The Hooker, the Handyman and What the Parrot Saw

by Patricia Harman

  “I’m going to go do a quick sweep of the property,” he suddenly said, stepping out of the SUV.

  “What? No wait. Why? Wait a second.”

  “Charlotte, the last time this happened, it happened with us sitting here,” he said. “I’m just going to do a few sweeps tonight. I won’t be gone long. You take point and stay put.” He closed the door and didn’t give her a chance to answer. The hatch to the back of the SUV popped causing Charlie to reach for her gun.

  “Jesus Christ Adams,” she whispered. “What the hell are you doing back there; you scared the shit out of me!”

  “Getting my coat! Now pipe down! Eyes front!” he snapped.

  When Jake returned some thirty minutes later, he explained that the house appeared secure and quiet but he didn’t like how open it was. No fence or buffers. Then he slipped back into his sulky silence.

  She stewed for over an hour but finally broke the spell by reaching for his hand and bringing it to her chest but he pulled away. “We have to stay focused, Charlie. Tonight could be the night. I have a feeling.”

  That was twice. Clint had uttered those same words.

  Ignoring him she again brought his hand to her chest. He closed his eyes and moaned and she shivered.

  “Six more hours,” she whispered.

  “Six more hours,” he repeated. “Jesus Charlie you’re driving me out of my mind. Tell me about Thompson, your family, anything. Three nights of this is going to kill me!” She grinned, thrilled that she was tormenting him.

  “No,” she said firmly. “It’s your turn. I want to know about you,” she was stalling. She didn’t want to tell Jake that Clint would be her partner tomorrow night instead of him.

  “I’ve already told you my story,” he said pushing her hair behind her ear.

  “Tell me about your parents,” she said, with genuine interest. “What did they do? What do your people do, as my grandmother used to say?”

  “You haven’t told me about your grandmother,” he side-stepped her questions, again. “What was she like?”

  She gave him her Oh-no-you-fucking-don’t face. “What did your parents do?” she repeated.

  “They entertained themselves,” he said with disgust. “That’s what my parents did.”

  Charlie remained quiet.

  “They drank, they smoked weed, they traveled, and they partied. They did what you do when you live in California and you have money,” he sighed.

  She let the silence linger.

  Jake took a deep breath. It was a risk, but he supposed it was inevitable. “My grandfather started a locksmith company when he was in his early twenties. He grew it into a lock manufacturing company, the largest one in the country at the time. By the time he was my age, he was a self-made millionaire. He was killed by the enraged father of a seventeen-year-old girl my grandfather was bedding when he was in his early fifties, and my father inherited everything. Immature prick that he was, he put my grandmother in an upscale nursing home 500 miles away, immediately sold the company and he and my mother spent their days and nights living a life of pleasure. My grandmother hired a lawyer and tried to fight him but the will my grandfather left was irrevocable.

  “He did the same for me—an irrevocable trust which, if they hadn’t died together, could have put my mother in the same position,” he said, talking more to himself now. “God he was such a prick. My parents could have done anything with that money. They could have helped people, started a charity, or continued to build the business. But no, they were like two teenagers who had just been given the keys to the city. I hated them.”

  “Jake? What?” She placed a hand on his arm, as if to stop him from the shocking admission.

  “This is why I don’t like to talk about the past Charlie. My family was fucked up. My grandfather was fucked up. He fucked up my father and my parents fucked me up. It’s not what you want the woman you want to marry to know about you. The good news is they’re gone. All of them. They can’t hurt me anymore and they can’t hurt you.”

  “The earthquake.”

  “Yes. The earthquake.”

  Jake Adams knew how to redirect. He was a master at it.

  “October 17th,” she said.

  She imagined that it was a date that would be with her forever because it was a date that was going to be with him forever. Wait. What? The woman he wants to marry?

  “The woman you want to marry?”

