I glared at him, scooping Lucca out of his chair as he started fussing. “You call yourself a father,” I hissed, “but you make me sick. This baby isn’t a bastard. He’s mine now and I’m gonna love him and take care of him. If you don’t like that then there is nothing more for us to say.”
I turned and stormed into the kitchen, grabbing my cell out of my pocket as my body vibrated. I dialled Amber’s number. I wondered if I’d be able to convince her to start a day early. She answered sounding breathless and I instantly got my back up again.
“Amber speaking.” Her voice shot through me. My body shuddered as I pictured her having just had sex and me interrupting.
“Hi, Amber. It’s Mason. Is there any way you can start today instead of tomorrow? I can send a car for you in an hour.” I crossed my fingers, praying she’d be able to start right away and for whatever reason my prayers were answered.
“Yeah sure, but I’m on a run just now. Can you make it two hours? I’ll also need to stop at my old house to get the majority of my stuff?”
“Yeah of course, that’s fine. Thank you Amber.” I moved towards Helena as I ended the call and she scooped Lucca out of my arms. She opened her mouth to speak, but I shook my head and made my way outside. Pops was waiting by my car.
“Give him some time son, he’ll come around.” He clasped me on the shoulder and headed back inside.
I stood there shaking as I muttered to myself, “god, I hope so. I really fucking hope so.”
Amber
I hung up the call from Mase and ran towards Ellis’s house. A light drizzle started and a breeze picked up as I sprinted. I arrived in the courtyard twenty minutes later and moved toward the door. I’d popped back in early that morning, leaving Lexa’s at half six.
I hadn’t been able to sleep, I wanted to tie up Mase and lick, suck, bite and fuck him. I had got myself off, thinking about what his face would look like as I made him come. I shuddered in the cold and put my key in the lock, turning it. The door wouldn’t open and I moved my keys about. Nothing.
The sound of thunder made me jump and the rain began to bucket down heavier. I was standing in my running shorts and a tank. The rain pounded on my legs and I started shivering. I moved behind the trellis. Standing outside next doors duplex as my shaking fingers tried to call Ellis. It was more shaded, but I was still getting hit with rain.
I knew Kurt had seen me when I came in because he was making coffee as I was in the bathroom, changing into my running gear. His glare at me as I passed made me shiver, but it was the look I caught as I left, the longing there, that really freaked me out.
Ellis cell went straight to voicemail so I called the landline. After a few minutes, the answering machine clicked on, and I spoke, “Ellis, it’s me. My key won’t work and it’s bucketing down. Can you let me in please babe?”
I also sent her a text and called her cell again, leaving a voicemail there. The neighbour, Mrs Greeves, opened the door and pushed her cat out. She jumped as she took me in. “Amber, dearie, what are you doing standing out here in this downpour?”
I smiled at her and spoke, “I’m locked out.”
She stared at me for a full moment, then nodded at me. “You must come in then.” She moved back and the smell of cats threatened to overwhelm me. I walked in and she moved through to the kitchen. “Sorry about the smell dearie. I pulled my back out the other day and I haven’t been able to change the kitties litter box. Could you do it for me?”
I smiled and nodded at her. I set about cleaning the litter box, taking it outside and putting it into the bin as she busied herself with the coffees. I sprinted back in, trying Ellis again. This time her cell rang once and went straight onto answer phone.
As I made my way inside I could hear Mrs Greaves bustling about in the kitchen. She set down a plate of cake and a French press. I smiled appreciatively as she poured me a coffee and handed the cake over.
“Thank you, Mrs Greaves.” She smiled at me and nodded. Suddenly there was a loud crashing noise and I jumped, looking around for the sound. She put her hand over mine, speaking lowly, “that’ll be them next door. Your friend has a bad ’un there honey. You need to try and get her away from him.”
There was another crash and then raised voices. “She can’t fucking stay here…”
Another crash. “She’s my friend and she has nowhere else to go…” I heard a sound that made my stomach drop like a lead weight, Ellis screamed out, “no please, Kurt. Stop.”
I flew to my feet and ran to the door again, rattling and screaming my head off. “Ellis! ELLIS!!”
