by Bella Drake
“I’m Matt.”
“Yeah, duh. I mean how are you so great and drama free?”
“Oh, uh... I wouldn’t go that far,” Matt said.
“Oh really, you got some deep darkies?” Matt looked at me and his care-free face turned serious. “Oh shit, you do!” I let go of his hand. “You’re not a serial killer or sex offender? Please tell me you’re not.”
“No, no! Of course not.”
“Oh thank God.”
“Geez,” Matt said.
“Well, you never know these days. What then? Bank robber, international assassin?”
“You got it, how did you guess?” Matt said, laughing. “Just call me 007 License to Kill. Actually, I’m up here on a covert operation to kill that old man at the bait store down the road. He’s a spy for the Russians.”
“Okay, stop it.”
“Hey, you asked. I’m just telling the truth. But now that you’ve blown my cover I must kill you,” he said, holding up a chip. “I’m trained and can kill you with this here chip.”
“Oh God,” I said, grabbing it from his fingers and popping it into my mouth.
“Hey! You ate my weapon.”
We laughed for a while until Matt’s face went serious again.
“What is it?” I asked.
“I wish I could…” Matt said looking at me. I could tell he was struggling with something, something deep in his mind aching to get out. I didn’t push the subject and kept it light. If he wanted to tell me whatever it was he was holding inside, he would. We sat in nacho time, crunching in silence. Matt was picking at the chips and after spending what seemed like forever in silence time he finally said, “I want to tell you something, but I’m scared.”
Thank God! I had used up all my don’t-pry-strength and it was killing me. Matt looked at me and with a big sigh, started to talk.
Chapter 13
Matt
I sat eating nachos, but my mind was racing. I could tell Lucy knew that something was on my mind, and how could she not? I was half here and half worried about the club and my future. I hadn’t planned on any of this – the cabin or Lucy. I thought I was fucked and my days numbered. I now had a person in my life that made me want to better again and not a total self-destructive train wreck. She was kind and sexy and everything I wanted in a woman, and my feelings for her were growing by the minute. I know she felt the same and I needed to come clean and tell her my situation, if only for her safety. I mean, what kind of person would get involved with someone knowing that their life could be in danger because of it? I guess me. I had to tell her. It’s now or never.
“I want to tell you something but I’m scared.”
“Oh God, you’re dying. Do you have cancer?” Lucy said.
“No, no I’m not dying. I’m not a killer or sex offender. I am just in kind of a bind and well… there are some people looking for me right now.”
I told Lucy all about the Backwoods Bombers and the night with Brian, Razor and the dead guy. As I told her, I was expecting her at any moment to tell me to leave and deadbolt the door behind her, but she didn’t. I finished telling her the entire story including me, asking Cassie for a place to hide and how I thought I was up here because of her.
“Oh, my! Uh okay, I feel like I just watched a show on the Discovery Channel about outlaw bikers,” Lucy said as she downed her beer. She got up and grabbed two more beers from the fridge.
“Thanks,” I said as she landed one in front of me.
“God Matt, I don’t know what to say. I am, well… I don’t have words. It’s an incredible story and it almost seems like fiction, like a movie.”
“Yeah, I know what you mean. It feels the same for me like it was all a bad dream and I’ll wake up, but I never do.”
“So what now? I mean, with the club and the guy, Razor, the one that is still alive.”
“Well, the bottom line is it will never go away. I am the only one who witnessed them and I’m the only one who can put Razor in prison.”
“Have you thought about going to the cops?”
“Sure I did, right after I threw the gun in the river. I was gonna go and tell them the story. But, I thought about that night, moment by moment. All Razor would need to do is tell the cops that I was trying to frame him. It would be his word against mine. I just can’t risk it. If I go to jail, I’m done. There are a bunch of guys in prison that are connected to the club and I wouldn’t last one day in there. Not to mention if it went to trial, someone in the club would take me out for sure. I just can’t do it.”
“What about your two friends, um… Jay and Danny. Can they help you?”
“Not really, they’re under the microscope right now just for being friends with me. They’re in a lot of danger just talking to me.”
Lucy looked more concerned and I could tell she was wracking her brain trying to think of something that would solve my problem. She got up. “I’m sorry, I need to put something on. It’s not you, it’s...”
“No Lucy, it’s fine. Go ahead, really.”
Lucy went upstairs and by the time she came down in a pair of shorts and T-shirt, I’d already put my jeans on. She sat down and gave me a little smile before her face went serious again.
“I guess it’s not the best conversation for naked time,” I said. She laughed, and I was glad.
“No, definitely not naked time conversation.”
We sat in silence drinking our beers. I let Lucy think about everything I said and I prepared for her to tell me to leave.
“Maybe it’s better if I just go.” I offered to leave, thinking she was probably too scared to kick me out. I started to get up.
“No! No Matt, don’t go. I don’t want you to leave.”
“Are you sure?” I said, sitting back down.
“Yes. I just can’t get my head around it all, but I want you to stay. Really, I do. You didn’t do anything wrong. I know that and I believe you. I think you are right that Cassie brought you here to… well…”
“What?” I asked.
