by Bry Ann
“And that is?”
She smiles, but it’s dark. It’s the smile of a woman who has had to fight with men bigger than her many times and won.
“I’m hurting. I need to cut myself, so I went to my old cell to do it. You know he’ll buy it.”
She finishes tying her shoe and stands, bouncing on her toes lightly.
“I just ran into her. No harm, no foul.”
Ooh, God. I can’t hide the horror from my face because her plan is not an act. She used to go down to that cell a lot, huddle in a ball, and disconnect. Cut herself. Wish she were dead. This isn’t an act; it’s a reality.
When Lacey sees my face, she softens a little.
“I’m not suicidal, Enzio. I haven’t cut myself in months. I just need a plan, and despite the crassness of it, this is a good one.”
“I agree.” My voice is cautious. “Just… I don’t know… don’t get caught?”
“Trust me, I can handle Ruston.”
That’s what she calls her husband in public. She goes by his last name since she can’t use his first.
“I trust you, Lacey.”
She softens. I feel like I’m gonna puke. She can’t trust me.
“What’d he do to her?” In. Out. “Frances broke her finger.”
“Alright. Ice. A splint. Got it. I’ll be back.”
She starts to run off, but pauses, glancing over her shoulder at me with something akin to gratitude.
“Thank you, Enzio.”
Then she’s off. Sneakers skidding along the pavement on her way out. God, I hope she doesn’t get me killed, but more than that, I hope she saves the innocent Texas angel that Adam fucking Ruston has stored in his basement.
My time here is at an end. I can feel it. We need to begin planning the takedown of these guys. I’ve witnessed enough. I’m close enough on the inside to get a time/date for a crime the FBI can infiltrate.
My time here is done.
And the woman I just told I trust is about to see her world shattered.
Again.
Iris
“Ow,” I sob into the empty cell, cradling my finger. I swear, Kingston and Hunter, two of my older brothers, would kill someone if they saw what happened to me, and to a lesser extent, Jay. But I have to do it. For Carson. And for Enzio, my no name. He’s been undercover here for months. I can’t imagine the bravery that takes. I’m terrified being here for a minute, let alone months of trying to infiltrate the place. My pap would tell me to help him, since he’s the law, so I am.
My mama would say to save it for the men, but I’m not all about that. I can help. But right now, I’m so scared. And my finger hurts so bad. Enzio said he’d bring something for me. Or at least try to. I secretly hope he does. But I have to be strong.
I’m not doing a very good job of it. My hiccups are echoing across this cold, lonely room. How many people have been in here? How can people be so evil? I don’t understand. Not to mention, I’m no closer to finding Carson’s killer. My baby brother. Mama, Pap, Kingston, Jay, and Hunter can’t get over it. My brothers all have matching tattoos of his name. The worst part of this is not knowing what happened. Or if the man who did it is behind bars.
I have to do this.
But I’m terrified.
I resume crying harder. Click. Click. Click. Footsteps echo across the wall of cells, making me stiffen and fly to the back.
Please don’t hurt me anymore. And if they do, let him be here. He won’t let it be too bad. He’s stopped it every single time from getting too excruciating.
My feet are quivering in my boots. I’m ready to collapse to the ground, when the last person I expect rounds the corner. A relatively small girl with dirty blonde hair and sharp grey eyes grabs the bars of my cell with a gentle, but furious, expression.
“Hi, I’m Lacey,” she says gently. “Please don’t be scared. I’m here to help you.”
“Oh, ma’am, please. You’ll… they’ll hurt you. I’m fine. I promise.” I fight the urge to wince. My poor finger. “Save yourself. It’s okay.”
I force a fake smile. The grey-eyed girl shakes her head as her eyes fill with rage.
“The man holding you here is my husband.”
The words are sharp as a knife. Her fury is barely contained in this giant row of cells. My mouth falls open as dizziness overtakes me.
“Yo-yo-you’re h-husband.”
