by Ash Harlow
Suddenly a roar of noise exploded in her head. The din was startling, like a doorbell in the dead of night. At that moment everything around her seemed to pause. Sound waged war against stillness as her guardian relinquished control to the warrior that had just been born. Of one thing she was now certain…Barrett had missed his opportunity.
Maybe he sensed it, or maybe her expression had changed, because he followed her move and stood, too. “Be good,” he hissed, “because I don’t mind hurting you.”
He reached for her T-shirt, and she turned away from him. “Bedroom,” she stated in a voice she scarcely recognized, then walked towards the door. No panic, no running which would only serve to kick-start the chase. She walked and he followed, the bottom of her shirt screwed through his fist.
The noise in her head dissipated and she struggled for breath, concentrating on what she had to do in the next few seconds. Adrenaline was trying to make her run, but she held a steady focus on a plan. Sure, this would put all the hard work she had done with Justice in jeopardy. It might undo everything, or it could strengthen their bond.
Whatever the outcome, she needed Justice to react in the way she’d worked hard to condition out of him since he’d come into her care.
Six steps from the bedroom and Barrett stopped. He jerked on the T-shirt so that the collar tightened across her throat and she lost her balance. He pulled her close and put his mouth up to her ear. “Wait ‘til you see what I’ve got planned for you.”
She heard a rattle and looked down to see him brandishing a pair of handcuffs. It took all her will plus reserves not to pull away.
He released her, and with the agility of a martial arts master, hauled her T-shirt front-to-back over her head, leaving her arms in the sleeves so that he could pin them behind her back. His breath was coming in heavy pants. “Oh, Marlo, I can hardly wait.” He spoke his nasty lyrics in an odd sing-song voice, emphasizing each syllable.
She jerked and tried to snatch her arms away but he simply twisted his fist in the soft cotton he held, so that the sleeves tightened and trapped her arms.
He ducked his head, his mouth wet, his voice rasping in her ear. “No tricks or I’ll make you very sorry.”
“Of course not,” Marlo whispered. When they reached the door she looked up to him then nodded towards the door handle. She was amazed at how much stress her body and mind were coping with but she knew the adrenaline wasn’t going to last. She had to make this final bit matter.
As she pushed the door open, she signaled to the dogs with a look, to stay in their beds. Fala remained in an age-weary doze, but Justice was on high alert. He could smell the stranger and sense Marlo’s agitation. His lips tightened slightly, the corners of his mouth pulled back, his eyes enlarged, pupils dilated and fixed in a stare. No raised hackles; he was too confident to have to resort to displays of size to prove his dominance.
In short, Justice was primed.
Chapter Seventeen
Adam parked alongside the patrol car. At a quick glance everything seemed in order. He headed to the house to relieve Josh and as he tried the door handle, every hair on his body prickled to attention. The front door was locked. Something was very wrong. Forced entry? He couldn’t see any sign of that, nor a struggle. Why had they locked themselves in? He hammered on the door and heard an eruption of barking…then a scream. Marlo.
Christ, he had to get in there.
He ducked through the side gate and around to the patio and tried the sliding door. Locked. He shook it in fury and the door jumped in the track, releasing the catch. So much for security! From inside he heard Marlo calling to Justice, followed by a loud crash and shouting. He ran up the hallway, wishing for once that he was armed.
Suddenly Barrett appeared at the bedroom door, clutching his arm, blood seeping from a messy-looking wound. His trousers, too, were bloodied and as he dropped to the ground, the missing lower half of his left trouser leg revealed tears to his calf and exposed gaping muscle.
Behind him was Marlo, screaming, “Fuck off—get out of here you, fucking creep!” She had a hold on Justice’s collar. The snarling dog had blood on his chest, and looked as if he’d hurtled straight from a nightmare. Fala cowered behind them.
“I’m going to shoot that fucking dog,” Barrett bellowed.
