23 Miles

by Renee Mackenzie

  “I am so sorry,” Talia whispered.

  “He kept accusing me of killing them and pushing the pictures back in my face…and he screamed at me to look at the jagged cuts and the blood dried on them.” She squeezed Talia’s hand. “No one should have to look at something like that. No one.”

  Talia held on to her, pressing against her back, burying her face in Shay’s neck. “I’m sorry.”

  “So often when I close my eyes I see Allie and Diane all broken and bloody. And the nightmares are confusing. Sometimes it’s them I see, and sometimes it’s other people.” Her body convulsed with the memory of seeing Talia’s face in the carnage in her dreams. “Sometimes I walk up to a car on the parkway and look in the window and it’s Dee or Kate or…or you.”

  Talia held her tighter. “It’s okay, it’s okay.”

  Shay cried herself to sleep in Talia’s arms. When she awoke, she was alone in the bed. She got up, took care of her morning routine and then joined Talia in the kitchen.

  “What’cha doing?” Shay asked in a sing-song voice.

  “Trying to figure out the toaster. Technology and I don’t get along, as you saw with the treadmill.” She turned around and gave Shay a shy smile. “You okay?”

  “I am better, but I’m sorry about last night.”

  Talia closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around Shay. “There’s nothing to be sorry about. You know you can talk to me about anything.”

  They jumped at the sound of a throat being cleared behind them. “Any coffee?” Jackson asked.

  “Not yet. Give us just a minute.” She took Talia by the hand. “Today you learn to make coffee and toast.”

  “Should I be afraid?” Jackson asked.

  “Yes,” Talia answered. “Be afraid…be very afraid.”

  There was a knock at the door and Jackson left the kitchen. Shay heard a woman’s voice and made out one word. “Cat.”

  Jackson stood in the doorway to the kitchen holding a pet carrier. “You have a visitor, Shay.”

  “Poke,” she said. She held out her hands to take the carrier.

  “Should you take him to the bedroom and give him a chance to acclimate?” Talia asked.

  “Yeah.” She glanced around the kitchen. “It’s all yours,” she told Jackson.

  Shay closed the bedroom door behind her and put the carrier on the floor. She opened the wire door and sat on the floor beside it, leaning against the love seat. “Hey, Pokey, you okay?”

  He let out a little grunt, stuck his head through the carrier opening and looked around. “Hi, Poke. I’m sorry I had to leave you all alone but we’re together now.”

  She smiled as he immediately began to purr and climbed into her lap.

  “That’s my boy. Your friend Talia is also here.” He head-butted her chin and she laughed. “Yeah, I like her too.”

  †

  Talia wiggled her toe and watched as Poke stalked it. He crouched low, moved in slow motion, wriggled his rear end and then pounced. Talia moved her foot just in time.

  “He’s going to get that toe of yours eventually, you know,” Shay said.

  “I know.”

  “And he has teeth and claws, you know.”

  “I know.” Talia narrowed her eyes at Poke. “You wouldn’t, would you?”

  “Oh, yes, he would,” Shay answered for him. She had a towel draped around her neck and her hair was still after-shower wet.

  “You’re going to miss teaching your self-defense class today,” Talia said.

  “Yeah, I talked to Parker and he knows of a woman who can fill in for me until—well, until we get all of this sorted out.”

  Agent Jackson came into the living room and sat on the edge of the sofa. As he tied his running shoes, he said, “I’m going for a run. There’s an agent out front attempting to look like a landscaper. Call the emergency number by the phone if anything comes up. You know, since you’ll be here in the house alone for a couple of hours.”

  “That was subtle,” Shay said after he left.

  Talia laughed but as soon as they were alone she grew nervous. She jumped up. “I’m gonna get in the shower.”

  Talia lathered and rinsed her hair quickly, then moved slower while soaping her body. The flesh between her legs grew thick with anticipation as she washed there. She rinsed off and hurried to get dry. She stood in the bathroom and stared at the shorts and T-shirt she’d placed on the side of the sink to change into. Should she be bold and walk out with nothing on? She took a deep breath and knew she wouldn’t. She slipped into the clothing and out of the bathroom.

