“Where are you going?” Rayanna screams.
“I’m going down to look through the front doors. Stay. Here. I mean it.”
“No, Lucien! Don’t go―”
“Stay here. Call Clint. But do NOT open this door for ANYBODY. Do you understand me?”
“Yes, sir,” she whines. “Please, Lucien―”
“Not for anybody. I’ll be back.” As soon as the door closes, I take a deep breath and count to ten, an attempt to get my racing heart to stay in my chest. When I get to the front door, I stand to the side and look out the glass, careful to only expose as much of myself as necessary.
I see no one. Nothing except cars and passers-by. If he’s out there, he’s doing a good job of hiding, but I also know he could be behind any window in the building across the street, and that spooks me enough that I high-tail it back to the apartment. When I clear the front door and lock it, she asks, “Did you see him?”
“No. But that doesn’t mean he’s not around. He could be anywhere. Did you get Clint?”
“Yeah. He’s on his way. He said to stay in the apartment. Since he saw Connor in the courtroom that day, Clint can spot him if he’s out there. He told me he’d call you when he’s downstairs and in position.”
I don’t even get a chance to respond before my phone starts ringing, and I stare down at the screen. Reagan. Something cold and hard solidifies in my stomach and I feel queasy. I just hit ACCEPT and say, “Hello?”
“Lucien, it’s Reagan. Are you guys okay?”
“No, actually, we’re―”
“Terry’s in the hospital. Connor showed up last night and beat him to a bloody pulp, but Carly and I managed to get inside and call the police. I’m afraid he’s going to―”
“He’s here, Reagan. Rayanna saw him just a little while ago.”
“Shit. Please, be careful. Why didn’t they call you and tell you he was out?”
“Who knows? But they didn’t. We could’ve been killed. My guess is that he was here, followed you guys home, then turned around and came back here. So he’s got two police departments looking for him now.”
“The doctors are telling me Terry’s going to be okay, but it was pretty bad and I―”
“Where’s Carly?”
“She’s at a neighbor’s house. The woman’s husband is a deputy sheriff, so I feel pretty comfortable with her there, but honestly, when Terry gets out we may leave town for a little while just in case.”
“I would suggest that. And let me know if he shows up there again, but I don’t think he will. He doesn’t want Carly. He wants …” Movement catches my eye and my head pivots so that I can see Rayanna, tears streaming down her face. “He wants Rayanna. And he’s not getting her. Not while I have breath.”
“That breath thing? Connor will try to change that. Just be careful. He’s the biggest piece of shit I’ve ever known. If he wants Rayanna―and I think he does―the only thing that will stop him is a bullet.”
“I’ve got plenty of those, and so do my friends. But you take care of Terry and let us know that Carly’s okay, please?”
“I will. Thank you for taking care of my little sister. I don’t want him getting his hands on her again.”
“He won’t. He’d better not, or he won’t have any hands left.”
“Tell her I love her. Bye, Lucien. Good luck.”
“Thanks.” Rayanna looks like she’s going to faint. “Babe, sit down. You don’t look good.”
“Oh, god. Where’s Carly?” I tell her everything Reagan said as she buries her face in her hands. I know she’s overwhelmed, but so am I. I’m wondering how Carly is going to stay safe, and how I’m going to keep her mother safe. When I’m finished, she starts to cry. “Lucien, I don’t want anything to happen to you because of me.”
“It won’t. We’re safe. We just have to stay vigilant and let our friends help us. And they will.” My phone rings and I just answer without looking. “Hello?”
“I’m downstairs. Sitting in the car. I don’t see him anywhere, but that doesn’t mean he’s not there.”
“I told her the same thing.”
“I’m armed and I’ll keep an eye out,” Clint says. “If he’s out here, we’ll find him, Lucien. I promise.”
“Thanks. I appreciate it.”
“Tonight Boone will be coming over to sit up while you guys sleep.”
