by Nya Rawlyns
“My girls are stocking up your refrigerator, Marcus.” My refrigerator? “They’ll have meals you can just microwave when you bring Josh home.” The woman, prairie tough, no nonsense, leaned down and brushed Marcus’ forehead with her lips. “Do you want me to call the insurance people? They’ll be wanting to assess the damage soon as possible.”
Marcus nodded his gratitude. “Suze will have all the information on her computer. If they want, they can have full access to the records. Inventory—” Mouth snapping shut, Marcus had to turn away, the emotions creeping up and threatening to overwhelm him. His entire life, all his memories of Tommy, all his hard work... Gone.
A backwash of guilt hit him hard. Guilt because he had permitted selfishness to creep into his thoughts. The store might have burned to the ground, but the people who counted were still with him. The man he loved was still with him.
Polly stood and muttered, “Well then, let’s get that started. Suze can handle all the details. We’ll let you know when you need to meet with them.” She held the phone up and promised to return shortly.
Calhoun shifted in his seat and gave Marcus a long stare. “You want to tell me what that’s all about?”
Marcus knew what Calhoun meant, but he wasn’t sure if he was prepared to explain to a virtual stranger the intimate details of Josh’s long road back to being normal. Instead, he relied on platitudes to defect the detective’s interest.
“You grew up around here, Cal. You know how it is.” Marcus swallowed his embarrassment at being so familiar with the cop and muttered, “Um, sorry... detective.”
“Cal’s fine. I figure, when you spend a few hours sitting on a hard plastic chair in a hospital waiting room worrying about a mutual friend, then you’ve earned the right to be on a first name basis.” His expression took on a cagey look. “You’re right. I did grow up in this valley. I know how folks pull together, but this goes above and beyond.” He locked eyes with Marcus. “I want you to tell me what’s really going on. I’m asking as a friend, Marcus, not as a cop.”
Taking a deep breath, Marcus decided his new friend probably had a dossier on the family already, judging from what Josh had found out during his visit to the precinct. And he was pretty sure the big man was asking more out of concern for Becca than he was for her brother.
Conceding that round, Marcus said, “I assume you’re aware of Josh’s injuries, that he has PTSD. It was pretty severe for a time, but he’s been coming along, getting it under control.”
Like last night, God just like last night... Taking control. Doing what he could even when he wasn’t able to walk.
The blood dribbling from his lips...
“Go on.”
Reluctantly Marcus continued. “What you might not know was what it took to get him to that point.” He chewed on his bottom lip for a time, then said, “It’s not my story to tell, and truth is, I don’t really know the half of it. But what I do know is that he and Becca went through hell together. I think that woman’s determined not to let it happen again.”
“I don’t understand. Why the army of babysitters? What’s that supposed to do? I mean, physically he’s going to pull through, isn’t he?”
Marcus swore under his breath, then said, “Yes. And no, detective. Josiah Foxglove wakes up in debilitating pain damn near every day of his life. But you’d never know it. I sure as hell don’t understand where he gets his strength to deal with it, but he does.”
Marcus stood and faced the cop. “I’d be scared shitless having to face it day in and day out.” He leaned down and spit out, “Wouldn’t you, Detective Calhoun?”
The man held his ground, but his voice wavered as he admitted, “I guess.”
“You want to know what scares the shit out of Josh? Do you?” Calhoun’s eyes widened, as Marcus hissed, “It’s falling down that black hole when a trigger blows his mind all to hell. And not just the falling, it’s him thinking that never coming back out is inevitable.”
Calhoun murmured, “Shit,” as his eyes lit with understanding. “So Becca’s organized an army to watch over him and make sure he doesn’t have a chance to trip, is that right?”
“In a nutshell.”
“She’s really something, isn’t she?”
Marcus smiled and asked, “You think you have what it takes to handle a woman like that, detective?”
The man shuddered and said, “No.”
“Well then, I’d say you’re off to a good start.” Marcus looked toward the door and nodded to Polly. “My relief is here. If you need me... Cal... you know where to find me.”
