The Season of Sin (Peace In The Storm Publishing Presents)

by Stacy-Deanne

  I do everything in my power to make her happy but I only cause her pain these days. If only we didn’t fight every time we saw each other. She’s so angry. Why can’t she see no one will love her the way I do? After all that’s happened, this is the first time I regret what I did. The first time in my life I wished it never happened.”

  “Regret what you did?” Brianna closed Nadia’s journal with her thumb still inside the pages. Davis meowed beside her. She laid the brownish-tan cat on her chest. “What the hell were you hiding, Nadia?”

  “Excuse me. Excuse me please!” Dylan pushed her way around the men at the junkyard the next day. They grazed in and out the garage checking out anything they could find. Swaggert sweated behind the computer at the counter. He could’ve eliminated some of the crowd who needed to check out if he could push more than one key at a time.

  “Ah, shit!” He turned and spit.

  “What now?” The first customer griped.

  “I pushed the wrong button.”

  The sixth man in line stepped out of place. “Yo’ Swag don’t you know how to use the computer yet?”

  They laughed.

  “Shut up! I just made a mistake. You in such a hurry then do it ya’ self!”

  “Maybe we all should.” The eighth man bundled up inside his coat. “Then we’d at least get outta here before next week.”

  “Excuse me.” Dylan squeezed between the men.

  “Well hello, sweet thang.” A gap tooth man winked.

  “Hey lady can you use a computer?” Another joked.

  “I hope she can so we can get outta here.”

  “Shut up.” Swaggert punched the monitor. “You guys throwin’ me off!”

  “Mr. Swaggert?” Dylan put her purse on the counter. “Mr. Swaggert?”

  “Oh who the hell let you in? Get outta the way, girl. I’m busy.”

  “Have you seen Bruce?”

  “Bruce? Don’t even mention his name.” Swaggert plucked keys. “I’m trying not to blow my top as it is.”

  A skinny black guy hauled a tire from the back area.

  “Roy?” Dylan ran to him.

  “Oh hey, D. You okay? I’m sorry about your mother.”

  “Thanks. I see you guys are very busy today.”

  “You don’t know the half of it.” He balanced the tire on his shoulder.

  “I’m looking for Bruce.”

  “He didn’t even show up today. That’s why we in the mess we in. I was off today. The first Saturday in months I got off and Swag come callin’ me in before I got a chance to wake up good.”

  He propped the tire over to the side then went to the back for another. Dylan jumped out of his way when he returned.

  “I don’t mean to bother you Roy but I needed to talk to Bruce about Mom. I’m grasping at straws but I think he could help me.”

  “We haven’t heard from him. Swag’s been calling his cell all morning. He’s not answering. He didn’t even clean up last night.”

  “What do you mean clean up?”

  “He broke a liquor bottle over there by the door. Glass was all over the place. I don’t know what’s wrong with Bruce’s head. He know Swag don’t allow nobody drinking at the junkyard.”

  “Bruce wouldn’t do that. He takes this job very seriously. You know that.”

  “Well someone was here drinking last night. Unless it was a ghost than it had to be Bruce.” Roy took the tire outside.

  “Mr. Swaggert?” Dylan marched back to the counter.

  “Here.” Swaggert handed an Asian man his merchandise.

  “Next.”

  “Mr. Swaggert?”

  “Get from ova here.” He shoved Dylan from behind the counter.

  “Look I know you don’t like me.”

  “Damn straight.” He punched buttons.

  “What’s up with Bruce? I called his cell and he’s not even answering.”

  “I don’t know, shit. Do I look like Bruce is in my damn pocket? Shit I know his ass was suppose to be working and he was in here drinking. I had to sweep up all that damn glass. I’ve had it with Bruce and his shit.” Swaggert gave a man his change. The next customer stepped up.

  “But this isn’t like Bruce at all. Something’s not adding up.”

