Abel dropped his keys in the ceramic bowl on the counter, along with the half-empty meat lover’s pizza box and empty bottle of beer. His cell rang the moment he kicked out of his pants and headed to the bathroom. Pausing, he listened as the ringer sounded, then came to a stop.

Hot, tired, and dirty, Abel ignored the missed call and sauntered into the bathroom. With a grimy hand, he adjusted the cold and hot water until a lukewarm stream sprayed from the nozzle. The water pressure in this old motel sucked, but who was he to complain when he was living rent free in a by-the-hour motel? All he’d wanted was clean sheets, and a cheap place to lay his head.

He’d found it a few miles outside of Blackwater. Blackwater had become a forgotten town, laid to waste by the shifts in the economy, yet Abel was still unable to find a place he could afford to live. And truth was, he could afford zero dollars a month. But he was steadily looking for stable work.

Removing the rest of his clothes, he leaned in under the warm spray, while contemplating a move from Blackwater. Problem was, he was broke, so a bus ticket was out of the question; and he didn’t want to use his rainy-day money to flee Blackwater. How far could he get hitchhiking? He was a good-looking, fit male, so there was the possibility of hitching a ride with a woman and heading wherever the hell she was going. That thought crashed all to hell when Abel remembered he’d been paroled after serving eighteen months of his original two-year sentence. He wasn’t going to be leaving this state for some time without permission from his PO, and even then, he’d have to come back.

Then there was his friend, Lex. But he’d recently gotten engaged, and had plans to elope with his new fiancée. So, Abel had decided to stay far away from his buddy for a while, as he started his new life, but he couldn’t help the pang of jealousy.

Squirting some soap in his hands, Abel lathered the oily appendages up as best he could and rinsed them under the water. His phone let out a cry for attention, this one a text. If someone had tried to get ahold of him twice, chances were it was some sort of emergency. Adding some speed to his routine, Abel cleaned himself up, exited the shower, and wrapped a towel around his dripping body.

On his way out to the room, he stopped and pulled a bottle of beer from the small fridge. Opening it up, he guzzled half of it down before making his way to the phone. He’d missed two calls, received two voicemails, and a text. He started with the text.

Lex: Call me ASAP.

Grunting, he muttered, “Speak of the devil.” Shuffling his way to the bed, he plopped down on it and pressed the call button.

“Long time, no talk,” his friend greeted. “News spreads fast about fools when they return to Blackwater on the low.”

Abel laughed. “I ain’t in Blackwater.” He took another swig of beer before adding, “And who would bother gossiping about my ass?” He couldn’t think of a soul. Besides Lex, who’d give a damn about his return? His momma was dead, and the man who’d came in her all those years ago, left not long after the act.

“You know how it is around here,” Lex explained. “Trouble makers coming home lends an ear to gossip.”

“Guess so. You calling to say hi?” Abel joked. “Or am I being asked to be the best man at the wedding?” He knew that was not the case and didn’t blame Lex. Abel had always been trouble. And though he’d turned his life around, most people wouldn’t give him credit for the act, since it’d happened in jail during his youth.

Lex sighed. “Nah, man, Thea and I are eloping. But we’ve run into a problem, and hell . . . I guess it was fate that brought your ugly ass back home.”

Abel nearly choked on his beer. “Fate? The fuck you been drinking?” He glanced at his bottle and added, “It’s probably in the water. That’s why I don’t drink that shit.” When Lex didn’t join in his laughter, Abel sat up, concern growing. “Ah hell, man. Did something happen to your woman?”

“Nah, but I need you for a job. That’s if you’re willing to come to Blackwater and stay for a while.”

Abel took in the half-unpacked garbage bag of his beer and clothes, the stained floor beneath it, and thought back to the shitty shower he’d just taken. “What’s going on?”

“We just found out the son-of-a-bitch beat her ass, and tried to kill her a few times.”

“Who? Your woman?” Abel shot off the bed and straight to his bag. Holding the phone between his face and his shoulder, he used one hand to shove his clothes in the bag, while the other reached under the TV stand to get his gun.

“No, man, no. One of Thea’s employees. Her best friend,” Lex clarified.

Still, after hearing this woman had been beaten and an attempt had been made on her life, Abel knew he was headed into Blackwater. Though, taking the job would no doubt piss his PO off something fierce, as he’d just been released from prison.

“Fill me in, quickly.” He only needed a few details for now. Lex could give him the rest once he got into town.

“She came from New York to get away from him, sold all her stuff, works at the clinic, and he found her. Oh, and she won’t call the cops on him.”

