Hard (22 page)

“I know, but you have to do it.”

Bridget stared at the floor again. “I know. I wanted Stiles to take me away so I wouldn’t have to tell them, but he disappeared. I don’t know where he went and he isn’t returning my calls. Do you have Treble’s number?”

“Yes, why?”

“Stiles and Treble go way back. He wouldn’t leave without Treble. Have you seen him lately?”

“No. Not since Friday morning. We’re not seeing each other anymore.”

“Why? You seemed so happy before.”

“I was.”

“What happened?”

“Nothing.”

“That’s bullshit. Something happened. Did he and Stiles leave?” Bridget asked, her heart sinking at the thought that she would never see Stiles again.

“I don’t know. He was around Saturday evening. I haven’t spoken to him since.”

“Maybe that means Stiles is still around. I have to find him, Lindy. I have to make it up to him. Can you call Treble and maybe find out where they are?”

“I don’t think that is a good idea, Bridget. I don’t think you know the kind of man Stiles is.”

“I
do
know! I have to find him and tell him that I want to be with him and that I’m calling off the wedding. But he’s not answering my calls and he’s not at SkinMusic.”

“Bridget, you need to stay away from him. If you don’t love Terry, you shouldn’t marry him, but you don’t know what Stiles is capable of. What all the Black Aces are capable of.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Nothing. You just need to stay away from him. You don’t need to make this mess worse by being involved with Stiles.”

“Is that why you broke it off with Treble? What did they do?”

Lindy licked her lips. She didn’t want to tell Bridget what she heard, but Bridget was forcing her hand. “I overheard something. Something bad.”

“What? Did you catch him with his cock in some other woman?”

“No. I wish that was all it was.”

“What then?”

“Friday, Treble butt dialed me, and I overheard…Did you hear about the guy who fell off the bridge Friday night?”

“No. Haven’t seen the news all weekend.”

“Treble, and at least two others, killed the man. I’m almost sure they threw him off the bridge and into the traffic below.”

Bridget stared at Lindy.
How had she found out so quickly?
“Good,” Bridget said simply.

“
Good?
”
Lindy yelped. “Did you hear what I said? They
killed
a man.”

“A low-life fucker who threw a concrete block off a bridge that killed a little girl.”

“That doesn’t make it right, Bridget!”

“No? If she were your little girl, what would you want to happen to the man who did it? What if the police told you there was little chance they could catch him, that they didn’t have the manpower? What would you do, Lindy?”

Lindy sat and stared at her sister. “You knew?”

“I’ve known for months what the Black Aces do. They like to call themselves Handymen, but they handle the problems nobody else can. They’re the good guys, Lindy.”

“I can’t believe you just said that!”

“Why? What if someone broke into Mom and Dad’s house and killed them? What if the police had no clues to who did it? Would you just shrug and say, ‘Oh well’ or would you want justice by any means necessary? I know what I would do.”

Lindy thought about what Bridget said. It all sounded great in theory, but there were laws for a reason. This wasn’t the Wild West. “I understand what you are saying, but they should have taken him to the police.”

“And tell them what, Lindy? ‘We think this guy was going to throw another block off the bridge? Oh, and never mind the fact that we beat the shit out of him to prevent him from doing it.’ And even if they did, then what? What proof would they have?”

“Exactly! What proof did they have this was the right guy?”

Bridget looked at Lindy. “I know. I’ve known Stiles for a year. If they weren’t sure, they wouldn’t have acted.”

Lindy thought back to the phone call and realized that the man had all but admitted to being the person responsible for killing the girl. Her head was spinning. Bridget’s confession that she didn’t love Terry, but did love Stiles, a man who was the member of the same club as Treble, the man she knew to be a murderer, was causing her mind to race. But, at the same time, Bridget didn’t seem at all nonplussed by the fact that, at the very least, Stiles’ best friend was a murderer, if not Stiles, himself. And Bridget was right. If it had been her little girl, or her parents, she would want justice, and if the system couldn’t give it to her, she would find another way.

“Maybe,” Lindy mumbled as she sorted through her thoughts.

“Is that why you broke it off with Treble, because of what you heard?”

Lindy nodded, still trying to understand what she was feeling. Everything was moving too fast and she couldn’t keep up.

“Will you help me? Please?” Bridget begged.