“Shh, it’s okay. I’d never ever hurt you. See?” She holds up a tiny backpack with a small smile. “Supplies!”With that, she pulls a key from the pocket of her light pink sweatpants to open the cell. For a moment, I think she’ll let me run out, but she doesn’t. She crawls right in with me. Of course, she won’t let me out. Her husband is in charge. This is simply a nicety. Maybe a tactic to get information out of me.
The girl sits on the cot that rests on the left side of the room. She curls her legs into her chest like a lost child, and stares at me with so much pain that I know right then, she’s no spy. Slowly, I move and curl up next to her. That makes her smile a bit.
“What’s your name?” “Iris. Iris Jane Shelby.” “Lacey. Just Lacey.” Those words come out venomous. I can’t imagine my mama being that mad at Pap, but this is a different world.
“I got you supplies.” She pulls out ice, a splint, walnuts, carrot juice, and a Hershey’s bar. “I covered all bases. I didn’t know what you would like.”
“Why are you doin’ this?” That makes some of the strength fizzle out of her. Her head falls and she fiddles with the end of her Roxy sweatshirt.
“He held me here, too. A long time ago, but I’ve been where you’re at.”
“Y-your husband locked you up in this cell? Are you jokin’ with me?”
Lacey smiles sadly, placing the paper towel-wrapped ice pack on my injured finger. I shriek, but relax into it slightly.
“Nope. I’m not joking. I was here for months after being held captive by another family. They were much, much worse. Anyway,” Lacey jumps, forcing her voice to be cheerful, “I’m not going to ruin your brain with this crap. Just know that I understand and nothing that happened to me will ever happen to you. Hell will be raised because of your finger.”
Her words come out harsh, but she’s gentle as can be as she removes the ice and places the splint on my finger. Tears fall down my cheeks, but the pain of her past hurts more than the physical pain coming from my finger. I can’t believe someone would hurt her that badly. Her own husband. I don’t realize how hard I’m crying ‘til I suck in a breath and Lacey looks at me sympathetically.
“Am I hurting you? I’m sorry.”
The compassion in her voice makes my heart hurt worse.
“How c-can p-people be so m-mean?” I stutter in a gasp. “How-how c-can they h-h-hurt y-y-y..?” I can’t get the last word out. My pain is too deep. It’s like being a kid all over again, when my stutter was so bad I could barely talk. My brothers had my back. No one ever hurt me. If people said mean things about me, Kingston would kick their butts all over the place. Then Hunter would threaten them, and Jay would give them dirty enough looks that they never crossed me again. As if that wasn’t enough to keep people away, sweet Carson, my gentle baby brother, would stick by my side when things were particularly hard. How can people betray the ones they love? I can’t understand this.
“Aw, it’s okay, Iris. I’m okay. I promise. What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, right? P.S. I love your accent.”
She elbows me, trying to get me to laugh, but I can’t. My heart hurts too much for her.
“LACEY!”
Just like that, my humor dies. My heart fizzles in a pit of pure fear for both of us, especially her. She was so nice. She didn’t have to be. I start to shake hard, but Lacey doesn’t. She stands and storms out of the cell, leaving the door wide open for me this time.
“You fucking son of a bitch!” Lacey screams, like an animal, charging at him. “I trusted you! I gave everything to you! Ahhhh!”
The sound of h
er scream is bone chilling. A sound of pure pain. I’ve never heard anything like it; it makes my heart shatter and my innocence shrivel up and die.
The world’s not good.
It’s not the happy place Pap told me it was.
Carson. Now Lacey. I can’t imagine what Enzio has seen. It all makes me want to cry. I’m all the more grateful for what Enzio does. What he sacrifices to help these people. I can’t imagine how deeply his soul is hurtin’ from seein’ this stuff all the time.
“Little dove…”
“No, don’t you dare!”
The next thing I hear is the sound of fist on bone as her knuckles slam into the side of his face with incredible force. It’s the sound of someone who clearly knows how to fight. She’s more than she seems, and she already seems incredible to me.
The man who I believe to be the boss of everything freezes, blood dripping down his lip. He looks at her with such pain it almost cracks at my hate for him. Almost.“I didn’t know what to do. She—”
“No!”
