Sex, Lies & Sweet Tea

by Kris Calvert

“He’s been watching me too? Where?”

  “Your house. Guarding the outside. Wouldn’t trust another agent to do the job.”

  “Thank you, Micah. Really—thank you.”

  “Don’t fuck him over. Okay?”

  “You have my word.”

  I hung up and with one deep breath I was off to find Mac. My simple plan was to drive to Lone Oak and tell Mac what an idiot I’d been. I’d tell him I was wrong. I was sorry. I’d tell him he was my sun, my moon and all my stars.

  I shut the door to my office and put my visit with Mimi on hold as I hurried out of the main entrance, almost running to my car. I wanted to touch Mac’s face, kiss his lips and drown in his arms. I opened the door to the SUV and climbed in. Pulling the phone from my back pocket, I dialed, giddy with excitement. I couldn’t wait to hear his voice.

  Noticing the gate was still being serviced, I approached slowly and lowered my passenger’s side window. “Excuse me? Can you raise the gate for me?” I was eager to get out of the lot and onto the road.

  Without a word, the gate began to rise, and he approached my open window. I looked at my phone, making sure it was dialing.

  Without warning, my door was open and I suddenly had a passenger. In one swift motion the barrel of the gun was against my temple. “Don’t move, or I’ll blow your fucking brains all over this expensive car.”

  I froze. “Hector, please,” I whispered, stunned by the cold metal resting against my face.

  I turned slowly to plead with him, and noticed the maintenance man lying in the bushes face down. My body shook with fear and adrenaline.

  He grabbed my ponytail and yanked my head back. “Drive, bitch. Or I’ll do the same to you.”

  35

  MAC

  I heard the phone ring from the marble countertop in my bathroom echoing loudly through the room. I jumped out of the shower, dripping wet to answer.

  “Callahan.”

  “She knows, Mac,” Micah said on the other end.

  “She knows what?” I asked, leaning in to turn the water off.

  “She knows you’re in Shadeland. She’s on her way to see you now.”

  “Did she call you?”

  “She called you. She called the office looking for you. She was crying and stuff. You know, that Southern belle, damsel in distress bullshit.”

  “What did she say? What did you tell her?”

  “I told her you were in Shadeland. I told her she was an idiot. I told her if she broke your heart, I’d come to Alabama and kick her ass.”

  “What?”

  “Okay, so I left the last part off. She’s on her way to see you at Lone Oak.”

  “She’s coming here? What number did she call you from?”

  “Looks like an exchange from the nursing home.”

  “She’s out?”

  “Look, I don’t know what you and your private agent have going on down there, you’re supposed to be on leave. You said to let you know if I heard anything, and I did. She’s on her way to your house.”

  “Thank you, Micah.”

  “I think she really loves you, Mac.”

  My phone buzzed. It was Sam.

  “Gotta go.” I switched calls without saying goodbye.

  “Sam,” I cried with excitement trying to dry off and search for clothes. “Where are you?”

  “Please don’t hurt me. I have a son—a little boy. His father is dead. I’m all he has.”

  I could hear Sam crying and pleading in the distance.

  “Sam?” I repeated.

  “Shut the fuck up and drive. I’ll tell you where to go. Now give it some gas.”

  My body tensed. I knew the voice—Hector.

  Pulling a shirt over my head, I slipped on my shoes, grabbing the keys off my dresser and ran down the stairs to the Mercedes.

  “Tell me where you are Sam….tell me where you are,” I said under my breath as I listened intently.

  “Where are we going?” she asked, pleading with him. “Why are you making me go this way? Why are we on 331?”

  Good job, Samantha. Just hang in there. I’m coming. Stay calm, baby. Stay calm.

  I pulled out of the driveway in the Mercedes sedan doing close to seventy miles per hour. I called the local police and Agent Moss, who was still in Shadeland, from the phone in the Mercedes. “Hector has her. They’re on 331. Get everyone you have on them. He’s armed and dangerous.”

  As I gained speed on the highway, I found Randall making tracks in the Range Rover, clearly tracking her phone. I honked and pulled past him, letting him know I was getting there first.

