by Bella Jewel
“Even better if I’m still in there,” Jo says, nodding. “Yes, it’s perfect. If they’ve got Chase, and me, and then cops come in. It’s going to be kidnapping as well as all the other charges.”
“It’s risky.” Tatum rubs his chin, narrowing his eyes. “But it’s better than the idea we had. How are you going to get your hands on that many drugs and guns, and how the fuck are we goin’ to get them in there?”
Garrett pulls out his phone. “Let me make a few calls.”
“Still doesn’t cover how we’re gettin’ that shit in there,” Tatum points out again.
“I can hide some of it on my body, and I can carry a backpack.” Jo shrugs. “I’m sure we can get enough on me to plant in the place.”
“This is fuckin’ crazy,” Tanner barks, standing up. “No fuckin’ drug runner is goin’ to give us that many drugs to plant on someone, nor are they goin’ to risk their reputation when there are cops involved. You’re all wastin’ fuckin’ time.”
“I know where he keeps the drugs,” Garrett says. “Nobody said anything about askin’.”
I raise my brows. “You want us to steal drugs and guns?”
Garrett grins, a wicked grin. “Oh, yeah, we’re goin’ to steal them alright. And we’re goin’ to bring the lot of them down.”
“Fuck,” Tanner exhales, running his hands through his hair. “This is fuckin’ insane and stupid, it’ll never fuckin’ work.”
Then he turns and leaves the room.
I look to Tatum, who watches him go and then his eyes meet mine. “He’ll come around. He wants his revenge, I get that, but it’s not worth riskin’ his life for. He doesn’t see it now, but one day he will understand that we’re doin’ this for him.”
“I know. You’re right,” I agree.
I just don’t think he knows that.
“YOU SURE THIS IS THE right place?” Tanner breathes, glancing over at Garrett.
“Yep. You know I used to run drugs, this is the guy I used to run them with, but we had a massive fallin’ out. I know the ins and outs of his operation because it used to be mine. He keeps the drugs here, I know the security, I know every fuckin’ way in and out.”
I glance at Garrett with wide eyes. “You used to be a drug runner?”
“Past tense, not who I am anymore.”
Shit.
I had no idea.
I mean, he definitely has that silent, deadly feel about him, but I never picked him as someone who deals in drugs. I wonder if Tanner is okay with knowing his friend used to be into such heavy shit? I mean, obviously it doesn’t bother him because here we are.
“Now,” Garrett goes on, “only one entrance into the compound, and there are three shipping containers that he keeps his products in. He has security on the place twenty-four-seven in the way of cameras and three men. The cameras we can dodge, I know where they are and we’ll be covered enough not to be recognized. The men, we cannot. Got a plan for that, too.”
I feel a little nervous hearing how this is going to go down. We’re sitting in thick bushland currently, after Garrett directed us to the location of the drugs. We’re all praying that whoever he used to run with still hides them here because otherwise we’re screwed and back to plan A. We’re all wearing dark clothes—our faces will be covered, Garrett didn’t want to risk anyone figuring out who we are.
It’s still risky, of course, but we have to take some risk with what we’re about to attempt to do, right?
Garrett reaches into his pocket and pulls out some weird dart looking thing and hands one to Tanner and Tatum. “Darts. Knock someone out so fuckin’ fast they’ll not see the ground coming. You got to get a good shot, or we’re done for.”
“You’re going to shoot darts at those men?” Jo asks, her eyes wide. “Where did you even get those?”
Garrett looks to her. “Never you mind that. They’re effective, and they work. We’ll take a man each. Once they’re done, we’ll go in. The compound is locked, which is where Ethan will come in. He’s goin’ to cut the lock as soon as we give him a signal and we’ll enter the compound. The men will have keys on them, or they’ll be in the office. We’ll have no more than ten minutes to find those keys and get the goods before they’re alerted to the fact that someone is in the compound. Work together, work efficiently. The girls will stay up here, keeping a watch and letting us know if anything gets too close. We all clear on that?”
