Forever Only Once: A Promise Me Novel

by Carrie Ann Ryan

  I made my way around the building to the front and knocked, wondering exactly how I was supposed to get in. The door opened, and I took a step back, fear suddenly crawling over my face, my body. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end as I looked at the man in front of me, someone that I didn’t recognize. He had wide eyes, dark hair, and an almost soft smile on his face, even as he looked confused for a second.

  “Can I help you?” he asked, his voice deep and gruff.

  I cleared my throat. “Chris?” I asked, my body shaking. I already had one hand in my purse, ready to use my pepper spray if needed. Not that I wanted to do that on a stranger, especially someone that worked with Cross, but I couldn’t be too careful. A scowl covered the man’s face, and he shook his head.

  “No, I’m Macon. Who are you?” he asked, his voice even gruffer.

  Relief spread through me, and I smiled again.

  I knew that name. Macon. I had never heard of another person with that name, so this had to be Cross’s brother.

  “I’m Hazel. Sorry, I haven’t met you before, so I didn’t know who you were.”

  Surprise covered Macon’s features, and he smiled at me then, his face brightening.

  “Hello there. Come on in. I’m just here to pick up something for Cross.”

  I frowned and halted. “What do you mean?” I asked as the door closed behind me.

  “Huh?”

  “What do you mean you’re here to pick up something for Cross? He texted me and told me to meet him here.”

  Macon shook his head. “That doesn’t make sense. I was just on the phone with him. He said that he needed me to pick up something since he was at the house cooking for you. I wondered why you were here.”

  Fear crawled over me, and I took a step back towards the door.

  “Macon, I really think we need to go.”

  “No, I really think you should stay,” a voice said from the darkness as a shadow came forward, and then another. Macon was in front of me in a second, and then I had my hands up, pepper spray in one, my other hand on Macon’s back, trying to figure out what the hell was going on.

  “You always were stupid,” a familiar voice said. I froze, my whole body shaking. But before I even had time to react, before I had time to think, I heard a shot, and then a scream, and then Macon was on top of me.

  And I could scent the blood in the air.

  Chapter 16

  Cross

  * * *

  I turned down the warmer on the meal I’d made and frowned. Hazel hadn’t called me or texted me back since I’d last talked to her that morning when I made sure that we were still on for dinner. Macon hadn’t stopped by with the piece of equipment I needed after I’d asked him to stop by and pick it up for me either. I had been focused on getting everything ready for my lawyer and then making dinner for Hazel, and I had forgotten something that I needed to complete my project over the weekend. I had been on the phone with Macon when I mentioned it, and he had offered to stop by and pick it up.

  And yet neither of them was calling or texting me back. I was worried, but I was trying not to be. I figured I was on the way to becoming paranoid at this point. Still, why the fuck weren’t they answering?

  I ran my hands through my hair and over my beard and then started pacing around the kitchen, calling Hazel’s number one more time.

  It rang and rang before the voicemail picked up.

  “This is Hazel. Please leave a message after the beep. Thanks.”

  “Babe, it’s me. Pick up. Please. You’re starting to worry me.”

  I hung up. I even called Macon, but he didn’t answer either.

  I left a message for him and then called Prior.

  “Hey, has Macon called you today?” I asked.

  “No, I haven’t talked to him. What’s up?”

  “I can’t get ahold of him. Or Hazel, for that matter. Something’s wrong, I know it.”

  “I’ll call Nate. You call Arden.”

  “Thanks. But…hell. There has to be something wrong.”

  “Macon is probably just in the zone, didn’t hear his phone. And your girl is probably on her way and can’t pick up her cell. Everything’s fine. It’s not going to be anything bad.”

  “Do you really believe that?” I said, my hands shaking.

  “Maybe, but we’re going to pretend like everything is fucking fine. Let’s get on that.”

  I hung up and called Arden.

