by KJ Dahlen
Damon set his bag on the dresser. “Well, I guess she thinks we’re gay or something.”
James laughed. “Speak for yourself, cause I could never look gay, pardner,” he drawled.
“Damon scowled. “You with the jokes, man.” Then he looked around. “I don’t think this place will do for more than tonight.”
“Yeah, I agree.” James peeked out at the lot through the side of the curtain. “Too out in the open.”
“No way to even check out our perimeter,” Damon agreed.
They all eventually settled in.
Aly turned on her side and slept facing the window.
Damon watched her. He found his eyes on her more than he was comfortable with. After her story and what the violent destruction, he saw at her house, he felt shook. No, her story wasn’t the worst he’d ever heard. He paused. No, maybe it was. To be a little kid then to see what she saw? Her family being murdered. Sliced and diced right in front of her eyes? She seemed so quiet and sometimes, he could hear the scratchiness in her voice whenever she did speak. How had she survived? It was a rare thing to survive someone slitting your throat. He let out a sigh. Yeah, so? The story she told had gotten to him after all.
He pushed all of his thoughts out of his head and finally drifted off to sleep.
Sometime later, he awoke when someone tried to tug him off the bed. “Hurry Max!”
His eyes popped open.
Alybella was tugging on his arm.
He looked over at the chair where James had been sitting.
No James.
He swung his gaze around.
James was peeking out through the curtain at the window.
“I smelled something odd,” Alybella told him.
Damon frowned. “You smelled someth—?”
“Well, shit!” James rushed over and grabbed their go bags. “Everyone into the bathroom. NOW!”
Damon jumped up, grabbed Alybella and they all went in to the small bathroom. He stepped in front of her and tugged the small window up. He lifted her up and pushed her through.
“Oww!” she exclaimed as she landed on the ground outside the window.
James and Damon looked at each other. They knew neither would fit through that small ass window.
They both looked down at the bathtub and crawled in, just as a huge boom sounded and the bathroom door flew in, landing on top of them.
Chapter Six
Smoke filled the small room as the mirror buckled and spat out glass, the window shattered as well.
When it quieted down, they heard Alybella screaming.
Damon shoved the door off them then leapt over the glass and debris. He wasn’t wearing any shoes so he felt the shards of glass under his feet as he ran. The place was mostly on fire but he zig zagged to the next room as that wall had collapsed and made his way out of the next room through its door.
He ran around the back of the motel, his bloody feet leaving a trail of red behind him.
Alybella was struggling with some man that had kinked up hair poking out of a hoodie. She struggled with him then she reached into her shirt and lifted a small canister, spraying it at him.
Screaming, he covered his eyes as he staggered back.
Damon reached her and grabbed her up.
The man stumbled away.
Damon took his gun out of his back waistband and let off a shot into the darkness.
They both heard a howling sound as the man screamed. Then there were squeals of tires and they could hear a vehicle speeding away.
Damon looked down at Alybella. “Are you okay?”
She nodded. “It wasn’t Matt.”
Damon held her to his side. “How do you know?”
“His eyes. They weren’t those crazy eyes that Matt has.”
Damon gave her a nod. “Well, whoever he was, he wasn’t alone, as there’s no way he could have been driving. You got him pretty good with that pepper spray.” He turned her around. “Ok, let’s find James.”
They passed under a street light.
“Oh, my God!” Alybella exclaimed.
Damon halted and took his weapon out again, spanning it around.
“Your feet!” She pointed down.
Peering down, Damon saw the bleeding. “Oh yeah, that.”
“Yeah that?” she gasped. “Doesn’t it hurt?”
He shrugged. “I’ve had worse, come on.”
They made it around front and James met them. “I called for a ride.” He tossed his thumb back at the hotel. “Our car is toast. As is The Happy Trails apparently. It will be Sad Trails for a little while. I hope the old cowboy has good insurance.”
“What ride?” Damon asked as he entirely ignored the rest of James’ diatribe.
“The guys arrived,” James replied.
“The guys?” Alybella asked.
“Oh.” Damon nodded.
“Damn, Damon what the hell happened to your feet?” James asked as he stared down at Damon’s bare but bleeding feet.
“Glass,” he replied. “I was asleep in bed, remember?”
“Oh, yeah. Well, you do have an extra pair in your bag, right?”
“Yeah, I do.” Damon nodded.
“Shoes?” Alybella asked as she gawked at the two men. “You need a first aid kit! There’s glass in your feet! I have a kit if you two don’t. What is the matter with the pair of you?” She tossed her hands up in disgust and grabbed her bag from James. “You!” She pointed at Damon. “Find a spot to sit down.”
“We can’t do that here,” James stated.
“And why not?” she asked.
“Because we need to move away from here fast. Cops and fire trucks.”
Just then, they heard sirens.
James cocked his head at her. “See? Right on time.”
Damon said nothing, he just grabbed her arm and tugged her along with him.
“There’s a gas station a block away that’s where our car is.” James pointed ahead.
“A block?” Alybella asked as they all rushed down the street. “He can’t walk a block with his feet bleeding! What is the matter with the both of you?”
