by T. L Smith
“Ariel, is that you, sweetheart?” Tracey and Falcon’s mother walks up to me, engulfing me in a hug so tight I want to cry. She’s one of those huggers where everything wants to drop away from you by just her touch. She pulls back, looks at me and wipes my hair from my face. “I like it, it suits you,” she says referring to my new hair. It’s always been long, I never cut it growing up.
“Thank you.”
“You must come around one day soon for dinner, I’m sure the kids would love it. I haven’t seen you in ages.” I smile and try to hide the fact that I flinched, but she notices anyway. “Tracey stopped by, said she saw you, and that you were looking good. I haven’t seen that son of mine in over a month. Actually, come to think of it, no one has. He’s resorted to not talking to anyone and quitting his work, so I’ve been told by Echo.” She shakes her head, not impressed. “If you go back to the city you’ll go and visit him, won’t you? He always smiled big whenever you were around. He could never take his eyes off of you.”
“I can’t. Sorry.” I wave goodbye and get into my car driving straight back to my house. Her words shocked me.
He wouldn’t have quit.
No way.
And even if he did, it wouldn’t have anything to do with me. Could it? No, it can’t.
“How did the interview go?” Tracey asks as I call her when I finished my interview.
“Bad, it doesn’t pay enough. And it’s not enough hours to survive.”
“So, you’ll come back and take my offer?”
I sigh. “Yes.”
I hear her scream. “I’m so excited. It’s going to be amazing working together.”
“Tracey,” I say after a moment of silence. “Did he quit his job?”
“Yes.”
“Was it to do with me?” I hear her breathing so know she hasn’t hung up on me, so I wait for her to answer.
“Yes, I believe so. But I don’t know the details, he won’t tell me and you won’t say anything. And the boys are always locked tight, so no use asking them. What happened, Ariel?”
“I couldn’t trust him anymore,” I say the simple answer.
“Well, I won’t tell him you’re back. You can when and if you’re ready.”
“Thanks, Tracey.”
“Love you.”
We hang up when I pull into my driveway.
I know now, it’s time to go back.
To say my mother was excited was an understatement. She loves me but she’s a woman who craves silence. So, when she packed me off into my car, she kissed me goodbye and told me to come back anytime I felt like it, but I knew she meant the opposite.
Chad smiles at me as I stand at the door holding two suitcases full of all my things.
“I knew you had fallen in love with me, and couldn’t not come back for me. It’s destiny.” He reaches for me and picks me up, spinning me around like a toy and making me drop my suitcases.
“I missed your kisses,” I tell him, kissing his cheek. He blushes. I wish he was straight, he’d make the perfect boyfriend. Plus, he loves me, and I know he won’t hurt me.
“I left your room as it is. You’re welcome.” He bows opening the door wider, and picking up a suitcase.
“What would I do without you?”
His hand touches his forehead as he fakes to act hurt. “You would die,” he says chuckling hitting my ass as we walk in. “Just want to clear this up, too, he came here after you left. He looked like shit.”
I close my eyes. “I don’t want to talk about him, Chad.” He holds his hands up in surrender after he places my suitcase in my room.
“I won’t, just wanted to tell you, so it’s out of the way.”
“Thank you.” He nods and kisses me one more time before he exits, shutting the door. I changed my number when I left, and only a few people have it. So, when I get a text message, I know it’s from Tracey as Chad is here with me. I smile as she tells me what to wear tomorrow, and she can’t wait for our first day together.
Maybe it won’t be so bad after all? I avoided seeing him before, it should be easier this time now I know where he lives and where he frequents. Well, hopefully.
27
Falcon
“This has gone on long enough.”
Hands bang on my door.
Fuck them! Fuck everyone!
“Falcon, if you don’t open the door now we will kick the fucking thing in,” Echo threatens on the other side.
I roll my eyes at his words. Fuck him.
“Creed, ready?”
Fuck! I get up and open the damn door. Both come running in, shoulders first and land on the floor. Hard. I laugh and kick them both before they can get up.
“What the fuck,” Creed swears upon getting up. There’s a look of anger on his face until he checks around my apartment.
Yep, looks like shit.
“Fuck, Falcon. You really let this place go,” Echo says shaking his head. I don’t look around, I try not to. If I do, it annoys me, and I will want to make sure everything is in its rightful spot. So I don’t, I go straight back to my position on the couch and resume watching television.
“All this over a girl?” Creed asks.
I shoot daggers from my eyes at him. “Like you can talk, you bitch. If El got up and walked away from you right now, you would follow like a dog. And no, it’s not about a girl.”
He would, I’ve seen firsthand how crazy he is about El. He would die for her, that I have no doubt.
“Bullshit,” Echo coughs into his hands.
My eyes slice to him.
“Then tell me… why have you become a slob?” Echo picks up clothes that are on the coffee table and throws them to the floor. I take another big drink of whiskey to stop myself from cleaning. I hate messiness, yet here I am in a fucking mess.
“Come back to work, now, you’ve made your point,” Creed says standing, not sitting.
I ignore them.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake. She’s back, you know?”
