Twenty-Eight and a Half Wishes

by Denise Grover Swank

  “I hope you’re not that stupid, McAllister. Where are you, bitch?” a man yelled.

  My stomach rolled and the drinks from earlier churned in protest. The walls below me shook, causing the wood beams to vibrate. I gripped the wood to keep from falling over.

  “Where is she?” The voice echoed into the rafters.

  My breath came in shallow pants.

  “How the hell would I know?” Joe sneered. They were in the hall, directly under the attic door.

  I choked back a sob, covering my mouth to muffle the sound. I could only imagine what they’d do to Joe if they found me.

  “It ain’t no secret you had a thing for her. Where is she?”

  The wall shook with a bang. A groan followed behind it.

  “I told you. I’m not stupid.” Joe’s words sounded strained, as though he was in pain. “I sent her to Crocker, told her to be smart, and give ‘em what he wanted. Didn't she show?”

  My breath stuck in my throat. Joe was getting beat up because of me. My consciousness became fuzzy and I forced myself to suck in air. I couldn’t afford to pass out.

  “Yeah, she showed, then she disappeared into thin air.”

  “What? Is she a magician?” Joe said.

  Another slam into the wall and another grunt, long and low. “Look here, Mr. Smart Ass. We know she’s here.”

  “I don't know where she is and you obviously haven’t found her here. Is her car in her driveway? Have you checked her house?”

  “Her car’s not here and we’ve already searched her house. Crocker thinks you took her.”

  “I’ve been here all night. If you don’t believe me, go check the engine of my car. I haven’t driven it since I dropped Rose off at her car, right before ten o’clock. It would be hot if I went to get her, like I’d be stupid enough to cross Crocker. I’m not a fucking idiot.”

  “Check,” the guy said and someone opened the door and ran onto the porch. Seconds later they were back.

  “He’s tellin’ the truth.”

  A heavy thud rattled the floor joists.

  “Where is she?” he growled.

  “I told you I don’t know,” Joe growled back, but he sounded out of breath.

  The wood beams beneath me vibrated after a loud bang and Joe grunted. I bit my lip and tears spilled down my cheeks.

  “If Crocker finds out you had anything to do with this, you’re a dead man.” A few seconds later, the door slammed and the sound of a car faded off into the distance.

  I was safe, for the moment, but terrified for Violet. If Crocker’s guys came looking for me at Joe’s, they were sure to go to Violet’s next. I needed to get out. Hysteria bubbled up, tightening my throat. I took a slow breath and held it in my chest before releasing it. I needed to save her, but Joe said to stay here no matter what.

  Finally, the silhouette of Joe’s head appeared in the opening. “I think it’s safe now. You can come out.”

  “Joe! I have to go save Violet!” I cried out, struggling to crawl along the floor joists. When I got close enough, Joe reached his hand out to me and helped me maneuver to the steps.

  “It’s okay. I’ve already taken care of Violet. I’m sorry, I should have told you when I stuck you up here, but I was too scared they were gonna get here before I got you hidden.”

  “But how? When?”

  “I’ll explain it all, but I promise you. Violet and her family are safe at your aunt’s house.”

  We reached the bottom and my legs gave out. I sagged into him. Joe wrapped his arms around my back and pulled me in a tight embrace.

  “Thank you.” I burrowed into his chest and he grunted from the force. I pulled back to look at him, remembering his sounds of pain earlier. Joe’s face was bruised, his eye swollen, his lower lip split open. “Oh!” I said, reaching up and lightly touching his cheek. “They hurt you. I’m sorry.”

  He pulled me into an embrace and cupped the back of my head. “It’s okay. I couldn’t let him kill you.” Joe held me tighter and let out a heavy sigh into my hair.

  “Would he have killed me, even though I brought him the flash drive?”

  Joe took a ragged breath before he answered, his voice shaky. “Yeah.”

  I started to shake, and Joe led me into his bedroom. We sat on the edge of his bed, our bodies pressed together. I leaned my head into the crook of his arm. But I didn’t cry, I guessed I was past crying.

