Banished (A Retribution Novel) (3 page)

She pulled sixty dollars from her wallet when the
cashier gave her the total, and then she stuffed the change in her purse and
walked out as fast as she could without drawing extra attention. Her money
wouldn’t last long at this rate. She’d have to figure out something soon.

Back in her car, she headed northwest. She didn’t
know how many miles she’d have to put between her and Denver before she felt
safe. All she knew was she wasn’t there yet.

The vibrant sun fought valiantly to sizzle its way
through the wispy clouds hovering over Cannon Beach before it dropped low
enough to dip into the Pacific Ocean. Ryan Atwood wanted to tell it to give up
and surrender. It wouldn’t win. It never held out for long before it succumbed
to the overcast, mostly cloudy atmosphere that was a mainstay of life along the
Oregon Coast.

A cool breeze swept through his open Jeep as he
sat high on a hill that overlooked the secluded beach house below him. As far
as he could tell, Harvey Smith was the only one, with the exception of a
constant round of prostitutes, who’d occupied the house for the past three
months. Ryan had grown antsy waiting for the owner to show.

It had taken him forever to find a direct contact
to the prick who’d robbed him of the life he’d built. Guy Contreras was out
there in the world living large, while he should have been the one behind bars.
Not Ryan.

Unlimited patience should accompany the need for
vengeance. Unfortunately, the longer Ryan waited, the more women Harvey abused,
and that ate at him like nothing else. Ryan ached to clear his name so he could
be proud of his ten years of service in the Army. Guy’s confession was the only
thing that would give him that, and Harvey’s connection was a direct line to
the asshole.

Guy wouldn’t confess willingly, so Ryan would do
what he needed to get it as soon as he found him.

He had no qualms in how that came about.

Ten minutes later, the woman left, hurrying from
the house, holding what was left of her clothes to her body as she ran for a
beat-up Chevy Cavalier. The sight of her beaten face sickened him. He wondered
how Guy would feel if he knew his sister’s boyfriend used his money to fuck so
many different women and then leave them battered and bloody.

“Hell,” he whispered, venom in his voice.

He couldn’t wait and watch any longer. It wasn’t
right. Guy had to pay for what he’d done, but Harvey did, too. The longer Ryan
waited and watched, the more people would be hurt, and he couldn’t allow that
any longer.

Maybe he could kill two birds with one stone. He
could exact justice for those women and possibly collect information on Guy’s
whereabouts because it didn’t look like he intended to show up anytime soon.

Guy was somewhere in the area because the bastard
wouldn’t abandon his territory, but wherever he was, he’d perfected the concept
of lying low.

With barely a sound, Ryan slipped from his Jeep, tucking
his Beretta into the back of his waistband. He donned his pack and headed down
the rocky hillside and into the trees that surrounded the beach house.

The sound of the ocean slapping the shore greeted
him as he drew nearer. He would never tire of that sound. Although he’d grown
up a few hours from the coast, the beach in Alabama was nothing like the rugged,
rocky shores of Oregon.

Harvey had turned on several lights in the house,
giving Ryan a perfect view of the occupant as he settled into a recliner with a
tallboy and the remote to a sixty-inch high definition TV.

Ryan crept to the front of the house, away from
the ocean, away from where Harvey sat. He pulled a tension wrench and pick from
the front of his pack, and set to work on the locked door. One by one, the pins
clicked into place, barely making a sound.

With gloves on his hands, he opened the door and
stepped inside.

Sounds of canned laughter mixed with Harvey’s own guffaws
came from the room at the back of the house. Ryan slipped his gun from his
waistband as he inched closer.

Harvey stared at the TV as Ryan approached from
behind and tapped him against the side of the head with his gun.

“Jesus Christ!” Harvey jumped up and then tripped
and fell over the ottoman at his feet. He scrambled to get his bearings and
focused on his assailant.

Ryan kept his gun trained on the loser, silently
enjoying the fear on the prick’s face. He deserved so much more.

Harvey met him with wide eyes as he quaked in his
plaid boxers. “What the hell do you want? If you’re robbing the place, take
whatever you want. It’s not mine, anyway.”

“I’m aware of who owns the house.” He stepped
around and waved his weapon in Harvey’s face. “Why don’t you tell me where he
is?”

