by K. M. Hodge
Sally’s smile floated across her lips but never made it up to her eyes. After a short pause, she turned on her heel and started for the front door.
When they had everything loaded into the truck, Jason bent over to tie his shoe. He needed a second to catch his breath and regroup. Sally had a way about her that made his mind go foggy and his senses come alive all at once. The situation called for a clear head, but he could think about nothing but kissing her. He couldn’t just let her drag him around by the nose hairs, so he took a mindful breath and paused to take stock of the moment. Even though he had no reason whatsoever to trust her, he did. Their chemistry defied reason.
Sally came up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. “I promise I’ll explain all of this.”
Jason loosened her hold on him and turned his head in her direction, but avoided making eye contact, hoping it might lessen the siren-like effect she had on him. “Where are we going, Sal?”
“Manny’s house.”
Manny knows about this? What the hell?
“I’m going to take my bike. I’ll meet you there.” He walked passed her to retrieve his bike out of the back of the truck.
“Jason—” She started after him, but he held up his hand to stop her.
“I just need a little time to process this, Sal. I’ll see you there.”
With that, he slipped on his helmet and jacket and took off down the highway towards Alexandria.
By the time he got halfway there, Jason realized that Manny must have known all along that Sally was really alive. After all, his friend had been the one to give him the death notification. For the first time in a long time, he wanted a drink. Suddenly, his promise to her to never drink again, the promise that had kept him sober all this time, had become hollow and meaningless. But his overwhelming anger surpassed his desire to fall off the wagon... for now.
Instead of fantasizing about a drink, he thought about what it would feel like to punch Manny Richards in the face and keep punching. As he neared the familiar neighborhood, the anger rolled around inside his gut like a grenade whose pin had been pulled.
Jason parked his bike outside the brownstone that belonged to his friend and AA sponsor, and walked up the steps of the porch as Sally’s son pulled his truck up behind Jason’s bike. Jason pounded his knuckles on the front door, making them sting.
Manny greeted him with a wide grin. “Hey, man, where you been holed up?” His friend’s cheerful expression transitioned into a look of concern. “What’s wrong?”
Jason sidestepped so Manny could see the two people walking up the steps behind him. “Can we come in, Manny?” He didn’t wait for an answer, but shouldered past his friend, through the house, and out the back door to the patio. He could sense Manny following closely behind.
Jason paced back and forth on the patio stones, waiting until Manny closed the door, before unleashing his pent-up rage. “You knew! You knew the whole time, didn’t you?”
“It’s not that simple.” Deep grooves lined his friend’s forehead.
“Fuck you, Manny!”
“I guess I deserve that.” The man looked away and rubbed the peach fuzz hair that marked the beginning of his hairline at the top of his head.
Jason’s rage boiled over once more and he rushed at his friend. He smashed him hard against the side of the house, driving his fist into his gut, then stepped back and let his friend double over. A hollow sadness took over for his spent rage, causing his legs to tremble, and he collapsed onto one of the Adirondack chairs that circled the fire pit.
“Jason....” Manny hobbled over to him, clutching his stomach. He sat down in one of the matching chairs and lit up a cigarette.
“What, you’re smoking again now?”
The old man shrugged and let the smoke leak out through his parted lips.
Jason tried to calm his mind as he focused on his breathing, mindfully inhaling and exhaling until he felt as though his mind and body were one again. Her smell, a mix of tangerine and sandalwood, had rubbed off on him.
He glanced over at Manny, who seemed genuinely contrite. “I’m sorry I hit you.”
“No, you’re not, and that’s okay. I’d have hit me too.” He took a long drag of his cigarette.
Jason laughed and some of the tension in his shoulders and back loosened. He sat back in the chair, slouching down so he could look up at the cumulus clouds that hung in the sky overhead. It was one of those perfect summer afternoons, making the whole day seem all the more surreal.
The sound of the door sliding open startled him, and he turned to see the intruder.
Manny’s daughter, Julie, held a tray of lemonade and snacks. She’d probably heard or saw some of the fight.
Sally and the boy stared at him through the glass of the back door.
Julie placed the tray down on the table between the two chairs. “Here’s something to tide ya guys over until the pizza gets here.” She turned around to head back into the house.
“Thank you, darlin’,” Manny called out to his daughter over his shoulder. Once she had closed the door, he took a sip of the drink. His mouth puckered and he let out a grimace, but kept drinking.
Manny’s a good man. I need to give him a chance to explain himself.
“The boy, her son....” Manny squinted at Jason.
“I know. I didn’t see it at first.” Jason shook his head, trying not to think about it.
“He looks just like him. It’s like seeing a fucking ghost.”
Jason sighed and sipped his lemonade, making his own mouth pucker. “God, that’s awful.”
Manny returned to his cigarette and laughed between puffs.
His friend’s infectious laugh spilled over, until Jason doubled over laughing, too. The laughter washed away the anxiety hanging on him like wet clothes. This despite the two sets of eyes watching them from the kitchen.
