by Dawn, Taylor
“You stupid bitch!” Frankie’s yell came from outside. Ava began searching more frantically for Brandi. “When I get in there, I’m gonna enjoy splattering your brains all over the walls.” He continued to pound on the door.
She darted through the kitchen and heard a muffled whine. The garage. Through the door she went that connected the kitchen with the garage. Looking around there was still no sign of her friend. As she began to walk back into the house she heard the sound again. This time it sounded like it was coming from the floor. Her secret hiding place. With each step closer to the hole in the floor, Ava heard what sounded like struggling. Frankie hadn’t put the lock on the door so she was able to slide it back. A gasp escaped her lips as she saw Brandi sitting in the floor of the area with duct tape over her mouth and her hands bound behind her back. Her ankles were also tied together and Ava watched as she struggled against her bindings.
“Hold still, I’ve got you.” Ava hurried into the hole and began to untie Brandi’s ankles and hands.
Once her hands were free Brandi yanked the tape off her mouth and took in a huge gulp of air. “Thanks.”
“Are you hurt?” Ava looked her over.
“No. I’d just gotten home and someone put something over my mouth. I passed out.”
“Shit. Okay, we need to get out of here.”
“Where’re they at?” Brandi asked as she stood on shaky legs.
“Outside. But I think we can slip out the back and take off running down the beach. If we can make it a half a mile up the road, there’s a 24 hour gas station there.”
“Where’s your cell phone?”
“In my purse in Luke’s truck.”
“Luke?” Brandi followed her out of the hiding spot.
“Long story. Come on.” She tip-toed with her friend close behind and came to the sliding glass doors at the back of the living room. Both women peered outside to make sure there was no one waiting. They could still hear Frankie’s voice toward the front of the house and decided to quietly slide the door open to make a run for it. Stepping outside Ava felt the refreshing hit of salted sea air as she tried to cross the small deck as silently as she could. “When we hit the sand, run. Don’t look back, just run as fast as you can,” Ava whispered to Brandi.
“Okay.” Brandi nodded.
They crossed the deck and landed on the sand. Even though the grainy terrain felt like quicksand, they dug in and put their all into getting the hell away from the house. Brandi was in the lead and Ava watched her clear the end of the house and take off down a flat area of the beach. She wasn’t far behind but when she passed the end of the house, something slammed into her and took her to the ground. Her body rolled a few feet as the sand dug into her skin. After she got her wits about her, Ava looked up to see Frankie coming right for her.
“Don’t ever think you’re fucking smarter than me.” He kicked sand at her and reached down to grab a fist full of her hair. Ava wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of crying out at his assault so she bit her lip until she tasted blood. “Come on.” He yanked her to her feet. “I don’t want an audience when I put a bullet in your head.” He began to pull her toward the house. “I hope you had a good two years down here, they are fixing to come to an end.”
***
Cole whipped his truck in front of Ava’s beach house and Luke was out the door before he’d put the vehicle in park. He yanked his Glock from his shoulder holster and chambered a round.
“You cover the front, I’ve got the back,” Luke barked orders to Cole.
“Got it.” Cole was yet again in business mode. His gun was drawn and he was just as ready as Luke was to end this shit.
Luke crept around the side of the house by the garage and listened for voices. He could hear the brush of the water on the sand and the sound of a man’s voice coming from the back of the house. This was it. Luke took a deep breath and counted to five as he worked on quelling the adrenaline coursing through his veins. Some people loved the thrill of an adrenaline high but he hated it. It only meant he was in a situation he didn’t want to be in. Just like right now.
After the initial energy calmed down a bit, Luke continued around the side of the house and stopped again at the corner. He got down low and took a peek to see what was going on. Terror was the only word to describe how he felt at seeing Ava being dragged up the beach by her hair. Luke’s animal instincts took over and he stepped out from the cover of the house and yelled, “FBI! Put your hands where I can see them!” Luke’s gun was trained on Frankie Bohannan—son to one of the most notorious crime bosses on the East Coast.