Lindy stared at her sister a moment then pulled her phone out and dialed Treble’s number. She wasn’t sure she was ready to let Treble back in her life, but she could help Bridget. She let it ring until it went to voice mail. “Treble, it’s Lindy. Call me, please.” She tucked the phone away. “Are you sure about this?”

“I have never been so sure of anything in my life. If you think I should end it, the wedding, then I should. I was afraid that you, Mom, Dad, everyone would hate me.”

“I can never hate you, Bridget. But don’t fool yourself, Mom and Dad aren’t going to understand. You realize that, right?”

Bridget nodded. “I know. Will you come with me when I tell them?”

Lindy nodded. “Yes. Just tell them what you told me. They will understand...eventually.”

“I hope you’re right.”

“I am. I don’t know why you waited so long.”

“Because I was afraid. I so want to be like you, Lindy.”

“Like me? How? Why?”

“You’re always so calm and stable, so sure of what you want. Like you said, you would have never gotten into this mess, and the longer it went on, the worse it got. Stiles wanted to end it, tried to end it several times. He said it wasn’t right but I begged him stay with me. I couldn’t let him go and I couldn’t tell anyone what I had done, what I was doing. I kept hoping something would change, that I would get tired of him, like I always did, but I didn’t. Each time I saw him, that made me want to see him again that much more. Then we went to the mountains together and…”

“And?” Lindy prompted.

“And that’s when I realized he was more than just a fuck. That’s when I realized I didn’t love Terry but did love Stiles.”

Lindy stared at Bridget unsure of what to say. It’s true that Bridget was in a hell of a mess, but at least she was willing to take a chance and follow her heart. “Would you laugh at me if I said that I wanted to be more like you?”

Bridget did laugh, but it was full of sadness and regret. “Why? Isn’t your life complicated enough already?”

“It’s not that. It’s that you always seemed so free. I always envied that you were always so happy and carefree, that you didn’t worry about anything and lived for the moment.”

“And look where that has taken me.”

“To someone you love?” Lindy suggested.

“But at what cost?”

“True, you could have handled it better, but it’s better than what I have, which is nothing.”

“Not nothing. What about Treble?”

“That’s done.”

“Why? You liked him before. Why not now?”

“I can’t get past what he did, Bridget.”

“What did he do, Lindy? He gave a grieving family closure and, perhaps, prevented another family from suffering the same fate.”

“That’s what the cops are for.”

“The police can’t be everywhere. Would you kill someone to protect me?”

“Yes, of course, but that’s not the same thing!”

“Isn’t it? Would you kill someone if you knew they were planning on killing me?”

“No! I would go to the cops!”

“And tell them what? That you have a suspicion that someone was going to kill me? What do you think the cops would do?”

Lindy paused, thinking it over and realized she didn’t have an answer because she knew what would happen. Nothing. “So you’re saying I should kill this guy before he had a chance to kill you?”

“If I thought someone was going to murder you, and I knew that they had acted on their threats of murder in the past, you’re damn right. If I saw him approaching you with a gun in his hand I would do anything to stop him, up to and including killing him.”

Lindy paused and thought it over again. “You’ve obviously given this a lot of thought,” she said slowly.

“When I found out what the Aces did, I was just as shocked as you are. But after talking to Stiles about it, I realized he was right. Someone has to do what the cops can’t. The guy who threw the block off the bridge, even if the cops caught him, would do less than two years for involuntary manslaughter and then he would be free to do it again. If he had killed you by throwing a block through the windshield of your car, I would have a hard time accepting that. Just two years in jail for the death of my sister? That doesn’t seem right to me.”

Lindy thought it over some more and realized it didn’t seem right to her, either. “Come on, let’s go find Stiles.”

CHAPTER THIRTY TWO

“You’ll help me?” Bridget asked, brightening slightly.

“Yeah. But you have to make a decision, right now. Stiles or Terry?”

Bridget paused, her gut churning. “Stiles.”

Lindy picked Bridget’s phone up off the side table and handed it to her. “Call Mom, Dad, and Terry. You have to tell them, tonight.”

“You’ll be there with me?”

“I’ll be there, and I’ll support your decision, but if you don’t carry through, then I’m washing my hands of it and it’s your problem. Understand?”

Bridget dialed and placed the phone on speaker. “Mom? I need to talk to you and Dad tonight. It’s important.”

