AintNoAngel

by J L Taft

  “Of course. I want you to catch him Travis. I…” Her voice faded off and she took a deep breath.

  “What is it?” he asked her.

  “It’s nothing. I just wanted to say good luck.”

  “Are you all right?” he asked gently.

  “Yeah. I’m okay. I’m just worried.”

  “Tell you what, I’ll see what I can find out and call you back.”

  “All right, thanks, Travis.”

  Three days later, Travis was back at his office with his feet propped on the desk and his mind full of images of a sexy red-haired goddess riding him.

  He just couldn’t shake it off. She was never far from his thoughts.

  He had called her back after he had a couple of his friends look around the town Cyrus had asked Jessie to send the money to. No one had seen him and when he had told Jessie her voice had gone strange.

  His partner Ian came strolling in and tossed a file on his desk.

  “That’s the police report filed by one Jessica Parker almost three years ago. Don’t ask how I got it. I also added in the unresolved murder file from the case you were fired for. Don’t ask how I got that either. But there is a lot missing from the murder case. If I had to guess I would say someone tried pretty hard to cover it up. I’ve got a man looking for the missing pieces.”

  “Thanks, Ian,” Travis said as he dropped his feet to the floor and eagerly reached for the papers.

  Ian cleared his throat. “I also added in any of the newspaper articles I found online. I thought you should have a look at them.”

  Travis glanced up at his friend. They knew each other well and Ian Davis was the only person Travis fully trusted.

  Ian gave him a pointed look as he rose smoothly to his feet and left the office. No one would guess that he was pushing sixty. But Travis knew that his customary bandanna on his head covered a receding hairline. He was also a health nut and Travis refused to eat with him anymore. A man should be able to enjoy a beer and a steak without Ian discussing what the food was doing to his insides.

  But as Travis started sifting through the information in the file he knew what Ian had meant. Travis was unprepared for this case. After he had left town he refused to think about it and had tried to leave it all behind him.

  After he had been fired from the police force in Hill Valley he had dropped the whole thing and turned a blind eye and deaf ear to the happenings in the small town.

  Most of the murder case paperwork was what he had expected, some of it he had seen before. The forensic evidence from Candy’s body was still missing and Travis figured after all this time it would never turn up.

  But the report that was in there concerning Jessie made his blood run cold.

  The story was told in the newspaper, from the wedding, where Jessie smiled up at Cyrus on the steps of the church, to the day that he had almost killed her.

  The paper had actually printed a picture of her leaving the hospital after filing assault charges against her husband. Her face was almost unrecognizable. Something dark and angry unfurled in his chest.

  There was a large bandage wrapped around her head. A huge purple bruise covered one whole side of her face and she was walking on crutches. She was wearing long sleeves and jeans and he wondered what other injuries were hidden under her clothes.

  That bastard. The image of Candy Marsh popped, unwanted, in his mind. She had been beaten up too. The similarities weren’t lost on him.

  Running a hand down his face, he stared up at the ceiling. He had failed to bring Cyrus to justice all those years ago and if he had done what he had been trained to do, Cyrus would never have been around to hurt Jessie.

  There was nothing he could do about that now. What he could do was catch him and turn him over to the authorities. Then he would be behind steel bars where he belonged.

  Travis turned resolutely back to the file and got to work.

  Chapter Five

  Jessie woke up Wednesday morning with a splitting headache. All she really wanted to do was take some aspirin and go back to sleep but there was too much to be done and no one else to do it. She would never have expected when her parents died four years ago how hard it would be to run this place alone.

  Cyrus had wanted her to sell it. Getting his hands dirty literally never was his thing, figuratively was a whole other story. But she refused to sell. She had grown up here and she was too stubborn to give it up. Even though she feared she was fighting a dying battle. It was getting harder and harder to keep the place in the black, especially since the end of the summer was looming closer and closer.

  She hadn’t been sleeping well. Every little noise had her jerking awake in the dark. She didn’t want to admit it but she was terrified that Cyrus was going to show up.

  Jessie didn’t know what to do. Cyrus wanted money to stay away and she didn’t have nearly enough to cover what he was demanding. But she knew that if she paid him once he would expect her to do it again.

  So she hadn’t responded to his letter and she wasn’t going to. She refused to be sucked in by him again. She had been down that path already and had learned the lesson the hard way. Men weren’t to be trusted.

  Travis sprang into her mind but she pushed him away.

  She wasn’t stupid and hadn’t left the house alone since she had gotten the letter. But she had a job to do and she wasn’t going to let Cyrus affect it.

  Jessie, Marc and Brad had put in a good day’s work and she was pleased with the results. They were landscaping a large yard for a young couple who had moved to their small town from the city. It was a big job and the pay would help her make it through the winter.

  They were ahead of schedule and the guys had asked if they could have a couple days off. Marc’s little sister had gone into labor the night before and they wanted to go and congratulate her and her husband on the healthy new addition.

  Betty was busy in the kitchen when she got home. The smells coming from her cooking had Jessie’s belly grumbling.

