Trying to push away those memories I pull up to the twenty-four hour gym, I jump out and grab my bag before heading inside. I make my way quickly to the locker room and change into shorts and a t-shirt. I find the area of the gym I want and start to tape my hands up. Once done, I start with small jabs, one and two, left and right, until I switch with combos. Left-right-jab, right-right-right-upper cut. Soon I fall into a rhythm as I take my aggression out on the bag, working up a sweat.
I finish my set and untape my hands when someone taps me on the shoulder. Going on instant alert, I snap around and see a leggy blonde with a hot pink sports bra on and skin fitting black shorts.
“Nice job. I enjoyed watching your technique.” I can’t help but raise an eyebrow at her. No one has ever said that to me before.
“Thanks,” I say back, trying to be somewhat polite.
“I was wondering if you’re done, maybe we can get out of here and get some coffee.” She cocked her hip and I can’t help but follow the movements with my eyes. She is smokin’, but the more I look at her, I just don’t feel it.
“Don’t want any this late,” I mutter.
“Oh, well how about a drink instead, I can definitely go for a beer or something stronger, if you’re up to it?” Damn where did this chick come from. The more I look at her, it is obvious she isn’t from here.
“Where you from?”
“Oh, I’m from California, came to visit my friend’s family during spring break. Why?” Figures. She is too fresh looking, too fake for these parts.
“Look, you’re hot and can find anyone, try them. I’m busy.” What the hell am I thinking? I must have fallen and hit my head to turn away free pussy. But shit, I have too much on my mind to worry about getting a piece of ass.
“Wow, umm, I didn’t see that coming.” She looks at me shocked.
“Well, welcome to Louisiana, doll. Have fun visiting and be sure to try the beignet while you’re here.” I grab the towel I brought with me, wipe my head, and make my way back to the showers. Finally feeling almost normal, I can head home and sleep.
Wolf
Hawk takes off to the gym and I just did the damn dishes. Nights like these nothing sits well with me. The gathering information shit is for the birds. I enjoy the hunt more. But Hawk had a point with gathering Intel of the subject. Going into the swamp unprepared can be a suicide mission. However, Hawk and I can handle ourselves. Dishes done, I head to my room. It’s the larger one of the rooms, so my king size bed fits better in my room than Hawk’s king in his room. I won the arm wrestling contest for the room. In the corner is a large chair I use to sit and think, not that many people think I do. Grabbing the map Hawk was looking at earlier, I start to create various routes Andrew might take. The downfall with this damn map is it isn’t accurate. There are so many levees that’s aren’t listed. Zoey said he used the one by his house, but just looking at the map there are three, and my guess would be the locals never checked it out. They didn’t seem too friendly and it worries me some that she isn’t being looked after. I really hope she will be okay for the night, but the more I think about it I should have told her to stay someplace else. I know a chair behind the door will help keep her safer than her puny lock, and I know she won’t put it on the one downstairs, but on her bedroom door. Why the hell am I thinking about her so much? Maybe it’s because she has a natural sex appeal that I’m drawn to. She isn’t a stick by any means, but just by looking at her I can tell she has lost some weight, and not naturally from exercise. But more like she isn’t eating right. But her tits were big and plump and I wanted nothing more than to pull down that small top she was wearing and latch onto her fat nipples that were pushed to the shirt and suck them. Damn, now my cock is hard, fuck. I hate when that happens, I’m not one to jack off so if I need relief I find a chick for the night. Trying to put my mind off Zoey, I look at the map again.
I’m good at this type of thing; it was part of my job in the Marines. I was part of a special recon task force that was deployed when shit happened, and shit always did happen over there. No one ever said it on the news, didn’t have to, anyone in any service knew what was going on, but we kept our mouths shut. I was a tracker of sorts, I can find ways in and out of situations getting us in and out without too much noise. For the most part, it worked, but a few times it hadn’t. It all came from the many years Hawk and I spent in and out of the bayou huntin’ critters. But each mission was different, and each proved to have their own dangers. I still have the bullet mark on my upper thigh to prove that last mission. Needless to say, I use the training when we are out in the swamp, to deal with the injury while we were out in the field. Andrew may know the area because he is local, and most likely he has done some gator huntin’, but so have Hawk and I. We just need to narrow some points down. I throw the map on top of my dresser and decide to jump in the shower. We need to talk to Zoey again, to see if she knows which ones he might use more.
Stripping out of my clothes, I make it to the bathroom and look into the mirror. I can’t help but smirk at the way I look now. A five o’clock shadow, shaggy hair, maybe more muscle than before too. It’s different than what I had four years prior, being clean cut and shaven. Hell, Hawk grew his hair out. The water is warm and I make quick work jumping into it washing away the grime from today. Resting my head against the cool tile, I let the hot water cascade down my back easing the sore muscles there. Tomorrow is going to be interesting, and right now the sooner I collect this bounty, the sooner I can get Zoey out of my mind.
