by Zoey Parker
He nudged Yury. “He’s alone. Let’s go.”
They quietly stepped out of the car, carefully shutting the doors behind them. The last thing they wanted was to give him a head’s up. As they crept around to the back of the house, both Ivan and Yury darkly recalled the violent resourcefulness of the elder Lewis, thinking they didn’t want to find out if it ran in the family.
It had been easy enough for Ivan to pick the lock of the back door. The hinges squeaked gently as the two men snuck inside, but muted footsteps from above told Ivan that Felix was upstairs now, too far away to hear such a small noise.
Ivan pulled his gun from the back of his waistband, silently motioning for Yury to do the same. They circled around to the floating staircase, tiptoeing up the steps to maintain the surprise advantage. The top of Felix’s head came into view, and Ivan quickly ducked back down to avoid being seen.
He looked at Yury, who gave a nasty grin in reply. Ivan smiled, too. Felix had evaded him for far too long, and now he was going to learn what it meant to pay your dues.
***
Vince was standing guard as Spike had ordered, making sure Georgia didn’t randomly decide to take off, when Jinx approached and asked to go in.
“I don’t think Spike would like that,” he said, dubiously shaking his head.
“Oh, come on,” she pleaded, prettily batting her eyelashes. “Spike only said Georgia couldn’t come out, he never said no one could go in.”
Vince glanced down at her, raising his eyebrow. “I’m not going to make my judgement based on a technicality, Jinx. The answer is no.”
“Yeah, but, the whole point is to keep her here, right? Is she more likely to stay put if she has someone to talk to, or if she’s bored off her ass?” Jinx pointed out. “Besides,” she continued quietly, “she’s obviously hurting, Vince. She needs a friend.”
Vince’s shoulders drooped as he gazed into his lover’s eyes. “You have a good heart,” he murmured, quickly glancing around before dipping his head to press his lips to hers.
Jinx wrapped her arms tightly around him, her fingers digging into his back. Vince pulled away suddenly and she let out a small gasp of surprise. He smiled at her response, then nodded towards the door behind him, stepping to the side so she could knock.
How dare he? Georgia fumed, throwing herself on the bed. He can open up to me about how he feels responsible for what happened, but apparently he needs to ‘move on.’
Of course he wants to move on, the self-doubting side of her started in, He’s probably bored of you. He’s been with scores of women, had sex hundreds of times. Why would he ever want a repeat of what he’s already had?
Georgia had called Spike weak for not admitting his feelings for her, but what if he wasn’t weak and she was just some crazy, ranting girl who couldn’t see that she’d been dumped? What if she was imagining what she had felt between them at the hotel?
A soft knock interrupted Georgia’s self-deprecating tirade. “What do you want?” Georgia called irritably.
“Georgia?” she heard Jinx’s muted voice on the other side of the door. “Can I come in?” the younger girl asked.
Frankly, Georgia wasn’t sure. Part of her wanted someone to vent to, the other wanted to shut everyone out.
“Georgia?” Jinx repeated. “We don’t have to talk, I just thought you might need a friend.” Not hearing a response, Jinx reluctantly stepped back. “Okay, I’ll just go, then…” She gave Vince a miserable look.
“No. You can come in,” she said, opening the door a moment later.
Georgia stepped back to let Jinx enter, and the two women sat on the bed together. No one said anything for a long time.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Jinx finally asked. “I mean, you don’t have to, I’m just asking.” She didn’t know the right thing to say.
Georgia didn’t reply.
“We could talk about something else, then,” Jinx tried again, still getting nothing in return. “Oh!” she said suddenly, her eyes wide. “I got it. Wanna hear about the time Spike literally broke his ass in front of everyone outside of Joe’s?” Jinx giggled, motioning for Georgia to lean in close. “He had to wear a cast that looked like a pair of shorts for two months.”
The image came to Georgia’s mind vividly, and she snorted loudly despite herself. “That sounds exactly like something I would want to hear right now,” she said. “Go on, what happened?”
“Well, we were all pretty drunk,” Jinx said with the tone that this should be considered the precursor to all of her stories. “This was back when there were a lot of gangs, and Joe’s was sort of considered our Switzerland, or whatever.” Jinx waved a dismissive hand. “It was a place where the rivalry between us was friendly. So, we’re wasted, and someone suggests we do Biker Olympics. There were a bunch of categories: beer chug, best tits, you get the point. Well, we nominated Spike for the wheelie race, and—”
Georgia’s phone, the burner cell she had picked up at Felix’s suggestion, began to ring, cutting Jinx off mid-sentence. She seized it and her heart froze—she and Felix had spoken almost every day to check in with each other, but each time that phone rang, Georgia was terrified it was going to be Ivan, or a police officer telling her they’d found Felix’s body washed up on a river bed somewhere.
You’re being ridiculous, Georgia, she told herself. Felix is fine. Answer the phone and see for yourself.
