Malt Me (Liquor Cabinet Series #1)

by D. L. Gallie

  “It’s okay, baby, I don’t want you anywhere near that fucker anyway. At least if you’re at work, I know you will be safe.”

  She looks up at him with an odd look on her face. “Okay.”

  Mike gives her a quick kiss on the lips, and we race towards my car.

  “Dude, are you okay to drive?” Mike cautiously asks.

  “Yeah, I’m good.” Climbing in, I look to Mike and say, “Buckle up asshat, let’s go.”

  We back out of Mike’s driveway, and head to the cabin.

  Forty minutes later, we arrive at the cabin, but it’s deserted. Opening the front door, it doesn’t look like anyone has been here in years. There is still police tape stuck to the verandah bearers from last time.

  My heart sinks as I now don’t know what else to do. I slide down the side of my car and put my head in my hands. Mike walks over to me, crouches down, and places his hand on my shoulders. I look up into his concerned eyes. He clears his throat, ”Look, dude, Kenz is strong. She will be fine. Let’s head home, we need to be close by when we hear that Kenz and the munchkins are found and safe.”

  I’m too shaken to drive, so Mike guides me to the passenger side and I climb in. He drives us back to my place and just as we pull up, I get a text. I open up the text and I stare at it in disbelief, it’s from a number that I don’t recognise. It has two words,

  Unknown – help me

  As soon as I finishing reading it, I drop my phone in shock. I know it’s Kenz, but I don’t know what to do. Snatching my phone back up, I immediately call Officer Hamilton. She picks up on the first ring. “Hamilton.”

  “Hey, it’s Jordan. I just got a text from a number that I don’t know saying, ‘help me’. I’m pretty sure it’s a cry for help from Kenz.”

  “Okay, that’s great. Tell me the number and I’ll see if tech can trace it.”

  “Sure.” I give her the number.

  “Thanks Jordan…”

  Interrupting her, I ask, “So, what do we do now?”

  “Leave it with me and I will be in touch, either way I will let you know what happens. Jordan, this is a great lead. Kenzie is strong, just keep remembering that.”

  “Yeah, thanks. I’ll speak to you soon.” Sighing, I hang up and slide my phone back into my pocket.

  I look over, and Mike is staring at me and says, “See, it’s going to be fine.” He walks over to the fridge and grabs two Diet Cokes.

  We go outside and sit at the Jack and Jill. After sitting in silence for about ten minutes, I jump up and in frustration I yell towards the clear blue sky, “Fuuuuuuuuck!”

  Sitting back down, I look towards Mike, “Dude, I feel so helpless. Kenz and my babies are out there, and I am sitting here doing nothing. I’m having a Goddamn freakin’ Coke with my best mate. It’s just not right.”

  Standing up, I lean over the railing and again I shout, “Fuuuuck!” I’m so frustrated that I can’t do anything.

  “Look, dude, I get it. You’re annoyed, you feel useless and your fucking pissed off, but there is nothing we can do right now. I know it sucks donkey balls, but you need to remain calm and strong for Kenz. Why don’t you go to Malt Me and tinker or brew some shit? It will take your mind off things and keep you busy. I can’t be worrying about you, too.”

  I look towards Mike. “Shit, dude, when did you become the wise one?”

  Mike fakes being hurt. “Listen here, asshat, I’ve always been wise and all that other shit. You are now just finally seeing me for all that I am.”

  “And there’s the Mike I know. Thanks dude, I appreciate the pep talk.”

  Mike says he’s got to go and since we took my car, I offer to drive him home. We get to his place, just as De-Niece is pulling up. She races over and wraps her arms around Mike. “Any news?”

  Mike shakes my head. “The cabin was a bust but asshat got a text.”

  De-Niece looks over at me confused. “From who?”

  “No idea, I didn’t recognise the number, but I’m sure it was Kenz reaching out for help. I called the police and they are trying to trace the number now. That was a few hours ago, so hopefully I’ll hear something soon.”

  De-Niece looks really pissed. I guess she is just as worried as we are. Turning I slap Mike on the back. “Thanks for today, dude, I’m going to head home, I’ll keep you posted.”