My eyes snap to him. My hand squeezes the glass, it feels like it will shatter at any moment in my hand. “Don’t care.” It’s a lie, I know it is and they know it is.
“Who knew you’d fall in love. We didn’t think this day would come,” Echo says watching me, waiting for a reaction.
“I don’t love her.”
“Bullshit.”
I throw my glass at his head and just miss. “Get the fuck out.”
They both move to the door.
“Darby’s angry, but he doesn’t want your spot in the business. Come back to work, Falcon,” Echo says as they walk out.
She’s back!
I call her cell straight away.
It doesn’t ring.
I smash my cell to the ground then I drink myself to sleep. Because what else is there to do.
It’s Tracey’s birthday, her wife is throwing her a surprise birthday party. I contemplated not going. It would be easier if I didn’t. But she’s my sister and I haven’t spoken to her in weeks, even though she has tried. I don’t bother shaving, fuck, I just manage to shower before I leave.
Pulling up, there are cars everywhere. Tracey stands on her front porch smiling and talking. She sees me and waves, her smile becoming brighter and bigger. Pulling myself from the car, Tracey makes her way to me and when she reaches me, her hands wrap around my shoulders as she pulls me to her.
“I didn’t think you would come.”
I shrug. Of course, I’d come. Just because my life is in shambles right now doesn’t mean I don’t love my sister.
“Echo and Storm are inside.”
Of course, they are. Storm and Tracey have become good friends and work together.
“I won’t stay long.” She nods like she expected me to say that.
“Mum and Dad are in there, too. Go say hello.” She pushes me to walk up the front and lets me go inside. I spot my parents first. My mother smiles and walks over to me wrapping her arms around me.
“What is this, my
boy letting himself go?” she asks referring to my unshaven face.
I touch it and feel the stubble. “Yeah.”
My father walks over and passes me a beer. I take it knowing I shouldn’t because I am driving.
“Echo says you aren’t working right now, son?” my father asks me.
I turn, looking for Echo, and find him sitting with Storm, his hand wrapped around her waist as he watches me. “Nope.”
“Why?”
That’s not something I can tell him, not the truth anyway.
“I’m on a permanent vacation.” My father catches on, he’s a smart man.
“Well, don’t wait too long to sort your vacation out.” He pats my shoulder and walks away. My mother’s standing at the doorway with Tracey and her wife, as I look around and my eyes land back on Echo. Walking over to him, Storm smiles at me and kisses Echo’s cheek before she gets up and walks away.
“You left your building, that’s a start.”
“Shut up.” I drink the beer, it goes down in one shot.
Echo stares at me waiting. For what, I don’t even know. “You’ve really lost who you are, haven’t you?” I stare at him. Confused. “The Falcon I know wouldn’t be this way. Who the fuck are you? Where’s your smart-ass mouth, your shit-stirring schemes. Fuck! Where are the women?” he asks, waving his hands around like they will answer him. “She’s here,” he says, going silent.
The hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I know who he’s talking about without even turning around.
“Should we go out the back? You don’t look very calm right now.”
I scoff at his words and try my fucking hardest not to look around to see where she is. I can hear her soft voice, and I know she’s close. Does she know I am here? Surely if she did, I don’t think she would want to be here. Echo stands, and Storm walks back over and stands next to him. His hand touches her hip and she melts into his touch.
“It’s good to see you, Falcon, you look…”
I smile at Storm’s words. “Shit.”
She bites her lips. “No, I wasn’t going to say that. Maybe… different.”
I nod at her words.
I smell her before I see her.
Ariel walks over and stands directly next to me, I don’t have to look up to tell it’s her. Everyone’s silent until I laugh, all eyes go to me and I shut up.
“Can we talk?”
I don’t want to look up to her eyes, to see what she wants. I’ve been dreaming about those eyes now for far too long and the last thing I need is a reminder. “No.”
“Falcon,” Echo warns.
I look up to him careful not to face her. I raise an eyebrow and he shakes his head. “He’s being an ass, let us clear out so you can talk.”
“No,” I say but he doesn’t listen, and within a few minutes everything goes quiet. All I can hear is her breathing right next to me. Her feet move and come to stand in front of me, she has on black heels and it takes all my strength to look up. When I do, I’m met with a dress that hugs her perfect body, her neckline which floods back memories of how I kiss her.
Then her face, her fucking beautiful face which is staring at me right now with a look of confusion written on it, mixed with some pain. Pain that I more than likely put there.
“You cut your hair,” I state.
Her hands lift, and she touches it. “I needed a change.”
I have no words for that. So, I say nothing and just stare. It’s creepy, but I can’t help myself, she’s been on my mind for a long time.
“Do you not want to talk to me?” she asks as I take a seat across from her.
“I’m afraid I’ll say the wrong thing and scare you.”
She takes a deep breath at my words and sits on the coffee table in front of me so we are eye level. If I looked down, I could see up her dress. So, I try hard to keep my eyes level with hers.
“I am scared of you. But I realized I never thanked you either.”
I say nothing, what is there to say?