Everyone nods, and Garrett opens his backpack then pulls out three guns and loads them with the darts before he hands one to both the men. Within a few minutes, he has directed them to exactly where they need to go and tells them he’ll make a signal when it’s time to take the shot. Ethan will wait over on the other side with the huge bolt cutters Garrett gave him.
Jo and I will keep a watch out.
This is insane.
Thrilling, yet insane.
“If there is any sign of trouble, you ladies need to call out, no hesitation,” Garrett says to Jo and me. We both nod. “Let’s do this.”
The men prepare themselves; Ethan disappears through the thick bushland, Jo and I get into position so we can see the massive cleared area. It is well hidden out here, surrounded and protected. I can see three large red containers in the middle of the compound, a small office-like structure, and huge barbed wire fences. So far, I have only seen two men walking around, the other must be in the office.
“Anything goes wrong, anything at all, you run, Callie. You hear me?” Tanner says, squatting down in front of me and reaching out, taking my chin in his hand.
“I hear you,” I say. “Please be careful”
He nods and leans forward, pressing a kiss to my lips that makes my whole body tingle. I forget that everyone else is there, no doubt wondering what the hell is going on between the two of us, and just take in the incredible feeling that washes over my body. Tanner pulls back and stands, and I give him a weak smile as he turns and says to the others, “Let’s get this done.”
They disappear, and I wriggle farther forward on my stomach and peer down.
“That was kind of hot,” Jo says, and I turn my head and look at her, flushing.
“Yeah,” I whisper. “It was nice.”
“You two are something then?”
I shrug. “I don’t know what we are. He said he has feelings for me, that he regrets what happened and is sorry, but I can’t help my own doubtful thoughts sometimes. It’s like they creep in and try to destroy how I feel about him.”
“Because of what he did?” Jo questions.
I look back at the compound. “Yeah, because of that. I feel almost guilty that I even talk to him, let alone feel something for him. It’s almost like my body is punishing itself for its own emotions, if that makes sense?”
“Yeah, I understand guilt, believe me,” she murmurs, “You have no reason to feel it, though, honey. You’re allowed to feel something toward Tanner without punishing yourself for it. What happened, it’s finished with. He made a mistake, no doubt about that, but he was misguided and wrong. He admits that. If you like him, if you care for him, then you shouldn’t hold back. Life is far too short.”
I narrow my eyes, still watching the compound, afraid to take my eyes off it, and say, “You’re speaking from experience right now?”
She goes silent for a moment.
“Everything okay?” I ask her.
“Yeah,” she whispers, “it’s fine. Sometimes I just wish I was someone else, sometimes I wish I had the choice to make the decision I wanted instead of being forced with one. It doesn’t feel nice, you should be glad you’re able to make those choices for yourself.”
I purse my lips, both understanding and confused by her words. She’s acting like she doesn’t have a choice, but she does. Everyone does. She doesn’t have to stay with Patrick, even though leaving him would be hard.
“You have a choice, Jo,” I say, careful with my words. “You’re just not choosing to take it.”
“What would you know?�
� she snaps, shocking me. “You think because of what you’ve lived through, that my situation is easy. It isn’t easy, it’s so far from it. I don’t get to just change my path, to just recreate my life. You wouldn’t understand.”
“Jo,” I say, but I can’t finish my sentence because I see movement down near the gate. Tatum waves up at us, and I give him a small wave in return.
They’re going in.
I still can’t see a third man, but Garrett was adamant that there are always three guards. That makes me feel a little uneasy, and I focus all my attention on what’s going down right now. I focus on Tanner, watching as he squats down in the bushes, aiming his gun through the fence at a man currently lighting a cigarette. My heart leaps into my throat, and I feel unwell, wondering what the hell is about to happen. I’m scared. I don’t like the unknown.
