Equity (Balance Sheet #3)

by Shannon Dermott

  She cut me off. “I’ve forgotten nothing. And he’s apologized.”

  With new light I stared at the woman before me. Keely wasn’t stupid. So why was she acting like some lass that didn’t know any better. “He nearly…”

  “Raped me,” she finished for me. “That was years ago and all your fault.”

  I took one staggering step back. She hit me where she knew it would hurt the most. She was right. If I hadn’t been thinking about my dick then and wanted to be free of the girl who followed me around, it wouldn’t have happened.

  “I was in that abandoned building because you told me to wait for you there.”

  Irrational anger built like a steam from a kettle. I pointed at Sandy, the monster of all our nightmares as kids. He was the bully that tormented us until I’d gotten a little taller, a little tougher and a lot wiser. “I came for you,” I nearly shouted.

  A bad feeling had come over me when Griff and I set out to meet a couple of girls who promised more than a good time. So I’d gone back for her. The sight I confronted made me sick. Sandy and his pals were lined up ready to take turns on Keely who was on her side curled in a ball.

  My own shame for the things Sandy had put me through welled up into a fury that put three out of the five guys in the room on the ground. Griff, having my back, had been taking on two others when Sandy and I came face to face. Years and grit ingrained in my skin made it thicker. I was finally ready to end the torment. No longer afraid, I put the fear of God into Sandy. I left him with a black eye, bloody face, bruised ribs and more. He wouldn’t have forgotten me after that day.

  My vision blurred back to the present. How could she sleep with the enemy?

  “Like I said, he’s more than made up for that.” She smiled at him like he was heaven, then turned to stare at me like I was hell. “You can go now.”

  As I watched, she half covered his body with hers. Her hand left his cheek where she’d cupped his to face her. Tongue was involved and my eyes stupidly followed the hand because I hadn’t wanted to see her kiss him as it made me sick. When it headed much lower than I wanted to know about, I searched for something else to look at. She stepped away from him and allowed the robe to drop with her back to me. I’d been to her apartment before and knew she made her way back to her bedroom.

  “Make him go, love,” she called out without turning back.

  “She has a lovely arse, don’t you think?” Sandy obviously had a death wish.

  It wasn’t like I was pissed she was sleeping with someone. She was old enough. What bugged me was that she’d chosen a guy she knew couldn’t be trusted. Had I failed her so much? I started to understand the gravity of how conflicted Bailey was over Turner. Even though I’d never been anything short of honest with Keely about where I stood with us, rather no us, besides being mates, I felt like maybe I had owed her more. That was how you felt about the people you cared about. You never wanted them hurt.

  Movement caught my eye. Sandy pulled the door shut and crossed his arms over his chest and took on a wide stance. That might have scared me when I was seven, but I was long past those times.

  “If you fucking hurt her,” I breathed, because in the end, that’s all that mattered. I wanted Keely happy and safe.

  “You’ll do what, pretty boy?” He eyed me up and down. “You’ve been long away from the streets with your pretty boy clothes. Set your mother up in that pretty house.”

  “Don’t fucking talk about my mother.” He was crossing a dangerous line. I was willing to let him be with Keely as dumb an idea as it was. Truth be told, I couldn’t bully him to stay away. I wasn’t Keely’s keeper. And once I left town, how would I know what she was up to unless I put a guard on her?

  He chuckled low in his throat. “I have nothing against your ma. She’s never done anything against me or mine.”

  When he took a step forward, I held my ground. “Keely is mine now. I don’t know what happened between the two of you yesterday, but I’ve been with her a while now,” he admitted.

  It set in. This wasn’t somehow a fuck you fuck. She’d been banging him for a while. And that hurt because that meant she’d lied when she begged me to take her virginity. Family didn’t lie to each other. At least, that’s what I thought. If there were two people outside my mother and Ennis I could trust, it had been Griff and Keely.