  Shay was sitting on the edge of the bed in a tank top and boxers. Talia swallowed hard at the sheer sexiness emanating from her. “Wow.”

  “Wow?” Shay asked.

  “We are alone. We have some privacy, finally.”

  “What would you like to do with this privacy?”

  Talia looked down at her shorts and T-shirt. “Something that would entail losing some of this clothing?”

  “Sounds perfect.” Shay stood up and pulled the covers down.

  Talia slipped out of her clothes and stepped closer to Shay. Shay undressed and pulled her into her arms and when their skin touched Talia had a fleeting thought about melting into Shay. She shivered and then marveled at how perfect they fit together and how incredible it felt to both her flesh and mind. She quivered.

  “Is this okay?” Shay whispered.

  Talia inhaled the scent of vanilla. “This is perfect,” she answered.

  Shay’s hands moved down Talia’s sides and sent a burning ache surging between her legs. Talia kissed Shay’s neck and slid her hands up Shay’s muscular back.

  “Let’s get in bed,” Shay said.

  They slid under the sheets and Shay rolled on top of Talia. “Tell me what you like.”

  Talia couldn’t get the words out. She had waited so long to feel Shay pressed against her like she was that now she couldn’t even speak.

  Shay kissed her long and deep while her hands moved up and down Talia’s sides.

  Talia grabbed Shay’s hand and guided it between her legs. “Please,” she whispered and gasped as Shay’s fingers found her wetness.

  “You’re so wet. So beautifully wet,” Shay murmured.

  Talia pressed upward, forcing Shay’s touch to press more firmly. “Yes.” Talia sighed.

  Shay pressed two fingers inside of her. “Do you like that?” she whispered.

  “Yes.” Talia breathed deep as Shay’s fingers moved faster and harder against her. “I do, I do like that, but—but—”

  “Tell me what you want.”

  “Your mouth…please, I want your mouth on me,” Talia answered.

  Shay moved down the length of Talia, kissing her as she went. Her mouth found the wetness between Talia’s legs and she stroked Talia with her tongue.

  “Oh, yes.” Talia held on tight as Shay’s mouth moved in and around her wetness until her body quaked and exploded into orgasm.

  Shay moved back up to be able to look her in the eyes.

  “So long,” Talia whispered. “I’ve wanted you for so long.”

  Shay held her tight. “You are so beautiful.”

  Talia smiled. “Oh, but you are wonderful. And now I want to show you just how much I think you are.” She rolled on top of Shay and let her hands and mouth prove it.

  Chapter Twelve

  “I can’t believe it’s been a week and there’s still no sign of Jeffrey or Brian,” Talia said.

  Shay pulled her against her and kissed her neck. “We should get up soon.”

  “Yeah. Is it just me, or are Jackson’s runs getting longer and longer.” She couldn’t help smiling at that.

  “I think he hangs out longer on the porch.” Shay sat up and pulled on her T-shirt. “He is a good guy. At least we didn’t get stuck with some macho jerk staying here with us.”

  “Yeah.” Talia got out of bed and got dressed. “We really are lucky.” She fought against tears.

>   “Oh, sweetie,” Shay said as she got up and embraced her. “What is it?”

  “Tomorrow’s Christmas and for a minute I felt sorry for us that we can’t really celebrate it, but then I thought about Allie and Diane and their families. Oh and my neighbor, Linda.” Talia cried, tears dampening Shay’s shirt.

  Shay held her tighter.

  “I don’t need a Christmas tree or presents. I don’t need any of that, but I do wish there could be closure for the families. I wish they would catch whoever killed Allie and Diane. And I wish they would catch Jeffrey for what he did to Bernie, and Brian for what he did to Linda.” Sobs shook her body.

  “I know, I know,” Shay said. “It will happen. All of that will happen.”

  They jumped at the door opening and closing loudly. “Ho, ho, ho,” Jackson’s voice boomed through the house.

  Shay led the way out of the bedroom. Jackson and Gish were struggling to get a Christmas tree into the den. “Merry Christmas,” Gish sang out.

