by Kay Maree
“Shit,” he groans on a heavy sigh. “That’s just what I need.” Muttering a curse to himself, Austin asks, “He going to be a problem?”
“More than likely,” I admit, feeling a little guilty for making Austin’s job harder.
“Like I’m going to have to handcuff his ass and sit him in my cruiser while this goes down, or I’m going to have to arrest him for murder?”
“Hopefully, you do the first, so he doesn’t do the last.”
“Fuck. Your man know you’re here?”
“No, but I’m sure he’ll be dad’s first phone call,” I assume correctly when I see dad and Lucifer standing no less than twenty feet away.
“Right. Let me see where we’re at, and then I’ll go talk to your dad. For now, I need you and Josh on standby. No one can confirm how many people are in the building, other than to say classes hadn’t started yet. If we’re lucky, it’s only Lula.”
Obviously, Austin doesn’t know about Darcy yet. “It won’t be just Lula. She hired a woman named Darcy to man the front desk. As far as I’m aware, Darcy comes in a few minutes before Lula to open up and make a start on the paperwork, which means, at best, it’s two hostages, possibly more.”
“Fucking hell. Boys,” Austin gestures for the firefighters and uniforms to join us. “Two women, one aged thirty-six, and the other...” he indicates for me to fill in the gap.
“Twenty-five,” I add.
“Inside the building, with the potential for more,” he continues, picking up where he left off. “SWAT Team Two is on the way from Denver HQ, but they’re a good hour out.
Right now, we need to confirm how many hostages we’re dealing with and see if we can get the gunman talking. Switch your radios to channel eleven and keep the chatter down. My boys are going to man the perimeter; I’d appreciate it if the FD would lend a hand with that.”
“You got it,” Michael’s the most senior member of the department replies.
“Good, then you’ve all got your assignments. Now, get to work.”
It’s then a single shot rings out, causing everyone to still momentarily. What was a hive of activity only a few seconds ago changes the moment the sound of the bullet rents the air.
“Shots fired,” Austin yells into his mic. “Repeat, shots fired. Someone needs to fucking confirm how far away Team two is?”
Feet pound the pavement as everyone shakes off their stupor and springs into action, including me.
I’m moving before I even realize what I’m doing, making my way to the back of the ambulance and tearing the doors open. Gathering up the portable field triage kit, I sling the backpack over my shoulder and spin around, only to be stopped mid-step by Josh.
“Where the fuck do you think you’re going? Austin said to stay close and wait for further instructions, so whatever you’re thinking of doing, think again.”
Not one to be deterred easily, I snap, “Move.” When he doesn’t step aside to let me pass, I try again. “One way or another I’m making sure they get out of there alive. If I have to go through you to make that happen, then I will. I don’t want to, but mark my words, Josh, I am doing something.”
Josh looks at me like he’s weighing my words and how likely I am to follow through with my threat. Obviously, whatever he sees is enough to convince him there’s no changing my mind because he soon states, “If that’s the way you want to play this, then tell me what your plan is because I refuse to have my ass kicked by your husband if something happens to you.”
Relieved that he’s not going to stand in my way, I throw the triage pack at him and start off down the alley. “There’s another entrance not many people know about. When three buildings either side of Lula’s and her studio were updated a few years back, the owners were told by the fire department that to meet code, they needed another exit. To save money, the owners had interconnecting doors to the premises. We should be able to go through the back of Sandra’s shop and into Lula’s without being noticed.”
“And what exactly do you plan on doing when we get in there? We’re not all ex-biker badasses like your husband, or vigilante commandos like your old man, Tate.”
I understand Josh is wary, but we have to do something. Standing around waiting for casualties when there’s a crazy, gun-toting bastard, holding my friend’s hostage just isn’t going to work for me.
“I’ll think of something,” I say by way of non-answer. “Now, let’s go.”