  “Why are we turning here? What do you want with me with, Hector? I’ll give you whatever you want. Do you want money? I’ll give you every cent I have. Let me drive to the bank. Please!” I heard her plead through her tears. I’d never been so afraid of losing something in my life.

  “Come on, Sam. Tell me where you are,” I whispered.

  “The rock quarry?” Sam asked frantically.

  “Shut the fuck up!” he yelled.

  “Please don’t hurt me. Please, Hector. James wouldn’t want you to do this to yourself.”

  “Shut up!” he screamed.

  “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. Please don’t kill me. Please,” she said, nearly in hysterics. “Just tell me where I’m going.”

  “Stop the car!”

  I needed Sam to give me a clue.

  “Where? By the water tower?” she asked through her punctuated sobs.

  “Stop the car!” he yelled at her.

  “Okay. I’m stopping. I’m stopping.”

  Water tower. I called Moss for backup and turned into the quarry. Driving slowly along the gravel road, I tried not to make too much of a stir. Hector was twitchy. I didn’t want to spook him and cause him to shoot. I could see the water tower in the near distance and parked the car to go on foot.

  I checked the magazine on my gun as I ran toward the tower. I could see the car, and hear Sam’s voice.

  “Please don’t hurt me,” she pleaded. Hector held the gun to her head, pulling her from the car by her ponytail.

  “Do you know how your boyfriend has ruined my life?” Hector asked her, gripping her ponytail tighter and yanking her head to look him in the face.

  “I don’t have a boyfriend,” she replied, wincing in pain. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Your fucking boyfriend had to come in and snoop around and not just take out that bitch Stacy, but he had to hurt my James at the same time. My James!” Hector screamed through his tears. “He never hurt anyone….” Hector trailed. “Anyone!” he screamed in Sam’s face. “Now it’s your turn. Let’s see how your boyfriend likes it when I take away something he loves.”

  “No. Please.” Sam struggled with him as he led her to the edge of the rock quarry.

  I came in closer, hoping to get one shot off into Hector’s head.

  “Do you know what’s at the bottom of this pit?” Hector asked.

  Samantha sobbed, shaking her head no.

  “Fucking alligators.”

  “Please don’t kill me.” Samantha had run out of breath and suddenly seemed at peace.

  “I’m not gonna kill you.” He laughed at her, nodding to the quarry pit. “They are.”

  “Drop your weapon,” I shouted, coming from the bushes, gun pointed directly at his head.

  In an instant, he pushed Samantha off of the side of the cliff.

  “No!” Samantha screamed as she fell into the quarry, grabbing onto Hector’s pant leg, clawing her way in the air to keep from falling into the deep ravine.

  She brought him down, sliding backwards as her weight pulled him closer to the edge.

  “Sam!” I yelled, throwing myself to the ground to grab any part of Hector I could manage. Clenching his left arm, I knew he still had the gun in his right hand.

  “Let go,” Hector growled at me through his teeth. “I’m not going with you alive.”

  “Mac!” Samantha scre
amed.

  “Hang on, Sam,” I yelled, sweat running down my face as I began to pull them both up.

  “No!” Hector shouted as I tried to gain some leverage by bracing my foot against a rock to pull.

  “Hang on, Samantha. I’ve got you,” I yelled to her as Hector brought his gun to my face. I closed my eyes, not knowing if this was the end, and pulled with every ounce of energy and strength I had.

  A shot rang out and I could feel the burning in my shoulder as I pulled him onto the unstable ground, letting go. I kicked him as hard as I could in the face, sending his gun flying. I could see Samantha’s hand on the ledge, and reached for her with my right hand, my left side now in searing pain. Pulling her torso onto the side of the quarry, I leaned back in agony.

  “Mac,” she gasped, seeing the blood soaking through my shirt. “Mac, no.”

  “My gun,” I whispered. I could feel the warm blood running down my arm and chest, as she was becoming a blur. One shot rang out. Everything went dark.

  *

  “Mac?”

  I could hear Samantha calling me.

  “Come back, Mac.”

  My eyes were so heavy—every movement was met with pain.