  “One thing’s for sure…” Swaggert took the customer’s money. “I’ve given Bruce his last damn chance. If he’s gonna piss all over me than he can go work somewhere else.”

  “Something could’ve happened to him.”

  “Why do you care?” He spit in the trash can. “It’s because of you his life is a mess to begin with. He was doing all right until he hooked up with you and your crazy mother.”

  “How dare you? My mother is dead!”

  “Good riddance.”

  “Oh!” Dylan snatched her purse. “You are the meanest and nastiest man I’ve ever met. No wonder no one likes to be around you!” She pushed her way through the men. “Go to hell!”

  Swag spit. “You ain’t got a hell to vanish me into, sista. And I ain’t the only one in this room that’ll be going.”

  “If you see Bruce tell him to call me. Could you at least do that?”

  “I could but I won’t. People got their own problems. The whole world doesn’t revolve around you. That’s your problem, ya’ so damn spoiled. I don’t know what Bruce sees in ya’.”

  “Oh yeah?” Dylan slapped her hand on the counter. “I’d say the same thing about you. I see now why he’s your only friend but I sure don’t see why he’d wanna be!”

  “Get the hell outta here!” Swaggert shot her the bird.

  Dylan bumped into Roy on her way out the garage.

  “You okay, D?”

  “I just can’t believe someone can be so nasty.”

  He tied a bandanna around his head. “Swag? Yep he’s something else.”

  “If you see Bruce can you tell him to call me?”

  “Sure. If you see Bruce tell him to stay away ‘cause Swag wants his head on a stick.” He went inside.

  Dylan caught a glare off the ground as she walked down the driveway. She bent over. A gold hoop earring with a ruby in the center laid turned to the side in the gravel.

  She traced her finger over the broken clasp.

  She’d seen this earring somewhere before.

  If only she could remember where.

  CHAPTER TEN

  Dylan made her way to Bruce’s hallway.

  Tkk…tkk…tkk…tkk…

  His faucet always dripped.

  Memories overwhelmed her as soon as she walked in. She missed that scent of oil and grime mixed with Bruce’s natural smell. Gasoline made most women gag but she loved it. A vision of them making love hit her. How Bruce could control her body beyond comprehension. How his hands left tiny streaks of oil on her pale breasts. How she loved making love with him more when he’d been sweaty and musty instead of fresh from the shower.

  Nadia had been right. Dylan changed when she met Bruce. The things Nadia disliked about him the most had been the things Dylan treasured. She admired his temper but hated how it got him into trouble. She liked how he worked his fingers numb just to suit his pride. How he ate with his elbows on the table, drove with a heavy foot, threw beer cans on the floor and cursed out anyone who gave him shit.

  She loved everything about him.

  Her body stiffened at the sound of footsteps. She couldn’t see anything in the dark hallway. She’d found her way from memory.

  What was she doing here anyway?

  “Bruce?”

  Someone wrapped their arms around her.

  “Mmm! Let me go!”

  “Quiet!” Bruce covered her mouth. “Shut up please.”

  “Bruce?”

  He tossed her into his bedroom and turned on the light.

  “Asshole!” She swatted him. “Scared me half to death!”

  “You’re the one in my house.” He massaged his temples. “I’m the one that should be scared.”

  “Doesn’t give you the right to
sneak up on me!”

  He covered his ears. “Just stop shouting please.” His eyes were droopy and red with thick pillows.

  “Bruce what the…”

  He turned the lamp on by the bed. “Jesus.” He flinched when he sat down.

  “Are you all right?”

  “I’ve been better.” He stretched on the bed. He didn’t have on a shirt or socks. His jeans were unfastened.

  She crawled in beside him. “You look terrible.”

  “I feel like two trains are racing in my head.”

  “What’s wrong with you?”

  He buried his head in the pillow. “I feel horrible.”

  “You look it. What’s wrong?” She touched his forehead. “You have a fever? Think you got the flu or something?”

