Hutch Nightmare Men

by L. J. Vickery

  “That’s good. It means you’ve made some room in your life for positive relationships. What about Arkie?”

  She gave a watery laugh. “He’s an old grump. I guess he cares, in his own way, but I wouldn’t go so far as to say he makes me happy.” She shook her head. “Sissy, either. She’s the director at the shelter. A nice woman, but more in tune with the animals than her employees and volunteers.”

  “Neighbors? Co-workers?”

  “In a building like mine, neighbors keep pretty much to themselves. So other than a word or two in the hallways going in and out, I have no friends there. And co-workers? We joke a little at the change of shifts, exchange small talk. I do the same with my regular customers, but I’ve never continued any relationships outside of work.”

  He nodded. “So the animals, Mrs. Leroy, and me. That’s the extent of your current happiness.”

  She frowned. “That makes me sound like a loser.”

  “Not at all,” he assured her. “I only have my few friends from college, and now you.”

  “And your parents,” she pointed out.

  “I wouldn’t say they exactly make me happy. More like I tolerate their continued attempts to interfere in my life.”

  “But you love them.”

  His lips tilted up. “Yes.”

  Her eyes welled up again. “That’s what I miss.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  As soon as those words came out of her mouth, Hutch quieted and she began.

  “You asked when was the last time I was truly happy. That was thirteen years ago. I was the light of my parents’ lives and a freshman at the University of Minnesota in Duluth, minoring in English lit and majoring in animal science…

  “Oh my God!” She looked at all the snacks piled up on her roommate’s bed. “How many people did you invite over tonight?”

  “Seven, and Amy’s bringing beer.”

  “Yuck. No wine coolers? I fucking hate beer.”

  “Yeah, but it’s Sandy’s birthday, and she likes it.”

  “I get it. I’ll just eat.” She flopped down on her bed. Friday’s were the best. Work was finished for the week, the whole campus geared up for partying. Their small group of friends would spill out into the hall, mixing with others until the floor was one big blow-out. And their RA was cool. She’d look the other way as long as things didn’t get too rowdy.

  “Did you see Tyler today?”

  Darby grinned, and squirmed. She’d done more than see him. They’d had sex in his townhouse this morning. He was a senior, and shared the space with three other guys, but his private room gave them adequate solitude. “Yeah. I saw him.”

  “Will he be by tonight?”

  “Not tonight. He has to go home for the weekend. Something about a job.” Nothing she had to worry about. The job horizon for her was a long way off. Three more years undergrad, then if she decided to go a different route than her English minor, four years of veterinary school loomed ahead. And she was going to enjoy every single minute.

  There was a knock on the door. “Who knocks?” Darby snickered, pushing off the mattress. She walked over to pull it open. It was their RA. And she looked serious.

  “Listen. We weren’t planning a big party. Just a couple friends…”

  “Darby. It’s not that. It’s… I just got a call from a lady, Mrs. Abernathy, a friend of your parents. She… She said your parents have been in an accident.”

  “What?” Her knees threatened to buckle. “Are they okay?”

  “I…I don’t know. But I’ve called a cab. She’ll meet you.” The RA named a prominent Minneapolis hospital.

  “But that’s two-and-a-half hours away. I need to know if they’re all right!”

  “It was the longest trip of my life,” she told Hutch. “And when I got there, I found my mother had already…passed.”

  “What kind of accident was it,” Hutch inquired softly.

  She gave a harsh laugh. “It was a bus. My dad… He’d been a minor league ball player for the Twins organization. He’d retired two years before, and signed a contract to manage one of their farm teams. Sometimes my mother would fly to be with him, then travel back on the bus with the team.” She finally allowed the tears to fall. “They were sitting in the front when something… A load from a truck on an overpass. It was a freak occurrence. Steel beams came off the bed and down onto the highway. A few smashed into the bus. The driver was killed instantly. My parents and a few players were injured. Air-lifted to the hospital.” Her voice caught on a sob.