  “How did you save Violet?”

  “I called her after you left to meet Crocker. I told her to leave as soon as possible and made her call me when she got to your aunt’s house. They’ll be safe there until this is all over.”

  “When will this be all over?”

  “Tomorrow, well, today. It’s Sunday now.”

  “What’s gonna happen?” I asked even though I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.

  “Crocker and his little empire are goin’ down.”

  “How?”

  “I’ll tell you later. When it’s done.”

  I could accept that. “Crocker said you worked for him and were watchin’ me. He said you told him I was good in bed.” Indignation simmered below the surface, but the fact Joe saved Violet and me and got beat up to do it trumped my pride.

  Joe sighed and pulled me tighter. “Yeah, I did, but it’s complicated. I told him I was watchin’ you to hold him off from killin’ you. He suspected you had the flash drive so I told him I lived next to you and I could find out where it was. If you were dead, he’d never get it. I held him off as long as I could, but like I told you earlier, he was desperate. The person who has it made him look bad and he had to have the information on that drive before his big meetin’ today.”

  “Which is why he would have killed me anyway.”

  “Yeah.”

  “But I never had it. Why did he think I did?”

  “Because of your reaction to him at the DMV. He knew the person who had it was associated with the DMV. You changed your hair and got new clothes. Then you started spendin’ money, you got a new car and a big diamond ring … he thought you were spendin’ the money he paid you. Or rather the person with the real flash drive.”

  “Did you think I had it?”

  He hesitated before he admitted. “I wasn’t sure.”

  “How could you think that?” I pulled away, offended.

  “Lots of reasons.” He felt me stiffen but pulled me back. “I’m so sorry, Rose, but I’ve been dealin’ with a lot of bad people and I’ve become jaded enough to consider everyone suspect until proven innocent.

  “The first time I suspected anythin’ was the night of your mother’s murder. You told your sister it should have been you, which I considered a very strange thing to say. You were so insistent you were the one who should have been dead. At that point, I knew you worked at the DMV. It looked suspicious. Why did you say that?”

  “You wouldn't believe me if I told you.”

  “Try me.”

  “You tell me why else you suspected me first. Did you think I killed Momma?”

  “I admit, I wondered at first, but it didn’t take long to figure out you weren’t capable of murderin’ someone. But you kept droppin’ hints that you might be involved with Crocker, like tellin’ Muffy you only had four more days, which just happened to coincide with Crocker’s big meetin’. So I tried to stay close to you, lookin' for information.”

  I had a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that Joe worked for Daniel Crocker. The enormity of it seemed too heavy to hold up. “So it was all a lie. I was right. You were just usin’ me.”

  Joe turned my chin. “No! I really like you. Yes, I tried to get information but only to save you. Besides, I suspected if you had the flash drive it was because someone was usin’ you or forcin’ you to do it, especially the night we ate Chinese and you were so upset lookin’ at old pictures. I hoped you would tell me so I could help you.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Rose, how could I? Tell you I worked for Crocker and t
hat he would kill you if you didn’t give me the drive? I knew you wouldn’t tell me anythin’ and maybe even run. I didn’t want to risk losin’ you.” He paused. “Now tell me why you said you were supposed to be dead instead of your mother.”

  I hesitated. Could I really tell him? He needed to know the truth about me. “You asked why Daniel thought I knew him the first time I saw him, and I told you I fainted. I fainted because I saw a vision.” I paused to gauge his reaction. When he didn’t recoil, I continued. “I have visions. I see things about other people, usually stupid things. It’s why I don’t have many friends. People think I’m weird. I know too much and they think I know it because I’m nosy or snoopin’. That’s how I knew about Hilary’s dog before I even knew about Hilary. I had a vision of the dog gettin’ out of the fence.”

  Joe looked like I told him I was the tooth fairy.

  “Believe me or not, it’s true. When Daniel Crocker came in that day, I saw a vision of me dead, on Momma’s sofa. Only it turned out not to be me, it was Momma. Because I didn’t come home when I was supposed to.”

