by J. L. Beck
Tony’s eyes grew soft, and I wondered for a second if he knew I was lying. He had gotten me the job here when no one else was hiring. He had helped me every step of the way. Could someone so kind really be evil? Could he be the one person I wanted to run from?
“He was here for my parents,” he said casually. There was no fear in his voice, and he didn’t cower to his knees as others did when men like Liam stepped into town.
I wanted to ask him more. For instance, why his parents were associating with people like Liam. Except we never crossed that line. Tony’s parents were mixed in all kinds of things, but I didn’t want to know what kind of business they ran through here. I simply wanted a paycheck and to be done.
“Oh, okay,” I said trying to sound unsuspicious. Letting out a sigh, I knew I would have to believe him until he had done something that showed he was guilty. Innocent until proven guilty.
“I don’t know who that guy was or why he was here. I just know he comes in and talks to my parents often.” Staring at him, I could see the sincerity in his eyes.
The way he looked at me sometimes made me think he wanted more. I had been put through the ringer twice now. There would be no third time for me. I had crossed love off my list a long time ago.
“I believe you, Tony.” I took a step back, turning on my heels to walk inside. Before I could make it to the door, a hand landed on my shoulder halting me. I took a moment to turn around, coming face to face with Tony.
His mouth was mere inches away from my own, my own thoughts muddled, and for one moment, I thought he was going to kiss me. He was so close, I could feel his warmth, feel his lips against—
“I know I told you I don’t know who that man was, but if he ever comes back in here, you tell me. Got it, Tegan?” His voice was stern, which told me he meant business. I immediately came out of my flustered state nodding my head yes, so he knew I understood. With a tight smile, he released me, and in that single moment, I all but ran back into the restaurant.
As I rounded the corner, coming in behind the grill, I peeked through the serving window. My hands were damp with sweat, and as I wiped them on the apron, I wondered if anyone had decided to stick around. My eyes scanned the room, booth by booth.
Not one person was sitting in the diner. Not only had Liam made my skin crawl, but he also made the customers up and leave. The place looked like a deserted town. So much for making decent tips for the night.
“Looks like he cleared the diner out… again.” Tony’s voice caused me to jump. He was quiet. Too quiet. So quiet, I hadn’t realized he had come back inside. It was then I registered he had said the word again—as if this kind of thing happened often.
“Wait, this isn’t the first time this has happened? Why didn’t you tell me about this before you hired me?” I whirled around, Tony’s eyes piercing mine as they held me in place. My voice was accusing though I didn’t mean for it to be that way. I wasn’t trying to accuse him or them of anything.
“It’s not like I expected him to come in here. He usually only comes in during the day, and most of the time it’s when my parents are here. Maybe he expected them to be here today.”
Leaning against the wall, I sighed, my fingers threading through my reddish brown hair. This was none of my business. I didn’t need to be meddling in other people’s problems. Hell, I didn’t come around here spewing mine, so there was no reason for me to be asking Tony about his.
“Look, it’s fine, Tony. I didn’t mean to be accusing or anything. I was just wondering. That’s all,” I said earnestly.
Silence passed as the dull sound of music filled the room. This is everything it boiled down to—silence and a low hum always in the distance.
“Since all the customers are gone, do you mind if I take the rest of the night off?” I questioned.
“Yeah, just wipe down the tables,” Tony ordered, heading back toward the cooler with his cellphone in hand. His strides were determined, and as I stood there staring at him, I wondered who was going to get their head bit off first?
Pulling myself out of my own thoughts, I grabbed a rag and a bucket of hot water so I could wipe down the tables. Working the first eight booths was the easiest as it was one single table. The diner counter was a different ordeal. My hands looked like prunes as I pushed the minuscule tips I had made into my pocket.
When I got to the diner counter, my chest heaved. A scrap of white paper was neatly folded before me. My name was scribbled on the front of it, and it was sitting in the very spot Liam had been sitting.
