A Gift of Time (The Nine Minutes Trilogy Book 3) (39 page)

Chapter Sixty-Six

Grizz

2002,
Fort Lauderdale

The four friends
sat on the back deck at Carter and Bill’s
house. Ginny and Grizz had been sharing details of their upcoming move. After
returning from Montana, they’d made a quick trip back with Mimi and Jason and
let them visit the schools they would be attending. After deciding that one
town, in particular, offered everything they wanted, they set about looking at
the few houses Ginny had found through her Internet searches.

“So are you
buying the house?” Carter took a sip of her iced tea.

“No.” Ginny
shook her head. “We gave a deposit. We’re going to rent for a year while we
take our time looking for property. Hopefully, it’ll come with a house that we
like. If not, we’ll probably build.”

“Building
can be such a pain, though.”

“I know, but
Grizz loves construction. Remember—he practically lived here when we
built this house.” Ginny looked over at Grizz and gently caressed his arm. She
caught a glance between Grizz and Bill and knew something was up.

“Didn’t you?
Didn’t you love coming here when we built this house?”

He sat up in
the patio chair and faced her. “Not really, honey.”

“What do you
mean, ‘Not really?’ You were always here!”

He didn’t
answer, so she looked at him, then Carter, then finally Bill. She felt like she
was about to become the butt of some inside joke.

“I had
another reason for being here. I was overseeing something. I needed to make
sure it was done right.”

“Make sure
what was done right?” The attitude in her voice was becoming obvious.

Grizz stood
and offered her his hand. She took it and stood up.

“It’s easier
to show you.”

She walked
with him as he led her down the deck steps and toward the detached garage with
the second-floor guesthouse. She followed him up the side stairs and through
the door. They were now in the bedroom where they’d retrieved his telescope the
previous Thanksgiving. She looked around the room, then back at him. He walked
to the small bedroom closet and opened it.

“Come here,”
he said.

She walked
over and watched as he reached into the closet and opened what she’d always
thought was an electrical breaker box. He flipped a switch, and she heard what
sounded like some kind of latch releasing and the back wall of the closet slid
open.

“A secret
room? Really, Grizz?” She crossed her arms over her chest.

“Yeah,
really.” He gave her a sheepish grin. “I originally had it done to be more of a
safe house or—what do they call them now? Panic rooms?”

“Well, how
considerate of you to create a safe house that I wouldn’t know how to find
since I never knew about it.” She rolled her eyes.

“I got so
complacent after we moved in that I didn’t think we’d need it, and obviously we
didn’t. Then after I was arrested, there was no longer a use for it.” He
paused. “But it’s being used now. C’mon.”

He had to
duck low to go inside, and she followed him down a very narrow metal spiral
staircase. She stood at the base of the stairs, and her eyes got wide. She
immediately knew what she was looking at.

“Bill.”

Grizz
nodded. “It’s where he does all his computer shit. I already told you I knew
him from prison, and that I sent him to Carter for a job. When they fell in
love and he moved in, I told him about the room. He was doing so much shit for
me, you know, erasing everything he could find on me...well, let’s just say I
wanted him to have a safe place to keep doing it.”

“So this is
why you agreed to let Carter live here as long as the garage was off-limits. I
thought it was because of the cars and your bikes, but it wasn’t. You didn’t
want anybody snooping around the guesthouse and finding this room.”

He nodded.

“So where
are we exactly?” She looked around as if trying to get her bearings. “I feel
like we walked down two flights of steps.”

“We did.
We’re underneath the garage.”

She peered
around, then glanced at him, tilting her head. “So you don’t like
construction?”

He shook his
head. “Nope. I kind of hated it. I was only here to make sure this was done
right.”

She shrugged
her shoulders. “Okay. Interesting, but not earth-shattering,” she stated
matter-of-factly as she turned around and started back up the stairs, calling
back over her shoulder, “I think I should insist we build in Montana just to
make you miserable.”

“You’re mad
at me?” he asked as he followed her up the stairs. His weight caused the metal
staircase to shift a little, and she grabbed the railing. He came up behind her
and put his hands around her waist.

“No, not
really. I guess I’m just relieved there weren’t any dead bodies down here. I
didn’t know what I was walking into, and you are a man of surprises.” She
turned then, a stern expression on her face. “There aren’t any bodies buried
down here, are there Grizz?”

He gave her
half a smile. “No, baby. No bodies. I promise.”