“Shit,” Josh mutters behind me seconds later, pulling up short when he sees Lula, Darcy, and Scarlet sitting with their backs up against the wall, their eyes trained on the huge man pacing restlessly back and forth in front of them. “I knew this was a bad idea, and this only confirms it.”
Turning to him, I pin him with a cold look. “You know what? I never asked you to tag along so you can leave anytime you want. If you’re staying, I suggest you shut the hell up and let me think.”
My quick assessment of the three women doesn’t reveal any obvious injuries, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t any. Lula’s face is turned away from me, but her posture tells me she’s frightened, not hurt. Darcy is sitting with her legs crossed and her hands in her lap, not making eye contact with anyone. And Scarlet...well, my best friend doesn’t appear anything but pissed right the hell off, which for the record, does not signal good things for the guy with the gun.
Something to know about Scarlet – something most people have the severe misfortune of not knowing until it’s too late – is that she’s a bona fide badass herself.
* * * *
Scarlet’s dad left her mom, Lilly before she gave birth to her second daughter. Maddison, Scarlet’s sister, was born a whole thirteen months earlier, and while he hung around for her after knocking Lilly up again, apparently he came to the realization he wasn’t cut out to be a father. That said, Lilly wasn’t too broken up over the fact her ex, Will took off to parts unknown because before he left, Will was far from a good partner or provider.
For the most part, Lilly was happy with it being just her and her girls. Lilly worked as a graphic designer for a company in Denver. Her boss was aware of her situation, so thankfully he allowed her to work from home most of the time, except for the odd meetings she had to attend in person.
Things were good in the Hennessey household, or as good as could be expected when you’re a single mother of two little girls. And they remained that way until they got better when Conway Lucas entered their lives.
Scarlet was old enough to remember the day her mom brought Conway home to meet her daughters and to hear her tell the story, you’d think he was the answer to world hunger, and infectious disease all rolled into one six-foot-seven, two hundred and fifty-pound package. Until he wasn’t, that is.
Conway loved Scarlet and her sister Maddison as if they were his own. He taught them how to ride a bike, defend themselves, and when they got older, handle a terrifying array of weapons. Hence, Scarlet’s badass title. Conway lived with Lilly and her girls for nine years before, one day, he just up and disappeared in the middle of the night. There was no note, no phone call, no explanation as to why he left, and he never came back.
Lilly was devastated, and it wasn’t long, maybe a year at most before she could stand to remain in the same house that she had shared with the man she loved, so she too left. Lilly moved to California six days after Scarlet turned eighteen. And while she didn’t visit, ever, Lilly did see her daughters regularly. She bought Maddison and Scarlet plane tickets to L.A. three times a year so they could spend time together, but there was no hiding that Scarlet wished her mom would come home.
And she did. Eventually. However, the circumstances Lilly returned under left a lot to be desired.
Beaten black and blue, barely able to stand on her own two feet, Lilly came back to Lower Falls a changed woman. Gone was the perpetually happy, funny, sweet woman who loved her daughters without reservation. In her place was a broken, tired, dejected woman, who jumped a
t her own shadow.
When she first came back into town, Lilly stayed with a long-time friend of hers and Conway’s, Malakai. Scarlet, Maddison, Zara (a friend of ours), and I thought it was not only good for her to have company but as the Chief of Police for Lower and Highland Falls, Malakai was able to protect her too.
It wasn’t until six months after Lilly came home that it became apparent that solution wasn’t going to work anymore, and it came in the form of a furious Conway Lucas, showing up on his best friend Malakai’s doorstep and demanding to know what the hell was going on.
From the outside looking in, I can see why he thought something was developing between Malakai and Lilly, but
in truth, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Lilly had never gotten over Conway leaving her; she was still very much in love with the overbearing jackass. But in saying that, Lilly has begun to depend on Malakai. He was her rock; he was there to hold her up when she couldn’t find the strength to do it herself. Not only that, but Malakai had no qualms in making it abundantly clear he was interested in Lilly as more than a houseguest.