****
Josh cracked his eyes open just enough to make out the form of Det. Calhoun waiting patiently for him to give up the pretense and acknowledge he was there. An intermittent compression device to help prevent deep vein thrombosis had been activated. He hated the damn thing, with a vengeance. His leg bent, extended. Bent, extended. It was exhausting. But at least he had a functioning knee again. For as bad as it was, it could have been a lot worse.
Looking at the cop, Josh groaned, “I suppose there’s no way you’ll come back in a few months to interrogate me?”
“Not a chance, Foxglove. Time’s a wasting. Besides, your sister decided since I was hanging around so much I could take a shift and give one of your minders a break.”
“You look like you need a break more than me.” Josh reached for the morphine drip and waited for relief to flood his system. Unlike the last time, he was going to be good and take his meds. The girls had made Uncle Josh promise. He didn’t intend to let them down. Not again.
“I’m fine. Or I will be if we ever catch those assholes who gave us the slip.”
Josh sighed and gave up. “So, tell me... who’s where?”
“The fellow you know as “Dee” and Joey Goggles have been remanded to County. We have enough to put both of them away for a long time. Trafficking, possession, arson, attempted murder, kidnapping. Major crimes is having a collective wet dream. Dee’s lawyered up, naturally, leaving Joey to swing in the wind.”
“I doubt Joey’s going to be much help. The kid’s wasted most of the time. If it hadn’t been for his brother, Jackie, I don’t think he would have had the smarts to get into something that complicated.”
“No argument from me.”
“Where is Jackie, by the way?”
“So far, like the others, he’s in the wind.”
Josh pursed his lips and watched Calhoun scribbling in his notebook. “He’ll go home, you know that, don’t you?”
“Do indeed, First Lieutenant. It’s being covered. As soon as he shows up, we’ll add him to our collection.”
Josh hummed a mindless tune to the rhythmic swoosh produced by the device, floating on a sea of relief. The drifting was tolerable, but it also reminded him there was something odd about the situation, something they were all missing. He asked, “Did you find the SUV?”
His face pensive, Calhoun squinted at his pen doing a nervous tap dance on his thigh. After a few stops and starts, he admitted, his tone sharp, “No.”
“Don’t you think that’s a little odd?” He wiggled a finger, halting the detective’s retort. “I know, believe me, I know. It’s a big state, lots of places to hide, but unless they ran it into a lake, eventually somebody’s going to notice a late model, expensive vehicle like that.” He tilted his head, feeling slightly faint from the effort. “It’s not like they’re thick on the ground in these parts.”
Agreeing, Calhoun thumbed back through his pages of notes, finally asking, “What’s your take on the other two? We have your descriptions, but that’s all we’ve got. Can you tell me more?”
“What, you mean profile them?” Calhoun nodded his encouragement. Reaching to focus his thoughts, Josh murmured, “They’re mostly muscle. Dee was the one who said jump and how high. Nothing unique about that. What was different was I got the impression they worked like a well-oiled team. And they didn’t learn to do that the short time they were here.”
&
nbsp; Calhoun asked, “You have any experience with the drug trade?”
“Some. Depended on the base’s location. Some of the newer psychotropic drugs tend to be localized, so the closer to an urban market, the higher the probability of them making their way into the distribution system.”
“You saying we may have labs being set up in this area?”
Josh jerked, sending some of the medical instruments into spasms. A nurse popped in but he assured her, “It’s fine, ma’am.” She left as Josh turned his attention back to Calhoun. “Jesus Christ, Cal, I never thought about that. I always assumed, since we’re about a half step above dirt poor around these parts, there simply wouldn’t be enough profit to make it a go.”
Calhoun asked, “Water?” and poured a glass without waiting for Josh to reply. He obviously was using the distraction to think through how much he wanted to share with a civilian. Josh understood that, yet he hardly qualified as a garden variety bystander. Finally the detective said, “Off the record, Foxglove, I think there’s a reason a fairly stable system got upended like it has. Those guys were here for a specific purpose, and it wasn’t to check the books. The only way we’d know for sure is if Dee decided to co-operate.”