  “I haven’t talked with her or Macon, I’m sorry. Let me call Liam and the others. I think I might have one of the girls’ numbers, too.”

  I paused. “You do?” I asked.

  “Yes, it’s a small world, and we’re in a small town. I happen to know people, even if I don’t leave the house all that often. Now, let me try and make sure everything’s fine.”

  I didn’t question her further, though I had a feeling that Arden was keeping a secret.

  I hung up after saying goodbye. When my phone rang again, I answered quickly, not recognizing the number.

  “Hazel? Macon?”

  “No, it’s Frank from across the street. From Chris Cross. You better get over here, Cross. Looks like somebody torched your place.”

  My body went cold, and bile filled my throat.

  “What?”

  “Your place. It’s on fire. You’d better get here quick.”

  “Thanks, Frank.” My hands shook, and I wanted to throw up. Macon. Macon was there. That’s why he wasn’t answering his phone. Was Hazel there, too? But why would she be? There was no reason for her to be at the shop. Unless…unless…I didn’t fucking know. I grabbed my keys, my hands shaking, and got in my car. I practically sped to Chris Cross. I was thankful that no cops pulled me over, because I was going over the speed limit more than I should have been. I might have run a red light, too. Honestly, I didn’t care.

  I got there and almost fell to my knees.

  The whole place was on fire, flames licking at the sky. I just looked around, wondering what the hell I was going to do. We had insurance, but who the fuck cared about that right now?

  “Macon!”

  I coughed as I move forward, the heat searing my skin as I looked around.

  “Macon!”

  “Cops are on their way, son,” Frank said, and I turned to see a group of people.

  “Did you see my brother? He might have been here.”

  Frank’s eyes turned somber, and he shook his head.

  “I’ll help you look, son. I’ll help you look.”

  I moved forward. I knew this was stupid, but I had to find my brother. I had to find Macon.

  I went around to the back parking lot, and my knees shook because I recognized the car parked there.

  Hazel. Hazel was here, too.

  Oh my God.

  I kept going to the back door—it didn’t seem the flames had reached there yet—but I couldn’t open it, I couldn’t get closer. Then I saw the pile of clothes and the lump on the other side of the porch. I leapt over it, fell to my knees, and turned over my brother’s body.

  Blood covered his chest, and my whole body shook. I put my hands over the wound, blood seeping through my fingers.

  But his blood was still pumping, which meant, he was alive.

  “Macon? Macon.”

  “Hazel,” Macon ground out.

  “What?” My hands shook as I put pressure on my brother’s chest. “Where’s Hazel, Macon? What happened? Who did this?”

  “They took her. They took Hazel. Find her.”

  And then Frank was there, on his knees next to me, his hands over mine.

  “They took your girl? Is that what I heard?” Frank said.

  “Where?” I asked Macon, my hands trembling under Frank’s.

  Macon pointed weakly. “Trees. I’ll be fine. Find her.”

  I couldn’t choose. Tears stung my eyes. I didn’t want to leave my baby brother. There was blood on my hands, swaths of red everywhere, and he was coughing.

  And someone
had taken Hazel.

  I didn’t know what to do.

  “I’m good,” Macon said and smiled, an expression that reached his eyes like it always did. I was going to throw up.

  “I’ll be right back,” I whispered, then leaned down and kissed my brother on the cheek because he wasn’t going to die. This wouldn’t be the last time I saw him.

  Macon’s hand slid up, his whole arm shaking as he touched my cheek.

  “Find her. I’m fine.”

  And then Frank pushed me out of the way and gave me a tight nod.

  “Find your girl. I’ve got this. Cops are almost here.”

  Frank had been saying that over and over, and I wanted to believe him. I wanted to believe both of them. So I got to my feet, staggering a little, and looked down at my little brother. Then, I turned away.

  Because I had to find Hazel.

  No matter what.

  Chapter 17

  Hazel

  * * *

  The gunshot still rang in my ears, and my hands shook. This couldn’t be happening. This could not be happening.

