Hidden Barriers (35 page)

I would have done this a while ago, but damn, if Sam didn’t find herself a twenty-four hour security detail. To top it off, that bitch found a cop to saddle up with. He won’t be able to save her like her dick brother did. This time my plan is so well planned out that I actually found myself lingering out in the open just to see if anyone would catch on to who I am.

Two weeks and the cops still haven’t found me in town. A local police cruiser is parked in the driveway as I see the officer sitting in the driver’s seat calling in what most likely are my details. What a bunch of stupid shits they are. I’ve been right under their goddamn noses for months, and all it took was not checking in with my parole officer for them to finally take notice. I even stood in the pisser right next to that dumb ass boyfriend of Sam’s at the derby event. If these guys were real cops and friends of Sam’s, they would have already known my face. Just proves they aren’t worth shit around here.

I, on the other hand, well, who knows what broad I’ll move on to in the next month. Once I’m done here with Sam and Lucy, everyone will be so grief stricken they won’t think to start looking for me until I’m long gone. It’s too bad, too. I usually like a good funeral.

My worst nightmare is happening again, and I don’t have a clue how to function. Stone going MIA was one thing. I was able to live and work, even if I wasn’t entirely sure where he was. The news tonight is crippling my soul all the way down to my bones.

He was here, in my house, and he had sex with Lucy. He’s going to come back. I know he is. Why wouldn’t he? He knows exactly where I live.
God, Lucy, what did you do?
She would never have known either. I only ever called him Stone, and I never kept a picture of him, simply because the only one I ever had is the one currently sitting on my kitchen counter.

I move away from Josh who continues to talk on his phone with my brother. I scuffle my heavy legs through the room over to the kitchen cabinet I need. Josh watches me with concern written all over his face, but I know there isn’t anything I can say to make him leave. If I thought not having space before this was bad, unless by some miracle they find Stone soon, there won’t be anyway I can handle Josh’s overprotective nature for another week.

I pull open the cabinet and grab the bottle of Jack, foregoing the shot glass. I shut the cabinet door and twist the top off the squared bottle. As I bring the bottle to my mouth, the stinging smell hits me first before I tilt my head back and chug until I can’t take the burn anymore. I straighten my head, coughing as the burn wears off in my throat until I feel the warmth coat its way into my system. Only this isn’t what I need right now.

I stare at the bottle in my hand and start laughing hysterically before screaming at the top of my lungs. As I continue to scream and laugh, tears well in my eyes, but not before I catch sight of the girls rounding the corner to see what’s going on. Josh stands there, silently watching me mentally break down. Nick storms through the front door, most likely thinking the worst has happened, considering his hand is already on his holster ready to draw his gun. All of them think I’m losing my shit and quite possibly I am.

For three years I was safe and happy with my new life and friends. I had just found love and a future with a man who was willing to deal with all my bullshit, and in less than a few weeks, I’m back to where I was three years ago. Everything I worked so hard to overcome is disappearing in a flash.

My hand curls firmly around the bottle as I let out the loudest, most painful wail I can before my vocal chords go silent. Before I have time to think, my arm pushes back, and I hurl the half full bottle of Jack across the room, hitting the wall and shattering into a million pieces. Brown liquid drips down the yellow painted walls and onto the tiled floor. The tears that flooded my eyes have now breached and are trickling their way down my cheeks. Lucy cautiously moves in my direction. Her eyes are bloodshot and puffy, probably from throwing up and crying as well, but mostly, I can tell she is in pain and thinks she’s to blame for this.

“Sam?” Lucy hesitates before lowering her head. “I’m sorry. I had no idea it was him. Please, forgive me,” she openly cries as hiccups interrupt her attempt to take a breath and speak. Both of us know there is nothing we can do now except stick by each other and wait to see if the police find Stone before he finds us again.

Lucy reaches out to pull me into a hug. As I wrap my arms tightly around her, I glance up to see Rose and Kim cleaning up the broken shards of glass on the floor and Josh standing at the opposite side of the room. Nick’s hand grabs his shoulder as he says something to him out of earshot. Josh raises his head, agreeing with whatever Nick just said to him. Then, Josh’s eyes grip me as I notice the wetness on his cheek. He turns his head slightly and sees me staring at him. Quickly, he wipes at his cheek and pushes away from Nick, heading to me.

He walks toward me with determination. Lucy senses someone behind her as she pulls away from me. “We’ll talk later, Luce,” I tell her, knowing we will have to talk through all that has happened.

