Chapter 17
Kyle
I was in my apartment when suddenly, there was a bang on the door. It was early in the morning and most of the Black Birds would either be asleep or off working their day jobs. I put down my cup of coffee and walked over to the door. I wasn’t in the mood for company, but whoever was at the door was persistent because their knocks just kept getting louder and louder. “I’m coming!”
I hurried my pace, finally opening the door. To my surprise, I saw Olivia standing there, a newspaper in her hand. She waltzed into my home, slamming the paper down on my table. “Have you heard?”
“Heard about what?”
I asked, glancing at the paper. To my horror, the headline read: Local Lawyer, Linda Harris, Arrested!
“What?” I grabbed the paper, quickly reading the article.
Local lawyer, Linda Harris, was arrested late Friday evening. She was at home, with a Mr. Daniel Smith when she brutally attacked him, leaving him with seven stitches in the side of his head. Luckily, two members of the night patrol heard the disturbance and came in to investigate. When they arrived at the scene, Harris was holding the smashed vase she had used to attack Smith. It’s still unclear whether this was a case of domestic abuse as authorities are still investigating.
Linda Harris graduated top of her class at Sussex College. She has been working in the district as a defense attorney, making a name for herself. As an advocate for second chances, she often takes on pro bono cases for the benefit of suspected criminals. Now, it seems that the well-to-do lawyer has for yet unknown reasons, followed in their footsteps. She will be having a hearing early this morning. More on this story in the coming days.
“This can’t be real.” I stared at Linda’s mugshot in the paper and my heart felt like it was pumping ice through my veins. “He went after her…” My fingers tightened around the paper so hard that I ripped right through it. “I have to get her out of jail.”
Olivia nodded. “I already went into the safe. Grabbed everything we had. It’s not much, but as a first-time offender, her bail shouldn’t be that high.”
I nodded, pocketing the wad of cash before I ran out of the building. Since my bike was still under repair, I hopped onto one of the spares, riding out of the garage as fast as I could. I pushed the limits, flying through stop signs and traffic lights.
All I could think about was Linda. If only I had stuck around, none of this would have happened. I could have dealt with Danny once and for all and we would have been done with the whole ordeal. I ground my teeth in frustration, my vision blurring as I blamed myself for everything that had happened.
I could just picture Linda languishing in the local jail. She wasn’t the kind of girl who deserved to go through something like this. She was sweet – innocent – pure. I had tainted her and now, her life was probably ruined because of me. I was certain that she would never want to see me again, especially after everything that had happened. I kidnapped her – forced her to stay with me – and now, I was the reason she had to spend the night in a jail cell. Still, I couldn’t just let her rot.
As I approached the city, I followed the speed limit. Most of the cops in town had a grudge against the Black Birds and I wasn’t about to screw up my chance to save Linda.
I arrived at the precinct before they opened to the public. I paced around the parking lot. All I could think about was Linda. She had been alone for almost twenty-four hours. I didn’t even want to imagine what she must be going through. Was she in a holding cell by herself, or had they thrust her into one of the communal cells where the other girls would surely eat her alive?
My mind wandered back to my dream, picturing her chest with that large, gaping hole. This was all my fault. If I had just kept her out of this… she wouldn’t be in this situation. I could have just cut and run as soon as I made bail, but no… I just had to go and convince her that I was innocent. Fat lot of good that did…
The minutes seemed to drag on for an eternity as I continued to worry. My frustration was mounting until I thought I would just kick down the door and free her myself.
My hands tightened into fists by my side and my nostrils flared as I thought of Daniel. Why hadn’t he just left her out of it? His face was so clear in my mind that I could almost reach out and strangle him. He snickered at me and I wanted to punch him, to wipe that disgusting smile off his face. He would pay for this… one way or another… even if I wasn’t the one to kill him, a rat like him always got what he deserved. Karma was a bitch, but she usually knew how to get the job done.
Finally, someone opened the door and I rushed inside. I was the first one at the counter. “Hello, I need to talk to a Linda Harris.” My voice was shaky as I tried to keep myself steady.
The woman behind the glass narrowed her eyes at me as if suspicious. “Have I seen you here before?” She asked, twirling a pencil between her fingers.
“Maybe,” I said quickly. I didn’t have time for petty small talk. I had to see Linda.
“Linda Harris, you said?”
“Yes, please.” I drummed my fingers against the counter. “I think she was brought in two nights ago. Friday.”
“Just give me a moment.” She turned the computer screen toward her face, illuminating all the wrinkles and fine lines she had failed to conceal with makeup. She clicked a few times typing something in. Then she just stared at the screen, her eyes focused on something.
