by M. Stratton
BENDER
Copyright 2014 by M. Stratton
Cover by Covers by TOJ Publishing (http://tojpublishing.com/)
Edited by Hot Tree Editing (http://www.hottreeedits.com/)
Formatting by Integrity Formatting (http://integrityformatting.wix.com/integrity-formatting)
All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior written permission of the author.
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Bender is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Carrie Sutton
You’ve helped me from the very beginning of this journey;
I cannot begin to tell you how much that means to me
and how much I appreciate everything you have done.
Love you.
Dedication
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Epilogue
Other Works by M. Stratton
Coming Soon: When Dreams Come True
About M. Stratton
How to Find M. Stratton
Eighteen year old Jake Bender sat slouched over in a chair in the principal’s office listening to the asshole saying over and over and over how he’d end up in jail or dead. Blah, blah, blah. It wasn’t anything he hadn’t heard a thousand times before. He was thankful this one wasn’t followed up by fists like his old man liked to do.
“Are you listening to me, boy?” The principal slammed his fist on the desk and walked around wagging his finger in Bender’s face. “You mark my words, boy; you’re heading for jail or the cemetery. Either way this world is better off without you. You could disappear and no one would care. We don’t need you.”
He sat there and slowly looked up at the principal raising an eyebrow. He’d been hearing this for years from his old man; that song was stuck on repeat. Bender was counting down the days until he could leave this place behind. He’d go full time at the garage, find a place to live, and try to stay alive. Once he was on his own he’d be the one who came first, no one else, just like he’d been raised, look out for number one.
“Don’t give me that look, boy.” He raised his hand as if to slap him.
Bender sighed and leaned back. He knew there was no way he was actually going to hit him. Besides, if for some reason he did, it wouldn’t hurt as much as what his dad did on a daily basis. “Do it. I dare you.”
They stared at each other before the principal backed down. “You’re not worth it. Get out of here and don’t come back for a week.”
“What, no Saturday detention?”
“Never worked for you before; sure isn’t going to work now. We just have to get through the next two months, unless you want to drop out now. Then you’re society’s problem.”
Bender stood up. “Way to inspire the youth there, sir. You may want to write that little speech down for future reference.”
“Get out, Bender. Just get out.”
Bender slowly walked home kicking a rock hoping the old man was out getting drunk somewhere and wouldn’t be home until later. He wasn’t worried about his mom; she’d been beaten down so much over the years she didn’t care about anything as long as his dad wasn’t beating on her.
When he saw the man sitting on the steps to his house he paused. There was something familiar about him, but Bender couldn’t place him. He knew he’d seen him before, but couldn’t remember.
“We need to have a talk son.”
“You’re not my dad.”
The man leaned back and crossed his ankles looking relaxed, but Jack knew he wasn’t. This man didn’t look like he ever let his guard down. “No, thank God for that. I’m here to help you.”
“Yeah, well I don’t want your fucking help.”
“Listen, you punk ass kid, do you want to end up like your old man? Nah, I can see from the look in your eyes you don’t. Well, I’m offering you a way out. A way you can hold onto that tough kid attitude while helping people.”
“Fuck them. They never helped me.”
“What do you think I’m doing? You sure as hell aren’t the first I’ve gotten out of here, and you won’t be the last, but you’d better listen up, boy, before it’s too late. This is your one shot at redemption. I suggest you take it.” He held out a card.
Bender stood there on shaking knees, thoughts going through his head. He wanted to escape the wrath of his father and the scum of the neighborhood. He knew if he stayed, he’d be dead within a year. Slowly, he reached out and grabbed the card, feeling deep down in his gut his whole life was about to change. Now, if it was for the better was yet to be seen.
“Come on, Fred; you can’t leave me,” Stormy Ryan begged, following behind her last employee.
“No, that’s it. I’m done. Come on. I was robbed last night, again. Right outside the front door. It’s becoming a weekly occurrence. One of these days something worse than me getting beat up is going to happen.”
“I’ll beef up security. If we put more cameras in, then we’ll have it on tape and we can prosecute them. You can’t leave me here to run this whole place by myself.”
Fred stopped and turned to look at her. “But it’s your place. You should be running it.”
Stormy folded her arms across her chest and tried to make herself taller than her five foot two. “I do run this place.”
“Yes, you do. From home or your office upstairs where you don’t have to deal with people on a day-to-day basis. Well, take a look around.” He flung his arm out almost knocking over a stack of books. “The neighborhood isn’t what it used to be. It’s been going downhill faster than ever before. Cops are on the take. There’s no one to help us. If this keeps up, then indulging in your love of reading by having a second hand bookstore is going to go down in flames. It’s time you came out of your reading cave and actually interacted with humans.”