Lacey slaps him again, then kicks his shin, then starts smacking at his chest, face, legs, arms, hips until her body gives out in a heap. The well-dressed criminal catches her before she hits the ground. That’s when she loses it. She starts to cry so hard that I start to cry. His eyes even water.
“Little dove, please hear me out.”
“There’s nothing you can say,” she says with a broken voice. “You hurt her. You hurt her. Oh God.”
She leans over the arm he has under her stomach and vomits all over the floor. I can almost see my heart drifting away piece by piece. I didn’t mean to cause her this pain.
“Lacey, please.”
“Stay away from me! Just… don’t touch me.”
She steps back and holds her hands up in front of her.
“I have to think.”
“Lacey, please, let me…”
“STOP! Red light. No. Whatever word indicates I don’t want to hear another word out of your cruel mouth. I gave you a daughter, Adam. I gave you a beautiful, incredible daughter, and this is what you do.”
My heart stops beating. All of Enzio’s warnings come rushing to my brain. Adam. Adam. His name is Adam. This can’t be. I feel the blood drain from my face.
“Your name is Adam?” I whisper, feeling suddenly cold.
His face is hard, but drenched with incredible pain when he looks at me. Lacey flinches, but pinches her mouth in a firm line to cover it.
“None of your business.”
“Ruston? You’re Adam Ruston?” I can’t stop at this point. I can’t, despite Enzio’s warnings. If he killed my baby brother… if he…
The world spins around me. I see both sets of eyes widen and take me in.
“How do you know that name?” he hisses, coming at me.
Lacey jumps in front and holds both of my shoulders.
“Are you okay? How do you know his name?” She asks gently. “You have to tell me. Okay, Iris? You have to. Or I can’t help you. Let me clear this up before he tries more drastic measures.”
She glares at the man, but he’s rage personified. All aimed at me. He’s looking at me like I’m a traitor when I didn’t do anything. He did! He did it!
“Carson. Carson Andrew James Shelby. You… you killed him. Murdered him in cold blood. That was my baby brother. He had a family, you son of a bitch. A mama, a papa, three awesome brothers, and me. It’s not much, but it is everything to us.”
The man stares at me with a blank mask as Lacey scrutinizes me.
“I’ll see the day you end up behind bars. It’s coming, you hear? You’re gonna live out some of the pain you’ve caused other people!” I scream.
Lacey tries to pull me away, but can’t before he charges me, slamming me into the wall so hard I lose my breath.
“What do you know?”
I smile at him, knowing Mama would hate it. Knowing he’ll kill me and I’ll be leaving my pap and brothers alone. But I can’t help it. For Carson. My best friend. My partner in crime. My Hershey’s-kisses-stealing buddy. For him.
I lean forward and spit in the man’s face.
“Fuck you, asshole! I hope you rot in prison forever.”
I feel the cold barrel of a gun against my temple, but I can’t stop myself. I can’t stop.
“You wanted to know who I am and why I’m here? Well, let me tell ya. I’m Iris Jane Shelby and I’m here to make you see justice for what you did to my brother. I just didn’t know it until now.”
Click.
Safety off.
I’m gonna die.
At peace, though, because I said what I had to for Car. I’ll see you soon, baby brother.
The gun shifts to find the perfect spot for murder. And…
“ADAM, NO!”
Derek “Enzio”
“You wanted to know why I am and why I’m here? Well, let me tell ya. I’m Iris Jane Shelby and I’m here to make you see justice for what you did to my brother. I just didn’t know it until now.”
I run harder, following the sound of her voice. No. No. No. I’m gonna be too late. Damn it, Iris. Damn it! No. Please, not her. Not little miss Iris Jane Shelby. I can’t. Not her. She’s special.
“ADAM, NO!”
Lacey’s there? Oh my God, I sent Lacey there.
I run harder, faster, stronger. He wouldn’t hurt her, right? No. No, he couldn’t. Especially not in front of Lacey.
What’s happening down there? I sprint down the stairs, gun raised, pausing when I see the scene in front of me.
