Saving Della-Ray

by Le Carre, Georgia

  Della Ray

  The next morning, I found myself at Reno’s bar. I was quaking in my shoes, especially since Bone had warned me from ever returning here, but I needed them to know that someone was aware of his absence. Someone cared and would go to the authorities if he didn’t turn up.

  That they weren’t going to get away with it if they were planning anything nefarious.

  The bar was empty, which was to be expected since it wasn’t yet midday. I called out the old man I had met the last time as he came out of the door behind the counter.

  He scowled disapprovingly at me, but I ignored it and spoke up, “I’m looking for Bone.”

  He cocked his head at me. “Why would you be looking for him here?”

  I was a bit taken aback by the question. “Their club ...” I went on. “The Order of Blood. They hang out here do they not?”

  “Miss, do you see anyone here right now? And this is Reno’s bar and grill, not the Order of Blood. If you want them, I can give you their address.”

  I gazed at his faded green eyes and the deep lines on his face. I didn’t know what to do. There was absolutely no way I was going to head over to their clubhouse. Even meeting them in a public place would be a scary event. I squared my shoulders. “Well, I have a message for the club’s members.”

  His gray eyebrows shot upwards with surprise.

  “Let them know,” I said firmly. “That all of Bone’s friends know he is missing, and if he doesn’t turn up soon, then we are going to send the cops to them. We knew exactly when he left, and that he got a call to come to the clubhouse, and since then he hasn’t been seen.”

  I didn’t know what else to add after that, so I shut my mouth and looked at him sternly.

  He folded his arms across his chest. I was sure I saw a glimmer of something in his eyes. Either amusement or respect, but I couldn’t be sure. Not that I cared. I just wanted Bone back.

  “You came to threaten an outlaw MC?” he asked.

  I swallowed hard and he shook his head. “Missy, don’t you have a job or something? It’s too early to be doing things this stupid.”

  “I mean it,” I said through gritted teeth. “I won’t let this go until I hear from him.”

  He lifted his hands exhaustedly in the air. “Sure, I’ll pass on your message. Who should I say left it?”

  “Bone’s friend ... and family,” I said immediately.

  He studied me quietly. I felt like he pitied me. “Got it. Now please leave.”

  “How will I know you’ve delivered it?” I asked.

  “Well if I deliver it and it spooks them enough to release Bone like you hope, that’ll be proof won’t it?”

  “And if I don’t hear from him?”

  “Then you can go to the cops like you’ve promised. Just leave me out of it. Good-day.”

  “I’m giving them one more week, no, four more days. If Bone does not resurface in four days, then I am going to the cops.”

  He shook his head and went back through the door he came in from, slamming it shut behind him so loudly, I jumped at the unmistakable note of conclusion.

  With my heart heavier than it had been before I arrived, I made my way out of the bar, and felt indeed as stupid as he had perceived me to be, but still I’d done the only thing I could. I’d let the club members know that Bone couldn’t be disposed of without the cops becoming involved.

  I would wait, just like I’d said, but two days later and I found myself filing a Missing Person’s Report at the County police station.

  I realized I wouldn’t get far when the uniformed officer started asking me the most basic questions about someone I had called a friend, and I didn’t know the answers.

  “Um ...” the officer sat up. “Who exactly is the victim to you again, Miss?”

  My voice was small. “A friend.”

  “Whose name you know as just Bone. You don’t know his real or last name.”

  “Miller,” I said. “His last name is Miller.”

  “Um, Okay,” he responded as he scrolled through his computer. “We have quite a number of Millers here but ... no Bone. You don’t know his age or …”

  “I told you, I’m sure he is in his early thirties.”

  “Okay,” he said. “And once again, you’re certain that you don’t have a picture of him?”

  “I can describe him though.”

  “Does he have any social media accounts that we can employ? Residential address, job or occupation?”

  I stared blankly at the officer who was now looking at me as if I was some kind of time waster or I was well out of my mind. “Forget it,” I said. “Just forget.”

  “Don’t worry, he’ll turn up when he’s good and ready,” he said mockingly.

  The moment I got out of the station, my mission fruitless, and my person labeled mentally unstable, I pulled my phone out of my pocket and drafted a furious text over to Bone.

  What the hell is your fucking name?

  You’re fucking missing and there’s no way for me to even fucking find you!!!!!!!

  I sent the text and hurried back to work in the diner. Somehow, I managed to put Bone into a box in my head and close the lid. I didn’t allow myself to think of him at all.

  Three hours later, I walked into the kitchen to see Gloria staring down at my phone as she sloppily munched on a burrito. I had left it on the counter to quickly use the restroom. I was prepared to give her a mouthful when she turned, her face full of teasing fun, and asked me the words that made me stop in my tracks.

  “Who is Gage Miller?”

  I felt as if the breath had been knocked out of me. I hurried over to pick up the phone and unlock it to see the text from the number that had been ingrained into my head over the last several days. The message simply read:

  My name is Gage Miller.

