Chasing Joshua

by Cara North

  “Talk to me.” Joshua sat her on his bed. It was more comfortable, and he knew that. Besides, the bathroom was right there. If she needed to go, it would be less painful than walking down the hall.

  “I can’t. He will kill me and Noel. He will kill us both.” Evelyn still clung to her knees. Her ribs be damned she had bigger problems right now. She might just confess. Tell the secret.

  “No one will touch you ever again, Evelyn, I promise. Tell me.” Joshua couldn’t believe he was making promises to defend her. She could probably do some real damage to a man because they wouldn’t expect it. Just like he didn’t expect this.

  Evelyn wrestled with the memories, the loss of control. She had buried her past deep. She made up for her crime as an adult by hunting rapists and murderers and men who abused women and brought them in for justice. Aside from returning a spoiled teenager to a wealthy family, she didn’t take sugar coated jobs.

  They were specific. She had saved a lot of money, living meager along the way. Her weapons and gear were the most valuable things she owned. Her car, a black Honda Civic, was common, non-descript, six years old. Hadn’t God forgiven her? When would she find peace?

  “Say it, honey. I’m right here, tell me. I promise I’ll keep you safe.” Joshua made that commitment too easily even for himself, but he meant it. He wanted to touch her bruised eye but didn’t. It made him sick to see a woman with a black eye. It made him furious that he couldn’t do anything about it. Not until she let him in.

  “My father.” Evelyn was looking into his eyes. His warm hands held her face up forcing her to do so. Gently though, he was holding her gently.

  He nodded. Waited.

  “When I was eleven, he stabbed my mother. She caught him branding me with his knife. I was naked. He used to ... do stuff, you know. He never raped me exactly, but he made me do stuff.” Her eyes looked down at his chin. His hands slipped free, and she watched his throat swallow hard.

  Joshua locked his jaw. This was tearing him up, piece by piece. He didn’t want to hear it, but he had to. Someone had to listen to her.

  “My mother attacked him. She tried to save me.” Evelyn went to another place in her head, a stronger place. “He stabbed her; we watched.”

  “We.” Joshua’s voice was in a whisper. His hands were over her hands pulling them both into one of his and covering them with the other.

  “My sister Noel was in the closet. We hid her there, so he couldn’t touch her. He tried, but I told him I would do it.” Evelyn felt like the world was lifting off her shoulders. Somehow she needed to give this burden to someone else. Joshua was strong. She felt that in his hands; he seemed to want to carry it, like he had been carrying her.

  “Go on.” Joshua didn’t know which horror story he wanted to hear least, her mother’s murder or her impending abuse.

  “He never wanted us to call him daddy. We called him Blade, except, when he wanted to touch us.” Evelyn drew a deep breath. “So I did it, and I hid Noel in the closet. He never touched her again, at least not while I was there.”

  “You left?” Joshua’s voice cracked, and he choked back tears. He wanted to be strong for her, but damn, she was killing him. He understood her plight in life; it all made sense.

  She shook her head. “No, he got rid of me. He had to.”

  “Why?” Joshua had to know.

  “He made me hold the knife. He made me wipe it on my body. He told me that’s what happens to bad girls. Girls who don’t listen to Blade. Then he told me if I said a word to anyone, that’s what would happen to Noel; that’s what would happen to me.” Evelyn was no longer crying. Her secret was out. “He told me to hide the knife. The cops came, and there I was in the backyard, trying to bury a knife, eleven years old, covered in my mother’s blood and naked.”

  Joshua’s teeth were grinding. He couldn’t take much more of this. She needed therapy. Hell he might need therapy again after this. Post traumatic stress disorder. He didn’t need a license to diagnose it. He had experienced it firsthand, but nowhere near this level.

  Christ, it was amazing she wasn’t a criminal or insane. Instead she survived, dedicated her life to justice. Evelyn Blade was an honorable woman, not a killer. Damn, he felt like an ass. No wonder that good girl comment ripped her. He wanted to take a shot at lightening her mood, not throw her into a tailspin.

  Joshua didn’t know what to say. What do you say when someone bares their soul and exposes their demons? He lifted his hands, opened them, and kissed the back of the hand on top.

