by Lora Lindy
He handed her a gun that he pulled out of his briefcase and told her. “Shoot if they come towards you,” but with a quick glance he added. “But don’t shoot the cops. When the cops get here you put the gun in the glove box. I love you.” Then he left.
She was terrified, and she didn’t think she had ever been this scared. Her heart felt like it would pound out of her chest. Never in her life has she faced such danger. She constantly looked around for help, and no one was around, they were on their own. Frightening images flew through her mind; Mike getting shot, the man sneaking up on her, police shooting her by accident, or getting raped. Her heart lodged in her throat.
She watched him intently as her body shivered from fear. Her hands shook so much she put the gun down on the console between the front seats. She knew if she didn’t put it down it might go off, and that would be horrible. A little relief flooded her when way off in the distance she could see police lights. Way off, and maybe too far. They need to go faster. Please hurry, she was so afraid for Mike.
Oh God, she could hear yelling, she could tell one of the voices was Mike. She could see police at least two coming fast on the road. She jumped out and ran with her arms flaying, she could see it was David and Kevin. “Mike’s inside, and could you please go help him. The truck is a couple of blocks over on a gravel driveway. It’s the same truck you saw today.” She said as she pointed towards the truck. David motioned for her to go back to the other police car. She did with shaking legs, partly from being scared, and partly from the cold.
Some officers ran to the back and some ran to the front of the house. They were everywhere and more cops came down the road. She could hear yelling, and this time she heard them cussing. An officer who stood by her told her play by play everything that happened inside, he first said. “There is someone in the house.”
“I know that, is Mike okay?” She sat and waited. She bit hers nails down to the quick and she shook uncontrollably. More cops arrived and relief flooded her emotions.
“Miss, they have the prowlers in custody, and they will bring them out in a minute.”
She breathed out a sigh of relieve. “Them? How is Mike? Please tell me he’s okay,” she asked while biting her nails.
“He is just fine and he’s the one that held them until we got here, and he’ll be out in a minute. If it makes you feel better I could hear him laughing.”
“Laughing? Why in the hell would he be laughing?”
“I don’t know.” The officer walked over to some of the other cops telling them they needed to process the old truck down the road.
She didn’t pay him any mind and she ran over to the house and stood outside and waited for Mike. When he came out she ran and she gave him a hug. “I was so scared.” She shook uncontrollably and crying with relief. “I can’t believe you did that. Why were they here?”
He wrapped his arms around her and guided her to the car. “Honey, I’ll talk to you in a little bit. Just sit in the car and some officers will come over and get a statement from you. Let it run for awhile and that that will help you get warm. The police will have to investigate inside then we can go to bed.” He was on an adrenaline high and he couldn’t sit still. He gave her a quick kiss and he went back inside the house.
She sat in the car to get warm, watching, wanting a cup of tea. It seemed Mike always said to her, I’ll talk to you later.
After thirty minutes passed and the police didn’t show, she decided to crawl in the back seat and close her eyes for a few minutes.
Chapter 16
Day 5
October 19, 8:42 a.m.
Lana woke up exhausted and drained. Her mind couldn’t comprehend her surroundings. At first her thoughts were blurry. She didn’t think she has slept this late in a long time. This reminded her of the good ole college days. Days of binge drinking, staying up late and not getting up until noon. It took a few seconds to gain her bearings. When her mind lost its fuzzy feeling, overwhelming fear gripped her. She remembered last night and her first cohesive thought, where’s Mike?
She peeked into the bedroom and Mike’s sound asleep. He only had the sheet covering him. They were wrapped up tight around him, and he was curled up in a fetal position. Her heart saddened to see how much he sacrificed for her. He laid her on the couch, next to the fire to keep her warm, and gave her all the covers. That one small sacrifice showed her how much he cared. Her eyes watered as she saw how beautiful he looked. She grabbed the blankets from the couch and covered him.
She couldn’t resist and she snuggled in beside him. She snuggled close to him, to warm him, and she could tell he started to relax. She adored watching him sleep, the way his face twitched as though he’s dreaming and his eyes moved under his eyelids. The fire burned hot and she could hear the crackling noise synchronized with Mike’s snoring. He rolled over and stirred, just a little, enough that the sheet slid off his left shoulder and his face tilted towards her. She adjusted herself and propped up on one elbow. It was just enough for her to get a great look at one of his most handsome features, his lips, those gorgeous lips. For the first time she noticed how full they were. She ran her fingers along the outline of them without touching him. Any woman in the world would love to own those lips. She smiled wondering if his daughter ever put lipstick on them, as most little girls do with their daddy.
His five o’clock shadow had quite a bit of gray in it, and far more gray in the beard than on his head. Most men were like that and she didn’t know why, maybe there’s a scientific reason for that. His eyebrows had no gray, and they were thin with a perfect arch. He had small ears and they were flat to his head. His chest and face were tanned. She could just imagine as a child he’s run around in the summer and get as dark as a little Indian. His hair felt silky fine and thick. Balding as he aged would not be an issue for him. She wanted to remember everything about him.
