“Touché,” Greg added with a smirk.
“Got nothing to say to that now do you, pal?” Vic said victoriously. The sneer Tom gave him was fully expected.
“See, that’s why I don’t let myself fall in love,” Greg added, sliding down in his seat just a bit further.
“And how do you avoid it?” Vic wanted to know, satisfied that he had shut Tom up fast with his comment.
“I don’t get involved.”
“How can you not get involved?” Vic inquired.
“One word. Hookers.”
“Sweet Jesus. You only sleep with hookers?”
“Trust me, buddy, there is no sleeping, hence my not getting involved.”
Vic flipped his cigarette into his empty beer bottle before pulling a fresh beer out of the cooler to his left. “What man hasn’t slept with a hooker at one time or another—okay, minus our saintly friend here,” Vic nudged his head to Tom. “But we all need companionship at some point in our lives.”
“Not me. I’m a solitary man. My job takes me all over the world. I can’t worry about some chick nagging me to come home or to stay home and make her my wife.”
“Sounds like a lonely life to me.” And Vic thought, mirrored his life not too long ago.
“Non-complicated life. Look at the trouble the two of you have with your women.”
“I don’t have trouble with my wife,” Tom added casually.
“He’s in denial. That man is as whipped as they come.”
“Fuck you, Vic,” Tom said, slugging him in the shoulder.
“I know, I’ve seen it these past few days I’ve been here,” Greg agreed. “Totally whipped.” He imitated the sound of a whip, making a slashing motion with his hand.
“You guys are a riot. I’m not whipped.”
“Thomas, can you come in here for a bit?” Cassie called out from inside the house, having Tom stand from his chair instantly.
“Nope, not whipped at all,” Vic laughed and received another slug to the arm. “I could arrest you for police brutality you know. I kid him,” Vic added after Tom had left, “but he has a damn good thing there with Cassie.”
“And from what I’ve seen, you have a pretty damn good thing going with Julia.”
“Yeah,” Vic sighed, looking down into his beer. “Ever shot anyone, Greg?”
“Like I said—”
“I know, you’d have to kill me. Would you be willing to kill, if you had to?” Greg shrugged wide shoulders. “I protect, in every way shape and form. If I had to, yes, I would aim to kill.” Vic looked up into his eyes, seeing the sincerity in them. “If Kent comes near this house or near Julia…”
“I know what to do.”
***
Julia couldn’t remember ever feeling this happy before. Everything in her life was working out. She’d met and fallen in love with a wonderful man. Granted, that man had also been in love with her sister, but she was getting past that. She had a job she enjoyed—couldn’t wait to be able to return to it—liked living in small town Passion, and had wonderful friends in Cassie and Tom.
Nothing could be better than that.
She’d had a little more wine than she’d planned on at Tom and Cassie’s, but Tom had such incredible taste in wine; it was hard not to drink some. Her head was spinning; she felt giddy with love, and the only thing she wanted when she and Vic got home was to throw him on the floor and fuck his brains out.
When she tripped up the deck stairs leading to their back door, she giggled foolishly. And when Vic caught her and held her in his arms, she thought, Screw the floor, here is better.
“I need to get you to bed.”
“You read my mind—well, actually I was thinking of throwing you on the deck here and riding you like you’ve never been ridden before.”
“Yes, well…” Vic cleared his throat, slipping the keys from his pocket. “Might be better to wait until we get inside, where it’s private.”
“Screw private. I want you, Officer, and I want you now.”
“You’re drunk, doll face.”
Julia laughed, hopping onto his back when he went to unlock the door. “Yeah, and I’m horny.”
“Well there isn’t a day that goes by that you’re not—and let me say thank you to that—but I’d still rather get inside before you rip my clothes off.” He pushed the door open.
“I want to eat you alive.” She nibbled his ear. “I love the way you taste.”
“I should get you drunk more often.”
“Works for me.” Unhooking her hands and feet from his body, Julia jumped in front of him, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I am so damn happy right now.”
