CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
CJ
“And if love be madness, may I never find sanity again.”
- John Green
Blake was okay.
I tried to take comfort in knowing she was at least safe. Tried being the operative word there. Except without knowing why she’d gone AWOL, and why in the hell she now needed a few days off, it was making me even more crazy than before. My gut told me it was more than just her being upset with me, but until I knew for sure, I wouldn’t be able to relax.
“She’s at her sister’s,” Reed said as soon as he answered my call.
“How do you know that?”
I heard him scoff through the line. “What am I? An amateur? I set it up to notify me as soon as she powered her phone back on. It’s off again though, by the way.”
“Yeah, I know. She text me and then shut it off after ignoring my call.”
The telltale clacking of keys on his end drifted through the speakers for a few seconds before he spoke again.
“Did you get my text?”
I pulled my phone away from my ear and put it on speaker before minimizing the call. Sure enough, there was a text from Reed sent over an hour before.
Reed: Greg Dunbar was released from custody this morning. All charges dropped. Thought you should know.
I heard a sound in the hall and practically sprinted to my door. “Who the hell is Greg Dunbar?” I yelled as I yanked the door open, darting into the hallway with lightning speed. Imagine my disappointment when I found my two sisters instead of Blake.
“Brother! Fancy seeing you here,” Clara said as she turned the lock on the handle.
“What the fuck is going on here? Why are you breaking into my girlfriend’s apartment?”
Josi, who had been doing something on her phone, put it away and shot me a look of sympathy.
“We’re getting a bag for Blake.”
“What!?” Panic zipped through me and I yanked on Josi’s hand, pulling her inside my apartment. Damn nosey neighbors didn’t need to hear our conversation. “Either tell me what the hell is happening or I’m driving over to Michelle’s and demanding answers from Blake.”
Josi did that annoying thing where she shushed me like a baby in an attempt to calm me down while Clara locked Blake’s door back and joined us inside my living room.
“I’m honestly not sure what’s going on, but it has to do with Michelle. Blake sent us an SOS and asked for girl backup. By the time we got there, Michelle was already three sheets to the wind. She was trying not to show it, but I could tell Blake was really upset. We didn’t pry, just offered moral support and distraction. Now we’re here to get some things for her. She’s going to be staying with Michelle for a few days.”
Reed cleared his throat. I’d forgotten he was even on the phone.
“Sorry, man.”
“Who’s that?” Josi looked pointedly at my phone.
“Reed, I gotta call you back.”
He started to respond, but I ended the call before he got anything out. I tossed my phone onto the counter and stared down my sisters.
“Okay. Any idea as to why she won’t answer my calls or tell me any of this herself?”
Josi and Clara both squirmed, not meeting my eye. I fought hard not to growl. My frustration was reaching dangerous levels.
“Listen,” I started, tapping into every bit of patience I had access to and hoping a little pleading would get my sisters to give me some answers. “A lot of shit has gone down today and there are a lot of things I need to talk to Blake about. I’m pretty sure I upset her earlier, and if she’s avoiding me then-“
“CJ,” Josi interrupted, putting her hand on my forearm. “She’s not upset with you. I’m not going to repeat everything she said because I think it’s a conversation you need to have with her yourself, but I promise you, she’s not over there hating you and figuring out how to get a voodoo doll to stick pins into, okay? She’s just trying to be there for her sister, so be patient.”
I thrust a hand through my hair, my composure slipping. “I don’t know how to do this.”
Josi looked at me with sympathy in her eyes. I hadn’t really meant to voice the confession, but there it was. The truth of the matter. I was totally lost when it came to Blake, and it scared the hell out of me.
“I think you’re doing just fine, big brother,” Jo assured me before giving me a side hug.
My phone started vibrating on the counter. Fucking Reed.
“What?!” I barked, crossing the room and pacing. All the energy building up inside of me was going to make me explode if I didn’t find an outlet.
“Greg Dunbar is Michelle’s ex-boyfriend. The one who put her in the hospital with worse injuries than an MMA fighter. Didn’t you read that file I got for you on Blake?”
I stopped in my tracks. Several seconds ticked by as I processed his words.
Greg Dunbar was the man who beat Michelle. And he was out of jail with all charges dropped.
“Does she have a restraining order?”
Reed made a tsking sound. “Yeah, but you know those things don’t mean shit.”
I grunted.
“Chris.” Reed using my real name made my spine stiffen. “This guy has no previous record and several character witnesses testified on his behalf. They painted him as the proverbial golden boy. He was cleared of all charges, so it won’t be long before they revoke the restraining order. Without evidence or cause…”
He trailed off.