Adam called for Marlo to put the dogs back in the bedroom. They’d have to be dealt with later. He ran to the bathroom and grabbed some towels and gave them to Barrett to hold against his wounds. “Get into the kitchen,” he ordered. “Down on the floor and don’t move.”
“That fucking dog needs to be shot. And that woman’s a lunatic. Jesus Christ, she set the dogs on me.”
Adam shook his head in disgust as he phoned for assistance. “Where you’re concerned, Barrett, words fail me. I’ll call an ambulance. Stay there until it arrives.”
He turned to find Marlo in the hallway, eyes dilated, shaking. She was half dressed, and her hands gripped tight to each other as if they were the only things holding her together. Fighting to control the emotions rushing through him, he beckoned her with outstretched arms, to come to him.
She backed up until she struck the closed door and leaned against it, shivering. “Stay away from me.” Her voice was low.
Adam raised his arms. “No, no, no, not staying away — understand that, Marlo? You’re safe now. I’m going to get you something to wear.” He didn’t want to risk entering the bedroom with Justice so wired so he went back to the bathroom and found a robe on the hook behind the door. He took it to her.
“Here.” He held out the robe. She ignored it, staring past him into space. “It’s me, it’s Adam. I’m going to wrap this around you.” He eased her off the wall and wrapped her in the robe. No response. God, he knew what that was about. He led her toward the spare bedroom, sat her on the bed, and sat beside her. From along the hall he could hear the dogs scratching and whining at her bedroom door. What the fuck went down here?
He turned back to Marlo. “There’s an ambulance coming for Barrett. He’ll be gone very soon. We should get them to look at you, too.”
“No,” she mumbled. “Please, just get him out of here. I’m not injured.”
Not physically, at least, thought Adam. He heard the ambulance siren and remembered the locked front door. “Back in a tick,” he said.
He let the paramedics in and stayed with them while they assessed Barrett, who was slumped on the floor but still bitching about the dog.
One of the paramedics looked around nervously. “Where is the dog?”
“The dog’s locked away. You’re quite safe,” Adam assured him. He followed them out as they stretchered Barrett to the ambulance, and another police car arrived.
Adam rubbed his fingers through his hair. “Jesus, party central,” he muttered before welcoming the two officers inside.
The door to the hallway was closed. Marlo was on the move again.
“So, what happened here?”
Adam grimaced. “A bit of a tussle between Barrett and Ms. Croft and a dog got involved. I’ve got it covered.”
“We were coming out to relieve Barrett. By the look of him, I’m glad I wasn’t doing a round with the dog.”
If they’d been there it was unlikely the situation would have arisen. “It’s under control now. I’ll stay with this, and you can tell Butch to give me a call if he needs to. I’ll make a report in the morning. Here,” he held out the patrol car keys, “one of you take Barrett’s car.”
He watched them leave then returned to the closed hall door. He knocked softly, “Marlo, everyone’s left. Can I come through?”
A low rumble came from Justice and he could hear Marlo’s soothing murmurs.
“We’re coming out. Can you go and sit on the sofa?”
He did as she asked. “Sure, I’m there,” he called.
Marlo appeared at the door. She’d pulled on some jeans and a T-shirt and had Justice on a long, soft webbing leash. Her hair was tied into a ponytail and although still
pale, she looked remarkably in control. There was only one way she could have changed her demeanor so quickly.
Practice.
Adam turned his head away from Justice to let the dog know he was not a threat. Keeping the dog in his peripheral vision, he watched as Justice’s tongue flicked out a few times as he walked in a curve past him, the canine version of ‘I mean no harm.’
Marlo walked the dog to the kitchen. “I’m getting some treats for Justice. I have to work with him a bit to see the effect this has had on him.”
She took the chair opposite Adam and settled Justice on the floor at her feet then started a careful massage, targeting specific points that would relax him.
She kept her focus on Justice as she spoke. “He was amazing. He waited so patiently, so still, until I gave him a signal. It wasn’t like we’d ever trained for this sort of thing, it was pure instinct. And, you know, it seemed as if Justice didn’t really want to attack. He threatened first, gave Barrett plenty of warning, but Barrett was too stupid to see that. When he tried to back Justice off, well, Justice went for him.”