All of a sudden her stomach let out a loud growl from hunger. She snuck out of bed and went to the fridge and dug out Pillsbury cinnamon rolls. She made the coffee stronger than normal. Both her and Mike needed that extra boost of stimulant. She made a smiley face with the cinnamon rolls, and she grabbed two mugs of piping hot freshly brewed coffee. One cup had cream and the other black, just like they both liked it. A smile crossed her face as she remembered how Mike ribbed her mercilessly their first morning together. She hummed with exuberance as she crept towards the bedroom to wake Mike.
She balanced the plate and mugs as she walked to the bedroom, at a slow scooting motion. The snail’s pace was well worth it, not one drop of coffee spilled. As she entered the room the first thing she noticed, a wiggle under the cover. The covers were piled so high she couldn’t see Mike’s face at first. But as she rounded the end of the bed he faced her. He peeked through one eye and smiled up at her. It made her day to see those baby blues shine through those incredible black eyelashes.
He moaned half asleep. “Do I smell coffee and I think cinnamon rolls?” His arm reached out from under the covers to help her.
She sat the rolls and coffee on the night stand and then she took a flying leap and jumped in the middle of the bed.
He reached over and blew farts on her neck, all the while smiling.
She giggled as she crawled under the cover. “Yes you do smell cinnamon rolls and I waited until my stomach growled before I got out of bed. I wanted you to sleep as long as you needed. But it’s nearly lunch time and I thought maybe I should get you stirring. I thought we could drive into town and grab a late lunch. What cha say Mr. Federal agent?”
She laughed as he tickled her, until she saw the cuts and bruises on his arms and face. Then her face turned solemn, she looked away because it hurt her to see them. She noticed a small scratch on the left side of his chin near his dimple. It looked like one of the guys threw a strong right hook. Then she noticed a deeper cut below the right ear and it still looked a little bloody.
He did acknowledge her concerns about the cuts in a nonchalant way. He began eating on the
cinnamon rolls and said. “These cuts mean nothing you should see the other guys. These are delicious and the coffee is great. You make great food baby.” It was obvious he was more hungry than concerned about the cuts. His lack of concern did make her feel less disconcerted. She took a deep breath and remembered seeing worse on her son when he played football.
“I thought it might be nice to wake up to something delicious.” Enough sweet talk, she thought, it’s time to get down to business. She took a deep breath and asked while holding his hand, playing with his fingers, in a nervous way.“Okay babe, what happened last night? Curiosity has gotten the best of me.” She sat in the middle of the bed facing him with her legs crisscrossed intently listening. She grabbed a blanket and covered her bare legs, while she scooted close to Mike.
He put some thought in how he wanted to approach the details. “Yesterday when I couldn’t get hold of you I got worried. I called the police department to see who was on duty, and David had just started his shift. I asked dispatch to have him call me. When I expressed my concern about you, he said he would be glad to come by for a well fair check.” He stopped for a few seconds to lick his fingers after eating several rolls.
There was a little bit of icing on his lip. She couldn’t resist, she licked the icing from his upper lip. He grinned at her, wanting more than a lick.
He squeezed her leg and continued. “He called me back and told me about the incident with the guy delivering the wood, and your concerns about him. He found the guy and ran a check on the truck and everything checked out on them. I found it odd they just strolled down the beach and not take their truck to their friend’s house. The reason for my concern was the rentals nearby were empty. Why would they walk a great distance and then walk all the way back to their truck. Plus with the frigid cold weather they wouldn’t want to walk very far. I still had a lot of paperwork to do at work, but this kept dwelling on my mind and I became too worried to stay at work. So I decided to come home.”
“This is one time I’m glad you’re a cop. Only a cop could know when something didn’t appear right.”
“You’re right. When I got here you were gone in your car. I also knew you might come back since you left the light on in the kitchen. I waited for a little while and I charged my phone and tried to call several times, but no answer. Your clothes were still in the closet so I knew you didn’t go home. The next logical explanation was you got scared and went to a hotel. You were at the second one I called. And by the way, that was smart of you to listen to your instincts.”
“Mike what if I wouldn’t have been at a hotel when you called?”
He didn’t want to tell her how scared that thought made him. He also knew if he would have walked in and they were hurting her, he would have killed them. No doubt in his mind. “I thought of that and I would have every cop in the state looking for you. But that didn’t happen so I don’t want you to think about it again.” He knew that thought needed to be nipped in the bud.
“That’s pretty good detective work, copper.” He tapped the bed next to him for her to lie down next to him. She didn’t have to be asked twice, and she snuggled in close. “Continue honey, I want to hear more.”
“You know the rest from when we left the hotel and saw the truck and got here and we saw the flashlight through the window. I can’t even imagine what it would have been like if you would not have seen the truck. By you seeing it transformed me into my cop mode.” To show his cop pose, he raised his arm to make a curl with his biceps, and he did look like Mr. Universe. His arm had to be at least twenty inches. When she patted his muscle, it felt as hard as a rock.
He continued. “And by me turning off the headlights gave me an advantage.” He rubbed her arm trying to console her. “What I have to say next might bother you and I want you to know I’m here for you and I promise to keep you safe.”