  Evelyn didn’t know what to do. It was probably the most tender moment in her entire life. She didn’t let her foster mother, Stella, get this close to her. She tried, but Evelyn was afraid if she told her, Blade would kill them both. He was still out there, alive. She could feel it. She could feel him hunting her, had felt it all her life. She slid her hands from Joshua’s and wrapped her arms around him. Never in her life had she felt like this toward a man. She told him the secret. His huge chest was like a solid wall. Pressing the left side of her face into his chest, she practically crawled into his lap.

  “He’s going to kill me,” she whispered.

  “No, honey, no one will ever hurt you like that again. I promise.” Joshua was determined now more than ever to get to the bottom of this. There was one week left of school before Easter break, and he would spend that week figuring this out. He had to keep her here, keep her safe.

  “You can’t keep that promise. You don’t know who you’re dealing with,” she pleaded.

  “Shhhh, breathe ... Just breathe,” he whispered.

  Joshua pulled her into his lap and pushed back onto the bed. His back stretched down to the large pillows allowing him to rest at an incline. Evelyn’s hands slid from his back to his chest, and her face remained pressed into him tightly. Her eyes closed, and her breathing slowed. His chin was barely touching the top of her head. With each inhale she breathed him. He smelled like soap, and Joshua, like peace.

  Joshua’s eyes began to feel heavy. It had been one hell of a morning and afternoon. Evelyn was warm in his arms. Her hair smelled like jasmine; that was Grace’s shampoo. He knew her ribs had to hurt though she didn’t grimace once. Of course the pain in her mind was probably greater than any body damage she suffered right now. He stroked her shoulder length hair and closed his eyes. She was safe now. He had to make plans to ensure her safety forever.

  Evelyn drifted into sleep, hearing his heartbeat, inhaling his scent. She had searched for peace all her life, studied the art of war, and fought for women who couldn’t fight for themselves. She didn’t allow herself to feel like a victim. She wouldn’t accept that at eleven, she couldn’t defend her mother, her sister. She could have tried. She carried his name, carried the scars he placed on her body. Blade taught her to never trust men. He taught her that her body was sinful and forced him to do things. And now, she broke every rule she had ever established for herself. She was trusting a man. She was in his arms. He was touching her, and she felt at peace. It seemed impossible.

  * * * *

  “I tried. She escaped!” Nikolai hit the ground with a thump. He didn’t get up.

  “What do you have for me?” The man’s voice cracked.

  “We have reason to believe she’s in New York.” The voice was soft and uncertain.

  “Good girl.” He kicked the dead body of Nikolai Strong and looked back at the woman. “Clean this up.”

  She moved quickly to grab Nikolai’s feet and struggled to pull the body. Once he left, the other men in the room helped her.

  “Don’t tell him I helped you, okay?” the tall one whispered. “Grab his arms.”

  The short one grabbed his arms.

  “How is she?” the woman asked.

  “Free,” the tall one answered. “Hurt, but free.”

  “You weren’t supposed to hurt her.” The woman still whispered and kept an eye on the door. “What happened?”

  “Nikolai said we should follow Blade’s orders. He wa
nted the money,” the tall one said. “She got her shots in on us. Look at my nose.”

  “He’ll find more hunters now.” The short one pushed the rest of Nikolai’s body into the barrel. “No one legit will take it, but the money is getting too good. The worst kind of people will be after her.”

  “You have to find her first.” The woman was pleading with the tall man. “My family will pay double what he’s paying, but she has to be safe, unharmed. Alive!”

  “So do you.” The short one shrugged.

  “The worst kind of person is after her, him. And you know it. You’re her friends, help her.” The woman sucked back the tears.

  “We’ll try, but playing both sides of the fence is dangerous.” The tall one touched his nose, and they left the room.

  They were right and she knew it. She had to stay alive, so did Evelyn. Her husband and two kids were safe at home in Tennessee. They thought she was away on business. They had to think that. He would kill them otherwise. He needed her. He needed her connections, and whatever sick game he had in his head. He needed her there to play.