“Oh, that’s not―”
“You need your rest to stay on your toes. If you’re worn out, you’ll get sloppy. I’ve got an appointment with a client this afternoon, but Brian will be coming down to take my place. We’ve got you covered, bud. This guy isn’t going to get to you. I won’t let that happen―none of us will.”
“Clint, I―”
“You’re welcome. You see or hear anything you shouldn’t, call me. Call somebody. Don’t just sit on it. You got your handgun handy?”
“Yes. Loaded.”
“Good. Hang tight. We’ll get him.”
We spend the rest of the day sitting there, waiting―for what, I’m not sure. Rayanna vacillates between crying and pacing. I don’t really know what to do, and I’m still so pissed off I can barely stand it. If they’d called us, we could be two hundred miles away, and Bacchus would have no idea where we were.
At nine o’clock, Boone calls. “I’m downstairs and I’m coming up.”
“You don’t have to―”
“I said, I’m downstairs and I’m coming up. Don’t argue with me. Just be at the door.”
By ten, he’s firmly anchored on the sofa, a huge shotgun cradled in his arms, and he’s shooing us off to the bedroom. We wind up sitting up in bed, leaning back into the pillows at the head, talking. She spends most of that time crying. Bless her heart, she looks up at me and says, “Lucien, if anything happens to you because of me, I won’t be able to stand it.”
“Nothing’s going to happen to me.”
“You don’t know that.” She’s right. I don’t. But I’m going to tell her that anyway.
We finally scoot down under the covers and I hold her as tightly as I can. It feels as though everything we’ve done, everything she’s worked so hard to accomplish, is evaporating before our eyes. This is so unfair, so wrong, so painful that I can’t even comprehend it. He’s out there somewhere, watching, waiting, ready to pounce. Can I protect her from that?
I’m not sure she ever actually sleeps, but I know for a fact that I don’t. I know what Boone and Clint said, but it’s impossible to close my eyes. Every fiber in my being is on red alert. When the sun starts to peek in around the curtains, I’m actually relieved. I don’t have to pretend to sleep anymore, or even attempt it. It’s time to get up.
When I step into the living room, Boone’s got a pot of coffee made and he’s talking on the phone, I presume to Clint or Dave. When he finishes, he turns and smiles at me. “Get some sleep?”
“No. Couldn’t.” The coffee is good, but it doesn’t have the desired effect. It usually brings me to life, but there’s no life in me. I feel empty and frightened.
“I wish you had. So I’m going to get on out of here and go home to my baby. She wanted me to come over here, but I know she didn’t sleep a wink without me in the bed with her. You guys will be all right. Clint’s already downstairs, and Dave’s coming at noon to spell him. If you need anything, call somebody, but do not go out. Not until we find this guy. And we will find him, Lucien. It’s just a matter of time.”
I nod and wish I could believe that. “Thanks, Boone. Tell Melina we said thanks too, please.”
“Will do. Talk to you later.” Without hesitation, he leans in and gives me a big bear hug. For the first time in my life, I’m truly glad to feel another man’s body against mine. The warmth of his big frame gives me hope. Then he opens the door and steps out.
It opens instantly. “Get out here,” he growls low and deep, and something inside me freezes over. When I’m just outside the door, he hands me something. “Here. Take a look.”
You bit
ch! I know you’re in there and I’m coming to get you. That half-breed boyfriend of yours can’t protect you forever. You’ll be mine. Spare everybody a lot of heartache and pain and just give up. You’re a piece of trashy shit and you always will be. I beat your dumbass brother-in-law’s ass into the ground and put him in intensive care. I know where Carly is, and I’ll take her if you don’t get your ass where it’s supposed to be. You belong to me, and I don’t like losing a piece of property. Spare their lives or what happens to them will be on you. Their blood will be on your hands.
A cold dread falls on me and I feel sick. “Where was that?”
“Stuck in the door. When I opened it, I saw something flutter down. He came up here last night while I was here and stuck it in there. I never heard a thing, so he was being really quiet. No doubt he saw me come in, so he knew I was here. Lucien, this is way more serious than I thought. You need to call the cops.”
