by KJ Dahlen
Damon and James watched as a young woman bolted from the next booth and frowned. She was running as if hells hounds were chasing her and so blinded by tears she wasn’t paying any attention to what she doing. Damon looked out the window and noticed the truck speeding toward the intersection, right where she was headed. “Fucking hell.” He growled. He jumped up and ran toward the door.
James was right behind him.
Damon reached her first just as she was going to step out into traffic. He jerked her back and wrapped his arms around her. The truck driver saw her and tried to stop but had to bear to the right before crashing into the stop sign. Damon had literally snatched her out of his path just in time to save her life. A few seconds later and the truck would have hit and probably killed her.
She took one look at him and fainted in his arms.
Damon glanced over at James and hoisted her up into his arms.
People from the diner came out and stared at them. One of them, a woman came over to the two men and shook her head. “Oh my god, you saved her.”
“Do you know her?” Damon asked.
“Her name is Alybella and she works here most days as a dishwasher. She’s really shy and doesn’t talk much. Maybe you best just take her home, so she can rest. She lives over on Camden street. 124, I think.”
Damon froze. 124 Camden street was an address he knew well. He looked over at James and nodded. Looking back at the woman he said, “We’ll do that. Did she leave anything in the diner?”
Another woman came over carrying a purse. “Yes, the poor girl, she left her bag. I wonder why she freaked out like that? It’s odd isn’t it? She’s usually such a nice girl. You tell her to call me in the morning if she’s not coming in to work.” She handed the purse to James and shook her head.
Damon glared at the two women. Busybodies both of them, yet they didn’t offer to do much for the poor woman. “I’ll do that.” He turned and began walking down the street with Alybella in his arms.
James caught up with him and said, “The truck is the other way you know.”
“Yeah, I know. Just meet me there. I need time to cool off. It’s only a couple of blocks. I’ll walk it.” He growled as he continued on his way. He didn’t even bother looking back.
He was calmer when he got to the house.
James was there waiting for him already. He had Aly’s purse, so he had the keys out too.
He opened the door when Damon pointed out which key it was and they went inside. Damon barely looked around the house when he carried her over to the sofa and laid her down. He had thought she’d woken up along the way but her eyes were still closed.
He sat down on the edge of the sofa and stared at her face. He finally took the time to observe her. Her blonde hair was cut short around her face, but fell in waves around her shoulders and from what he remembered, from the diner, it went down to the middle of her back. Her cheeks were high and her skin looked smooth. Her lips were rounded and rosy pink against her pale skin.
She wore a choker about three inches wide around her neck but it somehow looked out of place around her throat. He frowned as he stared at her. He didn’t know her but he had a feeling she was going to become very important to him. He didn’t know how or why but he felt drawn to her.
She was a slim woman but he had a feeling she had an inner strength that wouldn’t give up. Her breasts were full and round and her waist was small while her hips flared out and her legs looked long enough for the rest of her.
He carried her the three blocks from the diner easily enough, so he knew she didn’t weigh a lot. But he was still disturbed by what had spooked her in the first place.
He lifted his gaze and looked around her house. As much as he didn’t want to, he forced himself to look at what was there. He’d been worried for the last few days that all he would see was the blood but he frowned when he saw the brightly colored walls. The walls had been painted bright blue, green and yellow. He didn’t know why but it had a calming effect on him. Not at all, what he’d expected when finally seeing these walls.
There were plants all over the place and the house looked neat and tidy. She took care of what was hers and that told him more about her than she realized.
“This is a nice place,” James commented softly. He’d been taking in the room as well.
Damon nodded. “Petra painted the walls a pale green. She had pictures all over the walls and there was a basket of toys Weston liked to play with in that corner.” He turned and pointed to the south corner.
Sitting there now was a tiered plant stand filled with green plants spilling over the edges of the wooden stand. Damon frowned as he stared at the plant stand. Then he shook his head. Of course, the place had changed over the last twenty one years. He couldn’t expect it to have stayed the same. That would be ridiculous. Antosha had the right to move on with life and this place had the right to house new life. He was glad someone loved this little house just like Petra had.
“She’s got a green thumb it seems,” James stated softly.
Damon looked down and found she was awake now and staring at him like he was a strange creature. Her eyes were wide and the most stunning shade of dark gray he’d ever seen. “Hello there,” he greeted in the softest tone he had. Damn, he hoped she didn’t panic and bolt out of here like she had in the diner.
Alybella nodded. She didn’t think she could speak just yet, so it was the best she could do. Being this close to someone his size scared the bejesus out of her. He had the same look of danger about him the he had. But this one didn’t look crazy like that man did. Even as a kid, Matt had that crazy look around his eyes. This man didn’t.
Matt was fourteen the first time she met him and she was barely six. Her mom and his dad were getting married that day and Matt wanted nothing to do with them at all. Matt had done everything he could to ruin what should have been a happy occasion.
He and his mother showed up unannounced and uninvited then began tearing everything apart. Derek, Matt’s father tried to get them to leave but his ex-wife told him she was done with Matt and now, it was his turn to be a parent to the spoiled boy. Then she turned and walked out of the church, leaving both Derek and Matt dumbfounded.
