Show Me How (It's Kind Of Personal Book 2) (24 page)

“Bitch,” he mutters.

I shake her, but nothing. She’s like a doll. The cut on her head is bleeding, and I look up at him. Cold, hard, almost black eyes stare back at me. I beg him to leave us be. Let me get her help. I can hardly focus on his face anymore, but the sleazy tilt of his lips makes me gag.

He slowly takes the couple of steps until he’s in front of us then squats down. “I only got half of what I was owed. Any idea how I can get the rest. Hmm?”

Chapter 22

Brandon

“Hey, man,” Travis says when I answer my phone.

It’s been another long day, and I just want to get home. To Mary. Where I can spank her tight little ass for playing this stupid game. She purposely ignores me to get a rise out of me. Thinks she’s funny. In a way, I guess it is.

“Hey. What’s up?”

“Nothing. Just got off the phone with Char. She said Mary was there and is worried about you guys.”

I chuckle into the receiver and accelerate as the traffic light turns green. “We’re fine. Why’d she say that?”

“Hell, I don’t know. You know how women are. She said Mary made a comment about how it’s not gonna work between you two.”

I shake my head then realize he can’t see me. “Nah. Everything’s great, actually. She probably knew Char would tell you and it’d get back to me.” Especially considering last weekend, when she taunted me with those same words and made me chase her around the apartment. Her laughter faded as soon as I reached her and silenced her with my mouth . . . then my dick. I laugh at the memory.

“How is that funny?”

“She’s still mad I won’t let her pay me back for her car, so she does and says stupid shit to get a rise out of me.”
Literally.

“Okay . . .”

“You probably don’t remember, but she used to do shit like that all the time growing up. I remember one time we were playing a video game and she distracted me by kissing me so she could win the game. Shit like that.”

“All right. Whatever. Have fun with that.”

“Yeah.” It sounds stupid even saying it, but as childish as it may be, it lets me know she’s back to her old self, and that makes it worth it. “How are you? How’s my niece?”

“Perfect.” The pride in his voice is strong. He loves that little girl so damn much.

Soon,
I tell myself.
Hopefully, I’ll be there, too.

I pull into my parking spot and notice Mary’s car right away. “Hey, I’m home now. Gotta run.”

The long day takes a toll on me, and I rest my head on the steering wheel for a minute before finally dragging my ass upstairs. I can’t wait until we get a house. The wife of one of the guys at work is a realtor, so I’ve been talking to her a bit and getting feelers out there. Mary and I haven’t discussed it, but we’re going to outgrow this place soon. I bought it for myself alone. She not only fills the space in my heart, but her crap takes up more than half the bathroom. We need a bigger house.

I open the door to the apartment and the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

Follow your gut.

It’s something I was taught early on. Before any professional training. Because of my dad being in law enforcement, it was drilled into me. Mom even preached it. Said she’d seen too many cases where people regretted something because they didn’t follow that instinct.

Right now, my gut is churning. The magnets from the fridge are scattered on the floor, the cabinet door left open, and Kat’s bowl still empty. The only light on is the one in the kitchen. When Mary’s home, she leaves every single light on. Drives me nuts, but it’s important right now.

“Mary?”

I slowly walk around the apartment. Maybe she’s hiding in the bathroom for some reason. Trying to pay me back for jumping out at her the other day. The squeak of the hinges is like nails on a chalkboard when I push the door open with my fingertips.

“Mary!” I yell, panic rising when I realize she’s not here.

I call her from my phone, and the vibration from her cell on the kitchen counter has every fucking red flag waving in front of my face.

Kat runs under my feet, and I trip on her. “Fucking chill, Kat.”

I backtrack and force myself to think. Calm the hell down. Where would she be? It’s too late for a run; even then, she would have at least left me a note or a text. I know she made it back from Char’s okay.
Kelsey.

My feet can’t get me there fast enough, and I raise my arm to knock, but a grunt inside her apartment makes me freeze.
Follow your gut.
I grab my cell and dial Jay. I’ve gotta play this smart. I have no fucking clue what’s going on, but I can feel it. My nerves are on fire.

“Didn’t you just leave here like—”

“I need backup at Kelsey’s.” I lower my voice, but he must sense the tension because I already hear the clank of his keys.

