Out of Centerfield (Washington Warriors Novel Book 1)

by Mertz, L.

  “You haven’t been performing, Ramos. Something has to change.”

  “Shut up, you little bitch. I don’t answer to you.”

  Slamming my hand on the desk, I make the pen holder fall over. “Yes you do. You answer to me and you answer to Hank, but most importantly you answer to this ball club. If you can’t do that I’ll send your ass so far down in the minors you will have to get a second job at the stadium you’re playing in to even enter the field.”

  He stares at me. I can tell he’s thinking over what I just said. The clarity sets in that I’m not bluffing or backing down and he recedes. He slams the door to the office when he leaves and the tension leaves with him. I blow out a breath and sink into a nearby chair.

  “Well, little lady. That…I don’t know that was something,” Hank says to me from his desk chair. I forgot that he was even there for a few minutes.

  “We need to have an emergency meeting, Hank, right now. Grab all the guys.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” He squeezes my shoulder and leave the office. I gather myself getting ready to deliver a speech that I think is completely necessary right now. Especially after that little outburst from Ramos. Hank comes back and knocks on the door signally that the guys are ready. I straighten out my shirt and skirt. So glad that I wore my red power heels today. Shoulders back and head held high, I walk out into the locker room to face the proverbial firing squad.

  Johnathan

  I knew Kelsey was down here there was a shift in the air and I lost my concentration playing the video game with Daniel and he killed me.

  “Come on, dude. That was way too easy,” Daniel says, throwing his controller down.

  “Hey, Ramos I need to talk to you,” Hank yells through the room.

  Ramos starts grumbling about something but follows Hank into his office. Rather quickly Ramos is leaving the office and he looks pissed. Our starting catcher walks over to him to see what’s up and all I hear is “that bitch” and “minors”. My temper starts to rise and I go to get up.

  “Don’t do it, man, remember what we talked about.” It’s Daniel stopping me. He’s been helping me since the break-up and I will always be thankful for him and his guidance. He explained to me why Kelsey did what she did, breaking up with me. I just wish I would’ve been here for her when Butch had his stroke. I sent a card to Evelyn telling her that I hope he gets better and that if she needed anything to let me know. I haven’t told my mom about the break- up. She fell in love with Kelsey when they first met at the start of the season and Annabelle loves her too. Kevin knows the truth and he knows not to tell anyone.

  “Guys! Emergency meeting. Now,” Hank yells.

  The whole team gets up and we make a half circle in front of Hank. He walks back to his office and Kelsey opens the door walking out toward us. She looks fantastic. She’s wearing her hair down and she has these killer red pumps on. I feel myself growing hard at the sight of her. She stops standing next to Hank. He nods at her and steps back.

  “Hey, guys. I just wanted to talk to you quickly.” She stops and clears her throat. I know she’s nervous. The reception from the team hasn’t exactly been a warm one. But slowly the guys are coming around I think.

  “I know that the announcement a few weeks ago was a surprise to everyone, including myself. And then to have Butch to collapse things moved a lot quicker than I believe anyone wanted. That being said, I am the acting owner of this ball club. I don’t want to be that owner that you can’t trust. I want you to trust me and I want to trust you. I have the support of my family and I want the support of the team too, which means you guys. And you are a family too. You are as much part of the Smyth family as you are a part of the Warriors. Never forget that.

  “Another thing,” she pauses again and something comes over her. A hardness that I’ve never seen before and it scares me. “If you cannot play for a ‘little girl’…” She glares at Hank. “That’s the current term being tossed around, correct?” He nods in agreement having been silent the whole time.

  “Yes, well if you don’t think that you can work for a ‘little girl’, which I’m not, then you can pack your shit up right now and leave. I can find someone to replace you. All of you if I have to because there is a guy out there who wants to play baseball for the love of playing not for a paycheck. That no named guy is full of heart and passion something that is clearly lacking from you all. Don’t think that I haven’t noticed because I have. I watch every game, every single one and I have since I was old enough to know and understand baseball. So don’t for one minute think that I don’t know what needs to be fixed player wise.