I contemplated opening it for all of twenty seconds before reaching out and gripping it between two fingers. Did I really want to open this? Unfolding it breathtakingly slow, my eyes glided over the elegant handwriting. Four simple words were repeated in my mind as I read it.
Tick tock. Tick tock.
It was a sure sign time was dwindling down. In no time at all, they would be here to collect their debt. I would pay in cash or blood…
“Everything good out there?” Tony asked through the serving window, interrupting my thoughts. Pushing the terror away, it took me a minute to find my voice as I shoved the scrap of paper into the front of my apron.
“Uhh, yeah. Everything is fine, heading out now.” My voice squeaked in surprise as I picked up my purse. The scrap of paper was burning a hole in my pocket as the four words on it lingered in my mind.
Tick tock. Tick tock.
Chapter Five
Devon
What the hell was I going to do with a whole month off? A box of papers sat on my desk before me, the one case I wanted to investigate most sitting right on top. The town was Montgomery and saying the name caused a dull ache to form in my chest.
“Do you think we’ll be together forever?” Tegan asked. Her smile was bright and full of love.
“I don’t know, Teg, but one can only hope,” I whispered placing a feather soft kiss on her forehead.
The memory hit me like a brick wall. I hadn’t meant to cause her pain, to rip her heart out and push her away. My intentions never were to grow serious with her. Gripping at the ends of my hair in frustration, I growled. This is why I couldn’t handle time off. Thinking. It caused too much… Too many memories, too many thoughts….
“I can’t do this…” I mumbled to no one but myself. I knew why I felt drawn to the case. It was back in my hometown. A place I hadn’t stepped a foot into in years. The likelihood of her even lingering around that place was small. By now, she probably had a husband, two point five kids, and a white picket fence.
All the things you couldn’t give her.
Fuck. I needed to stop thinking about her. I needed to move on, force my thoughts to something else.
Grabbing the folder from the box, I headed to the kitchen to get a beer and then to the couch. Popping the top off the beer bottle, I brought the drink to my lips and downed a huge gulp.
The crisp, smooth liquid went down my throat with ease hitting my belly and enveloping me in a blanket of warmth. With the way I was feeling, one beer wouldn’t be enough. Hell, twelve wouldn’t even cover what I was going through.
Opening the folder, I eyed the papers. There were numerous statements from people complaining of fights, violence, and gang-related relations at this diner. The place was called Smitty’s…. Scratching at my chin, I sifted through my mind seeing if I could recall that particular diner ever being in the town.
Nothing. Hmm… Interesting. Photos were paper clipped to the top. They showed numerous photos of a black sedan on different occasions. As I continued to flip through them, I noticed in many of the photos a man could be seen sitting in the driver’s seat. Squinting, I brought the photo closer to my face. Though it was hard to see through the tinted windows, the person had a dark complexation. He looked to be mid-forties. From the location, the fact I had no recollection of such a restaurant, and the fact these men were coming and going, it could only remind me of one thing. Mafia or at least something gang related. I had quite a lot of ex
perience mafia wise, even going as far as undercover. Hell, my partner was ex-mafia.
Maybe Zerro was right. I couldn’t go this alone. He was mafia, and if anyone knew their next move, it was him. Then again, if she were still in the town, I couldn’t drag him into it. I refused to allow people a glimpse at my past.
Dropping the folder, I grabbed the beer and brought it to my lips taking another large pull from it.
What was I going to do? I could go in it alone and risk being killed or better yet, being taken hostage, or I could just sit here in this house and think about all the shit I had done wrong in my life.
Getting up, I paced the living room. When it came to sitting at home and forcing myself to relive the past or putting myself in the line of danger, it would always be the danger I chose.
The past hurt more than a bullet wound ever would. I just needed to learn to forget. To move on.
Yeah, that’ll do it.
Looks like I’m packing my bags. Montgomery, Wisconsin, I’m coming for you.
