Then and now (Edge Of Retaliation, #3)

by Jewel, Bella

  The man pauses while the other guy is struggling in Tatum’s grips, trying to twist the gun as his body thrashes and his face becomes redder and redder. He can’t get the gun close enough because of the way Tatum is holding him. It’s so damned clever I can’t believe it didn’t cross my mind.

  “Put the gun down or you fuckin’ die. Throw it toward Jo, and if you pull the trigger, I’ll fuckin’ snap your neck.”

  The man who is gasping for air does what Tatum tells him—he throws the gun toward me. It slides across the ground, making me flinch, terrified it’ll go off, but it doesn’t. I scoot toward it, grabbing it with shaky hands and holding it up as best I can. I don’t know how to hold a damn gun, let alone how to shoot one.

  “Now, cut them both free. You’d better hurry, he’s about to run out of air. You don’t want to be the reason your boss dies now, do you?”

  He nervously eyes his boss, as if begging him to tell him what to do right about now. Does he risk it all to kill Tatum, or me, or Chase, or does he do as he’s told and let us go?

  His boss nods, still wheezing and gasping for air. The other man moves quickly, pulling out a knife and cutting us free. He doesn’t try anything; I don’t think he’d risk his bosses life in a poor attempt at stabbing us. When he’s done, he undoes the cuffs, all except Tatum’s, of course. He’s eased the pressure just enough on the man’s neck that he’s not as red.

  “Give her the key to my cuffs, then go and cuff yourself where we were sitting so I know you won’t follow us. Move.”

  The man does as Tatum asks, tossing the key to me and then going to the wall with an angry scowl and cuffing himself to it. When he’s done that, Tatum looks to me and murmurs, “Bring the rope here, tie his arms and legs.”

  I do as he asks, standing on wobbly legs that haven’t had enough movement in the last few days. Chase is trying to get to his feet, but he’s having trouble. He’s in a really bad way and needs a hospital urgently. I don’t worry about that for the minute, instead I rush over and hesitantly tie the legs of the man Tatum is holding. When I’ve done that, I tie his hands and step back. Tatum walks him over to where the other man is sitting, and tosses him on the ground, reaching out for the gun.

  I hand it to him.

  “Do not fuckin’ follow us.”

  The man he just dropped to the floor starts to laugh, a bitter, knowing laugh that makes my skin prickle. Like he knows something we don’t, like he’s one step ahead of us. I ignore it and rush over to Chase, helping him to his feet. Tatum studies the man laughing for a brief second before coming over and taking Chase’s weight, helping him out of the basement.

  We all move as quickly as we can, climbing the steps and moving out of the basement and through the old, yet well-secured warehouse, very hesitantly. As we go, we realize the two men are the only ones here. For now, at least. I’m not sure if that’s a good or bad thing. It seems ... strange.

  I don’t know, something just doesn’t feel right to me.

  “You okay?” Tatum asks, as we step outside into the darkness.

  I tip my head back and breathe in the fresh air that I’ve so desperately needed. We made it out. We actually made it out.

  “I’m okay,” I say.

  “We’ll take a truck back into town, no fuckin’ idea where we are but we’ll work it out. We need to find a phone to call Tanner, we’ll stop as soon as we find a town or a gas station.”

  “Okay,” I say, glancing around.

  There is only one truck here, and we help Chase over to it, opening the door. There is a set of keys in the ignition. I guess they weren’t planning on staying long. Probably just here to torment us, or tell us some horror story, or worse, and then they were planning to leave. Come to think of it, it was always super quiet in that basement, probably because there was no one up above.

  “Fuckin’ perfect,” Tatum murmurs, spotting the keys. He puts Chase into the back seat and says, “We’ll get you to a hospital, hang tight, buddy.”

  I climb into the front seat, rubbing my wrists, my body sore. I want to sleep, and eat, and shower, but mostly I want to see Callie. I want to see that they’re okay. I want this nightmare to be over.

