About twenty minutes later a similar scenario played out in Scott’s bedroom. In fact it happened a few more times that day too, before they eventually decided it was time to get out of bed, get dressed and head for the airport. It was hard to say goodbye, but the excitement of what they had to look forward to in a few weeks was enough to keep them both smiling. Scott returned home to an empty house later that afternoon and it was depressing. After spending a few weeks having someone there every day it made him realize just how much he wanted and needed that companionship. Tiffany arrived home safely too and went back to work the next day. The couple continued to talk on the phone and text several times a day over the next few weeks.
It was getting towards the end of October. Scott had just one more week left in Ohio before he made his move out to California. To say he was excited was an understatement. He’d said his goodbyes to most people, including the majority of his Kickboxing students and his neighbors. He’d also been down to his favorite sports bar the previous week and said farewell to the regulars there and Sam, his favorite barmaid. Things were looking up for her, as her husband had managed to find another job. So she wasn’t working as many shifts anymore. Scott was going to miss a lot of people, especially the kids that he taught, but he knew it was the right thing to do.
It was late Sunday evening. Scott had just watched the NFL football game on TV and had called Tiffany for their late night chat. He completed his usual routine of making sure the doors were locked and brushing his teeth before heading to bed. It was around midnight when he turned off the lights and laid his head down on the pillow. It took him a while to go to sleep. It was hard for his brain to shut off. Various thoughts about his impending move and new life kept running through his head. He felt like a young kid trying to sleep on Christmas Eve, but eventually he drifted off.
Scott was a light sleeper, very light in fact. This was just something that happened as a result of his past military work, there was nothing he could do to change that. He woke up with a start, and sat up quickly looking at his digital alarm clock, it said 3:07 a.m. He knew something had woken him up and quickly tried to gather his thoughts. After a few seconds of silence he lay back down, thinking he must have been dreaming, he shut his eyes. Less than two minutes later he heard a loud bang, he wasn’t sure what it was but it seemed like it was coming from downstairs. This time his heart rate increased, he had a feeling that someone was inside the house. He jumped out of bed quickly and made his way to the bedroom door. He was wearing only a pair of black boxer shorts. Lots of thoughts were going through his mind, as he moved quickly and quietly out of the bedroom and into the upstairs hallway. He was almost certain there was someone downstairs. He was positive it couldn’t be Tiffany, he had spoken to her a few hours ago and she was in California. There was no way she’d come into his house in the middle of the night anyway, plus she didn’t have a key. He had to think logically and quickly, yes, he was positive it couldn’t be her. If he was going to launch a strike against an intruder he’d use every skill he had to render that intruder incapable of causing him harm and he wouldn’t want to accidentally hurt someone he knew. It was after 3:00 a.m. the only possible reason anyone could have for being in his house uninvited at this time was either to cause him harm or to steal from him. His mind was clear, he was happy that the intruder needed to be dealt with using force, if indeed it was an intruder.
Scott didn’t keep a gun in the house. He didn’t need one. He had more than enough skills to take out an intruder, even if they were armed. The short hallway seemed like it was a mile long as he crept quietly in the darkness towards the top of the stairs. As he reached the top step he heard another noise from below, it sounded like someone had tripped over something. Now he was 100% sure that someone was in the house. He heard a door creak, he was pretty confident that it was the door from the living room that led to the stairs. Scott moved just inside the spare bedroom, which was closer to the stairs than his room and crouched down. Sure enough, there was someone coming up the stairs, Scott heard the familiar creak of the third step up as it was trodden on. It only happened once, there was only one person coming upstairs he thought, as he remained crouched down behind the partially closed spare bedroom door. He was calm, as the footsteps got closer, concentrating more on how to deal with the situation rather than who it was.
Scott knew exactly where the infiltrator was and heard them get to the top of the stairs. They were heading right for him. Then suddenly the door that Scott was hiding behind was pushed a little from the outside, but it didn’t hit him. Scott was poised and ready to strike but the intruder didn’t enter the room. It seemed as if he’d just taken a quick look inside and moved on. The spare room was virtually empty apart from a twin bed which had a white duvet laid over it. Maybe he’d seen that there was nothing in here Scott thought, as the footsteps started to move away down the short hallway. It was time to strike, Scott stood up and with amazing speed and stealth moved out into the hallway. The large figure was a few steps in front of him and was moving towards Scott’s bedroom. He was sure nobody else was coming as there were no more familiar sounds coming from the stairs. It was dark but Scott’s eyes were accustomed to the lack of light and could make out his target well. It appeared to be a large male, around the same height as himself.
Just before the stranger reached his bedroom, Scott struck. He landed a heavy right hook to the side of the man’s head from behind, and as he fell Scott clamped his huge right arm around the man’s throat, locking it onto his left arm which was across the back of his victim’s neck. The conflict was as good as over, and after a few seconds of struggling, the man was unconscious. Scott lay on the back of his victim who was face down on the carpeted floor. When he was sure there was no longer a threat, he released the potentially lethal choke hold. He was confident he hadn’t choked him long enough to kill him, just long enough to make him black out. Scott stood up and turned on the light, it was time to find out who the hell this was and what he was doing.