  As I looked above me at Macon’s pale face, pain evident in his eyes, I knew it was. And there was no going back. That was a shot. Someone had shot at us.

  No, not someone. I knew exactly who it was. And I also knew there was no going back. There had never been any going back.

  Macon rolled off me but still kept me behind him, my hands on his chest as I tried to stop the bleeding. Everything was moving so fast, and there was screaming in my head, but not aloud. I couldn’t speak, couldn’t do anything.

  No amount of pepper spray or security cameras were going to save me now.

  Everything I’d thought I had done to protect myself had been for nothing.

  Thomas was here.

  And he wasn’t alone.

  Somehow, he had lured me here. Macon had already been here, and now he was bleeding on me. I was covered in his blood.

  I couldn’t breathe.

  Why couldn’t I breathe?

  “Run,” Macon whispered, his voice hoarse.

  But there was no running. I never really had a chance to run.

  It had all been a lie. The idea that I could hide and have a life of my own. None of that was true.

  There was no going back.

  This was my life now, just like it had always been.

  “Help me get her up.”

  I looked up at the sound of Thomas’s voice as another man came forward, his face pale, and his hands shaking.

  “I didn’t know we were going to shoot him. Holy fuck. I just wanted my money. You came to me. You said you knew her. That she took from you. That all I needed to do was get her. That I would get my money from Cross, and that everything would be fine and I could get away. What the fuck? Why are we shooting people? Oh my God. That’s Macon. That’s Cross’s fucking brother.”

  This was Chris. It had to be.

  All of this was for money? No, for Chris maybe. But Thomas never wanted money. He just wanted me.

  But this wasn’t my blood on my hands. It was Macon’s.

  Cross’s brother was going to die, and I couldn’t save him.

  His life’s blood slid through my fingers. I tried to help him, but then I felt hands on me, and then I was screaming aloud, yelling and kicking.

  “You bitch.” I felt a slap to my face. My jaw hurt, and I crossed my eyes, trying to see. Chris glared at me, his arm back as if to hit me again.

  “Don’t hurt her too badly,” Thomas said, his voice sly and dark. “That’s my job.”

  I moved faster, trying to get away, but Chris’s grip on my shoulders tightened.

  “Stop it. Stop fighting. You’re just going to make it harder for yourself.”

  I fought even harder.

  I expected the second slap, and then felt another as Chris hit me again and again, his ring slicing my skin near my hairline.

  Blood ran down my face, but I didn’t care. I had to get out of here.

  There was no going back. I had to move.

  “I didn’t sign up for this. I didn’t know we were going to do any of this,” Chris complained.

  “You want your money, you’ll finish what we started. It’s as easy as that. You shouldn’t have let me into your little building last week if you were so scared. I followed my wife and found out she was with that sad excuse for a man. Lucky for me, his name is so unusual, and I could find this place. And you.”

  Thomas smiled then, and my skin crawled. I hated that smile. He’d smiled like that before he’d hit me. Before he stalked me when I tried to run away. He’d smiled at me like that the last time before he’d been put away, locked up, behind bars.

  But now he was here. Out of jail. And here.

  What was I going to do? I had to do something.

  Macon.

  Macon was hurt.

  I needed to help him.

  I needed help.

  “You came to me, telling me that you had a way for me to get out of my agreement with Cross. That I wouldn’t get in trouble for skimming my invoices a bit.” Chris paused, confused. “How did you know that anyway?”

  “I listened. How the hell do you think I knew? You never shut up about it. You were an opportunity, Christopher. A good one. And if you don’t start moving, you’ll be a dead one.”

  “Don’t fucking threaten me!”

  Thomas held up his hands, that smile back on his face. “You’re right. We’re…partners. I shouldn’t threaten. My apologies. However, we really must get a move on if we’re going to get out of here before anyone else arrives. For all we know, Cross will show up and perhaps the authorities.”

