Bound to the Past (Starville Series Book 1) (22 page)

Every muscle in his body tensed at her words. Damn, but that hit close to home. Too close for his comfort and closer than he cared to admit―even to himself. His fists tightened. A storm raged inside him, but he fought against it. “If you have anything important to tell me, Charlene, do it now because my patience is running out. But unless itʼs something about J.T.’s death, then you and I are done.”

She flinched, evidently taken aback by the sudden change of subject. “Would you stop bringing that up? I told you I donʼt know anything about that!”

“Were we together the night J.T. was murdered?” he urged, stepping closer to her “According to the police reports, I arrived at the ranch when J.T. was already dead, but I have no idea where I was before that. Was I with you?”

“No.” She swallowed hard. “Look—”

“How come we werenʼt together?”

“I donʼt know!” she burst out, exasperated. “We were supposed to meet later that night, but you never showed up! Happy?”

“And where were
you
?” He knew he’d hit a sore spot the instant he saw the color drain from her face.

“I already told the police that.”

“As you eloquently pointed out the last time we talked, Iʼm not the police. So, where were you, Charlene?”

She took another step back. “Stop it.”

“Just answer me, and Iʼll never ask again.”

Charleneʼs gaze darted around again. She raised her arms in frustration. “Fine! I was with Layla Lacrod. You might not remember, but she and I were best friends—still are. We spent the evening together at her place before I left for my date with you. If you donʼt believe me, ask her or her father. He was there, too.”

Jack tried to swallow his disappointment, but it was evident in the way his face hardened. His eyes darkened to a stormy emerald as he gave her a long look—so intense that Charlene had to drop her gaze for long seconds. She sighed deeply before being able to look back at him. “It was so long ago, Jack. Why donʼt forget about the whole thing once and for all? Why donʼt you put it all behind you and move on? The two of us could start over and—”

“Maybe because Iʼm not an idiot,” he scoffed coldly. “I know youʼre hiding something, Lene, and I wonʼt leave until you tell me what it is.”

She backed away so fast that she nearly stumbled. “Stop saying that! I told you I donʼt know anything.”

He took a step forward and put both hands on her shoulders. “Why are you lying to me? What is it youʼre afraid of? Or should I say whom?”

“Iʼm not afraid of anybody but you right now!” Her voice shook as she tried to jerk free of his hold.

“Charlene…”

“Let me go!”

This time she screamed so loudly that many heads turned to look in their direction.

“Son of a bitch!
What the fuck do you think youʼre doing?”

Jack frowned at the enraged voice behind him and turned around in time to see a tall, dark-haired man striding toward them. Before he could react, the man jumped on him and punched him hard in the gut.

Pain hit him like fire, radiating from his midsection to his entire upper body, knocking the breath out of his lungs. His hands flew to his stomach as he doubled over with a grunt, gasping for air and struggling to regain control. By the time he managed to straighten back up, he was so furious that it was all he had to not fight that asshole back. But because he didnʼt want to complicate the situation any further, he swallowed his anger and said, “Back off, buddy. Charlene and I were just talking.”

“Hell will freeze over before Iʼll be your
buddy
, Turner.”

“Heʼs lost his mind, Ronnie,” Charlene sobbed. “I was trying to be nice, and he jumped on me like a mad man. I tried to push him away, but he wouldnʼt let me go. I was so scared.”

Jackʼs eyes widened with incredulity at the absurd accusation. “
What the hell?
”

“Itʼs okay, baby. Iʼm here now,” Ronnie said, wrapping a protective arm around her shoulders before turning back to Jack. “You dirty coward. Why donʼt you take it out on someone your own size for a change, huh?”

“I did not―”

“Jack… Whatʼs going on?”

Saraʼs anxious voice froze him on the spot.

She gave him a confused look as Jack turned slowly toward her, a muscle pulsing in his clenched jaw. She had no idea what had happened, but Charlene was crying and glaring at him, and Ronnie Wilder, Starvilleʼs mechanic, seemed to be ready to jump on him any minute. To make matters worse, dozens of curious people were already crowding around them.

Ronnie also turned toward her, a sarcastic grin on his face. “Well, well. Would you look at that, Turner. Your little slut is here to save your—”

His words were cut off abruptly as Jack hurled himself at him, throwing him completely off balance. There was a furious gleam in his eyes as he shoved the man hard against the wall and twisted his arm behind his back. “Apologize to her.
Now
.”

