by London Casey
I started to feel guilty as I drove. My eyes kept moving to the right, catching sight of Rose as she played with the strings of her hoodie. She was scared half to death. Rightfully so, her brother was a murderer. But she already knew that, didn’t she?
I hated myself for what I was going to ask next, but I needed to know.
“Did your brother ever kill anyone else?” I asked.
I made the right turn down the alley next to the cafe. My car came to a stop and I faced Rose.
She opened the door. “Thanks for the ride.”
“Hey,” I said and reached for her. “What the fuck do you want me to do right now? Honestly pretend to be your husband or something? After what I know…”
She shook me away. “You’re right.” She slammed the door and opened the back door.
“You never answered my question,”I said.
Rose grabbed her bag and looked at me, tears in her eyes. “Did my brother ever kill anyone else? That’s what you want to know? All that should matter is who he did kill. I’m sorry that he did that to you, Wes. But to answer your question… it’s not a matter of if Luke killed anyone else. It’s a question of how many did he kill…”
Rose shut the door and walked away.
I stared in the mirror and watched her. My heart did that ripping thing again. Like it was a piece of paper and someone was just tearing it into two pieces. One thing I knew was that Rose had a nice ass.
Christ, Wes, really?
Fighting and sex were the only two things that kept the pain away. And I watched the sex walk away from me, like I even had a shot at it. Fuck, if I wanted it, sure, but not with what I knew.
I forced myself to look forward.
She was sorry… she told you the damn truth, man… her brother is dangerous… her brother hurts her, hits her… her brother is going to…
My cell started to ring.
It was Tommy calling me.
“What do you want?” I asked, desperate to find a source to take out my anger.
“Get here now!” Tommy yelled into the phone. “This is a fucking mess!”
“Where?”
“Hospital, Wes.”
“Why?”
“Aton was attacked… shot… he’s in surgery…”
“What?”
“Family shit, Wes. Your brother-in-law took Aton out.”
I dropped the phone.
Your brother-in-law took Aton out.
Luke had done it again…
13.
(Rose)
I needed the coffee because I didn’t sleep the night before. I spent half the night tossing and turning, the other half of the night creeping from the bedroom wondering what to do with Wes. He wouldn’t even talk to me. He wouldn’t understand that I had nothing to do with Luke and his anger. Yeah, I had been there that night, but I hadn’t seen a thing happen. I was in the back of the building, helping to count money. Then everything went bad. Dad came rushing back, grabbing handfuls of cash. He screamed at me to hurry the fuck up and get to the car. I waited, wondering what was wrong. Then he had Luke by the back of his shirt. Luke was covered in his blood. His hands were almost dripping with blood. That’s when I knew something really bad had happened.
“Do you need a refill?”
I jumped and blinked. A young woman with a name tag that read Jenny stood holding a pot of coffee.
“Sure,” I said.
She filled my mug and I sat there, trying to catch my breath.
I needed a plan and I needed one fast. If Luke found me, he’d kill me. That I knew for sure. I couldn’t give up Wes either. He was the only one who had tried to help me, to save me. But if I tried to find him and got near his boss, Aton, I’d be killed. No matter what I did, I was screwed. I was better off just sitting alone in the cafe drinking coffee until I was shaking from the caffeine. All I wanted to do was have a second to explain everything to Wes. I owed him that much at least, even if I wasn’t owed a second of his time. Then again, he lied for me and him. Now what was he going to do?
My cell beeped with a text message.
It was from Macie.
Macie!
I grabbed the phone but then reconsidered. She could be with Luke. Then again, she might know where Luke was right now. Or where he was going.
I didn’t text back to her but called her instead.
“Hey,” I said. “Where’s Luke?”
“I don’t know,” Macie said. “I was calling you to ask the same thing.”
“Oh?”
“Well, if you want the dirty details… we were together last night. All night.”
I cringed. “Good to know, Macie.”
