“Something like that,” Leilani replied with a grin. She enjoyed the pleasant chatter as Jinx helped her place the ornaments and decorations. When the last ornament was in place, Leilani stepped back to survey their handiwork. “Perfect,” she said.
“Definitely says, ‘I wish I was in Hawaii,’ that’s for sure,” Jinx added.
Leilani sighed. “Yes, I suppose it does. I can’t help it.”
“I get it, you miss home. That must be a weird feeling.”
“It can be.” Leilani noticed Jinx yawning and glanced at her watch. “You’d best get some rest. I’m sure you must be exhausted after everything you’ve been through.”
“Hopefully I can get to sleep. I ache everywhere. Helping you decorate took my mind off it for a while, but now it’s all coming back to me.”
“Do you want a regular strength aspirin?”
Jinx shook her head. “No, I’ll be fine. A little extra sleep is probably all I need.”
“Suit yourself. If there’s anything I can do to help you, just let me know. I’ve got some extra pillows if that might help.”
“Nah, I’m sure I’ll be fine. Thanks, though. Good night.”
“Night.” Leilani took one last look at her Christmas tree. Surfboards, sharks, turtles, and sea shells hung everywhere. It fairly screamed homesick. She sighed before taking out the new supplies she’d bought. Once she had everything she needed set up on her work desk, Leilani began laying out the pieces for her recovery project. She carefully applied layers of watercolor onto the thick piece of paper. She let go of her thoughts as she allowed her feelings to guide the paintbrush and colors. Dark swirls met with light. Jagged lines faded into smooth, curved strokes. When the colors stopped speaking to her, Leilani stood, allowing the watercolor time to dry. She went into the kitchen and made herself a cup of cocoa. From Jinx’s room came the faint sound of whimpering. Leilani frowned. She walked over and knocked on the door. “Jinx?” she said quietly as she peeked her head in. “Are you okay?”
“I can’t sleep. Everything hurts, and every time I close my eyes, I relive last night.” Jinx sniffled. “I know I should take something to help lessen the pain, to let me relax enough to sleep. But I can’t. I just can’t.”
Leilani sat on the bed and held Jinx gently, rocking her as she would a child. “It’s okay, ipo. I know it hurts. Perhaps a sand bottle would help ease your mind.”
Jinx shook her head. “I can’t hold the bottle with this cast.”
“Then I’ll hold the bottle.” Leilani led Jinx back to the living room. “I’ll make some tea for you. It won’t take the pain away, but it will at least help you relax.” When she returned with the tea, she saw Jinx looking at the watercolor painting.
“I don’t understand what you have here,” Jinx said. “Most of your paintings are pictures. This is just mixes of color.”
Leilani nodded. “It’s meant to be. The picture will be on top of it.”
“You’re going to do sand art on top of watercolor?”
“Not exactly.” Leilani motioned to the pile of ripped canvases. “I’m going to make a collage. A piece to show that even when something is broken, or damaged, it can still be made whole again. Perhaps not what it was, but it can be made new. Perhaps into something even better.”
“That’s a beautiful idea,” Jinx said quietly.
“I hope it turns out that way.” Leilani got out an empty bottle and a few bags of colored sand. “Just tell me which direction to tip the bottle, and you can fill it however you need to tonight.”
After about twenty minutes, Jinx said, “I think it’s done.”
Leilani put a stopper in the bottle and smiled. “Feeling a little better?”
“Yeah, I am.”
“Good. You’d probably best get to bed now. Not getting enough rest will only prolong your recovery time.”
“Thanks for helping me out tonight,” Jinx said.
Smiling, Leilani said, “Any time.”
Jinx stood and began walking away. She paused. “You know we’re going to Butch’s for Christmas, right?”
Leilani had nearly forgotten. “I suppose. We could always cancel.”
“Don’t. I’m actually looking forward to seeing what he’ll make for dinner, since he claims not to like cooking much.”
“True,” Leilani replied. “Sleep well, Jinx.”