“I can see that.” He wiped the tussled hair from her face.
“I am head over heels in love with you, Victor Davis. Did you know that?” she slurred.
“It strikes a cord. I’ve never seen you like this. You’re rather cute.” He grinned.
“Cute?” She backed off, stumbling a little. “Cute? Hell, I’m more than cute. I’m sexy.” She skimmed her hands over her breasts and down the rest of her body.
“Hell, yeah.”
The doorbell rang, making her jump. “Oh, jeez, now I’m hearing bells.”
“It was the door, sweetie.” Laughing, Vic walked to the front door.
“I’ll get it.” Julia ran for the door, laughing, fighting Vic for control of who would open it. When he managed to get the door handle before her, she sulked. “Cheater. You can see straight.”
“Funny how that works.”
Leaning against the wall to the side of the door, Julia waited while he opened the door. The instant she saw what hung on the door, she sobered up.
“What the hell?”
“Yeah, that’s why I’m here.” Mr. Henderson from across the street spoke. “And that isn’t the half of it. You need to step outside to see it.”
Stuck to the door was a picture of her face, a knife jabbed right through her nose. Her stomach rolled, and she swallowed the bile.
“Damn it!”
Julia shook herself clear and stepped outside to see what Vic was looking at. As she stepped down the front step and looked at the house, her breath froze.
There, across the front of the house, in bold red, was the word, “Traitor”. The sickness she felt before was nothing compared to what she felt now.
“I just came home from work and saw it and thought I should come over and see if you knew about it.”
“Thanks, Mr. Henderson.”
“Damn shame. When you catch the punk responsible for this, Sergeant, I hope you throw the book at him,” Mr. Henderson said, walking off.
“Vic—”
“Fucking Marshall.” Vic stormed past her and up the stairs to the door.
Julia watched as he pulled his sleeve over his hand and yanked the knife from the door. “What are you going to do?”
“Send this for fingerprint analysis, but I’m sure it’ll come back clean. Marshall’s too smart to leave any prints behind. The bastard thinks he can get away with this, but I’ll get him.” Vic took Julia’s picture from the door. “And what the fuck does he mean by traitor? Christ.”
Julia knew. The message hadn’t been for Vic; it had been meant for her. She was the traitor. Clamping her mouth shut, she walked to the sofa and sat. Her happy world had suddenly come crashing down around her. How long would it be before Vic found out the real reason she’d come to town and who she really was?
“Let’s go away,” Julia blurted out.
“What?”
She lifted only her eyes to Vic. “Let’s get away. Somewhere far away. Maybe we could go to Mexico? I’ve never been to Mexico.”
“What are you talking about, Julia?”
She stood and walked to him, taking his hands in hers. “If Marshall can’t find us, he can’t hurt us. We could go on a vacation, to Mexico for a few weeks, and maybe he’ll give up before we get back.”
Vic took her by the shoulders. “You want us to run awa
y from him?”
“Yes.”
“And you think he’ll just give up on me?”
“Yes.”
He shook his head. “Well, he won’t. He found me here; he’ll find me wherever I go. I ran once; I am not running again. This is my home, damn it, and he is not chasing me away again. We stay,” Vic said sternly, then kissed her gently on the mouth.
Julia didn’t want to stay because she knew it would be her downfall.
It was only a matter of time before Vic found out she was Michelle’s sister and the real reason she’d come to town.
Her happy world had come crashing down on her, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t prevent it from disintegrating.
Chapter 25
She waited until she was sure Vic was sound asleep before slipping quietly from their bed. Grabbing her clothes, she tip-toed to the washroom to change. When she stepped out, fully dressed, she peeked in on Vic one last time, to make sure he was fast asleep. Satisfied that he was, she snuck down the stairs, cringing when the third step from the bottom creaked.
Her heart hammering in her chest, she left the house and headed for the garage. Climbing behind the wheel of her car, she slunk from the garage as quietly as she could and drove away.