  “Anytime, man, anytime. You keep me updated and just remember our girl is strong. She is one of the strongest peeps that I know, so she will be fine. I can feel.”

  “Thanks, Mike, I appreciate it. I’ll chat you both later.” Turning, I jump into my car and head home.

  As soon as I get home, I collapse in a heap on sofa, and I let it all out. I crumble and cry.

  I cry for Kenz.

  I cry for our babies

  Most of all, I cry because I’ve failed her…again.

  The drive into town takes about ten minutes. As it’s early Saturday afternoon, most of the shops are starting to close; I hope that I can do this. The scenery is absolutely stunning, on one side of the road is a river and the other is a beautiful rainforest. No wonder he chose here to keep me, it’s so secluded and oddly peaceful. “Clint, it’s absolutely beautiful here.”

  He glances towards me and smiles. Reaching over, he places his hand on my thigh and gives it a little squeeze. Inwardly I shudder at his touch, but to keep up my ruse, I look over at him and sweetly smile, before looking out the window again.

  This is my chance to make my escape or at the very least get help.

  We park the car outside the local supermarket and head in. To keep up the loving girlfriend ploy and make him think that I want to be with him, I grab his hand and put it over my shoulders, so I can put my arm around his waist. Slipping my hand into his back jeans pocket, I give his ass a squeeze, just like old times. Looking up at him I whisper, “I missed this,” as I snuggle into him.

  He sniffs my hair and I cringe, he hugs me closer and I start to tremble. Closing my eyes I take a deep breath, telling myself I can do this and to keep walking, putting one foot in front of the other. My heart rate accelerates, as we get closer to the shop door. My mind goes into overdrive trying to figure out how I am going to get out of here.

  We race around the shop getting everything we need for the risotto, and not once do I see someone; just my luck. We get to the checkout and I place the groceries on the conveyor. I’m discretely trying to get the chick’s attention but she won’t look up. Goddam teenagers. I guess that plan won’t work, so I hope and pray that Jordan got my text.

  Clint pays for our groceries, and I go to grab the bags but he places his hand on my arm. “I got it, Sweetcheeks.” I secretly high five myself, as I didn’t shudder that time when he touched me.

  “Thanks, baby, do you want to get a coffee before we head back? I’d kill for a latte and muffin right now. Maybe we could also take a walk through the park over there, when we are finished. It’s so pretty here and it’s a lovely day.” If he agrees, I might be able to get away if I slip to the bathroom.

  “Sounds good, Sweetcheeks, let’s drop the bags off first.” Turning around, I smile and walk out of the store with a little spring in my step. This is my chance, I just know it.

  Clint gets a text on the way to the car, but as he has the bags he can’t read it. We get to the car; I open the boot so he can put the bags in. After closing it, I grab his hand, entwine my fingers with his, and we head towards the coffee shop.

  As we are walking through the car park Clint pulls his phone out of his jeans pocket and checks the text that came through earlier

  Traitor – he knows you have her

  Clint stops, lets go my hand, and I see his fists clenching by his side. He looks at me, and I know that whatever was in that text has pissed him off. “Is everything okay, baby?”

  He looks back at his phone and then snaps his head up, glaring at me. In a split second, he lunges towards me but I jump back. “You bitch, you fucking lying whore bag bitch. You texted loverboy, and here I
was going to let him live, but now you and he are both going to suffer, painfully.”

  I’m rooted on the spot. I stare at him my mouth wide open in shock. I don’t know how he knows but I’m really scared now. My mind is racing, but I don’t have the energy to come up with an excuse so I do that only thing that I can. I race towards him, swing my leg back, and with all my might, I stomp on his foot. Then I shove my knee into his balls and push him; he doubles over in pain.

  This is my chance.

  I take the opportunity to run. I run through car park into the back street, and I don’t stop; I run as fast as I can, turning down streets, and doubling back.

  I don’t stop.

  I just keep running.

  Ducking and weaving down streets.

  I don’t look back.