  “If you need a break—”

  “No,” she wept, great gulping cries. “I’ve started, and I’ll finish.”

  “My mother was pronounced dead on arrival. My father and three players were whisked into surgery.” She blotted her eyes, attempting—unsuccessfully—to stem the flow. “I got there as the surgeon was leaving the OR. He… He shook his head. There was nothing he could do. The beam had damaged too many organs. He suggested I go say my goodbyes.”

  Several minutes ticked by before she could talk again.

  “Dad never regained consciousness. I…I think that was for the best. If he knew my mother had died… They were so in love, even after twenty-two years of marriage. I sat by his bed until he passed, less than an hour later, and kissed him for the last time.”

  “Where was the woman? The neighbor, Mrs. Abernathy?”

  Her face hardened and she forced her mind from the devastating scene at the hospital.

  “I’ll bring you home, dear. And don’t worry about anything. Mr. Abernathy and I will take care of all the arrangements. Your parents had a proxy in place, before you turned eighteen, putting us in charge should anything happen. I’m sure, even though you’re legally able to fend for yourself at this point, your parents would have wanted us to make sure everything was taken care of.”

  She snarled. An ugly sound. But remembering the sincerity in Mrs. Abernathy’s voice made her want to hurl something. Her hands, instead, tore at the tissue held between them.

  “I took a leave from school, attended their funeral and secluded myself in our home, my home, so wrapped up in my misery I was unable to function.”

  She looked over and saw Hutch’s mouth harden. A keening cry left her mouth. “I see you’ve already guessed where this goes.”

  He nodded. “The Abernathy’s.”

  She pulled in a long, deep breath. “Right. While I was incapacitated, they began a long, slow process of draining away all my money. There’d been a decent life insurance policy, as well as a healthy savings account, but I was a fool. I signed papers. They assured me of solid investments.” She gave a bitter laugh. “It was a year before I could function again. And by that time, when I looked into re-enrolling in school, there was no money left. They’d stripped me of almost everything liquid.”

  “You still had the house.”

  “I did. But they re-mortgaged, and while I was lost in depression, none of the monthly payments had been made.”

  She knew her silence went on too long, but it was hard to finish.

  “What did you do?” Hutch finally asked.

  “I took out an equity loan for the remaining value to pay the back bills. Then I got jobs. Three. I still had my parent’s car, so I traveled into the city. My day job was at a trendy boutique, my night job was with a company who cleaned offices, and my weekend job was looking after an elderly woman down the street.” She drew out a clean tissue and blew her nose. “I struggled for nearly eight years. But in the end, it didn’t matter. I came down with a really bad flu that turned into pneumonia, and couldn’t work for eight weeks. No matter how hard I tried after that, I couldn’t catch up. I kept the utilities on, but barely, and week by week I slid further behind. One day the bank came and foreclosed. I had four-hundred dollars and a used car to my name. I sold the car, and moved to my shitty apartment in the city. The rest you know.”

  “That’s a heavy burden to have carried by yourself.”

  She shrugged, blowing
her nose again. “What good would it have done for me to wallow in self-pity? I put that aside and took care of things that allowed me to live.”

  He leveled a glance at her. “And how do you feel now, having talked about it?”

  She gave a bitter laugh. “Well, I’m not cured, but letting it out didn’t kill me. And I’ve stopped crying.”

  “If you’re okay with it, another day I’d like to hear more about your parents. It sounds like you had a pretty magical childhood.”

  “The best,” she admitted quietly. “Ball games all summer, lots of travel, my dog, Davies. He died two years before I went to college. I thought that was the saddest thing I’d ever have to endure. Guess I was wrong.”

  “I guess you were. And I’m not going to offer any platitudes about the pain fading, or how you have your memories. I’m only going to ask that you attempt to look at the rest of your life as a separate story, yet to be written. One that isn’t based on the events of the past. Do you think we can work toward that?”

  “You’re the shrink. What do you think?”

