At least she was the one starting this conversation, rather than the other way around. The instigator of a break-up always had the most power and it was important to him that she drew strength from that. Not that it’d be easy for him, but he’d manage.
“I’m glad you read some of my mother’s journals. I hope it gave you some additional insight into what our family has gone through.”
“Yes, it did. You’ve all been through quite a lot.”
She cleared her throat and tugged one sleeve, then the other, down over her hands. “If I were a regular person with a normal family history, I would not be sitting here like this, getting ready to say what I am now.”
And if he weren’t who he was, he wouldn’t need to leave her in order for her to be safe.
“But you’re not.”
“Dom, these past few weeks with you have been wonderful—as in amazing.” She dropped her hands in her lap and turned her head away.
“But…?”
“That’s the problem. It’s too good. I feel myself getting too attached. To you, to what we have together. To the promise of a tomorrow. And…and I can’t let that happen. I’m binding myself to a future that can never be.”
He ground his molars together and stared, unseeing, out the windshield at the solid beige of her garage door. He knew her bike would be parked just on the other side, on the left, with boxes on the workbench and upper shelves filled with unpacked belongings accumulated from a lifetime of frequent moves. He could hear dishes clanking inside—her roommate was home. Good. Mackenzie would have someone to talk to when this was all over.
“I understand.”
She snapped her head around. “You do?”
He might as well make this as easy as possible for her and not argue. “And I agree.”
Her eyes opened wide in surprise. He reached over and released a strand of hair caught in her earring. His throat tightened to the point that he wasn’t sure his voice would work. This would be the last time he’d look into her eyes while she looked into his. Oh sure, maybe after he moved, he’d have occasion to visit the Seattle office again and could drive by her house, potentially see her from afar.
But never again would he see her like this. Smell the fragrance of her hair. Touch her soft skin. Hear her speak his name—either casually, while asking him to pass the salt as they prepared dinner together, or at the height of pleasure, while he made love to her and her body shattered around him.
He missed her already. “Mackenzie?” he whispered.
“Dom?”
There. She’d said his name again.
“It’s best this way. I could never be the right man for you.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“MACKENZIE, SORRY YOU have to wait with me like this. She’ll be here in a few minutes. I’ll be fine if you need to go.” Abby should’ve sounded dejected, Mackenzie thought. Or sad maybe, but she didn’t. She sounded matter-of-fact and frank, as if she had expected nothing more from her mother.
“Hey, it’s no big deal,” Mackenzie said. “Don’t worry about it. I don’t have any plans. Just heading home.”
Mackenzie didn’t care what time she got home. She dug her fingernails into the soft skin of her forearm and wondered how long the impressions would stay indented in her skin. She kept pressing, feeling nothing, until the inside of her wrist was lined with six rows of the half-moon scallops.
Since she’d broken things off with Dom, nothing felt right. Like a crucial piece inside of her was missing. She almost hoped he’d argue with her, try to talk her out of it, tell her they’d make it work, that he’d help her find the answers, but he didn’t.
She opened up her phone and reviewed for the billionth time the text message she’d received from him three days ago.
The time we spent together was more than I could have dreamed of. Thank you. I’ve accepted a transfer to San Diego and am leaving tomorrow. Stay safe. D.
Reading that made her feel sick all over again. She certainly couldn’t have a change of heart now. He was already gone.
“If the bus went past my house, I could rely on that each week instead of my mom,” Abby said.
“That’s okay, sweetie. I don’t mind. I’d offer to take you home, but I just have my motorcycle and one helmet. Your mom would probably flip out if you got a ride home on one. I know mine would have.”
“Well, she probably wouldn’t care, but I don’t want you to give me a ride home. She should be here soon. She texted me a little while ago. I just hope she didn’t forget.”