  “This sounds crazy, you know that?”

  “Why do you think I didn’t want to tell you?”

  “Have you had any more? You obviously didn't die.”

  “I had one Monday. I didn’t fight that one, I usually do but I gave into it and it lasted longer than any I’ve ever had. I looked through my niece Ashley’s eyes and she was at a visitation at the funeral home, my visitation. I was dead. I saw a sign that said I died on June twelfth. Today.”

  “Any others?”

  “I saw another one with Daniel, in the funeral home at Sloan’s visitation. In my vision, I was at in the woods and I had a bullet hole in my head. Dead.” I paused, realizing Joe really had saved me. “That’s what would have happened to me if you hadn’t come to get me.”

  “Yeah, probably. Why did you go?” Joe asked. “Why not try to change it? You changed the first one.”

  “I didn’t purposely change the one when Momma died. And this second time, I had two visions tellin’ me the same thing, but I had no idea how to change it. The only reason I went was to save Violet.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me? I could have helped you.”

  “Because I didn’t trust you. I saw you hide the gun in the shed and I knew you were tryin’ to get information from me about Sloan. Then I heard Hilary’s voice mail Friday night and I knew….”

  His arm tightened around me. “That’s why you were scared of me yesterday mornin’.”

  “Yeah.”

  We sat in silence, both unsure what to say.

  Then I remembered the gun in the shed. “Joe, did you kill Sloan?”

  “No, Rose. I did not kill Sloan.”

  “Then how did you get the gun that killed him in my shed?”

  “That wasn’t the gun used to kill Sloan. But it’s the same caliber.”

  “Why did you put it in my shed?”

  “To set you up.”

  “Why would you do that?” I tried to jerk away, but he had a firm grip.

  “To save you. Thursday night after I left you, I found out Crocker had given up on me gettin’ the information from you. He said he was goin’ to find you Friday and give you the Saturday night deadline. I knew I needed a backup plan, so I hid the gun in your shed. When I realized you were still goin’ to meet Crocker, especially after you tried to run away at Walmart, I called the police anonymously. I told them the gun that shot Sloan was hidden in your shed. I figured they’d lock you up for a few days until they figured out it wasn’t the right gun. I didn’t want you to be arrested, but it was better than lettin’ Crocker kill you.”

  I was mad at him, but I understood. “Did Muffy ever come home?”

  “Not that I’ve seen, Rose, but I was gone most of the night, too. She might have come back and we weren’t here to let her in.”

  “She’s gone,” I said, my voice breaking as tears flooded my eyes.

  “She might come home. That little dog loves you. She just got scared with all the confusion. I’m really sorry. I never even thought about her runnin’ off. I tried to find her.”

  “I know, I saw. Thanks,” I said with a sniff. “So why did we come back here if you knew Crocker would send guys looking for me? Why not just run away?”

  “Because I have to be part of his big meeting today.”

  “Why?”

  “I just do.”

  “So you really are a criminal. Maybe a criminal with a conscience, but a criminal.”

  Joe narrowed his eyes, staring at me. “Do you really believe that, Rose?”

  “I don’t want to think so, but you work for Crocker. Doesn’t that make you a criminal?”

  “Maybe I have other reasons for working for Crocker. After his big meeting with his partners today, I won’t have to anymore.”

  “You promise?” I asked, unable to stop the hopeful tone I used. I was having a hard time adjusting to the fact that my boyfriend was a criminal, but he did save my life and he said he planned to give it up.

  Boyfriend. Where did that come from? I remembered my list and smiled. “I checked another item off my list. Ride a motorcycle.”

  “So what does that leave left? Get a boyfriend and play in the rain.”

  “And do more with a man.”

  “I told you, you’ve got that one covered.”

  “Not quite.”

  “And when did you play in the rain? It hasn’t rained in almost two weeks.”

  “At the splash park, with Violet and her kids.”