“But he left at like three in the morning. He was all dressed up and said he had a business meeting. I was half asleep when he was talking to me. He brought these pills over that were really crazy to take. Then he was gone. I haven’t seen him since.”
I stood from the table, spilling coffee over the rim of my mug. Everyone then looked at me. I grabbed a five and dropped it to the small table and hurried out of the cafe. I went to the side of the building and down the alley where Wes had dropped me off.
“Macie, where are you now?” I asked.
“My apartment.”
“Can you come get me?”
“Okay. Are you alright?”
“No,” I said. “Listen to me. Luke is dangerous right now. There’s so much about my brother you don’t know. I know you think it’s all hot and sexy. That’s fine. But he is dangerous. He’s…”
A car horn beeped and I jumped. I turned and saw someone sitting just outside the cafe, beeping and waving their hand at someone who must have darted in front of their car.
“Rose? What’s going on?” Macie asked.
“Listen to me. I need you to pick me up. Then we’re going to a hotel for a little bit, okay? I need to figure some things out.”
“Are you in danger?”
I opened my mouth to scream Yes! but I held back. “You are, Macie. Get here and get me.”
I ended the call after telling her what cafe I was at. I just stood there in the alley like a fool waiting for my ride. All that raced through my mind was Wes. I didn’t want him wrapped up in all this mess. It wasn’t his fault. And if he tried to challenge Luke… sure, in a fist to fist kind of thing, it would be intense, and maybe Wes would win. Then again, Luke didn’t train to fight. He trained to kill. That’s what got all of us in so much trouble. That’s what made me run when I did.
That’s what got me accused of murder.
Macie finally showed up and I wasted no time getting into her car. I then told her to drive. Get out of the village - Portsmonth - because Luke would have eyes and hands everywhere. There was no doubt in my mind that he was after me. Leaving at three in the morning like he did with Macie wasn’t his way of dumping her off after sex. That was for business and business meant bad things when it came to Luke.
Macie asked me ten times what was going on, but I refused to answer until we were in the hotel.
I made her park around back where nobody would see the car.
Once we got into the room, I shut the door, locked it, and finally felt able to breathe. I had made sure to make her pay for the room with her credit card so there was no trail to me, just in case Luke was somehow watching or tracking us.
“Okay,” Macie said. “This is insane. I feel like I’m in some scary movie. Like a killer is just going to jump through the door.”
“That could happen,” I said. “You don’t get it. Everything I’ve been trying to tell you.”
“What?”
“Luke is a murderer. He kills people. Now he’s after me.”
“His own sister?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“It’s too hard to explain,” I said. “When he left at three in the morning did he say where he was going?”
“No. Just that it was business and that I should go back to sleep.”
“Shit,” I said.
“That means he’s out looking.”
“For what?”
“Me,” I whispered. “Macie, Luke will kill me if he finds me.”
“How did you get to that cafe then?”
I gave a quick rundown of Wes. She sat on the bed and covered her mouth. “You were shot at, taken by this guy, kidnapped by his boss, and then he pretended to be your husband?”
“In a nutshell, yes. But then I told him that it was Luke who killed his brother in a fight and he went crazy. He wants to take on Luke. So he dropped me off at the cafe to go talk to his boss, who is connected to a family. This is bad, Macie. This is so bad.”
“I don’t… I thought all that stuff was for the movies.”
“This is not a movie,” I cried out. “This is my life. It has been my life for years. So now I have two different people that want me dead. And I should have been dead… they rigged my car to explode.”
Macie’s eyes went wider. “What?”
I backed up to the wall and tried to fan myself with my hand. The room felt small, cramped. I turned and rushed to the bathroom. I barely made it to the toilet before I got sick. I was so scared and nervous, my body couldn’t handle it.
“Are you pregnant?” Macie asked, coming into the bathroom.
“Are you fucking serious?” I asked. “You have to have sex to get pregnant, first off. And second, I just told you everything about my brother.”
“So he really kills people? Like with his hands? Or a gun?”