  * * * *

  At eight o’clock the doorbell rang. Joshua opened his eyes and realized Evelyn was laying on him. She had stretched the length of him as far as her legs would reach. Her hands gripped his T-shirt tightly. He thought about not answering the door, but the bell chimed again. He gripped her back and gently rolled her to the bed. Pulling her hands free he got up and headed for the door. If the circumstances were different, he would have loved the way he woke up. But Evelyn was only here for protection, not for him to keep.

  Shelby Banks stood at his door with a pie in her hands. The fact that no lights were on hadn’t stopped her in the least. In two years he had never missed a day at work. Shane, her son, loved him. Shelby, at every opportunity, tried to bed him. Joshua opened the door and regretted leaving the bed.

  “Shelby.” Joshua didn’t open the screen door, and he made a fake cough. All barriers were good barriers where this woman was concerned.

  “I made this pie for you.” Shelby came alone, dressed in clothes that were more fitting for a high school girl than a thirty-six-year-old woman.

  “I have the flu, can’t come in. Sorry.” Joshua began to shut the door bowing graciously the whole time. Shelby’s smile faded, and she pointed to the pie and sat it on the rocking chair.

  “Well, okay, maybe when you feel better. Here’s your pie anyways.” Shelby waved, and he waved back through the crack he held in the door. She wiggled her way down the stairs and into her car. Once she was gone, Joshua opened the door and took the pie. Bringing it back inside he faced Evelyn and felt as though he had been caught red-handed.

  “Who was that?” Evelyn limped toward him. She looked a lot better, but her eye was discolored and her jaw, too.

  “Student’s mom.” Joshua walked to the counter and set the fresh apple pie on it.

  “Would you have let her in if I wasn’t here?” Evelyn searched the floor with her eyes. Jealous? Come on E, you don’t know this guy.

  “No. Of course, she wouldn’t have stopped by in the first place if you weren’t here.” Joshua stared at the top of her head. He loved her red hair. It was straight but soft and wavy from sleep. He loved the way it smelled. If he knew that shampoo was in there, he would have been huffing it, or worse using it.

  “What do you mean?” Evelyn looked up at him directly.

  “I missed school today. I never call out of work.” Joshua shrugged. “I imagine more people may try to stop by. But no worries, I’ll put a sign out.”

  “A sign, like beware of the dog?” Evelyn wanted to be close to him again. She hadn’t had sleep like that in ... well she may have never had sleep like that.

  “No, like I have the flu, see you Monday.” Joshua was drawn to her. He moved closer and she did, too. “Did you sleep good?”

  “You know I did.” Evelyn blushed. Shit, she was blushing. She was the master of the dirty joke and poker face, but Joshua was different. He was unlike any man she ever knew. She felt different, like she was a completely different woman here. Her guard was down. He refused to acknowledge her as a threat, kept calling her Wonder Woman and baby. Evelyn really felt uncontrollably drawn to him.

  “Let’s put a banana peel on that eye.” Joshua peeled a banana and handed her the peel as he took a bite of the banana.

  “Are you nuts?” Evelyn held the peel at a distance.

  “It works, I swear. My Nana used to do it when I got a shiner.” He took another bite and realized she was probably hungry, too. He held the rest of it out to her.

  Instead of taking it from him she stepped closer and bit it. That gave him images and thoughts he didn’t want to see. She was a fragile little Bounty Hunter, not an object for lust. But damn when that lip was better, he might try to kiss it.

  Evelyn knew it was a bold move, but she felt better. She could see completely out of both eyes with no haze. Her ankle was stiff but no worse for the wear. After a couple of days, she would be training again. Right now, she wanted Joshua. Even if she couldn’t convince him to let her seduce him, she wanted to be near him.

  “My, my, what big teeth you have.” Joshua had to break the silence. Her second bite almost hit his fingers, and that would be a little too much right now.

  “The better to bite you with.” Evelyn didn’t give him a chance to withdraw his hand. She grabbed it and felt his fingers letting go of the last bite of banana as she consumed it.

  “Damn, woman.” Joshua took a step back. Ethan had warned him, the house did something to a man. He didn’t believe it, but he did now. His senses were on full alert. His manhood was vying to get out of his shorts, and the man hater had turned into a man hunter. She looked at him with predatory eyes. He was known as the Big Dog, yet Evelyn looked like a wolf.