  I think of Patrick, and I wonder if he’s at all concerned with the fact that he hasn’t heard from me for a few days. Would he even notice? If he did, how long would it take?

  Tatum climbs into the front seat and looks over to me. I can see his face far more clearly now with the interior light of the truck. I study it, taking in the dried blood and bruises, then I say, “You look awful.”

  He grins, making my heart do a silly flip flop. “You too, honey. Believe me.”

  I smile, small, but a smile, and we get the hell out of there.

  That seemed almost too easy.

  But who am I to question things?

  We’re free ... right?

  IT TAKES US A FEW HOURS to get back into the land of the living, so to speak. We reach the city, and immediately pull over to find a phone. A gas station is the closest thing, and I use the bathroom, cleaning up as best I can before heading inside to ask to borrow the phone. The lady behind the counter is lovely and happily hands it over to me.

  I have to be quick; Chase needs a hospital.

  I dial Callie, thanking the good lord I always make myself memorize numbers of those close to me, always imagining a situation exactly like this where I’d need it. Tatum doesn’t know Tanner’s number, so I’m the only option we have of finding out where they are.

  Surprisingly, Callie answers after a few rings and, with a cautious voice, says, “Hello?”

  “Callie?” I whisper, my voice thick.

  “Jo?” she gasps. “Jo, is that you?”

  “It’s me.”

  “You’re okay!” she cries, her voice breaking and the sound of crying coming through the phone. “Oh, thank god, they found you. They got to you.”

  “We got out; Tatum got us out. Is Tanner out looking for us?”

  Callie goes silent for a moment. “You didn’t see him and Ethan?”

  “No, I didn’t. Wait, where are you?”

  “I’m at the hotel, they convinced me to stay behind just in case something new came up. They found out where you guys are, and they are on their way right now to find you.”

  “Does Tanner have his phone? Call him, Callie. Don’t let him go there, those men are still there, he could get hurt.”

  “Shit, hang on, I’ll call him now.”

  “Wait, before you go, where are you?”

  She gives me the location where she’s staying and then hangs up after I tell her we’ll be there as soon as we’ve gotten checked out by the hospital. I rush back out to the truck and tell Tatum everything that’s happening.

  He goes silent, his face scrunched up.

  “What is it?” I ask.

  “Something just doesn’t seem right. It all seems ... too easy. The fact that Tanner found out where we were so easily, it wasn’t a location that was simple to come across. And the fact that they let us go ...”

  I know what he means, I felt the same way when we got out of there. The keys in the truck, the way they just let us overpower them. It all seemed ... set up.

  “Do you think they wanted us to get away?” I ask.

  “No.” Tatum shakes his head. “I think they want Tanner. He’s the one they’re after. He’s the one who started all of this. I’m startin’ to think they made it easy for him to find us, knowing he’d come after us ...”

  “They’re going to kill him,” I whisper.

  “And they were planning on killing us, too, but likely figured it didn’t matter if we got away or not, they knew Tanner would be on his way.”

  “Oh, god,” I gasp. “They’re in danger, Tatum.”

  He nods, and then says, “Get out, go inside, and call the police.”

  “What?” I gasp.

  “By the time we warn Tanner, it’ll be too late. We took half of them down, might as well finish it. We know where the
y are, we know that they’re waiting for him. Call the police, give them the location, end this once and for all.”

  “Are you sure?” I whisper.

  “It’s not worth riskin’ their lives. Go!”

  I do as he asks, rushing inside to borrow the phone again. I’m the only one who can, because if Tatum went inside looking the way he looks, they’d freak out. The lady lets me borrow the phone again, and I call the police. I tell them who I am because they already have our names, and then I tell them very quickly what’s happening.

  When they tell me they’re sending people out to the location, I call Callie again.

  “I couldn’t get hold of him,” she whispers, her voice frantic.

  “I’ve called the police and sent them out there; it might be the only chance we have of getting that dick locked up. Sit tight, it’ll all be over soon.”

  “What if they get hurt, Jo? I can’t bear any more pain ...”