  “Don’t you worry. You can trust I’ll take care of all her needs.” He smirked as if he’d read my mind and that set me off. Like a cobra strike, I had his throat in my grasp. I’d been spoiling for a fight and that was as good of time as any. My thumb and index finger pinched in tight to cut off the airway. I gazed into the eyes of my nemesis and watched his face go from pale to dark pink. The whites in his eyes were threaded through with red veins. I began to wonder if blue was his color.

  Beseechingly, his hand grasped at my arm, trying in vain to pull me off. See, I was no longer his punk. I wasn’t the naive boy with no street smarts. He hadn’t learned the first time.

  Somewhere in my head, a voice called my name. By this time, Sandy’s color was heading from a bright red to purple on its way to blue. Blue. Again, my conscience called out to me and I let my grasp slip just a little. He sucked in a breath while I decided if I wanted to end him.

  A door opened down the hall and a woman in pajamas stepped out with a small child on her hip. I released him with a shove and stepped back.

  In a low voice near a growl, I said, “Don’t ever forget who I am or what I can do to you.”

  He slid halfway down the wall, holding his neck and gasping for breath. I walked away before I did something I would regret. Plus, I’d promised my mother I wouldn’t ever end up in jail again.

  Halfway home, I got the call. “We found her.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  With the last of my coffee drained, I held the warm mug in both of my hands, staring into space. A blurry figure came into focus.

  Friendly eyes with a hint of crow’s feet peered into my own. When my own smile matched hers, she spoke. “Are you running from someone?”

  It wasn’t exactly the question I expected from a stranger. Her eyes tracked down to the bag at my feet.

  With a deep breath, I said, “Not exactly.” It was the truth.

  “I’ve been where you are,” she began. “If it wasn’t for someone helping me, I wouldn’t be here.” She surveyed the room with a sweep of her head.

  There wasn’t anything I could think to say.

  “I think we could help each other,” she said. The curve of her lips made the tiny wrinkles in her face disappear.

  She stood. “Follow me.”

  There was a hesitation before I stood and slung my bag on my shoulder. It felt right, as weird as that sounds. It felt as though I could trust her as we walked through the back and out through a door she used a key to open.

  In the corridor beyond, there was a stairway. We hiked up the first flight, which felt like it would go on forever. There was a solitary door, but we passed it. By the time we crested the second landing, I was panting a bit.

  She stood in front of the single door on this top floor. “It’s presumptuous of me, but you look like you need a place to stay. And maybe we can help each other.” Her voice bounced off the walls.

  I had no idea where I was going to sleep. Could find a place that accepted cash or risk using my credit card? The other option was to listen to her offer.

  “I don’t know if you noticed it or not, but I had a sign looking for help.”

  With a shake of my head, I confirmed I had not. “I don’t have a work visa,” was the first thing to pop out of my mouth.

  “Which is why we could work on the barter system. I can offer you a place to stay if you would help me in the café when we are short or busy.”

  The sceptic in me made me question her motives. “Why?”

  “If not for the help of another on a day like this…” She shook her head and started anew. “I never got the opportunity to pay back the woman wh
o helped me. I call it fate that you stepped into my café for a reason. Now it’s my turn to help someone else.”

  “You don’t know me,” I stubbornly protested.

  “I don’t have to.”

  She moved to face the door and produced a key. She opened the door to a small sparsely furnished space with high ceilings and windows on either side. The views were that of the buildings on either side. In fact, I was certain I could probably reach out and touch the façade of either.

  “It’s not very large. There’s the living room.” She pointed to the solitary sofa. “And here is the kitchen.” There was a room with a miniature refrigerator, a half stove and a sink. “Over here.” She pointed towards the back. There were two doors. “Here on the right is your bedroom.”

  When I stepped inside, it felt like Lizzy’s closet. A tiny bed and a half dresser filled the room. I followed her out only to open the other door to a one person sized bathroom with a shower, toilet and half sink.

  “It’s okay?” she asked. I nodded. It was more than I ever had back home. And all together it was bigger than the dorm room I’d shared with Lizzy.