I forced myself to stand. I grabbed a towel and wiped my mouth.
“Are you really asking me this stuff?” I asked. “This is serious.”
“But it’s sort of hot,” Macie said. “I mean, I slept with a killer. You know? How many women get to say that?”
I started to shake. Then I jumped at Macie. My hands shoved her shoulders. She went flying from the bathroom, out, and to the closet door. Her body slammed against it and she let out a scream. My hand was then at her neck. I wanted to slap her. I wanted to hit. I wanted to keep hitting and slapping and hitting and slapping…
I backed up. “Oh, shit. Macie…”
“You need help,” she said.
“You need to listen to me,” I said. “This isn’t a joke. If Luke finds me. If he finds us… oh my God, you shouldn’t be here. You should go. Leave, Macie. Just don’t tell anyone you saw me.”
“Do you hear yourself, Rose? Look, I’m sorry for whatever you’re going through. Luke would never hurt you. He’s spent how much time protecting you? Why would he hurt you?”
There was no use in arguing with Macie.
I got a drink of water and then grabbed my cell.
“Where are you going?” Macie asked.
“I need to take a walk. Just stay here. Don’t do anything stupid, okay? Let me figure out a plan. I’m sorry I even called you.”
“You’re losing your mind, Rose. For real. Luke was in a suit and tie. He wasn’t dressed to kill.”
I looked at Macie. It was pathetic I even considered her a friend, let alone some kind of best friend.
The thing she didn’t realize was that Luke wore a suit when he went on business, even if he was going to make a kill. It was either a suit or that black mask. When he was the assassin. When he killed Wes’s brother.
My heart sank.
Where was Wes?
14.
(Wes)
The fucking floors were too white. Every fourth tile was half blue which looked dumb. There were scuff marks everywhere, probably from gurneys and doctors and nurses shoes rushing to save lives. Or maybe from people collapsing when they got some bad news.
“Here. Drink.”
I looked up from my hands and Tommy had a cup of coffee in his hand.
I took it from him. “What’s in it?”
“I take my coffee like my woman, black as night.”
“Thanks,” I said.
I held the hot cup between my hands and looked at the floor again.
“How long is this going to take?” Danny asked. He leaned against the wall with his arms folded.
I looked at him. “Are you fucking kidding, man? Doctors are trying to save his life. Who cares how long it takes?”
Danny pushed from the wall. “I was just asking, Wes. Calm the fuck down, buddy.”
I stood up. “Don’t buddy me. Where the fuck were you?”
“Me?” Danny asked. “What about you? All of a sudden you’re married and go off to a cabin for a night. I smell bullshit everywhere I step near you.”
I threw the coffee to the floor. It splashed everywhere.
I stepped toward Danny and he put his hand out, egging me on. “Yeah, come on, Wes. Come on.”
“Do you realize the heat this is going to cause?” I asked. “I shouldn’t even be this involved.”
“But you are,” Tommy said. “Your brother-in-law did it.”
Brother-in-law. That’s a goddamn lie!
I gritted my teeth.
“Leave it to you, Wes,” Danny said. “Some scrub of a fighter to fuck all this up.”
“Danny!” Tommy bellowed.
That was it for me. Next thing I knew, I threw a right hook and socked Danny in the face. He then slammed into the wall and stumbled away. He looked surprised for about a second and then looking fucking pissed. He came at me and we tangled up right there in the waiting room outside the surgery wing.
I turned and pushed, sending Danny into the spilled coffee. His legs twisted as his shoes slipped on the coffee. He went down on his ass, right in the coffee, splashing it.
“Fuck,” Tommy said, putting a hand to my chest. “Knock it off. Both of you. This is about Aton. If he doesn’t come out of that surgery with a pulse, this is going to be really bad. Really fucking bad.”
I punched Tommy’s hand away. “You think I don’t know that?”
“You’re fucked either way,” Danny said. “Irishman. You stink of shit.”