After another few minutes where I heard Ellis scream, and I rattled on the door, Kurt finally opened it. As he glared at me, I flew inside. He closed and locked the door, turning to face me as I flew towards their bedroom.
Ellis was on the floor with her hands over her head. “Ellis are you okay?” She moaned, but didn’t speak.
I reached out to touch her, when hands wrapped in my hair, dragging me backwards. “She’s fucking fine, stupid bitch better not speak to me like that again though.”
My whole body vibrated on high alert and I remembered my self-defence classes from last year. “Kurt, let fucking go of me.”
Kurt spun me around and punched me hard on the face. I groaned in pain as fire exploded behind my right cheek, but I wasn’t gonna let him hit me again. I reached out, grabbing his balls and twisting hard. He squealed, let go of my hair and I scrambled away from him.
He leaned over, gasping for breath, as I reached the bed and pushed myself up. The pain in my cheek, coming second to my concern over Ellis and my worry over this crazy dickwad as he moved slowly. He flew at me, screaming, “You fucking bitch. How dare you hit me?” Trying to get away, I cracked my arm on the bed frame. I used his strength against him, shoving him hard. He rolled off of me. I shot up and he grabbed my wrist, twisting it backwards. I spun around, slamming my hand upwards, breaking his nose. He let me go and his hands went to his nose.
“You broke my fucking nose. You fucking bitch.” He stood up and rushed at me again, slamming me off the wall. My head rattled as he pinned me, but if he thought I’d go down without a fight, he was sadly mistaken. I lifted my knee full force and caught him between his legs. He groaned and fell backwards as the door pounded. I flew to the door and unlocked it, throwing it open. There were two police officers standing there, and my whole body vibrated, still on high alert.
“Hurry, my friend’s hurt. Her boyfriend attacked her and then came after me.”
I led them through the small sitting room and into the bedroom. “Kurt Anderson? What the hell happened?”
The police officers took in the scene and I swayed a little on my feet. One of the officers held onto my elbow, as Kurt bit out, “that bitch is crazy. She went mad, beating up her best friend and then going after me when I tried to stop her.”
The police officers turned on me, and I shook as their gazes took in my face, and then his face. “That’s not true. I was next door when he started and I was locked out.” I shook as I showed them the text from my phone, to Ellis. One of the officers left and Mrs Greaves came in. She smiled at me and confirmed my story.
“Yeah the girl was in my house. This piece of scum locked her out. He’s been threatening this young ‘un for weeks. I’ve heard it all and called in about it a few times. Check your logs.” Paramedics arrived and began to check over Ellis. I tried to move towards her, but one of the officers still held onto my arm.
I shivered and tried to shrug him off. The door opened again and an older version of Kurt walked in. “Kurt, what the hell happened?” His eyes took in the scene and he glared at me as I stood there. I shivered again and shrunk back.
“Dad she went crazy and attacked Ellis and then, when I tried to get her off, she attacked me.”
I shook my head as the man turned to me with fury in his eyes. Mrs Greaves from next door, spoke up. “Actually, that’s not true and I can prove it.”
She pulled
her cell out from her pocket and pressed a button. You could hear everything that happened. After a moment of stunned silence, there was an uproar. Kurt’s dad grabbed him and dragged him out of the room. Two more paramedics arrived and I was checked over. Ellis was taken to the hospital. I asked to call Lexa. My fingers shook as I dialled and waited on her to answer.
“Hey Amber. Are you still at my place?” Her light tone told me she’d had fun the previous night, but my voice shook as I answered her. “No, Lex,” I swallowed.
Before I got the chance to continue, she spoke again, worry colouring her tone. “What’s wrong? Are you okay?”
“Yeah, no, not really. But it’s not me. It’s Ellis. Kurt beat her up and she’s on her way to the hospital. I’m so sorry Lexa…”
My throat burned as I waited for her to say something, anything, but it wasn’t her who spoke, it was a male voice. “Amber, it’s Quinn. What happened?”