They
returned to the deck where Carter and Bill were still sitting, except that now,
the table was covered with food. Apparently, Carter had made some sandwiches
and side dishes and brought out fresh drinks.

“Nice
Batcave, Bill. You really are into your computer stuff, aren’t you?” Ginny
elbowed him as she took her seat at the patio table.

“It’s my
thing,” he said somewhat shyly.

They were
eating their lunch when Ginny introduced a topic that had been weighing heavily
on her heart, and she wanted, needed, to hear the opinion of those she loved
most.

“We’ve
drifted apart, and I can’t figure out why, and yet there’s something in me
that’s telling me it’s okay, and maybe I shouldn’t push it.”

She told
about what she perceived as the loss of her friendship with Sarah Jo.

“I’ve tried
to get together with her since we came back from Micah’s, not to mention the
dozens of times I’ve reached out in the past year or more, and if I didn’t know
better, I’d say she’s avoiding me.”

She didn’t
notice Grizz stiffen, or the glance Carter and Bill exchanged.

“Well,”
Carter said softly. “Maybe it is intuition, and you should follow it. People
drift apart, Gin. It happens.”

“Yeah, but
if I hadn’t been so wrapped up in Tommy’s death and him,” she nodded toward
Grizz, “I would’ve pursued her more. You realize—we’re moving, and I’m
not leaving anybody except you two and Anthony and Christy a way to contact us.
I would be cutting Sarah Jo off for good. I mean, other than Grizz, she’s my
oldest friend. I’m not sure I can do that. Especially without knowing what, if
anything, came between us.”

She looked
at Grizz, saw his jaw tighten. He wouldn’t look at her. Before she could ask
him what was wrong, the cell phone in her pocket started ringing.

“Excuse me,”
she said while reaching for it. “I always answer in case it’s the school, but
in this case,” she squinted at the phone, “it’s a local number I don’t
recognize.”

She answered
it anyway. They watched as she got a surprised expression on her face.

“Stan?”—She
put her hand over the mouthpiece and whispered, “Talk about weird
timing”—”Yes, Stan, of course, I’ll come.”

She set the
phone down and looked at her husband and friends.

“That was
the strangest conversation ever. I don’t think Stan has ever called me.”

“Why is he
calling you now?” Grizz’s body posture had changed, and his senses were on
alert. He wasn’t getting a good feeling.

“Sarah Jo is
in the hospital, and he wants me to see her, to talk to her.”

“In the
hospital?” Carter blinked. “Has she been in an accident?”

“No.” Ginny
stood up. “She hasn’t been in an accident. Apparently, she’s been admitted to a
psychiatric hospital.”

Chapter Sixty-Seven

Ginny

2002,
Fort Lauderdale

“
Thank you for
coming,” Stan said as he pulled me into a hug.

Stan was a
handsome man, always well-groomed and manicured. But today he looked absolutely
horrible. It was obvious he hadn’t bathed or slept in days. I released myself
from his embrace and looked into his bloodshot eyes.

“What’s
going on?”

He led me
into a private waiting room and shut the door behind us. He motioned for me to
take a seat, and he took the one across from me. It was obvious Stan had
connections and clout, because even though I’d never visited a hospital that
specialized in psychiatric care, I knew this wasn’t the norm. This room had
tasteful and expensive furnishings that rivaled a multimillion-dollar penthouse
on the beach.

“I’ll tell
you what I know or at least what I think I know,” he told me, his voice shaky.

I nodded.

“Back when
you and Tommy were having problems, I think it was right around the time you
moved back home after staying with Carter, Sarah Jo started harping on me about
moving away from Fort Lauderdale. And not just away from Fort Lauderdale, but
out of the country. I was surprised because I’d had some fantastic offers from
outside of the states, and she always turned her nose up at them, insisting she
would never leave here.”

I stiffened
at the mention of my brief separation from Tommy, but didn’t interrupt him.

“It was so
unlike her, Ginny. Fort Lauderdale has always been Sarah Jo’s home, and her
insistence felt almost surreal. But, I love her and would do anything for her,
so I agreed to start the ball rolling.”

I reached
for his hand and held it in my own. It was cold and clammy.

“I thought
we were closing in on a decision about where to move when Tommy was shot. Then
she told me you couldn’t bear for her to leave...I’m not blaming you, Ginny.”
He scrubbed his face with his hand.

“It’s okay,
Stan, I know you’re not blaming me for anything. Go on.”