“Well, I think this was all supposed to happen and Cassie sent you here to save me and maybe, I to save you.”
“What?” I asked again.
“Well let’s think about it. The night I lit the fire? I was going to blow my brains out and I think you know that. That’s why I asked you how to load that stupid gun. After I ended up pulling you ashore and saving you, my mind switched and I wanted to live. I was alive again. Saving you gave me perspective on life and what matters. You saved me, Matt. I don’t care about the outlaw stuff. To be honest, that part kind of turns me on. I don’t care about your past. You’re a good man and you just fell in with some bad dudes. You deserve better.”
“Lucy, I’m happy to hear that you feel this way. I just assumed you would want me gone and call the cops or something.”
“God no. I would never do that unless you come at me with that chip again,” she said laughing.
I smiled. “I can’t make any promises. But seriously, I don’t want to put you in any danger. Lucy, I care about you a lot and I would never forgive myself if you got hurt in any way.”
“So, you care about me then?” Lucy asked, looking at me, smiling and fluttering her eyelashes.
“Yeah, I do. Don’t make me regret it, I joked.
I would be dead if it wasn’t for you so if I get hurt for any reason, it has nothing to do with you. I am seriously convinced the universe or Cassie is controlling this and not us.”
“Hmm, I never thought about it that way, but I do believe Cassie is with me and I can honestly say she has helped me in the past.”
“I believe it, especially now,” Lucy said. “I mean just look at the coincidences that brought us together, it’s crazy.”
“This is true,” I said.
“Okay, so the club has no idea where you are? Even your friends, right?”
“Right.”
“Do they know about your sister or where she lives?”
“Well Jay knows,
but he would never tell them.”
“Okay. So for them to find you, they would need to get Jay to tell them you have a sister and that she lives in Portland. Then, they would need to torture your sister to find out that you are up here fixing her fiancé’s cabin.”
“Now that you say it, it seems pretty unlikely they would find me way up here.”
“Maybe you should just stay up here.”
“Well, I don’t think that is part of the deal. As soon as I finish the cabin, I move on.”
“What if I said you could stay at my place?”
“No, no. I couldn’t ask you to do that.”
“Why not?”
I looked over at Lucy and she seemed to have it all figured out. I was almost with her, but something was still holding me back. I couldn’t let her get involved unless I knew she would be safe. I mean I can’t just hide up here in her cabin forever, I thought. “It’s just too much to ask,” I answered.
“It is a lot and I would expect to be pampered, but I am willing to sacrifice,” Lucy said, amused.
“Oh, I see. You want a houseman to take care of your every wish and desire.”
“Hey! That sounds pretty good, can you move in today?” We both laughed.
I looked at Lucy and her smiling face. I was amazed that even after the horror story I just told her, she was in such good spirits. What a woman. Either that or she is as crazy as me. We just looked at each other and fell into the moment. She gave me that look. She got up and came over to me and sat on my lap, wrapping her arms around my neck.
“And what do you want for Christmas little girl?”
She grinned. “Well Santa, I want the nice man from across the lake to stay with me and have sex with me every day.”
“Is that all?” I said in my best low Santa voice.
“No, I want a pony and a kitty cat that only loves me and nobody else.”
“Well let me see what I can do,” I said, still in Santa’s voice.
Lucy giggled, then tilted her head and kissed me. She grabbed my hand, pulled me up and led me upstairs.
“Ho, Ho, Ho, is it naked time again?”
“Okay, that’s just creepy.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.”
“But yes. Yes, it’s naked time.”
Chapter 14
Lucy
Knock, Knock, Knock! Knock, Knock, Knock!
What the fuck is that? I thought, jumping up. “Matt! Matt!”
“What? What is it?” Matt said as I startled him awake in my bed.
“Someone is pounding on the door.”
“What?!” Matt yelled, jumping up and throwing on his pants. Matt looked freaked out. “Who could it be?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” I said, shrugging my shoulders.
“Oh shit. Okay, fuck! Who knows you’re here?”
“Well, the only person who knows is Jeremy.”
“Does he have any reason for coming up here?”
“Uh… well, he was kind of mad when I told him I burned all his taxidermy and the coo-coo clocks.”
“You what?! You told him?!” Matt said with his hands on his head, now pacing in a panic. “Why would you do that?”
“Uh, I was kind of out of my mind at the time. It’s my house. I’ll just go down and answer the door,” I said as I put on my robe and started towards the door.
“Wait!” Matt said, stopping me. “It might be the club.”
“Really? Really Matt? The club at my door knocking?”
“I guess you’re right, they wouldn’t knock. Okay, but I’m going with you.”
“Fine, let’s go.”
We walked down the stairs, almost sneaking. Whoever was at the door was still knocking. We got to the bottom of the stairs and I motioned for Matt to stay behind, hidden by the large wood pillar of the first step. I crept to the door and looked through the peephole. It was Jeremy and he looked pissed. I looked back at Matt. He threw his hands up in the air as if to ask: “Who is it?”
“It’s Jeremy,” I mouthed.
“Oh shit,” Matt mouthed back.
My phone was by the door. I picked it up and with my back leaning against the door, I called Jeremy. I heard his Kenny G ringtone go off loudly outside.
