by T. R. Ragan
“No problem,” Jessica said.
“Thanks.” Hayley couldn’t believe it was that easy. If she had known Jessica wouldn’t balk at her request, she might have called her weeks ago.
“How are Salma and the baby doing?”
“They’re gone. She and Joey took off with Hope Elizabeth in the middle of the night. I found her room empty. Just a note thanking us all, including you, for teaching her what family is all about.”
“Ahh, well, that’s sweet . . . Wait a minute, did you say Hope Elizabeth? Did she finally give her a name?”
“That’s what the note says.”
“I like it. And Salma is right—we are family, aren’t we?”
“That’s us. One big happy family.”
Jessica laughed. “Did Lizzy tell you that she’s leaving the investigative business?”
“She did.”
“Did she tell you she was thinking about selling the business?”
“She mentioned it, yes.”
“What do you think?”
“If you’re thinking of buying it, I think it’s one of the craziest ideas you’ve ever had, and you’ve had your fair share.”
“Wow. Don’t be shy. Tell it like it is.”
“You never liked the business,” Hayley said. “You hate stepping over the line. You don’t like confrontation. You quit the business for a reason.”
“Hey, I was always good with people.”
“Are you kidding me? You were shot and kidnapped, and I’ve never seen anyone get more doors slammed in their face than you.”
“Now you’re just being your usual rude self.”
“You asked me what I thought. The idea makes absolutely no sense to me. You’ve worked hard to get where you are. Why would you even consider giving that up?”
“I asked you what you thought about Lizzy selling the business. Although I’ve already begun to realize that bureaucracy equals paperwork and I’ve never been keen on paperwork, I have zero interest in becoming a PI.”
“Well, phew, that makes me feel better.”
Jessica laughed. “Kitally, on the other hand, has shown some interest.”
“Kitally wants to buy the business?”
“When Lizzy and I talked about it, that’s what she told me.”
“Well, she certainly has the money to do it,” Hayley said. “Either way, you should stick with the FBI gig, Jessica. You’re going to make a fine special agent someday. We all know that.”
“Thanks,” Jessica said.
“You’re welcome. Now if you could find an address for Nora Belle Castor, I will be forever indebted.”
“What did the girl do?”
“She’s trouble with a capital T. She beats the crap out of homeless people while they’re sleeping.”
“So, what are you going to do with her when you find her?”
“Don’t worry, I’m going to turn her over to the police.” And that much was true.
There was a long bout of silence before Jessica said, “Sure. I’ll call you if I get a hit.”
“Thanks. Talk to you soon.”
As soon as she hung up the phone, Hayley heard Lizzy’s footfalls approaching. Funny, she thought, how everyone has their own distinct walk. She always knew who was coming and going based on the quickness of their movements and the noises they made. Kitally walked fast and always sounded like a deer scampering through the room. Lizzy was the opposite. Not slow, exactly, but methodical, as if she was watching everything in her path as she went along.
Lizzy sat down on the curb next to her, a cup of hot tea snug between her palms. Hayley could hear her breathe in.
“It’s so quiet in there without Salma and the baby,” Lizzy said at last.
“You might want to enjoy it while it lasts.”
“You might be right.”
“If you came out here to find out if I was still angry with you, the answer is no. If you had finished Bennett off, I don’t think you could have lived with yourself, although now we all need to sleep with one eye open.”
“I think it’s time to call it quits.”
“You can’t simply forget about Bennett. You know that.”
Lizzy nodded. “Not Bennett, but the others.”
“There’s only two more people left on the list who haven’t been taken care of. Scott Shaffer and the Ghost.”
“Bag it, Hayley,” Lizzy said. “It was never a good idea to begin with.”
“I’ll think about it,” Hayley said, even though she would do no such thing.
Lizzy looked at her for a long moment, then asked, “Do you remember the first time we met?”
Hayley dropped her head into her open palms. “Are you going to get all sentimental on me, Lizzy?”
“I don’t know . . . maybe. My hormones are raging. Are you really going to deprive me of one little sentimental journey through time?”
“Fine. Go for it.”
“The first time I saw you, I saw a little bit of me in you.” Lizzy nudged her arm. “Don’t make fun.”
“I didn’t say a word.”
“You had piercings all over your face, and your hair was dark and spiky. You had a tough look to you, but there was one thing that gave you away, something that told me you just needed a friend.”
It was quiet, and Hayley knew she was waiting for her to ask. “OK, I’m taking the bait. How did you know I was really this amazingly kind person with a soft inner shell?”
“All sarcasm aside, it was the angel tattoo on your collarbone.”
Hayley shook her head.
“What?”
“You’re grasping at straws here. I almost chose a devil with horns instead of an angel. It’s just a tattoo, Lizzy.”
“You’re right. Who am I kidding? You made the sheriff bleed that day.”
They both laughed, and yet they both knew it wasn’t funny. Lizzy had asked Hayley to demonstrate for a classroom full of young girls how she might get away from someone if she were grabbed from behind. After Officer Stuckey put his arms around Hayley, she bit him so hard he bled right through the sleeve of his shirt.