“You watch Tanner and Ethan,” Jo says, her voice still hard, which makes my heart ache because we never argue, we never disagree. “I’ll keep an eye on Tatum and Garrett.”
“Okay,” I say softly, focusing on Ethan now.
He’s in the bushland about five yards from the gate, crouching down, waiting to get into the compound as soon as the men are down. Tanner does a waving motion, I’m guessing to Tatum or Garrett, and then he focuses all his attention on the gun in his hands.
Everything after that happens quite quickly, the sound of a gun being fired echoes through the trees, and within a second, the man smoking a cigarette is clawing at his neck, dropping to his knees and frantically trying to pull something out. Tanner hit him with efficiency, straight in the neck. Not even one minute passes and the man falls forward onto his hands, his body swaying as whatever drug is now moving through his system takes over.
“Tanner hit one guy, he’s down,” I say to Jo.
“Tatum did, too. There isn’t a third man yet. Nobody has come out of the office. Garrett is still watching; I don’t know what he’s saying but they’re moving.”
Maybe there isn’t a third man today? That would make this really, really easy.
I focus on Ethan and see him rushing toward the front gate, pulling a dark mask over his face so he becomes unrecognizable. He uses a bolt cutter to open cut the lock and then he’s inside the compound. Moments later, the three men have made their way around and are inside too, all of them covered. I know which one Tanner is, only because I haven’t taken my eyes off him. They move quickly from there, rushing over to the shipping containers. I can’t tell what they’re saying, but Garrett’s hands are flying around, pointing the office.
Tanner moves toward it while the others keep speaking to each other quickly.
Tanner disappears into the office and what seems like hours pass before he finally comes back out, even though it’s only been a matter of minutes.
“I feel sick,” I say to Jo, my stomach churning, my whole body on high alert, full of anticipation as I watch.
“I do, too.”
Tanner walks out of the office, and that’s when I catch movement at the side of the small office building. Someone else is in the compound. My heart feels like it launches into my throat as I see a man slowly creeping down the side of the building, a huge gun in his hands. He peers around at Tanner and raises the gun.
He’s going to shoot him.
The other men are far too busy to notice; they’re not close enough.
“He’s going to shoot Tanner,” I say to Jo. “Oh, god. I’m calling out.”
“No,” Jo says, grabbing my arm. “If you call out, we’ll all be in danger.”
I jerk my arm out of her grips, my eyes frantically watching as the man brings the gun up and looks through the scope. No. I can’t let him hurt Tanner. I can’t. I’ll risk it.
I stand, even when Jo yells at me not to. I raise my arms in the air and scream as loudly as I can, “Tanner! Behind you!”
Tanner jerks and his head slowly turns in my direction. All the other men stop talking and they turn, too. The guy with the gun moves quickly, his whole body swinging in my direction, the gun raising up, his eye still looking through the scope. I’m a distance away, but obviously not far enough. Jo screams and launches up, grabbing me around the waist at the same time the gunshot sounds out.
Everything after that happens in slow motion.
One minute I’m standing, the next something hard hits my shoulder. At first, it feels like a punch, shoving my whole body backward to the point I can’t stay on my feet. I hit the ground with Jo beneath me, and seconds seem to pass by, and I don’t feel anything.
Then comes the pain.
Like a burning hot poker being shoved through my body over and over again.
I open my mouth and my screams can be heard echoing through the bushland. Blood soaks my shirt and the sounds of more gunshots can be heard in the distance. Jo is calling out, her voice frantic, but I can’t stop myself from rolling around screaming long enough to hear what she’s saying.
I’ve never felt pain like this in my entire life.
It’s so intense I can’t breathe. I can feel my entire body reacting to the pain, slowly becoming less and less in control. I can’t move my arms, I can’t get to my feet, I can’t stop the sounds being ripped from my throat. My stomach turns, my heart races, and every single inch of me feels like it’s being lit on fire.