“I don’t know, man.” Fear vibrated in his voice.
“I haven’t heard from him in a while.”

Unfortunately, Ryan knew that much to be true. “He
must have said something, where he was headed, when he’d be back.”

“No, man.” He raked a hand through his long, dark
hair that looked like it could stand a shower. “He just told me to hang low for
a while.”

“Is that so? What about his sister, then?”

Guilt and fear washed over his face. “She’s…down
in Mexico.”

“Why aren’t you with her?”

Harvey narrowed his eyes. “Who are you?”

“I’ll ask the questions. Just so you know, you’ll
need to give me useful information before I’m willing to walk out of here and
let you live.” He kept the expression on his face harsh, letting the asshole
know he meant business.

He held his hands up in front of him. “Dude, I’d
tell you whatever I knew if I knew something. Seriously, I’m just housesitting
and lying low for a while.”

Ryan gave him a slow nod. Despite his wishes
otherwise, Harvey appeared to be a dead end. “Okay, then, we’ll try a different
tactic. What about these women you tortured before you let them leave?”

Harvey’s gaze darkened. “That’s none of your
business, man. I paid for those services.”

“Really? You think those women understood that to
be part of the deal?”

“It don’t matter.” He gave him a disgusted look.
“They’re whores. They know they’re taking chances when they agree to fuck a
stranger.”

“Is that what you tell them?” Ryan stepped closer
to him, keeping his gun aimed straight between his eyes.

“I don’t tell them anything. I take what I paid
for and then kick their sorry asses out. If they don’t like it, they can find
another job.” He shook his head. “What you worried about them for anyway?”

He placed a well-aimed kick directly at the man’s
thigh. Harvey groaned and grabbed his leg. “What the fuck was that for?”

“Not such a big guy now, are you? It’s easy to
beat on someone weaker than you. Not so much when you’re at someone’s mercy.”

Harvey’s face reddened. “If you’re one of those
whores’ pimps, you’d better think twice before you risk your life for them.
They’re shit. If you leave now, you might live.”

Ryan kicked again, harder this time and stepped
back, enjoying the pain on the asshole’s face. “How does that feel?”

“Fucker.” He hissed. “I’d like to see you try that
without a gun pointed at me.”

He couldn’t help the sardonic laugh that escaped
him. “Oh yeah? You think you can take me?”

“Give me the chance, and I’ll kick your fucking
ass so hard, you’ll be begging for me to end you.”

Ryan grinned as anticipation pumped through him.
“I’m going to enjoy this more than I should.” He slid the safety on his weapon into
place and stowed it inside his backpack before he tossed the whole thing far
away from them.

Harvey didn’t seem as certain as he had a few
seconds ago before Ryan had accepted his invitation, but he got to his feet.

Ryan moved away from the ottoman to an open area
of the room. Harvey barreled at him haphazardly. Ryan stepped to the side at
the last second and took him down with a precision punch.

Harvey dropped to the floor and rolled away from
Ryan. “Motherfucker,” he yelled before he got to his knees and stood. Blood
gushed from his nose, and he swiped his arm across his face.

This time Harvey didn’t rush at him. He moved closer,
dancing like a boxer, until he was within eighteen inches of him. He took a
swing. Missed. Ryan shoved a fist into his solar plexus, stealing a large grunt
from him.

Instead of falling to the ground, Harvey straightened
enough to grab Ryan around the waist, knocking them both to the floor. Harvey managed
one good hit to Ryan’s right cheekbone before Ryan rolled them over and proceeded
to beat the shit out of Harvey.

It took every bit of strength Ryan had to force
himself to stop. He would have likely killed the sack of shit if he hadn’t quit.
If he could have afforded a charge of murder to add to the list of crimes he’d
paid for but hadn’t committed, he would have removed the sack of shit from the
earth. Unfortunately, murder would put him miles away from getting what he
wanted.

Absolution.

He stood, raging adrenaline still pumping through
him, and he kicked Harvey once more in the ribs. He’d be feeling that for a
while to come.

“I’ll be watching you, you piece of trash. I’d
better not see you near another woman. Ever.” He picked up his backpack and
slung it over one shoulder. “In fact, if you know what’s best for you, you’ll
get the hell out of my town. Better yet, out of Oregon.”