Sara had never heard his voice like this before. It sounded like a vicious growl—so ferocious that the crowd around them immediately went silent, and a few people took instinctive steps back.

“Go to hell, Turner,” Ronnie hissed through clenched teeth, trying in vain to jerk out of his iron grip.

Sara stepped forward. “Let him go, Jack. Please. Heʼs not worth it,” she said in a conciliatory tone, though her voice was weak and shaky.

He seemed to hesitate for a moment, but then his grip around Ronnieʼs arm tightened until the man groaned in pain. “Apologize to her.”

Ronnie gasped for breath. “S-sorry. Iʼm sorry, Sara. I didnʼt mean to offend you,” he finally choked out without looking at her.

Jack released him with a jerk. “Snakes canʼt help but slither.”

The man threw him a hateful glare as he rubbed his sore arm. Then he turned around and rushed away, humiliated, pushing through the crowd.

Without a word, Jack took Saraʼs hand and started toward his bike.

“You havenʼt changed.” Charleneʼs disgusted voice stopped him in mid-step. “You were and still are a sick, violent jerk. I hope youʼll spend the rest of your life rotting in a cold, dark cell, because thatʼs where you belong.”

He stiffened but resumed walking—only this time, Sara was the one who stopped him. Gasping in outrage, she yanked her hand from his and whirled on her heels to face Charlene. “How
dare
you? How dare you even think something like that?”

“Whoa.” Charlene raised both arms and forced a nervous laugh. “Take it easy, girl.”

Jack slid an arm around Saraʼs shoulders. “Letʼs go home,” he whispered in her ear. They had just started to walk away when he suddenly stopped again and turned around.

“Itʼs not over, Lene. Itʼs not over.”

Chapter 17

The ride back home wasnʼt nearly as exciting as the one to the fair. Both Sara and Jack were lost in their thoughts, and all she wanted to do was get home, close her eyes, and forget what had just happened.

She sighed with relief when he pulled up the driveway. Without saying a word, he reached out a hand to help her off the bike and unbuckled her helmet. Sara slid him a cautious look as he pulled it gently from her head. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah.”

But he wasnʼt. Sheʼd never seen him like this before, the agony in his eyes was past bearing. Her heart ached as she watched him dig into his pocket, pull out a couple of the pain-killers, and pop them quickly into his mouth. Jack had always refused to take them before. If he was taking them now, the pain he felt must be excruciating. She started toward the porch but stopped with a frown as he didnʼt follow her. “Is something wrong?”

“No, I… I think Iʼll go for a walk, if you donʼt mind.”

“Do you want me to come with you?”

Jack shook his head. “Iʼd rather be alone. Sorry.”

Sara gave him a wary look. She wanted to hug him, kiss him, comfort him. Instead, she forced a nod. “I understand.”

“Iʼll see you in the morning.”

“Jack?” she called as he walked away. “Please, donʼt worry too much about what happened tonight. It was just a misunderstanding.”

He gave her a weak a smile. “ʼNight, sweetheart.”

“ʼNight.”

Sara watched him walk away until he disappeared into the night. Only then did she go up the steps and into the house with a heavy heart.
Darn Charlene! Darn Ronnie, darn stupid fair, and darn stupid town!
Sheʼd hoped for an entirely different ending to the night, but here she was again—alone, while Jack was dwelling in solitude about the disastrous happenings.

Almost robotically, she let Lance out and fed the cats, then went upstairs, removed her makeup, and slipped into her favorite T-shirt. She was exhausted by the time she dropped into bed and closed her eyes.

***

Sitting on a tree stump, Charlene absently watched the still water of the lake glittering in the moonlight. She shoved back the curls that kept falling over her face and took a deep breath, trying in vain to calm down.

Sheʼd screwed up.

She knew it, as well as she knew that she would have to pay the consequences for it. Sheʼd lied and put Jack at the center of the attention of the entire town…which was the last thing she was supposed to do.