  “It’ll be okay, I promise. I’m coming back now. I’ll see you soon, okay.”

  “Okay,” she whispers.

  Once I’m done, I thank the lady behind the counter profusely, and she’s staring at me with wide eyes, having overheard my conversation. I smile at her, then rush back out to the car and face Tatum. “What now?” I ask.

  He exhales. “We get him to the hospital, and then ... we wait.”

  And pray.

  Mostly pray.

  6

  CALLIE

  “He’s not saying much,” I say, curling Jo’s fingers in my hand, not letting her go, too afraid that if I do, she’ll be gone forever this time. She doesn’t seem to mind. In fact, it would seem she’s getting comfort from my excessive affection toward her. “He’s ... distracted.”

  I glance at Tanner who is sitting outside on the balcony, just staring. Tatum fell asleep an hour ago, when they all returned safely. Ethan went to the shower, quiet, and Tanner kind of ... just went outside. Whatever happened, it’s bothering him. I don’t know if I should push, or if I should just let him tell me.

  I’ve never been so scared, as I was waiting for them to return, wondering what had happened. The police called a few times, and we gave them as much information as we could. They didn’t tell us much either, it’s like we’re sitting right out in the open and yet we’re in the dark. Pitch black darkness with no answers.

  “Go and talk to him,” Jo encourages. “I’m exhausted anyway, I need sleep.”

  “Have you called Pat?” I ask her.

  She shakes her head. “No, no, I haven’t, and I don’t even know if I will. I think ... I think I’m done, Callie.”

  I squeeze her hand. “It’s about damn time.”

  She smiles and stands. “Thank you, for finding us.”

  “Thank you for coming back to me.”

  She nods, her eyes a little distant, and then she whispers, “I’m sorry, for the fight we had before you got shot. I feel terrible, it was ...”

  “It’s over with,” I say to her, cutting her off. “We’ve been through a lot, Jo, it’s bound to happen occasionally. Please, don’t worry about it. Go and get some rest, we’ll talk more in the morning.”

  She nods and then disappears into the bedroom. I glance back out at Tanner, and I wonder what he’s thinking. I stand and walk out quietly, finding a seat and dragging it over, sitting beside him. I look to him and say, carefully, “Do you want to talk about what happened?”

  “It was a set up,” he murmurs, his voice low.

  “I know.”

  “The cops got him, he’ll go away, but if they don’t find anythin', which there is a chance they won’t, it won’t be for long. He’s smart, really fuckin’ smart, he likely knew they’d be comin' for him and tied all his lose ends.”

  “I’m sure they’ll find something, and he’ll stay away ...”

  “They shouldn’t have called the cops, doing that started a war.”

  “How so?” I whisper. “They’re locked away, Tanner. They can’t do anything.”

  He laughs, bitterly. “You’re naïve, Callie. For someone who has been behind bars.”

  That feels a little like a slap to the face, and in a sharp voice, I growl, “What happened out there? Instead of insulting me, maybe you’ll try telling me.”

  He looks over to me, his eyes locking onto mine. “Not insultin' you at all. I’m pointin' out the obvious. You’re all thinkin’ it’s over, but it’s only just beginning.”

  “How?” I grind out, frustrated.

  He’s not explaining himself; he’s talking in riddles.

  “When they were lockin' him up, he told me he’s comin' for us when he’s out, and he’ll make us wish we were never born. I take a threat like that seriously, men like him don’t just roll over when someone does what we just did, they come back harder, stronger, and I have no doubt he’ll make us wish we were never born. If you all had let me take care of him, this wouldn’t be happenin'.”

  I blink, confused.

  I didn’t think of that.

  I don’t know why.

  I guess the naïve part of me did believe it was over if they got locked up, but Tanner is right, men like that don’t just lie down and take something like what we did, they get revenge, and that revenge is usually bloody and graphic.

  “We’re not safe,” I say, and it’s not a question, it’s reality.

  “No, we’re not fuckin’ safe. For now, we are, dependin' how long he gets, but when he gets out, he’ll come after us. All of us, not just me, and he’ll make us wish we took another path.”