“You mean plea bargain.” Josh’s brain screamed no no no no!
“It wouldn’t be the first time.” He shrugged. The decision wouldn’t be his to make in any case. If his expression matched how Josh felt, the man wasn’t happy about it either.
Josh asked, “What if Dee isn’t the ringleader?”
Calhoun stood and paced to the door and back, his hands cocked on his hips. When he returned to the bed, he stared intently at Josh before demanding, “Tell me what you know about this Kit Golden Eagle.” He rested his fists on the bed and leaned menacingly forward. “And this time, I want to know everything.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Calm after the Storm
Becca sat at the kitchen table, her hands folded primly as she watched Marcus pace like a caged tiger.
Marcus growled, “I could have gone to pick him up.” He sat down. Got up. “Three days? Who lets a patient go after only three days? Cripes, Becca. He damn near had his kidneys kicked into his throat. They took his damn knee apart and put it back together...”
“Realigned, Marcus. A small adjustment.”
“But, what about the pins and whatever’s holding his leg in one piece?”
The woman sighed in annoyance, but her eyes were kind. Very kind. And patient. He had no right to be jumping down her throat just because he was scared to death about not being able to care for Josh properly.
Finally Marcus broke down and confessed, “I’m scared, Becs. I’m afraid I’ll get it all wrong. Afraid I’ll hurt him.”
Becca assessed him carefully, tilting her head from one side to the other, giving his fears consideration. But then she dismissed them by asking, “Do you love my brother, Marcus Colton.”
That brought him up short. The answer burst from his lips without requiring any thought. “Of course, I love him. That’s why I’m so...” He blushed, the heat rocketing clear to his scalp in no time flat.
Becca smirked and said, “See what I did there?”
“You are an evil woman.”
“Only when it comes to my family.” She stood and reached across the table, grabbing Marcus’ left hand. “That includes you, Marcus. This is your home now, for as long as you want it to be.”
His emotions went all over the map. Teary-eyed, he bolted for the front of the house, fearful he’d make a complete idiot of himself by breaking down in front of Becca. As he gazed out the window, he spied a dust cloud rooster-tailing behind a vehicle coming fast.
“They’re here, Becs.” She appeared at his side bearing a cane and a folded walker, looking excited and jigging on her heels. Marcus snidely said, “Nice of Calhoun to bring him.” Becca uumed and kept her eyes glued to the lane. He tried another jab. “The detective certainly goes above and beyond the call of duty, doesn’t he?”
Becca ignored Marcus and moved onto the porch as a nineteen fifty-seven vintage Mustang rolled to a stop. The top was down, revealing the beefy cop and Josh who had a huge grin plastered on his face. Becca flipped the walker open and adjusted the height before approaching the car.
Marcus waited at the bottom of the steps, taking in the tableau as Calhoun extricated himself from a vehicle designed for someone about forty pounds lighter than the heavyweight detective. They managed to move Josh’s legs into position so he could use his arms as leverage to hoist himself from the seat.
When Becca asked Josh if he’d taken his meds, Calhoun answered, “He did indeed,” and exchanged a look with Becca, like they were on the same page. Marcus thought that was interesting, but soon forgot about it as he did the heavy lifting, struggling to get his lover’s dead weight up the three steps and onto the porch where he handed Josh the walker.
Josh muttered, “I’ve got it.” He glanced back at his sister and Calhoun. “Let’s give them a little privacy.”
Marcus held the door open, keeping one eye on his lover, and another on the lovebirds doing an awkward mating dance next to the sports car. Meantime Josh moved around the small space, eyes sweeping the room before moving into the kitchen area. When Marcus joined him, Josh admitted, “For a minute there, I thought I’d never get to see this again.” Bracing on the table he swung to face Marcus, tears in his eyes. “But that wasn’t the worst part.”
