Absolute Valor (Southern Justice #3)

by Cayce Poponea

  “First time I met Chase, he was this piss ant of a boy, scared of his fucking shadow. Cash wanted a piece of him, but then Dylan stood up for him, made Cash so mad he took it out on me. I got blamed for that rich bitch Pricilla choosing them over us.” Harmony looked to the window beside my desk, the blinds closed as the afternoon sun would blind me if I kept them open. “He beat my ass good after the lights went out, told me I should have tried harder to get her attention, then we could have been living in her big fucking house.”

  Returning her glare back to me, her eyes were full of hate and venom, like a cobra ready to strike. “I’ve waited a long time to get my revenge on the Morgan’s, first for ignoring me and picking the wrong kid to adopt, and then for killing my brother after he done served his time for fucking with that bitch. They had no call to kill him like they did, and I’m gonna make them pay.” The Harmony I knew outside of these walls was a drug dealing, sex crazed, conniving bitch. After listening to her brief history, this had to be the tip of the iceberg in the evil she possessed. This woman was lethal, and I believed she was capable of carrying out the threats she spewed.

  “I’d watch my back if I were you. Lucas is looking to get back at Chase, showing him what happens when you mess with him. He wanted me to come and pay you a visit, remind you what would happen to Grace if you didn’t keep your fucking mouth shut. But I don’t work for Lucas, he eats my pussy, not the other way around.” Pointing at the center of her ample chest, her black shirt barely covered the man made tits spilling out of the top. “I have plans for getting back at Chase myself, starting with this little gem.” Tucking the guitar under her arm, jumping off the couch and coming toward me.

  “You keep being the quiet fucking mouse you always were and I won’t have to tell Lucas you’re holed up here. Tomorrow, I will pay Largo a visit and have him do another job for me, could work in your favor to be at the Silver Dollar pawn shop, do a little shopping if you know what I mean.” She began backing away, taking the last bit of Chase’s Granddaddy with her. I couldn’t let it happen. I know by showing my hand, I risk losing everything.

  “Haven’t you stolen enough from him?” My voice sounded tougher than I felt. “You’ve fooled him into thinking you’re someone you’re not. Turned his back against his brothers, taken money from him, and his family, like it was yours to take.” Moving closer to her, I was ready to tackle her to the floor if I had to. Anything to keep her here until one of them arrived. “That guitar was a gift from his Grandad—the last thing he ever did with the man before he died. I’m sorry, Ginny, but I can’t let you walk out the door with it.” Rushing toward her, ready to do anything to keep her inside this room.

  “Oh, I’m gonna walk out of here, and you ain’t going to tell Chase shit about this. Just try and open your mouth—see what happens. You think Lucas is cruel now, you ain’t seen nothing yet, you little bitch.”

  Her expression was lethal and in any other situation, I may have shied away, letting her run out the door and into the night.

  “Look at you, ready to fight for a man who doesn’t even know you exist. Chase is such a pussy, he might be covered in muscle, but he is soft as fucking cotton. I have him so in love with me, he turns a blind eye to everything I do. You think he’s gonna believe a bad word you say? You said it yourself, he has turned his back against his kin, you ain’t nothin’ to him, so don’t fool yourself into anything more.”

  They say a hero lies inside us all, waiting for the perfect moment to come out. As I charged in her direction, pulling the guitar from her hand, I realize my actions are so out of character for me. I’m able to toss the guitar in the direction of the couch, hoping my blind aim is good and the wood isn’t damaged. I’ve never been a fighter; the only punches I’ve ever seen were exchanged between drunken men on television. Harmony is a scrapper; I’ve seen her fight several times when someone tried to get away without paying. This time is no different; as my grip on her arms is lost and I find myself tumbling backwards, my head hitting the edge of the table, pain hitting me like a wrecking ball. Instinct kicks in and I grab for anything I can as her fist connects with the side of my head. I assume I have her hair when she shouts for me to let go of it. I feel her fist hit me again on the top of my shoulder and then…nothing.