“Sorry,” she said, looking at Jinx. “It’s my brother, and if I don’t answer he’ll—”
Jinx held up her hands. “Say no more.” She stood up from the bed. “I’ll give you guys some privacy.” Walking out of the room, the purple ends of Jinx’s platinum blonde hair bounced merrily from the bottoms of her pigtails, and Georgia smiled, wishing she felt as free.
Shaking her head, Georgia pressed the answer button. “Hey, Felix,” she said warmly. “How’s it going?”
“Georgia!” Felix cried in a strangled whisper. He was panting heavily. “Georgia, they found me!”
Everything Georgia had feared, everything she had tried to push away, was now happening.
“What do you mean?” she blurted out. “How are you calling me? Where are you? Can you get out?” She had a million questions.
“I’m at Uncle Lyle’s,” Felix hurriedly explained. “He wasn’t home, so I was checking out the house, when I saw Ivan and Yury creeping up the stairs in the mirror behind me. They didn’t think I saw them, so I kept pretending that I didn’t see them until I thought I could make a run for it, but they cut me off. I managed to make it to the garage and now I’m hiding in the trunk of Uncle Lyle’s car. Georgia, they’re going to find me! I just know it! I know—”
“Felix!” Georgia said firmly. “Stop! Take a deep breath before you pass out.” Felix had been ranting at top speed. “Now, I’m going to tell you what to do, okay? I’m going to get you out of this,” Georgia promised, deep down knowing how utterly powerless she truly was.
“What I need you to do is—” she began.
“Georgia!” Felix whispered. “They’re coming…”
In the background, Georgia heard a large boom, like someone had perhaps just knocked in a door, or perhaps somehow dented an expensive car.
“What do I do?” Felix breathed.
Footsteps echoed, sounding closer and closer, but Georgia had no idea what to tell her brother. She was terrified it would be the wrong thing.
“Just stay quiet, and maybe they’ll—” Georgia heard the loud pop of two gunshots and the screech of metal on metal, then clear, raucous laughter.
“Georgia!” Felix screamed, his voice piercingly high. “Georgia! They got me! Joja! Joja!”
Georgia nearly began screaming herself, but she didn’t want Felix to think anything had happened to her. “Felix, I’m coming, okay? Okay?” she cried into the phone.
Her brother’s screams faded into the distance and she knew someone was dragging him away. There was a rustling sound from the phone. Someone had picked it u
p—she could hear them breathing.
“I’m looking forward to seeing you, Georgia,” Yury said.
She shivered, the oil in his voice sliding down her skin. Georgia shut the phone. She wanted nothing more than to throw it across the room, but it was her only tie to Felix. Georgia fell to her knees. Laying her head on the bed, she began to sob.
What am I going to do now? Even if Spike wasn’t the biggest asshole on the planet, he still wouldn’t be able to convince Satan’s Disciples to abandon whatever plan they have just because Felix is in danger!
Georgia raised her head, roughly wiping away her tears with the palm of her hand. Think, Georgia! Think! This is no time to get weepy and fall apart. She already knew and had accepted that she was going to have to save her brother herself; debating whether Spike wouldn’t or couldn’t help her was beyond the point. Her current problem was how to get away from Spike without him noticing.
If he knows I’ve gone after Felix, he’ll just come get me and bring me back. He doesn’t understand. He as much told me that if Felix were his brother, he would have let him go a long time ago. My best option is to go before Spike gets back, while Vince is still the one on guard.
Georgia got up and examined all of the windows. There were only two, one of which was painted shut. She stuck her head out of the other one. It was a twenty-foot drop straight to the ground—not a tree limb to climb out on or a gutter to drop from.
She pulled her head back inside and sat on the bed with a sigh. There wasn’t a sheet so she couldn’t even try to make a rope. Spike’s negligent lifestyle had provided him with the perfect jail cell.
But what about the jailer? Georgia thought, a smile spreading across her face.
Georgia opened the door to see Jinx and Vince in the middle of what appeared to be an intense discussion.
They immediately stopped talking and both turned to face her.
“Did you need something?” Jinx asked.
Georgia glanced at Vince, who calmly returned her look. “I finished talking to my brother, and I could use some company,” she said, looking back at Jinx.
“Of course,” Jinx immediately replied. “I’ll talk to you later,” she said, turning so she could give Vince a discrete wink.
Georgia closed the door once Jinx entered, making sure it was firmly closed.
“Are you feeling better now that you talked to your brother?” Jinx asked, falling back onto the bed.
Georgia grabbed Jinx’s wrist, pulling her up into a sitting position. “I need your help,” she demanded.
“What do you mean?” Jinx said, confused. “Help with what? With Spike?”
“No, not Spike,” Georgia said bitterly. Spike wasn’t any help at all right now. “I need help with my brother. He just called me to tell me that Ivan and Yury found where he was hiding out.”
“Oh my gosh!” Jinx exclaimed. “Is he okay?”
Georgia bit her lip, trying to keep the tears from overflowing. “I don’t know. He was talking, then I heard screams, then…then…there was a gunshot. Maybe more than one, I can’t remember,” she said, now openly crying.
