When I’m not pursuing his tracks on my own, Logan and I have spent nights slumming it in last minute motels that had shady front desk clerks and roaches. We’ve slept in the car in parking lots, at rest stops, and on the side of the road. We’ve been going and going with no end in sight, yet it feels like we’re getting nowhere. It’s one step forward two steps back. And not just with Steve, but with Logan.
We seem to be at a standstill…again. Though this time, it’s my fault. I’m the one pushing him away. I’m the one saying no despite his pleas. I’m the one being the giant asshole.
Steve Allen consumes me.
He drives me.
He fuels my rage and feeds my vengeance.
I’ve got no time for anything regarding my heart, my head, or my life and it’s taking an exhausting and grueling toll on Logan and me.
“Anything?” Logan walks up to my perch behind a row of bushes outside of the club we’re supposed to be inside of. But I want to wait until I can see the asshole, if he does show up.
“No.” I keep watching through my binoculars but after two hours of staring into nothing, I set them down. “You really think he’s stupid enough to follow her here tonight?”
“I do. I know you’ve been on this lone wolf mission to hunt this guy down and while you’ve been following your own leads, Jo’s been filling me in on that side. She’s been getting letters and phone calls. It’s him alright. Right down to the fucking creepy God messages he’s been leaving. Their concern is that he’s going to try and make a move tonight when she makes her appearance.”
I let out a grunt and put the binoculars back to my eyes. I scan the perimeter again but sigh.
“Cam?”
“Can it, Logan. I’m not in the mood.” I watch people walk into the club. A woman in a skimpy leopard print dress and hair that reaches miles in the sky; a man with an atrociously bright orange shirt and stark white hair, looking like he reached into Josh’s closet and stolen his clothes; a bachelorette party complete with tiaras, sashes, and penis necklaces that light up. People filing inside like their only worries are if they’ll go home with someone tonight, or if they’ll score in the bathroom stall.
“Cam, we need to talk. Everyone is worried about you.”
“Don’t really give a damn, Logan.” I stare ahead trying to put him behind me.
“Well when you’re done with this shit attitude, Irina is walking up. You might want to get in there and check everything out.”
He turns around, rounding the corner of the bushes, and jogs until he meets up with Irina’s team. With one look back at me, he shakes his head and disappears behind the back door.
I do one more sweep of the parking lot and waiting line before I finally walk into the club. I hear the screams and cheers as they announce Irina’s arrival over the music but instead of watching the show unfold, I walk along the back wall and watch. I blend in and try to stare into everyone’s faces as they walk by. An hour goes by with nothing and I’m about to give up. This shit is getting old and as stupid as Steve is, he’s not dumb enough to actually come here when the entire country is looking out for him.
I press the earpiece in my ear. “Logan, I’m not seeing him. I’m going up.”
I walk to the back of the club and take the stairs two at a time until I’m facing the crowd below me. Everyone goes wild as a remix of More Than You Know plays for the people below me.
I watch them dance, sway, jump. Their arms in the air like tonight is just going to be another night to ease the stress away with a few choice dance moves. They don’t know that in an instant it can all be taken away. I watch them take their pathetic lives for granted without so much as a care in the world when they clap along to the beat, shake their asses, or sing along to the words of the song. They don’t know how lost and damaging the world can be, how menacing the monsters are.
I walk along the metal walkways that sit above the dance floor, getting a good long look at everyone. The longer I go without seeing him, the more pissed off I get. Tonight, seems like a waste of time. I knew he would never show up here, especially knowing that we’re watching him.
It’s not until I make a second pass over the large club when I start to feel the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I jerk my head around, but I don’t see anything out of the ordinary. With a strobe light and lasers playing along the people below, it’s hard to get a good look at anything.
“Logan, you feel that?” I hear the click and then his voice.
“My gut is screaming. You see anything?”
“These lights are making it hard to see something, but –” I start to see people going down, every few feet, people hunch over and voices start to rise over the music.
“Logan, get Irina and run!”
I race down through the walkways and down the stairs. The music stops and the lights come on as people race around the place trying to find an exit.
“I sent her and George to her dressing room.”
I look around but all I see are the FBI teams scrambling to get people on the floor up. There’s no trace of whoever did this as the room finally starts to clear out. People lay on the floor, writhing in pain with some of them covered in blood. Johansson stands ten feet to my left, holding his side. I watch him bring a red hand to his face. He looks pale, like he’s about to faint and when I run over to him, I see the blood pouring out of his side.
“What happened, Johansson?” I help him sit in one of the chairs and he looks up at me with pained eyes.