To say Scarlet is furious at the man she considered to be, for all intents and purposes, her father for coming home and fucking up the progress her mom was making is a gross understatement. To this day, three months later, Scarlet still refuses to talk to Conway or even consider hearing his explanation for why he deserted them. In her eyes, it’s too little, too late. When the three Hennessey girls needed him, Conway wasn’t there for them, and that’s not something Scarlet can forgive easily.
* * * *
Jarring me from my thoughts about Scarlet and her unresolved issues, Josh nods toward the woman herself. “What the hell does she think she’s doing?”
Oh, fuck me, I muse, shaking my head when I see Scarlet has noticed us. Catching my eye, she winks at me, and I just know shit is about to get real.
As much as I love her, and I do, to the moon and back, Scarlet has no filter and no sense of self-preservation. Truth be told, I’m shocked she hasn’t acted already, actually. I figured that by the time Josh and I got here, Scarlet would have the guy with the gun hog-tied and gagged, laying in the corner in the fetal position crying. In fact, I was kinda hoping she did.
The sheer fact she doesn’t tell me she knew backup was on its way, and she was just waiting for the right time to act. Something that doesn’t bode well for the jackass waving his gun in her face.
Silently willing her not to do anything stupid, I look around for something to use as a weapon. I spot a fire extinguisher mounted on the wall ten feet to my right, a free-standing coat rack, fifteen feet to my left, and Scarlet’s purse, which I know has a Smith & Wesson .38 special in it, behind the reception desk. She’s a badass remember?
“Don’t do it, Tate,” Josh hisses in my ear.
“Find the QuikClot, a bag of saline with a twenty-gauge needle, and as many compression bandages as we’ve got, and get them ready.”
Josh reaches out and grabs my arm, hard. His painful grip doesn’t lessen when I try to shake him off, and I just know there’s going to be fingerprint-shaped bruises there in the morning.
“Wait. Just hold on, Tate. You don’t have to do this. SWAT will be here soon, and they’ll sort this asshole out,” he pleads, just as the jackass with the gun fires another round into the wall behind the women’s heads.
“Oh, God,” Darcy whimpers, covering her face with her hands.
Lula doesn’t say anything, but she does flinch at the mask of rage on the crazy bastard’s face.
However, Scarlet has no such compunction to stay quiet, not that I thought she would. “Listen; I don’t know what your malfunction is, buddy, and honestly, I don’t care. Whatever your damage is, just know there is help out there, even for you.”
With two menacing steps, the jackass is in front of Scarlet. Dropping down to a crouch, he snarls, “I suggest you shut your fuckin’ mouth, bitch. That or the last thing your friends here will see is the back of your head exploding.”
In true Scarlet fashion, she just scoffs at him, which earns her a vicious backhand to the side of her face.
Red blooms across her cheek, reaching all the way up to the corner of her left eye. Blink once, then twice, Scarlet straightens her spine and glares at him. “I hate to tell you this, buddy, but you hit like a girl.”
Without any hesitation, the jackass rears back his fist and punches Scarlet in the jaw. It doesn’t knock her out, but she is stunned for a moment. And then it clicks; she’s buying me time to make my move.
With a subtle dip of her chin in the direction of her purse, Scarlet confirms that that’s our best chance of getting everyone out of here alive. Sure, I would have loved the satisfaction of the fire extinguisher connecting with his head, but it there’s no guarantee it would have incapacitated him. No, the .38 is a far safer option. Except for getting to it that is. Now, I just need to make it the almost twenty feet, undetected to the reception desk.
Nodding that I understand, Scarlet squares off with the guy again. “Seriously, dude,” she says quirking her eyebrow. “What do you want? We’ve been sitting her for hours, by now, the entirety of Waterfield and Lower Falls police departments will be outside, not to mention a few of the other counties that would have sent in reinforcements. Your chances of leaving without steel bracelets are getting slimmer by the minute.”
“Not going to tell you again; shut the fuck up,” he grunts, his foot connects with Scarlet’s thigh as he stands up and looks at Lula.