The bright light filled the hallway. Scott’s eyes took a couple of seconds to adjust as he focused on the large man lying on his floor. He was a large heavily tattooed man with a shaved head and a dark beard. Scott didn’t know who he was but he was certain it wasn’t a burglar. A few feet away from the prone man’s head was a handgun, Scott picked it up and emptied the clip. Whoever this was he wasn’t here to steal a TV, he was here to kill me, Scott thought. His mind quickly started to work, he knew there was always a risk that someone associated with a terrorist organization could come after him due to his previous military work, but the man didn’t really fit that profile. Then he thought about Tom, what if he’d survived the Russian Mob incident and had come back seeking revenge by hiring a hit-man. Scott wasn’t sure, but whoever it was he knew he had to call the police and let them deal with it. Eventually anyway, first he was going to try and find out who his visitor was.
Scott searched the man’s pockets looking for some form of ID but there didn’t appear to be anything. After a couple of minutes he gave up and started to shake the man, and slap his face to try and make him regain consciousness. At first there was no response but after a few minutes the man started to rouse. Scott turned him over and laid him on his back. He sat astride his chest pinning his arms with his strong legs. The man was drowsy and vulnerable.
“What are yer doing in my house?” Scott asked angrily.
The man mumbled something but it did not make any sense, he was still dazed and confused. Scott slapped the side of the man’s face with a lot of force.
“What are yer doing in my house?” he repeated.
“Get off me you psycho,” the man demanded, Scott’s last slap had livened him up.
“Yer in my house with a gun at this time of night, yer going tae tell me why yer here afore I let yer go.”
“Go to hell”.
“Okay, if that’s the way yer want tae play it, that’s fine,” Scott said as he slammed his fist into the man’s nose. He
cried out in pain and blood started to rush from his face.
“Now talk, or yer’ll get another one. Why are yer here? Who sent yer?”
“I’m not saying a word, just get off me.”
“Wrong answer,” Scott shouted, seconds before pushing his forearm into the man’s throat, cutting off his air supply. The man struggled but Scott was too strong, he was helpless. After about 15 seconds, Scott pulled his arm away. The man gasped for air.
“Now who are yer? And who sent yer?” he demanded.
“I’m not telling you anything.”
The man had barely got the last word out when Scott reapplied his forearm to the throat. This time he left it on for nearly 30 seconds before releasing his struggling captive. Once again the man gasped for air, Scott could see the fear in his eyes.
“Last chance tae talk, next time I kill yer.”
The man hesitated, Scott started to move his arm forward towards the man’s throat again.
“Keith, it was Keith Green, don’t kill me,” he blurted out.
Scott thought he’d heard the last of Green, but obviously he was wrong. Apparently the man who Katie had dated after she and Scott split up was still out to get him, even though he was in prison.
“Reet, get up and walk doonstairs,” Scott ordered him as he got off the man and showed him that he had his gun. The man slowly got up and made his way down the stairs, closely followed by Scott. When they got into the living room Scott grabbed his phone and called the police.
About 10 minutes later, two police cars showed up at his house. Scott let them in, then went to put some clothes on before explaining everything that happened. One of the cops was Officer Maloney who Scott had dealt with a few months earlier. The intruder was arrested but an ambulance was called to take him to the hospital. The Officers took Scott’s statement, he assured them he’d used reasonable but not excessive force in the circumstances and they were quite happy with his version of events. The paramedics arrived a few minutes later and took the man out of the house. One of the cops went with them to the hospital. Just before Officer Maloney left, he turned to Scott.
“So, how did his nose get bloodied if you punched him on the side of his head in your initial confrontation?”
“I’m nae sure, I guess he must have slipped and fell,” Scott replied smiling.
The officer laughed, he knew what had happened and was secretly quite happy about it. Slipped and fell would be on his report.
“And how did you get him to admit that Green had hired him? He didn’t seem very talkative when we tried to question him!”
“Och I guess I must be quite persuasive.”
Once again Officer Maloney laughed.
“Thanks Scott, we’ll take care of it. I’ll be in touch to let you know what we get out of him and what’s going to happen regarding charges. Good night.”
Scott said farewell to the Officer and proceeded to board up the window that the intruder had broken to gain access to his house. He thought about calling Tiffany but there was no need to worry her. He’d tell her later when he talked to her. Scott went back to bed to at least try and get a few hours sleep.
The next day, late in the afternoon Scott got a visit from Officer Maloney. He explained that it was definitely a man who Green had hired. Apparently it was an old friend who’d visited him in prison. Allegedly Green had offered to pay the man but hadn’t mentioned too much about Scott to the potential hit-man. He had no idea what type of person he was trying to ‘take out’. Scott was happy to let the police deal with it, he’d had enough. He just wanted to move and start his new life. He’d had enough of all the drama. Was it too much to ask for a quiet peaceful life, he thought.