  “If you won’t play for yourselves or for me, then play for Butch! Win him some games! Let’s get to post season and let’s win for him!” She stops breathing hard, fist raised in the air. The passion for the game is coming through loud and clear from where I’m standing. I look around the room examining the guys. We haven’t been playing to our fullest and she’s right we need to play with our hearts. We lost our passion for the game, myself included and we need to get it back. I need to get her back too. My powerful no so ‘little girl’.

  “Are we in agreement, guys?” She’s looking at all of us. Waiting.

  “Yes, Ms. Smyth.” I hear someone say. Then another voice saying the same thing. Soon the whole team has agreed to what Kelsey has said except for one person, Ramos.

  “Ramos!” Hank yells at the closing pitcher.

  “Yes, sir?”

  “Are you in agreement or not?” Hank raises a single eyebrow at Ramos waiting for him to answer.

  “Yes, skipper.” He looks at Kelsey. “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Thank you, guys,” she smiles and nods at everyone. “Now please let’s go and win these next few games and get our spot back in the running for the division.” She turns to leave and I walk quickly to her meeting her in the hallway. I reach out and grab her arm.

  “Kelsey,” I say. She turns around and I see sadness in her eyes. “How have you been?” It’s stupid question but I ask it anyway.

  “I’m okay. Tired all the time, but okay. Grandfather starts physical therapy soon. I’m hoping he’ll be able to be here for some post season games. If the team can make it that far.”

  “We will, Kelsey, and he’ll be here.” I smile down at her. She returns the smile but it’s not reaching her eyes. I reach out and cup her cheek with my hand then lean down and whisper in her ear, “I miss you so much.” Her breath catches and I she her skin flush with color.

  She moves away. “I have to go.” And with that the elevator arrives and soon she is on it going back to the main offices and away from me. I need to do something, anything to get her back. I need Lauren.

  Kelsey

  Dead on my feet I push open my door and walk through, locking it behind me. Lauren texted me earlier that she would in fact not be home like we had originally discussed. I didn’t stay to watch the whole game, leaving at the seventh inning stretch. I’m looking forward to a quiet evening just me, a glass of wine, and a warm bath. I start striping my clothes off as I walk to my bathroom. Turning on the water and putting some lavender oil in the warm water I walk back into my room and find that my closet has exploded. Not only that, but my clothes have been torn. I look for my bag and find my phone calling the police immediately. I grab my clothes I just took off and get dressed again also turning the water off in the bathroom.

  The cops arrive and start questioning me. I tell them of the weird letter and packages that have been arriving at my home. That’s when I remember the box from the other week. I never opened it. It’s still on my dining room table.

  “That box. I received it the other week,” I tell the female officer.

  “Did you open it?” she asks.

  “No. I completely forgot about it.” I get up to grab the box and she stops me before I open it handing me rubber gloves. I put the gloves on and open the box carefully. Inside there are more mutilated pictures like the ones I’ve gotten before. But some of these p
ictures have my family members in them too. I drop the pictures and sit down shocked at whomever is doing this. It’s now not just me they are following but my whole family. There were even pictures from outside the ambulance when Butch had his stroke.

  “Miss Smyth…Miss Smyth…Kelsey…” I hear the voice say to me. It’s a woman. Wait. Why is a woman talking to me? I blink a few times, opening my eyes I’m looking at the ceiling. What just happened? I start to get up realizing that I’ve fainted.

  “There you are. Easy. Can I get some water over here please?” the female officer asks.

  “Thanks,” I say once I’m handed a glass.

  “That was fun wasn’t it? Fainting.”

  “Oh yeah check that off my bucket list,” I say sarcastically.

  “Are you going to be okay by yourself?”

  “Yes. I think so. Just so much has happened today that’s all.” I stand up and walk over to the couch.

