by Korry Smith
"But when I saw you sitting out here in that fucking string bikini." He brushed my hair away and placed a tender kiss on my sunburnt shoulder. "I couldn't help myself."
I tried to ignore his mouth by going about my business, pouring out the margarita and picking up my phone. It reminded me how he was there kissing me and not somewhere else dodging my calls.
"Wait a minute," I said, pulling my shoulder in and away from his lips. "What are you doing home? You said you wouldn't get in until tomorrow."
Not that I am complaining.
"Yeah, about that," he said, scraping his teeth over his lip ring, and sucking it into his mouth. "I have a surprise for you."
It was not the answer I was expecting, but it made me curious, and slightly giddy. "What kind of surprise?"
Tucking his gun into his back waistband, he stood up and held out his hand. "Come on; I'll show you."
"Okay," I said, and with a firm grasp, his long fingers dwarfing my hand, he yanked me to my feet.
Bending down to pick me up, Alex held me close to his chest as I wrapped my legs around his waist. He placed his hands, firmly and protectively, on my ass and walked us towards the house.
I smiled a shit-eating grin. "You're carrying me?"
"I don't want you sneaking any peeks," he said, shifting me higher in his arms to get a better grip. He gazed up at me with a stern look. "Shut your eyes."
"Fine," I said, burrowing my face into the crook of his neck, letting the blackness engulf me.
I listened to the sounds around me: the crashing waves in the distance, Alex's heavy footsteps in the sand, music thumping from the house, and Len’s loud and abrasive voice, screaming out, “Line up the shots!”
There was a party brewing inside, and I tried not to groan outwardly. I knew my family. They were going to stay forever and a day. Getting any alone time with Alex was going to be impossible now.
Thus far, my surprise wasn't going so well.
"Damn." Alex grunted, scaling the stairs to the deck.
My mind's eye followed his path. I knew the layout of this house like the back of my hand. He didn't go inside, heading on a straight trajectory to the front porch. I strained my ears, hoping to catch a hint of something to clue me in on the surprise. There was the crunching of his shoes on the gravel and the whistling wind, ruffling my hair, but nothing else. It drove me nuts. I was getting more and more anxious by the minute.
"Can I open my eyes now?"
"Hold on," he said, coming to a stop, and setting me back down on my feet. "Keep those fucking eyes closed, Madison Rose!"
"They're closed, okay?" I'd about reached my limit on this little game of his, and my annoyance was shining through.
He spun me around, his hands on my arms, and directed my every step forward. I counted them, because really, what the hell was I supposed to do? It took five steps and one spin. My heart was pounding, so hard and fast, it felt like I was going to die.
"All right," Alex said, wrapping his arms around my waist, and resting his chin on my shoulder. "You can open your eyes now."
The sun blinded me, my sight taking a moment to adjust to the brightness. When the white haze lifted and dispersed, I saw cherry red. The glossy paint and sleek lines didn't register at first. It was like trying to remember a fading dream, grasping on to every single detail and not getting the whole picture, but then all at once and without warning, it fucking hits you.
"Is that…" I couldn't articulate words, my tongue fumbling in my mouth. I stumbled forward to touch it. She couldn't be real. The police took her away. I saw it happen. My fingers reached out and ghosted over the side. The car was smooth, yet dusty. "Fucking Tanya…" I turned back to Alex, and he was smiling at me, one so genuine and happy, that it reached his eyes. "How did you get her back?"
"Dev found her. The city auctioned it off a few months ago and sold it to a guy who lived in El Paso. So, I decided to drive up there and make him an offer."
The way he made it sound like it was an inside joke, I knew what he'd done.
"You fucking killed him," I said, shaking my head. "Didn't you?"
He shrugged, a sly smile breaking through his indifference.
"You know, not every transaction needs to result in murder, Alex," I said, trying hard not to laugh, but his thought process was brutal and deadly. It turned me on, far more than it should.
"Some assholes need to be persuaded with violence."