  “He’s awake.”

  I squinted my eyes, trying my best to see what was going on around me. Blinking hard, I gradually awakened to find Micah by my side.

  “Where are we?” I was so thirsty I could barely swallow. “Where’s Sam? Is she okay?”

  “You’re in the hospital, hotshot,” she barked, quickly pouring me a cup of water with a straw and putting it under my mouth so I could sip. “Crazy-ass Hector shot you in the shoulder. They operated on the gunshot wound. The doctor said you’re going to be out of commission for a while, but you’re gonna be fine.”

  “Where’s Sam?” I panicked, trying to sit up only to be met with searing pain.

  “She’s here,” Micah assured me calmly. “She had a pretty big blow to the head. She’s scratched up, but she’s okay. They’re running some tests, getting her a CAT scan. She’s conscious, blabbering on about you—you know the usual thing with the women that seem to fall in love with you. Hit ‘em in the head and they still come back for more,” she said with a smile, trying to ease my panic.

  “Dax?”

  “He’s at Lone Oak with Polly and Randall. He’s safe,” she said, squeezing my hand, trying to make up for the jokes.

  “My mom and Mrs. Peterson?”

  “Everyone is fine, Mac.”

  “Hector?” I asked, finding it hard to stay focused. “Where’s Hector?”

  “She got one round off,” a male voice boomed suddenly in the room. I tried to focus, but either the pain or the pain medication was keeping me from clearing my head and my eyesight. “Samantha shot him,” Dan said, coming into view.

  “He’s dead?”

  The room was silent except for the sound of the monitor keeping time with my heart. “Is he dead?” I asked again.

  “Mac,” began Micah.

  “We haven’t found him,” Dan said, cutting her off. “Sam shot him, we found his DNA at the scene, and his bloody clothes at the bottom of the quarry. The alligators might’ve beaten us to him. He could be dead, he could be on the run.”

  My body tensed. I blinked hard and focused. “I need to see Sam. I need to make sure she’s okay.”

  “She’s being well taken care of,” said a nurse suddenly joining the conversation while checking my IVs and heart monitor. “Your vitals look good. I’ll let the doctor know you’re awake.”

  “Thanks, but—” I caught her attention again as she walked away. “When can I see Samantha?”

  “I’ll let her know you’re conscious.”

  “Dan?” I asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “Keep security on Sam.”

  “We will. Any other orders from your bedside?”

  “Find the motherfucker,” I whispered.

  I was in such pain. I needed Sam, and I didn’t need anyone or anything. I had to know she was safe. She was my last thought as I drifted out of consciousness.

  “Unbelievable,” I heard a voice standing over me.

  I couldn’t seem to open my eyes to confirm my thought, but the voice was unmistakable. “King?” I stuttered, my voice like gravel.

  “I work one day a month in the ER, and this is what the cat drags in.”

  My eyelids were like lead. I raised my eyebrows trying to help open them and they relented one at a time. “King, where’s Sam? Is she okay?”

  “She’s fine,” he sighed, looking at my chart and not me. “We were going to run a couple more tests, CAT scan, but we’ll have to wait on those. Her labs came back. No surprises. Not for me, anyway.”

  After watching King comfort Sam during the raid, I knew without a doubt he had been working her over hard while I was unconscious—tending to her every need, just as I would.

  “You,” he said with authority “need to relax and get some rest. Samantha is fine. You’re going to be fine too. I’ll let her know you were asking about her.”

  “King,” I whispered so only he could hear. Wincing, I tried to sit up. I wanted him to come closer so he would know it was me issuing the ultimatum, not the pain or mind-dulling drugs. “I know you care for Samantha. For God’s sake, any man would.”

  King shook his head and leaned into me, urging me to stop talking. “She’s a beautiful girl, Mac. Treat her right. If you don’t, I will.”

  I took a deep and painful breath and closed my tired eyes at King’s words. “Where is she? Samantha…” I whispered drifting off from the pain medication.

  *

  I woke to the sound of Velcro and the nurse placing a blood pressure cuff on my uninjured side. “Good morning, Mr. Callahan,” she said.