“How is there no evidence? Blake said she was in the hospital for weeks. That her injuries were extensive. How can they possible refute that?”
Reed cursed. “You seriously should have read that file.”
“You told me there wasn’t anything I needed to know right away!” I yelled defensively, ready to tear into him more but he cut me off.
“Yeah, about Blake herself. I didn’t think you’d ignore the file altogether or I’d have mentioned it. And honestly, I never would have imagined the fucker would get off.”
“When did they release him?”
Clicking on the other end came through the phone while I paced the room anxiously. “First thing this morning. I set up an alert to be notified of any changes with his case back when I compiled the information, just in case you wanted it down the road. I would have known about it sooner, but I’ve been ass-deep in the Holly case.”
I wanted to point out that if he’d let me hire someone to help with his work load it wouldn’t have been an issue, but it wasn’t the time for I-told-you-sos.
“Still don’t get why they let him go just because a few of his douchebag buddies covered for him.”
“My best guess? He’s got friends in high places.”
“You looking into it?”
Reed scoffed. “Yes, asshole, I’m looking into it. Depending on how smart he was about covering his tracks, it shouldn’t take long to figure out who he bribed.”
“CJ,” Clara said from beside me, making me jump. I’d completely forgotten my sisters were even there.
“How secure is Michelle’s building?” I asked her, not liking the way she was nervously biting her lip.
“Key pad entry, unless someone lets you in. No security cameras that I could see. Basic deadbolt lock on the door.”
I patted her head. “Good girl.”
She swatted my hand away. I would have laughed if I weren’t so fucking worried. I’d taught my sisters how to be vigilant when it came to safety. Working in security had made me paranoid when it came to the women in my life. Too many fucking creeps out there.
“Reed,” I said into the phone, but keeping my eyes on the worried faces of my sisters. “Send a couple guys over there to keep an eye on the place. The asshole would have to be the biggest dumbass on the planet to go after her the first day he’s released, but just to be cautious.”
“You got it boss.”
“Call me if anything else comes up. Keep an eye on the police scanners. I’m heading over to check on Blake myself here shortly.”
“Roger that.”
Clara and Josi were whispering. Both stopped and looked at me when they realized I was no longer on the phone.
“Spill it,” I ordered.
Josi shook her head. Something she did when she was trying to put her thoughts in order before talking. “I just have a bad feeling. We were over there for a few hours and nothing seemed out of the ordinary. When we came and went, nothing looked out of place. No suspicious cars or men lurking.”
My chest expanded with pride. When I forced both of them to go through a self-defense course with me and a couple of the guys, I wasn’t sure they’d retain anything we’d taught them. Knowing they practiced those tips regularly made me want to wrap them up in a hug.
“So if nothing seemed off, then why are you worried?”
Clara shuffled her feet. “Michelle was seriously drunk. I mean, I haven’t spent a lot of time with her, but she just seemed really off. I had the feeling that she didn’t want any of us there, even Blake. She almost seemed, like, paranoid? It was just weird.”
It made sense. The man who beat Michelle almost to death was out of jail, so of course she was paranoid. Reasoning with myself, unfortunately, wasn’t doing a damn thing to lessen the worry taking hold of my insides and twisting until my entire body was sick with dread.
“Forget the bag. We need to go back and make sure they’re okay.”
Neither of my sisters argued, a sign in itself that they were just as worried as I was.
The second we reached my car, my phone rang. It was Reed. I climbed in and started the engine before answering so I could talk over my car’s bluetooth while I drove.
“Sebastian just arrived at Michelle’s. He can hear signs of a struggle inside, but the door is blocked and he can’t break it down. Cops are on their way.”
My foot pressed down on the gas as far as it would go. Horns blared as I pulled into traffic. Worst fucking part of living in New York was not being able to get anywhere quickly.
“Need your help getting to her Reed,” I said while swerving around a yellow taxi.
“You got it.”
Beside me Clara’s leg bounced anxiously, and in the rearview mirror I saw Josi chewing on her nails and staring out the window.
“She’s fine guys,” I reassured them. Maybe I was trying to reassure myself, too, because doubt gnawed at me as soon as the words left my mouth.
Like Moses parting the Red Sea, all the stoplights visible from our location clicked over to green. Cars laid on their horns, pedestrians shouted and raised their fists; all signs that Reed had successfully hacked into the city’s computer grid and taken control of the traffic lights. As we drove, lights continually switched over as we approached and by the time we neared Michelle’s apartment complex, what would likely have been almost an hour drive took only twenty minutes.