“I wonder how many kids over the years really listened,” Lizzy said, “really understood what they would need to do to save their own lives.”
“No telling,” Hayley said.
They sat quietly for a moment, each lost in her thoughts.
“Brace yourself for some more sentimental claptrap,” Lizzy said.
“Oh God.”
Lizzy ignored her. “I know you miss your mom,” she said, “but I want you to know that I love you as if you were my own daughter. I never want you to feel as if you’re alone. Not for one minute. You will always have me, and I like to think that I will always have you. Does that make sense?”
Hayley gave her a nod.
“It’s hard to believe I’m going to be a mother, isn’t it?”
“Not really. I saw you hold Salma’s baby. You looked like a natural to me.”
“Jared would have been an amazing father,” Lizzy said.
“He would have been. But you will be an amazing mother, and that kid of yours will be just fine.”
“And you,” Lizzy said, “will be an extraordinary godmother.”
“I can’t be there for your baby,” Hayley told her. “I want to be, I really do, but I’ve decided to leave town.”
“I know you’re angry at me for not taking care of Bennett while I had the chance, but, like you said, I couldn’t have lived with it. It wouldn’t have been right. And I also know I’ve made a lot of mistakes and I’ve let you down more than once. But, Hayley, you can’t leave.”
“You didn’t let me down. Yes, I would have preferred it if Bennett had been taken out of the picture, it’s true, but it was your decision to make, not mine. Besides, I’m
not going anywhere until that maniac is behind bars. He’s a loose cannon, and we can’t leave him be.”
“Agreed,” Lizzy said.
“You never let me down, Lizzy. I let myself down. Sure, we might be able to put a few criminals away, save a few more lives from being ruined, but it will never stop. I get that. And, yes, there was a time when I thought I could fight evil with evil. Maybe you did, too. But I still have this rage inside me. It’s deep and it’s dark, and it hasn’t even hit the surface. I certainly can’t be around your son or daughter, a tiny person who would be influenced by my actions and words. I can’t change, not completely. I don’t even know if I want to change.”
“If you left, I would spend the rest of my days worrying about you. Stay with me. Help me raise this baby. You know I can’t do it alone.”
“Nice try. You’ve been alone most of your life. You were born to be a mom. Hell, you’ll be the best mom in the world. I know it and you know it.”
“I found a house in Loomis,” Lizzy went on. “It’s not far from here. The property is amazing. There’s a lake and an old barn. We could get a horse. There’s an extra room just for you. Whether you come to live with me next month or next year, I want you to know there will always be a room ready and waiting for you.”
“I appreciate it,” Hayley said.
Lizzy patted her knee and then pushed herself to her feet. No sooner had she walked back into the house than Hayley’s phone vibrated.
It was Jessica.
Hayley picked up the call.
“I have an address.”
“Already?”
“Let’s just say I got a little help from a friend.”
“OK. I’m all ears—let’s have it.”
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
Sitting across the street from the home of Scott Shaffer, number four on their list, Hayley looked through the binoculars and saw movement in the upstairs window.
She looked at the time. They had replayed what needed to be done over and over. It was supposed to take five minutes, seven tops. But Kitally had been inside the house for twelve minutes. “Hurry up, Kitally. Get in. Get out. That’s the rule.” She never should have agreed to let her handle this one, but Kitally had made it clear that she was tired of always being on the outside looking in. And besides, she was the one who knew about making bombs.
Just when Hayley thought about texting her and calling the whole thing off, she saw Kitally jump over the side gate and run across the street toward her. She jumped into the passenger seat and said, “Go!”
As they drove off, they heard an explosion. In the rearview mirror, she saw part of the roof land on the front lawn.
“I thought you said it would be a small explosion.”
“That was a small explosion.”
“His roof just came off.”
“That was two shingles at the most. It was perfect.”
“Nobody was in there, right?”
“Nobody was in there,” Kitally repeated. “Not so fun sitting in the car waiting and not knowing what’s happening, is it?”
Hayley didn’t respond.
“When they find all of those stolen goods in his place, they are going to put Scott Shaffer away for a very long time.”
Hayley could only hope. They had gone to a lot of work for this one. They had stolen Shaffer’s backpack from the backseat of his car and then taken assorted debris from his garage—everything Kitally would need to make a bomb. Tonight was the night Shaffer usually went to a club or drove the streets until he found some unsuspecting young woman to get into his car. And then he raped her and dropped her off.
“I really hope this works,” Hayley said.
“If it doesn’t,” Kitally said, “I’ll go back to sharpening knives and let you do what you do best.”
“Mind if I borrow your car for a while?” Hayley asked when she pulled up in front of the house.
“What for?”
“I just have one more thing I need to take care of.”
“Are you sure you don’t need my help?”
“Positive. This one’s mine.”
“And after this, we’re done with all of this craziness, right?”
“Absolutely.”
