothes and fix up my bedroom.” Andy went to the kitchen to get the trash bags as Rosie came back from the back yard.
“I’ll just go put the window back in then.” Manuel left the room.
“Okay, so let’s clean up your bedroom.” Rosie had on shorts and a t-shirt and she took the bags from Andy.
Andy and Rosie got to work sorting through the clothes trying to see if anything could be salvaged at all. Surprisingly some of her clothes had made it through the rampage okay and those she tossed on the bed. The trashed ones went in the garbage bags. Slowly the room came together and Andy’s anger simmered as the disaster cleared.
“He shredded everything. Every good outfit I had. That bastard.” Andy grabbed up another top and stuffed it into the already full garbage bag as a tear ran down her cheek.
“It’s just clothes, amiga. You can replace them.” Rosie patted her on the arm before she stood up and hauled the garbage bag out into the living room.
“I know but they’re my clothes. I bought them with my money.” Andy swiped at the tear that ran down her cheek. “And now tomorrow I’m going to have to call Mr. Steinbeck and ask for the day off so that I can get new clothes. I don’t even have anything to wear to the office. Maybe my insurance will cover this?”
Rosie rubbed Andy’s shoulder for a minute as Andy sat back on her heels.
“Well at least that’s the last of it. I’ll go order a pizza if you want to start on the stuff on the bed.” Rosie tied up the last bag and hauled it out into the hallway.
Andy stood up and stretched her arms high above her head, her back cracking. Being on the floor bent over had given her a pinch. The room did look better. At least the floor was clean. Andy hung up the few shirts that were on the bed and folded what needed to go back in her drawer. There was a pair of shorts and a pair of jeans that had miraculously missed being damaged. She put those away too. They weren’t her favorite pieces of clothes, but at least they were something. Rich must be trying to tear down her defenses. To destroy her careful erected self-esteem. Well, it almost worked. She sniffed again, her nose now running from all the tears. At least Dallas was in the backyard now and Manuel had fixed the window. Tomorrow, he said he would have the alarm put in and the bars up. She didn’t ask how, she never asked. He said it would happen it would and it always did. Andy bundled up the comforter, sheets and pillows into a pile and walked into the living room to find a garbage bag.
Rosie was just hanging up the phone.
“Pizza will be here in thirty minutes. Here let me help you.” Rosie brought over a lawn bag and helped Andy stuff the mess inside. “Do you have extra sheets?”
“Yeah, in the hall closet next to the bathroom.” Andy motioned to the hall closet as she wiped her hand across her forehead.
“I’ll make the bed.” Rosie turned and walked down the small hallway.
“What are we going to do about all the fingerprint dust?” Andy stared back in at the room. It covered the window and the doorknobs. The dresser and other glass surfaces. Basically it was everywhere and it had fallen on her wooden floor. Well that she could sweep up.
“Internet.”
“What?” Andy turned as Rosie approached with an armful of linens and a comforter.
“Look it up on the internet. I’m sure you can find it on there. I don’t know how to clean it up.” Rosie brushed past her and into the bedroom to make the bed.
Andy stared after her friend. Well, why not? They always say everything is on the internet. Andy sat down on the couch and opened her laptop and typed “Clean up fingerprint dust” into Google and sure enough a list of articles on How To Clean Up Fingerprint Dust popped up. How about that? Andy quickly scanned the article and luckily it was as simple as using warm soapy water to wash down the surfaces, unless she wanted to go through her home owner’s insurance or try and force the police department to pay for clean up. Andy shook her head. It was a mess, but only a little dust. She and Rosie could manage it, but not tonight, maybe tomorrow morning.
“Find anything?” Rosie plopped down on the couch next to her.
“Yeah, actually. Warm soapy water. But let’s do it tomorrow. I’m too tired to do it tonight. Do you have to work tomorrow?” Andy closed her laptop and placed it on the coffee table.
“Not until the late afternoon. I can help you in the morning.” Rosie pulled something out of her pocket and held it out to Andy. “I know this isn’t the best time, but I thought maybe this would cheer you up.”
“What is it?” Andy took the piece of paper half grinning trying to figure out what in the world Rosie was up to. She opened the slip of paper. Written on it was the name Ian with a phone number and little hearts all around it. Andy’s heart sped up as she reread his name. “He called.” Her voice was a whisper.
“He called.” Rosie leaned in and sing-songed the words back at her.
“He called!” Andy squealed and they both broke out in giggles. “Oh my God. When should I call him?” Andy grabbed Rosie’s hand and squeezed it as her heart beat fast at the idea of talking to Ian on the phone.
“Call him now. The pizza will be here soon and it’ll give you an excuse for a quick call.” Rosie jumped off the couch to grab the phone off the counter. “Here. Call him.”
&nbs
p; Andy didn’t hesitate. She dialed the phone and held it to her ear.
It rang. And rang and rang. Maybe he wasn’t home. Her heart sank into her feet and Andy was about to hang up when a rough voice answered the phone.
“Ian?” Andy held her breath. She didn’t recognize his voice, but she’d only talk to him once at the club.
“This is him. Who’s this?” He groaned low in his throat as covers rustled.
“This is Andy. Did I wake you up?” Andy twisted her dress in her fingers suddenly nervous about bothering him.
“What? No, I was just getting up. Andy, it’s great to hear from you. I’m so glad you called.” Ian’s voice seemed to come alive and it was a velvet smooth caress over her skin. God, it was sexy as hell. “What’s going on?”
“Not much. Just got your number from Rosie and thought I’d give you a quick call.” Andy’s palms were damp with sweat and she wiped them on her dress. She glanced around her living room, but Rosie was gone. Where had she disappeared to?
“Rosie, she’s your best friend, right?”
“Yeah, since we were kids. Why?” Andy bit her bottom lip between her teeth as she waited for Ian to answer.
“She had a million questions for me.” He chuckled. “She sure does care about you.”
“She’s a little overprotective. Sorry.” Andy blushed even though Ian couldn’t see it.
“No, don’t be. I understand. You have to look out for the people you care about in your life. I would have done the same for my sister.”
Andy liked that he understood Rosie and wasn’t put off by her best friend. “So tell me more about yourself, Ian. Where do you work?”
“My brother-in-law owns a community center and I work for him running a training program for teenagers. I teach them self-defense and self-control.”
Andy was surprised by his occupation, but excited that she’d met a man with such an interesting job that made a difference in the community. “That sounds like it could be very interesting. How long have you done that?”
“About a year. I love it actually. I’ve always wanted to do something where I could make a difference with the young people in the community and this gives me a chance to do that. What about you?” He shifted the phone and a low groan of what sounded like pain came over the phone line.
The Twin Moon (The Moon Series) Page 6