“Leave them alone, Elias. It’s me you want, not them.”
“Damn fuckin’ right I do,” he sneers. “But since you disobeyed me and took off when I fuckin’ warned you what would happen if you did, I think it’s only fair you and your friends here pay the price.”
Lula’s fingernails dig into her palms as the color drains from her face. “No. Please, don’t,” she whispers as tears streak unhindered down her cheeks.
While the piece of shit is otherwise occupied, I drop to my knees and start crawling in toward Scarlet’s purse. Glancing over my shoulder, I see the hard expression on Josh’s face at my poorly thought out plan, but at least, he’s doing what I asked him to.
The going is slow. I crawl an inch at a time, continuously checking where the jackass is looking, trying to anticipate his next move. My dad always told me, that reading a situation can sometimes be as important as knowing what you’re going to do. Being prepared, having a way out, or in this case, a backup plan – enter fire extinguisher – can be the difference of you getting out of something like this alive or not.
“You aren’t in any position to be askin’ me for favors, Lu. Just remember, these bitches getting hurt is on you, not me. If you’d have just done as you were fuckin’ told, none of this shit would have happened,” the jackass taunts Lula.
“Oh, bullshit,” Scarlet mutters, loud enough for him to hear. “Assholes like you get off on hurting women. No doubt, you have little dick syndrome and feel the need to compensate by lording your physical strength over members of the opposite sex. So instead of blaming Lula, why don’t you cut the shit, accept you were born sorely lacking in the male genitalia department, and move the hell on.”
Moving faster now, I watch as the jackass’s eyes swing to Scarlet and he raises his gun. I know before it happens that she’s gone too far. He takes aim and fires a bullet into the meat of Scarlet’s thigh, causing Darcy and Lula to scream. Scarlet doesn’t make a sound, though. Her teeth are clenched together at the pain, but she other than that, she doesn’t give the guy the satisfaction of hearing her cry.
“That’s one,” he growls ominously. “You keep running your mouth, and we’ll see how many holes I can fill you with before you can’t fuckin’ talk anymore.”
“Fuck you, asshole,” Scarlet spits, ripping her workout tank over her head and tying it around her thigh.
The jackass’s eyes widen at the sight of Scarlet’s exposed breasts, only barely
covered by a sports bra, which admittedly is probably one or two sizes too small for her significant assets.
Good. Attention diverted, I scurry behind the desk and drop to my stomach. I have Scarlet’s purse open and her .38 in my hand before the asshole can grunt his next sentence.
My aim isn’t as good as my besties, but I highly doubt I’ll have trouble hitting my target from less than twenty feet away. Especially when he’s just given me the perfect motivation to make my shot count.
Grabbing her by the hair, the jackass snaps Scarlet’s head back so that she’s now glaring up at him, instead of straight ahead. “Are you fuckin’ stupid, or just slow, bitch? I’m not playing here. I’ll fuck every one of your holes before I put a bullet in your fuckin’ skull if you don’t get smart real quick. Just ask, Lulamae over there,” he says grinning evilly at Lula. “She’ll tell you just how I like it, and exactly how much I plan on makin’ it hurt if you don’t do as I say.”
Pig! I do not fucking think so.
Raising up on my elbows, I wait until I have a clear shot, which he gives me a second later as he backs away from Scarlet and he stands upright.
His back is to me when I squeeze the .38’s trigger gently, firing a round into the back of his right knee. Just as he starts to fall, I fire a second bullet into the back of his left thigh. Partially as payback for Scarlet, but mostly to ensure he won’t be walking out of here anytime soon.
I’m on my feet before Darcy has a chance to scream again. I kick the gun away from the jackass, sending it skidding across the floor and into the opposite wall before landing a kick to his temple that knocks him out cold.
Once I’m sure he’s out, I drop down in front of Scarlet and start assessing her injuries. “You look like shit, hooker. I’m thinking, Dray, isn’t going to want you strutting your ass around on his stage anytime soon.”