  Opening my eyes, I see clumps of pink and blonde hair wrapped around my fingers. There is blood smeared on my wrist and the back of my knuckles, I cringe hoping it’s mine and not hers. Looking to the side, I see a pair of black boots and the thigh of someone wearing jeans. A cool hand touches my face, startling my attention back toward the ceiling. Deep blue eyes take up the vast majority of my field of vision. As I strain to focus, Chase’s features sharpen. “Audrey, hey. It’s me, Chase.”

  I try to sit up. I have to tell him Harmony is getting away, but as the present comes rushing forward, I can see Dylan has her on the floor, hands behind her back. Austin is speaking into his cell and pressing keys on the alarm pad. Chase is checking me over, just as he did when Lucas hit me. Blue eyes search mine, thumbs pressing into the flesh under my eye, causing me to wince slightly.

  “Sorry.” He whispers, but continues to check the rest of my face. I can’t look away, and neither can he as his thumb lands on my lip, pulling the flesh down slightly. My tongue peeks out of its own volition, the salty taste of his skin is erotic and I want to suck the rest of him in. How much of Ginny’s perversion has rubbed off on me if I’m thinking this way?

  Clearing his throat, he pulls his thumb down but not away. “You’re going to have a hell of a bruise, but nothing’s broken. I can take you to the hospital if you want me to.” Worried eyes flicking back and forth between mine, dancing down to stare at my lips, and then returning.

  “No, I’m okay, she didn’t have time to hurt me.” In the distance, I can hear the sounds of sirens. I chose to drink the moment in, saving it for the solitude I may be about to face, as I will no doubt have to answer the question I can see in his eyes.

  “You know when you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.”

  —Dr Seuss

  Something pressed hard in the center of my chest, an indescribable force telling me I had to get to the shop as quickly as possible. Only the family and Audrey knew the location of panic alarm With her habitual choice to work late, I couldn’t stand the thought of her being there, Lucas coming by, and her not having a way to call out for help.

  Pushing my engine to the limits, I flew down the streets in my mission to reach her. I ignored the possibility it could be someone else, Audrey could be tucked away in her bed, dreaming of a world she longs to make a reality.

  As I round the last corner, I reached down and killed the engine, needing to arrive as stealthily as possible. Training from the Marines taught me how to surround a building. Standing beside a SEAL taught me how to take out a target without making a sound.

  Dylan pulled up a second after I did, nearly forgetting to lower his kickstand and tossing his helmet to the grass. I signaled for him to cover the left side of the shop.

  When we were younger and out of school on summer vacation, we would head out into the wooded area by our house to play army men. Austin taught us hand signals he’d read in a book, so we would hide in the trees and capture our pretend enemy before being called in for supper.

  Dylan signaled he could see two people and was moving to the back of the shop. I give him ample time to get into a position where he can catch anyone who decided to go flying out the back way. I moved along the front of the building, avoiding the walk as it’s monitored by the cameras. Crouching down under a window, I heard a female laughing. Pressing my ear to the glass, my heartbeat quickens as I recognize Harmony’s voice.

  “I handpicked Chase, pulled him off of a list of people I wanted to fuck over. Everything I’ve done for the past four years has been to get back at him for what the Morgans have done to me.” Racking my brain, I’m confused by what she is saying. What have I done to
her?

  “Cash took care of me, beating the other boys off when they wanted a piece of me, but didn’t want to pay for it. I fucking loved him and how good he made me feel.” The only Cash I knew was the motherfucker who I’d tossed off a fucking bridge for roughing up Lainie and trying to mess with Claire. Pissed me off when he spoke my Momma’s name and what he wanted to do to her.

  “He knew I liked to be fucked hard against the fucking wall, not wrapped in arms and smothered in fucking ‘love you’s’ and shit.” Something between anger and revulsion bubbled in my gut. Harmony came on strong in her sexuality, kinky as fuck in the way she played in the bedroom. She had a number of piercings in her clit, twisting them while having me pull her hair as she shoved whatever toy she had up her ass and cunt.