“We’d better tell Spike!” Jinx said, getting up from the bed.
“No!” Georgia cried, grabbing Jinx’s arm to stop her. “He can’t do anything about it. He won’t do anything about it,” she said, correcting herself. “I’m the only one who can help my brother right now, and if we tell Spike, he’s just going to keep me locked in here while my brother is out there, dying.”
“Spike’s just trying to keep you safe,” Jinx said.
“Why?” Georgia asked. “It’s obviously not because he cares about me. He made it very clear to me that he’s moved on. He even told me to do the same.”
“Well, that’s just plain not true,” Jinx said, rolling her eyes and sitting back down on the bed. “Spike’s obviously crazy about you—that’s why the gang is so pissed off. He’s putting you over everyone else. Whatever he told you, it’s not true.”
“I wish I could believe that,” Georgia muttered. “Either way, it doesn’t matter,” she added, louder. “I’m the only one who can help Felix. Will you help me?”
Jinx looked around. “Who are you talking to? Because I know you don’t expect me to walk into the lion’s den next to your crazy ass.”
“No, I don’t,” Georgia said. “I need your help busting out.” She nodded towards the door.
“Well, that’s a different story, then. What’s the plan?” Jinx asked.
“I feel skeezy asking, but do you think you could…y’know…distract Vince?” Georgia asked hesitantly. “I only ask because I thought I caught him looking at you that way when you came in earlier.”
“Oh yeah?” Jinx said, a grin spreading across her face.
She was absurdly pleased to find out that Vince was giving her looks behind her back. Georgia was giving her a look right now, but it was a very odd one. Jinx quickly stopped smiling.
“Um, yeah, I could try to do that,” Jinx said in what she hoped was casual, but not too casual, manner. “He’s pretty quiet though, so who knows if it’ll work.” Yeah, right, she thought to herself.
“Right,” Georgia said slowly, still staring at Jinx. “Anyway, if Ivan is driving Felix back from Boston—”
“They will be,” Jinx interrupted, reassuring her. “Crowds, security—it’s too hard to fly with a hostage.”
“Okay, that gives me some time,” Georgia said. “So, if you could distract Vince early tomorrow morning, maybe say you came to check on me or something?” she suggested. “Then I can sneak out and go rescue my brother.”
“What if Spike wants to check in on you after you’re gone? You’ll need someone to keep him busy,” Jinx pointed out.
Georgia scoffed. “I don’t think that will be a problem. He’d have to care to want to check in on me.”
Jinx rolled her eyes, ignoring Georgia’s comment. “You need a backup plan. Roxy could help.”
“Are you sure? I don’t want to tell anyone that’s going to tell Spike.”
“You can trust Roxy. I promise,” Jinx assured her.
Georgia bit her bottom lip. “Okay, but no one else,” she warned. “It’ll get back to Spike and he’ll try to stop me. Ivan and Yury grabbed Felix from my uncle’s place, so I need at least thirteen hours, ten if they’re really pushing it.”
“Okay,” Jinx said. “When I leave, I’ll mention to Vince that you’re tired and don’t want to be bothered. Maybe that’ll keep anyone else out who thinks of visiting you.” She stood to leave, then stopped suddenly. “Wait! How are you going to get to…wherever you’re going? Where are you going? Maybe this isn’t such a good idea after all…” Jinx was beginning to have second thoughts. “How are you going to do anything if you’re all by yourself?”
“If you’re worried about me being on my own, don’t be,” Georgia said. “I’ve been taking care of my brother by myself half my life; I’m used to it. As for a ride, you guys aren’t going to hold Jimmy here the whole night, right?”
“You’re going to ask that kid to come back here early tomorrow morning after the late night you just put him through?” Jinx said.
“Don’t judge me,” Georgia said flatly, her temper rising. “I’m going to do whatever it takes to get my brother back home safe and sound, and don’t you dare tell me that if it were someone you cared about, you wouldn’t do the exact same thing.”
Jinx thought about Vince, the man she loved, who stood only ten feet away on the other side of the door, and she knew Georgia was right.
“Alright,” Jinx sighed. “I’m going to get in so much trouble,” she muttered to herself.
“Thank you, Jinx,” Georgia said, giving the younger woman a warm hug. “I’ll never forget this.”
Something tells me neither will I, Jinx thought.
The next morning, Georgia woke early in anticipation. For the next half hour, she had her ear pressed up against the door, listening for Jinx’s approach.
“Hey,
hot-stuff,” Jinx said, strolling up to Vince. “How’s the hostage?”
Vince raised an eyebrow at her. “I haven’t heard anything. She must still be asleep.”
“It’s been an emotional couple of weeks for her. God knows I’d be sleeping hard after the time she’s had.”
Jinx was tensely aware that Georgia was listening in on her conversation with Vince. Therefore, she was tasked with the difficulty of getting Vince into bed without seeming like they had done it several dozen times before.
“Standing here all night must have you feeling a bit stiff,” Jinx said, rubbing her fingers up and down Vince’s arm slowly.