Unable to Resist (28 page)

“Shit. It’s him,” I stammer.

“Who is it?” Duane asks from behind me, gripping my chair tightly.

“Brent’s dad. That’s—oh my God. That’s Allan Fairfield.” I can barely get the words out. Goose bumps cover every inch of my skin, and my insides feel like they’re jumping with the adrenaline.

Not taking my eyes off of the screen, I watch Allan walk toward Dad’s desk and sit down across from him.

With his legs crossed at the ankles, Allan motions. “Please, sit. Get comfortable.”

Dad hesitates, but after a few seconds, he complies and sits back in his chair. “What do you want, Fairfield? You were supposed to leave me alone, remember? That was the deal.”

“What deal?” Duane asks me.

I shush him, and then realize I’m being a bit of a bitch. “Sorry, honey.”

Duane rubs my back. “It’s alright.”

Turning back to the video, Dad huffs, irritated.

“No, the deal was that you were supposed to go away,” Allan responds, no emotion in his dead voice.

Dad’s face gets red and he shakes his head. “I can’t go anywhere. I have my whole life here. Ann, the business, everything is here. I can’t just up and leave.”

Allan strokes something in his jacket pocket, and then clasps his hands together. “Wrong. I tell you what to do now. You screwed with me and with my family so now you have to do as I say, and I say you need to leave town.”

What?

“Sending me away like you did with your son? It won’t be that easy to get me to comply. I’m not a helpless child.” Dad’s voice is strong and assertive, yet I can see on his face he knows what he said stung Allan.

Allan strikes like a cobra. It looks like a blur. His fist connects with Dad’s face, sending the chair and my dad back against the wall of books.

“Do not talk about Brent ever again, do you hear me?” Allan threatens. “He was a disgrace. Just like you.”

Dad wipes the blood from his split lip, and gives a humorless laugh. “A disgrace? You’re a sick bastard, you know that? He was a helpless boy. You should have been there for him, just like you should have been there for your wife. It’s a good thing she had me.”

I perk up at the mention of Brent’s mom, Nora. I’d always thought her and Dad were best friends. They’d gone to high school together, then college. He always said Nora had a special place in his heart. I guess I never understood how special she was to him.

Holy shit. What the hell was going on?

“She’ll never have you again. You think it’s okay to sleep with a married woman?” Allan accuses.

The shock of his words take all the air out of my lungs. I desperately try to breathe. Dad, had an affair? With Nora? This can’t be right.

“You guys were separated. You know I love her. She’s a good woman,” Dad says to Allan, still nursing his wound.

Allan scoffs. “That woman is a whore.”

Dad shrugs a shoulder and points his finger in Allan’s direction. “That, right there, is why I have to stay. You don’t want to be with her. Get a divorce and let it be done. Why do you have to keep dragging it out?”

Allan’s head ticks again.

“She is mine, Conrad. If she can’t be mine, you sure as hell can’t have her.” Allan’s voice has grown significantly. It rattles the camera.

Dad leans back in his chair. “So, if you can’t have her, no one can?” He scoffs. “What a joke.”

Something clicks, and Dad stands with his hands up in surrender. “What the hell do you think you’re doing, Fairfield?”

Allan looks at the revolver in his hand and strokes it.

“What does it look like I’m doing? Leave on your own accord or I’ll be sure you don’t have the option. It’s your choice.” He shrugs, like it’s no big deal, like he isn’t threatening a man’s life.

“This was never my choice, Allan. I can’t take back what happened with Nora. I wouldn’t want to, but you will never be able to get away with killing a man.”

Allan’s head spasms. “Like hell I can. I’m the fucking mayor of this town. I call the shots. I can make this whole thing go away. One twitch of my finger and you’ll be gone. No one will know what happened to you.” He sneers. “Maybe I’ll make it look like a suicide. How do you think that sweet pea of yours would like that?”

Dad charges over the table in a crash, and slams into Allan. The gun is knocked out of his hand, and flies to the corner of the room.

With Dad on top of Allan, he wraps his hands around Allan’s neck. “You leave Ann alone. Do you understand me? She has nothing to do with this.” Dad pulls Allan’s head forward and slams it on the hardwood floor. With a sickening crack, Allan struggles.

SLAM.

Another bone-chilling smack to the floor.

Dad stares knowingly into the camera. He doesn’t look like my sweet, kind-hearted Dad anymore. He looks angry and pissed off. He’s not the same man. He’s different. Scary.

Even with all of my parent’s problems, he didn’t once yell at mom. But, this man looks like someone who’s snapped. That rubber band in his brain has shattered, leaving one afraid man.

“You listen to me, Fairfield. You can go fuck yourself. I am not playing your games. You can go live your life and I’ll go live mine. If Nora wants nothing to do with me, I’ll let her be, but so help me God, if I find out you laid as much as a finger on her in a harmful manner, I’ll rip your spine out. You got me?” Dad’s malice echoes through his voice as he holds Allan down on the ground, hands firmly attached to his throat.

My hand once again goes to my mouth, and I shake my head. I’ve never seen my dad this way. This isn’t him.