“How does he feel to you? He appears pretty relaxed.”
“Yeah, he feels good.” Marlo looked up at Adam. “It wasn’t a frenzied attack. It was quite calculated and when I asked him to stop, he did. He protected me, and listened to me.” She leaned over and put her forehead to the top of Justice’s head and kept it there, as if his closeness would shelter her from the full brunt of the night’s events.
She stilled her hand. “I’m amazed at the way he’s been able to switch off from what just happened.”
Just like Marlo. So this is how she deals with it. If Justice wasn’t here, she would be a quivering wreck. Problem was, the quivering wreck bit hadn’t happened…yet. That’s the way life sucked and blew in the traumatic stress zone. Might as well be the asshole she thinks I am. “What happened tonight, Marlo?”
“Please, I’d rather not talk about it.”
“Me neither, to be honest. But what started as a simple protection detail finished, early, with a partially shredded cop and a…what was that? Attempted sexual assault?”
She winced.
Bull’s eye.
“I have to make sense of all this and present it to Butch, tomorrow. For your sake.” And mine. “If I don’t get this right, there will be cops on your shoulder giving you no peace until they get the answers they want. I don’t think I’m flattering myself by thinking you’d rather be dealing with me.”
She slumped. “Give me ten minutes with Justice, then I’ll put him away. After that, I’m all yours.”
True to her word, she was soon sitting back opposite him, with Fala settled at her feet. But it seemed the dog was little comfort to Marlo, because he could almost smell the stress wafting off her. This was going to hurt. “You knew Barrett before tonight, didn’t you?”
She startled as if he’d struck her.
“I thought so. Will you talk about it?”
She shook her head.
“Tell me what happened tonight.” He watched her sit on her hands and saw she was trying not to shake. Damn, this was nasty, but the only way he could help her was to haul her through this. “Marlo, please stay with this if you can.”
“He came for what he was owed.”
“Owed? For Christ’s sake, how could you possibly owe him anything?”
“Don’t be angry with me.”
No raised voices. No emotion. “Honey, I’m sorry. I am so not angry with you. I’m angry with myself, and if I could have my way I’d take Justice into that hospital and let him finish the job on Barrett. Okay?”
A nod.
That would do. At least she was still listening. “So back to this being owed thing?” As he finished speaking, he watched her shut down. The thousand-yard stare ripped him apart. What had she experienced to induce a reaction like that? He couldn’t let her stay in that space too long.
“Can you hear me, Marlo? Just nod.” She nodded. “Where are you right now?”
She shook her head.
“Take a moment. Center yourself.”
Another nod. He pressed his fingertips into his forehead. He wasn’t experienced at this—at least, not on this side of the couch. “There’s nobody here who will harm you. Do you understand that you’re safe now?”
She nodded again. “Yes.”
At last, the Neil Armstrong moment—the small step that was a big step. “Let’s deal with tonight before you shut it all away.” No reaction. It was probably the best he could hope for. Pain coming up. “Did Barrett try to rape you?”
Marlo continued to stare into space, as if focusing on a black hole of comfort, and two fat tears rolled down her cheeks.
The monster inside him roared into life. “I’ll fucking kill him.” He ground out the words in time with the drumming in his ears.
“Stop. Don’t say things like that. God, I can’t deal with this.”
Adam studied his fists, keeping quiet while inside him the monster fought to unleash his fury. He had to rein himself in. The last thing she needed was another out-of-control man in her house. “I know you don’t want to deal with this, but it has to reach a conclusion. If we can work through tonight, put sense and order into the events so that your memory of it doesn’t go haywire, it’ll help in the long run. You’re not going to get better until this is all over. I’m going to make it end, forever.”
