“Joe will be pissed,” Ryan said.
“Oh, yeah,” I said. “He will. But after he gets over his hotheadedness, he’ll realize we did what was best.”
“He needs to be with Melanie,” Talon agreed. “Besides, we don’t know what we’re getting into. This could be dangerous.”
“Said the new father of almost three,” Ryan reminded him.
“I’ve gone into many a battle,” Talon said, “and I’ve come out of all of them, even when I didn’t want to.”
Silence after that.
We all knew Talon’s story, how he’d tried to get himself killed in Iraq. Seemed life had other plans for him. Plans with a wife and kids.
Talon would come out of this alive.
We all would.
Including Marj.
She would.
She had to.
I needed her.
We drove in silence for another half hour, when all of our phones dinged with a text simultaneously.
From Joe.
He’s here. Four pounds even. Tiny but breathing on his own. Strong as an ox and gorgeous like his mom. He’ll be in NICU for a week or so. Expected to do fine.
We all sighed in relief.
“Won’t he be expecting us at the hospital?” I asked.
“It’s late. I’m sure he’ll expect that we’ll come see the baby tomorrow,” Talon said.
Joe was a father.
Wow.
Being a father was something that had enriched my life in so many ways. It would be great to watch my best friend enjoy those things for the first time.
“What’s his name?” I said.
“The text doesn’t say,” Ruby said. “You know, it’s funny. Melanie and I talk all the time, and she never mentioned any names they were considering. The few times I brought it up, she said they hadn’t decided.”
“We’ll know soon enough,” Ryan said. “He can’t be nameless forever.”
“Melanie was worried for so much of this pregnancy,” Ruby went on, “because of her age. I wonder if she was just trying not to get too attached to the baby, you know?”
“You have been spending a lot of time with Melanie,” Talon said. “That sounds exactly like something she would say.”
“Her pregnancy has been textbook easy,” Ryan said. “Nothing like Jade’s.”
Talon visibly stiffened in the driver’s seat. “Jade’s doing a lot better. She’s been feeling pretty good since that scare.”
Silence again.
Then, “Shouldn’t one of us text him back?” Ryan said. “Or call?”
“I’m driving,” Talon replied. “Jade will text him for us.”
I hurriedly tapped into my phone. “Wonderful! Congratulations! Welcome to fatherhood. Your life is about to change drastically, but you’ll love it. Love you, bro.”
“Text sent,” I said.
“Yeah, me too,” Ryan said. “I feel like we should call him.”
Talon kept his eyes on the road. “He’s busy. We’ll call him when we’re done with this.”
When we’re done with this.
Interesting choice of words.
This could very well be leading us to nowhere good.
Chapter Fourteen
Marjorie
No one would know.
Slowly I lowered the blade to the scar of my flesh. Tingles shot through me at the chill of the sharp blade against my skin.
Just a little cut…
Just a little, to relieve all this tension—
“What the hell is taking you so long?” Alex banged on the door.
Reality set in with a brick to my gut.
What was I doing? This was no time for my ridiculous self-indulgence. I had a job to do, especially if Colin had failed.
“Give me a break,” I said. “Haven’t you ever had a period before?”
“Yeah. And I take care of it quickly. You’ve got two more minutes before I knock this fucking door down.”
Shit. Okay.
The blade burned hot against my fingers.
Alex on the other side of the door, ready to pound her way in…
My friend.
Almost no thought in my head as I cut a centimeter incision into my scar.
The pinch of pain flowed through me, calming me.
Yes, and I could make this work. I opened another tampon, sopped up the blood, and then threw it in the wastebasket next to the toilet. I’d flush the extra wrapper.
Ha! Let Alex check the trash. She’d find what she needed to find, and I got the pleasant calming of the pain in my thigh. I tore the wrapper off a bandage and taped up the cut. Wrapper from the bandage went in the toilet as well.
Later, I’d berate myself for succumbing.
Later, when I had to think about what I’d done.
For now, I had a job to do—get Colin and myself out of here.
What to do with the blade? I was wearing sweats with no pockets, a sports bra, and a workout shirt. My bra seemed the safest place. I carefully placed it on top of my left breast, taking care not to scratch my skin. Then I adjusted my sweatpants and flushed the toilet. Yes! The mobile home toilet had handled the extra stuff. I washed my hands before opening the door.
“Took you long enough,” Alex said, frowning.
Actually, had I ever seen her smile? Nope. The frown was a permanent fixture on her face. I smiled sweetly…which took a lot of effort. “Thanks. I feel better now.”
No truer words.
She scowled at me and led me back into the kitchen.
Dave still hadn’t returned for his cell phone, which was making me nervous. How did a person not know his cell phone was missing? Especially someone in the business of crime?
Thoughts filled my head. Did he have two phones? Was the cell phone a plant? Were they setting us up?
Maybe. I had no idea. All I knew was that I had a plan, and I’d stick to it. What else could I do?
The blade prickled against my breast. It was only my imagination. The chill from the cool metal had warmed almost instantly.
No, this was the tingling I was used to. The vibration I felt whenever I held it. Held my friend.
I had to ignore it.
So I had the blade. What next? If they tied us up again, I wouldn’t be able to access it. I needed a plan. Colin still sat at the table, white as a sheet. I assumed he still had Dave’s phone hidden…somewhere. Most likely in his crotch, the place he figured Dominic and Alex wouldn’t look.
Now what?
Might as well ask.
“What now?” I asked Dominic. I was tempted to ask where Dave had gone, but I didn’t want to bring attention to him or his phone.
“You’ll be comfortable here for the night. Alex will stay here with you. Dave and I have other things to attend to.”
Dave wasn’t coming back. Shit. He’d eventually realize his phone was missing.
Crap. What if Dominic tried to call Dave and the phone rang in Colin’s crotch?
Had he thought to put the phone on silent? I wasn’t sure, because the thought hadn’t occurred to me until this very moment.
Trust. Again, I had to trust Colin. He was a smart man, even though he’d been through horrific times. Horrific times didn’t erase intelligence and cunning. It hadn’t for Talon. I had to believe it hadn’t for Colin.