***
Julie fidgeted with the kitchen towel as she watched her father and Jason talk. Their fight earlier had worried her. Her pop was an old man—too old to be fighting. When she’d first heard the commotion, she’d come downstairs to find two strange people standing in her kitchen. Before she said anything, she’d glanced out the wide window that looked out into the backyard. Her first inclination had been to break up the fight, but the strange woman in the kitchen grabbed her by the arm to stop her.
“Give them a minute,” the woman had said.
Julie must have given her a look, because the woman’s expression had softened and she released the hold on her arm. “Sorry. I’m Sally. I’m a friend of your father and Jason’s. This is my son, Zane.”
“My name’s Julie.”
“Nice to meet you, Julie.” Sally had hugged her arms to her chest and glanced around the house as if she needed to be somewhere.
Her son had just stared at his shoes and leaned against the back wall.
“It’s getting to be about dinner time,” Julie said. “How about I order a pizza?”
Sally gave her a weak smile. “Sure. That would be lovely.”
Her son grunted something, but Julie couldn’t hear it.
She’d sent a text order on her watch, even though her guests seemed lackluster about staying, and the three of them stood in an awkward silence until Julie noticed that the fight seemed to have died down. She’d poured some lemonade and taken it out to the men.
When she walked back into the house, the mother and son had stopped their conversation and stared at her, making her feel uncomfortable.
Now, wanting to know more, she glanced over at the young man standing beside her. “What do you think this is all about?”
Zane shifted his weight from one foot to another and shot a look towards Sally, who sat on the sofa tapping on her smart watch. “I don’t know, but my guess is that it has something to do with my mother.”
Sally’s smart watch alerted her to an incoming call. “Excuse me, I have to take this.” She stepped out the front door, leaving them alone.
Julie considered him from the corner of her eye. He was exquisite, a work of art in flesh form. She suddenly wished she could sketch him, with the afternoon light catching his emerald eyes. On first glance, his mussed, unkempt hair and five o’clock shadow made him look like a beach bum, but he wasn’t a bum. No, he possessed a depth behind his green eyes, which looked at her with keen interest.
Shit! I’m staring at him like a dolt.
Her face flushed hot and she turned away. She looked back again at her dad and Jason, who still sat in their chairs looking out at the late afternoon sky.
“Jason’s my dad’s only real friend. I hope whatever it is, they can work it out.” Julie tapped her own smart watch. “Pizza should be here soon.” She snagged two sparkling waters from the fridge and handed him one.
Zane nodded and took the drink. He took a long gulp before slumping down into one of the kitchen chairs.
When she glanced up, he was staring at her. When she regarded him head on, he slyly looked at the edge of the table, examining a scratch.
She walked to the table, turned the chair next to him, and sat down. “So why would my dad and Jason be fighting about your mom? My dad isn’t dating her, is he?”
Zane laughed. “No, she’s been dead for the last year.”
Chapter 3
First Capital Bank Parking Lot
Richmond, Virginia
June 25, 2026
7:00 PM
~~~
Mari sat in her patrol car with Ellie, waiting for their first call of the night. They had been working together on the Crisis Intervention Response Team for over three months. Mari loved the change of pace after being in homicide for so many years. She and Ellie, who had signed on as a Victim Service Specialist, had become fast friends—yet another new thing for Mari, as she rarely made friends.
Her smart watch pinged with a new message alert. She smiled and returned a quick message back. Later tonight, after her shift, she’d have company waiting for her.
Ellie shook her head. “You ever gonna tell me who this man is, or just gonna keep torturing me?”
“Torture, definitely torture.” Her mind drifted back to the argument last night with her lover. Unsure if she could trust him anymore, she didn’t want to make their relationship public until she knew she could. He wanted more, but how could she give him that after he’d admitted to lying to her for the last year?
“We have a 1056 in progress at the corner of Adams and Freemont. Please respond.” The dispatcher’s crackly voice reported a suicide in progress.
Probably just some whack job off his meds and making a scene. Mari responded while turning on the car. “We’re on our way.”
“Saved by dispatch.” Ellie smirked and put on her seatbelt. “For now, at least.”
When they arrived on the scene, a man in his mid-thirties stalked up and down the walk outside a 7-Eleven convenience store. They were directed to the man working the register, who had made the call when the customer—most likely hopped up on some kind of drug—began exhibiting erratic behavior.
Once they had gotten the employee’s statement, Mari and Ellie approached the man with caution.
“Sir,” Mari said.
“Back the fuck up, bitch. I ain’t goin’ to jail.” Spittle sprayed out through the gaps where his teeth should have been.
Mari cringed and tried not to focus on it.
Ellie pressed forward ahead of Mari. “Sir, we aren’t going to take you to jail. We’re here to take you to the hospital.”
Mari admired that Ellie didn’t flinch, turn up her nose, or show any other outward sign of disgust at the rank smell emanating from the man.
The woman’s a saint!
The man looked up at Ellie with wild brown eyes, and then rushed towards her.
Oh fuck!
Mari leapt forward to stop him, but intervened a split second too late.
Ellie toppled backward onto the ground with the man on top of her, with her leg bent at an odd angle.
Ellie clenched her teeth together and hissed, “Ahh, get him off me!”
Mari yanked the thrashing man off her partner and cuffed him. “You okay, Doc?”