He watched with eagle eyes as Frankie acted shocked to see him standing there. Then as if it were happening in super slow motion, Luke saw him reach around his back and grab for something. It was a decision he had to make when he raised his gun just a little higher and squeezed the trigger. The sound of the gunshot rang out around him and he sucked in a breath as he witnessed the bullet hit Frankie right between the eyes.
Ava fell to the sand when Luke pulled the trigger and he wanted to get to her and make sure she was alright. He took one step and heard another gunshot. The air was sucked from his lungs as pain slammed him in the back and dropped him to his knees. Fire spread out from where the bullet hit and everything began to fade around him.
“Luke!” He heard Ava scream and could see her silhouette running toward him. Right before he fell completely, Luke heard another shot and Cole’s voice behind him.
“Got him!” Cole yelled.
“Cole! Luke’s been shot!” Ava screamed as she knelt beside him.
***
Ava watched in horror as Luke’s body crumpled to the sand. The only noises she could hear were the grunts and groans from him being in pain and another shot fired. When she looked around Luke’s body, she saw Cole take out Flynn. Flynn had shot Luke in the back in a coward move. That didn’t surprise her at all; the majority of Frankie’s men were ruthless with zero honor. But that didn’t matter right now. What mattered was that Luke was dipping in and out of consciousness as she knelt down beside him. Her hand wrapped around his and squeezed as if it would help him stay with her.
“Luke, stay with me, please.” Tears formed in her eyes and for the first time in forever, she wasn’t afraid to let them fall.
Cole walked up on them and dropped to his knees. “Help me roll him over,” Cole said.
“Okay.” Ava wiped the tears from her eyes so she could see to help Cole. Luke groaned as they shifted his body to lay on his stomach. “Hold on, Luke.” She grabbed his hand again.
Cole used his pocket knife to cut the leather straps of Luke’s shoulder holster then yanked it off him and tossed it to the side. Ava watched as Cole made a slit in the bottom of Luke’s t-shirt and pulled so that it split down the middle. Her eyes widened and she fell back on her ass in the sand when she saw what was revealed.
“He’s gonna be bruised for a while, maybe a broken rib or two, but he’ll live.” Cole sat back and chuckled.
“A bulletproof vest,” Ava whispered.
“He’s not stupid enough to go into something like this and not protect himself. Neither am I.” Cole thumped his own chest, showing her that he was wearing the Kevlar protection as well.
“Damn it.” Luke shifted and tried to roll back over. “A little help please,” he groaned.
Ava and Cole helped him onto his back and then into a sitting position. “I thought you were dying.” More tears escaped her eyes as she sat there, still in disbelief.
“It sure as hell felt like it for a while. Holy shit that hurt.” Luke pulled what was left of his shirt over his head and revealed the vest that’d saved his life. He undid the Velcro and pulled the protection off. He looked around, “You cut my fucking holster?” Luke pinned Cole with a stare.
“Wanted to make sure the bullet hit the vest and not below it. I’ll buy you a new one.”
“That was my favorite one.” Luke looked serious and then started laughing.
> “And he’s back.” Cole slapped Luke on the back, Luke flinching.
“Stop laughing,” Ava reprimanded.
Both men stopped chuckling and looked at Ava. “Everything’s fine,” Luke assured her.
“No, it’s not. There’re two dead guys on the beach and you were shot. That hardly qualifies as being fine.”
Ava sat there while Luke leaned over and grabbed the sides of her face in his hands. “Look at me. I’m here and I’m alive.” Ava nodded.
“I think I’ll leave you two be. Gonna go put in a call to the local PD.” Cole hopped up and walked up toward the house.
“What happens now?” Ava asked.
“Now I kiss you because you’re safe.” Luke pulled her to him and pressed his lips to hers. The kiss deepened in no time and she felt herself being pulled under the spell that was Luke once more. She was the one to break the kiss.