“Hot coals,” Damon said as they all kept rushing along the street.
“What?” she asked as she tried to keep the fast pace both men were setting.
“I’ve walked hot coals so many times that I don’t feel it. That and other pain enduring training.”
“Wow.” She shook her head as they came closer to the gas station. “So was that part of your ninja training or what?” she quipped sarcastically.
James laughed. “Ninja!” He headed to the back tire and retrieved a small metal box from underneath the frame above the tire. Then he unlocked the car. “Would that make you like Damonatello?” He made a play on combing the name of a Ninja Turtle and his name.
Damon shook his head as he opened the back door for Alybella.
She pushed at his chest. “You get in first. I am going to take care of your feet.”
Damon opened his mouth to argue.
“Now! Mister Maxwell, Damon Alex asshole!”
James paused at the trunk and stared at them then he chuckled as Damon got in. Hurrying around to the driver’s side, he got in. Then he put the key into the ignition.
Damon sighed impatiently as Alybella cleaned his feet. “Why aren’t we moving?” he asked James.
James turned in the seat to raise a brow at him. “Do we know where we are supposed to be going, Damon?”
Damon shrugged. “Maybe a Motel Six?’
“No, no.” James shook his head. “No more motels. Sitting like ducks in a row waiting to get picked off. Nope.”
“Well, there’s not much here in town,” Damon stated.
“You’re right about that.” Alybella nodded as she put antibiotic on his feet and placed three bandages on each foot. She hesitated then offered, “There is one place we might go. It’s a long shot but it might give us enough time to come up with a plan.”
“What do you have
in mind?” Damon asked as he grabbed his bag to fish out his socks and shoes.
“It’s not far from here but I have to make a phone call. It’s on tribal land.”
“Make your call,” he told her.
Alybella reached for her phone and called a friend of hers. She told her friend that she was in a bad spot and someone was after her. A minute later, she nodded and ended the call. “Let’s go. At least, we’ll be safe tonight. The tribe will protect us.”
“The tribe?” Damon asked as he tied his boots.
“They’re friends of mine,” was all she would say.
James drove and Damon kept watch, as they followed her directions to where her contact would meet them. They stopped just outside of town.
A young man walked up to the car and looked inside. He smiled, “Hey girl, how you doing?”
Alybella smiled slightly. “I’m doing. Lonnie, I really appreciate this. I really do.”
Lonnie grinned. “Hey, no problem, you know that. The cabin is down this road and take a left. Hit the gravel road and its at the end of the driveway. You should have everything you need for the night.” He nodded. “And don’t worry about being followed. The tribe has a roving patrol out and they will keep an eye out for any trouble.”
Alybella smiled. “Thanks Lonnie. Please tell your people to be careful. If this man comes after us tonight, he will kill anyone who tries to stop him. He thinks he’s invincible.”
Lonnie nodded. “I’ll let them know but not even he... can outrun an arrow.”
Alybella nodded back but still looked afraid.
James pulled away.
Following Lonnie’s directions, they soon arrived at the cabin. They grabbed their bags and went inside. The cabin was small but comfortable. There was an open kitchen and dining area along with a living room.
A staircase stood that wound its way upstairs and they assumed the bedrooms were located up there.
She mounted the stairs and turned to the first bedroom.
Damon was right behind her and he steered her away from the first bedroom. “I’d rather you were in one of the other rooms. If Matt does get to the house, I don’t want you in the first room he comes to. We might not have time to get to you.”
Alybella nodded and moved to the last room down the hall. The bedroom was smaller but it was big enough for her. She tossed her duffle on the bed and turned to him.
Damon told her, “We need to talk. Come back downstairs.”
She nodded. “Ok.” She followed him down the hall and back down the stairs to the living room where James was waiting for them.
He looked up from the file he was reading and motioned for her to sit down. “My friends did a background check on the things you told us earlier and we were able to verify everything you said,” James told her. “What else can you tell us about your family? Pre Matthew Moore?”
“My real dad was Justin Sloan. He died when I was three in a car crash. A drunk driver hit him and ran away. The other driver was never found. My dad ran a really good IT business in New Haven, Connecticut. When he died, he left mom and me very well off. She met Derek Moore a few years later.”
“Did your uncle come around after your dad died?” James wanted to know.
Alybella thought about this for a moment then nodded. “Now that you mention it, he did. He and my mom argued a lot just after my real dad died. Mom never really cared for Grant. She always thought he was lazy and just no good. She finally had to kick him out of our house.”
“What did they argue about? Do you remember?” Damon asked. “I know you were really little but do you know?”
Alybella nodded. “He wanted my dad’s money. With him, it was always about the money. But my dad was a smart man. His will was set up, so that if anything happened to him, his estate would be paid out so much money a month. It was a generous amount and mom always had money left over, but if something happened to both him and mom whoever too care of me got the same amount and not a penny more. Grant thought he would get the full amount all at once. When that didn’t happen, he was going to turn me over to the state but the attorney told him if I went into foster care, the money followed me and he wouldn’t get a dime. I think that’s what pissed Grant off the most. If he wanted those checks he had to let me live with him.”
