Chapter Nine
Russ
It’s another night at the bar. The fact is I don’t have anywhere else to go. At least here, there’s a chance they’ll finally finish it. I’m getting sick of waiting.
Of course, I’ve been drinking water and soda all night. Alcohol dulls the senses, and if I want a shot at living, my reflexes, my instincts, they’ve got to be sharp, clear. Truth is I don’t know what I’m doing here besides taking that next breath. As much as I want to believe my own internal macho, “bring it on” attitude, there’s not a part of me that’s ready to go.
After a while, it gets to be too much just sitting there. I get up, pay Chas, and I walk out of the bar. I’m hardly out the door when I see them. They’re standing there just like they were before. It’s Yardbird, Deadpan, and Switch, and they’re standing next to my bike.
I go inside, and they’ll pull me back out. I run, they’ll chase me down. After telling myself I just want to get it over with, I’m wishing I had more time.
This time, it’s not just going to be a beating. They’re not going to give up that easily. They wouldn’t be back unless they knew they could turn the tables, not after what happened last time.
“Ghost,” Switch starts, “it’s not what you think, man. Come here.”
I’m already walking in that direction. Frankly, I don’t really care if they don’t forgive me for taking my time getting there.
“If it’s not what I think, then what is it?” I ask.
Yardbird says, “We were wrong.”
“He lied to us,” Switch says.
“Who lied to you?” I ask.
Yardbird says, “We didn’t see it until he started talking about what he was going to do after you were out of the way. He started talking about what was going to happen when he was in charge. It’s not just about you. He wants Rev out of the way, too.”
I don’t have to think too hard to figure out who they’re talking about.
“Anyway, we want ya to know we got your back,” Deadpan tells me.
I scoff. “Little tough takin’ that one on faith. I’m still sore from the last time the three of you were hanging around my bike.”
“Yeah, well, like we said, we’re sorry about that,” Yardbird says. “We thought you was the one who talked, but we was wrong.”
“Yeah,” I answer. “You were.”
“We talked to a few other guys, and Auric’s got a lot of ‘em workin’ underneath, clearing the way for his ass to take the lead,” Deadpan says.
I ask, “So you just came to this conclusion on your own?”
Switch says, “Well, Riley helped connect the dots. I guess she’s been lookin’ into things, and we’re still not sure Auric’s the one talked to the cops and called in the raid. Be kind of surprised if he weren’t.”
“Anyway, point is, you got nothin’ more to worry about from us, and you need anything, we got your back,” Deadpan tells me. “We’re tellin’ anyone listenin’ to get in line behind you. Now Rev’s behind you, ain’t gonna be too much trouble, I think.”
“You might be surprised,” I tell him. “You’ve heard from Rev?”
“Riley went and talked to him in the joint, told him what all was goin’ on, and he gave the word you ain’t to be touched,” Switch says. “We’re behind Rev, which means we’re behind you.”
There’s nothing else for me to say, so I say, “Thanks.”
After a few more minutes talking back and forth the three of them head into the bar, and I get on my bike. Things may be starting to look up, but I’m not going to bet my life on it. Auric’s got a lot of friends, and I can’t say for sure they’re going to take my side and Rev’s side over his.
I ride, checking my tail on the way home, but nobody’s following me. Riley turned her dad around. He wasn’t about to step in when I talked to him. I don’t know what she said, but I know I need to talk to her.
Pulling onto my street, I spot a white, late ‘90s Honda Civic with blacked-out windows sitting in front of my building. There’s no way to tell if it’s there for me, but when I get close, its lights come on, and it speeds off in the other direction. I’d say there’s a pretty good chance they were there for me.
Something’s coming.
I park, and I’m just waiting to get jumped. Maybe it’ll be a bullet I don’t hear from a gun I don’t see. I’m too exposed. What I need is somewhere else to go. If Yardbird’s buddies really are working in my favor, I’ve got to make sure I’m alive long enough for them to change a few minds. I don’t know how I’m going to manage that.
When I get to my floor, I turn the corner to head down my hallway, and there’s someone standing at my apartment door, facing the other direction. It’s a woman. She turns her head. It’s Julie.
I hurry over to her. She spots me and starts talking. “Riley told me where you live,” she says. “I know you—”
“Shh!” Unlocking my door, I pull Julie inside my apartment and lock us in. “Why are you here? Were you not listening? Do you not know how dangerous it is for you to be anywhere near me right now?”