“What are we walking into?”

“No clue. Just hurry the fuck up. I’m not waiting.” I hang up despite his protests and instead of knocking, I turn the knob.

For all the times I yelled at Kelsey for not locking her door, now I’m glad she didn’t listen to me. Her apartment layout is like mine, except instead of my studio, she has a bedroom, and when you walk in, the kitchen island is to the left and not the right.

I mentally run through the floor plan and grab my gun before I inch the door open.

“I only got half of what I was owed. Any idea how I can get the rest. Hmm?” Instead of pushing through and beating the shit out of him, I suck in a slow breath through my nose and open the door a little farther.

At this vantage point, I can’t see shit. Mary’s whimpers cause my veins to heat up. I grip the butt of my gun and slip inside unnoticed.

He’s on his haunches, back to me, pointing a gun at
my
Mary. Her left cheek is swollen and bruised, a small streak of dried blood on her chin. Kelsey’s lifeless body rests on her lap. Jesus fuck, what did he do?

He turns to look at Kelsey, and I take advantage of the temporary distraction and sneak behind the island. Mary’s eyes widen, but I give a quick jerk of my head, and despite every fucking nerve, every raging pulse of my erratic heart, I have a very short-lived respite that she’s able to stay calm enough to listen to me. She’s fucking terrified. Visibly trembling, tears falling down her face. But she ignores me and looks back down. Her bloody fingers run up and down Kelsey’s arm, and it’s then that I notice a pool of blood beneath Kelsey’s head.

“Answer me, bitch!” Flesh on flesh then Mary’s cry, and I force myself to stay still. Pretend she’s any other victim. I have to distance myself from her right now; otherwise, I could make a mistake. It’s a choice I force myself to make. I will not fuck this up.

I crawl around the island to get a better view and aim at his fucking head.

Deep breaths. Calm down. Focus.
My finger twitches on the trigger, but I need to wait.

Kelsey moans and Mary tries to quiet her. Fuckface does the same, but his method is a foot to her stomach. I hate that she’s hurt, that she’s bleeding, but her moan tells me that she’s still alive.

“Stop it! Please, stop!” Mary is becoming frantic now, and I pray she can keep it together. Just a couple more minutes and it’ll be over.

He stands with his gun still in his hand, and uses the other to loosen his belt.

Hell fucking no.

Without making a noise, I stand and train my gun on him. “Police. Don’t move,” I growl at him.

He jerks his head in surprise and raises his arm, but I’m faster.

One shot to his head, blood flies, and he collapses. I watch for any other movement in the apartment with my gun still raised.

Without looking at her, I have to ask. “Mary, I know you’re scared, but I need to know if he was alone. Is there anyone else is in here?”

Because she’s not responding verbally, I look down at her. She shakes her head, but her eyes are trained on the dead body, and I step into her line of vision.

“Don’t look, baby.”

Her mouth hangs open, and she heaves a couple of times before turning her head and puking on the floor. As much as I want to comfort her right now, I have to check on Kelsey.

I gently lift her off Mary’s red-stained jeans and lay her flat on her back. A painful moan escapes through her crusty lips. She has a pulse and a nasty gash on her head.

Mary’s head hangs as her body trembles. My hand on her leg makes her jump. “Shh. It’s okay. You’re okay.”

“Chicago PD!”

I don’t even turn my head to acknowledge them. “I need rescue. And the coroner.”

* * *

After several hours of holding Mary’s hand while she was examined and stitched up, I stand in the corner of her room, giving her space, clenching my fists. She’s in the process of telling Jay the events of tonight . . . last night really, since it’s almost three am.

My jaw tightens and teeth grind together as each word leaves her mouth. I wish I had made that piece of shit suffer just a little before I shot him. Coldcocked his ass with my gun like he did to Kelsey. Slammed his head on the ground a few times.

Mary astounds me. Her strength has been admirable. She stopped crying shortly after backup arrived and hasn’t shed a tear since. I can’t tell if she’s really okay, or if she’s just putting up a front.

“Okay. Get some rest and I’ll be in touch.” Jay pats Mary’s hand and nods at me before walking out.

“You all right?” I push off the wall and sit next to her on the bed.

“Yeah. Tired.”

I pull the blanket up to her chin. “Do you want another one or is this good?”