  After running for what feels like forever, I have to stop, I’m shattered. It’s getting harder and harder to breathe. I’m totally lost and have no idea where I am in this damn town, or even which Goddamn town I’m in. Ducking down an alleyway, I hide behind an old, beautiful brick building, which I think would be perfect building for a brewpub.

  Giggling, I shake my head, how on earth can I be thinking of beer at a time like this? Hiding behind the industrial bins out the back, bending over, I put my hands on my knees and take a deep breath. Sliding down the wall, I rest my head on my knees and start to cry. I have no idea where I am. I have no money, and I have no fucking clue what to do next. What does one do when you have a fucking psycho looking for you?

  When I look up again it’s dark, I have no idea how long I’ve been sitting here. Taking a deep breath, I think it’s now or never, so I sneak out from where I am.

  Heading towards the road, sticking close to the building for cover, I

  peek around the corner. I find I’m back at the main street that we drove in on. There is a streetlight on the other side of the road, from what I can see, the place is deserted. Doesn’t anyone live is the fucking town? Looking up and down the street, I decide to head back towards the shopping precinct, surely there will be someone around to help me.

  Taking another deep breath, I pick up my pace and keep going. It takes me about five minutes to reach the supermarket. In that time, I have not seen one person, or even a single car; the lights in the shop are off and it’s closed. “Damn smalls towns,” I mumble to myself.

  Taking another look around, I see headlights coming from the direction I was heading. I race onto the road to flag them down, but as the car gets closer I see that it’s Clint’s. “Fuck,” I say to myself as I quickly turn and run across the road into the park.

  Clint screeches to a stop, jumps out, leaving the engine running, and runs into the park after me. “I know you’re here, bitch, you will be leaving with me!” he shouts into the dark night sky. Before he adds, “Come out, come out, wherever you are.” in a sinister voice.

  I’m hiding under the slide when I hear him coming towards me, I hold my breath, and he stops right near my hiding place. My heart starts beating erratically and I’m sure her can hear it. I think that he’s found me, and I start to give up, when I see that he is turning in circles, looking around. He stops and shouts again, “I know you’re here, bitch, and I will find you. I’ve got all night bitch!”

  Holding ever so still, not breathing for fear he will find me, I flinch when he kicks the slide in frustration, narrowly missing me. Turning, he runs further into the park. I sigh in relief.

  I wait until I can’t hear his footsteps and I sneak out. Taking a quick look around, I see a light on in the distance. I take off in that direction, trying to be as quiet as possible. As I get closer to the light, I can feel my heart beating; it feels like its going a million miles a minute. I’m about fifty meters from the house when, from behind a tree, Clint steps out. Stopping me, dead in my tracks, I quickly turn around to run away.

  He lunges forward, grabbing me by my hair. “Got you now, you little bitch. ” I squeal from the pain, my hair follicles tearing out. He yanks me roughly into him. Wrapping his arms tightly around me, as I kick and lunge my legs. Without thinking, I scream at the top of my lungs, hoping that someone will hear. Viciously, he spins me around and punches me in the face. Seeing stars, I drop to the ground like a sack of potatoes. I hold my cheek, the pain is excruciating; I start to cry. Feeling the blood begin to drip down my face, I sob harder.

  Clint reaches down and slaps me again. “Shut the fuck up, bitch.” I’m lying on the ground; I immediately draw my legs up to protect the babies and myself. He grabs me by my hair and starts to drag me back towards the car.

  Kicking and screaming I keep saying, “Please let me go. Please don’t hurt me.” Clint is mumbling to himself, but I cannot make sense of what he is saying, he has completely spaced out. As we pass under a light near the playground, he looks down at me. I see that his face is void of any emotion, but his eyes are full of rage. I’ve never seen him like this.

  It’s in this moment that I know that I have to get away; otherwise I will not survive.

  Once again, I try to dig my heels into the ground, but it’s no use, he’s too strong. The anger courses through his veins, giving him what feels like super human strength. He keeps dragging me towards the car. I’m so scared, I don’t know what else to do.