His throat tight, Marcus asked, “What was?”
“Leaving you.” He ducked his head and rubbed a palm across his cheek, grinding away the evidence of his emotions. “I pr-promised myself, after the fire... Shit, after you came for me, begging me not to leave you. I knew then, Marcus Colton. I knew, right that minute, I loved you, and as God is my witness, I’m never going to leave you alone. Never again.”
Chest aching, Marcus moved into the shelter of Josh’s arms, siphoning off all the warmth, all the kindness and strength from a man who’d surprised him, taking him out of his own pale excuse for an existence and teaching him how to love again.
A crashing noise had them whipping their heads toward the back door where a thundering herd of girls in combat boots swarmed into the kitchen, tackling Josh and Marcus, encircling them with squeals and hugs. Polly entered next, lips set in a hard, pouty frown.
Josh asked, “What’s with the face, Polly?”
The woman pointed a thumb over her shoulder and mouthed, “Petilune.”
Marcus knelt down and said to the girls, “Your mom’s out front with her new beau. Why don’t you go say hi to him before he leaves?”
Maudie screeched, “Uncle Cal’s here,” and yanked her older sister away from Josh and in the direction of the front porch.
Marcus huffed, “So it’s ‘Uncle Cal,’ is it? Huh, that was quick.” He glared at Josh. “Please tell me he’s not an accomplished horseman.”
Laughing, Josh assured him Cal was anything but. That was a small consolation. Maudie wasn’t likely to switch her affections completely when horsemanship was on the line. After he’d won some hard-earned karma points with the tartan saddle pad he’d found for Maudie’s pony, he’d hate to lose her esteem so quickly.
They both turned to Polly who spoke barely above a whisper, obviously not wanting Petilune to overhear. “She’s decided she wants to stay here with you, Marcus. And Josh. I tried to explain that right now isn’t a good time. That you need peace and quiet to heal...” She looked at Marcus, “...and you need to devote your time to making sure Josh does what he’s supposed to do.” She threw her hands in the air. “The reverend and his wife offered. Me and the girls offered. Even the Barnes’ family said they’d take her now that their girls are in school. I’m not sure what to do. You know how she gets.”
Marcus groaned inwardly. The child, the one he’d thought “simple,” was anything but. She was a young woman who knew her mind and had finally decided to take the reins in her own hands and make a future for herself. With him. I
n Josh’s house.
He exchanged a glance with Josh whose mouth quirked into a devilish grin. He whispered in Marcus’ ear, “It’s what you’ve been wanting, Marcus. She needs stability. And if that’s us, then I’m happy for it. But it’s up to you.”
Marcus shook his head no and said, “It’s up to both of us.”
He could have lowered his voice, he could have not said the words, just left them hanging out there, implied and never expressed, but he was done with putting his life on hold because he was afraid of losing someone again. One thing he’d learned, painfully, was that life didn’t come with a guarantee or a get out of jail free card. It came with heartache and worry. Bad things happened. So did the good. And standing there in front of him was the best thing that had ever happened, so he said out loud, “And that’s why I love you, Josiah Foxglove.”
Polly clapped and chortled, “It’s about time, you two.” She approached both of them with a wicked grin on her face, murmuring, “If it helps you with your decision, Petilune will be in school all day long.”
Josh went scarlet to his roots, asking as they pushed aside the screen door, “Does everybody know?”
“Mostly. The others will figure it out soon enough.”
Petilune sat on the top step, her feet on the next tread down, knees tucked tight together. She clutched a small plastic bag to her thin chest, the backpack on the step below her. She looked frail and so alone, Marcus could barely stand it. Josh gave him a shove, urging him to join the child. He settled next to her and said, “Polly tells me you’d like to stay here with me and Josh.”
She nodded, her hair loose and falling about her shoulders in a fine waterfall.
“Can you tell me why?”
She turned and gave Marcus a quizzical look, the kind she used to dispense in the store when he was being overbearing and overprotective.
Marcus muttered, “You don’t have to. It’s okay.”