“I want my stuff!” Jeremy shouted both on the phone and right outside the door.
“What stuff is that Jeremy?” I asked as I winked and smiled at Matt.
Matt put his hand on his head, shaking it disapprovingly about me taunting my ex.
“Lucy! You signed the papers and I want my stuff now!” Jeremy screamed.
“Hmm… well, that’s going to be tough. You see, there was a small incident where I accidentally burned all your shit. It was sudden and I couldn’t stop it.”
Matt put his hand over his mouth to stop from laughing and I smiled at him like a Cheshire cat who was way too proud of myself.
“You fucking bitch! You let me in right now, I don’t believe you.”
“Listen, Jeremy! You better change your tone or I’ll just hang up… or I can just go get your gun and then we can talk.”
Matt’s eyes went big and his mouth made an ‘O’ shape. I shook my head, telling him I wouldn’t do that and then smiled.
“Lucy! Lucy, open this door now!”
“Not ‘til you say you’re sorry for calling me a bitch.”
“What?! Open the fucking door Lucy.”
“Nope.”
“Fine! Fine, I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“Calling you a bitch. Now can you please open the door?”
“Okay.” I turned, flipped the lock and swung open the door. Jeremy was standing there in his Armani suit holding a manila envelope and his face was beet red. “Hello dear.”
“Oh save it,” Jeremy said, walking past me and into the living room. I looked for Matt, but he wasn’t in sight. “You did it, you really did it. Why? Why would you do that, why burn my stuff?”
“Hmmm… well, why would you say you love me and then fuck every whore in sight?”
“Lucy, you signed the papers.” He held up the manila folder as if he was going to court and needed his evidence.
“It was an accident.”
“An accident? You burned my things in a fire and it was an accident?”
“Hey, these things happen.”
“And what about my apartment? Was trashing my apartment an accident too?”
“No, that was on purpose.” Jeremy rushed over grabbing my arm hard and twisting it. “Ouch! You’re hurting me.”
“I’ll show you an accident.”
He bent my arm and a searing pain overcame me, forcing me to close my eyes. I fell to the ground and put my hands up to shield the oncoming blows that I knew were coming next. Nothing happened. I looked up and saw that Matt had Jeremy in a headlock. Within ten seconds, Jeremy was lifeless and Matt him carefully laid him on the floor.
“Did you kill him?!” I screamed.
“No, I just put him to sleep,” Matt replied.
“You can do that?”
“Yeah, I just cut off his oxygen to his brain. He’s fine.”
“Doesn’t sound fine.” I looked at Jeremy to see if he was breathing.
“He was going to hit you. Has he hit you before?”
“A few times, but he was drunk.”
“Oh yeah, like that makes it okay.”
“What do we do?” I asked.
Matt went to the kitchen grabbing a glass of water. He walked over to Jeremy and dumped the water over his face. Jeremy started to come to and Matt slapped him a few times, waking him from his forced slumber.
“C’mon, you’re okay buddy. C’mon, wake up. That’s it,” Matt said as if he had done this a thousand times.
“You’re just full of surprises,” I said, looking at Matt.
He shrugged his shoulders and continued to wake up Jeremy. Jeremy snapped out of it and began fumbling and fighting, obviously scared by what just happened. Matt grabbed him by t
he ear and Jeremy, like a puppet with Matt his master, sat on the couch.
“Now I’m going to let you go. You stay fucking still or you won’t wake up next time,” Matt said.
I really liked the way Matt was talking to Jeremy. I almost chimed in but I decided to let Matt do what he was obviously good at.
Jeremy looked over at me and he was scared. I almost felt sorry for him. Almost. Jeremy was in pain and Matt wrenched his ear until he agreed by nodding his head. Matt let go of his ear but stayed there for a moment to make sure Jeremy would keep his promise. Matt finally retreated and stood back.
“Who is this?” Jeremy asked, looking over at Matt who was standing shirtless with his muscular arms crossed in front of him.
“This is my friend,” I answered.
“Your friend, really?!”
“Yeah, can’t I have a friend?”
“You don’t have any friends,” Jeremy said.
“I do now, I think that’s pretty clear.”
“Well, your friend is going to jail for assault.”
“Oh really?! When the cops come here and see the bruises on my arm and you trespassing, I think they might see it a little differently. Especially when my friend and neighbor from across the lake came to my rescue. Go ahead and call them, I dare you.”
Jeremy instantly saw my point and looked over at Matt and then at me.
“Well… I want my stuff.”
“I told you, I burned it.”
“You burned everything?”
“Not everything. I think there are some Kenny G CDs in the trash along with some other crap that smelled like you.”
Matt sputtered and turned so Jeremy couldn’t see him laughing.
“Oh, very funny. Do you mind if I go get my things?” Jeremy said looking over at Matt.
“It’s not my house buddy, you’ll have to ask the lady.”
“Oh yeah, some lady.”
“Careful now,” Matt said, holding up his finger.
Jeremy went to the garage and rustled through the bags. He carried them back into the living room before dropping them to the ground. “Is this everything?” he asked.
“Pretty sure I got it all,” I answered.