  “It’s morning?” I asked, squinting from the light over my head.

  “Yes. You’ve been asleep for about fourteen hours now. It’s not uncommon after the anesthesia and pain medications. How are you feeling?”

  “Thirsty.”

  “Can he have some sweet tea?”

  I turned to my right and saw the most beautiful sight in the world. Standing in the doorway wearing my red Cornell sweatshirt and jeans, ponytail falling over her shoulder—Samantha.

  “Oh God, Sam. Are you okay, baby? How long have you been here?” I asked, shifting my weight toward her, wanting her close. The pain in my shoulder raged as I moved, but I didn’t care.

  “All night,” the nurse informed me as Sam walked to the edge of the bed to take my hand.

  “I’m so sorry, sweetheart,” I said. “I never meant to—”

  “Shhhhh….” She placed her delicate fingers on my lips and nodded. “I know.”

  I kissed her fingers and brought her other hand to my face. I wanted her near me so badly it hurt—even more than my shoulder. Pulling her arm to me, I drew her near and lifted my head as best I could to meet her lips. She guided me gently back into the bed, kissing my forehead.

  “I’m so sorry you had to shoot Hector,” I said, still hanging on to her hand.

  “Yeah, well, don’t give a loaded gun to a Southern girl after she’s been pushed beyond her limit. Or off a cliff.”

  “Duly noted, my love. Duly noted.” I smiled at her, squeezing her hand. “Are you sure you’re okay? Have you heard from Dan? Is Hector in custody?”

  “No.” She dropped her head. “They haven’t found him or a body. I didn’t finish the job very well.”

  “No baby, you saved us both. I’m so proud of you.”

  “I just need you to get better,” she whimpered, wiping her watering eyes. “There are things we need to do, so much we need to talk about.”

  “I’ll be fine,” I assured her. “I’m tough—like you.”

  “You’re more than tough.” She leaned in to kiss my face. “You are my sun, my moon, and all my stars.”

  “Don’t steal my line baby,” I said, mustering a smile. “Where have you been my whole life?”

  A
tear rolled down her cheek and she brought my hand to her mouth and kissed the inside of my skinned and swollen palm. “I’ve been waiting for you.”

  36

  MAC

  The sun was shining brightly through the window of my bedroom at Lone Oak. I rolled over and picked up my phone to check the time. I’d been home from the hospital one week, and even though my shoulder and arm were still tender, I felt a little stronger each day. Between Miss Celia and Samantha, I had been waited on hand and foot, my every need taken care of—well most of my needs taken care of. I’d had very little alone time with Sam, and I missed her touch. I never wanted to be without her, ever again—and today, I would make sure I never would be.

  “Miss Celia?” I called downstairs on the house phone.

  “Yes, baby,” she responded immediately. “Do you want me to come up and help you get showered and dressed?”

  “No,” I replied, wishing Sam was here to give me a sponge bath. “I’m fine on my own. I’m planning on going out in a little while. I want Samantha to come for dinner tonight—maybe in the gazebo again? Will you help me with that?”

  “You know I will. What time?”

  “Let’s say eight. I’ll call her to confirm.”

  “Can I get you anything this morning? Would you like some breakfast?”

  “I’ll be down in a bit, but just some of that magical fresh squeezed OJ. I’m trying to watch my waistline since I’ll be out of the gym for a while.”

  “We’ll see you down here soon.”

  I rolled to my good shoulder and pushed myself up from the bed. Taking off my sling, I realized how stiff I’d become. I needed some rehab and relaxation. I showered as quickly as I was capable. I found that only using one arm was tricky. Thankfully, the bullet went through my shoulder somehow avoiding the clavicle, scapula and shoulder socket. There was definitely a guardian angel watching over Sam and me.

  I dressed in a lightweight khaki suit and white shirt. Coming downstairs, I met Miss Celia, who was more than happy to help me back into my sling. I popped two Advil, downed my OJ and headed out the door.

  “Are you sure you don’t want a driver today?” Randall asked as I picked up the keys to Pussy Galore, tossing them in the air, and catching them with my one useful hand.