  “There is Wi-Fi, so you can connect with the Internet. Sorry there isn’t a TV.”

  “That’s okay,” I said as if it was a foregone conclusion that I was staying. “I don’t watch much anyway.”

  “We open early, but just stop down when you wake up and I can show you around. We can talk about a schedule after that.”

  Just before she left, I said, “But I’m not sure how long I’ll stay.”

  My hope was to hear back from Turner by the end of the day. I couldn’t be sure of my plans after that.

  Her face brightened. “That’s fine. We’ll make it work for however long you need.”

  And she was gone. It sure felt like someone above was looking over me. Luck had been on my side. I was already trying to figure out how to give my thanks and do what I could to pay back this woman who offered me shelter when I was in need.

  I set my bag down on the table in front of the sofa. I pulled out my laptop to test out my Wi-Fi connection.

  Amazingly it was strong. After I sent an e-mail to Lizzy, we connected on Skype.

  “Lizzy,” I breathed. “It’s so good to see your face.”

  “Oh how I missed you.” Her face filled the screen bringing with it the light that filled all the dark spaces in me. “Your sister is so cute.”

  “How is she?”

  “She’s like a kid in Times Square Toys-R-Us.”

  My sister came into view to the left of Lizzy’s head.

  “Are those my jeans?” I teased, finding a grin in me. Violet looked down at herself. “I’m just kidding. What’s mine is yours, just like when we were kids.” She relaxed at my last words.

  Then Matt came into view on Lizzy’s right hand side. I didn’t think he knew I could see him because I saw him apprise my sister the way a man does when he’s interested in a woman. When she finally looked over to him, I guessed she blushed. I couldn’t see her very well but how she looked down and away painted a perfect picture.

  “Matt’s there,” I said.

  Lizzy turned. “Matty, say hi to Bailey.”

  Matt turned and gave me his sexy grin. “Hey Bails.”

  “Matt, I saw you,” I said cryptically.

  He winked at me.

  “Where are you?” Lizzy finally asked.

  “Has Turner called?” I asked, not answering her question. She shook her head. To hide my disappointment I moved to another question. “Did you tell Matt not to tell Kalen?”

  Matt answered. “I haven’t told him where you are, but he’ll figure it out. You should just let him know you’re okay.”

  Suddenly, I was looking at the back of Lizzy’s head. I didn’t have to see her to know she’d folded her arms across her chest. “He doesn’t control her. And if he didn’t act like an asshole, she’d still be in Scotland.”

  The screen wobbled. It took a second before I understood Lizzy was moving the laptop. When I saw the bed draped in white, I knew Lizzy had gone to her room.

  “Ignore him,” she said.

  “Tell me about you,” I said. “This isn’t all about me. I want to hear about what’s going on in your life. I miss our talks.”

  “What do you want to know?” she asked. The display rolled and I was disoriented for a few seconds. The way the camera landed on Lizzy with her hair splayed on the pillow, I knew she was on her back with her laptop on her chest.

  “Tell me about Hans.” I had no idea if she’d cut him loose yet.

  “Hans… beautiful, pretty Hans… Hans with the penis the size of lipstick.” I cracked up. And she continued. “Did I ever tell you he has the oral skills of a god? I mean, the guy can eat pussy like no other.”

  I continued to laugh and it felt good.

  “I guess when you’re working with such a small package, you have to have other skills,” she babbled on.

  “You’re terrible.” I covered my mouth so I wouldn’t snort from the hilarity of it all. “Is it that bad?” I asked, already knowing the answer.

  “Yes,” she sighed. “But we’re working on alternatives. I was never an anal girl, but honestly, I think it’s working for us.”

  “TMI, TMI,” I said between guffaws.

  “I’m telling you, Bails. Anal isn’t that bad when the guy isn’t packing a Colt forty-five. I mean, he doesn’t even have a twenty-two.”