  “Merry Christmas,” Talia echoed, feeling a little giddy at the sight of the tree.

  “We have some boxes of decorations we’ll bring in too.” Jackson looked around the den. “How about putting it in that corner?”

  “Should be good,” Shay said. “You aren’t planning to put anything on that tree that’s breakable, are you? Poke is quite the rascal this time of year.”

  Gish’s mouth twisted in thought. “There’s nothing in the box that will be a problem if it breaks. We should skip the tinsel though.”

  “Yeah,” Shay agreed. “Not safe for cats. Oh, and no poinsettias either, I’m afraid.”

  “I never would have thought about those things. Good thing I didn’t trust myself to have any pets, huh?” Talia asked.

  “Don’t worry, I’ll make you cat savvy yet,” Shay said to Talia.

  Talia stared at Shay while she and the others positioned the tree in the corner of the room. Shay’s statement had sounded a lot like a promise to Talia, a promise of a future. Yes, she thought, this is going to be the best Christmas ever.

  After the tree was decorated, Poke went about exploring it thoroughly. Gish broke out some eggnog. “Sorry it’s nonalcoholic.”

  “Are you kidding? I want you both at your sober best to protect us from all the boogie men out there.” As soon as she said it, Talia wished she hadn’t. It had almost seemed like a normal Christmas Eve up to reminding herself and the others that it was anything but.

  “Aren’t you guys going to spend the holiday with your families?” Shay asked.

  “I’ll stay with you tonight,” Jackson said. “Then I’ll get to spend the day tomorrow with my family while Angela stays here.” He turned to Talia. “Hey, I was wondering if I could buy the poem about dancing from you. My sister would love it and I can never figure out the right gift for her and her partner.”

  “Yes, I would be honored if you gave your sister one of my paintings.” She felt tingly thinking about someone else enjoying her poem painting.

  “Great, I’ll take it with me tomorrow for my family’s get-together.”

  As elated as she was about the painting, Talia felt sad that Gish and Jackson had to split up their time during the holidays in order to protect her and Shay. Not that she didn’t appreciate it, but she just wished it wasn’t necessary.

  She thought about the last Christmas her father was alive. It was another of his over-the-top holiday meals. Then she thought about Thanksgiving dinner with Brian a month earlier, when he told Talia the story about their dad getting angry at her. She felt a little sick, not knowing if it was just another one of Brian’s lies.

  Why did he do it? she wondered. Why did he lie so much? She could remember when they were growing up and their mom would lie to their dad to keep them out of trouble. Once when Talia asked her mom why she always did that, her mom’s response was, “Why shouldn’t I? Why should he be able to put you two on restriction just to go away for work and leave me stuck with you whining and crying about being home?” At the time, the answer to her question didn’t faze her. Now, after all that had happened, from her dad’s death, to her mom’s leaving for a new life, and now this thing with Brian, she thought it was no big surprise they were all such messed-up Liarheads.

  Well, Talia was living a new life. A life without lying and a life with Shay. She watched as Shay grabbed the newspaper from the kitchen counter and took it into the den to read. Talia never read the paper, unless she was looking for a specific story, and the fact that Shay always did made her seem so much more like an adult than Talia would ever feel.

  Talia grabbed her notepad and pen. She’d been working on a poem about Shay that she had titled “Vanilla.”

  When Shay muttered, “Whoa,” Talia sat down next to her and read over Shay’s shoulder. The newspaper article was about Officers Dixon and McCoy—the same officers who’d claimed Paulie had resisted arrest when they assaulted him—getting caught beating up another gay man. This time there was security camera footage and several witnesses.

  “Feel vindicated?” Talia asked.

  “No, just sad and angry.” Shay held up the paper. “Look at what page the article is on.”

  Talia saw it was almost at the back of the news section. “But it’s better than nothing, right?”

  “Do you think we’ll always have to accept ‘better than nothing’?” Shay asked.

  Talia massaged Shay’s shoulders and thought about how Allie and Diane were relegated to back pages as well and how Bernie never really made the pages at all. “I sure hope not.”