“Can you fucking blame her? Our Sherriff Dowd and his family are as corrupt as they come. They wouldn’t give a damn about this woman.” Abel shoved his weapon into his waistband. He had more, but would need to get to his storage unit to get them. That could wait for now.

“Which is why I’m calling you. Well, part of the reason, anyway.”

Abel paused at the hesitance in Lex’s voice. “What’s the whole reason?”

“I need you here as a bodyguard. We planned to elope and go on our honeymoon before all this shit hit the fan, and now I can’t get Thea to budge. As long as there is no one here to keep an eye on her friend, we will not be going anywhere.”

Abel threw the bag over his shoulder. “I see.”

“I know why you were in jail, and I know this could get you in trouble. So, you don’t have to do this.”

Without thinking, Abel said, “Yes, I do.” He wouldn’t bring up the fact that it would most likely have his ass breaking all sorts of laws, but he wasn’t the sort to leave friends hanging.

“I figured you’d say that.” He laughed. “Hope’s a stubborn one. She refuses to stay at our place while we are gone, and plans to keep working, even after the note she received from him, letting her know he’d found her.”

“Damn.” Abel took a final glance around, making sure he wasn’t leaving anything behind. When his eyes met the pizza box, he bounded over and snatched up a slice. “I’m on my way.” Turning, he headed to the door. Did he need to check out, since he wasn’t paying? Nah, he’d be fine leaving a note behind. “You still have to give me a bit more information to go on.”

He listened to Lex, as he found a pen and paper to write a quick thank you note.

“Thea opened up a clinic in Blackwater and called Hope to come help. What we didn’t know was that she was running from her abusive ex-husband, or rather, husband, since he won’t sign the divorce papers. Hope thinks he won’t sign, so he can get her back up to New York and in court. If that happens, he’ll know where she is and he’ll come for her.”

Abel threw his note on the desk and left the room. Cool air greeted his skin as he opened the door to his motel. “Doesn’t he already know where she is?” He planned to walk to Blackwater, which would get him there in a few hours. Making fast work of finishing the slice of pizza, he hefted the bag over his shoulder and got to walking.

“That’s what I said, but apparently, his father is a cop and she’s scared he’ll pull some dirty cop shit to help out his son.”

“Got it. So, you’re hiring me to watch over her while you’re gone.” Abel had worked for Double Ace “A2” security, years before his arrest caused him to lose his job. Luckily, his boss had stored his equipment for him while he served time in jail. “I can do it, I just need to get my shit and head over.”

“Where are you?” Lex asked. “Wait, is that you?”

Confused, Abel glanced up into a pair of headlights. The vehicle veered to the left and slowed in front of him. Lex, with a cheesy grin on his face, leaned over and unlocked the passenger side door.

Abel chuckled and threw his pack in the backseat before hopping inside. “What’s up, man?” He buckled himself in, and his hands went straight for the radio. Turning the loud, blaring rock music down, he leaned into a half hug, half handshake with his old buddy.

“Next time, when you see a pair of headlights barreling straight at you, get the fuck out of the way, you big idiot!”

Abel released a bout of laughter. “Hell, man, I figured it was probably you. Whenever you need a favor, you always pull up ten seconds later.” And it was true, too.

“Some things never change,” Lex muttered.

“I guess not,” Abel agreed. And that was what was good about having friends you could depend on. When you needed them, come hell or high water, they showed up. “Hey, I’m sorry to hear about Earl’s passing.” Abel had never needed Earl’s help the way Lex had, but he’d visited him on many occasions. The man had been a rock in the community, and Abel was sure he was sorely missed.

“Thanks, man.”

Abel nodded and propped an elbow on the window sill. They didn’t want to speak anymore on the subject, because the last thing they needed was to be driving down a dirt road, getting all emotional over shit. “I still need to know a little more about Hope and her situation. Let me start with a few prelim questions.”

“I’ll answer what I can, but there’s not much she’ll tell me. I’m thinking there are parts that are too personal.” Lex reached out and turned the radio completely off. “She’s got . . .” He paused, face reddening in what looked like barely veiled anger.

“She’s got what, man?” Abel’s chest tightened. Was there a kid involved? Because that sure as hell complicated things. If this woman was on the run with her kid, against a judge’s orders, shit could get ugly and illegal, real fast. Normally, Abel wouldn’t worry about bending the law to keep his ward safe, but since his prison release, he’d need to be more cautious.

Lex gave him a quick glance. “Scars. She’s got scars. A hell of a lot of them. All over her body. It’s hot as hell here, and I tell you, she only wears long-sleeved shirts.”

If Lex had expected Abel to be shocked by this news, he would be sadly mistaken. In his line of work, this was the norm. But most times, the open wounds weren’t visible to the naked eye, and those always took the longest to heal.