“Oh, come on. I interact all the time.”
“Yeah, with me, and Sue before she quit. Then, there is your college friend, the random vendor and people at the grocery store. Girl, you need to get out, grow up. You know it’s not unheard of for the general public to talk to each other, get along, go out, and have fun. You should try it sometime. I know . . . it’s shocking.”
“It’s overrated.”
Fred turned and walked to the back door. “You’re on your own.”
She caught up to him and grabbed his arm; she couldn’t hide the desperation in her eyes or voice. “Please, please, please don’t leave me. I can’t do this on my own.”
His face softened when he looked at her. “Stormy, I’ve known you since we were kids. I’ve been telling you, anything you ever wanted, you could do. Maybe I’ve been holding you back. You need to spread your wings and live. Get out there for once. Do something crazy. Make a new friend or two.”
Tears flowed down her cheeks. “I don’t know how,” she w
hispered.
He brushed them away. “Yes, you do.” He nodded toward the stacks of books. “It’s all right here; everything you ever wanted to know. Think about this; everyone who comes into your store shares something with you already.”
“What?”
“Your love of books. You can connect with them. Start with the books; and then before you know it, you’ll be spreading your wings and flying.”
“But I’m afraid of heights.”
“One day you won’t be, and then my sweet friend, you’ll be unstoppable.”
Stormy locked the front door later that night and slid down until she was sitting on the ground. She’d done it. She was exhausted, but she’d survived the rest of the day on her own. To be fair, there’d only been three customers, but still, she’d taken care of them. Even showed them some other books they were interested in.
Every time someone had walked by the front window, she’d tensed up wondering if she was going to have to help them, talk to them. She hadn’t read anything all day and was missing it. She’d left the characters in the middle of a sticky situation and needed to know what happened. Were they going to make it? What was next around the corner for them? These were important questions, which needed to be answered.
She knew she had to close out the register and make sure all of the books were put back where they belonged. At that moment, however, it felt like Heaven sitting, surrounded by the smell of the books. Growing up, the library was her best friend. Her parents moved around a lot when she was young and it was hard for her to make friends. So she made them in books, lived out her adventures in them. When the kids at school were mean to her, since she was always the new girl, she’d escape to a book. By the time they’d settled down on the farm, she was in the habit of spending her time alone, in the library, which was how she met Fred.
Leaning over she grabbed a random book off the shelf, opened to the middle of the story, and began reading. Within a few sentences, she was engrossed in the story and settling in to read the rest of it; the story she almost knew by heart. This was where she felt at home. Lost in the story, she didn’t notice how late it was until she was jolted by the sound of a Harley roaring by. Shaking her head, she looked at the clock and jumped up. She didn’t like being here this late at night by herself. With all of the crime in the neighborhood, it wasn’t safe.
Bender weaved his way through the cold, dark, damp, autumn streets of his old neighborhood on his Harley. It wasn’t the best twenty years ago, but now . . . He shook his head. Now, it was standing on the edge of ruin. There were signs of one prominent gang all over the place. From his reports, they’d run all the law abiding citizens off years ago. Going through the business district, he was surprised there were actually still shops around, although most of them were dark with different levels of security attempting to keep them safe.
He glanced at a shop with the lights still on. Lost in the Pages looked like it was some kind of bookstore. Strange it was open so late. He made a mental note; keeping track of the activity, both criminal and regular would help him in his new job. He slowed and made a left turn into the back alley behind his new dive bar, The Night Club. It seemed he’d come full circle. Heading back into town in the middle of the night instead of sneaking out was something new. As he swung his leg off the bike, he felt his age and his hard life in every creak of his bones. This was it. This was going to be his last job. After this, he’d have enough money to go somewhere warm to retire, maybe open a boat rental place on some remote island. He’d done enough of these jobs; it should be routine by now. What could possibly go wrong?
Bender’s eyes popped open and he sat straight up. Something had awakened him. Quietly reaching over, he pulled his gun from its holster, his eyes trained on the door. When the unmistakable squeak of the stairs filled the silence, he was up and across the room with his gun ready as he put his hand on the doorknob. Mentally counting the time it would take to get from the squeaking step to his door he paused until the time was right, and then flung the door open, his finger ready to pull the trigger. The air whooshed out of his lungs when he saw Murdoch standing there. Lowering the weapon, he turned his back on the old man and pulled on a pair of jeans. “You almost found out if there is a God.”
“Nah, I trust you.” Murdoch walked over and sat down heavily on the bed.
“What brings you here?” Bender stood with his back against the wall, his ankles crossed. As far as he knew, they were supposed to steer clear of each other.
“Nice place you got here. Real homey. Got any plans for afterwards? Know what you’re going to do?”