“What’s up?” Leigh asked from the phone.

“I can’t talk about it over the phone, but I want to talk to you, Dad, and Terry tonight. Will eight work?”

“Yeah, but what’s going on?”

“I’ll tell you in a bit. I love you, Mom.”

“Bridget? Is everything okay?” Leigh pressed.

“I’ll tell you at eight,” Bridget said before pressing the button to disconnect the call. “Oh God. I think I’m going to be sick.”

“You have to do it.”

Bridget nodded, took a deep breath, and dialed again. “Terry. Can you meet me at Mom and Dad’s at eight?”

“Sure, babe. What’s up? You want to go out to dinner after that?”

“I’ll tell you when you get there.”

“Okay, and dinner?”

“Let’s talk first then decide about dinner, okay?”

“Sure. Is something wrong?”

“Yes. But I will tell you about it when you get there.”

There was a long pause. “Okay,” Terry said quietly. “Is it something I’ve done?”

“No. It’s not you. I’ll see you in a bit, okay?”

“Okay,” Terry said softly. “I love you, Bridget.”

Bridget whimpered and ended the call without responding before dropping her phone on the couch and dashing out of the room. Lindy heard Bridget retch in the bathroom and she smiled sadly as she rose to follow.

Lindy paused to get a cloth and run it under cold water before handing it to Bridget as she sat on her heels, her head hanging over the toilet. “You okay?” Lindy asked.

“No,” Bridget replied as she took the cloth and wiped her face and mouth. She hadn’t actually thrown up. She hadn’t eaten all day and there was nothing
to
throw up, but her stomach still churned and roiled and her sides ached.

“It’s going to be okay,” Lindy said softly, touching Bridget on the back, trying to offer her some support.

“No. I should call it off with Stiles. This is all my fault and I should just suck it up and marry Terry. He shouldn’t have to suffer for what I did.”

“The decision is yours,” Lindy said softly. “But I think that is trading one problem for an even bigger one. Do you really want to spend the rest of your life married to a man you don’t love?”

“I do love him,” Bridget said as she staggered to her feet.

“Then why do you want to stay with Stiles?”

“I fucking hate you,” Bridget murmured. “You won’t make this easy for me, will you?”

“Sometimes there are no good solutions and you have to take the best of bad.”

“Is this one of those times?” Bridget asked, searching Lindy’s face for answers.

“I think it is.”

Bridget stepped in and hugged Lindy tight. “Thank you.”

Lindy smiled, rubbing Bridget’s back softly. “It’s going to be okay, Bridget. You just have to get through it.”

“And you will stay with me, no matter what happens?”

“No matter what.”

“Can you drive? I’m a wreck.”

Lindy smiled softly. “Come on.”

“Hey, Terry. Come on in,” Lindy said softly, stepping back to allow Terry to enter. “Everyone is in the den.”

“What’s going on, Lindy?” Terry asked.

“I’ll let Bridget explain.” She followed Terry into the den where Bridget sat staring at the floor, her face a mask of pain, her Mom and Dad sitting together with anxious faces and holding hands.

Terry sat beside Bridget and took her hand in his as Lindy pulled an ottoman aside and sat down. “Babe? What’s wrong?” Terry asked, wrapping his arms around her.

“I’m sorry,” Bridget began slowly, looking up to meet his eyes. “I’m so sorry. You don’t deserve this, but I can’t go through with the wedding.”

Lindy waited for the explosion, but there was only stunned silence. “Why?” Terry asked softly. “Is it something I’ve done?”

“No. Nothing you’ve done. It’s not you, it’s me.”

“What does that mean?” Terry asked tenderly.

“It means I can’t marry you. I love you, but I can’t do it.”

“Bridget, what are you saying?” Leigh asked.

Terry’s eyes never left his former fiancée. “Do you just need more time? I can wait.”

“No. It’s not that.”

“Then what?”

“Don’t ask me that! Please!”

“If you are cancelling the wedding, I think I deserve to know why,” Terry said reasonably. “No matter what it is, we can work it out.”

“No, we can’t!”

“Bridget,” Henry said. “What’s happened? Why are you changing your mind now? The wedding is Saturday.”

“I can’t go through with it! It’s not fair to Terry or me!”

“What are you talking about?” Terry asked.

“I love another man! I’ve been sleeping with him behind your back for the last year! I thought I could go through—”

“
You what?
”
Henry roared, jumping to his feet.