Iris is holding her ears, crying. Lacey is breathing heavily. Adam, my “boss”, is on his knees in front of Lacey, face on her shoes. There’s a gun by his knees. He’s gripping her Adidas tennis shoes with white knuckles. It takes me a minute to spring into action. My jaw is thrown open with crippling shock. I was fully prepared to blow my cover. To most likely die doing so. I did not expect this. Luckily, I have years of training to absorb the shock for me. Or at least absorb it enough to move. Assessing the scene, I quickly realize that Lacey’s got Adam. She’ll handle him however she sees fit. As twisted as this whole situation is, right now, between them, it’s a marriage issue.
Iris.
It’s Iris who needs me.
I run over to her and feel up and down her sides.
“Hey, are you hurt? Are you alright?”
She’s shaking profusely, hands still thrown over her ears. She’s in shock.
“Iris. I need you to answer me. Okay, sweetheart? Can you say something?”
“He did it. He killed Carson.”
The words are muffled, but spoken with purpose.
“I know.”
“You… you knew. When y-y-you s-said…”
“Shhh, you’re in shock, sweetheart. Come on.”
I move to lead her to the cot to sit, not thinking, but she shrieks and grabs the lapels of my coat. I’m completely off protocol at this point, so I say fuck it and don’t peel her off.
“I’m sorry. Bad call.” “I-I-I’m sure i-it’s g-good, b-but I don’t w-want to be t-t-there.” “I understand.” I try to swallow the knot in my throat. She trusts me so deeply.
Slowly, her eyes meet mine. There are so many questions, but she doesn’t want to blow my cover. I knew I could trust her. I knew it from the moment I met her.
I pretend to brush by her, subtly shrugging out of her hold, but on my way around her left side, I lean into her ear.
“Soon,” I whisper. “Hang on.”
Then I leave her. Hating every second of it. Hating that I loved the way her soft skin felt against me. What the hell is wrong with me? Do I need to get laid? First, I want to push aside my mission for Lacey. Now I pretty much want to run out of here, Iris in tow.
Yeah, maybe I need a good old fashioned hookup. How long has it been?
Shit. Too long.
Collin would lose his shit if he knew the stuff going on in my head. Hell, even as straight-laced as he is, he’d probably hire me a hook
er. When this night is over, I’m going to go to the nearest club, getting fucked, and saving this case.Because apparently my dick is running things right now.
“Enzio!” Adam roars.
I stiffen and turn toward him, glad I’d left Iris’s side a moment prior. I don’t know how I’d explain comforting her over attending to him. I can explain, however, being in the opposite corner of the room, seeing as a second ago he was bowing at Lacey’s feet. Apparently it’s resolved?
He’s on his feet at least. Lacey looks like a general preparing for war. In fact, it’s Lacey who looks in charge of what’s about to happen next, not Adam, the actual mafia boss.
“Yes, Boss?”
He opens his mouth but says nothing. Gathering the unspoken command, I look to Lacey. She’s already moving to Iris’s side with a gentle, but firm, look in her eye.
“You okay, Iris? I’m so sorry.”
“Fine,” Iris squeaks, clearly conflicted knowing this is the woman married to the man who killed her brother.
Lacey looks to her feet and shuffles them slightly.
“Iris, look, um, I really don’t want my husband arrested. I have a daughter. She’s not even three years old. She’s got curly hair and eyes like mine, but most of all, she doesn’t understand her daddy does bad things. She doesn’t know this life. It’s my job to make sure she never does.”
Lacey bites her lower lip.
“Iris, I need to know what you know. Is Adam in trouble?”
Adam glances at me once, warning in his eyes. I know his real name now. According to him. Of course I already knew it.
Iris looks all over the room. “I won’t say anything. I’m sorry, but I’m not on your side, ma’am. I’m not. Thank you for helpin’ me, and about earlier, bless your heart.”
Tears fill Iris’s eyes, but she blinks them back.
“Thank you,” Lacey mutters.
There’s struggle on both of these women’s faces.
“Iris, please. I don’t know what to do.”
“I don’t know either, because I won’t tell you. I want Adam arrested. I want him imprisoned.”