  “Yes, well I’m going to take this box and have it processed and hopefully we can get some prints off of it and see who has been sending you this stuff.” The cop starts to leave but stops at the door. “Be aware of everyone around you and never go anywhere alone right now until we get this weirdo, okay?”

  “Yes. Got it. Not alone.” She leaves and I get up, locking the door behind her. I text Lauren telling her to call me when she can. I know she’s working tonight at a photo shoot so she should be safe from this crazy stalker person. It’s super late and I just want to go to bed. I plug my phone in and see that I have a missed text message from Johnathan.

  Johnathan: Saw the cop car outside of your place. You OK?

  I don’t know how or why he knew about the cop car. I didn’t think that they were here that late or why he was even down this side of the city.

  Kelsey: Oh you know same old same old just someone broke in to my place and trashed all my clothes.

  I hit send and almost immediately my phone starts ringing. “Hello?”

  “What do you mean someone broke in? What the fuck? Is Lauren even home with you?”

  “Calm down. Everything is fine. I’m calling a locksmith in the morning and getting them changed just in case then I need to get new clothes. And no Lauren is working tonight so I’m by myself.”

  “Fuck…I’m coming over there.”

  “No. I’m fine really. It’s okay.”

  “Fuck that Kelsey you are not staying there by yourself.”

  “If you come over here I will fire you.”

  “Try it.” With that Johnathan hangs up the phone and I’m left starring at my own. I so just threatened him and he didn’t care. He clearly doesn’t have his head on straight and is going to screw up his career over this stupid shit. I’ll just not answer the door when he gets here. No sooner do I have this thought and he’s banging on the door.

  I get up, walk to the door, not bothering to check the peephole and open the door. “Johnathan, I don’t need you here.” I’m pushed back into my condo and I feel a hand go around my throat, squeezing it. My door slams shut.

  “Don’t scream or say anything if you do I will slice your throat. Got it?” I try to shake my head but I can barely move it with his hand around my throat. He’s a big guy, bigger and broader than Johnathan. He’s wearing all black and a matching ski mask. I don’t recognize his voice and I’m terrified for my life. He turns me around and my back is crushed up against his front. I can feel something poking me in the back and that’s when I know that I’m about to be raped. He pushes me toward the couch and bends me over the arm. The masked intruder pushes my face into the cushions of the couch I freeze when I hear the sound of his zipper.

  He bends over my back whispering in my ear. “I’ve been watching you for a while now. You are mine and you will never forget this night. I’m going to make this good for you and your pretty baseball player boyfriend can’t do anything about it.”

  I start to really cry and my face is wet from the tears. He grabs my skirt and pushes it up and over my butt exposing my lace panties. He pauses rubbing his free hand over my ass before moving the lace out of the way. The cold air hits my skin and it immediately is covered in goosebumps. I start shaking, anticipating what he’s going to do next. I feel his hand press my face further into the cushions and then I hear the greatest sound in the world. My door slamming open.

  Johnathan

  “Get the fuck off of her or I’ll kill you.” I thought something was up as soon as got to her floor. Her door was cracked opened. I slowly moved into the condo only to find her body bent over the couch and a monster of a man leaning over her. I grabbed my .38 out of the back of my jeans and then walked through the door. Raising my hand I call out to the guy. He turns his head, releases Kelsey and starts walking toward me.

  “What are you going to do? Shoot me? I’d like to see you try.” He rushes me dropping his shoulder like a linebacker in the NFL but I quickly turn out of his way and he runs into the wall behind me. He tries to rush me again but this time I shoot and he is hit in the upper thigh. He goes down but doesn’t stay there. I shoot again hitting him in the lower part of his stomach. This time he stays down. I turn to find Kelsey huddled in the corner of her living room shaking. I pull the blanket off of her couch and throw it around her cradling her in my arms. Soon there are three cops coming through the door, guns in hand and shouting. One officer goes to the guy bleeding out on the floor and checks him for a pulse a small part of me hopes that he’s dead, but when the paramedics arrive and start working on getting is wounds to stop bleeding I know that he’s still alive.