  We get to the car and he opens the boot to shove me in. As he is shoving me in, the light from behind him illuminates the tyre iron sitting there, in plain sight. I reach over and grab it. With all my might, I turn and swing. It connects with the side of Clint’s head, and he loses his balance. With the hand that is holding the tyre iron, I shove him in the chest with everything that I have. He falls backwards, and I tumble back with him. I hear a crack as we both land on the bitumen with a thud.

  Lifting my head, I look towards Clint; he’s not moving and his vacant brown eyes are staring back at me, not blinking. It’s in that moment that I realise he’s dead, I start to scream as I realisation sets in: he’s dead. I continue to scream, as I see blue and red light coming towards us. They are last thing I see, as everything goes black.

  I’m at home, but I can’t sit still, I can’t concentrate on anything. I’ve never felt so lost or helpless in my entire life. I’ve failed to protect her again and this time there are the twins to think about. “Shit! Fuck! Shit!” I yell at myself.

  I’d accepted that Kenz and I probably would never have kids. Now that she is pregnant, I’m over the moon. However, I’m now scared shitless that I am going to lose them all.

  Sitting on the couch, I just stare at our wedding picture on the TV cabinet and I start to cry. I doze off, absolutely exhausted. I’m woken up by the sound of the phone ringing, I slide to answer and sleepily say, “Yeah?” Not caring that it sounds rude.

  “Jordan, this is Officer Hamilton.”

  I immediately sit up, instantly wide-awake. “Did you find her?” I shout into the phone.

  “Yes, we have her. She’s currently on her way to hospital to be assessed. I’m on my way there now, I’ll meet you at the hospital.”

  “Okay, thanks, Officer Hamilton.”

  Hanging up I immediately call Mike. He answers on the first ring, “Any news, asshat?”

  “They found her, she’s on her way to hospital.”

  I hear him sigh in relief, “Swing by and get me, I want to see our girl.”

  “Okay, I’ll be at yours in ten.”

  When I wake up, I am in a strange bed again. I start to panic, but when I look around, I realise I’m in a hospital bed. Jordan is beside me, with my hand resting under his head, sound asleep. A massive smile appears on my swollen, bruised face, as I never thought I would see him again.

  With my free hand, I lift it up, and run it over his cheek. He stirs, so I continue to run my hand back and forth across his face. He opens his beautiful green eyes and stares up at me. His face immediately lights up when he registers that I am awake and grinning back at him.

  “Hi, husband.” I manage to squeak out before the tears begin to fall; the
flood gates have opened and my face currently rivals Niagara Falls.

  Jordan stands up and slides onto the bed next to me. I lean forward and he wraps his arms around me. Still crying, I snuggle into him and cry some more. He rubs my arm soothingly, whispering, “Shhhh. Your safe now.” He keeps placing gentle kisses to my forehead, while squeezing me tighter.

  We are interrupted when Mike clears this throat. “Welcome back, Kenz!”

  Looking towards Jordan, I hesitantly ask, “Did the police get him this time?”

  Jordan looks at me confused, before looking towards Mike, who also has a perplexed look on his face. I look back and forth between the two of them. “Guys, am I missing something?”

  Jordan sits up and takes my hands between his. “Kenz, what do you remember?”

  Struggling to remember, I bite my fingernails. “Umm, I remember running through the park, Clint dragging me and then him trying to put me in the boot. I managed to swing at him with something, and then seeing flashing lights. Then I woke up here.”

  All of a sudden it all comes flashing back to me.

  Running.

  Clint grabbing me.

  Dragging me towards the car.

  Shoving me into the boot.

  Swinging the tyre iron.

  Colliding with Clint’s head.

  Shoving him.

  Falling.

  Crunch.

  His lifeless eyes.

  Flashing lights.

  My whole body is shaking, and I scream. My breathing becomes hard and I start to hyperventilate. I took someone’s life.

  Tears are pouring down my cheeks, I’m gasping for breath, unable to breathe as the reality of what I did sinks in. Jordan is trying to console me but I’m beyond reasoning with: shaking, screaming and crying.

  Shaking my head back and forth.

  Screaming, “No! No! No!”

  The nurse and doctor come rushing into the room. I can hear them, but nothing registers.