  “No I got a stomach virus or a touch of food poisoning. Woke up with a migraine and been throwing up. Got the runs too. Can’t keep anything down. This morning I could hardly move.”

  “I’m sorry. How did you get food poisoning?”

  He licked his dry lips. “Think I got it from that twenty-four hour deli I stopped at on the way home last night. Got an egg salad sandwich.”

  “Oooh.” Dylan grimaced.

  “I woke up feeling like this.”

  “You need to go to the hospital.” She put her hands under his head.

  “No I’m getting better. Besides you know I don’t have insurance. My neighbor got me some stomach medicine. I’ve been in the restroom so much that I should have the bug out soon. I got a question.”

  “What?”

  “What the fuck are you doing in my house?”

  “I was worried about you.”

  He dragged his hand over his face. “Oh yeah?”

  “Yeah. I went to the junkyard earlier. They said you hadn’t shown up.”

  “I bet Swag’s pissed huh?”

  “Hmm, I think that’s putting it mildly.”

  “Ahh, shit.”

  “Why didn’t you just call in and say you were sick?”

  “My cell needed charging. And the house phone got cut off.”

  “What?”

  “Yeah I didn’t have the money to pay the bill.”

  She had no idea he’d fallen on such hard times.

  She caressed his hair. “I wanna be mad at you for making me worry but I can’t.”

  “Oh?” He managed a tiny smile. “Why were you worried about me?”

  “I wouldn’t want anything bad to happen to you.”

  He leaned up on his elbows. “Nah, it’s more than that isn’t it?”

  “Just because we’re not together doesn’t mean I’m not concerned about you.”

  “Because you still love me right?”

  “Don’t start.”

  “How you get in here again?”

  “I still have a key. You want it back?”

  “No. I’m surprised you still have it. Still haven’t told me what you want.”

  “I wondered if you might know something about Mom that could help me figure out why she was killed.”

  “What the hell would I know that you don’t?” He put his hands over his eyes.

  “I need to know what went on between you two. Why she hated you so much.”

  “Dylan.”

  “You don’t hate someone like she hated you for no reason.”

  “She never liked me from the beginning. She thought I was some thug who was gonna ruin your life.” He dipped a rag into the bowl of water on his end table. He held it on his forehead. “That’s all.”

  “It’s more than that. I know Mom never cared for you but it got worse after I’d gone to NYC for Zoë ’s party.”

  “It’s old news now.”

  “I remember I was so sad that you couldn’t be there. I never wanted anything more than to walk into the party being on your arm. Show everyone how much I loved you.”

  “You know I didn’t belong there. That’s why I didn’t go. You were up there with Zoë’s friends and all those models and artists and classy people. There was no way I fit in. I wasn’t gonna embarrass myself and have to deal with the way your mother looked down at me.”

  “That shouldn’t have mattered. What you should have cared about was how much it meant to me.”

  “You knew I loved you.” He adjusted the rag on his face. “I didn’t have to go to some damn party to prove it.”

  “The next day things were so tense. Mom told me she’d disown me before she’d let me be with you. What changed in that short of time?”

  “I don’t wanna hurt you.” He stood. “I’d rather die than do anything to hurt you.”

  “Did you have an affair?”

  He lowered his head.

  She walked up behind him. “It’s not that is it? You cheated on me didn’t you?”

  “Dylan.”

  “I remember how strange you acted when I got back into town. How funny it felt when you touched me, how you didn’t wanna make love.”

  “I always wanted to make love to you. Every chance I got. I still do.”

  “It was like you were hiding something. You couldn’t look me in the eyes. It was like you felt guilty about something.”

  He looked at her.

  “You slept with another woman and Mom found out.”

  “Dylan.”

  “Oh god. That’s why she wanted me to break up with you.” She grasped her head. “Here I was thinking you were innocent and she was picking on you but she had a reason. You cheated on me! You slept with someone else. How could you do that, Bruce?”