“I dunno. He screamed at her about me and beat her up. I was locked out and couldn’t get in. When he eventually let me in, he went after me, but I kicked him in the nuts and broke his nose. But Ellis is away to the hospital.” My whole voice shook as I spoke. I heard Quinn’s intake of breath as I said he went after me, followed by a burst of laughter.
“Jeeso Amber, you really are a badass.” He laughed and I smiled in spite of everything that was going on. “What ER is she going to?”
I looked around and caught the eye of the paramedic who’d treated me. “Excuse me, what hospital is Ellis going to?”
He looked over at his colleague and after a moment he answered me, “Saint Francis’s.”
I spoke back into my cell. “Did you get that?”
“Yeah, I got it. Mase is on his way over. Don’t leave whatever you do. Get your shit together. I know you are supposed to start with Mase today, but he’ll want to make sure you’re okay.” His tone left little room for arguments and he hung up before I could speak again. I dropped my cell and stood up. I stumbled as the blood rushed to my head. A wave of dizziness overcame me, but after holding onto the bed it passed. I rushed from room to room, gathering my stuff and throwing it into my bags.
After a few minutes I moved back and sat on the sofa with my head in my hands. My whole body hurt. When I ran my fingers over my head, there was pain in so many places and a clump, where I thought there might be some dried blood.
As I sat there, one of the guys from the previous night showed up, the one who’d brought me home. Archie? I thought sounded that familiar. He walked over to me, and sat down beside me on the couch.
“Well, well. You look rough and ready, little Miss Amber.” I smiled at him and he laughed. “Did you really break a guy’s nose?” His eyes appraised me and as I looked at him, I could see little flecks of light brown through the darker shades. There was another knock at the door, and I looked up seeing Mase standing in the open doorway. My heart thudded unevenly in my chest as he examined me with his eyes.
“She okay, Arch?” He asked in a cold voice.
“Yeah,” Archie spoke, all the while looking at me, “she’s tough as nails, this one.”
I closed my eyes and sucked in a breath, hating how they were speaking about me like I wasn’t here. “Let’s get going then.” Mase voice commanded me and I dutifully followed, dropping my keys to this hellhole on the table, before heading out the door. Archie had grabbed two of my bags and I’d grabbed another.
I climbed into the SUV. Mase completely ignored me, speaking on his cell. I tuned him out as I gave Archie the address of my ex. I needed to get my stuff from there too. Mase’s eyebrow rose when I asked Archie to go there first, and I shrugged at him. Mason and Archie spoke to each other softly from the front seat. I blocked them out and leaned my head back against the headrest.
After twenty minutes of keeping my eyes closed, Archie spoke. “We’ve arrived Amber. Are you okay going in or would you like me to come with you?” I thought about it for a moment, then remembered how much stuff was in there. I decided to ask him to come in with me. Henry had told me he’d put all of my stuff in the spare room.
As we walked towards the door, the clouds opened up again and we both got drenched. I fitted my key into the lock, entered the pin and nothing. I groaned and checked my cell. Henry hadn’t said he’d changed the fucking code. I called him and he answered on the second ring. “What is it Amber?” He bit out.
“What’s the code for the door Henry?” I heard his intake of breath and his voice rose as he answered me. Something he only did when he was panicked. “You’re there now? I thought you weren’t coming over till the weekend?”
“Yeah, well I changed my mind.” My head thumped on the door and suddenly it opened.I flew forwards. Archie’s arm shot out and caught me before I could tumble. I righted myself and glanced up at the woman who’d opened the door to the apartment I half owned. “Hey there, you must be Amber? Henry’s old flatmate? I’m Jessica. His girlfriend.”
I heard Henry groan down the line. I moved the phone away from my ear, leaving it running as I shook her hand. “Hi, I am Amber. I’m just here for my stuff. I didn’t know anything about you. I’m sorry, you must think me very rude.” I moved through the flat and saw the changes he’d made over the last fortnight. He’d repainted the walls and taken down all of the photos we’d put up. My Persian rug was gone, as was my laptop and my desktop.