Ellie grimaced. “My ankle.” She tried to stand but fell back instead. “Shit!”
“Stay right there. Don’t move!” Mari yelled at her partner as she tried to drag the man to his feet.
“I’m not going anywhere, bitch!”
Mari shoved him hard in the middle of the back, propelling him towards the squad car. “Shut up.”
Mari glanced back to see Ellie grimacing as she sat up and trying to stand again, but she didn’t get far before falling back onto the ground.
“Woman! You’re as stubborn as a mule!”
Ellie laughed. “And?”
Mari tossed the man in the back of the squad car and clicked on the radio to call dispatch. “We have an officer down. We’re going to need an ambulance....” She rattled off the location, only half paying attention to the words coming out of her mouth.
Ellie tried to sit up again. “I’m fine. I don’t need an ambulance.” She grimaced and lay back down on the cement.
“Yeah, yeah.” Mari smirked down at her partner. “The EMTs will be here soon and you can tell them how fine you are.”
“I am fine.”
***
Burks Apartments
Alexandria, Virginia
June 25, 2026
7:00 PM
~~~
Jason sat backwards on a chair in the kitchen, eating sunflower seeds while the young people cleaned up the dinner plates. The setting sun cast a golden hue across the room as he watched Zane and Julie circle each other like dogs in heat.
“Dad, Emily called and said it’s official: we’re playing at the Changtobon Festival.” Julie flashed a quick smile.
“That’s wonderful, dear!” Manny returned the smile, ever the proud father.
“You should come see us, Jason.”
Jason cracked the shell of the seed between his front teeth and tossed the husk on the table in front of him. “Sure thing, Jules.”
He watched through a crack in the curtain as Sally paced back and forth on the porch, talking on her smart watch for the fourth time that night. They hadn’t had a minute alone since the cabin, which now seemed like eons ago.
Manny sat down beside him, breaking his train of thought, and spoke in a hushed tone close to Jason’s ear. “I don’t know what all this is about, but my bet is on Scott Mitchel having something to do with it.”
He doesn’t want his daughter to know about all this mess. I can’t say as I blame him.
Jason scooped up the empty shells and tossed them in the trash. “I agree.”
“How are you holding up?”
He sighed and shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know, man.” It all still seemed so surreal, like he would wake up at any moment. “You don’t know anything else about why she did it?”
Manny placed his hand on Jason’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “I really am sorry. All I know is that it was a life or death situation. She was shot, and it was bad. I don’t know. I thought I was doing the right thing.”
“You did what had to be done. I just—”
The front door creaked and then clicked shut. Sally walked into the room and sat down beside Jason at the table.
His heart rate quickened and his mouth went dry as a mixture of fear and desire coursed through him.
Damn.
Zane popped open a couple of beers and offered one to Jason.
“Nah, man.” Jason held up his hand and shook his head. “I’m good, thanks.”
“You sure? It’s primo stuff. Figure after today, you might want something to take the edge off.”
“No, thanks, I don’t want anything.” He looked away from the boy’s prying eyes.
“Zane....” Sally turned to face her son.
“Oh... I’m sorry. Are you an alcoholic?”
Jason swallowed hard and wet his lips. “
Yeah.” His voice cracked and he felt like a fool.
Great first impression with the kid!
Sally reached underneath the table and squeezed his knee, a simple touch that sent all other thoughts flying.
Zane shrugged and his expression softened. “It’s nice to see you have some chinks in your armor. You seemed a little too perfect there for a minute.” The kid handed the other beer to his mother, instead. “I know you won’t turn down a drink, Mother.” He jumped up to sit on the countertop, making himself at home.
“I think that was meant to be a compliment.” Sally shot her son a sharp look of warning.
Julie picked up her guitar and strummed a slow easy tune.
Jason’s eyelids grew heavy; it had been a long day.
Manny glanced over and gave him a nudge. “It’s been quite a full day. Why don’t I show you to your rooms? Might be a good idea for all of us to turn in early.” Manny stood and stretched his back.
Jason placed his hand over Sally’s, which still rested on his knee, and gave it a squeeze. Her cheeks turned bright pink when his gaze met hers and, suddenly, he wasn’t so tired after all.
Manny shot Jason a knowing look. “Jason, why don’t you and Sally take the guest bedroom, and I’ll show Zane here to the den.” He disappeared down the hall with Zane in tow.
Jason showed Sally to the spare bedroom in the back of the house, and closed the door shut behind them.
“I thought I’d never see you again.” Sally pressed her small body against him, pinning him in place and taking his breath away. She kissed him and wrapped her arms around his neck.
It took everything in him to push her gently away. “Hold the phone, Sal.”
She frowned and stepped back. “What?”
“You’ve got some explaining to do. Start talking.” He crossed his arms across his chest, putting a physical barrier between them.
Sally stepped back and mirrored his stance. “What if, afterwards, you don’t want to be with me anymore?”
He shrugged, completely in control. “That’s just a risk you’re going to have to take.”
She turned away and sat down on the edge of the bed, which squeaked under her weight. Instead of talking, she fidgeted with the bedding and nibbled on her thumb nail—what was left of it.