Her fingers strayed to her throat. It looked as if she would strangle any words that tried to come out before she had assembled a palatable story. “You can’t do that. Nobody can. It’s mine. This is me. This is what made me who I am. The last time, I cooperated. What did that solve? Nothing. I’ve spent the past nine years waiting for Barrett or one of the others to show up. This proves how impotent the system is.”
The last time. Others? He turned his face to the floor, so she wouldn’t see his eyes squeeze tight. What was he dealing with here? “You’ve got to believe me. We can fix this. If I could get a statement from you tonight—”
“No. No statement. I’m not going there again.”
“Marlo—”
“Nothing. Happened.”
He rubbed his hands through his hair. So fucking frustrating. “Who betrayed your trust?”
Her head snapped back as if she’d run into the branch of a tree. Her straying hand left her neck, the fingers curling as it reached to her mouth. The knuckles slid a little between her parted lips. “They all did.” Her voice croaked.
Adam fought to stay seated. He needed to get her in his arms, to soothe her so that she didn’t have to make all those movements herself. “Can you tell me who they are?”
“I lost control of my story once already. I won’t do that again.” Her words had the chill of a closing vault.
“Okay, let’s forget it.”
She slumped. God, four simple words that worked like a crane taking the load off her.
He watched her fidget and worry at a thread on her jeans. You keep at that thread, because I’ve got all the time and patience in the world for you, honey. I will wait. Finally she looked up at him, pulled a face, a half-grimace, that almost made him smile. She abandoned the thread and started rubbing at her temples.
“Headache?”
“A stinker.”
“It’s the calling card of an adrenaline dump. Have you got anything to take for it? I’ve got stuff in the car.”
She stood. “It’s okay. I’ve got some pills in the kitchen.”
“Drink lots of water.”
“Sure. Do you want a glass while I’m there?”
He wanted whisky, neat. He wanted some happiness. He wanted Marlo content and calm and in his arms, for all this shit to vanish into a bottomless hole with an impenetrable ten-foot layer of cement over the top. “A glass of water will be great.”
He listened as she moved about in the kitchen. It seemed she was still for some minutes before she finally reappeared. With a steady hand, she placed the water beside him and looked i
nto his eyes then deeper, to his absolute core. Her hurt and anguish almost wrecked him. She whispered, “I think it’s time to talk.”
His stomach tumbled with the success, but without jubilation.
Chapter Eighteen
Adam was right. She had to talk. Inside she’d turned to slurry. Memories were blasting from her subconscious in rapid fire. She wanted to pant like a dog, release the heat and tension. “I don’t feel brave.”
“You’re brave, believe me. You’re the bravest person I know.” He held her with that fierce gaze that made her feel so safe that she let herself linger for a moment in its protection. It was a fleeting indulgence.
She tipped her head back and closed her eyes. “Can you sit beside me? I need you close…here.” She laid her palm on a spot on the sofa beside her.
She waited until Adam had shifted alongside her. Air in, air out. Time to open the first mental strongbox. It had thick dust and cobwebs and a rotten odor. Inwardly she brushed it all aside and braced herself instead for the filthy contents.
“I ran away from the institution where I had been sent to board after my mother died. I was seventeen. The others bullied me all the time, because I seemed to be the only one there keen on getting an education. Some kids had set me up to be accused of stealing. That was fun for them. They’d done it before, and I knew they had me this time. My mind went nuts imagining the consequences, so I took off. For a few days I hid supplies, stuff I might need, out by the boundary wall, but I hadn’t made plans beyond that.”
So far, good. The bombarding memories had slowed, as if starting the story gave them patience, knowing they would have their turn at being aired.
“I walked and hitchhiked for a couple of days and found this empty cottage. The state of it was pretty bad, but I didn’t care. I was tired and cold. Being fall, the weather was starting to turn. The cottage was easy to break in, and inside was dry. I couldn’t risk making a fire, but there was old bedding in a closet, so I kept myself warm. I’d only been there a couple of days when I woke one morning and could hear someone or something moving about in the bushes.”