Hayley pulled her ski mask over her face and took out her tension wrench, worked it within the lock until she heard a click, then snuck quietly through the door. She’d been watching Nora Belle for a while now, and she knew her routine. The only thing Hayley regretted was that Nora Belle had gotten in another beating. The good news was that the man with the red hair and Naomi were able to scare the Ghost off before the old man took too many blows.
Hayley glanced at the couch, saw the Ghost’s boyfriend passed out and snoring loud enough to wake the dead. She walked slowly down the narrow hallway. The boards were creaky, but the snoring would take care of that. She eased open the door to the bedroom, and there on the bed was Nora Belle, sleeping peacefully.
After locking the door behind her, she stepped to the side of the bed and watched the Ghost sleep. Hayley pushed her sleeves to her elbows, then climbed atop her on the bed and made herself comfortable.
Nora Belle’s eyes shot open. “Who the fuck are you?”
“I’m the Phantom,” Hayley said, and then she started pummeling her, hitting Nora Belle’s face with such force and so often that very soon all she was aware of were the crunch of bone beneath her fists and the spray of blood on her face. Nora Belle bucked beneath her, but she was trapped beneath layers of sheets and blankets.
Hayley wouldn’t stop. She drew back and hit her again and again until her knuckles began to hurt.
When she at last stopped to examine her aching knuckles, Nora Belle laughed wetly beneath her. A number of her front teeth were broken. Her nose would never look the same. “Not so easy, is it?”
Hayley reached over to the bedside table, grabbed hold of a lamp, and bashed her over the head with it.
That silenced her. Finally. Hayley felt for a pulse. She was still alive.
Hayley walked into the closet, gathered all the white sneakers she could find and shoved them into a duffel bag.
Finished with the shoes, she turned about to survey her work.
Satisfied, she headed back the way she came, walked past the boyfriend, and slipped out the front door. After she delivered the shoes to the homeless, she told Naomi and friends the Ghost’s full name and where she lived. They assured Hayley they would take care of the rest. Hayley didn’t know what that meant exactly, but it was out of her hands now.
It was later than shit by the time she made it back to Kitally’s house. Tommy was sitting on the front stoop waiting for her. If not for the front light being on, she wouldn’t have known it was him.
“Where have you been?” he asked.
“Out and about.”
“Doing what?”
“Walking. Thinking. The usual. What’s up?”
“I’ve been thinking a lot about you lately, and I wanted to talk. I heard from Lizzy that you were thinking about moving away.”
“It’s true. Once I’m sure Bennett is no longer a threat to Lizzy and Kitally, I’ll start making plans.” She sat down next to him, close enough to smell a hint of soap, or maybe something more. “Are you wearing cologne?”
He ignored the question, his expression bleak. “Were you ever going to talk to me about this harebrained idea of yours to move away?”
“Sure . . . eventually I would have gotten around to it.”
He looked into her eyes and held her gaze. “You have no idea how I feel about you, do you?”
“Tommy, you wear your feelings and emotions on your sleeve. Of course I know how you feel. But here’s the problem. You have no idea who I am. I’m bad news, Tommy. I’ve done things I can never talk to you or anyone else about. Things I don’t even like to think about myself. An
d the thing is . . . I don’t know if I can stop, or if I want to.”
“I love you, Hayley. Whatever it is you’re going through, I want to help you.”
“I care about you, Tommy, you know I do. But whatever you think we’ve got going . . . it’s over.” She pushed herself to her feet and walked to the door. “I can’t let you into my life.”
“I know you better than you think,” Tommy said. “I know you’re all screwed up, but I’m never giving up on you, Hayley. You might not be able to see it yet, but I can. I can see the light shining out from inside of you. It’s bright. Blinding, even. Even tonight, when you first laid eyes on me, I saw it all—your strength and goodness, your compassion, your need to help others because nobody was there to help you when you needed it.”
“Go home, Tommy.”
“Sure, I’ll go.” He stood. “But if you do decide to move away, no matter where you end up, I’ll be somewhere close, waiting for you to understand that me and you are going to spend the rest of our lives together.”
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
All the girls—Hayley, Jessica, Kitally, and Brittany—had come to Lizzy’s new house to paint the baby’s room. The problem was, they wouldn’t let Lizzy help. Sniffing paint while eight months pregnant was not advised. Instead of arguing with them, Lizzy kept herself busy in the kitchen, but she made sure to check in and bark orders every once in a while just to keep them on their toes.
As she stood over the kitchen sink, she thought she saw something out of the corner of her eye. Her head snapped up, and her gaze roamed over the property. The beat of her heart accelerated. There was nothing out there.
She counted to ten.
Calm down, she told herself. You’re safe.
“We’re finished,” Kitally said before Lizzy could enter the baby’s room. “Where should we put these brushes?”
“Bring everything outside. I’ve set up two buckets of warm water by the faucet,” Lizzy said as she led the way. Once outside, she watched them walk single file out of the house. Every one of them had more paint on their faces and bodies than they had on their brushes. They dropped their brushes into the first bucket. Brittany worked on getting paint from the brushes while everyone else washed paint from their hands and faces using water and hand soap.