by Freya Barker
"Well damn. A pussy after all." Arlene mutters, sending Emma into a giggling fit.
I stalk over to Arlene and release all my pent up lust on her mouth. Fuck, she turns me on.
"Fierce, babe. That was fucking hot."
"Hellooo, in the room!" Emma squeaks. "And by the way, he’s coming back."
When I turn around, Clint is marching back up to the door, pulls it open, puts his hands down at his sides and says, "Mornin' folks, I'm here to look at some fire damage. Who should I speak to?"
At Emma's barely contained snicker, Arlene and I both burst out laughing. A little ruddy in the face, Clint has a little smile pulling at the side of his mouth. "Damn woman, last time I was raked over the coals like that I was eleven and my mom was tanning my hide after she found the cigars I'd stolen from gramps. She was a formidable woman, my mom. I reckon, so are you."
Sticking out his hand he walks over to Arlene who takes it, smiles up at him and slaps him on the shoulder. "Let's get to work, big guy. I can see we'll get along fine."
A month and a half is what it’s going to take. Arlene is a little down, probably still clinging to the vague hopes of being open for Christmas, but we’re looking at the new year for sure. Clint knows what he’s doing, that much is clear. A great relief after the two morons we had here yesterday. His crew is coming in as soon as we can get the quote approved by the insurance company and in the meantime he is going to look for temporary accommodation for them locally. Commuting from Durango here every day gets a bit much, so he figures four consecutive twelve to fourteen hour days and three off will be most productive all around and his guys will like the three days in a row home with their families.
New year, new beginnings. Let's hope it will be enough to untangle this mess.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Julie is back!
It's my first thought again this morning and still I’m so relieved. I had started to feel like I was stuck in a centrifuge, sucking me further down with every new piece of bad news that found me. Last night Gus called Emma to say they were on their way home and wouldn't be too long. Apparently they picked Julie up in Dove Creek, only an hour or so from here, so she was definitely on her way home.
The poor girl was frightened out of her wits and agonizing over her missing little boy. Emma and I got her settled in a warm bath with something hot to drink and seeing that Emma is a lot better at the nurturing bit than I am, I left her to keep Julie company and went to see what I could pick up from the guys.
Always an imposing sight, to have these three fine examples of the male species gathered in one small space, I sat next to my favorite one and listened in just as Gus explained the benefits of having friends among all levels of law enforcement. Apparently state patrol had checked in with the various gas stations and had been able to help him track her moves.
"I want to keep her here tonight. I already talked to Joe, who is clearing it with the feds' field office. They want to talk to her but she’s exhausted and not up to any intense questioning, so we'll do what we can here and pass on anything she can give us now and let her rest until tomorrow. I'm sure there won't be a lot of sleep involved for her anyway with the little one still gone. So far she mentioned the name Tanya-"
"That's Collins' sister, the one who was tending bar at Koko's." Seb clarified.
"Right. She said Matt had gotten angry with her when she told him she couldn't be involved with this anymore. He targeted her when he found out she was working for you, Arlene. She found this out when trying to break it off with him, right after the incident with the cat. Very early on he had charmed her and promised to take care of her and Liam before using the kid to pull her strings. She didn't feel she had anyone to turn to for help, so she went along. Told to text him when you were most likely alone or by the phone, she kept telling herself it was nothing but a prank, but when he killed the cat right in front of her, she knew she was in way over her head and couldn't go through with it. Instead of coming to us or going to the Sheriff's Office or the police, she confronted him. That's when he took control over her by grabbing Liam from her. Tanya was going to take her to Moab where Matt would bring Liam later, but when Matt didn't show and Julie started asking questions about her son, Tanya got agitated and tied her up. I figure the night Julie got away was when Tanya found out her brother had been in the hospital all this time. She took off in a panic and left Julie tied in the bathroom."
"Holy crap. It explains a few things but nothing to do with me. Does she have any idea why?" I want to know.