  The caring look he sent was almost enough to make her believe. “I think I’ll be helping you as your…gosh, I hate the word boyfriend at my age, but…yeah. I’ll be using my psychiatrist-superpowers, but mostly I’ll be working as the man wanting you to believe in relationships again. Can we try?”

  “How can I say no to an offer like that?” she sniffed. “I guess I’m in your hands.”

  They rode in companionable silence for a few moments before he made a disgruntled noise.

  “What?” She stole a glance at his face, his hardened jaw.

  “Did you ever try to go after the Abernathy’s?”

  She shook her head. “I thought about it. Wanted to. But I was too busy working. And retaining a lawyer, fighting them would have cost me time and money, neither of which I had. I did file a civil suit about five years ago, but I have no idea what happened. I moved, so any follow-up paperwork was probably lost.”

  “Five years?” he questioned. “Are you sure?”

  “I’m sure.” She was puzzled. “Why do you ask?”

  “I don’t know what the statute of limitations is in Minnesota, but one of my old friends is a lawyer. Do you mind if I have him look into it?”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  The way Darby had been treated…duped by adults who were supposed to help her… Hutch ground his teeth. His first call after Darby got settled would be to Jim. His buddy would love delving into this one. His favorite cases were always aiding underdogs.

  He tamped down his anger and pointed at out his condo’s high-rise as they approached. Not the newest or most impressive building in the city, but pretty darned nice. “There it is.”

  Darby’s eyes got big. “You live there? Holy shit! Which floor?”

  “Top floor.” He turned into the parking garage.

  “The penthouse?” Her brows rose.

  “Yup.”

  She didn’t respond, and he wondered what she was thinking. He hoped she wouldn’t have an issue with his situation, something Bel had only recently made him consider. She’d opened his eyes to his extremely fortunate circumstances.

  He pulled into his reserved space. “Time to see where I live,” he announced anxiously. “We take the garage elevator to the lobby, then the building’s elevator to the top floor.”

  Her leg jiggled. Nervous?

  “I can’t wait.” Her voice emerged, breathy as she rested her fingers on his forearm, regarding him with excitement in her eyes.

  What? Not the reaction he expected, but then again, when had Darby ever done predictable?

  “Is there a doorman? Do you have your own elevator? Is the whole floor, yours? How do you keep people from going up to your apartment?” The questions shot off her tongue, rapid-fire.

  Hutch laughed, relaxing under her enthusiasm. “Yes, there’s a doorman. Several, if you take in all the shifts. I’ll introduce you. And no, I don’t have my own elevator. I have a code I enter once the elevator reaches the floor below mine. I share the top with one other condo owner, and we each have our own rooftop decks.” Not that he used his much. Only if he entertained, which was infrequently.

  He wasn’t about to tell her his square footage. If she knew her whole apartment fit into his luxury bathroom, she’d probably freak.

  “Rooftop deck?” She squealed. “Do you grow things? Vegetables?”

  “Uh, no. I never thought of it. Do you grow…” He trailed off. Of course she didn’t. There was no outdoor green space on her block.

  “My mother used to garden,” she revealed with a sad smile. “We had fresh vegetables all summer. I’d often work beside her… Okay. I’d walk behind her and eat fresh tomatoes, peas, and cucumbers right off the vines.” She sighed. “I’ve always wanted a garden of my own.”

  It was on the tip of his tongue to tell her she could have one when she moved in, but he bit it back. She’d already made it clear she remained leery of personal involvements. He’d move slowly to change her mind.

  He compromised. “I’ll start one this spring if you promise you’ll come visit to help me. After all, we’ll be dating. Right?”

  She smirked. “You don’t give up. But I’ll concede the point. Yes. We can date. And I’d love to help with a garden.”

  Feeling almost light-headed over her capitulation, they walked from the car to the elevator, hand in hand, riding up to the building’s lobby. They emerged onto a bright, open-spaced floor. Hutch attempted to see it through Darby’s eyes, but jettisoned that process. Asking was better.