  He shook his head. “Nope, doesn’t count. It has to be real rain.” Joe kissed me, his kiss that made me forget things. “So I think the only one you have left is play in the rain because I’d like to take care of the boyfriend wish for you.”

  “You kiss a whole lot better than Daniel Crocker.” I murmured when he pulled away.

  The look in his eyes told me he didn’t appreciate the comparison.

  “When do you have to go to work tomorrow?” I asked, standing up and pulling off my jeans.

  “Eleven-thirty.” He watched me, his eyes widening as I stripped off my shirt.

  I looked over at the clock. “It’s three in the mornin’. I think you need some sleep so you’ve got your wits about you.”

  “Sleepin’ with you will prove a challenge,” he murmured, pulling me down on the bed.

  “Why’s that?”

  “Because I won’t be thinkin’ about sleepin’.”

  I reached my arms around his neck and pulled his mouth to mine. “Then let’s do something to make you sleepy.”

  And that was how I finally took care of number fifteen.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  We woke up around eight and Joe was antsy. I had no idea what he had planned for Crocker’s big meeting and he refused to tell me.

  I made French toast for breakfast, just to prove myself capable of cooking, but Joe was too preoccupied to eat. He excused himself several times to make phone calls in his room. He told me to make myself at home, but to stay inside and away from the windows. He worried I’d go out anyway. Muffy still hadn’t come home.

  Around ten-thirty, he sat beside me on the sofa, pretending to watch a documentary about prairie dogs on the Discovery Channel.

  “I’ve been thinking about your visions,” he said, holding my hand. “Can you make your visions happen?”

  “No, they just come. I always fought them, but the one I had with Ashley, I didn't fight and it had more details.”

  “Have you ever tried to have one? To make it happen?”

  “No, Momma said they were a sign of my demon possession.”

  Joe snorted. “It’s a good thing I didn't know your Momma. You are not demon-possessed.”

  After the last night in bed with Joe, I wasn't so sure about that.

  “Why don’t you try it,” he coaxed, “on me?”

  I was torn. Nothing good had ever come from a vision. Why would I will one to happen?

&n
bsp; “Come on, give it a try. What do you have to do? Touch me?”

  “No, they don’t work like that. They just happen. I don’t see visions for me, though. I see visions for other people, through their eyes. The one with Daniel Crocker was the first time I’d ever seen myself in a vision, and the first time I’d ever seen something really bad. Usually it’s things like where someone misplaced their keys.”

  “Sounds useful.”

  “It's a nuisance because whatever I see just blurts out of my mouth.”

  “Like when you told me about Hilary’s dog.”

  I nodded. I didn’t want to think about Hilary but I had to know. “Is Hilary your girlfriend?”

  “No, we have a working relationship.”

  I wondered what that meant, but said nothing.

  “So what do you say?” Joe said. “Let’s try it.”

  “What?” I asked confused. “A vision? I don’t know… I wouldn't even know how to begin.”

  “Since you see visions for other people, maybe you could concentrate on me.”

  “All right,” I agreed with great reluctance. I turned to face Joe on the sofa, sitting cross-legged and held his hands in mine. I closed my eyes and thought about Joe working for Crocker and the big meeting. I concentrated really hard and tried to picture Joe’s face in my mind. A little flicker appeared in my head. And then I felt a vision coming. I squeezed his hands and kept concentrating.

  I saw a warehouse. It looked like a mechanic’s garage. A couple of men carried small bundles and loaded them into a delivery truck. Crocker and some other men came into view and I felt myself being slammed against the wall, Crocker’s face in front of mine.

  “This is your last chance, McAllister. Tell me where she is or I’m gonna kill you.” Crocker held a gun up to my forehead.

  “I don’t know,” I heard Joe’s voice say.

  There was a gunshot and then nothing.

  “He’s gonna kill you,” I whispered. “Because of me.”

  My eyes flew open to look into Joe’s surprised ones. Then his expression changed, becoming grim before he said, “I figured he might try.”

  “You knew?” I asked in disbelief.