***
Rolling over, Vic felt the void beside him. Opening his eyes and seeing Julia missing from her spot sent his panic sensors on overdrive.
Climbing out of bed, he pulled on his jeans, grabbing a t-shirt as he hurried from the room.
He heard the back door click as he took the last step down. Hurrying to the door, he threw it open and saw Julia’s car cruise down the alley. What the hell was she doing? And where was she going at two in the morning? Did she have a death wish? When he caught up with her, she was going to get a serious earful about leaving the house alone.
Well, wherever she was headed, she was going to have a tail, because he damn well wasn’t letting her out of his sight as long as Marshall was in town. He was never so glad to be a light sleeper as he was now.
***
Marshall’s room light was out when Julia pulled into the hotel parking lot. It didn’t matter, she thought, she was going to wake him and deal with him one last time. Sliding from her car, Julia headed to Marshall’s room and, raising her fist, began pounding on the door.
When a light came on, she felt her breath catch and her heart speed up. Was she insane? What the hell was she doing here? But before she could turn and run, the door opened, and Marshall stood before her, looking tired and pissed.
“Do you have any idea what time it is?”
“I need to talk to you.”
Snarling, Marshall stepped to the side to allow her in. “This better be damn good, Julia. I hate being woken from a sound sleep.” He closed the door with a snap.
“I want you to leave me and Vic alone and go back home.”
His burst of laughter startled her. “Yes, ma’am. Just let me pack my things, and I’ll be out of your hair,” Marshall laughed again, only this time it was cut with an edge.
“Vic isn’t responsible for Michelle’s death, and we both know it.”
“So says the slut who’s banging him. I wonder what your dear departed sister would think about that.”
“Don’t use her against me ever again,” Julia barked at him. “I’m tired of you using her. You don’t want to avenge her death; you only want to take Vic out because he took something that was yours. And we both know how much you hate that.”
“I would watch what you say to me, little girl.”
“No. You can’t intimidate me anymore, Marshall. And I’m not a little girl.” Julia pulled the gun from her purse and pointed it at Marshall’s chest. “Either leave us alone, or—”
“What? You’ll shoot me? You don’t have the guts to do that.”
Julia screamed when he lunged at her, grabbing the gun from her hands. And when the door burst open, she screamed once more.
“Back away from her, Kent.”
“Vic!” The panic she felt at seeing Vic, clogged her chest.
“Drop the weapon, and back away, nice and slow.” His hand steady, Vic held his weapon aimed at Marshall’s heart.
Marshall handed the gun to Julia, holding his hands up and backed away. “It’s not my weapon, Officer. I’m the innocent party here; she came here to shoot me.”
“It’s okay, Vic. I’m okay. Let’s just get out of here.” Tucking the gun back in her purse, Julia went to Vic. “Let’s go.”
“What the hell were you doing here, Julia?” Sliding his weapon into his belt, Vic kept his eyes on Marshall.
“It’s not important. Let’s go.”
“Oh, I think it is important, Julia. Maybe it’s time you came clean with your lover. It’s not good to start a relationship on lies.”
“Shut up!” Julia screamed at Marshall, startling Vic.
“A relationship based on lies is only doomed to fail. You don’t want to fail do you, Julia?”
“Shut up, Marshall. Let’s go, Vic.” She tugged at his arm but didn’t even budge him an inch. “Vic, please.”
“I think lover-boy here wants to know who his precious Julia really is.”
“Stop it, Marshall, please, just stop it. Vic, please, let’s go home,” she pleaded, her eyes stinging with hot tears.
“In all those times you were fucking my wife, didn’t she ever talk about her family?”
“Stop it, Marshall. Don’t listen to him, Vic. Please.”
But Vic stayed where he was.
“Didn’t she ever tell you what her maiden name was? Or that she had a sister?”
“Vic, I’m begging you, please, let’s go.” She was panicking now.