“You did come and get me, and I don’t know what that cost you. But thank you.” She brushes a short piece of her hair back as she watches me intently. “This is so unlike you, I could never shut you up.”
“What do you want me to say, Ariel?”
She cringes at my words. “I came here hoping you weren’t going to be here today, but I knew somehow you would be. I just knew it…” She pauses and looks past me, then the door opens and closes. “But I realized today… well, Chad helped me realize… if you wanted to hurt me you actually would have. I don’t think you wanted to hurt me, Falcon.”
“Of course I didn’t,” I say, and I know my face is scrunched up in confusion.
“You quit your job?” she asks.
“You quit yours,” I say.
“I did.”
“Do you miss it?”
She nods. “I miss the stories, but I work for Storm now. Nothing like I was doing before but it’s still writing…” She pauses. “What are you doing?”
Shrugging, I answer her. “Nothing. Drinking. Nothing.”
Her lips part softly. Her name is called and she stands. I look at her legs and would give anything to have them wrapped around me right now.
“Don’t leave, okay?” she asks softly.
I don’t do anything as she walks off. I just get up and make my way out the side of the house and straight for my car.
28
Ariel ‘Raven’
“He left,” Storm says, coming up behind me. I turn, looking into the house, and there’s no sign of him. Of course he left. I sigh, he looked so… lost. I’ve never seen anything other than confidence emanating from every pore of him. But even with that look on his face, he’s still the most handsome man I’ve ever seen and that is without a doubt. The stubble on his face made me want to touch it, the look in his eyes made me want to wrap my hands around him and pull him to me.
“What did you say to him?” Tracey asks.
I can’t tell her what really happened. No one really knows. Chad has some idea but not all the details. I woke up this morning feeling better. Today’s a new week. I’ve been working with Storm now for two weeks, and I hadn’t seen him once until today. It took me all week to gain the courage to come to her birthday party because I knew he’d be here. But some things you have to let go, or it will consume and take you whole. I couldn’t let what happened define me or change me any more than it already had. I came out unhurt, apart from my feelings. Those were fucked up and needed time to heal, which I think they now have. And seeing him proved that, but it seems he’s taken it harder than I have, and I was the one who was taken without my permission.
“Nothing. Where’s he going?”
Echo walks up answering. “Home. He never leaves it.” He passes me a key, and I take it looking up at him. “He doesn’t let anyone in, but he forgot we have a key.” His lip twitches and I nod my head.
“Be kind to him, okay? Whatever happened between you two has changed him. I’m not sure if it’s for the best, either,” Tracey says.
He’s home, I know he is. The music is blaring and his car’s in the driveway. I knock and no one answers. So, I place the key in the lock after I knock again. It clicks open and I see him at the bar of his kitchen counter, draped over it with a drink in his hand.
“You know it’s rude to enter someone’s house without their permission,” he says not looking up. I walk to the music and shut it down so I can hear him properly. His place is a mess, there’s shit everywhere and it stinks. So unlike him. I take the stool next to him and sit, waiting for him to move or to even look up, but he doesn’t.
“You wouldn’t answer,” I say.
“Maybe it’s because I thought it was in your best interests.”
“Mine?” I ask confused.
“Yes, you, Ariel. Remember last time you got too close.” I still at his words. He doesn’t bother looking at me, just points to the door. “Door’s over there. You can leave anytime.”
He sits up now and sighs. “Do you want to see what I did, Ariel? Do you want to know what business I owned? The people I worked with? Do you? Do you?” he yells. He stands, reaches for his keys and walks to the door. “Last chance to get your damn story, Ariel. I’ll show you, I’ll show you it all. That way you can have more reason to hate me. Now… move.” He walks out of his door, leaving me sitting there confused. I can either sit here and hope he comes back, or I can find out what it is he really does and why he quit. I get up and follow him out. He’s in his car with the passenger door open waiting for me. I get in, buckle up, and he doesn’t speak as he drives off. Not even when we arrive at the same warehouse where I was taken does he speak. My body locks tight, and Falcon notices and looks over to me.
“Nothing will happen to you here, I’d kill them.” He says it like it’s something I should know as he gets out and walks to the building.
It’s like a rabbit hole, you want to know what’s inside, so I go in and he follows closely behind me.
Darkness is the first thing I notice, then he pulls a curtain back with his hand, revealing something like out of the movies. It’s beautiful. Stunning, even. I’ve never seen anything like it in my life. Beds line the walls, a bar sits at the back, men and women are walking around, some with trays, some naked, and some just chatting. On one bed to my left a man is choking a woman as he fucks her missionary style, and on the bed next to them a woman is riding a man holding a cowboy hat.
“This… this is what you own?” I manage to ask.
He doesn’t answer, and when I look to him his eyes are staring up at a bank of black windows.
“Falcon?”
He looks back to me. “I recruit, Ariel, all these men… they are here because of me,” he says then walks off toward a door which I’m guessing leads to the windows above it.
“Falcon…”
He doesn’t stop when he pulls the door open, or even when he reaches the top of the stairs. A woman sits at the desk and I remember her, El I think her name was. She smiles when she sees me, but it drops when she looks back to Falcon.