  “I never meant to hurt you. It was a mistake. It meant nothing to me.”

  “I don’t believe this.”

  He reached for her. “Dylan.”

  “Don’t touch me. Don’t ever touch me again.”

  “I love you so much.”

  “You love me? I gave you everything. I chose you over my family and it ruined my relationship with my mother.”

  “Listen to me okay? I’d never hurt you on purpose. Let me explain.”

  “You can’t explain.” She hit his chest. “Who was it? Who did you sleep with?”

  “It doesn’t matter.”

  “How did Mom find out?”

  “Nadia was having me followed. She was relentless, waiting to catch me slipping up.”

  “What are you talking about? My mom wasn’t following you.”

  “Yes she was but she never told you. See I’m not the only bad guy here. She had someone trailing me from the moment I came into your life.”

  “This is insane.”

  “It’s the truth. She would have set me up even if I hadn’t done anything wrong. Don’t you see how fucked up she was?”

  “Don’t ever talk about my mom that way.”

  “She wasn’t normal, Dylan. She only wanted you with her. She didn’t want you having a life of your own, didn’t want you sharing your love with anyone else. You know I’m telling the truth.”

  “You stop it! You’re saying all this for me to forget what you did.”

  “Nadia wasn’t right in the head when it came to you. You know that.”

  “I can’t believe you’d sleep with someone else. I’d expect that from anyone but you.”

  He snatched her. “Let me make it up to you. Give me another chance, please.”

  “And I walked around missing you at that party like a damn fool and you’re back here fucking someone else.”

  “It was only one time.”

  “It doesn’t matter how many times!”

  “I know it was stupid and I hated myself for doing it but I only loved you.”

  “Mom was right about you. You’re nothing but trash and I should have never gotten involved with you.”

  “You don’t mean that.”

  “You’re a liar and I don’t want to see you again.” She ran to the front door.

  “Wait!” He hobbled after her. He slumped over when he got to the door.

  “You make me sick.”

  “Listen! Your mothe
r twisted things. Mmm.” He clenched his stomach. “She even told me she was gonna get me out of your life no matter what. She loved you too much, Dylan. Way too much.”

  “I loved you too much. I hope your little fling was worth it because you’ve lost the best thing you’ll ever have.” She opened the door. “And to think I even considered giving it another chance.”

  “Dylan.”

  “Go to hell.”

  “Don’t leave like this!”

  She slammed the door.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Tuesday Night (The following week)

  So much for Dylan getting answers from the people in Shannon’s apartment building. They hadn’t seen or heard from her in days. Dylan wasn’t sure if they lied to protect Shannon but she didn’t pressure them.

  She took the elevator to the first floor. She smiled at the maintenance man standing by the front office. She fastened her wool coat and pulled her collar up. She braced herself for the brutal chill and walked out the entrance.

  She’d parked across the lot close to the bushes. A maroon Escalade blocked the view of her dark green Subaru. She ran down the lanes. Wind lashed at her coat and knocked her hat forward.

  “Shit.” She dropped her keys when she got to her car. Her knit gloves snagged on the pavement as she dug for them.

  “Come on. Ah.” She caught the key ring. “Got’cha.” She brushed dirt off her coat and got in the car.

  A man jumped from behind the bushes and ran to her window. “Hey, lady!”

  She held onto the locked door.

  “I need help!” He pinched at the door handle. “My baby! Please!”

  “What?”

  “My baby! Something’s wrong with my baby! Can you help me?”

  She parted her door but didn’t get out.

  He had bronze-colored skin and a body that could’ve been muscular or chunky but the bulky leather jacket made it hard to tell which. He towered over the car. His minuscule eyes suggested an Asian heritage. A crooked goatee outlined his purple lips. Breath smelled of cigarettes and jalapeno peppers.

  He had a gold stud in one ear and a tiny gold crucifix hung from his beaded necklace.