Then my breathing becomes labored. One breath gets a touch harder, and before I know it, all of them come out as short hard pants. No matter how hard I try, I can’t get the air into my lungs. As a result, my body feels strange, like slowly it’s starting to go numb. Jo’s screaming is drowned out by a white noise and my head feels light, airy even.
Is that what it feels like to die?
Is this how Celia felt?
It’s kind of enjoyable.
Comforting, even.
I like it.
Yeah.
It’s nice.
19
“CALLIE!”
Someone is shaking me.
My eyes flutter open and my vision is blurred. I’m trying to focus, trying to pay attention, but the pain in my body is far too great. As I come to, it comes back with it. The scorching agony that is slowly consuming my body, little by little. I open my mouth and scream, my body arching backward, trying to thrash its way out of the fiery pits it feels like it’s being drowned in.
“Callie!”
Tanner’s voice seems distant. Like he’s not even close by.
Yet I can feel his hands against my face.
“Pull her up a little, Tanner, she’s goin’ to bleed out.”
Tatum?
Ethan?
I don’t know.
“Gotta get her to a hospital, now!”
Someone again.
I don’t know who.
“Callie, need you stay with me. Do you hear me? Stay with me. Don’t close your eyes again. Don’t disappear. Please. Fuck.”
I look up through the pain and see Tanner looking down at me. I can feel his arms around me now, a gentle comfort in this agonizing time of need.
“There you are,” he says, his voice thick, scared, horrified. “Keep lookin’ at me. We’re goin’ to get you help.”
“Tanner,” I croak. “You’re okay.”
“You saved me,” he murmurs, cupping my face. I can’t feel if his skin is warm or cold. “You saved my life. Don’t you fuckin’ die on me. Do you hear me? Don’t you die. I need you.”
That’s kind of nice.
He needs me.
“Celia,” I murmur, my eyes rolling.
My head feels funny, almost like I’m really drunk and I want to go to sleep. Sleep. That would be nice, right now.
“Callie!”
I close my eyes, and I can see her face again. This time, it’s like she’s standing right in front of me. Her blue eyes lock onto mine, and I gasp, reaching my fingertips out, but no matter how close we are, I can’t seem to touch her.
“Celia?” I say, my voice cracking as I try to take a step towards her, but I can’t. S
he looks afraid, like she wants someone to help her, only nobody is there.
“Help,” she whispers, her voice soft and singsong like. Almost as if an angel is in the room. “Help me, Callie.”
“I’m trying to,” I cry out, trying to reach for her again, but my fingers just can’t seem to find her. “I’m trying to help you.”
“Help me.”
“Just turn around,” I cry to her as she gives me the same smile she gave me the night her life was so cruelly wiped out. That smile that tells me she’s sorry, that she wishes it could be different. “Turn around and go home. Tell your family what happened. They’ll help you. They can fix this! It’s not too late, Celia.”
“Help,” she croaks.
“I’m trying,” I scream, thrashing my head from side to side. “I’m trying to help you, Celia. Please, just listen to me. Please.”
“Callie,” she whispers, her voice fading off. “Callie!”
“Celia!” I yell wildly.
“Callie!”
My eyes pop open and someone is holding onto me, big arms wrapped around my body. I can feel the bumps and hear the sound of a truck moving, and I realize we’re not in the bushland anymore, we’re driving. I try to focus on what’s happening around me, but all I can hear is Tanner’s voice saying “Callie,” over and over again.
I’m finally able to focus, and I can see him looking down at me, his eyes concerned. I’m lying with my head on his lap, Jo sitting on the other side holding the other half of my body close. I glance over and see Tatum is driving, and Ethan is sitting in the front passenger seat, Garrett no doubt following behind in his truck.
How did we get into the truck? I remember nothing of it.
The pain in my shoulder is still intense, a low thud that is constant, radiating through my body without ease. I whine in pain and look up at Tanner, who is stroking the damp hair from my forehead.