  Della Ray

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfSN_lJ7cuw

  -when I need you-

  I held onto my chest, as the relief poured in. The tension had been like an elephant on my chest. Brutal. Tears rushed to my eyes as I looked around with the desperate need to be out of here. “He’s back,” I muttered, my voice shaking. “He’s fucking back.”

  “Are you okay?” Gloria asked.

  It was only then I realized that I was the object of intense attention of all the staff. “I’m fine,” I replied, and hurried out of the kitchen. The crawl towards 5pm was the longest most excruciating wait of my life. The moment it struck, I was out of the door and on my way to Gage Miller.

  When I arrived at his door however, a small scream escaped my lips. The door had been kicked open in a fury, its frame destroyed and the lock dangling in the air. My eyes widened in alarm as I crept into the apartment. It was eerily quiet. There was no one in the living area, so I ran to his bedroom … and found him.

  On the floor, just a few inches away from the bed. It looked as though the bed had been his goal, but he had been unable to make it. With my heart in my throat, I instantly hurried over to him. When his full state came into view, I had to cover my mouth with horror.

  He was covered in blood, but that wasn’t what was most horrifying. It was the fact that parts of it had blackened with age, which insinuated that he had been in this state for quite a while. The sides of his head and countless parts of his body were caked with dried blood. His left eye was swollen shut with a terrible bruise surrounding it, and on the other side of his face was a deep gash across his cheek that had turned the skin in several nasty shades. The side of his lip was busted open and from his nose ran a fresh trickle of blood.

  I had never seen a man or anyone in this condition and I shouldn’t know what to do, but instinct took over and drove me to action. I wasn’t even sure he was alive so when I grabbed to his arm and he winced with pain, I sighed with relief. “Bone,” I called out. “I mean, Gage.”

  He muttered something unintelligible.

  “We need to get you to a hospital.”

  He was too heavy to move eve
n an inch, so I rose to my feet and reached into the purse slung across my shoulders for my cell phone. I was so intent on what I was doing I almost jumped out of my skin when his rough hand closed around my ankle. He mumbled something, but it was too low to make out so I quickly lowered myself to the ground and placed my ear close to his lips.

  “Don’t,” he whispered.

  “Why the hell not?” I cried. “If you remain in this state any longer you’re going to die!” I couldn’t even imagine how a man could still be alive in the state he was in. I started to rise to continue with my plan stubbornly but he pulled strongly on my limb and even in his injured state, it was strong enough to send me tumbling down to the floor.

  “You’ll make it worse. Don’t. Someone will be here …” He trailed off probably in exhaustion and unfathomable pain.

  My chest tightened with helpless frustration, but I had no choice but to obey him. I understood so little about the rules and regulations he must submit to and I didn’t want my defiance to make things worse for him.

  “Let’s get you up,” I suggested, and went to grab his hand, but he shook his head ever so slightly. To my distress even that tiny movement caused him to grunt with pain.

  Beyond worry and wait, I couldn’t say or do anything else. I dare not even put a pillow under his head lest I cause more injury. I called Nichole and told her what was happening and warned her that I didn’t know when I would be back. She said she had everything covered and I was to only come when everything was fine. She could even take Jess to day care tomorrow if necessary. I thanked her and sat down on the floor next to Gage to wait. It was the most excruciating ten minutes wait of my life as I watched his battered bloody state and waited for whoever it was he was expecting to come.

  After what seemed like a lifetime, I heard footsteps as they came through the door. I couldn’t help the fear that coursed through my blood as two men appeared at his bedroom door. The first man had a gun and my first thought was … he had come to finish the job and kill Gage.

  Thankfully, the man behind him had a black medicine bag in hand. They immediately hurried over when they spotted us.

  “Hurry,” I said. “He’s been beat up bad.”

  I stood and backed away so they would be able to at least lift him up onto the bed.

  It was the most agonizing sight to see him groan with so much pain. It made something freeze over inside of me. The man that had the gun began to inspect him while the other turned to me. “Would you please wait outside, Miss?”

  “The hell I will. I’m not going anywhere!” I declared and folded my arms across my chest to monitor them closely.

  To my surprise, he just made an exasperated noise and returned his focus to his examination of Gage’s injuries.

  “How is he?” I asked, five minutes in.

  “Badly battered but he’ll live. Could you please get me a bowl of hot water so I can wash and dress his wounds?”

  “Be right back,” I said and rushed to the kitchen. It felt good to be able to finally do something.

  “I’m going to get someone to fix the door,” the other man said.

  A little while later, Bone had been given a sedative. Whether he was conscious or not, through the grueling process of the doctor treating his wounds, I didn’t know, but I heard only the occasional hiss of pain and even those tore at my soul.

  When the doctor came into the kitchen to wash his hands, I asked him what kind of food would be best for Gage to consume at this time. He recommended soup. I quickly ordered some. Then while I was in the kitchen sorting out a grocery list, I heard the pound of tools. The sounds relieved me greatly. The door was being fixed.

  Nichole called me. Jess was feeling restless because she hadn’t seen me all day.