“Bridget, how could you?” Leigh murmured, her face going pale.

“I didn’t mean for it to happen!” Bridget yelled. “It started before Terry proposed!”

Lindy looked around the room. Her parents were clearly outraged and poor Terry looked like he had just taken a knife to the stomach as his face twisted in pain and shock.

“That’s no excuse!” her father shouted. “Sleeping with another man while dating Terry was bad enough, but to continue it after he proposed? What in the
hell
were you thinking? Have you no morals at all?”

“That’s not fair!” Bridget yelled.

“No, what’s not fair is how you have treated Terry and this family!”

“Dad,” Lindy interjected, trying to defuse the situation. “She didn’t mean for this to happen!”

“You knew about this?” Leigh asked as her dad stared daggers at her.

“No, not until an hour ago. But she’s right. If she is in love with another man she can’t marry Terry. It’s not fair to him or her either.”

“Get out!” Henry ordered, pointing at the door while staring at Bridget.

“You don’t mean that!” Lindy shouted, jumping to her own feet.

“I do mean it!”

“If she leaves then I leave,” Lindy challenged.

“Henry,” Leigh said, standing up and pulling gently at his arm.

“Fine,” Bridget snarled, rising to her own feet. “I knew you wouldn’t understand.”

“What I understand is my oldest daughter is nothing but a whore!”

“
Enough
!”
Terry roared as he stood, his voice ringing with command and cutting through the babble of voice. “How
dare
you call your own daughter a whore! This has
nothing
to do with you and you have no fucking say in the matter. So sit down and shut the fuck up!”

Lindy stared at Terry in shock. She had never heard him raise his voice, much less order her parents around.
I didn’t know he had it in him.

Henry stared at Terry in shock, Terry’s outraged bellow cutting through his anger. “Yes, right,” he said, as he sat down.

“Now,” Terry said in his normal voice, Bridget and I are going to step into the kitchen and have a conversation. We want to be left alone and I don’t need any more of your help, Henry.” He took Bridget by the arm and steered her out of the room.

“I’m so sorry,” Bridget said as they stopped in the kitchen, her tears falling freely.

“Shhh…” Terry said softly, clamping down on his emotions, calling on his training to remain calm and focused. “Tell me why, Bridget.”

“I didn’t mean for it to happen, it just did. I…wanted some excitement in the bedroom and…” She began to weep harder. “I never meant to hurt you!”

“Did you mean what you said in there? Do you love him?”

“Yes.”

“And there is nothing I can do to change your mind? I can change, Bridget. For you I will do anything.”

She struggled to get control of herself. “I don’t want you to have to change for me. I want you to be who you are, not to pretend to be someone you’re not. That’s not fair to you. You’re such a good man, don’t change anything.”

He snorted. “A good man, but not good enough for you?”

“No. Too good for me.”

“I don’t understand.”

“I know. I’ve tried to explain it to you. I need someone won’t treat me like I’m made of glass. You’re always so kind and understanding…” Bridget sniffed as she felt her tears threatening again. She pulled his engagement ring from her finger and pressed it into his hand and closed his fingers over it. “I don’t want that. Sometimes I need someone to throw me around, to treat me like a whore in the bedroom.”

“I can do that.”

“No, you can’t,” she said as she looked into eyes and touched his face. “You’re too kind for that. I know you’ve tried, but…I’m sorry.”

“So am I. Is this it then? Nothing I can do to change your mind?” Terry asked, his heart tearing.

“No. I only wish you had shown some of that anger from in there earlier.”

“What?”

“That’s what I wanted, Terry, the passion and anger. When you stood up to Dad, why didn’t you ever do that to me?”

“Because I love you, Bridget. I would do anything for you. I respect you and don’t want to hurt you.”

“I know, and that’s the problem. How can you still be so kind to me after what I’ve done?” She watched as he smiled sadly and tears began to flow down his cheeks.

“Because I still love you and I want you to be happy. If that is with another man, then as much as it hurts, I can take comfort in knowing you’re happy.”

She felt what control she had evaporate and she began to weep uncontrollably, holding onto Terry, feeling his own tears against her forehead. He was such a good and caring man, even now putting her ahead of himself. She didn’t deserve someone like him and she realized Lindy was right. As bad as it was now, it would have been much worse later.