  Showering off the day’s grime quickly, she joined the guys and Betty back in the kitchen. She had done a good job keeping Cyrus out of her mind today but that just left room for Travis to creep in.

  Before long the boys had taken off and Betty had the kitchen back to rights. Jessie took her dessert to the living room to curl up on the couch. She was beat.

  The apple pie Betty had baked was heavenly. Jessie was thankful they had air-conditioning so Betty could still bake in the summer and not roast the occupants of the house along with the apples.

  Her eyes got heavy and she leaned her head back, just for a minute, to rest.

  The phone ringing on the stand next to the couch jarred her awake. Reaching for it blindly, she answered, “Hello?”

  There was silence on the other end but Jessie could hear the unmistakable sound of heavy breathing. Her mind and heart both kicked into overdrive.

  “Hello?” she said again, this time with attitude in her voice.

  “Why haven’t you sent the money?” The voice came low and she could hear the anger in it. She didn’t know how Cyrus had gotten her phone number but he was a trained police officer.

  Jessie was silent with shock. She hadn’t heard his voice in almost three years but it still sent shivers of fear down her back.

  “Jessica. Why haven’t you sent the money?” Cyrus asked again.

  Anger kicked in then. “I don’t owe you a damn thing.”

  She sat up straighter on the couch, refusing to let him steamroll her into anything. She was now wide awake.

  “You ruined my life!” came the shout on the other end of the phone line. Jessie was too stunned to say anything. He had almost killed her and she had ruined his life?

  “Send me the money, Jessica. Or I will come and get it. And you won’t like what happens when I get there.” His voice had gone dangerously low.

  “I…” she began, but the line went dead. Setting the phone carefully back in its cradle, she sat back and tried to slow her po
unding heart down.

  She knew that even if she did send Cyrus the money, he would come for her anyway. He thought that she was responsible for everything that had happened. For him losing his job and his credibility with the whole town.

  If she gave in and sent him the cash then he would have the means to get back here. The thought sent cold shivers running over her body.

  The house seemed quiet. Too quiet. Something set the motion light on the porch off and the sudden light through the front windows had her jerking back in surprise.

  Then she swore she heard a car door slamming out front.

  Moving slowly, she crept toward the door, staying away from the windows. She came up abruptly against the small section of wall between the door and the window.

  She was breathing hard and terrified. She reached out with a shaking hand and threw the deadbolt home. Peeking out the curtain cautiously, she didn’t see anything at all.

  She sucked in a deep breath and realized that she was trembling. She forced herself to get a grip. The phone call from Cyrus had spooked her.

  The motion light went back to darkness and she suddenly felt more exposed. She moved quickly and shut the lamp off, sending the room into darkness.

  Gathering up her courage, she went through the house meticulously. She turned off all the lights. She knew the house and he didn’t. It would give her an advantage.

  She checked all her windows, making sure they were locked, and then dead-bolted the back door too. Retreating to her room, she immediately reached under her bed for the small safe she had there.

  Spinning the combination quickly, she pulled out her .45 caliber 1911 handgun. It was heavy but reliable and that was what she needed the most. She grabbed one of the full clips. It was loaded with eight hollow points and she slammed it into place at the grip of the gun. It made an empowering sound as she released the slide and chambered the first lethal round.

  But she was familiar with her gun. Pressing the button to release the clip, she filled the missing spot, taking her to the maximum capacity of nine bullets. Eight in the clip and one in the chamber. It was the best she could do. Slamming the refilled clip back into place, she breathed a sigh of relief. It gave her one more chance to defend herself.

  Jessie briefly considered calling Marc and Brad to come over. But then she remembered that they were out of town for the weekend. Just her luck.

  But she felt better now that she was armed. She could do this. She wouldn’t be a victim ever again.

  By the next morning Jessie was nearly close to her wit’s end. She hadn’t slept a wink all night and when the first rays of the sun had started shining, only then did she even dare to shower.

  She evaded Betty in the kitchen after letting her in, only taking the time to pour some coffee into a travel mug before she slipped out the door. Betty knew her well and she didn’t want to answer any questions.

  She retreated to the greenhouse for the day. Her gun stuck uncomfortably in the back of her jeans. It was a constant reminder to be on alert.

  Jessie spent the day cleaning and catching up on odds and ends. She took care of things that she hadn’t been able to keep up on in the crush of the busy season. But the greenery of the plants and the smell of the fresh dirt failed to soothe her.

  She worked as long as she could, only stopping to eat the sandwiches that Betty forced on her. She headed in to her empty house just before sunset. It would be stupid to be caught outside after dark.

  Betty had left her a plate and she took it upstairs with her, her steps wary and slow.

  Sunday night the ringing of the phone on her nightstand jerked her from an uneasy slumber.

  “’Lo?” she murmured.

  Silence greeted her. But then she heard breathing on the other end. Before she could think twice she slammed the phone down.

  Her heart raced so hard she thought it might burst from her chest. Her hands were shaking and she could hear the blood pumping in her ears.