  “Yes Charlotte. This isn’t exactly what I planned but yes, I want to marry you. I want to be with you every day for the rest of my life and I know you want to be with me.”

  Charlie teared up and brought his hand to her face. “I need to be with you,” she said. “Want to be with you. Have to be with you. Oh my God. I love you Jake. I’m sorry this isn’t how you planned it, but a stakeout is as romantic as it gets for cops, right?”

  She was trying not to sound disappointed that this was the least romantic place she could think of for a proposal. He smiled sweetly, appreciative that she was trying to put a good spin on it. He decided that when he got a proper ring, he would do it the right way, on one knee at the beach, at the threshold of the ocean she loved so much. Reading his thoughts, she dropped his hand to her chest and said, “We already have the rings to seal the deal.” He kissed her hand and willed the clock to move faster.

  Clint watched from a nearby grove of crape myrtle trees trying to restrain his disgust for the woman for whom he cared and respected so deeply. It was not her fault, he decided. It was Jake’s fault. He watched as the two of them laughed and talked and flirted and were even touching each other on the job. Oblivious to their surroundings; oblivious to the target, to the killer, and oblivious to him, in so many ways. Charlie would end up hating him for turning her into a girl. This he knew.

  The night wore on. Neither Jake nor Charlie nor Clint got sleepy. All three were charged with the adrenalin from love, lust, and the search for a homicidal killer. They all could have skipped the coffee. At 0530 the radio finally chirped. Jake drove with a purpose back to the apartment, neither of them speaking a word, Clint following from a distance.

  Jake made the tail the second they turned off Wickermore Street and he grinned an evil grin at Clint’s lame attempt at following him. He quickly dismissed Clint and turned his attention back to his prey. Clint McCallister was no match for him and never would be. After last night, he was certain Charlie was his and after the things he had in store for her this morning, there would be no turning back.

  In the silence of the Fed Mobile each could hear the other’s increased breathing. The sexual tension had been building all night, and in the homestretch it magnified exponentially. Charlie started to visibly shake, and Jake put a hand on her knee to steady her. “It’s okay, Baby,” he whispered. Jake was aware that she knew the intensity of their lovemaking was about to be taken up a notch and he knew she was frightened. Frightened and ready, an irresistible combination for Jake Adams. Charlie nodded, grateful for his reassurance. Beads of sweat had begun to form on her upper lip. Her heart was beating out of her shirt and discharge from her painful piercings was making her nipples erect and her shirt wet, like a lactating mother.

  Once inside the apartment Jake pulled Charlie into an embrace that she instantly realized had changed. Embraces of the past were tainted with lust, desperation, and control. This was different. This was acceptance, trust, unconditional love, and a familiarity she had never known. Somehow, he had made her believe. She had made him believe. He picked her up and carried her to the bedroom where he laid her down and immediately raised her shirt to gaze at his treasure. He traced the rings, first with his finger, then with his tongue with no regard for their state of recovery. She tried to delay him, but it was futile. She whimpered in ecstasy and pain at his touch. His mouth enveloped her nipples and she could feel the steel against his teeth. She arched her back and gasped in response.
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  “Easy Jake,” she begged. “Easy Baby. Please.” It was too much. She was leaving the planet. Her nipples were aching. Her breasts were engorged from the long night of anticipation. The pain was intense and the sensation of the steel against his teeth triggered a violent orgasm. Jake’s mouth latched on and he held her tight while she bucked and screamed as the morning sun filled the room. In her state of semi-consciousness, he took her. Her body limp; her mind gone. He whispered to her while he slowly entered her, “It’s okay. I’ve got you. Let go.”

  She sighed in ecstasy, hearing him from a long distance away but responding by opening her legs to him, knowing she was loved, that she was safe. There would be no more trains. Jake’s love would protect her.