“Do you think we could hurry this along? It’s kind of urgent.”
“The computers are slow, sir. There’s nothing I can do about it.” She pressed her lips together in disapproval, obviously not appreciating the fact that I was rushing her.
I sighed. “It’s just really important that I see her.”
“She’s not going anywhere.” The woman’s voice was icy.
I ground my teeth to keep from lashing out at her. I could feel my temples throb.
Finally, the woman leaned into her screen, reading something. “Is she the lawyer that was brought in on a domestic abuse charge?”
“Yeah, that’s the one. I want to pay her bail.”
The woman looked slightly surprised, glancing at me up and down. “And where are you going to get that kind of money?”
“Just tell me how much it is.” I had never met someone who had such a knack for getting under my skin, and I knew my fair share of Iron Horses.
“$5,000.” She answered.
I pulled out the wad of cash from my pocket, counting out the money. The woman stared at it a moment before she got up, moving toward a large filing cabinet. She took her time looking through a few folders. It felt like she was deliberately making this process slower than it needed to be. “Can’t you just take the money and let me see her?” I asked, looking down the hall. I knew how to navigate myself around this building well enough. I had been here plenty of times before. And I was certain the woman wouldn’t notice me… but still I needed to help Linda and breaking the law further would only make things worse.
“You’ll have to fill out this paperwork before you can see her.” The woman handed me a clipboard and I quickly started to fill it out. She grabbed the money off the counter and started to count it. Just as I was finishing with the forms, a tall, lanky man joined us.
“Are you here to see Miss Harris?” He asked.
I nodded and together, we walked down the long hallway. Most of the cells were empty, but we did pass a few people who looked like they had been isolated for way too long. Their eyes were hollow inside their skull. Their limbs were thin and skeletal. One man even walked up to the bars, sticking out his hand, trying to grab the officer.
I shuddered to think of Linda in this situation. Every time I was in jail, it didn’t really bother me. I was used to it, but Linda should have never set foot in a place like this.
At the end of the hall, the man pulled out his keyring, going through it. I spotted Linda sitting down on her bed, staring at the wall. My heart seemed to break in half, seeing how wild her hair was. In her lap, her hands were carefully bandaged and my anger rushed to my chest once more. This was all my fault… if only I had stuck around.
“Linda!” I called out, my voice sounding like it wasn’t mine I was surprised when she looked up at me, her eyes widening. She rushed up to the bars, holding onto them tightly.
“Is it really you… or am I dreaming again?”
The warden opened the door and I quickly stepped inside the cell, taking her into my arms and holding her tighter than ever before. I vowed to never let her go. I breathed in her scent, letting it calm me down.
She wrapped her arms around my neck, her body shaking as she started to sob. “I… I thought I would be stuck in here forever… it was terrible…” Her voice cracked.
I pulled away, looking into her tear-soaked eyes. Gently, I wiped her tears away. “Please, don’t cry.” It pained me to see her in such distress. “This is all my fault, but I promise that I’ll never let anything like this happen to you again.”
“Your fault? How is it your fault… if I hadn’t pushed you away… then I wouldn’t have been alone that night…” She buried her face in my chest. “I was such a fool… I’m so sorry, Kyle.”
I gently rubbed her back, trying to soothe her. “Let’s talk about this once we’re safe and sound at home, okay?”
She nodded. The warden guided us to another part of the jailhouse where all of Linda’s possessions were returned to her. Holding her hand, I guided her outside, where my bike was still waiting for me. Linda blinked in the bright sunlight, tears once again coming to her eyes. “I can’t believe you came back for me…”
“Of course I did, I came as soon as I found out what happened.” I held her cheek in my hand, rubbing my thumb across her skin. “I couldn’t just let you rot in jail… not after what you’ve done for me.”
“But, I just kept pushing you away… I kept treating you like you were below me. I don’t understand how you could still want me after all that.”
“Because I love you…” Without thinking about it, I leaned down and kissed her. Our lips came together like two magnets, making it easy for me to pour all the love I felt for this woman into the kiss. I held her close like I would never let her go again. I continued to kiss her, my fingers tangling in her beautiful blonde hair. My heart trembled, knowing deep down, that this was the woman I had always been waiting for and that I would be a damn fool if I allowed her to slip away.
Our lips parted only when we were both gasping for breath. Our eyes locked and Linda stared at me, wide-eyed as if she didn’t know what to say.
My heart tightened, realizing that I had probably made a mistake.
She would never say it back…