Chapter Four
Zoey
I think the last three nights have been the first time I slept better than I have in at least a month. Knowing Hawk and Wolf are after Andrew and they are at least pretending they care means more to me than everyone else in the town and it’s comforting. Today I went into work and now being off I want to stop by Gran’s house. I haven’t been there in a while and with how I have been feeling lately, I wanted something that reminded me I’m not completely alone. It is a short drive, but my little Echo can handle it. I brought some flowers for the old oak tree Gran is buried underneath too. She liked daisies, just like me, so I made sure to get them in all sorts of colors.
When I was a little girl and daddy would be working late, Gran and I would go have a picnic in the meadow area of the backyard. It is filled with all sorts of wildflowers, but we loved the bright and fun daisies. Sure, all of my school friends loved roses and more elaborate flowers, but I love the daisies the most. We would lay for hours and talk about everything. She would tell me how she wished I would go to college and make something of myself and not depend on anyone to survive. Guess I failed in that area. But the more I think about her, I know she wouldn’t be mad at me, but she’d be sad that I got myself into this situation. But to be honest, Andrew is the first real man who paid any attention to me. I didn’t have many friends who were female simply because they annoyed the crap out of me. It is all about fun and parties, and ‘look at me, look at me,’ all the time. I didn’t like to draw attention to myself at the time, and sometimes I still don’t. I’m a lot more comfortable with my size than before, but sometimes, I do feel a pang of regret that I didn’t exercise more. Sure, I have lost about five pounds, but it is because I am hungry and only eating what I can afford, which isn’t much.
I met Andrew through a few girls here in town. They said it would be fun so we all met during Mardi Gras, Andrew was from my town, and we seemed to hit it off. He didn’t even comment on how much larger I was than the others. If anything, he made me feel special. It went pretty good the first few date nights, but warning bells went off later on with him. He called or texted me at least three times a day, wanting to know when I got home from work, where I was, what I was wearing. Then during the six or seventh date he showed his true self. He demanded I cover up more, unless I was planning to pay for the meal in other ways. I got offended and cut the date short, telling him I didn’t think it would work out anymore. But the texts and phone calls f
rom him didn’t stop. It didn’t seem to stick with him and Andrew started to show up at work with flowers, roses—go figure—and said I was his soul mate. He became obsessed. It got to the point I had to I get a restraining order against him, but it didn’t work. He showed up at my old apartment and slapped me around saying he could get to me whenever he wanted and no one would stop him. Stupid cops did nothing, of course, because Andrew left. It went on for a good two months, until he killed Penny. I was a wreck and they had to arrest him. But being he is from here, they let him go on bail, and now I’m back to square one; however, I now have Hawk and Wolf after him too.
I need something distracting so I click on the radio to bring me back to the happy place I want to be in. The radio is blaring some music and I feel pretty good as I sing along, and way off key, but I don’t care—my car, my radio. Giggling as I sing some more, I almost miss the large amounts of cars up ahead. It is odd, not many cars come this way. But that’s when I notice a large billow of smoke starting to fill the air. Panic starts to seize me, is a house on fire? There are only five houses on this road, and for once in my life, I pray that it’s someone else’s house, but reality is a different story.
The more I drive the closer I get and as I make the final turn, there it is, Gran’s house—all red and on fire. I don’t remember shutting the car off or even putting it in park as I jump out and run to watch everything I have good in my life start to disintegrate in front of me. People in the yard just look at me, and the house, but no one did anything.
“Someone call the fire department,” I yell, but still no one says anything. I watch a few people even smile. I run to my car and grab my phone, but again, money is tight and I don’t have enough minutes in the damn thing and it is dead. Screaming in frustration, I run and find a hose that’s attached to the back part of the yard Gran used for her garden and flowers. I spray what I can, but the hose sucks and has about ten tiny holes in it, soaking me in the process. Instead of the damn hose, I find a bucket and start to fill that up and throw what I can. Trying to save something, anything, until help can come, but it isn’t, and I’m fighting an endless fire with a broken water hose and a bucket.
Wolf
Hawk came home sometime late last night and woke early getting both of us coffee before I even got a chance to tell him my plan. It’s a good idea, and for once Hawk agreed. However, that was two days ago, and we ran into a snag at work and never made it out there. We cleared things and are now on our way to see Zoey. I dropped off some paperwork at the courthouse from the last case, and really wish we had someone at the office to do all this crap. We were fucking Marines and didn’t deal with paperwork. It ended up taking longer than expected and I now have a sinking feeling something is going to happen before I have a chance to get to her.
I don’t need a map to tell me where she lives or work. The uncanny urge to get there sooner rather than later hits me, and I press my foot on the gas. My gut is never wrong.
“In a hurry, man?”
“Just wanna get this job done, collect the bounty, and move on.” Okay so I wasn’t being completely honest with Hawk either.
“She is something, isn’t she?” Hawk states as he looks out the window. Is he thinking the same thing I am? Could he be wishing she was something more than just a victim? We have never dated a victim, or anyone we are working a case for. Hawk had a no fucking the staff or customer policy, and I agree with it. But with Zoey, I just might bend that rule, as I bend her over too.
“Yeah, not sure what to make of it. She isn’t like the other woman ‘round here,” I say pointedly.