  She couldn’t do this alone and stay sane. She needed help and Travis’ face came swirling to life before her.

  He was looking for Cyrus. Maybe he could trace the phone calls. Because she had no doubt that it had been Cyrus.

  Grabbing the business card Travis had given her, she dialed his cell number quickly and waited for him to answer.

  Travis was planted in his chair at the office, his computer on and papers strewn across his desk. His arms were folded on top of them and his head on top of his arms.

  He was sound asleep, snoring slightly with his head cocked off at an odd angle and dreaming of his red-haired goddess.

  His cell phone that happened to be wedged underneath one elbow started ringing and jolted him awake.

  Grabbing it and flipping it open, he answered, “Turner.”

  “Travis?”

  The voice on the other end had him yanking fully awake in a heartbeat.

  “Jessie?”

  “Yeah, I umm… I wanted to hire you to find Cyrus.”

  Her voice was odd, distracted.

  “Why?” he asked gently. “You know I have already been hired to do that.”

  “He contacted me again,” she answered quietly.

  Travis felt his body tighten and his senses sharpen. This could be his chance. To right a wrong that had plagued him for what seemed like forever.

  “When? How?”

  “Can you come here?” she trailed off and he could feel her hesitancy.

  “Sure, I can get away tomorrow,” he answered.

  “No. Tonight. Please.”

  “What’s going on?”

  “I’ll explain when you get here. He is threatening me. Can you come?” Her voice broke and Travis realized how terrified she was.

  “Threatening you with what?”

  “Money or my life.” Her voice went flat and emotionless. She was barely holding it together.

  Then the anger came rolling over him. His blood boiled at the thought of Cyrus hurting her again. He wasn’t going to let it happen. He had made Jessie a promise that he would be there if she needed him and he wasn’t going back on his word.

  “Where are you?” he asked.

  “Home. In my bedroom.”

  “Lock the doors and windows,” he clipped out as he grabbed his keys and turned off the lights on his way out.

  “They are.”

  “Stay there, Jessie. I’m on my way.”

  “Thank you,” he heard her say before the line went dead.

  Stuffing his loaded, matching pistols in his holster at the base of his spine, he grabbed extra ammo and turned off the lights in his office.

  He locked the door to the building, jumped in his truck, cranked the engine and was hurtling toward Jessie in a matter of minutes.

  He had spent the last three days going over any information concerning Cyrus Parker. The images of Jessie bruised and beaten as she left the hospital sprang to mind and had his foot pressing harder on the accelerator.

  Jessie realized as she sat cross-legged on her bed with her gun in her hand that she had no idea where Travis lived and how long it would take him to get here.

  It could be hours. She knew she should try to get some sleep. But she was too worried about closing her eyes and giving Cyrus an advantage. Because he would use it, of that she had no doubt.

  Leaning her head back, she remembered when she had first met Cyrus Parker. She had been sad and lonely after her parents had suddenly died in the car crash. He was good-looking and she had been flattered by his attention.

  At first he had been giving and attentive in bed and out of it but that had changed as soon as they were married. Even on their wedding night he had been different. It was as if he had gotten what he wanted and no longer needed to put in any effort.

  But he had never made her heart pound and her panties wet like Travis had.

  It had been like a switch. As soon as the ring had been on her finger the true Cyrus had shown up. It hadn’t taken her more than a couple weeks to realize sh
e had made a huge mistake.

  The first time he had hit her she asked him what had changed, but he had no reply but to give her that look. The look she knew so well by then, the one that terrified her and sent cold shivers down her back. So she had kept her mouth shut and bided her time until she could leave him. But he was a cop and knew what she had been up to.

  That had been the night he had almost killed her. The details of that evening were crystal clear up to a certain point. But she remembered him standing over her as she lay on the kitchen floor of their house and telling her that if she ever left him he would kill her.

  She remembered his meaty fist connecting with the side of her head and then everything went dark. When she had woken up still on the kitchen floor, he was gone and she had managed to dial 9-1-1.

  Shaking off the images of her life with Cyrus, she thought of Travis instead. She didn’t know how she was going to pay him for tracking down Cyrus but she would figure it out because it would be worth it. If he already was looking for him then he was sure to take the job.

  One night with him had changed her outlook and maybe Betty was right. It was time to move on. But she couldn’t do that until Cyrus was safely behind bars where he belonged.

  She felt guilty for calling Travis this late and practically begging him to come to her. But she didn’t know what else to do and she trusted him, to some extent anyway.

  He would come. He promised to be here if she needed him.

  A car door slamming out front had her head jerking up and her hand tightening on the gun.

  Creeping to the window, she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Travis’ truck outside. By the time she got to the door he was knocking softly.

  Spinning the locks and the door open, she tumbled into his arms.

  He caught her around the waist. “Jessie, are you okay?” he asked, surprise in his voice.

  He pulled back a little to look down at her and she lost herself in his steely-gray eyes. She nodded and he eased her back inside. She sat heavily on the couch as he locked the door behind them.