  He rode her slowly and rhythmically. “That’s my good girl,” he whispered softly. “Take it all. Take it.” She responded by opening up further and whimpering with every completed stroke. “Open your eyes Charlotte,” he commanded. She opened her tear-filled eyes and tried to bring him into focus. Jake was still Jake but didn’t look the same except for his eyes which flashed, causing her to gasp and try to pull away. Her hands went to his face and neck as she tried to claw her way out from under him. He grasped both hands and pinned her tiny wrists easily with one hand. “Shhhhhh. It’s okay Baby. It’s okay,” he whispered continuing to gently pump into her.

  “Jake!” she gasped as her mind slammed back into reality with the force of a sledgehammer as another orgasm overtook her.

  “Shhhh,” he said, quieting her and stroking her hair while she tried to regain her bearings.

  “Jake,” she whispered looking around the room and taking in the sunlight from her windows.

  “Are you ready my love?”

  “Yes,” she said breathlessly.

  “Tell me.”

  “I want it Jake.”

  “Tell me,” he repeated, his voice louder now, raining down on her.

  “I love you. I want you to come.”

  “You first,” he growled, pinning her arms above her head and slamming the full weight of his body into her. She screamed with every blow from his body. Faster. Faster. Harder.

  “Jake!” she screamed.

  “Now!” he commanded as she exploded into oblivion.

  Caught off guard, his body betrayed his control and his orgasm was upon him before he knew it was happening. He cried out. Her nails clawed into his back as she realized it was happening. The pain of his tearing flesh pushed him over the edge and he unleashed everything he had into her.

  He awoke hours later to her stroking his hair and watching him sleep.

  “Hi,” his voice croaked.

  “Hi there,” she smiled.

  “Did you get the number of that bus?” he said pulling her into his arms.

  “The Charlotte Express,” she smiled, “Lucky for you, you don’t have to work tonight.”

  “What?” Jake sat up alarmed. “He hit? Did they catch him? Fuck!”

  “Down boy. He didn’t hit and they didn’t catch him. The captain changed the stakeout schedule. Clint and I are on tonight, and you and I are back tomorrow night. I think he felt like he was taking advantage and monopolizing you,” she lied. His face hardened. His eyes followed.

  “Oh, come on, Adams, what was I supposed to say? ‘No Captain, I’d rather work with my boyfriend.’”

  “I guess that wouldn’t have gone over very well,” he pouted and flopped back onto the bed. Way too easy, she thought. She waited for the second wave but it never came. He pulled her back into his arms and cooed in her ear and snuggled her before remembering her gift to him. The rings. He jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom.

  “What are you doing?” she called to him. He returned with peroxide and cotton balls and gently cleaned her rings. Charlotte was in heaven. She had never been cared for with this combination of force and tenderness. It was the combination she had been looking for all her life.

  They made dinner together and cuddled on the couch until Charlie finally pulled away and said she had to get ready. Clint had texted her and said he would pick her up at 8:30. “Why so early? Does he think this is a date?” She shot him a look and then softened it.

  “Clint and I have been working together for years. We are coworkers and friends. You have nothing to worry about. I will never ever be with or want to be with another man. Ever again,” she said kissing him gently.

  “I think you are going to need some help in the shower,” he said grinning.

  Clint arrived at 8:30 but when he saw Jake’s vehicle he decided not to go up and texted her instead. Charlie kissed Jake goodbye and was surprised by how gut-wrenching it was to be leaving him. “Be careful, Love,” he whispered pulling her close. “I will, Jake. I promise.”

  Once inside the cruiser with Clint, Charlie found his mood heavy and dark. “Hey, what’s with the sourpuss, Night Rider? I thought you wanted in on this?”

  “I do,” he said and then returned to his silence. Fucking moody men, she thought. Clint chose the spot she tried to talk Jake into last night. “This is a good spot, Clint.”

  “It’s a hell of a lot better than the spot you picked out last night,” he snapped, regretting it as soon as he said it. Fire sparked in her eyes and he knew he had some quick explaining to do.