He left Harvey groaning on the floor as he made
his way into the early evening light.

*        *        *

Violet had gone as far west as she possibly could.
The road she’d traveled had taken her north through Idaho and into Oregon.
She’d followed the mighty Columbia River and had driven until she reached the
edge of the world. Or at least the United States. Her head pounded from lack of
sleep, but she still had daylight left, so she headed south. Eventually, she’d
need to find somewhere to sleep.

Her fears eased as she traveled through the
greenest land she’d ever seen. Colorado had some beautiful mountain areas, but
it turned hot and dry in the summer. This place held a misty coolness that
called to her spirit. To her right, the beautiful Pacific Ocean seemed to go on
forever.

More and more, she found her gaze drifting to the untamed
water, and she itched to see it. Grand Lake was the largest body of water she’d
seen, and it was so vastly different from the ocean that she couldn’t begin to compare
the two.

She passed another few towns until the urge to
stop overwhelmed her.

The vehicle in front of her slowed and signaled to
turn into a parking area with a sign that indicated it had beach access. She
signaled, too, and followed the car into the parking lot.

She exited her car and locked it, tagging along
behind the other visitors as they headed into the lush, green forest of pines. A
sense of peace fell over her. Huge ferns grew along the gravel and dirt path
along with other plants with massive green leaves.

She sucked in lungsful of the misty cool air,
letting the positive energy infuse into her body. She closed her eyes as she
walked a few paces, her stress melting away into the beautiful scenery. In a
place like this, it was hard to remember her father had died, and she’d almost
been killed, too. It was as though she’d stepped into a fairy forest and left
reality behind.

She never wanted to leave.

The path led her upward, across a bridge, and then
she saw it. The gorgeous ocean, now looking more gray than blue as the sun
dipped farther on the horizon. She wouldn’t have long before the sun set, but
she needed time to absorb the solace nature offered. She’d find a place to stay
the night, and then she’d come back here tomorrow. Maybe spend the whole day.

The path brought her to the top of a small hill
with stone steps leading to the beach below. A delightful cove set below her, a
nestled haven where someone could rest her weary soul for a while.

She walked to the edge of the beach, the water
seeming to be out quite a ways, and she then turned toward the craggy hillside
that towered so high above her. Evergreens, sand and water surrounded her,
protecting her from the dangers of the world.

Rocks that had tumbled from the cliffs above lined
the edge of the hillside. Moss and some sort of rough shells covered them. She looked
closer and could see wavy sea creatures attached to the sides of them.

She stepped up onto a large slab, careful to keep
from slipping in her flip-flops. From this vantage point, she could see pockets
of water between the rocks with more of the sea life living in their tiny
world. A bright, orange mass caught her attention farther out, and she walked
toward it.

She widened her eyes when she realized it was a
starfish. An actual live starfish. She squatted down to study it and grinned
when she found a purplish one not far from it.

A wave crashed at the base of the boulders near
her, splashing water onto her feet. She glanced out at the ocean and let the
salty air hit her in the face, tossing her hair back behind her. She wondered
if the tide might be coming in, and turned to check the safety of her return
route. She could easily follow the rocks back as long as she didn’t wait too
long.

She walked out farther and discovered another tide
pool, a larger one hidden in a crevice. She placed a hand on a rock to lower
herself and put one foot down. Her flip-flops hit a slippery spot, and she
crashed down, cutting her palms and shins on the jagged surface.

Stunned, she glanced at her hands as bright red
blood surfaced. “Shit,” she whispered. She’d need better shoes if she intended
to spend any time exploring the area. First thing tomorrow, she’d shop.

For now, she’d better head back to find shelter
and food.

She cut herself several more times climbing back
up. When she reached the top of the rocks, she found the ocean had come in
quite a bit.

Water splashed upon several of the boulders
between her and the shore, and she could now see that they were lower than
where she stood. Panic bit her. She needed to get to shore.

A larger wave crashed against the rocks, causing her
to lose her bearings, sending her tumbling down onto the sharp surfaces once
again. For the first time, she saw the real danger in her situation. She
glanced at the shoreline, looking for help, but the only other people left on
the beach were at the opposite side of the large cove, and she was sure the
ocean winds wouldn’t allow her voice to carry that distance.