  The other two officers come over to us. I tell them what happened and they tell me that they still want both of us to come down to the station later to give a formal statement. Before they take the intruder, they have me look at his face to see if I recognize him or not. I have no idea who the man is but the cops have his wallet and identification. Once everyone leaves Kelsey walks back into her room. I check the door to make sure it’s closed completely and latch the chain across the door. It’s not going to stop anyone from coming it but maybe it’ll help just a little.

  I walk into her bedroom and see a few piles of clothes on the floor and Kelsey is curled up in a ball in the center of her bed. I’ve wanted to be in bed with her for weeks, but not like this definitely not like this. “Babe,” I say. trying to get her to sit up. “We’ve got to go to the police station.”

  Sniffling, she asks, “You’re coming with me, right?”

  Of course. I won’t let you go alone.” I get her up and we take my truck down to the station. We’re there for a few hours going over everything from the beginning with the first note that Kelsey got. The cops are sensitive to the issues and plan to question the guy, whose name is Marc Jakob, when he gets out of surgery. Kelsey is completely drained by the time we leave. The sun is coming up over the cityscape as I drive her back to her condo. I park and she reaches for my hand, “I don’t want to go back there. Can I just stay at your place?”

  “Of course. Do you need me to grab some stuff from upstairs for you?”

  She shakes her head. “Everything I had was destroyed. I have to buy all new.” She blows out a breath. “Everything.” I don’t answer her, just throw the truck into drive and get out of there. I text Lauren and let her know about the break-in and advise her to find somewhere else to stay for a few days. When we get to my place I take Kelsey up to my condo and she heads straight for my bedroom. I pull the curtains shut to block out the sunlight. Digging through my drawers I find her a pair of shorts and I t-shirt to wear but she is already under the covers and her clothes are in a pile on the floor.

  Stepping out, I go the living room and start making calls, first to the Skipper, then to Kelsey’s mom so she can handle the press. She seemed like she was upset about what happened and informed me that she would call her brothers. My last call was to Evelyn. I didn’t want to tell her about the incident but I didn’t want her to find out from the news or someone else. She starts crying on the phone when I
tell her what happened but was relieved that I was there to rescue Kelsey. Evelyn tells me that she wants Kelsey to rest and to bring her to her house when she wakes up. I hang up the phone and go into my room after deciding that I need to be in the same room just in case she wakes up. I take some extra blankets I have and make a place on the floor next to my bed. I know it won’t be comfortable but I don’t know if Kelsey would be okay with me being in the bed either.

  I lie down on my back and try to get comfortable. Kelsey reaches her hand down over the side of the bed and I reach up with my hand to hold hers. My hand is going to fall asleep but I don’t want to let go. I need to stay strong for her.

  Waking up sometime midday I feel a body pressed up against mine. Opening my eyes I see that Kelsey has made herself comfortable on the floor with me. I try to break free from her embrace but I’m unable to due to her having wrapped herself around me. Her legs are between mine and her arms are wrapped around my waist like a boa constrictor. I tap her arm trying to get her to wake up but she just holds on stronger. Relaxing into her embrace I run my hand through her hair. She finally starts stirring and looks at me. “Hey,” she says softly.

  “Hey, how are you feeling?” Internally I cringe at asking such a stupid question. She probably feels like crap.

  “Like crap. Can I take a shower?” she asks.

  “Of course, I’ll try to look through my things and find you something to wear. Take your time, but I’m supposed to take you to your grandparents’ house when you’re ready.”

  “Okay,” she says, getting up to head for the bathroom. Kelsey isn’t walking with the same confidence that she normally does but I guess I wouldn’t be either if I was assaulted. She closes the door and I hear the lock click in place. When I finally hear the water running I get up cleaning up the make shift bed and find myself and Kelsey some clothes to wear. I leave a pair of sweats and a t-shirt on the bed for her along with a pair of boxer briefs. I have a feeling today is going to be just as long as yesterday and it’s already halfway over.