*
It was late evening when I pulled into the small rental cabin where I would be staying. Being in my hometown was strange, looking at all the places that were still there even after I had moved on. However, there were many things that were new. For instance, the casino I passed on the way in. No way could that be doing any good for this community. We already had enough problems.
I threw my blacked-out Chevy Tahoe into park and took in a breath of air.
She’s probably not even here. You’re worrying over nothing.
My chest heaved, and with every breath came a piercing pain. I couldn’t do this. I gripped the steering wheel contemplating starting the car and heading back where I came from. Maybe I was wrong and putting myself in the line of danger wasn’t any easier. Being here where it all started had to be the worst.
“You gonna come and get your key, son,” a man mumbled, and in an instant, I became alert. I released the steering wheel and reached for my gun ready to fire at anything suspicious.
It was then I noticed Farmer Johnson bellowing at me from the porch. He was wearing his long dark blue farm overalls. His red hat looked like it had seen better days, and his skin seemed to have gathered twenty more wrinkles. He smiled when he knew I had taken notice of him, and immediately, I jumped from the car sliding my gun back into place.
“What’re you doing out here, Farmer Johnson? You wanting to get yourself killed?” I joked—well, kind of.
He laughed. It was a warm, ‘shake your belly and fill your soul’ kind of laugh. “Son, you know damn well if anyone’s going to be shooting a gun, it’s going to be me.”
“Haha… That I do,” I responded remembering the one time he fired warning shots in the air the very first night I met him. A bunch of friends and I were out at his place tipping cows… Everyone got away but me. I think it must’ve been fate because since then, I was stuck to him like glue. He was more of a parent to me than my own.
The thought of my parents had my mind drifting back to the casino. “When did they put the casino in?” I raised the question with complete unknowing.
“I’d say it was about a year ago… Had some big grand opening. Now, it might seem like a good idea to head on over there and play the slots, shoot the shit with some old buds, but I’m telling you that place is bad news. Those casino people basically own this whole city now…”
Hmmm… Sounded like the FBI was needed here now more than in the last six months. More like a whole year ago.
“Interesting. No worries on my part, Johnson. I ain’t got that kind of money,” I joked. Silence passed between us as we both stared off into the distance.
“What you needing a cabin for anyway? Finally come here to take care of me?” He smiled, and his eyes twinkled in the moonlight as he interrupted the silence. At least he was happy to see me even if I was being a pussy about having to come back here.
“I have a case, Johnson, and no, I can’t tell you about it. I need a cabin for a month or two.” He knew these things already, though. I had called him to let him know I was coming so why he was asking me now, I was uncertain. Maybe his old age had finally gotten to him.
“I knew that much. Just making sure it’s got nothin’ to do with Tegan.” His voice was stern as if warning me. Warning me of what though, and fuck, she was still around here?
“No. No,” I responded taken back by his accusation. Well, he had answered at least one of the questions I was dying to know. I guess she was still around the area, which just made it worse because not only would I have to hide from the people I was investigating, but I would have to keep myself away from her—no matter how much my body craved to catch a glimpse of her. Would she still have the same auburn colored hair? Would there still be a sprinkle of freckles across her nose? Had she grown up, or was she—
“Good. Then you’re free to stay. That girl has had her fair share of trouble, and I’m telling you now, though you work for the good guys, you’re your own special kind of trouble,” Johnson joked, scratching at the back of his head. He wasn’t really joking. When it came to Tegan, I was the worst kind of trouble, and it would be best if she stayed as far away from me as she could get.
“I’m not even going to go there with you, Johnson. Let’s leave the past in the past. I’ll lay low. Don’t let anyone know I’m in town. I don’t need any kind of family reunion,” I said forcefully.
He made a sound that sounded like a groan before saying, “Yeah, yeah, your parents would have to be around for a reunion to take place.” Then he reached into his front pocket and tossed something to me. The cold metal landed in my hands, and I realized it was the key to the cabin. Smiling, I said, “Thank you.”