  I was stilled pinned to the ground, listening to the two, trying to catch up. So that’s how Thomas knew Chris? By chance? Opportunity?

  And now Macon was dying, and I didn’t know how I was going to get out of this.

  “Fuck. What about Macon?”

  Thomas shrugged as I continued thrashing. I felt dizzy, blood pooled in my mouth.

  There was blood on my hands too, but not my blood. No, it was Macon’s. Macon’s.

  “I don’t care what you do with him. Leave him here, do whatever. You know what you have to do to the building when we’re done anyway. It’s not really my problem from this point on. You wanted your money, we’ll get to that. But I need her. And that was the promise.”

  I screamed, but then Chris’s hands were on my mouth, stifling the sound. I could barely breathe. I fought, but he hit me again. I couldn’t do much. Everything hurt, but still I kicked and dug my heels into the carpet as I tried to get out. But he was so much bigger than I was, and I couldn’t do anything.

  He pinned my arms over my head and dragged me. I realized that no amount of kicking or twisting was going to work.

  There was nothing I could do, but still, I tried.

  “Stop fucking screaming,” Thomas said, his hand right in front of my face.

  If you don’t fucking stop, I’ll kill him right here. He still has a chance. He’s still breathing. I don’t think the bullet punctured a lung. But what do I know? I only know how to hurt you. I don’t really know how to heal you, isn’t that right? You’re the one who put me in jail. So really, this is all your fault.”

  I listened to Thomas’s diatribe, my whole body freezing.

  “That’s a good girl.” He tapped my chin with the gun, the end still warm, the heat of it singeing my skin.

  “Be a good girl, and maybe he can live. You fight Chris one more time, and I’ll shoot your little friend in the head. You fucking him like you’re fucking his brother? Because I’m pretty sure you were always a whore. I tried to clean you up, but that was never good enough, was it?”

  I didn’t say anything. I couldn’t. I couldn’t let Macon die. I couldn’t let Cross’s brother die.

  “See? You’ve already learned your place. Be a good girl, and you won’t hurt too much more. But you know I love your screaming. When we’re in a better place, you can scream all yo
u want. You’re going to need to, you fucking bitch.”

  Thomas hit me, this time with the gun in his hand, and everything went dark.

  I opened my eyes again as he dragged me out into the trees behind the building. I could just see a shadow on the porch behind Chris Cross.

  Macon.

  He was crawling towards us. He was trying, doing so much, and yet it wasn’t enough. He was going to die trying to help me. He was going to die trying to save himself. And there was nothing I could do.

  More blood pooled in my mouth, and I spit it out, trying to focus, trying to do something. Anything. All those self-defense classes, and yet none of it helped against a gun.

  I moved again, trying to twist my body. Someone kicked me in the side, I didn’t know who it was, Thomas or Chris, but I knew I’d have a footprint on my flesh.

  Honestly, it didn’t matter who it was. It could be either one. This would be how it ended.

  They dragged me through the trees, the rocks digging into my legs and back. I had cuts and abrasions forming all over my body, yet I didn’t feel it. Only the pain in my head and arms from where they dragged me.

  They pulled me toward a wood cabin I hadn’t realized was there, and I let out a breath, trying to focus. There had to be something I could do, some way out of this. Only I didn’t think so.

  “She won’t stop fucking moving,” Chris grumbled as he tossed me onto the floor. The grain of the wood dug into my cheek as my head slammed down. I swore my teeth ratted, and I instinctively moved my hands to try and calm the throbbing in my face.

  “What did I say, pet?” Thomas asked, his voice low and steady.

  Too steady for a man with no soul.

  “I’ll go back and kill him if you don’t stop moving.”

  He paused.

  “In fact, Chris, I have one last thing for you to do. It’ll help cover up any of your misdeeds.”

  “What?

  “There’s gasoline on the side of the building. You know what to do.”