“Yeah, I’m going to go talk to Nick. I’m sure I’ll have to answer some questions anyway,” Lucy says as she walks toward Nick, who’s talking on his two-way radio strapped on his shoulder and writing something down on his notepad.

“Sam.” Josh’s voice brings my attention back to him. I see how much I’ve hurt him since this afternoon in the car and now with the way I handled the news of Stone. “Tell me what you need me to do for you. I love you, and I will do anything for you, but you are not going to push me away like last time. I’m not going anywhere. Please, let me help you. I know this has to be tearing you up inside.”

I know he’s hurting inside the same as me, and he most likely fears I’ll do what I did before. I know how sincere Josh is right now, which is why I know I can’t be pushed back into a corner again. When Stone comes for me, I need to be prepared as best as I can. That way at least I know I fought for myself this time around. Drew and Josh can’t be expected to protect and save me. I have to save myself.

I reach out to grab his hands in mine before he pulls me in close to his body. “I can’t lose you. Do you understand, Sam? If he hurts you…” Josh says, his voice cracking as the words suddenly become too painful to voice.

I nudge him lightly, grabbing his attention. “Who says he’s going to hurt me? The way I see it, I’ve got two cops here who can help me on my self-defense tactics, and the home security system just needs to be reprogrammed. And, I don’t even want to know what Lucy and the girls will do to him if he tries to get near us again.” I successfully lighten the mood as Josh’s lips curl slightly upward.

I notice Lucy walking back into the kitchen with Nick. Rose is dumping the remaining glass pieces into the garbage as Kim continues to scrub the liquor from the grout between the tiles.

Nick glances over at me as he stops behind Josh. “I called Cara. She and Brian are going to cover Vines the next few days for you. She also said she’d stop by tomorrow to see you. I have a lot of paperwork to fill out, so I ought to get back to the station soon. But, for now, I think we all should sit down and come up with a plan of attack, just in case,” Nick says as we all gather around the kitchen island.

Just in case.

Yeah, you know, just in case Stone decides one victim isn’t enough in this house, we all have to be prepared for what we might be up against.

Every day that goes by without any sign of Stone is another bullet to my chest. Every second that passes is agony. As I drive around in my cruiser at work, I grow more anxious not knowing if Sam is safe or not. My duty belt and bulletproof vest already cause my body to be uncomfortable on top of my anxiety level. Add in the tightness in my chest right now at the thought of her at work without Nick or me around is making it hard to breathe. I roll down the cruiser window, hoping the cool evening air will help calm some of my stress.

It’s been damn near a week, and Nick and I still haven’t stumbled upon that asshole. I know he’s playing a game with us; he has to be. If he’s been in the girls’ house and around town recently, we all know he’s been plotting and up to no good. The key is to stay vigilant and hope to hell that we play our cards right and get to him first.

Nick has made sure the local police have added presence around the downtown area and the girls’ house. The security system at the house was reprogrammed the next day to alert police and also my own cell phone if there are any issues.

Given the circumstances surrounding the reappearance of Stone and the safety of Sam and Lucy, Sam felt it was necessary to fully explain to Nick what happened three years ago. Before Nick went back to the station to file his report from Lucy, Sam provided him the details the restraining order may not have fully disclosed and how dangerous Stone can be. Nick never pried into her past, even after all these months. He knew there was something in Sam’s past, but he wanted to respect her privacy by not looking further into it. He told Sam if it was important enough for her not to say anything before, then he would value that and wait for her to tell him instead of finding out on his own.

When I talked to Drew, he said he was at drill and that he’d be up to see Sam as soon as he could. He’s been in the Boston office ever since finding out whatever he could. His only advice to me was to allow Sam the space to process everything on her own.

After Nick left the house that night, the girls left Sam and me to talk alone for a bit. Lucy was still somewhat rattled from the night’s chaotic events. Once Sam and I retreated to her bedroom, I told her I would be staying the night, simply because as of that moment, it was no longer about protecting only her. There were other potential people who could be hurt in the house, too. Sam understood and quickly realized she might have overreacted before, saying she knew I meant well, but that she still needed space to be able to continue living her life.

I agreed one hundred percent, even though I knew it would be hard for me to actually allow her that added space. So, we reached a compromise, but it would involve having more people finding out about her past. That is why Courtney, Emily, and Jeremy are all hanging out at Vines tonight.