All the other kids had been picked up from art class and she and Abby had been waiting outside the studio for over half an hour. She didn’t want to look at her watch because she didn’t want Abby to feel she was getting impatient, but it had to be almost ten o’clock. Class on First Thursday Art Walk night always got out late and Abby usually stayed around to help her clean up the studio.
The two of them looked up as they heard the screeching tires of a car rounding the corner. As it pulled up to the curb in front of them, it almost clipped a parked car. A thumping beat echoed through the tinted windows.
“Thanks for waiting, Mackenzie.” Abby gave her a cheery smile.
“No problem. See you next week.”
Music blared loudly from inside the vehicle when Abby opened the door and climbed in. Without looking, her mother pulled the car into a tight U-turn and almost hit an oncoming car. The other driver laid on his horn and Abby’s mother gave him the finger. As they sped off, Mackenzie saw her tilt back a can of beer.
Without thinking, Mackenzie jumped on her motorcycle and followed them. If she had thought it through, maybe she would have called the police to have them handle it. She would’ve memorized the license plate number, made note of the street and direction they were driving, and called it in as a drunk driver. Then she would have gone home and climbed into bed. Or taken a bath first.
But she didn’t, and because of that one decision, everything in her life changed.
Thankfully, Abby’s mother was a slow drunk driver. Mackenzie was able to keep up with her and only once, while going over the West Seattle bridge, did she get really worried. The woman never crossed the center line, but she came close. Mackenzie followed them for miles and at every turn, every passing car, she said a silent prayer.
When they pulled into a driveway in a rundown neighborhood, Mackenzie drove by slowly. Thank God they arrived home safely. She knew she’d have to confront the mother at some point, but tonight she just wanted to go home. When Abby climbed out of the car, she waved at Mackenzie.
She knew I was following her. Sweet girl.
Flipping up her helmet’s visor, Mackenzie blew her a kiss and drove off.
As she left the neighborhood, she realized she had no idea where she was. She had been so focused on following Abby, she hadn’t paid attention to all the streets they had turned down. Now she was in a seedy, dilapidated part of town that she’d never been to, without any sense of how to get back. She had a vague idea where the bridge was from here and headed in that direction.
Junker cars littered the front lawns of many of the unkempt houses. Weeds grew from broken sidewalks, neon lights of adult businesses flashed on almost every block, along with a few used car lots and pawn shops. She made it onto a main thoroughfare and hoped it led back to the bridge.
At the first stoplight, a group of teenage boys loitered on the corner. There must’ve been about seven or eight of them, she guessed as she came to a halt. At this time of night, they couldn’t be trading Pokemon cards.
Keep looking straight ahead. Just ignore them.
“Hey, it’s a chick on a bike,” she heard one of them call. She felt them all turn to look at her. Someone whistled.
“Wanna ride me, baby?” another one yelled.
“I’ll give you something huge to feel between your legs.”
Turn green. Turn green. Please turn green.
One of the thugs stepped off the curb and swaggered toward he
r. He had something in his hand.
Fuck it. Glancing both ways in the intersection, she cranked the throttle and ran the light. Adrenaline coursed through her system as she dragged a foot, fish-tailing the back of her motorcycle before the tire gained traction on the pavement. It lurched forward and she left them in the acrid haze of her smoking tire.
This didn’t look right. She worried she was heading the wrong way. The poorly lit roadway was virtually empty so she couldn’t gauge where to go based on where other cars were headed. She thought she remembered passing a fast-food restaurant on the way to Abby’s house, but unless she counted a 24-hour tattoo parlor that served espresso, there were no food joints anywhere in sight.
The wind blew hard into her face so she dropped the visor of her helmet. Although it was spring, the air still had a bite to it and her cheeks stung from the cold.
At the next intersection, she had to stop again. Why weren’t the lights synchronized to turn green so she wouldn’t have to stop at every one? She was getting tired and just wanted to find her way home to bed.