  “The thought of fucking Chase made me sick, always wanting it to be just the two of us. The only thing about him to turn me on was the amount of money I was taking from him.” On the last night she’d spent in the condo, she suggested inviting a few of her friends over, assuming every man had the same fantasy of an orgy.

  “Lucas loved sharing, almost as much as he loved letting me watch as he sucked off Cash.” Acid churned in my stomach and I sent a small prayer of thanks to all the preaching my parents did about protection.

  “Last time I was with Lucas, he said something about you being colder than a block of ice. It made me want you give you my key to the condo, giving Chase something to love on for once.” Swallowing the bile in the back of my throat, I tried not to think of the ton of crow waiting for me to eat when this is all over. My family had been right about her all along. I made the choice to ignore all the warnings, silencing the alarms I heard everyday.

  Catching movement to the left, I see Dylan leaning past the edge of the building, signaling he was going in. Backtracking around to the front, I notice the shadows on the sidewalk, confirming two people inside the building. Austin stood beside the magnolia tree in the front, letting me know he had a visual of what was going on. As he stepped forward, I slipped around grabbing the door handle when the screams of a cat fight rang out.

  Harmony sat over the top of Audrey, blindly throwing her fists, aiming at Audrey’s head. Audrey had her hands full of hair, pulling as if her life depended on it. Dylan came barreling down the hall, as I reached the back of Harmony’s shirt, tugging it like I would a grown man. If this bitch didn’t want to act like a lady, then fuck if I’m gonna treat her like one.

  The harder I pulled, the more she resisted. My knuckles turned white and the muscles in my arms burned from the constant strain. Finally, the tension was lost as Harmony shrugged out of the torn shirt, the dangling material loose in my clenched fist. Taking a hint from Audrey, I grabbed the back of her hair. I’d had plenty of practice in doing it, so I wrapped the ends around my wrist, pulling like I’m trying to get back up the drop line dangling from a black hawk. I was positive the screams she was giving were of pain, and not pleasure. Dylan jumped over the two of us, taking the half-naked hellcat with him. Tossing her to the floor, he planted his knee in the middle of her back. I bet the bitch won’t enjoy the set of handcuffs he’s slapping on her wrists.

  Austin had silenced the system, giving the monitoring company the codes for a false alarm. Sirens were screaming in this direction, responding to the accident I passed on the way here. Everyone had been walking around as I passed, chasing away any guilt I would have felt for not stopping.

  Audrey would have a bruise on her cheek, the redness deepening as I helped her to her feet, steadying her, since she seemed to still be getting her bearings. My fingers intertwined with hers, refusing to let go as I guided her to the couch. Pulling Audrey close, I tucked her head under my chin, while rubbing her back with the hand not holding hers.

  Her buildup of adrenalin had given her the shakes, I held on tighter as her body quaked while she came down. As a Marine we were taught to use the surge in our favor, as a guide to keep us safe. Mine would get so high sometimes, I would get sick when the danger passed. Considering how I’d felt when I left the cemetery, I should be doubled over heaving my guts out. Instead, I felt calm, an odd feeling of relief and contentment.

  “Why aren’t you out of fucking town?” Harmony’s eyes were smeared in black from her makeup running, her hair in chaos around her head. On a second scan, I caught several patches where her scalp shined through. Audrey had pulled chunks of her hair out, or maybe it was me, who knows. “You can’t even give a fucking date right.” I guess that answers any question I had of her getting my messages.

  “Chase.” Audrey called, her voice quivering and breaking my heart. “Is your guitar okay?” I released the hold I had on her, but kept her hand in mine. Our eyes meeting again, the strength and the sadness resting in her hazel orbs, “I tried to save it, but I think I damaged it when I threw it toward the couch.” Looking around the room, my eyes searched until the neck of the guitar revealed its resting place under the table.

  I noticed immediately one of the strings had broken—not a big issue as I noticed it when I played it earlier. A tiny scratch marred the side by the signature, other than that, it was perfect. “Just a little scratch and a broken string.” I shrugged, intrigued as to why Audrey would have thrown it at the couch.