He nodded at me, tipping his chin in a manner that said get the hell out of here, kid. Then he shuffled on into his house. I left my car parked where it was and opened the passenger door to get my bag and some boxes. Tomorrow, I would need to go to the grocery store, and then I would have to start surveillance on the diner.
I didn’t have access to the list of most recent employees, but according to the paperwork, the diner was sold to Dan and Angela Venous. Their son Tony managed the place most of the time, and they only had a select few employees, most of which there was no information on.
Boxes and bag in hand, I walked the short distance down the gravel driveway to the first cabin. They were small, one bedroom lofts big enough for at most two people. They had a small living room, kitchen, and bathroom. They weren’t anything fancy, but they had a roof and they contained heat, so we were good.
Opening the front door, my nostrils were met with the smell of dust and mustiness. The place looked as if someone hadn’t lived here for years, which didn’t surprise me. Johnson didn’t get a lot of visitors—hence, why I came here. The appliances were up to date, and as I surveyed the house checking every nook and cranny, I realized he had left me some towels, bathroom products, and fresh sheets for the bed.
Once finished, I throw the boxes and bag to the ground. I needed a shower, another beer, and something to soothe my chaotic nerves. Being in this town was bringing back unwanted memories. I could feel them piercing the walls that I had put in place, burrowing their way through some way, somehow.
“You said you wanted to go to school to be in the FBI?” Tegan asked me as we sat down for lunch. I wasn’t sure what to tell her. The FBI was my first option, but not everyone got in. Plus, if I said yes, that all but meant no future for us.
“I do, but it’s a lot of work, and sometimes you don’t even get in.” I didn’t doubt myself. I knew I would get in. If you believed in something long enough, you could do it. I just didn’t want to tell her that. I didn’t want to hurt her.
“Oh, come on,” she said smiling, a giggle escaping her pink-tinted lips. Her eyes were a sparkling blue and her hair reminded me of firecrackers. “Devon Mitchell can do just about anything he puts his mind to.” She had so much faith in me, and hell, she knew me better than I was giving her credit.
“I can, and I will if that’s what I decide to do with my life,” I said loud and clear, bopping her on the nose. Her eyes flashed with anger, and fire lit up inside of me. She was feisty, her eyes were glaring, and her lips were in a frown.
“Bop me on the nose one more time, and I’ll shove yours—” I didn’t even give her the chance to finish her sentence. Instead, I finished it by meeting her lips with my own. She leaned into the table as far as she could, and a sweet purr resonated from deep inside her. I growled in return as I ate at her lips like she was my last breath of air. After all, that’s what she was to me—a breath of fresh air.
I came down from the memory, my heart racing, and my body shaking. Being with Tegan had been the most exhilarating thing in my life. I hadn’t ever loved someone as much as I loved her, and being in this town, where it all started, where our love first bloomed, reminded me just how much I loved her, and just how much I wasn’t over her. I was so fucking screwed.
Chapter Six
Tegan
“So what? They know where you work?” Caroline seemed unconcerned with my unnatural response to being hunted down.
“So what? Do you hear yourself? It’s not a so what, Caroline. I owe these people money, and if I don’t come up with it fast, you’re going to be attending my funeral.” My thoughts were scattered.
“I don’t mean to sound unconcerned, Teg. It’s just what am I supposed to say to that? It’s not like the debt is yours. It’s Jamie’s, that low life piece of shit…”
“Enough,” I huffed into the phone. She could go all damn day about how much she hated him. Sometimes, I think she hated him more than I did.
“Fine. I’m just telling you, you shouldn’t have to pay for something you didn’t do.” Caroline made it seem so easy.
“Shut up, Caroline. Listen. I just called to tell you what was going on. You know, just on the odd chance I go missing, you’ll know who my killer is. Kay? These people don’t care about who did what, and who didn’t. They care about getting their money. With Jamie gone, it leaves me to take care of the problems,” I said annoyed that I had to tell her this for the third time.