“This is good. Thanks.”

Not able to resist anymore, I lean down and press my lips to her forehead. “Love you.”

“Love you, too,” she mumbles, and when I pull back, her eyes are already closed. “Brandon,” she whispers.

“Yeah?”

“Thank you for saving me.”

What I want to say is that I should have gotten there sooner. If I hadn’t sat in my car for those few minutes, I could have done something different. Saved them from more. But instead, I simply kiss her again and hold her hand until she falls asleep.

Mary

I wake with a gasp in the dimly lit hospital room. Brandon’s hand in mine flexes, but he doesn’t open his eyes. With a few deep breaths, I slowly calm my racing heart. My mind replays the events, and panic courses throughout my tired body.

Retelling Jay what happened was not as bad as I thought. He offered to wait, but I wanted to get it over with. Brandon’s fury was palpable from the corner of the room, but I tried my best to ignore him and finish the questioning. Right there was just another reminder of how well he knows me. I didn’t want him crowding me when I was reliving it to Jay. So even though he wanted to be by my side, he respected me enough to give me space.

The only thing still unanswered is why the guy thought I was Kelsey. He wasn’t the same one as in the club. Their thought is that since we look similar, and since Kelsey goes inside the apartment sometimes, it was just a mistake on his part.

I try to focus on the positives. Kelsey and I are alive. We both sustained concussions and got stitches, but considering what could have happened . . .

My body shudders at the thought, and Brandon snaps his head up from the chair next to my bed. “You okay?” He looks around the room then back at me. Poor guy is just as tired as me, waking every time a nurse comes in to check on me.

“I don’t know.” I scoot over and run my hands through my hair, wincing when it gets caught in the IV line. “Lay with me.” I want his warmth, his security right now. Because I don’t know what I’m feeling. Too much, not enough.

He toes his shoes off and crawls behind me, pulling my back to his front. “Wanna talk about it?”

No.
“Do you?”

The air he lets out tickles my cheek, a welcome relief from the throbbing.

“No.”

“You killed somebody,” I whisper like it’s a secret.

“I’d do it again,” he answers with no hesitation.

“It doesn’t bother you?”

“Mary,” he sighs. “Not only was he hurting you and Kelsey, but he was going to shoot me if I didn’t shoot him first.”

“Is he your first?” I quickly shake my head realizing how lame that sounds. “I mean, have you ever shot anyone before?”

“Yes. I have, once.”

“Oh.”

“I’m more worried about you. Not only were you assaulted, but you witnessed a man being killed only a few feet away from you.”

My mind wanders to
that night,
and Steve’s body falling down the stairs. Thinking he was dead. The anguish I went through. But this time it’s over; I don’t need to run. I don’t want to talk about it when I can’t even figure out which emotion I’m feeling at the moment.

“I’m tired.”

“Then sleep.”

* * *

“Mary, I’m fine.”

We got home from the hospital and since her place is still a crime scene, Kelsey’s staying with Brandon and me. The entire ride home she was silent. Brandon had to go to the station to fill out some paperwork and he’s bringing home pizza. Four hours of her blank eyes staring at the TV later, I finally caved and asked if she was all right.

“You haven’t said one word.”

Her face remains impassive and I’m about to give up. “What am I supposed to say? It’s all my fault you got dragged into this. It’s my fault. Stupid fucking decisions I made that could have cost you or Brandon your lives.”

“It wasn’t your fault.”

“Yes, it was!” she yells then stands, holding her head in her hands.

When she walks to the window, her profile becomes visible, and my heart skips a beat. It’s not Deja vu but more like looking at myself thirteen years ago. Guilt, anger, shame. A wrecking ball might as well have slammed into me, because it all becomes clear.

“It’s not your fault,” I whisper.
It wasn’t my fault.

“If I—”

“No. Listen to me.” I cross the room to her. “You feel like that. But really listen to me. You did nothing wrong. All you did was try to save a boy who you loved at one point.”

“Yeah, and if I wouldn’t—”

“If you wouldn’t have then none of this would have happened. Right?”

She nods as a tear rolls down her bruised cheek.

“Okay. I get it. But this guy who did this to us.” I touch my fingers to my cheek. “You had nothing to do with that. He is responsible for his own actions.”