"All she knows is that Matt seems to get instructions as well. He's not working by himself, but maybe later we can find out a little more from her. For now, we’ll let her have a rest.”
When Seb and I finally go back to my place. Caleb is staying, helping keep watch over Julie. Frankly I'm glad to have Seb to myself for a bit. However much I want an end to this, I need the odd stolen moment where I can stop thinking and worrying and simply be and feel. That's what Seb allows me.
When I roll over looking for the man on my mind, I find his side of the bed empty. Damn. Shoe's on the other foot now. A peek at the clock tells me it’s only 5:30 am, and I throw on my old ratty robe to hold off the worst of the morning chill. I find him in the kitchen on the phone, talking in soothing tones and I know his sister has had one of her nightmares. This is a pattern I have become familiar with in very short order and I can see how much it kills him not to be near her, which is why I can't wait for the right time to let him in on my plans, but not yet. Not until I'm sure it’s safe.
I snuggle up on his back and it pleases me when he doesn't even flinch, but instead grabs one of my hands that have snuck around to spread on his stomach and kisses the palm before placing it back. Damn, he feels so good in my space. I never thought I'd say that about anybody. Even Emma, although I love her to distraction, will get on my nerves after too much time together. I always figured I'd end up living by myself, but with Seb, I feel peaceful. He never seems to get in my way, he just fits.
I hear him telling his sister, Faith, he loves her before hanging up and turning to me.
"Bad dreams?" I ask, when he runs his hands through his hair before placing them on my hips and pulling me between his legs.
"Hmmmm. I need to go see her, Arlene. I’ve put it off for so long, not wanting to disrupt her routine until I was ready to make a real change, but I miss her. And she misses me."
"I know. We'll make it happen. Soon."
I'm starting to think I should reconsider my original plan. Making him wait any longer just seems cruel. Indecision and guilt overwhelm me when his arms go around my waist and he lays his head on my stomach. I mindlessly stroke his hair, lost in thought.
With Seb in the shower after coffee and toast, I make a quick call to Emma to see how Julie made it through the night and for any further news.
"Morning, girl." Gus answers the phone.
"Hey big guy. Get any sleep?"
"A bit. We're waiting for Joe to come over and take Julie in to meet up with the Feds."
"How's she doing?"
"Terrified, but she was able to give us a few leads to run down. Poor girl is riddled by guilt and Emma has her hands full ensuring her that no one faults her for doing what she needed to do to protect her son. Right now she feels like she's failed everyone, including Liam."
"Anything we can do?"
"Not right now, girl. Just hang tight and stick together. Once we hand Julie off to Joe, I'll maybe drive Ems over to your place. I'll see if Joe can spare a guy to keep an eye out while Caleb and I follow up on those leads. We'll be faster than any investigation the Bureau puts out there."
"I feel pretty damn useless, I have to say."
"Hang in there. We know much more now than we did twenty-four hours ago. Who knows where we'll be by the end of today."
I barely end the call before the phone in my hand starts ringing. No caller ID. Fuck.
"Hello?"
Nothing.
"Unless you have some
thing to say to me, I'm gonna hang up." I throw out there, ballsier than I feel.
"… want mommy…" The little voice can be heard in the background and bile starts creeping up into my throat.
"Where is he? He's just a little boy, let him go." I plead, clutching the phone to my ear, hoping to keep the connection to the little frightened guy.
This morning's conversation with Faith is weighing heavily on my mind. I'm letting the hot water of the shower pound down on my tense shoulders, hoping for some relief. I'm impatient to get her over here, but it would be selfish to have her make that transition before things have settled down again. Goddammit. It breaks my heart every time I hear the tears in her voice, still trembling from the after-effects of her nightmares. I'm so torn between needing to see Faith and staying here to make sure Arlene is alright.
Through the pounding of the water in the shower, I can hear the front door close and I wonder who would come by this early. Suddenly uneasy, I turn off the shower, step out and wipe myself down quickly before pulling on some jeans and calling for Arlene as I walk down the stairs.