While waiting for the green, the little hairs on the back of her neck stood up. Someone else was looking at her. She could feel it. Craning her neck around, she expected to see another gang of thugs approaching, but she saw no one. She was completely alone on this stretch of road except for a Jeep Wrangler pulling up on the other side of the intersection.
She couldn’t shake the feeling and focused on the other car. It was them. They were watching her. Two men inside the open-air vehicle were fixated in her direction. Was there something behind her? She turned around. Nothing. Maybe her bike. Maybe they were looking at her bike. A woman like you on a Bonnie is hard to forget. Wasn’t that what Dom had said? God, she hoped it was the bike.
Something about the two men scared her more than the rowdy hoodlums a few blocks back. Her scalp began to tingle, almost vibrate. She smacked her helmet with the heel of her hand and tried to clear her head.
When the light turned green, she revved the engine and sped through the intersection. The Jeep remained fixed and the men turned their heads in unison to watch her pass. She got a glimpse of the driver lifting his head as if sniffing the wind.
Moments after passing the Jeep, she saw a flash in her rearview mirror. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw that the Jeep had made a U-turn. Her heart hammered in her ears and the tingling became a rumble.
Oh, shit.
The long hair was a dead giveaway. Why hadn’t she tied it up and stuffed it into her helmet? With her all-black outfit, most people would’ve assumed she was a guy on a bike, not a girl. She was a damn freak magnet tonight.
She hit the throttle and sped up, thinking she’d outrun them and they’d give up, but the Jeep stayed on her tail. She felt bile rising in her throat and she willed herself to stay calm.
Oh my God. Which way?
Nothing looked familiar. Just closed-up businesses with bars on the windows, a storage facility and a bunch of warehouses.
The intersection up ahead looked more substantial than the others she’d passed. Left or right? She had to make it fast. The Jeep was just half a block behind her. Left. She cranked the handlebars and leaned into the turn.
Please be the road to the bridge.
Rows of dark warehouses loomed ahead and she realized she had made a horrible mistake. Fear swelled her throat and she could hardly breathe. This wasn’t a major intersection. It was just a stoplight for the warehouse complex. She was now in a dark parking lot. A dark deserted parking lot, and the lights of the Jeep flashed behind her.
She weaved around a few buildings, accelerating when she could, looking for another way out, but everywhere the Jeep was on her tail.
When she turned right, a loading dock loomed straight ahead, blocking her way. A dead end.
Her breath came in shallow bursts, the ringing in her head became a roar. She cranked the bike around, the loading dock behind her. The Jeep stopped about twenty feet ahead of her, its headlights blinding her for a moment.
The wind picked up and she heard one of them, or maybe both, laugh. The high-pitched sound promised nothing but evil and her whole body trembled. For some reason, she cried out silently for Dom. If he was here, he’d know what to do.
The men climbed out of the vehicle simultaneously, and with each step, each swing of their arms, they seemed to be a perfect mirror image of the other. Their toothy smiles reminded her of hyenas eager to attack their prey.
I’m almost there, she imagined Dom saying.
Empowered by the voice in her head, she reached back, unsnapped the top of the saddlebag and fished out her handgun. She could do this. This was why she owned a handgun and spent time at target practice each week. Her instructor drilled it into her head that if you carry a gun, you needed to be prepared to shoot and kill. She had never been more ready in her life.
“Mackenzie. Do exactly as I tell you.” It was Dom, as clear as if he were next to her. It gave her strength and she brought the gun up.
“Aim at their torsos and pull the trigger. Fast. Both of them. Hear me?”
“Yes, but—” It sounded like she was talking to herself.
“Now. Do it now.” His voice boomed in her ear.
Taking a deep breath, she aimed at the guy on the left and pulled the trigger. He stumbled backward. She hit him directly in the chest. Just as she took aim at the other one and fired another round, she heard Dom’s voice screaming in her ear. It was then she saw a glint of metal.
“Duck left. Left.”