Archie followed in silence, as Jessica spoke again, “oh no, not at all. Henry told me he didn’t want to upset you, especially since you were going through a rough patch in your relationship.” She smiled at me and walked me into the spare room. I forced my lips up into a smile at her, glancing around to make sure all of the things I’d wanted to take were in the room.
“How long have you been together?” I asked, trying hard not to grit my teeth, even though it was all I wanted to do. She sighed and I glanced at her. “We’ve been seeing each other about a year, but we’ve only been together the past six months officially.”
“Wow. So long? Lucky you.” Archie gave me a quizzical look, but moved into the room and began moving boxes out to the car. He had completed about three trips when I noticed some things were missing. I turned and walked back into the master bedroom, heading straight for the closet. “Amber, I don’t really feel comfortable with you going into my room. What is it you’re looking for?” I ignored her and walked to the back of the closet, opening the safe and taking out all of my diamonds and pearls. He’d be fucking damned if I’d leave the gifts from my family for him to give to his new girlfriend.
“I’m just getting my jewellery honey, don’t worry. I haven’t taken anything that doesn’t belong to me.” I smiled at her and went to move, when her arm shot out. I saw she was wearing my Rolex. I took it off of her wrist and she glared at me. “That is mine, Henry gave it to me over the last six months.”
I grimaced at her. I then glared as I saw my graduation present from my mother, sitting atop the drawers. “Actually sweetheart, they are mine. I was engaged to your beloved Henry until last week and my parents are extremely wealthy. I was given all of these as gifts and there is no way in hell I’m leaving them here.” I snatched my Lalique limited edition vase and dropped my jewellery into it. She stood frozen at the door, blocking my way out when I noticed something else. My shoe collection was still in the closet.
“Archie, can you come in here and take all the Manolo’s and Louboutin’s to the car please?” He appeared behind her. I moved her out of the way, glancing around to make sure nothing of me was left when I spotted my Van Gogh, hanging on the wall. I took it down carefully. She stood, stunned, watching me. Archie appeared back beside me and I smiled at him as he spoke. “Done. You want me to take those for you?”
I nodded and he gently relieved me of them. I felt like a magpie, emptying the place of its treasures. “I’m sorry Jessica.” I moved back into the spare room again and heard the horn beep from outside. I thought Mase must be getting impatient so I walked around, checking once. I threw over my
shoulder. “That’s probably him calling you now.” Her cell was buzzing on the table, and I walked out. I called to her, “I’ll be back for the Porsche later. He can use my Maserati until he gets himself another car.”
She grimaced. I saw the keys to my Porsche in her hand. “No chance,” I muttered as I walked over and snatched the keys from her.
I stormed out. She came running after me screaming, “you crazy bitch. You can’t steal my car. He gave it to me as a present. I’ll call the cops.”
I spun around, fury racing through me. I shouted back at her, “Oh please do. Please fucking do.” I beeped the garage and climbed into my white Porsche, reversing out and stopping next to Mase and Archie. “He’s trying to keep my cars. I need to sell them. Can someone go pick up my Maserati from him?”
Mase nodded. “Where does he work?” He asked with his cell in his hand.
“Downtown. In the financial district. In Levi Straus and co.”
Mason nodded and sent a message, buzzing the window closed as Archie climbed into the car. The window rolled back down and Mase spoke again as my hood was closing over. “Are you okay to drive Amber?”
I nodded at him. He smiled at me, causing a cacophony of butterflies to take wing in my stomach. I strapped myself in and they drove off with me following. I followed the car back to this compound, but we got stuck in traffic so our short journey took half an hour. We reached the compound. My powder blue Maserati was sitting in the driveway.
I sighed in relief and checked my cell, Henry had called three times already. I completely ignored him as I glanced around, taking in the stunning house in front of me.
Mase
The call from Quinn set my teeth on edge and I raced out of the office. I text and postponed the A&R meeting, citing a family emergency and I shot over with Archie. The look on her face when I got there was heart-breaking. All I wanted to do was sweep her into my arms, and hold on, but when I saw the bruise on her cheek, I about lost it. He was lucky he wasn’t there when we arrived.
Black Mercy (San Francisco Rock Romance Book 1) Page 5