The house is empty. A piece of paper, ripped from a notebook is on the kitchen table.
“So sorry. Call Gus. Baby at diner. No choice. All my love.....”
I can't think but my body responds immediately by grabbing the phone and dialing.
"Be there shortly, girl." Gus' voice breaks through to my brain.
"She's gone."
"Seb? That you? What… I just fucking talked to her not ten minutes ago!"
Emma's cry in the background barely registers as I try to form the words.
"A note… she left a note. Fucking hell, Gus! She left a note! A fucking note!" Panic suddenly hits me and I run to the front door and pull it open to find only my truck sitting in the drive.
"Seb! Information, man. I need information. Get it together." Gus admonishes me.
Right. I can do this. "It says; So sorry. Call Gus. Baby at diner, and then 'no choice'. What the fuck is she doing?"
"Stay put, Seb. We're heading over."
"Like fucking hell I will! You outta your ever-loving mind? That's my Arlene out there… My woman, Gus. Mine."
Slamming down the phone I run to grab my boots and a sweater from the bedroom, pound down the stairs and out the front door. Three times. Three times I have failed to protect what is mine. Three chances I've had and I have blown them all. First time got Arlene raped and almost killed, the second time she almost lost her business and now… God I can't even think about that.
I fly through the streets on my way to the diner, blowing through every stop sign I encounter, barely able to keep my truck on the slick roads, and then on the last turn off to the diner, I see it; Arlene's rusty old truck sitting in a ditch at the side of the road with the driver's side door wide open. I pull in right behind it, jump out and call her name, stalking around her truck for any signs of her. There is nothing. Not a sign and not a sound.
The other side of the ditch has some woodland that runs partially behind the diner and borders onto the Ute reservation. Something drives me to head in there, leaving my truck and following my gut. The brush is fairly thick and because the sun doesn't reach all the way in, some frost and patches of our early snow remained on the ground. I'm not a tracker, but I can tell the difference between an animal print and a shoe print, and I can also distinguish a man's size from a woman's. The footprint I'm looking at looks to be a woman's size and appears to be alone. I manage to follow the tracks to where I'm pretty sure the back parking lot of the diner borders.
I am frozen, wearing nothing but my idiotic threadbare robe and some boots I grabbed while running out the door, but nothing is going to stop me from going after that poor little boy. Fucking killed my truck going in the ditch when I slid around the corner. I’m furious at my own stupidity for not grabbing anything I could use as a weapon when I left the house. I wasn't even thinking, I just ran. The voice that haunted my nightmares, Will's voice, was telling me I had a choice; me or Liam. Seriously? That's not a choice. Almost pissing myself in fear, I managed to scribble something for Seb before taking off.
The thought of what a sick motherfucker like Will could do to that baby had me almost puking up my guts. It scared me more than what was undoubtedly waiting for me, but it isn't until I crawl out of my disabled truck that I start thinking I shouldn't give in so easily. So instead of walking the rest of the way along the road, I pick the woods instead, hoping for some element of surprise, although I'm not quite sure what I would do with it.
The cold is crawling into my body and making me stiff and sore all over. I reach the back parking lot to the diner and can hear some rustling coming from the direction of the burned out dumpsters. Could be animals, although what they would want with a bunch of ashes I don't know. Looking around for any sign of life, I find none - other than the slight rustle I hear again. I make my way over to the container closest to the back of the diner and try to peek in. When my head clears the upper edge, I can see Julie's little boy sitting in a corner, his little back against the side of the dumpster. His eyes are closed, his lips almost blue and one of his little hands is moving restlessly through the burnt debris at the bottom. Not good. This is not good. With another quick look around, I start hoisting myself up over the edge when out of nowhere, I hear Seb from behind me.
"Arlene!!"