  She put her on and she was sniffing a bit. “Mommy, why didn’t you come and pick me up today?” she asked in a small voice.

  “I had something very important to do.”

  “What was it?”

  “Someone was hurt and I had to help them.”

  “Oh dear,” she said, her voice changing. “Was it like that time we helped that baby bird?”

  “Yes.”

  “Where do you think he is now?”

  “Well, with his Mom and Dad, of course.”

  “When will you come home, Mommy?”

  “I don’t know, honey. But I promise to come as soon as I can, okay?”

  “Will you come in time for us to water the wild flowers tomorrow?”

  “I think so, but if I’m not there, Nichole will do it with you.”

  “Oh.”

  “You’ll have to teach her what to do because she won’t know where the plants are or anything.”

  “Yes, I can do that,” she said brightly.

  “That’s my girl. So anyway, how was playschool today?”

  She launched into a story about her best friend, Mike. He was a little boy who had a speech impediment. No one else would befriend him, so Jess decided to make him her best friend. As I was listening to her both men came into the kitchen and I turned around to meet their gazes. I knew Jess’s story would go on for a long time so I told her I would call her back in five minutes and ended the call.

  “He’ll be fine,” the doctor said to me. “He just needs time to heal.”

  “Do you have anyone who can stay with him?” I asked. “I need to be at work.”

  “We don’t,” the other man said. “But he should be okay. After a proper rest, he should be able to move around, at least a little. I’ll be back soon to check on him.”

  “Instruct me on his medicine and care,” I said to the doctor.

  Both men turned to gaze at each other.

  “I owe him,” I explained. “I’ll help Gage the best way I can until he gets better.”

  Now they looked at each other worriedly. Then the man who had come in with the gun spoke, his voice harsh, “Don’t ever call him Gage again. Call him Bone. And don’t tell anyone else his name either. No one. Do you understand?”

  “Okay,” I said quickly.

  I was given a key for the new lock and then the doctor produced a few packaged drugs from his bag. He instructed me on his food and doses, then they were on their way out.

  I’d been hoping to return to work after Gage’s treatment even though I was already late and I worried that I had been absent too many times already. However, when I got into the room and saw him lying so still and pale underneath the covers, his eyelids tightly shut in pain, I knew that I wouldn’t be able to leave.

  I called work and told them I couldn’t make it and received an earful from Henry. It was going to be a busy night and they were counting on me. All I could do was apologize profusely. “Get your act together, Della, because you’re starting to slack,” Henry said as his parting shot.

  I knew I would be in financial trouble again if I lost my job, but what could I do? I put thoughts of financial Armageddon away and carried a bowl of lentil soup into the bedroom.

  I hated the idea of waking him up if he had already fallen asleep. As no doubt, sleep wouldn’t come easily to him given his state. His eyes were shut so I decided to wait a bit more. I was about to tip-toe out when he spoke.

  “You shouldn’t be here,” he said, his voice tense with pain.

  My nerves instantly tightened with fear and anger that he would kick me out and for the fact that he’d put himself in this state. “I’m not here for you, but for my own peace of mind.”

  “If you continue to remain here that peace of mind might be permanently gone.”

  His voice was low but I could pick up on every strained word. I turned around then to face him. “How?”

  “Why the hell did you come here? And why the hell did you go to Reno’s? And the fucking police?”

  For a few moments, I was struck dumb. “How did you find that out?” I felt a mix of emotions ranging from confusion, dread, and fear rampaging through me, and none of which I was willing to explore. So I focused on the only pressing matter
at hand. “Eat your soup. You need energy to heal.”

  “Leave,” he breathed. “Now, and don’t come back. If you want to protect Jess and everyone else you love, don’t drag them into this mess.”

  My heart constricted at the mention of Jess, but I couldn’t back down. Not when he was in this state. “Don’t worry. I’ll leave after you’re well. You won’t have to see me again.”

  I was about to walk out when I heard a shuffling sound. I turned around to see that he rolled on his side and was in the process of sitting up.

  His matted hair was all over his battered face. Strangely, it made his hooded blue gaze all the more piercing as he lifted his eyes up to me. “Why aren’t you listening to me? Do you think this is all a joke?”

  I couldn’t even feel the sting of his rebuke because finally he was alive, the way I always knew him. I knew then that he would heal again. That no matter how bad it looked … Bone would beat it. The relief made tears gather in my eyes. I tried my very best to chase them away, but failed miserably.

  A frown spread across his forehead.

  “Eat your soup,” I said, my voice breaking. “I’ll be back tomorrow, but in the meantime, let me know if you need any help and I’ll be right over.” I left his apartment then and rushed to work. All the while, I wondered about those men who had come to help him. They must all really want revenge bad on that guy Bone had mentioned before.

  Lena smiled when she saw me. “Oh, good you’re here. Table nine is asking for you,” she said as she passed me, a full tray in her hand.

  I changed quickly and I was back at work. I smiled, laughed and chatted with my customers and felt better than I had all week.

  Now, I knew he was alive.

  Gage

  I couldn’t believe that I couldn’t walk.