Damon growled. “That lousy bastard.”
“How did he happen to hear about Matt’s mom?” James asked.
She shrugged. “I have no clue how he found that out. But he moved me over to the smaller house right after that. He told me if Matt was coming after me, he didn’t want him connecting the dots and finding him. He pulled me out of school and set me up to be homeschooled. The first two nanny’s I had were only there during the day and they locked the doors when they left, so I couldn’t get out if anything happened.”
“Did your uncle stop over at all?” Damon asked.
Alybella shrugged. “Not much but I wasn’t expecting much out of him by that time. I wasn’t a dumb kid even then. After the first two nanny’s quit, he found Betsy. She was a kinder woman and she stayed with me for six years. Then when I was seventeen, Betsy told me something that scared the bejesus out of me.”
“What was that?” Damon asked.
“She said she stopped at Grant’s to get her paycheck for the last three months and she overheard him on the phone. She heard him tell someone named Matt where he could find me. He told Matt I would be alone as he was going to fire the woman taking care of me, so he wouldn’t have to pay her wages. He told Matt that he had to do the deed before my eighteenth birthday, so Grant could claim my estate.” She shook her head. “Betsy didn’t know who Matt was but I did. I told her to hide and wait for me to contact her. Then I went to my dad’s attorney and explained everything to him. I was only seventeen but he said that was close enough to my majority to gain control over my dad’s estate. He cut Grant’s payments off immediately, and set up an account only I had assess to. I gave Betsy enough money for her to start all over somewhere else and I packed my bag. I wanted nothing in that town and I left.”
“Did you ever see Grant again?” James asked.
She shook her head. “No and I don’t care if I ever see him again.”
“Well, I think that’s a pretty safe bet,” James told her. “After you got done at the attorney’s office and Grant realized his plan wouldn’t pan out, he packed up and left town as well.”
Alybella frowned. “But why?”
“Grant promised Matt he could have you. When he couldn’t make good on his promise, he knew Matt was crazy enough to track him down and kill him.”
Alybella nodded. “Matt really is crazy and for some reason he’s got it in his head that I have to die. I’m the only one that didn’t die like I was supposed to. Most of his victims didn’t deserve what he gave them, but there were a few that did. Mostly, his own mom. I was able to track four of his cases over the years, and then I noticed something odd about the cases.”
“You tracked what he did?” Damon asked in surprise.
She nodded. “I’m alone in the world with a killer on my trail. I had to do what was needed. So, I chose to track what he was doing.”
“What was the odd thing?” James asked her.
“That happened just after I left the town. It was after I noticed Matt was watching me. The victims were all mothers with small sons. I had assumed when he couldn’t find me, that he took it out on some unsuspecting person before he moved on.”
Damon shook his head. “Petra and my son.”
Her gaze rose up and she stared at him. “I’m sorry that happened to you.”
He stared back at her. “You don’t have to be...” He sighed. “Your life hasn’t been easy either.”
“How many buttons did he take the day he left his dad’s house?” James asked.
“There were twelve in the frame, why?”
“We’ve been able to account for nine with the button we just found at your place. So he’s got three left,” James expla
ined. “We found seven cases and with his mom and the one we just found, that’s nine.”
“How does he keep finding you?” Damon asked.
“I thought maybe he tagged my car, so I traded it off in Kentucky. Then he found me again in Tennessee. Then I thought maybe he’d tracked my phone, so I got a new one in Kansas. I don’t use the phone a lot, so it’s barely on. How he found me here I have no clue.”
“Is there anyone you keep in touch with from back home?” James asked.
She shook her head.
“Has anyone from back home tried to get in touch with you?” Damon asked. “Anyone like your uncle?”
Alybella nodded. “He tried a few times but I never answered him. He didn’t like it much but I never answered his calls and when I got the new phone, I got a new number. He couldn’t get in touch after that. That was two years ago.”
Damon looked over at James then back at her. “That might be your link. If he hasn’t been able to get in touch for two years, then he couldn’t tell Matt where you were.”
“So how did he find her this time?” James wanted to know.
“I don’t think he expected her to be here,” Damon reasoned. “But he came here for a reason. I can’t help but wonder why.”
Chapter Seven
Alybella got up and wandered over to the window. Something had happened last week that left her puzzled. But now when he said this it suddenly became clear to her. She turned quickly and raised her hands to cover her mouth. “Oh, my god....Grant is here! I didn’t know it was him, but he’s here in Alpine. He’s dressed as a hobo but I saw him last week.”
“What do you mean dressed as a hobo?” James asked while looked mystified.
“He was living on the streets, his clothes are ragtag and filthy, his hair is long and greasy like he hasn’t bathed in days. But that isn’t all. Remember the man at the motel? The one who attacked me? That was Grant! I remember him looking at me but I didn’t know who he was then.” She clenched her fists. “I should have known it was him. I should have seen the ugly in his eyes and remembered it. I’m glad I sprayed that fucker. He deserves to have to bathe in it. It will match the ugly in his eyes.”