“Aren’t you going to bed soon?”
Leilani shook her head. “I want to finish this piece first.”
“Don’t stay up too late.”
Chapter 23
With performances planned over the next several evenings, Leilani arranged for Butch to pick Jinx up from work and sit with her in the apartment until she returned from the various venues she would be performing at. The first night, he waited patiently for her to arrive. Under her tree, he’d placed a simply wrapped box with the hope that she wouldn’t notice it until after he left. The hours ticked by as he read silently on the couch. Butch avoided looking at his watch, or letting his mind wander to the what-ifs section. Darla had called to say they still had no leads on Clint’s whereabouts, and that none of the people they’d been able to find were willing to give any information. Butch wasn’t surprised. Men like Clint knew how to keep those under their influence quiet.
He peeked at his watch. Leilani should have been back. Butch picked up his phone to call her, but decided to text instead. You ok?
Silence reigned in the small apartment. He wasn’t the type to pace a room, but nerves tingled up and down his body. Despite his efforts to stay positive, what ifs flooded his mind. If she needed him, why was he still sitting here? She could be dying.
“Relax,” he told himself firmly. “Maybe they had more fans than normal.”
Or maybe one of the fans was actually Clint and he’s dumping her body outside of town.
Butch muttered a curse and pulled his phone out. Just when he was about to call Leilani’s number, the doorknob rattled. Senses on full alert, Butch forced himself to remain in his seat. The breath he’d been holding whooshed from him as Leilani walked into the apartment. “I’m so sorry I’m late,” she said.
“What took you so long?” Butch demanded.
Leilani shivered as she walked toward the kitchen. “Traffic getting out of the arena was terrible, and I didn’t get out until late to begin with...”
“What took so long?”
“It shouldn’t have happened. It won’t happen again. I’m really sorry.”
Butch took Leilani’s arms and turned her gently so she was facing him. “Leilani, what happened?”
Tears shone in her eyes. “There was an accident with one of the pools. Dana will be fine, she’ll be okay, but, the stage dropped. The tank shattered.” Her voice caught in a sob. “Butch, she almost drowned. An Olympic swimmer almost drowned.”
Swearing under his breath, Butch looked down at the floor. He forced himself to look back at Leilani. “Are the police sure it was an accident?”
She nodded. “Yes. There is no reason to suspect foul play. I’m just a little shaken, that’s all. The rest of the cast stayed after longer to discuss how to proceed. They’ve decided to cancel the show.”
Butch stared at her. “Canceled? But, don’t you still have three weeks or something like that?”
“Two, but it can’t be helped,” Leilani replied, pulling away from Butch and opening her cupboard to pull out a pair of mugs. She set a pot of water on the stove and turned on the burner before continuing, “There aren’t exactly a lot of professional mermaids in the world, you know. The show can’t go on without one of the lead members. It would take rewriting the script entirely.”
“So, does this mean you’ll be going home early?”
Leilani shook her head. “I can’t. Rent here goes through the middle of January. The cost of breaking contract is more than I could scrounge up before then. I’m not sure how I’ll make rent anyway.”
“Wait, isn’t the production company still going to pay you? It’s not your fault t
he show has been canceled.”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I don’t know anything right now. A lot of those shows were already close to sold out, or fully sold out. The company is going to have to refund all those tickets. When they’re done with that, I don’t know how much will be left for the performers. We’re supposed to meet tomorrow afternoon to discuss our options.”
Butch watched her for a moment. “I’m really sorry. You had a great act.”
“Yeah, I feel worse for Dana. It’s going to be a long time before she can get back in the water again.”
“Is there anything I can do?”
Leilani remained quiet as she poured water into the mugs and stirred in packets of cider. “I don’t know, Butch. Probably not.” She handed him a mug. “Listen, about the other day. I feel like I should apologize.”
“I was more in the wrong than you, Leilani,” Butch said gently. “I ran my big mouth without thinking of what I was saying.”