To say, Matt didn’t like being dumped, was an understatement. He totally destroyed the church. He went on a rampage, breaking everything he could. He grabbed statues and tossed them to the floor. He was a beast child with wild eyes that were full of hate. The priest had made them leave after Derek finally grabbed him up and held him down on a pew.
Their parents didn’t end up married that day but ended up getting married by a judge at the courthouse three days later.
When she and her mother moved into Derek’s house, Matt hated it. He didn’t want to share his dad with anyone. Certainly not another woman and her child. Matt was fourteen and almost grown while Alybella was small for her age and very shy. They only lived together for three months but those ninety days had scarred her for life.
It all came to a head the day their parents told them something Matt couldn’t accept. Derek and her mom were having another baby and the two families would become one big family. Matt flew into a rage and he again destroyed another room full of furniture and pictures as he smashed lam ops and crushed the frames under his boots. Finally, when the rage was all gone, he walked out of the house bloodstained and alone.
That was the beginning of a killing spree that had lasted now, for twenty two years. Matt was still out there and she had been hiding, this whole time. She had barely survived the butchering that day and she went into hiding hoping, he would never find her alive again.
So far, she had accomplished that. And she wanted to keep it that way.
But looking into this man’s eyes, she knew she couldn’t be involved in whatever he was doing. The way he was talking about this house was unsettling, almost like he had lived here before. But her landlord told her two years ago, no one had lived here in over twenty years.
“Who are
you?” she whispered hoarsely. Since the attack, her voice had changed, sometimes it was there and at times like this, it mostly wasn’t.
Chapter Three
Damon looked down at her and wondered what secrets she might have. He didn’t know if she knew the history of this little house but he had a feeling she was about to find them out.
Before he could answer her question, there was a pounding on the door. Before anyone could answer it, the door was thrown open and Antosha Amelin rushed inside. “Alybella?” he called out. “Are you okay?” he asked.
Alybella popped up and showed him she was all right.
Then Antosha caught sight of Damon sitting patiently on the coffee table. His eyes widened and he swore in his native Russian.
Even though it had been twenty-one years since he’d seen the other man, Damon noticed Antosha was still a force to be reckoned with. The other man was still a pretty big man at six foot three and close to three hundred pounds. His arms were still huge, and Damon remembered well just how strong the other man had been all those years ago.
Antosha took a step toward him and whispered his name, “Max, is that really you?”
Damon got to his feet slowly and faced the man that was once his father in law. “Yes, Antosha it’s me.”
Antosha closed his eyes and made the sign of the cross. Then he opened his eyes again to show the banked rage in them. “You bastard! All these years and not a word from you. Catia and I prayed you would come back and settle things, but you never did. There were so many questions we never got answers to and we couldn’t ask you because you were nowhere to be found.”
Damon nodded. “I know. I just couldn’t stay here. There were too many memories I couldn’t shake. It took me a long time to even try and face what happened. I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you and Catia. Of all people you two, deserved better.” He stepped around the sofa and when he got close to Antosha, the older man threw his fist back and punched him in the mouth.
Damon’s head snapped back as pain exploded in his head. He grunted and took a step or two back. The blow had surprised him. The man still had power behind him. This had been the last thing he’d expected from Antosha but he wasn’t really surprised by it. Not surprised, just caught unprepared. Then he shook his head and stared at the old man. “I guess I deserved that one but it’s the only one you get.” He snarled at the old man.
Antosha nodded then stepped up to him and hugged him. “Welcome back, my boy.”
Damon hugged him close. This was the one thing he’d missed in the last twenty-one years. Antosha was a hard man to figure out but over his marriage to the man’s daughter, he’d gotten close to the other man.
Just then, Alybella got to her feet and demanded, “What the hell is going on here?” Her voice came out scratchy and not very loud but they could hear the demand in her question.
Antosha turned to her and apologized, “I’m sorry my dear but I haven’t seen this man for a long time. Your boss from the diner called and let me know these men scared the bejesus out of you and they wanted me to check on your safety. I didn’t know one of the men was Max.”
Alybella shook her head. “I still have no clue who these men are,” she stated, clearly agitated by what was happening in her little house.
“Oh, I do apologize my dear,” Antosha told her. “This is my son in law, Max Adams. He was married to my daughter until she was murdered, a very long time ago. They used to live here when he joined the military.”
Alybella was still shaken from the conversation she’d overheard at the diner and this news only shook her more. She looked around her small house. She had loved living here. Here she felt safe, but was it all a lie?
She swung her gaze over to Antosha. “How long ago was she murdered?” she whispered as she could barely speak.
Antosha frowned, glancing at Max quickly, then he looked back at her. “Twenty-one years ago now. Why child?”
Twenty-one years ago? The timeline fit. Her knees felt weak and she had to sit down. She lowered herself down to the coffee table. “Who was Weston?” she asked brokenly.
“He was my three-year-old son,” Max told her quietly. “He died the same day as his mother.”
“Tell me something,” she begged. “Was his throat slit?”
Max froze. He looked over at James then back to her. “How did you know that?”