“I’ve given it a little thought. Why so curious?” He narrowed his eyes trying to figure him out.
“Gonna share with an old man? Come on, we’ve been through a lot together.”
Bender looked at him, really looked at him. “You’re not looking good, what gives?”
“Just getting old, just getting old. So, you going to see anyone while you’re in town?”
“You know better than that. I’m here to do a job and then get out. No attachments.”
“This one could be different. You could stay awhile. Maybe put down some roots.”
Bender pushed away from the wall and paced, feeling like a caged animal. “Now why the hell would I want to do that? I had enough of this place growing up. I’m looking to head south, way south, once all this is over. You can come visit me and we’ll check out all the women in bikinis.”
A coughing laugh barked out of the man who meant the most to Bender. “Nah, I’ll leave that to the young fellas.” He looked at him through his bushy eyebrows. “As should you. You know you’re not getting any younger.”
“Tell me about it. That’s why this job is my last.” Bender turned and picked up his shirt to put it on.
“I see you’ve picked up some new scars. You know there is doing your job, and then being stupid. Which one are you being?”
“Please, you know me.”
“I do, which is why I’m asking. I’d hate to think you were putting yourself in harm’s way on purpose.”
“I’d never do something like that.”
“No, but you’d do whatever it took to make sure the job got done, that people were safe.”
Bender slowly turned around and met the man’s eyes, the man who taught him everything he knew. “You know damn well where I learned that from. Before you, it was all about me; learned that from my old man.” He shook a finger at him. “And don’t be pulling that shit on me; I’ve seen your scars, heard your stories. Not going to buy it.”
“You got me there. I wanted to give you an update on the neighborhood. It’s going downhill quicker than I thought it would. This new gang has come in and is wiping the others off the map like they were never there. I’ve never seen such ruthlessness and carnage. Someone likes to kill and play with the bodies. It has everyone running scared and no one is talking. Businesses are closing up. Besides being scared for their lives, they are also being squeezed for protection money.”
“Are they all caving?”
“All but one.”
“Who’s the hold out?”
“A young lady, Stormy Ryan. She owns a second hand bookstore, Lost in the Pages. She’s way too stubborn, won’t close up. She’s lost all of her employees and is running the whole thing by herself.”
Bender frowned. “I think I saw the lights on at the bookstore when I came into town. She was there alone?”
“Yep. I’ve already had a talk with her about it. She said something about reading and losing track of time. I don’t think she realizes how dangerous this neighborhood has become. I talked to Fred before he quit. He’d been trying to get through to her, but she wasn’t listening.”
“Hmmm . . . She shouldn’t be there late. There’s got to be something we can do to make sure she’s safe.”
“That’s my boy. I knew I could count on you.” Murdoch stood up slowly. “Well, that’s it for now. You working tonight?”
; “Yep, diving right in. We’ll see how quickly things shake lose.”
“Oh, I’m sure they will, faster than you know. Watch your back.”
Bender was going to make a smart-ass comment until he saw the steely set of Murdoch’s face. “Yes, sir.” There were times to revert to the punk kid he was and give him a hard time, and times to be the man he was. He didn’t like the thought of Murdoch out there on his own in this neighborhood. “You watch your back, too.”
Murdoch turned and smiled. “Don’t you remember? I live for this shit.”
Stormy sat behind the counter reading a murder mystery, absently eating potato chips at lunchtime in the store. No one had been in since she opened two hours ago. Lucky for her, she didn’t rely on money from this store to pay her bills; otherwise, she’d be on the street. Besides, she wanted to keep the place open for the few people in the neighborhood who liked to read. She’d started a discount program for the kids, making sure they all had new books when they had finished reading the books she’d already given them. In return, they’d come to the store on the weekends to help organize and maybe find something new to read.
When the bell above the door dinged, she wiped her hand on her jeans to get the crumbs off and placed a business card in the book. With a forced smile on her face, she stood up to greet the customer. Her smile faded as she saw who it was. Her brain whirled as she tried to remember where she’d left her phone and what she might be able to use as a weapon.
She’d seen him around the neighborhood. It seemed like everyone he talked to was scared, or she never saw them again. He was starting to show up more and more wherever she was, and it didn’t seem like an accident to her.
“Ah, princess, there you are.” The tall, thin man with long, black hair held back in a ponytail danced over to her. “It’s been too long since I’ve gazed upon your beauty.” He reached out to grab her hand. When she pulled away from him, he squinted his eyes at her. “You, princess, need to learn your place, and I’m just the man to show it to you.” He started humping the counter so hard it moved. “I’ll show it to you so good.” He drew a breath in through his teeth. “You’re going to want it hard and fast, begging for more.”