She barely shifted her weight when something slashed through her jacket sleeve and she felt a slicing pain. But how could he—? How could she be hearing—?
“Go. Go. Go.” Dom yelled in her head.
She didn’t have time to think about what happened, about the warm wetness flowing down her arm. She jammed the gun into her waistband and hit the throttle. The bike jumped ahead and she surged forward.
“Right past them. Don’t slow. Don’t look. Just go.”
Out of the corner of her eye, she could see one of the men getting up. What the hell? He was the one she’d shot right in the torso. He should be dead, or at least seriously wounded. When he made eye contact with her, she saw what looked like fangs hanging from his mouth.
The panic that had coated her insides was suddenly replaced by a chilling horror. Her hands numbed and her vision blurred.
“Mackenzie, listen. Steady yourself, I’m almost there. Go left at the next building. Hustle.”
Dom’s voice yanked her out of this strange reality. She cranked the handlebars, dragged a foot and leaned into the turn.
“Good. See the second building on the right? The one with the blue awning?”
“Yes.”
“Turn right when you pass it.”
She accelerated and as she leaned into the next turn, a flash of light glinted behind her. Headlights.
“Oh God, Dom, they’re following. How is that possible? I shot them.” She knew she sounded hysterical and tried to push the panic away.
“Love, I’m almost there. I’m coming for you. Just keep going. I can feel you. We’re getting close.”
Mackenzie saw the main road straight ahead and the headlights of another car approaching. It careened into the parking lot, fishtailed a couple of times, then barreled straight toward her. With a screech and another hard turn, it stopped about fifty feet in front of her.
“Ditch the bike.” Dom’s voice boomed so forcefully she couldn’t be sure if she heard it out loud or in her head.
“But—”
“Goddamn it, now.”
Headlights from the Jeep flashed on the open passenger door of Dom’s car. Squeezing the hand brakes, she jammed her weight to the side, lifted one leg and laid her beautiful bike into a slide on the pavement. The skidding, scraping and grinding echoed in her ears as she imagined layers of chrome and pearlescent white paint on the pavement.
She tensed her muscles, ready to push her body away, when from
out of nowhere strong arms wrenched her off the still-moving bike and shoved her into the car.
The door slammed shut and Dom flattened himself against it, a barrier between her and the Jeep. When the vehicle stopped, Dom pulled something from his waistband and swung his arm around his head. A crack like a whip stung the air, jangling her raw nerves. His arm jerked down and a body flew from the Jeep, landing on the pavement in front of Dom’s car.
Like a snake striking, Dom was on the man before her mind even registered that he’d moved from the door.
He stood astride one of her attackers, his heavy boot crushing the man’s neck. Flailing and kicking, the man struggled, trying to push Dom’s foot away. For the briefest moment the guy managed to turn his head toward Mackenzie and her heart practically stopped. The headlights illuminated him like a spotlight. Fangs hung from his mouth in a wide snarl and his eyes were two black orbs with no whites. Mackenzie’s hands flew to her face and she watched through the slats of her fingers.
A long glint of metal caught the light as Dom lifted both arms overhead, his back arching, his strength coiling. The blade flew down in a fierce blow and plunged into the chest of her attacker.
A sob spilled from her throat as the man shuddered and convulsed. She wanted to pinch her eyes shut, to block the horrifying images from her brain, but she couldn’t. The man’s body folded in on itself, leaving a dark pile of rubble, ashes maybe, because a few small bits floated away, disappearing beyond the headlight beams into the night air.
Oh God, this couldn’t be happening. It was just a dream. A damn nightmare.
As Dom holstered the knife somewhere beneath his clothes, he raised his head and his eyes locked onto hers. And that was when she saw them. His fangs.
He was one of them.
DOM TOOK A step toward the driver’s side and Mackenzie flung herself over the console, scrambling for the lock. She hit the window button and it rolled down slightly before she found the right one. With a click, the locks engaged.
Bonded by Blood Page 17