Saving Dallas

by Jones, Kim

  “Fuck me harder Luke,” I cried.

  “Fuck, baby,” he responded pushing into me harder and faster. Both hands were on my hips as he slammed into me over and over. I came again and again as he pounded into me. My body was limp lying across the couch, but I managed to turn my head so that he could hear my pleas.

  “Please, don’t stop. It feels so good. Please, Luke.” He placed his hands on each side of my ass, spreading me open as he ground into me harder. I didn’t think it could get any better, but the feeling intensified. He placed his thumb where his finger had been earlier and applied pressure and I came once again. As I did, he slipped his finger inside me and the feeling was like nothing I had ever experienced. I screamed loudly, my climax coursing through my body. I felt Luke still inside of me as he leaned over and rained kisses down my back. His arms were beside him supporting his weight and he stayed like that, kissing me across my neck and back until his breathing returned to normal.

  “You still alive baby?” Luke asked from behind me. I grunted in response. I didn’t think my mouth could form words. Luke laughed. “Shower?” I nodded my head in agreement. “You want me to carry you?” he asked still laughing. Once again, I nodded. He scooped me into his arms and carried my lifeless body into the bathroom.

  “When are you leaving?” I asked once we were in the shower and the hot water had somewhat pulled me from fully sated state.

  “In the morning. You will be able to reach me on my phone if you need anything,” he said, back in the mood he was in prior to our sexual escapade.

  “Can I ask where you are going?” I asked cautiously. I didn’t want to push him, but it would be nice to know. I was hoping he would tell me of his own free will, but it didn’t look like that was going to happen.

  “A chapter from another state has come into our territory. I have some issues with them from years back and we are going to handle the situation before it gets out of hand.” He said the words as if he were reading them from a book. He continued to wash his hair with his back to me.

  “Are they the red and gray people?” When his body stilled I had my answer. He turned around and smiled at me.

  “Want me to wash your hair?” With that, I knew the subject was closed.

  I decided that since Luke would be leaving in the morning, I would spend the rest of the day with him and go home Saturday. I had called Red and invited her and the others to come over, and I’m not sure if they were coming because they wanted to or because Luke told them to, but they would be there around noon tomorrow.

  Red had called all of them for me and assured me they all were excited about coming. I knew she would lie for them, but I didn’t care. I was hoping this gathering would get me the information I needed. I had also called Lindsey who claimed to be ecstatic about seeing me, as if I did not talk to her every day.

  She was doing a great job running the place and I had already notified Maria in payroll of her salary increase, which was probably why she was being so nice.

  “So, what do you want to do today?” Luke asked during lunch, consisting of a bowl of canned soup and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. He seriously needed some groceries.

  “I would really like to go for a ride, just to get out of the house for a while,” I said, slurping up my last bit of soup. I would have to hit the gym hard next week. I had gained back the weight I had lost and then some.

  “On the bike?” Luke asked turning to me.

  “Yes, on the bike. I have some jeans in my luggage that I have completely ignored since I have been here.”

  “You sure you feel up to it?” he asked eyeing me warily. How hard could it be to sit and ride?

  “Positive. I need some sunshine,” I said giving him my winning smile.

  “Well, how can I say no to that face?” he said leaning over and kissing my head. “Go get dressed and I’ll get this,” he said clearing the dishes from the counter.

  I hurried to the bedroom to dig out my suitcase Luke had buried in the closet. Maybe he would take me to the beach or something. I could already feel the sand beneath my toes. I would bring my bikini along just in case. Chances are though, some girl’s lingering eyes will cause me to go crazy and I’ll have to make Luke put his clothes back on to keep me from slapping someone. I found my suitcase at the back of Luke’s closet on top of some boxes.

  Beside my suitcase I found a small cardboard box with my name written on it. This must be the paperwork I brought with me to Tupelo. I’m not sure why I opened the box. I had already convinced myself that the contents was nothing more than a bunch of file folders, but I opened it anyway, and what I found inside changed mine and Luke’s relationship completely.

  “Dallas.” I heard Luke call from the other room. It sounded as if he was calling to me from across the yard instead of the kitchen. I sat on the floor of the closet in a daze, holding up photos of me over the past several months; photos that had been taken long before I had met Luke. One of me was leaving my job, playing with Neo in the front yard, meeting a client at a restaurant; there were hundreds of them.

  Other than the photos, there was the code to get in my gate at home, my birth date, social security number, names of my family members, phone numbers, and two keys-one to my car and one to my home. I never heard Luke walk in the room, but I could sense he was behind me.

  “What are you doing?” he asked angrily. I jerked my head around in shock and met his face. His sinister look took me even more by surprise. Was he seriously mad at me for finding this?

  “What am I doing? Well, it looks like I’m taking a trip down memory lane. Please tell me this is an amnesia box that I gave you permission to put together while I was out of it,” I said ominously.

  “It’s none of your business. I don’t appreciate you snooping through my house.”

  “None of my business?! Are you fucking kidding me? The photos are of me! This is my personal information!” I screamed. My body was shaking with rage. Luke was about to see why I was so hated. I was on my feet and in his face before he could speak. “Why the fuck do you have this?” I yelled at him through gritted teeth.