“I don’t care,” she says.
“Don’t lie,” I tell her. “I felt you shaking when I pulled you in here.”
“I didn’t say I wasn’t scared,” she tells me. “I just said that I don’t care. I know it’s over between us, but I’m not going to disappear into the background until I know for sure you’re going to be all right.”
“You don’t even know what you’re putting yourself in the middle of, but trust me when I tell you you don’t want any part of it.”
“I don’t want any part of it,” she says. “I don’t want you to be any part of it, either.”
“God, you’re so naïve. If you spent any time in my world at all, you’d run away screaming and never look back.”
“I’m not naïve,” she says. “Okay, maybe about some things I’m a bit naïve, but in the short time we’ve known each other, you’ve shown me things and a side to myself I didn’t think really existed. Maybe I would run if I found myself stuck in what you keep calling your world, but I wasn’t free before I met you. In fact, I forgot what that felt like. Maybe tomorrow or a week from now, neither of us will ever want to see the other again, but I’m not just going to walk away when you’re in this kind of trouble.”
“What do you know about it?”
“I know enough,” she says. “You keep forgetting I work with your boss’s daughter.”
“Riley knows you’re here?” he asks.
“She wasn’t exactly thrilled about it either, but at least she was smart enough to realize I’m not going to change my mind about this.”
“That’s stupid.”
“Stupid?”
“Yeah.”
“What’s so stupid about it?” she asks.
“You don’t know me, and you’re putting yourself in danger to—”
“Okay, you know, the whole noble knight in glimmering armor thing actually gets old pretty quick,” she says. “You’re going to find a way out of this, and I’m not going to leave until you do.”
I grit my teeth. “You’re the most frustrating woman on the planet, you know that?”
“I’ve heard rumors of an old chambermaid in Nepal—”
“This isn’t funny,” I interrupt.
“I know.”
“This is serious.”
“I said I know,” she tells me. “What you don’t get is you’re the most frustrating man on the planet. How long do you really expect to get if you’re not going to accept help when it’s offered?”
“I’m not going to put you in a position to get hurt,” I tell her.
“Then we’re going to have to get this figured out quick, aren’t we?” she asks.
I check the door to make sure I locked it. I did.
I ask her, “There’s nothing I can do short of throwing you over my shoulder and carrying you out of here that’s going to get you to leave, is there?”
“Nope, probably not,” she says. “And if you try carrying me out of here, you’re going to end up with my knee where you really don’t want it.”
“I don’t understand why you would come back,” I tell her. “After what I said to you, I thought you’d be gone and glad for it.”
“You were just doing what you’re trying to do now,” she says. “You were trying to make me hate you so I’d be safe. It’s really annoying, and I wish you’d stop doing that.”
“But you’re risking—”
“You know, when Riley came back to tell me you were okay, she said she didn’t mention my name once,” she interrupts again. “You, on the other hand… Apparently, I’m all you wanted to talk about. She told me how gutted you were for the way you spoke to me. She said knowing you hurt me hurt you. You did it anyway so you could protect me. Now, maybe it’s my turn to protect you.”
“But you can’t—”
She interrupts me yet again. “Before I met you, life was just something I heard people talk about on television,” she says. “There are about ten million things I’d rather be doing right now than standing here with you, wondering if someone’s going to bust that door down and shoot both of us, but this is where we are. This isn’t just about you. It’s about me, too. I’m afraid. You bet I’m afraid. But you’re trapped, and I want to make damn sure there’s nothing I can do about that before I just walk away and let the cards fall on top of you.”
“You’ve got a whole life—”
“Obviously, you don’t know me very well.”
“Damn it, will you use your fucking head?!” I shout, stepping so close to her we’re almost touching. “If they’re trying to kill me, what do you think is going to happen to you if you’re standing right there, huh? You think they’re just going to be like, ‘Oh, I’m sure this is a very nice woman who’s simply in the wrong place at the wrong time?’ No. Bullets are cheap, and if you’re standing there, you’re a witness.”
She’s actually yawning at me.
“Are you done?” she asks.
“Hardly.”
We’re standing there, and I don’t know who makes the first move. I don’t know where it comes from or why. All I know is her arms are around me, my arms are around her. We’re kissing, and I’ve never been more frustrated with anyone in my life.