Emergency sirens blared in the distance. Glancing in the rearview mirror, I saw several vehicles with bright red flashing lights approaching at dangerous speeds. I whipped into the parking lot to let them pass. My stomach sank when they followed instead of driving past.
“Oh my God,” Josi whispered when two ambulances and a fire truck came to a halt right in front of the building’s main entrance. That’s when I saw Sebastian. His white shirt was covered in dark red and he was waving frantically.
I jumped out of the car. I didn’t bother turning it off or grabbing the keys or pulling into an actual parking spot. I was too busy sprinting towards the commotion.
Sebastian had already disappeared inside the building, three medics close on his heels. Three cop cars swerved into the lot, screeching to a halt next to the fire truck. I made it one foot inside the door before I was tackled to the ground.
“Get the fuck off of me!”
Resisting was pointless. I already had three cops on me, one of which had their knee digging into my back.
“Stop fighting us or I’ll be forced to taze you,” one of them threatened. I recognized the voice and immediately went still.
“Thank fuck,” Calvin, one of my closest connections to the local PD muttered. With my cheek pressed flat to the ground, I saw him dismiss the other officers. Then I felt the cool metal of handcuffs lock around my wrists. “I have to do this, man.”
I jerked my head in a quick nod so he knew I understood. So long as they let me go once they confirmed I wasn’t a threat, then we’d be good. But if Blake was hurt and they hauled me off to jail, heads were gonna roll.
Cal hauled me off to the side just as my sisters came running up. “CJ! Are you okay?”
Calvin tried to hold Josi back, which gave Clara the opportunity to rush past him. He cursed under his breath and let go of Josi as well. They both searched my body like they expected to find a bunch of bullet holes.
“I was knocked to the ground, not blown up by a bomb, guys. Chill the fuck out.”
Josi smacked me upside the head.
“You don’t get to be a sarcastic ass after we just had to watch three cops tackle and handcuff you. This asshole back here actually had his taser out.” Clara hitched her thumb over her shoulder.
Calvin had the decency to looked apologetic when I glared at him.
“I didn’t realize it was you at first,” he explained with a shrug.
A medic appeared in the doorway. He signaled for two stretchers, and several emergency personnel shot into action. I struggled against my restraints, cursing with the metal bit into my flesh. Not because it hurt, but because it served as a reminder that I was helpless to get to Blake. I needed to know she was okay. That one of those stretchers wasn’t for her.
When I tried to run to the door again, cuffed and all, Calvin jumped in front of me to block my entrance.
“You better get your fucking taser back out if you plan on trying to stop me again. My girl is up there, and I need to know she’s okay. Anyone who gets in my way will wind up collateral damage, cop or not.”
With one hand, he shoved my chest hard enough for me to trip backwards a few steps.
“You’re not going anywhere,” he warned. “Let them do their jobs. I let you run up there, you’ll only be in the way. If your girl comes down on a stretcher, you’re no good to her in the back of a patrol car.”
He was right. I hated him for being right.
He must have seen the acceptance on my face, because he nodded before unlocking the handcuffs. I nervously rubbed my sore wrists while I paced restlessly.
“At least tell me what’s going on,” I pleaded. Calvin looked at me with something that looked a hell of a lot like pity. I was too worried to give a damn. He could think whatever he wanted, so long as Blake was okay.
“I don’t know much. There was report of an intruder and injury, but not much else.”
I was about to pull out my phone and see if Reed could find out anything more when the medics reappeared. They had both stretchers and each had a person on them. Sebastian, soaked in blood, stood next to one of them with a grim look on his face. When he looked up and saw me, a dozen emotions, all of which I hated, flitted through his eyes.
He didn’t have to say. I already knew. The person laying on the stretcher he was helping carry was Blake.
They were already loading her into the back of an ambulance when I rushed over. Without waiting for invitation, I climbed inside. One of the medics started to force me back out, but Calvin spoke up and assured them I was okay to ride along. I would have thanked him if I were able to look away. Or breathe.
Blake was strapped to the gurney, her eyes closed as they hurriedly hooked her up to the machines. At some point we’d started moving. It faintly registered that I’d left my sisters behind, but they had my car so I wasn’t worried. Not about them, anyway. Blake, on the other hand…
Worry didn’t even begin to describe what I felt. The heart monitor beeped with her pulse, but it was slow and weak. An oxygen mask covered her face. I smoothed the hair on her forehead back and kissed her head. A tear fell from my cheek to hers. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d shed an actual tear; my pride had never allowed it. I’d cry a damn river now though if it meant Blake would be okay.
Please let her be okay.