  “Why are you going through my shit?” he yelled back. Why was he so pissed about me finding it? It was me who had the right to be angry.

  “It’s my shit!” I screamed back at him. “Now tell me what you are doing with it!”

  “I’m not telling you a fucking thing, I trust you to stay in my house and you do this? I would never invade your privacy like that Dallas,” he said trying to regain his composure and failing miserably.

  “What the fuck are you talking about? I damn sure didn’t go digging for it! It practically fell into my lap!” I was confused. He had placed my suitcase right next to it. I figured he wanted me to find it, and if he didn’t, maybe he should have been a little more careful.

  “You’re a fucking liar,” he said to me, sounding like he was trying to convince himself more than he was me. I stumbled back at his comment as if he had slapped me.

  “I can’t believe you just said that,” I said barely audible.

  “Get out of my house,” he said with a coldness in his voice that I had never heard. I stood standing there with my heart broken in a million pieces. I didn’t care why he had the photos. I didn’t care that the history of my life was scattered all over the floor of his closet. All that mattered to me at that moment was the fact that he no longer wanted me. I wanted to beg him to forgive me. I wanted to tell him that I was not lying and to please believe me. My heart might have been broken beyond compare, but my pride was still intact.

  I knew this was the end for us. I knew that things would never go back to the way they were. Luke had shown his true colors and what had started out as a one night stand between us had turned into a nightmare. I would leave and he would never see me cry.

  I grabbed my suitcase off the floor, leaving the box behind. I didn’t even want to look at it. I made it to the kitchen, still hoping for him to call my name, but he never did. Grabbing my
keys and my cell phone off the counter, I walked out of his house and shut the door behind me. I was losing the greatest thing I never had.

  Chapter 24

  I was on the highway before the first tear fell, and then like a tsunami, they overtook me soaking my shirt and blurring my vision. The sobs were so strong I could barely breathe. I was confused and hurt and I had no idea what the fuck was going on. I screamed at the windshield and banged my fist on the steering wheel, but nothing seemed to help. He had kicked me out of his house-out of his life, yet he held a box full of information about me that he gathered long before we were together. Why did he have it? What could he possibly gain by having it?

  My phone rang interrupting my thoughts and I saw it was Red. I answered immediately planning to cuss her for lying to me, but instead I sobbed in her ear.

  “Dallas, just calm down and tell me what happened,” she said soothingly. I felt a little better just at the sound of her voice. How did she do that?

  “D-did you talk to L-Luke?” I stammered between sobs.

  “Yes, all he said was he found you going through his stuff and told you to leave.”

  “I-I didn’t go through his s-stuff Red I swear! I w-was just looking for my suitcase and th-there was a box sitting beside it with my name on it. I thought it w-was my paperwork I took t-to Tupelo.” What the hell was Luke hiding that he was so worried about me finding anyway?

  “So you didn’t go downstairs?” she asked surprised.

  “What? No, I didn’t even know he had a downstairs,” I answered. So Luke did have a secret room.

  “Ok, honey just calm down, this is just a misunderstanding that’s all.” Ok, now I was mad.

  “A misunderstanding? He had pictures of me Red! And he had my personal information like my fucking social security number! If anyone deserves to be angry it’s me!”

  “So you still don’t know, do you?” Red asked, but I could tell the question was not meant to be spoken out loud.

  “Know what? Red I swear to God I will beat your fucking brains in if you don’t tell me what the fuck is going on right now!” I screamed. “If he wants to keep his club secrets that’s fine, but I’ll be damned if he keeps shit about me from me.”

  “Dallas, I’m not at liberty to tell you anything. Mostly because I don’t know the whole story, but I promise I will tell Luke to call you,” she said defeated.

  Luke was going to jump her ass for letting it slip. Oh well, serves her right for being an accomplice.

  “I don’t need you to do anything for me. I can talk to Luke on my own.” I hung up before she had a chance to respond. Fuck her. I didn’t need her any more than she needed me. I dialed Luke’s number and silently hoped it would go to voicemail, but of course he picked up on the second ring.

  “Dallas,” he said calmly, too calmly.

  “Why do you have those pictures of me?” I asked trying to stay calm myself.

  “You were not supposed to find those, but since you did, I will tell you….as soon as I get back on Tuesday,” he answered stiffly.

  “Oh no, you are going to tell me now. I’m not waiting until Tuesday. According to Red I should have already known.”

  “Yes, you should have. I was planning to tell you I just couldn’t find the right time. I was going to tell you on Tuesday and show them to you myself, but you beat me to it,” he said smoothly. His tone was impassive and I envisioned him sitting on the couch wearing the face that matched it.

  “Why did you do this to me?” I choked out. I didn’t want him to hear me upset, but I couldn’t help it. I needed to know why the only man I had ever loved chose to kill me inside.

  “I never meant for it to go this far.” I could hear the emotion seeping into his voice, although he tried to contain it. “I have to go Dallas,” he said clearing his throat. “I’ll see you on Tuesday and I’ll bring Neo and the things you left with me. I’m sorry things turned out this way.”