That was his answer for everything.
"Right…wait," I said, snapping my head up and narrowing my eyes at him. “So, you lied to me? There was no shipment for Marcos in El Paso?"
"No," he said, putting his hands on my hips, and gripping me tightly. "You know I don't do that fucking shit without you, kid. In fact, I was so sure that you would see straight through my bullshit."
"Hmm, well, I believed you because I fucking trust you," I said, grabbing, and twisting the fabric of his shirt in my fists.
He frowned. "You're not mad, are you?"
"No," I said, rising to my tiptoes, and kissing him on those beautiful lips. "This was a nice surprise. Thank you."
"This wasn't your surprise."
I leaned back and raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"Here," he said, reaching into his pocket, and pulling out keys. It was a single brass, worn and bent, and hooked to a chain with a large diamond-studded ‘M’ attached to it. "These are your set to our car."
The words ‘our car’ didn't go missed by me.
"Tanya is mine, too?" I couldn't breathe. "Are you fucking serious?"
"Everything that's mine has always been yours.” He bent down to kiss me, but pulled away, only slightly, and whispered. "But that's not your surprise."
"Ugh, I can't take anymore."
"Oh, sure you can," he said, taking my hand, and leading me towards the back of the car. He smiled and did a sideways nod at the trunk. "Open it."
My heart pulsed and thumped with excitement. The anticipation behind door number three made me nervous. I took a deep breath, deciding to face my final surprise with bravery, shoving the key into the hole and twisting my wrist. It clicked and unlocked. The trunk crept opened, slow, and dragging, inch by inch.
The keys fell out of my hand to the ground, a small dust cloud rising from the impact. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Lying on the floor of the cramped trunk was a bound and gagged Susan and Terry. Alex didn't have to say it. The intent was clear. He brought them there to die.
Lying on the floor of the cramped trunk was a bound and gagged Susan and Terry. Alex didn't have to say it. The intent was clear. He brought them to die.
"Oh, yes, this is an excellent surprise," I said, leaning down to get eye level with the sobbing, pitiful excuse for a woman. "Hello, Mother." I flicked a few strands of bleached hair from her face. "Have you missed me?"
She whimpered.
The rag stuffed in her mouth, with duct tape to secure it, was hindering her speech. I would like to think that she said, ‘Yes, I did miss you, my wonderful daughter.’
Terry was grunting and struggling, making himself a nuisance, and bile for this man rose up in my throat. All these memories of when he would eye-fuck me across the room and secretly plot ways to touch me came flooding back. It made my blood boil. I would've popped one off into his skull if I had my gun.
Alex cleared his throat. "Madi, you're going to fucking hate me…but, um, this isn't your surprise."
My back went straight, and I shook my head, fucking confused. "What? No! Seriously, Alex, what else is there?"
"There is just one more thing," he said, turning his gaze down. "Susan, you're up."
She cried, her shoulders shaking, tears streaming down her blotchy cheeks. I hadn't noticed that she was holding something in her hands. It was a white piece of paper, and it trembled in her grasp as she began to raise it up. She got it halfway before letting it fall back down into her lap. There was another round of appalling sobs that rocked her body.
"Susan," Alex said
, pulling out his gun and pressing it to the center of her forehead. "What did we fucking discuss?"
With a muffled response and a half-weep, she lifted her shaky hands and showed me the front page of the paper. It had a simple, but familiar scribble, and a handwriting I'd only seen once before in a birthday card. The message written there was bold, poignant, and made my fucking heart stop.
Marry me.
∞∞∞
Korry Smith, a registered nurse from Arizona, loves to spend time with her husband at the gym, and loves it even more when they get to eat pizza. She loves to watch movies and prides herself on being able to tell anyone about any film coming out in the theatres. In the near future, she hopes to travel to Europe, drive down the autobahn, and walk through a castle. Romance is her genre of choice, but she also enjoys reading true-crime stories and suspense.
Kid is her first novel.