  “Did I nip you?” Evelyn licked her lips. They were still swollen but not by much. It wasn’t a hard punch Nicolai threw and most of the bruising was on her chin and cheek. Her eye wasn’t too bad either. With steady ice packs it had reduced a lot. She put the banana peel on her eye and said, “Argh.”

  “Pirate, cute.” Joshua stepped back again. “Are you hungry?”

  “Yep.” Evelyn nodded and the banana peel slipped. Giving up on his Nana’s old wives’ tale she tossed it in the trash. “Pizza?”

  “Good choice.” Joshua headed to the phone. Anything was good that could get him moving and away from her. “You have a preference?”

  “I don’t eat anchovies.” Evelyn limped to the recliner and sat down. Pushing the handle she laid back. A huge sigh escaped her. She was relaxed. “I really like what you’ve done with the place.”

  “Yes, I need a large pizza, extra anchovies.”

  “Joshua!” Evelyn shouted.

  “Hello, yes, I’d like to order two large pizzas for delivery.” He smiled. It could be fun to have a woman around for a while. He could make some calls, get the mess straightened out. In the meantime he could enjoy some company. “Pepperoni and Pineapple. Hang on.” To Evelyn he said, “What do you want on yours?”

  “That’s fine. I have never had pineapple on a pizza.” Evelyn shrugged. God, if anyone could see her now, they would just die. Never had she been so agreeable.

  “Two of those.” Joshua hung up after getting the total. “So, woman, what do you want to do while we wait for pizza?”

  “What do you want to do?” Evelyn’s voice was thick with suggestion. She wanted to tie him up, tease him and let him tease her. No, she couldn’t possibly want him to touch her. He had done enough of that already.

  “How about a movie?” Joshua squatted to see what DVDs he had. Some were his; some belonged to Grace. He talked while he looked through them, too many chick flicks. “Grace decorated before she moved. I moved in a few months later but didn’t change anything. Huh.”

  “What?”

  “Nothing, this one’s blank. I wonder what’s on it.” Curious by nature, he began flipping it in his hand.

&nbs
p; “Let’s see.” Evelyn was curious, too. “It could be an old movie. Grace had tons of those when I was here before.” Dragging out this last part she said, “Come on.”

  Joshua patted the case several times against his hand and then stood. “What the hell, it can’t be anything too bad.”

  “Probably an old movie, let’s see.”

  Joshua put the DVD in and went to sit down. There was no sound, so he couldn’t see what was playing behind him.

  “Well hello.” Evelyn’s voice perked up and she blushed. “Wait, is that ... Grace?”

  Joshua turned to witness in horror, his cousin Ethan and Grace making out. They weren’t naked, at least not yet, but they were on the way to it quickly.

  “Shit!” Joshua jumped over the coffee table catching his shin in the process. “Fuck!”

  “Looks like that’s where it’s headed.” Evelyn fanned herself. “That’s Ethan?”

  “Yeah.” Joshua shook his head. “They bought that camera to film Gray, damn. Is that my bed? Oh, you wait till I get a hold of him.”

  “He’s hot. I see why she married him.” Evelyn saw this as a perfect time to get a reaction out of him. If he cared less, she knew it was a waste of efforts. She had bared her soul, told the secret that would no doubt lead to her doom, and she wanted to touch this man. Her life had taken an odd twist in the last forty-eight hours. The rollercoaster had begun. “You say we’re going to visit them?”

  Joshua could barely contain himself. He wanted to snap the disc in two but knew Ethan would definitely want it back. Kinky bastard, he’d get four kids, six if he didn’t watch it. “No. I said I was invited. Grace can come here if she wants to see you.”

  “Are you going to break that thing in half?”

  Damn, he tried to be cool. This isn’t the girl to get tangled up with. She is emotionally unavailable, even to herself. His face flushed.

  “Joshua, are you ... jealous?” Evelyn saw a light at the end of the tunnel. She just hoped it wasn’t a train on its way to run her over. She had never opened up to a man, never said please or thank you. Men were scum, except Joshua. God, what am I thinking? Now he’s an exception?