Chapter 3
The last few days in Ohio went by quickly. All loose ends had been taken care of and Scott had said his goodbyes. He even sent a quick text to Katie telling her he was leaving the state to start a new life. She replied and wished him well, saying she’d keep in touch via email. Scott didn’t expect that she would but he didn’t mind if she did, in fact he didn’t really care either way. He still had some good memories of his time with Katie and her girls, but it was time to move on. He was so happy and excited about moving out west to be with Tiffany, and to start his new job. Officer Maloney had called him a couple of days before he left to explain about all the charges that were going to be pressed against his intruder, and the new charges against Green. Scott was happy to let the police and the justice system deal with everything but he was aware he may be called back to Ohio to testify if necessary.
It was the end of October when Scott arrived in California. He’d traveled on the private jet. He didn’t have many things that he wanted to take with him. Most of his furniture had been left in the house as it was rented out as a fully furnished property. Plus he sold his car because he would be getting a company car as one of the perks of his new job. He basically had a couple of suitcases full of clothes and various papers. Tiffany met him at the airport and they went straight back to her house. They’d been apart for several weeks so needed some alone time. It didn’t take Scott long to settle in and the first week out on the west coast flew by. Scott basically just took it easy for the first few days, concentrating more on getting to know the area and just relaxing. He went into Tiffany’s boutique a couple of times with her when she was working, just for something to do. He was enjoying the weather. Back in Ohio the cold weather would be on the way soon, but out in California he’d been experiencing warm sunny November days. He was happy living at Tiffany’s house in Santa Monica but they had planned to look for another place together after Scott settled in at his new job.
It was Sunday evening. Scott and Tiffany were at home relaxing. Scott was due to meet with Jim the next morning. They were going to fly out to Vegas to have a look around the casinos and later that week Jim was taking him to see all of his other businesses. Scott was going to have a busy week and he was looking forward to getting started in his new role.
“I’m so happy you’re here Scott, did you enjoy your first week out here?” Tiffany asked as she snuggled up to him on the couch.
“Aye I did, it’s been great. I love spending time with yer and I cannae wait tae get back tae work too. I’m really happy.”
“Is Dad picking you up in the morning?”
“Aye he said he’d be here pretty early. I’m looking forward tae it, I have nae been tae Vegas fer a long time. In fact I think the MGM Grand was the newest hotel the last time I was there.”
“Wow that must have been a long time ago, that’s been there as long as I can remember. But you are a lot older than me,” she teased.
“Och there’s nae need fer that!” he replied as he tickled her ribs and made her squirm around.
“Let me go you big bully!” Tiffany struggled and finally broke free, moving across the couch momentarily before sliding back and snuggling back up to him.
“I’m definitely nae a bully,” he smiled as he took her back into his arms.
“I know, I’m just teasing.”
“So what’s Kyle up tae? I’ve nae seen him or heard yer mention him this week.”
“Yeah, I’ve been meaning to mention this to you but I kept forgetting. He decided not to invest in that casino, he’s thinking about going into business with another friend who owns a gym.”
“Okay, sounds interesting. What kind of gym? And whereaboots is it?”
“It’s mainly for mixed martial arts, he’s always liked that kind of thing but over the last few months he’s starting working out more and learning how to defend himself.”
“That’s cool, I’ll have tae go and watch him one of these days.”
“Yeah it’s down near Venice Beach so it’s not too far from here.”
“What aboot Alexei, are they still friends?”
“Yes, they’re still close. I think he goes to train with him sometimes but he’s not as into it as Kyle is.”
“That’s guid. Yer should do some kind of martial arts or
self-defense. Yer dinnae ever know when yer might need it,” Scott smiled, although he was serious. He thought it was important that she had some basic defense skills.
“I don’t need to, I have you to protect me,” she said and looked up at him smiling cheekily.
“Aye, that’s true but it would nae hurt yer tae learn a few moves, I can even teach yer myself if yer want tae do it.”
“Okay, maybe I will. How about I make it a New Year’s resolution?”
“Sounds guid tae me,” Scott said and kissed her on the cheek.
“It’s a deal. We should probably go to bed now if you have an early start, it’s getting late.”
“Aye, yer persuaded me bonny lass,” he said playfully as he stood up, lifted her off the couch and carried her towards the stairs.
It was now early December and Scott was enjoying his new job. His first few weeks working had gone really well and the changes that he was implementing were starting to take place. He had been on various trips with Jim and had visited virtually all of the businesses. There were a lot of improvements that needed to be made and Scott was slowly taking care of it. It was a dream job for him, he was able to use his skills and yet it was relatively safe – well, compared to the jobs he’d done in the past. He was also loving his new company car. He’d never owned a brand new car before so was taking pride in it. He even washed it himself every week and polished it, he refused to take it through a car-wash or let anyone else do it. It was his now and he liked to look after his things, his way.
KILTED DESIRE 3 - New Blood Page 2