Charlene rubbed her face with both hands, trying to push back the tears stinging her eyes. What she had done at the fair was wrong, but she hadn’t been thinking straight. Not only had she had to watch Jack being all sweet and sappy with Sara all night, but the determination with which he had defended her against Ronnie had driven her insane with jealousy. Not that she believed that Jack could really be interested in Sara. He would never choose such a dull girl over her―yet the way he had rejected her at the parking lot still burned. Not to mention that she hated the way he kept pressing her with all those questions about J.T.ʼs murder. It was so unnerving. What did he expect her to tell him, anyway? He didnʼt even remember that night! Or so he said. As far as Charlene was concerned, his alleged memory loss seemed a little too convenient. Still, there was no excuse for the way sheʼd behaved. She shouldʼve known better than that, controlled herself more. Now she could only hope that it wasnʼt too late.

“Thought Iʼd find you here.”

Charlene jumped with a shriek as a familiar figure came out of the trees and walked slowly toward her. “Dammit, you scared the crap out of me! What are you doing here?”

“I was taking a little walk to calm my nerves, then figured a little chitchatting might help even more. Turns out we do have a lot to talk about.”

Something in the deceptively calm tone of those words gave Charlene cold chills. Then she saw it. A horrified scream almost slipped out of her mouth at the sight of the shining handgun in the intruder’s hand.

“Iʼm sorry, Iʼm not in the mood for chitchatting right now,” she said, trying not to stare at the gun and hoping to sound calm as she slowly stood. “In fact, I was just about to leave.”

“Not so fast, hon.”

Panic took control as the dark-dressed figure blocked her way out. “W-what do you want?”

“Lene, Lene. Havenʼt you learned anything about me after all these years?”

Her blood froze. She had to swallow hard a couple of times before she could find her voice. “This is about what happened at the fair, isnʼt it? Iʼm sorry. I donʼt know what got into me. I didnʼt mean to make a scene or cause you any trouble, I—”

Her words cut off as a brutal hand cracked hard across her face.

Pain clouded her mind for a few moments. Tears welled in her eyes as one of her arms was twisted behind her back. Hard fingers nudged her chin up to raise her face in the moonlight. “You were a bad girl tonight, Lene. I donʼt like bad girls.”

“Iʼm s-sorry…”

“You pissed me off. You know I lose my cool when you piss me off―and you know what happens when I lose my cool.”

The second blow hit her so hard that it made her stumble back and crash into the tree behind her. She tasted blood in her mouth, and desperate tears started rolling down her cheeks, taking streaks of mascara with them. “Oh, God,” she sobbed, covering her face with both hands. “P-please, let me go. I wonʼt say a word to anybody. I promise.”

“Iʼve had enough of your promises, Lene. And Iʼve had enough of you. Youʼve been freaking out on me a little too much lately. I canʼt trust you anymore. I told you a long time ago what would happen if you betrayed me.”

The ferocious tone in which those words were spoken paralyzed her with sheer terror, more than the words themselves. “I never betrayed you! You know I would never do that you! J-just think about it. Itʼs been ten years and I have never said a word to anybody,” she begged. The cold laugh she got in response made her bones chill.

This
is it
, she thought with horror. She was not going to get out of this in one piece. It was going to be bad. It was going to hurt.

Her knees gave in. Charlene leaned against the tree to keep from collapsing, but a firm, black-gloved hand gripped her hair, forcing her head up. Her skin crawled at the sight of the fury blazing in the beautiful eyes staring into hers, and she felt the cold metal of the gun barrel moving up her bare thigh. “P-please…”

“This is what you want, isnʼt it, whore? Itʼs all youʼve wanted since you heard the Harley rumbling through town again.”

“What do you want me to do?” she pleaded again through the tears, shaking uncontrollably. “Tell me, and Iʼll do it. Anything. Please!”

“Oh, honey, Iʼm afraid itʼs too late. Thereʼs nothing you can do anymore―” Bright, glittering eyes scanned her face one last time. Then she was shoved back so hard that she lost her balance and fell to the ground on her knees. “But there is something
I
want to do. Something I should have done many, many years ago…”

***

Sara jerked awake suddenly. She didnʼt know what woke her, but her heart was pounding so hard her chest hurt. The clock on the nightstand read 3:55 a.m. as she got out of bed. Knowing she would never fall back asleep, she decided to go downstairs and drink some milk, followed by a sleepy Lance.

The reason for her distress became clear as soon as she stepped into the living room. Jack was not there. The couch looked exactly like the night before, with the sheets still folded orderly in one corner and the cats curled up together in the other one. He had not come back.