  The snort finally erupted from me. “You’re killing me.”

  “Seriously though. The guy is beautiful to look at. I guess he couldn’t have it all. But damn, I bet he wishes he was a hairy guy instead of dickless.” She paused as if in thought. “And I know this is bad. He’s a great guy. He treats me right and tries his best to please me sexually as best he can. But damn, can I live with that for the rest of my life? And the guy’s got like three million followers on Twitter and Facebook. Girls send pics begging him to take them out.”

  She put a hand on her forehead. “If they knew what I know…”

  “Honestly Lizzy, the guys who made you scream in bed couldn’t keep you. Yet you’re still with Hans.”

  She held my gaze. “Maybe I was jealous. I saw you and Kalen and wished I had something like that.”

  “Yeah, and how did that turn out?”

  “He’s still into you. Did I tell you how he called and demanded that I tell him where you are?”

  I clutched my chest. “He just didn’t want to tell Turner he lost me.”

  She half-heartedly chuckled. “I don’t think so, babe. That guy’s got it bad.”

  We talked for a little while longer before my voice broke and I said, “Tell my sister I’ll call tomorrow.”

  “He’ll call,” Lizzy implored. She was talking about Turner. He should have been in Scotland for hours. “I could call Kalen.”

  I shook my head. “He has to make the decision to contact me on his own.”

  “I love you, babe.”

  “Back at you,” I said and kissed my fingers and pressed them to the screen before it went dark.

  Twenty-Three

  The first call I made after leaving Keely’s house was to my security team. I’d given them the particulars, not wanting Griff to have to deal with it. So when they called back within five minutes, I was more than surprised. Relief filled me, knowing that Bailey was safe. However, there was one more important thing I had to do before I arrived back at the house.

  I dialed the number, hating the call I had to make. I would have preferred to tell him this in person. With Turner cooling his heels, I knew I would have many questions to answer for him once I stepped inside the house.

  “K,” Griff said.

  “G.” I wanted to laugh because when I said his initial it came off false and forced. In a sketchy voice, I said, “Listen, there’s something I need to tell you.”

  “Whatever it is, tell me you are on your way back. That dude’s got some serious crazy. He’s wearing a hole in your ma’
s floor.”

  “I’ll be there in a few.” Without a pause, I dove into what needed to be said. “I went to see Keely.”

  Silence. “I hope you went to apologize for being such an arse.”

  He would say that. The guy wore his heart on his sleeve for her. Too bad what I had to say next most likely would forever change his feelings for her.

  “That was my purpose, but…”

  “But what? Pride stopped you from doing the honorable thing.” There was an edge to his voice that said he was considering the terms of our friendship. Damn.

  “She wasn’t alone.”

  Silence.

  I waited a beat more until I knew he wasn’t going to say anything. “Keely’s a big girl. She’s allowed company,” I began. Still he said nothing. “Sandy was there.”

  Disbelief filled his words. “What ye havering on about?”

  “Aye, this comes at a shock to me too. The dobber had his hands on her, if you follow.”

  “Bawbag,” he cursed. “Aye cannae.”

  This wasn’t unexpected. “She quit and I’ve already talked to security about removing her access to anything at work. I hate to think it, but I have to look into whether or not she or Sandy had anything to do with the money being stolen from my company.”

  “Fuck,” he finally said.

  “I’m sorry, mate.”

  We ended the call. I wouldn’t give him a hard time about this. Keely had been important to us both. Now I had to decide what I would say to Turner.

  As it stood, Turner had a lot to say to me. He was waiting on the porch with his head hanging low and hands clasped together like a man utterly lost. Once I stepped out of the car, he looked up and slowly stood. I approached him like I would approach a wild animal, wary and cautious.

  “Tell me again what happened before she disappeared.”

  “I should tell you we found her.”

  He waved me off. He’d been doing some thinking and had come to the same conclusion I had. I searched for Griff, but he hadn’t come out. He was probably hitting the bottle, dealing with his own pain.