“This will never work,” she told him, shaking her head.
“Why?”
“Because they’ll put me in witness protection to keep Frankie Senior from getting to me. We’ll never see each other again.”
“They already have him in custody back in New York, Ava. We put in the call and our office there went out to pick him up. They’ll need you to testify, but as for Wit-Sec, no, you’re not going there.”
“Thank you.” Ava launched herself forward and landed on top of Luke. Her lips found any surface they could as she pretty much kissed him silly.
“Did you mean what you said in the note you left?” Luke brushed her hair away from her face and gazed into her eyes, his blue irises catching the azure of the ocean waves nearby.
“Yes.” She took a deep breath, “I know you don’t feel the same and that’s okay…”
Luke cut her off. “I love you, Ava.”
“But the things you said to me that day.”
“I needed you to draw out the man who was watching you. The only way I knew how to get you to go home was to say something like that. I’ll never forgive myself for telling you those things.” He kissed her forehead. “But I never stopped loving you and I meant it the first time I told you.”
“You did?” The tears began to flow once more.
“I sure did. I didn’t think I’d ever say that to anyone, but I found it easy with you. You’re easy to love, Ava.”
“So are you, Luke Daughtry.”
Ava and Luke stayed on the beach until the local police department showed up to take their statements. After hours of clearing things up, Luke being checked over by the paramedics and Cole making fun of him for not being a ‘bullet virgin’ anymore, they were free to go. Only, Ava didn’t want to go into her home again. There were too many bad memories living there. She’d tried to build a life in the house that was constructed of nothing but lies. There was no way in hell she was continuing down that road.
“Is everyone okay?” Brandi jumped out of a patrol car and ran over to her and Luke.
“Yes, we’re all fine.” Ava hugged her friend. “Tired, but fine.”
Brandi nodded and smiled. “I guess I have to go make a statement or something, I’ll call you later.” Then she was off to meet with an officer.
“Listen, I have to fly back to Chicago for a while. I don’t know how long I’ll be gone,” Luke admitted to Ava.
“But you’ll be back, right?”
“I plan on it.”
“Then I’ll be right here, waiting.” Ava smiled and pulled him to her for the biggest hug she’d ever given. His warmth gave her strength. And she would wait for him to come back; she’d wait until the end of time if she had to. Luke Daughtry was put in her life for a reason, she now knew it was to show her how it felt to be loved and protected. For those things, she’d wait forever.
Epilogue
After flying to New York to testify in the trial of Frankie Senior, Ava came right back to Biloxi. She’d never felt more at home than she did there and it was a no-brainer to build her new life in a place where she was comfortable. Her salon stayed busy and she couldn’t be happier. The only thing missing was a place to live. For now she’d been crashing on Brandi’s sofa but she hoped that would change fairly soon and she’d be able to get her own place.
As she stood in her salon on a Tuesday morning, Ava waited for her next client to arrive. When he breezed through the door she relaxed at the familiarity of having him there. “Good morning, Jack.” She smiled at the old man and patted him on the back as he took a seat in her styling chair.
“How ya been, young lady?” Jack tossed his ball cap on the counter and sat back fully in the chair.
“I can’t complain. Things are pretty damn good.” She spread the cutting cloth across him and grabbed her electric clippers.
“That’s good to hear. Now, let’s get rid of this hair,” Jack laughed.
Ava went about her usual weekly routine of shaving off Jack’s extra quarter of an inch of hair. She couldn’t help but smile while she did it. To some it might’ve been a mundane activity but to her, it was who she was. This was where she was meant to be. The only thing that would’ve made it better was if Luke was here with her. She hadn’t seen him in four months and each day apart felt more like ten years instead of twenty-four hours. But she knew he’d come back eventually.
Once she was finished with Jack’s hair, she whipped the cape off him and began to hang it on the hook beside her mirror. Jack threw down her money on the counter and smiled.
“Don’t hang that up just yet, I’m looking a little shaggy.” Ava spun around at the familiar voice behind her.