She couldn’t answer him. Instead, she raised her hand to her throat and she felt under her choker to the scars on her throat. This place was so far from where she grew up. How had Matt met the woman who lived here? Was this place just a random pick or had he met her before? This wasn’t making sense to her. She had discovered Matt’s killing spree years ago and in the four cases she’d found, there was always a link to his victims. If this was one of his killings, it didn’t make any sense to her.
But there was one thing that had been found at all his other crime scenes that told her Matt had done the deed. She looked up at Max. She hated to do this but she had to know. “Was there a button found with your wife and son?”
The man, Antosha called Max frowned then he looked over at Antosha.
The older man shook his head and shrugged. “I don’t know, nothing was ever said to me.” He shook his head. “Of course, I was in shock at that time too. The days sort of blended into one long period of time.”
Alybella shook her head slightly and began muttering, “He always leaves a button. That’s his calling card. There has to be a button.”
Max reached into his pocket and pulled out a small key ring. He tossed it at her. She caught it and looked at him then looked down at the keyring. The breath in her lungs froze at the sight of the button on the keyring. Her hands began to tremble and she fought to breathe again, without passing out.
She dropped the keyring and stumbled to her feet, backing away from the coffee table. When she bumped into someone, she turned and found herself staring at a man’s chest. She looked up and saw Max standing there.
“What the fuck do you know about that button?” he growled. “That was the one thing the police found that didn’t make any sense.”
She just stared at him.
“Do you know this button?” the man with Max asked.
She slowly turned her head toward him and stared at him for a moment. Finally, she nodded slowly. “I know the button,” she admitted in a whisper. She closed her eyes and knew she’d just opened a shitstorm.
Max grabbed her by the upper arms and lifter her off the floor.
She opened her eyes and saw his face in close proximity to her own.
“What did you just say?” he growled low.
She gasped with pain from his brutal grip. “I said I know the button he used. It was one of twelve he took the day he left his house.”
“How the fucking hell do you know that?” Max roared.
The other man, Max’s friend stepped up and laid a hand on his arm. “Let her go Damon. You’re hurting her.”
His grip loosened, and he set her on her own feet. He didn’t break their connection, however. He had a feeling if he let her go, she’d try to run and he needed answers.
Antosha stared at him. “Damon?”
Damon looked over at him. “I changed my name, after I left here. This is James, a friend who came here with me.”
Antosha stared at him then nodded. He turned, went to the kitchen and put a pot of water on to boil. He knew she drank tea when she was upset, so he was making her tea. All he could find in her cabinets was tea bags and he frowned at her poor selections.
When the tea was ready, he carried her cup into the living room and found her sitting on the sofa.
Damon was in front of her again, sitting on the coffee table while James was sitting next to her on the sofa.
Antosha set the cup down in front of her and took a position on her other side.
Alybella felt the room closing in on her. Surrounded by three very large men she left small, almost insignificant. She closed her eyes and open
ed them again. Nope, they were still there. This wasn’t a dream. This was her worst fucking nightmare come to life.
Reaching for her tea, she carefully took a sip. It was hot and sweet just like she liked it. Taking another sip, she set the cup down and looked at the one they called Damon, or Max as Antosha called him. “His name is Matthew Moore. His father Derek married my mother twenty three years ago. He was fifteen at the time and a psycho already. At his mother’s bidding, he tore the church apart and delayed the wedding. He didn’t stop it from happening however, as they got married three days later. What set him off that time, was the fact that his biological mother told him she didn’t want him anymore and that he could go to live with his father. Derek couldn’t believe she had done this. He told my mom that Olivia fought him for custody because he was her paycheck for the last four years. She told her son his usefulness was up and she couldn’t wait to dump him on his father. Then she walked out of the church. Matthew was not happy and he destroyed the church. They had to call the police and Derek had to bail him out of kiddy jail. But he didn’t derail the wedding or us moving into Derek’s house.” Her eyes took on a haunted look as she spoke of the three months she lived with him.
Antosha could see this was hard for her and he reached across to pat her hand. “It’s okay, my dear, take your time.
She looked up at him and nodded, then cleared her throat to start again, “It only took him ninety days to turn that house into a nightmare place to live. My mom had to put a lock on my door to keep me safe after I went to bed at night. The first two weeks I would wake up to see him sitting on the foot on my bed with a knife in his hands. He would hold the knife and lick drops of blood off of it. He would whisper to me how much he liked the taste of blood, even his own and that he couldn’t wait to taste mine. Then he would tell me that if I told my mom, he would come back one night and cut me bad.” She paused then swallowed hard. “My mom saw the blood on my bed the next morning and asked me about it. I was only six at the time and what he did scared me so much that I kept quiet.” She paused again and looked at Damon. “She put the lock on my door that day. But that night he tried to come back. When he couldn’t get in, he was mad. That’s when he started hitting me. I was smaller and younger than he was so, he felt he had power over me I think... that he didn’t have with our parents. That went on for another two months. Then our parents told us they were going to have a baby. Derek was so happy but Matt wasn’t. He felt like he was losing control and he hated that.” She took a deep breath and lifted her hand to her choker as she often did.