A slightly cooler head on my shoulders, I ease my way up to the tree line to take a look. Wearing only her ratty robe and some snow boots, I can see Arlene trying to climb in to one of the burned out dumpsters in the back. What the fuck is she doing? What freezes the blood in my veins though is the man and woman coming up the side of the building from the front, a gun clutched in the man's hand, edging toward the container that has Arlene half-dangling out of it. I am pretty sure I've just found Tanya, Matt Collins' sister. And as for the man, his build is very familiar but his features are hidden by the hood pulled low over his head.
I blindly grope for my phone, only to remember I ran out of the house with my keys, boots and a sweater in hand - nothing else. Fuck! Seeing the man sidle around the edge of the wall, sighting his gun on Arlene's back has me yell out her name in warning, realizing at the same time I am now in full view against the edge of the trees. I can feel the whiz of the bullet before I hear the shot go off. Slivers of wood and bark explode away from the tree trunk right beside me with the impact of the slug, stinging my cheek. I drop down to my stomach and try to crawl backwards into the cover of the trees, keeping my eyes on the dumpster that holds Arlene. Armed or unarmed, any indication they lose interest in me and go after her, I am going in; arms waving. No way are they harming a hair on her body.
My only thoughts are to draw them away from her and slowly pulling up into a crouch, I start making my way along the tree line, trying to stay under cover but making enough noise to keep their attention. The guy with the hood keeps firing off shots each time I move, but so far the only damage is done by flying debris. When I notice both of them edging away from the building and towards the woodlot, my hopes rise, but when the man stops and calls to Tanya to keep an eye on the container, they deflate instantly. I know that voice. I know it really fucking well.
Realizing Arlene won't be able to get away unnoticed, my next choice is to simply keep the cocksucker occupied until the cavalry arrives, which should be any time now.
Unfortunately when the first support troops pull in, Gus' Yukon, the man changes his tactics quickly and with a single shot kills Tanya. I'm so fucking confused, ‘cause that was the last thing I was expecting, but when the next thing he does is fire a round into the dumpster where Arlene has found refuge, only to walk around it and fire once more, but from a different side. I crawl up and storm out of the trees, bellowing her name loudly, uncaring that the barrel of the gun is swinging in my direction.
I hear two shots but can't feel a thing after the first one hits. The impact takes me down and when I try to catch myself, my arms can't seem to break my fall
and I slam to the pavement. Then all there is darkness.
The panic in his voice has me throw myself headfirst into the dumpster, where I land head over ass right next to the little guy who hasn't moved an inch. The only thing moving is his little hand that seems to be searching for something. I grab him and try to wrap my robe around him, hoping my body heat - or what's left of it - will keep him warm, just as I hear a shot going off. Jesus! Seb… How did he get behind me? Is he shot? I am so cold, I can barely move, especially with the frozen little guy in my arms. I hear Will shouting at someone to keep an eye out. Burning to know if Seb is alright I crawl to the side of the dumpster, and am about to heave myself up to take a look over the edge when another shot goes off and then another. This last one bores a hole in the side of the container, right opposite of us. With Liam braced in my arms, I throw myself down on the bottom, trying to cover his little body with my own. Holy fuck!! Another shot ricochets off the inside of the dumpster and suddenly I hear Seb's voice again, yelling my name. Two more shots sound and as suddenly as Seb's yelling started, it gets cut off. Silence follows and I find myself unable to move, unable to look at what I know will be Seb's lifeless body. I can't. So I hold the little boy and wait.
Gus finds me and lifts me up, baby and all.
"He's hurt but will be fine, girl. He'll be fine, I promise. Ambulance is on the way."
A relieved sob bursts from my chest as Gus tries to lift me over the edge of my burned out sanctuary.
"Wait. Lift him out first." I let my robe fall open and find two little eyes staring up at me. Little blue eyes that were firmly shut just moments ago, and when I try to hand him to Gus to lift him over, his little arms and legs wrap around me like a monkey. Holding on for dear life.