“But you were trying to help me and I blew up on you.” Leilani sighed. “I didn’t consider that with your background and the things you’ve experienced, it made sense for you to draw the wrong conclusion.”
Butch scoffed. “That doesn’t make me right. It’s really not fair of me to judge a guy without even knowing him. I guess the grumpy grizzly you keep saying isn’t me came out a bit.”
Leilani smiled, and Butch resisted the urge to kiss that little dimple in her cheek. “It did. Anyway, I’m sorry.”
“I should be sorry. I let you leave by yourself, clean your apartment by yourself, and try to gauge the damage by yourself. I’m guessing Mr. Lawrence was less than helpful?”
“He’s going to take the damages out of my deposit and then bill me anything over it,” Leilani replied. “Absolutely no word on when he’ll actually send someone around to fix the dents in the wall. I may just fix them myself.”
“Let me take care of this one. Working in the insurance industry, I know a thing or two which could light a fire under his pants.”
Laughing, Leilani said, “All right. Sounds good.” She finished her cider. “Well, I should probably let you get back home. I’m sure you’re tired.”
“Probably.” Butch kissed Leilani’s cheek. “Try to get some rest tonight. We’ll find a way to make things work out.”
“Which things?” Leilani asked.
The pain in Leilani’s voice cut Butch deeply. She looked exhausted, and worse discouraged. “All the things. Any things,” he said. “For tonight, I don’t want you to worry about what’s going to happen or not happen tomorrow. You just try to picture yourself on long beaches, listening to crashing waves.”
“Mmm, sounds perfect.”
“I imagine it is. Maybe you could imagine me there with you.”
Leilani smiled. “I’d like that.”
Butch walked toward the door, then motioned to the completed collage now hanging on Leilani’s wall. “I meant to tell you earlier, I really like what you did with the ruined pieces.”
Leilani beamed. “I’m glad you do. I think it’s my favorite piece so far.”
“If you have any other pieces of canvas left, I’d love it if you made one for me. I’d even be willing to pay you for the materials and things.”
“Payment wouldn’t be necessary, this time,” Leilani added when Butch opened his mouth to argue. “You could call it a Christmas present. And yes, I did have more pieces than would fit the canvas. I was thinking of making it a series anyway. There were just so many bits that I couldn’t bear to throw out.”
“Understandable. Anyway, I’ll leave you be so you can rest. Good night, Leilani.”
“Good night.”
Chapter 24
Leilani wasn’t the least bit tired when Butch left her apartment. At least, not enough to wipe the screams in the arena from her mind. She knew in all likelihood the production company would go bankrupt after the losses. The accident should never have happened. And while police hadn’t in their initial search found anything to suspect deliberate intentions, questions among the cast remained unanswered. She got out her watercolors. The back and forth rhythm of painting the backdrop for a new collage settled her frayed nerves. The real world disappeared as she lost herself in a place of pigment, light, and shadows. Nothing existed outside the canvas.
Without warning, something heavy slammed into her back. She yelped in pain as she lurched forward into the work desk. Her water jar fell, drenching the half-finished painting as it rolled to the floor. She turned as another blow hit her, sending her sprawling to the ground.
“Thought you could keep her safe, did ya?” a dark voice sneered.
Leilani looked up at her attacker. She recognized the man from that first day Jinx had come into her life. “I’m not going to let you hurt her, Clint,” she rasped.
His laughter set a chill in Leilani’s bones. “Hard to stop someone when you’re dead,” he replied. “Once you’re out of the way, Jinx will be easy.”
Her eyes widened as Clint pulled out a knife. Leilani scrambled to her feet, looking for anything she could use to defend herself. She grabbed a nearby jar and threw it.
Clint deflected it easily. As it shattered against the floor, he leered at her. “You’re no match for me, girlie. I’ve been on the street longer than you’ve been alive.”
“That’s really not something to be proud of,” Leilani spat. Her eyes fell on her costume bag. She kept her repair kit in there. Her sewing sheers could do a lot of damage, if she could just get to them. She grabbed an open jar of sand and flung it at her attacker. Colored grains flew through the air. Clint raised an arm to shield his eyes, cursing and sputtering. Leilani ran to the bag and grabbed it.