“Wilson. Her name was Michelle Wilson before she married me, and the woman you’ve been fucking for the past few months happens to be her sister.”
“What?” Vic laughed now. “That is ridiculous.”
“Yes, yes, it is. Let’s go. He’s just trying to mess with you.” Julia tugged at him, but he still didn’t budge.
“Am I, or is she the one who has been messing with you?” Marshall taunted. “Aren’t you even the slightest bit curious why she’s here, in the middle of the night, with a gun? Has she shown you what a crack shot she is yet?”
Vic tilted his head, looking over at Julia.
“Don’t listen to him, Vic. Please.”
“I taught her how to shoot; I paid her to find you, because she wanted to find you and make you pay for killing her sister.”
Julia lunged at Marshall, her short nails clawing at his face, her fists beating on his chest. “Shut up, shut up,” she screamed.
With a great deal of ease, Marshall grabbed her hands, cuffing them in his then pushed her back.
She stumbled onto the bed, her chest heaving. And when she looked up at Vic, she saw it in his eyes, and she knew; her world had just disintegrated. “Vic, please, don’t listen to him. I love you. Remember that. I love you.”
“It was all a ruse, her coming to town, meeting up with you. And seeing the pain in both your eyes is very gratifying,” Marshall laughed boldly
“Shut up, Kent!” Vic bellowed.
“Vic—”
“Don’t.” He backed away when Julia reached out to him. “You told me you had a sister who died last year. Was her name Michelle?”
“Vic—”
“Answer me!” he demanded loudly.
“Please, Vic, can’t we just go home and talk this out?”
Vic lunged out at her, grabbing her by the wrists and yanking her to her feet. “Answer the fucking question, Julia.”
“Yes,” Julia screamed it at him, her eyes blurry with tears. “Yes,” she said, deflated now.
Vic released her with a good shove, then spun on his heels and left the room.
“Looks like trouble in paradise,” Marshall snickered.
“Fuck you, Marshall.” Racing from the room, she watched Vic speed away.
***
How could this
be? How could he have not known? She’d played him for the fool.
Storming into his house and slamming the door hard enough to rattle the walls, Vic fumed. Julia was Michelle’s sister, and he’d had no clue. How could he have known; there wasn’t really a strong resemblance. Michelle had been fair skinned and fair haired. Julia had dark red hair and—okay—a fair complexion, but that was the only similarity. Michelle had been quiet, soft spoken, where Julia was brass, vibrant, outspoken.
How could it be true that they were sisters?
The front door creaked open, and Vic spun around to see Julia enter the house. “Get out,” he growled.
“Vic, please, can’t we just talk this through?”
“No.” Marching into the living room, he felt like he was suddenly being smothered. Like a hand was gripping his heart and squeezing tight. He couldn’t breathe.
“At least let me explain.”
“I don’t want anything from you, Julia. You lied to me, for months.”
“I had my reasons.”
He spun on her. “Oh, yes, and we both know what those were, thanks to Marshall.” Yanking the cigarette pack from the coffee table, he lit one up and dragged on it with a great deal of fury.
“It wasn’t how Marshall said it was. Yes, I came here looking for you, and yes, I wanted answers. But a big part of me didn’t believe what Marshall had told me, and the more I got to know you, the more I didn’t believe you were responsible for her death.”
“You mean the more you fucked me.”
“Now you’re just being crude.”
“Am I? It’s the truth. Why, Julia? Why did you seduce me in the first place? Were you curious what it felt like to sleep with the man who had possibly killed your sister?”
“No!” she gasped.
“Then why? Tell me, Julia.” He grabbed her by the arms, giving her a good shake. “Tell me why you were so eager to fuck me?”
“Fine, Vic, fine.” She pushed free. “You want to know, then I’ll tell you. I wanted to fuck you because I thought being with the last person that had been with my sister before her death would bring me closer to her. Happy? Are you fucking happy now?”
Escape in Passion Page 15