This is him. It’s the broken him. Take a good look, Ann.

With one more forceful slam to Allan’s head, Dad tightens his hold on Allan’s throat and struggles with Allan’s flailing body, attempting to get away from his clutches. Allan’s eyes finally close, and he goes limp.

I’m not worried if he’s dead or not. I know the douchebag is alive and well, but my heart pounds, waiting for the inevitable.

Dad takes a lungful of air into his chest, and he closes his eyes, bowing his head. When he slowly opens his eyes, he lets go of Allan and stands. Straightening his tie, he heads for the basement living area.

I can see in another camera that Allan is still lying on his back with his eyes closed. My eyes search for Dad, again. He isn’t in any of the cameras.

“Do you see him?” I ask Duane.

His eyes are scanning all of the cameras, too. With a creased forehead, he curtly shakes his head. “No, I didn’t see him. What the hell?”

Before I can agree, Dad walks into the camera shot with different clothes on. A long sleeved shirt and khaki slacks. He walks to his office and retrieves his cell phone.

Walking back out into the living area, he flips through his contacts. It looks like he is texting someone, not that I can see anything for sure, but that’s what I assume with his fingers quickly moving over the keyboard.

Once he’s done, he angrily pulls at his hair and yells at the top of his lungs. “Fuuuuck!”

I wince. He sounds tormented.

Allan begins to stir, and Dad turns to face him. He struggles to get up, so Dad walks to him and kicks his booted foot. “Go home. We’re done here.”

Allan flinches, the threatening man, gone. When Dad turns his back, a frightening deride comes from his mouth and he lunges for the gun.

Before Dad can counter, Allan releases the safety, and takes his stance.

Dad looks like a deer caught in the headlights. He gulps and begins to shake his head, pleading words pouring from his mouth. “Allan, don’t. You don’t want to do this.”

“Shut up! Don’t say another word. The next few seconds are crucial for you. Do you want to live or do you want to die?” Allan staggers in his stance and begins to sway a bit.

Watching him makes me a bit seasick, but the more he starts to sway the closer Dad makes his way to Allan.

Allan flashes in and out of consciousness. One second he looks well, then the next, his eyes close and he staggers to the side, getting ready to fall over at any moment.

“Allan, listen to reason. You kill me and your life is over,” Dad pleads.

Allan violently shakes his head. “No, I’m the mayor. I can do whatever I want.”

Dad rushes Allan with his big body. Allan, attempting to block Dad’s attack, trips over the tip of his boot. A shot fires and Dad falls forward.

I gasp for air when I realize what happened.

Dad falls face first into Allan, and they plummet back in a heap onto the ground.

Duane grasps my shoulders, and I begin to shake.

Allan struggles under Dad’s weight. Mumbling and grunting, he eventually pushes Dad off of his body.

Clear as day, Dad’s face comes into view.

I scream.

I scream so loud that I’m sucked back into that dreadful nightmare. I cover my ears, but can’t stop myself.

Allan Fairfield killed my father. Oh my God, Brent was right
.

Duane pulls me into his arms, and guides me upstairs and into the living room. We rock back and forth for hours on the couch while I try to recover my self-control. Duane murmurs loving words in my ear and kisses my face, all in an attempt to help me cope.

Little does he know, every affectionate touch, and every soothing word gradually brings me back from the dark. The dark I’ve been living in since Kyle died; the same darkness that pulled me farther under when I found Dad dead.

“We have to get this to the police, Red. This’ll all be over. The sooner we do it, the faster you can move on. I’m so sorry you had to see that. God, I’m so sorry, baby.” He kisses my forehead. “I’m sorry.”

I snuggle into his neck, and sigh. “I found him, you know? I’m the one who found him. Seeing him again is too much to handle, but now Dad will have some justice. That is my saving grace right now. I hope Dad can finally rest.”

Maybe I can finally move on.

Duane brings his hands to my face and forces me to look at him. “We’ll make this right. Things will be better for you, for Brent, and lastly, for Nora. You all deserve some peace.”

I bring my arms around his waist and snuggle into his tight grip.

I’m finally home.

Five days later….

The wind rushes through my hair and I turn to face Duane. With a stunning smile, he takes off his aviators and places them on his head.

“How do you feel, baby?”

Cruising down the I-40, just outside of Arizona, I unbuckle my seatbelt and stand in my seat. Lifting my hands over my head, the wind rushes through my fingers and I take a moment to relish in the glee I’m feeling. The rushing wind catches my sunglasses, and they fly off of my face.

“Whoops,” I giggle as I stretch in the back seat to retrieve them. Once they are placed firmly back on my face, I sit back down in my seat and exhale.

“I feel free,” I say. “I feel amazing. A weight has been lifted off of my shoulders. Dad got his justice, Brent is happy and moving to New York, Nora is finally able to live her life without that monster and I finally get you.”

I grab his hand on the stick shift and squeeze.

Duane leans over the console and kisses my cheek. “You’ve been pretty brave these past few days. I’m so proud of you.”

The previous days’ events come back to me like a movie.