She yelped as Clint grabbed a fistful of her hair, yanking her backwards. She felt the tip of his knife against her throat. “Nice try,” he whispered. Now, get up.”
Leilani slowly did as she was told, aware of noise gathering outside. “You’ll never get away with this.”
“I ain’t stupid, girlie,” Clint retorted, spit hitting her face. “I know how to get what I want.”
The door swung open and lights flooded the room as police officers swarmed in. “Drop your weapon,” Darla Good demanded, her gun glinting in the lights as it pointed at Clint.
Clint growled and jabbed the knife point closer.
“Drop it!” Darla bellowed.
“Are you willing to risk hitting her, officer?” Clint sneered.
Leilani could feel the blade digging into her neck. She forced herself to remain calm even as she felt the scrape of the metal against her skin. Please, God, help me!
Leilani screamed as a gun went off. Clint let go of her, yowling in pain. The officers surrounded him, forcing him to his feet as he clutched his shoulder.
“You’ll be sorry! They can’t keep me locked up forever,” Clint yelled. “Jinx is mine! She owes me!”
“Read him his rights and get him seen by the paramedics,” Darla barked. She turned to Butch, who stood next to her holding a gun out. “How many times do I have to beat it through your skull that you are not a superhero?”
“Hopefully this will be the last time,” Butch replied. “I had a clear shot, and I wasn’t going to waste it.”
Darla glared at him. “You still have to come down to the station, you know that.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She turned to Leilani. “Are you okay?”
“Bruised, scared to death, but otherwise I think I’m okay.”
Darla nodded. “Come with me to the station and we’ll get this all reported. The nightmare should be over soon.”
“Okay.” Leilani frowned. “How did you know to come? I didn’t have a chance to call for help.”
“But I did,” Jinx said, walking into the room. “Butch got me a cell phone for Christmas. Good thing too. I heard something out in the living room and glanced around the corner. When I saw Clint there, I hurried back to my room and called 911.”
“I’m glad you did.�
� Leilani turned to Butch. “What brought you here?”
He shrugged. “Couldn’t sleep and heard something unusual. I called Darla, but she was already on her way. Your guardian angels have been working overtime for you.”
“For which I’m grateful.”
“Yes, well, right now I need all of you to come give your statements,” Darla said gruffly. “Then we’ll lock that guy up. With any luck, he won’t be able to post bail.” She paused for a moment. “May not be what you want to hear right at this moment, but I was sorry to hear about your show being canceled.”
Leilani nodded. “Thanks.”
“My division always does a little Christmas Eve celebration at the rec center. I’m sure a lot of the kids we help would love to meet a real, live mermaid. It would be volunteer, of course, but if you’re up for it...”
“I’d be glad to,” Leilani said.
Darla smiled. “Good. I think that’s going to be just the thing we need around here to bring everything back to normal. You can follow in your own car, if you’d prefer.”
“Thank you, that would be best I think.” As Darla nodded and walked away, Leilani turned to Butch. “I’m glad you came.”
“I’m not,” he grumbled. “I’m going to have nightmares for weeks about that. How did he even get in?”
“Picked the lock?” Leilani guessed. “I don’t know. I was painting, and when I get really focused on a piece, the whole world disappears.”
Butch’s voice turned gruff with emotion as he said, “Well, you better not scare me like that again. I couldn’t bear it if anything happened to you.”
Warmth spread through Leilani as she reached a hand to touch his cheek. “Hopefully, you’ll never have to worry again.”
“Yeah, save the cutesies for later,” Jinx said. “Let’s get down to the station and give them what they need. I’m working early in the morning.”
Leilani couldn’t help but giggle as Butch muttered something about feisty teenagers. The nightmare truly was over. She and Jinx would be safe.
Chapter 25
A Mermaid Under The Mistletoe Page 10