“Call the cops about what?” We both turn to find Rayanna standing there. “About what? What’s going on?” I’ve just handed the paper back to Boone, so both our hands are on it, and there’s no hiding it. “What’s that?”
“You shouldn’t even―”
“Let me see it.”
Boone shakes his head. “No, Rayanna. It’s just best that―”
“I. SAID. LET. ME. SEE. IT,” she snaps, holding out a hand. As she begins to read it, I can see her hands trembling and the look on her face makes a wave of nausea break over me. “Well, that’s that.”
“What do you mean, that’s that?” I ask, terrified of the answer.
“I have to go to him. I can’t let him―”
“Oh, no,” Boone retorts, his voice molten lava. “You absolutely will not go to him. You’re going to be safe. It’ll be fine. We’re going to catch him and―”
“Don’t you see?” she shouts. “He’s going to kill Lucien and Carly! I don’t have a choice! If I go to him, he’ll leave them alone. That’s the only way.”
“He hasn’t killed them and he’s not going to,” Boone fires back. “Do you really want to go back there?”
“I don’t have a choice,” she says again, and there’s a faraway quality to her voice, something I’ve never heard before. It’s as though she’s disengaging, as though she’s pulling away from us, like she’s drifting and we can’t catch her. I feel it almost like it was a physical severing, a cutting away of something within me, and it’s mind-numbing.
“You do have a choice. Stay here with me, babe. Don’t worry about this. Boone, Clint, Dave, me, we’re all going to take care of this. I promise you.”
“You can’t stop him. You’ll never stop him. He won’t stop until he has me back.”
“I’m going downstairs to talk to Clint. There’s got to be a way to catch this guy,” Boone says as he heads out. “And you,” he says, pointing at Rayanna as he walks backward away from us, “you stay put. Don’t go out. Don’t do anything stupid. I mean it. I’d hate to have to whup your ass, girl.”
She says nothing, and that speaks more than words. I know what she’s going to try to do, and I feel powerless to stop her because I know if she makes up her mind to do it, she will. I don’t know what to do, so I do the only thing I know. “Come with me,” I tell her as I take her hand and lead her back inside. After I’ve locked the door, I pull her down the hallway and into the bedroom.
I’ve never before in my life made love and cried at the same time, but today I do. I feel her leaving me and I don’t know what to do about it except to let her know that I love her more than anything and anyone and I don’t want her to leave me. Just before I empty into her, I look down into her eyes and whisper, “Please, Precious, don’t leave me.”
“I’ll never leave you, Lucien. I’ll always be in your heart. Always.” Instead of the elation I’ve felt in the past as my cum claimed her for me, it’s more like I’ve just released the last little bit of my soul into the ether and I’m an empty shell. She presses a hand to each of my cheeks and I know she can feel the tears there. “I love you, sir.”
“I love you too, Precious. Always and forever. Rayanna, please, I beg you, don’t―”
“Do you want something to drink? I’m thirsty. I’m getting a bottle of water. You want some?”
I nod. “Sure.”
She’s only gone for a minute or two and she comes back with two bottles of water. “Here ya go,” she says as she opens one and hands it to me. I hadn’t realized how thirsty I was until I press the bottle’s rim to my lips and drink deeply. She’s doing the same, and then she curls back up against me as our bodies intertwine, her softness soothing me as my eyes close.
The ringing of my phone wakes me and I reach over and pat the bed, but she’s not there. “Hello?” I answer.
“Lucien? You guys okay up there?” Brian’s voice asks over the phone.
“Yeah. We’re fine. Just napping. We didn’t sleep much last night.”
“I suppose not. So far none of us have seen anything. Have you heard anything?”
“No.” I can’t put a finger on it, but something doesn’t feel right. And then it hits me.
The apartment’s quiet―too quiet. I leap up out of the bed, no concern with the fact that I’m not wearing a stitch, and look in the bathroom. I’m so panic-stricken that I don’t even have the phone to my ear, and I hear Brian saying, “Lucien? Lucien? Are you there? What’s going on?”