“Luke!” She took off at full speed and jumped into his muscled arms. Her legs wound around his waist and her arms around his neck.
“Miss me?” he asked.
“More than anything.” She buried her face in his neck.
“I’ll leave you two be. See ya next week, Ava.” Jack slipped out the door and left the two of them alone.
“I’m sorry I had to stay gone for so long. Had some loose ends to tie up in Chicago.”
“Do you have to go back again?” Ava felt disappointment coloring her words.
“No, I’m here to stay. Got transferred to the field office here.”
“That’s wonderful.” Ava couldn’t stop grinning.
“I’m guessing you want me to stay, huh?” His lips turned up in a goofy smile.
“Of course I do. But just so you know, you still have to pay for your haircuts. I have a business to run,” she joked.
“I can think of several types of payment.” He let her down and yanked her to him for a kiss that she felt all the way to her toes.
Everything was now right in her world. Luke was back, her life was on track to so much happiness. Every loose end that’d once flown free was tied up with a shiny bow. What more could she ask for?
The End
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Continue Reading for a Sneak Peek of Split Ends
Book Two in the Magnolia Series
Split Ends
Magnolia Series: Book Two
*Content for Split Ends is not yet edited and is subject to change*
Chapter One
“You’ve got to be shitting me,” Cole Matthews gawked at the stark white piece of paper in his right hand. His other hand flailed through the air like he was batting flies away from his face.
“Whoa, you don’t look happy.” Luke walked by Cole’s desk.
“Look at this shit.” Cole tossed the letter to the edge of the desk; Luke snatching it up quickly.
This was the last thing he needed. He’d had so many life changes in the past six months—including moving to the FBI field office in Biloxi. That was a leap that he didn’t really think about before he found himself knee deep in his decision. His partner Luke Daughtry was transferring to be closer to his girlfriend Ava, so Cole got it in his mind that he should move too. What a numbskull move.
&nb
sp; “Am I reading this right?” Luke sat the paper back on the desk.
Cole dragged a hand through his gelled raven hair. “Yup.” He blew out a frustrated breath.
“You’re married?” Luke’s face was one of pure shock. Cole couldn’t help but think his partner had the same look a cartoon character did when someone handed them a stick of dynamite.
“Apparently so.” He huffed.
“Wait, how did you not know you’re married? That seems like something you’d know about. Were you drugged or something?” Luke chuckled.
“No. Hell, I was nineteen. She thought she was knocked up and I did the honorable thing.”
“But I’m not understanding why you’re still married.” Luke’s confused expression mirrored Cole’s.
“I don’t either. I signed the damn divorce papers over ten years ago.”
“Maybe they made a mistake.” Luke sat on the corner of Cole’s desk.
“If there’s a mistake this big, my faith in the judicial system is fucked.”
“Seems like an easy fix though, file again and get rid of her.”
“Yeah, I’ll get it taken care of. She’s gonna be in town for a few weeks. I’m sure we can get it done then.”
“Sounds like a plan. Listen, I’m gonna head out. Ava’s cooking fried chicken and rhubarb pie.” Luke rubbed his stomach.
“You’re so whipped.” Cole busted out laughing.
“No, I’m in love with the most amazing woman on the planet.” Cole didn’t envy the googly eyed look Luke wore when he talked about his girlfriend. In fact, Cole had sworn off all emotional attachment to the fairer sex ever since he’d first signed those damn divorce papers.
If there was ever a woman he was head over heels in love with, it was her. Gracie Callahan. With her spitfire attitude, her glowing red hair and those emerald eyes; every man in a five block radius turned to look at her when she walked by. Cole hadn’t seen her since he was twenty though. He wondered what she’d look like as a completely filled out woman. Would she be the same innocent beauty as she was years ago? Or had she changed over the years like he had? Damn this was going to suck big time. As if he didn’t have enough shit on his plate, now he had to entertain Gracie while she was in town. Well fuck a duck.