  “What do you think?”

  “It’s…opulent,” she allowed, spinning around to take it all in. “And I can see the sunset.”

  A bank of windows faced west, overlooking a small park, which allowed the view.

  “From my condo, you can see the sunrise, and the river, too. I have windows on all sides. It—”

  “Good evening, Mr. Bates.” The doorman interrupted, standing up behind a desk across the lobby. “It’s good to see you again. Word had it you were in the hospital but made a quick stop home, late yesterday. Is everything okay?”

  “Hi, Harvey. Yes, everything’s fine. I had an, uh, unexplained event, but I’m doing great now. How’s Melissa?” Last he knew, Harvey’s ten-year-old had gone into the hospital for abdominal pain.

  “My daughter’s a champ. Bounced right back from an appendectomy. But that’s what kids do.” His eyes turned to Darby and he nodded. “Good evening, ma’am.”

  Taking the cue, Hutch introduced Darby. “Harvey, this is Ms. Peltor. She’s from Minneapolis, and she’ll be staying with me for a few days. If you’d let the other doormen know, I’d appreciate it. She might be in and out while I’m at the office.”

  He dipped his head. “Nice to meet you, Ms. Peltor.”

  She walked to the desk and stuck out her hand. “Call me Darby.”

  Harvey took it with a smile. “If you have any questions about the city, I’ll be happy to help. And in case you don’t know, on our second floor we have a movie theater, a health club and a bowling alley. As a guest of Mr. Bates, you’re welcome to use all the facilities. If you need any additional assistance, please call down any time.”

  She beamed. “Thank you. I will.”

  Hutch approached and put his arm loosely across her back, his fingers at her waist. “We both appreciate your help, Harvey.” He turned his gaze down to the lovely woman at his side. “You ready to see my apartment?”

  “More than,” she grinned.

  “Later, Harvey.”

  “Yes, sir.” The doorman sat back down while Hutch led Darby to the elevators where he punched the up arrow. The door slid open with a ding and they went inside. The doors closed behind them.

  “A movie theater? Really?” she asked, a look of incredulousness on her face. “Why do you ever leave this place?”

  He pushed the button for the 57th floor and regarded her sheepishly. “I’ve actually, uh, never used any o
f the amenities.”

  She looked at him askance. “And how long have you been here?”

  “Six years,” he admitted.

  She huffed. “Oh my God. You need lessons on how to live.”

  He grinned. “And you? You’re the person to show me?”

  She gave him an eye roll. “Are you saying I don’t know how to have fun?”

  “Not at all. I just—”

  “I do, you know. I’m just rusty at it, due to my lack of liquidity…and free time,” she added. “I’ll have you know, in high school and college, I was quite the adventurer.”

  “Darby,” he suddenly regarded her with all seriousness. “I don’t doubt that for a minute. I, on the other hand, will need lots of coaching on how to loosen up. I’m not known for my gregariousness or my spontaneity.”

  She elbowed him in the ribs. “You’re more social than you think. Harvey’s daughter? How do you know about her?”

  His brows drew together. “I talk to the doormen. It’s only polite.”

  She snorted. “It’s polite to say hello, how’s the weather, and did my package come. You dig deeper. It’s part of your charm.”

  He tried to stop the smile that spread across his face, but failed. “So I’m handsome and charming.”

  “And full of yourself,” she grinned.

  He threw back his head and laughed. “I’m sure you’ll help me with that.”

  Her breath caught and she turned to place a hand on his chest. “I love it when you laugh.”

  He stilled, staring down at her. “It seems to be a habit I’ve picked up since you came into my life.” Her piquant face, turned up to his, made everything around them disappear. All he could think about was kissing her.

  She licked her lips. “Yes, please.”

  So in tune. He lowered his head and captured her mouth, meaning to keep it light, quick, but she wound her hands around his neck and refused to let go. He moaned deep in his throat and hauled her up against him, deepening the contact. How could one woman taste so good and fit his body so perfectly?