  “What-the-fuck McCallister?”

  “Easy Sarge. I wasn’t spying on you, I just had a gut feeling that this thing was going to go down last night, and I wanted to make sure you had some backup and I didn’t stay long. That’s it. I swear.”

  “Without telling me and while you were on suspension? That is some incredibly poor judgment Clint. A whole shitload could have gone wrong with that plan, especially since we didn’t know you were out here! What the hell is going on with you?”

  “I just want to catch this fucker, okay?” he said, trying to sound contrite.

  “Join the club pal,” she chided back.

  Another night of distraction and uncomfortable silence, just what she fucking needed. Jake texted her throughout and finally told her at one a.m. that he was going to bed. Clint let out an audible sigh with every chime of her phone until she said, “Put a sock in it, Clint.” He was acting like a spoiled child and she was having none of it.

  At two a.m. she got out of the cruiser and told him she was going to sweep the property and as was done to her the night before, she did not wait for an answer. Charlie was frustrated with herself and with her friend. It didn’t have to be like this. She turned the corner of the house and was met with a punch to the face that took her by complete surprise. She fell backwards over some loose bricks and winced as her head hit the ground with a thud. “I’m sorry,” was the last thing she heard before she lost consciousness and her attacker relieved her of her weapon.

  Chapter 33

  Shots Fired Officer Down

  Charlie lay on the ground drifting in and out of consciousness, but unable to move or open her eyes. She was cold and she was scared. She didn’t know what had happened, but she knew she was hurt and she knew she needed Jake. She heard a shot ring out and flinched but still could not open her eyes. She had been shot. This is what being shot feels like, she thought as her body grew colder and a white tunnel of fog carried her away. Charlie could hear Clint, but he sounded a long way off.

  “Oh my God! No! Charlie! Signal 13! Officer down! Shots fired!”

  All she could manage to say was “Jake” and then everything went black. She heard the sirens in the distance and briefly woke to the heroes cutting off her clothes. “Nooo,” she protested, horrified that they were about to uncover her rings, but she slipped back into the darkness. “I’m here, Charlie,” she heard Jake say.

  There in the dim light Jake stood waiting for her. She walked slowly to him and he pulled her into his embrace and stroked her hair. She was unable to speak. Mary Jane stood in the corner smiling at her and gi
ving her a thumbs-up. The light in the dark concrete hallway became blinding. She could no longer see either of them. “Jake!” she yelled.

  “I’m here, Charlie,” Jake said quietly, taking her hand. “I’m here.”

  “Cap! She’s awake!” Clint yelled. “Charlie? Thatta girl. Time to wake up, Sarge,” Clint said, taking her other hand.

  “Okay, okay back up you two, give the doc some room to work here,” the captain said as he came through the door. “You gave us a little scare there kiddo.” The captain smiled warmly. Charlie tried to lift up her head and the pain caused her to cry out.

  “I need you to lay still Sergeant Cavanaugh,” the doctor instructed. “You’ve got quite a head wound there.”

  “What happened Cap? I was doing a sweep and bam, lights out. Was it the perp? Did we get him? Clint? What happened out there?”

  “We’ll give you all the details later, Charlie. Right now, you need to stay quiet and let the doctor do his doctor thing. Okay?” She nodded and immediately regretted it, crying out again. The doctor injected something into her IV line and told her she needed to rest. The next time she woke up it was daylight. Jake was perched on the edge of her bed holding her hand as Clint snored in the chair.

  “Hi there, Beautiful,” he said kissing her hand.

  “Hi,” she smiled back.

  “I’m up! I’m up!” Clint said staggering to his feet. “Hey, there she is. About time you woke up. Do you have any idea how many dates I’ve had to cancel?” She laughed and brought her hand to her head when the pain pierced her head.

  She felt the shaved spot and the stitches and her eyes widened. “Did I get shot? I thought I heard a shot?”