  I close my eyes, exhaling. “Have you talked to Tatum about this?”

  “No, haven’t spoken to anyone. What the fuck are they goin’ to do about it?”

  “I don’t know, have him hit in prison?”

  Tanner does that chuckle again. “Once again, if only it were that easy. He’ll make sure he’s covered, in case that happens, he’s clever.”

  Of course.

  “What about if we change our names and start somewhere new. All of us...”

  “You’re goin’ to ask everyone to change their lives, move away from those they love? I doubt it. Even then, you think they won’t go after our families until they find us? He knows who we are. He knows everything there is to know. We don’t run from this, Callie, we have to wait, and we have to face it.”

  I exhale and put my head in my hands.

  Just when I thought it was over.

  Just when I thought I might finally be free.

  Just when I thought I could finally breathe.

  Just when I thought it would all be okay.

  I find out it won’t be.

  It’s so far from okay.

  It’s all starting again, only this time it feels much, much worse.

  Damn you, Fate.

  You sadistic bitch.

  I STARE OUT THE WINDOW of the truck as it moves down the highway, all of us sitting in dead silence. I thought this trip home would be filled with the sensation of freedom, but it’s filled with nothing but fear, and guilt, and regret. It’s filled with the unknown. I was meant to be bringing Chase back to face his actions, and I am doing that, only I’m bringing back so much more, too.

  Chase is coming back with us, after spending a week in the hospital. He’s doing better, and much to his dismay, is coming back to tell the truth. It seems ... I don’t know, empty now. Like it no longer matters the way it used to. We thought it would let Celia rest, but instead her demons are going to chase us down until they finally meet with us again.

  We don’t know when that will be.

  All we know is that it’ll happen, and it’ll change our lives.

  I haven’t spoken much to Chase. Mostly, we make eye contact and so many unspoken words pass between us. Everything else has been so hectic, it has been hard to find the right time to sit with him and ask the million questions I want to ask. He avoids me if we’re ever alone together, and I get it.

  I do.

  I’d be scared, too.


  He’s riding with Tatum, mostly because Tanner stares at him like he wants to rip his throat out. He blames Chase, for all of this, and he wouldn’t be wrong. If Chase didn’t do what he did, none of us would be in this mess right now. We wouldn’t be wondering when a fucking gang is going to come and seek their revenge.

  We’d be free.

  God only knows where we’d be, probably happy, with Celia still alive and everyone having never met and never gone through this.

  I glance at Tanner

  He’s staring out the window, not saying anything, I mean, what is there to say, after all? We’ve all spoken until there are no more words to speak. We all know the fate that awaits us. It could be years, months—either way we’re going to have a war on our hands soon that we’re unlikely to be able to fight. That’s terrifying. On so many levels.

  “Are you okay?” I ask him.

  He shrugs, his big shoulders rising and falling. I glance back at Ethan, who is asleep in the back seat, his hands resting beneath his cheek. Poor Ethan didn’t deserve to be dragged into all of this. He has a good career, a good job, this isn’t the kind of thing he should be putting up with.

  “Are you thinking about what’s going to happen when he gets out of prison?” I ask, even though it’s pretty clear Tanner doesn’t seem to want to talk.

  “Yeah,” he says, his voice low. “Thinkin’ about how the fuck we’re gettin’ out of this with our lives in check. It’ll end in blood, and I don’t like blood. I’d rather have clean fuckin’ hands. Could have done this smarter, but we didn’t, and now we’re all fucked.”

  I swallow and nod, looking out the window. “Maybe there will be a way to hide, I’m sure we’ll think of something.”

  My idea is pitiful, at best. I know there is no hiding, and even if we did, they’d track down our families and get us out of hiding really, really quickly. Especially considering they’ve got revenge in their minds. They know that we know, they’re not going to forget that anytime soon.

  “Already told you there is no way of hiding. We gotta face this, I’m just tryin’ to figure out the safest way to do that.”