  I wanted to scream at him. I wanted to run my car off the road so he would come to my rescue. God had given me damsel-in-distress moments ever since I met him, yet when I finally needed one, it wasn’t there. Luke had saved me numerous times. He had saved me from cowboys and motorcycle gangs and DUI’s, but most of all he had saved me from myself. I would thank him one day for what he had done for me, but right now, I just wanted to hate him.

  I needed a drink-a strong one. I stopped at Our Place-a small bar that served liquor just off the highway. I knew I looked a wreck, but I didn’t care. I walked inside with my face red and blotchy from my endless crying, wearing nothing but Luke’s basketball shorts, black t-shirt and my flip flops.

  The bar was almost empty, which wasn’t unusual for seven o’clock on a Friday night. I ordered a shot of Jack from the bartender and threw it back, letting the liquor burn my throat and distract me from the ache in my chest. I motioned for the bartender to keep them coming and before long, the pain was dulled and replaced with a buzz that had me lightheaded.

  The jukebox played an endless stream of country music, reminding me of the heartache that had summoned me here. When the tips of my fingers were numb and my speech slurred, I decided it was time to head home. I left the bartender a fat tip to silence the “Do you want me to call you a cab” speech and stumbled to my car. I sat in the driver seat looking numbly out of the windshield. A movement to my left caught my eye. A motorcycle sat in the shadows of the vacant parking lot next to me. I knew it was probably one of Luke’s PROSPECTS and the thought sickened me.

  It was almost nine when I pulled out of the parking lot, and I knew that I had drunk too much, but all I wanted was to go home. I tuned to a rock station on the radio and increased the volume to drown out the voices of Luke in my head.

  By the grace of God and cold air blasting from the air conditioner, I managed to make it home in one piece. Not seeing Neo when I pulled up reminded me of Luke. Walking into the library reminded me of Luke and the first time he kissed me. My kitchen and counter and the stool on the end where he sat reminded me of Luke. My bedroom, where I had danced for him, my shower, and my radio-everything reminded me of Luke.

  I crawled into my bed and shut my eyes trying to think of brown cows and light bread and England; anything to get my mind off of him. But, when I thought of cows I thought of milk and the gallon we had drank from when he caught me in his Harley room. When I thought of light bread I thought of the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches we had shared only hours ago, and when I thought of England I thought of English which is the language that Luke spoke. Nothing worked. He was everywhere. At some point, with the help of a bottle of Jack, I managed to doze into a restless slumber.

  Chapter 25

  Two o’clock. That’s what the red lights on the alarm clock next to my bed read when I sat up. Something had woke me; a noise, a loud noise. One I was familiar with, but had no desire to hear, yet my heart skipped a beat at the sound of it. More than one, there was many. I could hear them under my carport, the sound of the loud pipes echoing across the house. I looked back over at my alarm. One minute after two.

  At one minute after two I was making my way to the library to open the carport door and jump into Luke’s arms. Two minutes after two. My microwave flashed green numbers that let me know that I walked really slowly, or my clocks were different. I wanted to document this. I wanted to have it stored in my brain for my grandchildren to know the exact time their grandfather and I reunited with apologies and explanations. Two minutes after two. The large clock that hung on the wall read two minutes after two and the second hand was only at six. Thirty seconds of time remained. I had thirty seconds to make a memory that would be etched in my brain for years. I would never get to have that memory.

  When the door burst open it was not Luke whose arms I would run into. It was the arms of the man who had watched me, the man who I had pulled a gun on, the man who wanted to take Luke’s life for reasons I didn’t know -- the man with the scar in the red and gray cut.

  “Well look what we h
ave here.” The words that left his mouth were menacing, although he wore a smile on his face. Three large men walked in behind him. Each of them wore the same expression-hate. My feet were frozen to the floor of the library. Maybe I was dreaming. Maybe this was not really happening. “You remember me, don’t you Dallas?” I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t breathe. I tried to nod my head, but it would not move. “Well, I remember you. Take a good look at me. You are going to remember this face for the rest of your life, although I’m not sure how long that is going to be.”

  His words went in one ear and out the other; although they did register and I took his advice. He stood about six feet tall. He had a stocky build with no hair on his face or his head. I didn’t remember him being bald the last time I saw him. The large scar that ran down his face drew the attention away from everything else. I could tell that at one time he was a very good looking man. He looked to be in his forties and was covered in tattoos that ranged from his neck to his fingers and everywhere in between that wasn’t covered in leather.

  “You like my scar?” he asked amused. I quickly diverted my eyes to something other than his face. “Oh no, don’t look away now. This scar is important to you. Do you know why Dallas? Because the day I got it your fate was sealed.”

  The evil in his voice was unlike anything I had ever heard. It was as if he hated me, yet I had never done anything to this man that I could remember. “Get her outside,” he said so low that I almost didn’t understand him until I was grabbed by my arms and drug out the door.

  My adrenaline kicked in and I suddenly remembered how to move. My body thrashed. I kicked and screamed and tried to bite anything that came in contact with me. I managed to get a piece of flesh from someone’s arm and bit down hard.