Tommy looked at me. “Don’t, Wes. For Aton’s sake.”
“What’s happening out here?” a nurse asked as she came rushing to the room.
“My friend here slipped in some spilled coffee,” Tommy said.
“What happened to his face?” the nurse asked.
Danny’s left cheek was red and swollen.
“He’s allergic to coffee,” Tommy said. “Must have splashed on his face.”
“Can someone get me a fucking towel?” Danny growled. “Christ.”
I had to laugh to myself as I shook my head. Danny looked like a complete fool on the ground, sitting in coffee, but it was far better than what I had intended on doing to his face.
I wanted to fight anything with a pulse. Normally, when I got into that kind of mood, I would turn to the bedroom to relieve some tension. I didn’t even want that. Because of freaking Rose. I swore I’d never let beauty overcome the truth. I had seen some powerful guys get taken down because they fell for some woman.
That would never happen to me.
She was lucky I dropped her off when I did.
Christ, what have I done?
Her brother shot Aton. I could have kept her. I could have used her right now to get to Luke. The Assassin. The masked fighter that had killed Shane. The emotions all rose with me.
Even watching Danny clean himself up didn’t help. Hell, even when he stepped right back in the coffee and slipped again, almost taking the nurse to the ground, didn’t help me smile.
I was devastated. My blood was rich and pure like the rest of them. Not like the family Aton belonged to. No matter my loyalty or ability to throw a decent punch, it wouldn’t help a damn thing when the foot came down. I was Irish blood, nothing but a worthless street fighter.
“You look like shit,” Tommy said to me.
I leaned against the wall. “I can’t process this why her brother would do this.”
“Why do you think Aton wanted her taken out?” Tommy asked. “It’s no good, Wes. Even the marriage. You and her together? That’s a problem. I�
�m not blaming you for what happened to Aton… but… damn…”
If I hadn’t lied about being married to Rose, it wouldn’t have fucking happened, Tommy. I know that. I get that. Fuck.
Tommy looked around. Then he got closer. “Truth, Wes? Fucking Danny should have been on top of things. I don’t know how it happened. I just got the call. A fucking bullet.”
Tommy’s fat chin wrinkled and started to shake. He sniffed hard and turned his head. He then punched the wall and walked away.
Danny looked at me. “What’d you say to him?”
“Nothing,” I said.
“Yeah. Bullshit.” Danny wiped his pants with the towel and then tossed it across the waiting room. “When this is settled, your ass is gone, Wes. I’m done with you.”
“Fuck you, Danny,” I said.
Danny didn’t say a word to me. I stared into his eyes. I didn’t trust him one bit. He was a real piece of shit. In it for the money. I wouldn’t be shocked if he was somehow taking more from Aton than Aton knew.
I thought about getting another coffee, but I ended up seated, hands folded, staring at the floor again. I couldn’t get Rose out of my damn mind. Whether it was her beauty, her honesty, or how fucked up her life was, she had pierced me somehow. If I had kept my mouth shut, she’d have been dead and I’d be in my apartment, drinking and waiting for the next fight.
Instead…
The doors opened. I looked up and saw a doctor standing there. He looked a little weary. He had his sleeves rolled up and looked around the room.
“Aton?” I asked. “Is he…”
The doctor frowned and put his hands to his hips.
I wanted the world - and Rose - to burn.
~
The machines beeped, the only real signs of life from Aton as I walked into the dark room. I pushed a curtain aside like I was about to see a drug deal or card game go down. This was a far cry from the life Aton had gotten used to. Most of the guys that ended up in a hospital were there from old age and beat up hearts. If they took a bullet, it was almost always a kill shot.
There was only one person allowed at a time in the room.
The nurse stood next to me, our shoulders almost touching. She was a pretty little thing. A blondie that looked really good in all the white clothes. Fuck, those clothes would look better on the floor of a linen closet with my hands holding her waist while she bit her lip to keep from screaming while I pounded into her.