“I was making my way back from the bar with a bottle of water for Irina when I was fucking stabbed. It took me a second to register what happened but then I started seeing people going down. Who the fuck stabs people?” He winces as I lift his shirt and I find the stab wound. An inch and a half wide and just above his left kidney. “I sent word as soon as I gathered my wits but then people started freaking out. Cameron, I’m okay, just go find that asshole.”
“Just keep pressure on the wound. You’ll be fine but you’ll need stitches.” I lower his shirt and stand up, speaking into my earpiece. “Logan, where are you?”
“I’m headed to the dressing rooms. George isn’t answering my pages and I need to make sure Irina is okay.”
“Talk me through this place.” I leave Johansson as Logan walks me to where he is. I pass the paramedics and the police as I take wide strides until I hear Logan in my head again.
“Holy shit, Cam. Get here, now!” I run through the growing group pf people making their way inside the building. I stop in my tracks when I see Logan hunched over a body. I walk around him until I find George’s body crumpled on the floor.
“He’s alive, Cam. But I don’t know where Irina is.”
“Let me take a look at him. I need you to walk the room. See if there’s anything that’ll give us any indication of where she went.” I look down as George starts to stir and I kneel next to him and pat his face lightly. “Hey, man. Come on, George, wake up for me.”
George’s eyes barely open as he slowly reaches around the back of his neck. “That asshole hit me.”
“Did you see where Irina went?”
He shakes his head slightly, recoiling at the pain. “I saw her turn around and her eyes go wide, but that was it. I don’t remember much but we came in here as soon as I heard Johansson call for backup.”
“Shit, Steve has at least half an hour on us.”
“Cameron, you might want to see this.” I turn to Logan walking out of the restroom holding a trashcan. I look back down to George.
“Just stay down and don’t move. You might have a concussion and I don’t want to move you unless we have to.”
I meet Cam halfway. His eyes practically glow red when he looks at what’s inside the garbage can, and I don’t blame him.
“No fucking way.
“I know, but how were we supposed to know that he’d be wearing a disguise.”
“It’s not that, Logan. I mean, yes, we should have been aware but I watched this guy walk into the club. I remember thinking to myself how it seems there’s always at least one person that looks like he just waltzed into Josh’s closet and blindly grabbed the first thing they touched. This outfit – this shirt and wig – I saw it on a man just before you left to meet up with Irina.”
“Jesus Christ. Well, then I guess this is a good time to mention that there’s a message written on the bathroom mirror.”
“Yeah, I guess so,” he mumbles as he pushes past me. I follow him into the bathroom and the message is written in large, cherry red letters.
I am His authority as appointed by Him. I do as He commands. Irina is now mine.
“This was taped to the mirror.” I hand him the card I found earlier with only a single phone number on it.
I watch him close his eyes – and his fist around the card – and breathe in deep. I hear him count to ten before opening his eyes again.
“You coming?” He turns around and starts to walk off.
“Where are we going, Cameron? We have to make sure everyone is okay before we just head out.”
When he turns around, I hold my ground. Arms folded across my chest, my stare bores into him until he’s face to face with me.
“George, you fine?” His locked eye never waiver as George assures us he’ll be fine once he gets some aspirin. “There are people here who are taking care of the wounded. As far as I saw, there were no fatalities. Now, I’m going to walk through that back door, get into the truck I’ve rented, and I’m driving to that piece of shit motel and packing my bags. Then I’m going to call this number, trace it, and go find that mother fucker. If you stand in my way, I won’t hesitate to use force.”
He turns around, livid. I want to go, I want to help him out, but three and a half months of chasing useless clues and leads are starting to eat at me. I’m tired of staring at him as he curls up on his bed every night in rage and distraught. I’m tired of trying to get him to talk, and I’m tired of watching him turn into a monster.
I walk after him, catching up to him finally in the parking lot next to the black Chevy truck he rented.
“Wait, Cameron.” I grab his arm and he turns around. “I want to go after him, call this number, and catch him. But you need to calm the fuck down. We started this as a way to get revenge but you’ve taken it a hell of a lot further than it needs to go. In case you forgot, we’re law enforcement. You can’t just do as you please and expect everyone to turn a blind eye. You have to keep Suzie, JoJo, Brad, and Josh in mind. Our mission hasn’t changed, Cameron, but you have.”
“For shit’s sake, spare me the lecture. I know what the fuck I’m fighting for. You don’t have to bring Josh and Brad into this every fucking time. Jesus, it’s like you don’t think I realize this. It’s not like I’m telling myself that what I had with Josh was just some temporary fling not worth the fight or that Brad being with you was nothing more than a stupid bet won for your attention. I know how important they are to this. And you know what? I think it’s time that we went our separate ways because clearly, you can’t see just how important this has become.”
He opens the door to his truck, turns the ignition, and speeds off.
No fucking way is he taking off without explaining what in the hell he meant by bet.