  Shay leaned forward slightly. “I’ll give you all day to stop doing that.”

  Talia smiled, then kissed the top of Shay’s head. She rubbed Shay’s tight muscles and thought about touching her in a more intimate way and felt herself grow wet. “Wow,” she whispered.

  “Wow, what?” Shay asked. She turned around to look at Talia. “Why is your face so red?”

  Talia laughed. “Use your imagination.”

  Shay gestured for her to lean down and when Talia did, Shay whispered in her ear, “I’d like to use more than just my imagination.”

  Talia’s breath caught in her chest. “Yes.”

  †

  Shay hung up the phone after talking to her parents and wishing them a Merry Christmas. She’d just walked back into the den when the phone rang. Talia and Shay both jumped. Shay wondered how long it would be before they quit associating the ringing of the phone with Brian’s sick game of cat and mouse. When Jackson answered the phone, he did so with his back to them. When he turned to face them after a lot of “I sees” and “ah ha’s” his expression was unreadable. “Yes, they’re right here.”

  Shay smiled. As if they could be anywhere else. She glanced at Talia, who had quit reading her novel and spread the tattered copy of Rubyfruit Jungle opened on her lap as she watched Jackson.

  Jackson thanked the caller and hung up. He took his time freshening up his coffee before making his way into the den and sitting on the chair across from where Shay and Talia sat close on the sofa.

  “What’s up?” Talia asked.

  “Hampton PD found Jeffrey Gardner’s van.”

  “Oh?” Shay asked. “And what about him?”

  “Inconclusive right now. The van was found in the parking lot of an abandoned auto shop. It had been burned up.”

  “And they’re sure it’s his van?” Talia asked.

  “Yes. It’s a dark blue, 1983 Chevy G20 diesel and the VIN matched. There are badly burned human remains inside the van. Hopefully they’ll be able to tell conclusively whether or not it’s Gardner.”

  “Wow,” Talia whispered. “Was it foul play?”

  “Are you asking if we think Brian found him first?” Jackson asked.

  “Well, if not Brian, than someone else he’s pissed off. My brother can’t possibly be the only person who has an ax to grind with this guy.”

  Shay wondered if Talia knew how much it sounded like she was defending her brother. When Tali
a looked away quickly and wouldn’t look at either Shay or Jackson, Shay figured she did.

  A few hours later when the phone rang again, Shay followed Jackson into the kitchen. She watched Talia from the doorway and was pretty sure she was pretending to read. This time Jackson only spoke for a second before hanging up and turning to Shay.

  “They found part of Gardner’s wallet and driver’s license on the body. It was charred but still readable. They’ll still try to get DNA from the remains, but there’s no real reason to think it’s not him.”

  Shay nodded. “Now we have to find Brian.” She didn’t take her eyes off Talia as she spoke.

  “Is she going to be okay?” Jackson asked.

  “I sure hope so,” she whispered. Shay couldn’t even begin to imagine how it would be to find out that someone you’d known and loved your whole life was a monster. She couldn’t even begin to comprehend what that could do to someone.

  †

  “I can’t believe there are only a few hours left in 1986.” Shay plopped down on the sofa, close to Talia.

  “I can’t believe we’ve been squirreled away in this house for two weeks,” Talia countered.

  “It hasn’t been all bad, has it?” Shay asked.

  Talia snuggled in closer. “No. I especially like Jackson’s runs.” She felt her face warming and smiled into Shay’s neck.

  “Yeah, me too.” Shay laughed. “Do you think he normally runs this much, or is he doing it to give us a lot of…private time?”

  “I don’t know.” Talia squeezed Shay’s leg. “Are you making any New Year’s resolutions?”

  “No, I never keep them anyway,” Shay answered. “How about you?”

  “I’m resolving to keep working on the honesty thing.”

  Shay smiled. “You’ve been doing great as far as I can tell.”

  “Thank you. I’m also resolving not to let my brother keep me prisoner too much longer.”

  Shay took her hand. “We have to stay here and wait for them to find Brian. Our number one priority has to be to stay safe.”