  “Oh my, God, I’m so sorry. I—I tried.” She shook her head as she reached out to touch the frayed end of the string. “I didn’t want her to take the only thing that meant anything to you.”

  My head jerked up to Harmony, the anger from earlier bubbling up again. “Why the fuck would you take my guitar?”

  Something changed in her face, she straightened her back up, her bottom lip starting to quiver. “I got your message and I wanted to surprise you. I hoped you would be here and not on the—”

  “Stop!” Audrey shouted, slapping her hands on the leather of the couch. “You’re such a liar, Ginny. When are you ever going to take responsibility for what you’ve done to this family?” Her eyes closed tight and I could feel the anger and frustration rolling off her. The adrenaline spike left her unable to control her emotions. “You lied to him about who you are and what you do.” Turning her head to look at me, she points to Harmony. “She is a stripper who has been hanging around Lucas for over a year. The two of them are partners in cooking up meth—at least they were until a month ago. She came here to steal your guitar so she and Largo could pawn it, to get more money for supplies. Her real name isn’t Harmony, that’s what one of the guys she fucks on a regular basis calls her.”

  I’d heard this before, except for the drug part. I never wanted to believe someone I thought I cared for could end up this way. “The girl who…” She paused, her voice grainy as she continued. “Who you’ve chosen to share everything with, her name is Virginia Greyson. You met her at the children’s shelter when you were a little boy.”

  “Chase, it isn’t true. I came here to—”

  “Hold it right there.” Austin came to stand in the center of the room, his hands raised in surrender. “Obviously something went down in this shop tonight and there is only one way to find out exactly what.” Taking his phone in hand, he tapped several times on his screen, the television on the wall comes to life, a blue screen showing the current time and the connection status. The image changed and there I was, sitting on this very couch, playing for Audrey. Austin pressed a few more times and the footage moved ahead at a fast rate. When it stopped, the room was empty, the timestamp showed twenty minutes prior.

  From the left, the front door opened, followed by the overhead light turning on. There in the center of the screen was Harmony, or Virginia, I still wasn’t sure. We all watched and listened as she swore while pulling the guitar down. For the next fifteen minutes, I listened as the truth was revealed. All those months of lies and deception I believed. When she came to the part of the story where she confessed to sleeping with her brother, a gasp from my right grabbed my attention. My parents, Claire, and Lainie stood inside the door. My Momma’s eyes were large as saucers, her hand
over her mouth. As the video showed Audrey on the floor trying to avoid being punched, Priscilla crossed the room wrapping her in a hug I could feel from where I sat.

  As the screen returned to blue, I leaned into the back of the couch. “I can forgive a great many things, Virginia.” My eyes flicking to hers, the innocent look gone with the truth. “I can forgive the lies you told me, and even the money you stole.” Shaking my head, I tried to rid myself of the image of her being so in love with her own brother, she crossed the line of the relationship. “But what I can’t forget, what I won’t ignore, is the way you were so careless with the last thing I got from the man who helped to make me a man.” Standing from the couch, I moved toward her, as I wanted her to understand every word. “I will make sure you are charged for everything you’ve done. I will be at every hearing and sentencing you are ever involved in. I will make it my mission to let every attorney in this city know just how badly you’ve treated the memory of Forrest VanBuren.”

  Ignoring Virginia’s pleas of being set up, I walked over to Austin, prepared to grovel if I need to. No amount of apologies was ever going to be enough. “You tried to tell me and I wouldn’t listen. I should never have doubted you, I’m sorry.” I was counting on the way we had always settle arguments, that is until I got lost in a lie created by a psychotic bitch.

  “Chase, do you remember when Momma and Nana were making all those cookies for the church bake sale?” Staring in his blue eyes, I sorted through all the memories I had of those two women making cookies. “It was the time Daddy bought all of those goats to clear out the pasture.” An instant smile took over my face as I recalled the afternoon he was talking about.