“Might need to tell her to leave if shit hits the fan.” I don’t need to respond as I notice a bunch of people making a beeline to something off the road.
“What’s going on?” I am already on my way to see the smoke filling the sky when I pose that question to Hawk. I’m a noisy bastard, I grant you that, but shit, this seems off for a small town. As I pulled up to a large old style house, I watch as people stand around gawking at the site.
I see a young woman, who is chewing gum, loudly. “Whose house?”
The woman looks me up and down, before she smiles at me, making me feel like a piece of meat. “Well it’s fat Zoey’s Granny’s house. Now maybe the pig will fry with it too and leave town.” Zoey, shit this is her family house, I remember reading she owned some house, but didn’t live in it.
“Why isn’t the fire department here?” This time she smirks at me.
“No one called. She has been trying to put it out by herself.” Sure enough, I look up and see Zoey covered in water, dirt, and soot from the fire. I look at Hawk who is already on the phone as I make my way to Zoey. But the closer I get, the more comments I hear.
“Good riddance. Now she’ll leave us.”
“Stupid whore, getting Andrew in trouble.”
“She isn’t one of ours, let it burn.”
“Why can’t she be locked inside and burn too?” All from different people. Hawk hears them as well, and starts yelling as the sounds of sirens can be heard in the distance. I use that moment to grab Zoey, who is crying and wheezing some.
“Zoey, you gotta stop, chéri.” I grab the bucket from her, but she just turns away and walks back to the hose.
“No, I have to save it, I have to save it.” Over and over, she is chanting to herself. Hawk is now talking to the fire department and some of them don’t look too happy about the house, but in the end, they start to do their thing with the hoses. Zoey is still going strong, yet I can see the defeat and exhaustion in her eyes. Not wanting her to keep going like this, I take the hose and throw it away; it isn’t really working anyways, and I pick her up. Her squeal of surprise is my warning before she starts to pound my back. Sure, I could have done the sweet way and carried her like a child, but it’s more fun to swing her over my shoulder and carry her like a caveman. She finally stops struggling when we get near the small ambulance. Setting her on her feet, Hawk is next to me in an instant with a blanket.
“Ya okay?” I am so mad at these people. Who the hell do they think they are? Hawk went to check her over, pushing her hair out of her face. I can’t take the comments anymore and walk over to the group of people talking.
“Why didn’t you call the fire department?”
“Why would we? Let the damn place burn. If it gets the hippo out of our town, then good riddance.”
“Are ya crazy? Ya gotta be kidding me, good riddance, maybe she is too good for this Podunk town. Y’all are the ones messed up, she’s the victim. Ya know what, fuck it, we got her, and you tell Andrew we are coming for him, and if anyone gets in our way, we’ll take them out too.” I glare at the people in the crowd before I turn and find Hawk holding her steady as the paramedic looks her over. It kills him when shit like this happens to good people. She didn’t deserve this shit, any of it. Ignoring the rest of the comments, I hear the paramedics say she is okay. Hawk holds onto her tight before nodding to me. I understand what it means.
“This your car?” I ask, pointing to the weird bubble contraption that doesn’t seem to fit into rest of the town. Her silent nod is all I need. I toss my keys to Hawk to follow us, while I place her into the passenger side seat. Finding her keys still in the ignition, I try to sit, but the seat is too far up. It takes me a second to find the seat adjuster, but I slide it all the way back before I can even climb inside. The car starts, even though it sounds like shit, and we make our way to Zoey’s house. She had yet to say anything to me, which is good. I don’t know what to say to her. But it shouldn’t shock me when Hawk flies by us and makes it to her small apartment making sure everything is okay when we get there. But what I don’t expect is when Hawk stops us at the door.
“Can’t let her in.” Shit, it is broken into. Andrew is a fucking dead man.
“This is my place—wait—what? He did it again, didn’t he?” Damn, when did she get out of the car?
“Zoey, get in the car,” I snap, but the damn woman doesn’t lis
ten.
“Don’t think so, I can’t live like this.” Tears well in her eyes but don’t fall as we make it inside. From the look of it, everything is destroyed. I should have known something like this would happen. It’s escalating and now the town is behind him.
“You’re coming with us,” I manage to say. It is easy to see her start to argue, but wisely, she didn’t. “Hawk, get what you can.” Hawk disappears into her room while I go back down to her car. The more I look at it, the more I realize it won’t make the drive.
“Your car stays here.” She keeps shaking her head, but I am set on this one. Picking her up once again, she yells as I throw her ass in the middle seat of my truck. It is only about two minutes before Hawk throws a bag of stuff in the back and climbs in next to her.
I have this need to protect her, sure I would love nothing more than to fuck her senseless, but its more than that. Since the first day we went to her apartment for information, this woman has haunted my every thought. It’s as if she needs me, both of us. This damn town would eat her alive and no one would find her body in the end. She deserves better. It could be that I also got my mom’s heart at looking after things that were less fortunate than myself. She look Hawk in without a second glance, loved him, and cared for him when no one else would. I want to do that for Zoey. The damn thought scares and excites me at the same time. It’s times like this I wish mom was alive to help me figure all this mess out.
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