Running up the hallway, I slide to a stop in the kitchen and look around. What am I missing? Glancing around, I can’t figure it out.
Until I see the pill bottle on the counter.
And I know what it is. When I step over to it, there’s a powdery substance on the countertop, and I know she crushed a pill. One of her sleeping pills. I’ve already looked at the clock―I was asleep for three hours. That’s when I see it.
There’s a folded piece of paper on the coffee table, and I cross the room in a flash, grab it, and drop, still naked, onto the sofa. My hands are trembling as I unfold it because I know as well as I’m breathing what it’s going to say.
My dearest Lucien,
I’m sorry, but there was no other way. He will hound us until one or both of us are dead. At least this way you’re spared. So is Carly. Please tell her as she’s growing up how much I love her and want her with me. My sister is a decent person―we share a father, not my crazy mother―and how I wish Dad had gotten custody of me. If he had, my life would’ve been different, more like Reagan’s, instead of the fucked-up mess I’ve become. When you think of me, try to remember the times we spent together that were fun and sweet. I’m sure I won’t be around much longer, but my spirit will be with you always.
Take care, my love, until we meet on the other side.
Yours truly forever and always until the end of time,
Precious
Everything is there. Her phone. Her keys. I run to the bedroom and check. All her clothes are there. Everything. There’s not one thing I’ve given her that’s been taken. She knows what he’ll do to her, and she won’t need those things, not where she’s going. But there’s one thing she hasn’t left.
She hasn’t left her pendant. And that’s all I have to cling to.
* * *
I spent the afternoon at the nearest police precinct, trying to get them to take this seriously, but they kept saying that if she went of her own free will, there is nothing they can do. She’s a grown woman and can make that decision. They can’t seem to grasp the fact that she’s been so beaten down by him that she lacks the ability to think rationally where he’s concerned. A detective named Matt Littlemeier, someone Brian and Dave know, came out to talk to me. Once he’d explained why the department was taking that stance regarding my report, he also said, “You know, there are more ways to get something like this done than to go through the police department. But you didn’t hear that from me.” I got his message loud and clear, and so did Dave and Brian.
So we end up here. Not so long ago, we were all here in Boone and M
elina’s house, eating and drinking and laughing during Rayanna’s party. Now there’s a circle of men, their lips pursed into grim lines, all sitting around Boone and Melina’s dining room table as they look at little scraps of cobbled-together information and try to figure out what to do.
And I can’t. My mind isn’t working. I’m barely breathing. My thoughts are a million miles away when I finally hear someone saying, “Lucien? Lucien. Lucien, hey, join us.”
My head snaps around and I see Brian standing there, concern etching lines into his face. “Yeah. I’m here.”
“Tell us what you know about Connor Bacchus.”
I shrug. “I know he’s a bastard who’s mouth-breathing air decent people could be enjoying.”
“Where is he originally from?” Clint asks. I shrug at that too. “Do you know anything about his family?”
“Wait.” I remember something. What was it she said? “Um, yeah. He has a sister. Angie? No. Amy. That’s it―Amy.”
“But you don’t know where they lived?”
“No.”
Clint stands there for a minute. “Do you know where she was when he beat her and she landed in the hospital?”
“Hang on. I may have that.” For reasons I don’t understand, as I was leaving the apartment I grabbed two things―her sketch book and Ted’s file on her. Ripping through it, I finally find some hospital records. “Um, says here she was in the Yakima Presbyterian Hospital. That’s in Yakima County, right?”
“Yeah. About two hours from here. Where does Reagan live?”
“It’s a weird name.”
Dave snorts. “That’s ninety percent of Washington state.”
“Kittitas.” I peer down at the piece of paper. “Here it is. It’s the court documents from when the court awarded guardianship of Carly to Reagan and Terry. They live in Kittitas.”
Dave’s nodding. “I think that means Bacchus wasn’t too far away.”
“Probably so,” Clint agrees. “Probably pretty close.”
Eternally Yours: Bliss Series, Book Six Page 24