Oh wow, what he had to say did not sound good. A little anxiety started to flicker in the pit of her stomach. “Okay,” she said as she swallowed hard.
“When I walked up to the door I could hear talking in the house. I stood there and listened for a little bit and they were whispering about where they would hide so they could surprise you. I decided to take keys and jiggle them like I was you. I heard them scurrying around looking for a place to hide. Once they were hid I thought I could get the upper hand. I walked in and acted like I was heading for the bedroom and I didn’t say a word. I figured they were in a closet so as I walked by closets I quietly put chairs in front of the door so he couldn’t open them. Right as I walked in the bedroom…”
He pointed to where it all happened.
“���the one guy who hid in the pantry started squawking when he couldn’t open the door. When the guy in the pantry yelled, the other guy who hid in the bedroom closet jumped out to help his partner. He thought his partner had you. He was in for a surprise when I had my gun pointed at his head. He tried to run and I grabbed him and we fought, but he was in such bad shape I took him down with ease. I took him in the kitchen and held the pantry door closed until the police came. That’s when I got these cuts and bruises and I think you need to kiss and make better,” Mike said with a devilish grin.
She ignored Mike’s request and asked. “They were after me? I told them I had a family and they were on the beach. They had to know they would be taking a chance, right?” Thank God for women’s intuition. She knew in her heart something didn’t seem right.
Mike laughed.
“What’s so funny?”
“It was funny to see them in shock and they screamed like girls. They screamed at each other for help.”
“That’s too funny.” Now she knew why Mike laughed.
“Well, it all boils down to everything worked in your, our favor. There is one thing I can say about my work.”
“What’s that?”
“Criminals are stupid. And that should answer your question. Criminals take stupid chances and they took a chance that you were not married, but they didn’t anticipate me.”
She took a deep breath and said. “I’m glad about that. What were their names?”
“The older man’s name is Sam Couried and his son is Charles Couried.”
“So their last name was not Johnson?”
“No.”
“So where is John Johnson?”
“We don’t know where he is, and they’re looking for him now.” When Mike’s mind snapped back to reality, he rolled over in a frantic. “What time is it?”
She glanced at the clock next to her.“It’s ten-ten, why?”
“Oh we have plenty of time.” He played around like he’s going to eat the last cinnamon roll. He swirled it under her nose, tempting her. Temptation got the best of her and she had to take a bite, then he fed her the rest.
“What are you talking about, time for what?” She took a swig of coffee and frowned, not realizing it had gotten cold.
“Later this afternoon we have a memorial service for Frank. I need to be there, but I’m not going to leave you especially after yesterday.” He wasn’t going to worry Lana, but until they got to the bottom of everything he would stay with her.
“You need to be there and that’s a final discussion about that. You will not miss this memorial,” she said with forcefulness. She noticed he never mentioned anything about her going. She concluded he thought it was too soon for his friends to see them together and ask questions. Maybe Mike was like her and wanted to take their relationship slow. Admittingly it did hurt her feelings he didn’t want to show her off to his friends. Maybe he was a player and he didn’t take the women he dated to any business functions. She looked away because she didn’t want him to see her hurt feelings.
He propped himself on his elbow and ran his hands around the outline of her breasts and he raised her shirt to see her tanned tummy. “I thought and hoped you might go with me.”
Relief inundated her and her heart instantly changed from sad to happy. I’m such a girl worrying about silly things, she thou
ght. “Mr. Ramsey, I thought you would never ask.”
“Hey, I’m a red blooded all American male with a beautiful lady lying right next to me. You have me thinking about other things. Need I say more?” He said as he started to rub her tanned tummy.
Lana saw love in his eyes, not just lust. Every time he looked at her his eyes softened more and more. They didn’t do that when they first met. Mike always had a serious, intense look in his eyes. That soft look of love replaced the hard gaze. She couldn’t imagine being a criminal and Mike giving them that mean stare.
“What time is the memorial?”
Mike pulled away a little as if trying to concentrate. “Two o’clock.”
Lana jumped out of bed. “Mike I have to buy a dress and shoes and all that stuff and I have to shower, put on my make-up, and we have to eat lunch. What were you thinking not letting me know before now?”
He laughed hysterically.
“Are you laughing at me?”
“Your t-shirt goes below you knees. You look so cute with your hair all messed up and unkempt and a baggy shirt. You look like my beautiful little lady.” Damn, she looked fine. He hoped tonight they would make love. Wanting women for sex needed to be shoved to the back of his mind, part of his past history. Yes he did use women for sex, but he knew it was mutual. He always let them know he wasn’t interested in a long term relationship. Most women agreed, or at least that’s what they said. Maybe they hoped for more. Mike didn’t want to give anymore, until now, with this woman. With Lana he wanted to give it all, every ounce of his being, heart, and soul.
She was happy he said that, but she knew she had a lot to do. Frustrated she asked. “You have one hour to get ready. Do we need to run to your house to get a suit?”
“Oh crap, I forgot about that.” He jumped up and they both quickly made the bed. She took a quick shower then it was his turn to shower and shave. With paper and pen in hand she sat on the bed and made a quick look through her things to determine what she needed to buy at the store; dress, hose, shoes, coat, and earrings.