He looked at
me with red-rimmed eyes and swallowed. “It was just strange, Ginny. Suddenly,
she backed off the move so quickly, the move she’d been adamant about, but I
understood because she said she wanted to be there for you. But she wasn’t
there for you, was she?”

I bit my
lip, carefully considering my reply. I didn’t know where this was going.

“I noticed
we’d drifted apart too, Stan. She was there for the funeral, but you’re right.
I didn’t see much of her before that or afterward. We had an occasional lunch,
but it wasn’t the same. It was like we were strangers playing the roles of two
people who were supposed to be friends. The conversation was almost scripted.
We asked all the right things about our kids and our lives, but it didn’t feel
right. I’ve wondered about it myself.”

He took his
hand from mine then and leaned back in his chair, running it through his short
hair.

“It started
to get worse after Christmas.”

“How?” My
curiosity and concern rose.

“I’ve
thought long and hard on this, Ginny. She’s been here almost two weeks, and
because they don’t see any improvement, I’m going out on a limb here. I’m
desperate and grasping at straws. Either you’ll be the best thing for her or
the worst. I honestly don’t know, but I’m at the end of my rope.”

“What are
you talking about?”

“Can I just
show you?”

I silently
followed Stan down a long corridor. He nodded at a woman at the nurses’ station
who stood and followed us to a room. There was a door with a tiny clear window.
As the nurse was unlocking it for us, I stood on my tiptoes and could see Jo
sitting in a comfortable and plush chair. She was clutching a stuffed animal
and staring at something not in my line of vision.

I followed
Stan in and heard the nurse quietly leave, closing the door behind her.

“Darling, I
brought someone who wants to see you. Sarah Jo, Ginny is here.”

Sarah Jo
slowly looked over at Stan and then me. She smiled, then caught herself. Her
smile was instantly replaced with something else. Was it fear? No. It wasn’t
fear. It almost looked like relief.

She jumped
up and ran to me, hugging me so tightly I almost couldn’t breathe.

“You won’t
let him hurt me, will you? You’ll protect me, won’t you Ginny? You’re my best
friend, and I know you’ll forgive me for everything I’ve done to hurt you.
Won’t you? Tell me you’ll protect me from him. Please, please tell me that,
Ginny. Please.”

Stan gently
unlocked Jo’s grip from around my body as I looked at him while answering her.
What was going on? Was Stan abusing her or something?

“Stan would
never hurt you, Jo. Stan loves you. I don’t need to protect you from your
husband. You’re safe, Sarah Jo.”

I almost
gasped at her reply.

“Not Stan. I
know Stan would never hurt me. It’s Grizz! Grizz wants to kill me, Ginny! He’s
alive, and he’s coming after me for all the bad things I did to you and him and
Tommy.”

Chapter Sixty-Eight

Grizz

2002,
Fort Lauderdale

He waited with
Carter and Bill, hoping Ginny would call or
show back up, but she hadn’t. His calls to her went straight to voicemail.

He headed
back to his house in Laurel Falls and dug out Moe’s journal. He’d started to
get a little antsy when he’d realized he was on edge about Ginny going to see
Sarah Jo. If that call from Stan was about what he thought it was, the journal,
along with what Carter and Bill had given him, should help shed some light on
things.

All he could
do now was wait.

He stood at
his front window, arms crossed, and stared out. It felt foreign. He was very
private and had always kept his front blinds closed. He certainly never
concerned himself with what was or wasn’t happening on his street. And there
wasn’t much to see now. A few cars drove by, and an elderly couple who’d
recently moved in down the street were walking their large poodle. He only knew
they’d just moved in because he saw the moving van on his way to work one day.
He stiffened as he watched their dog squat in front of his mailbox and take a
humungous dump. So that’s who was leaving those piles of shit. He’d recently
had to take a fucking scooper with him to check his mail. Well, he wouldn’t be
living here for much longer, so he’d let it go and let the next renters deal
with it.

He watched as
the nice girl next door pulled up in front of her house. Rosa cleaned his house
and used to grocery shop for him. He’d decided after the one time he’d shown up
at Ginny’s grocery store that he was wrong to call attention to himself when it
wasn’t necessary. Besides, Rosa was more than happy to earn a little extra
money. He’d leave a list and money for her when she cleaned, and his groceries
were delivered by the end of the day. Since he’d been back with Ginny, he’d
told Rosa he didn’t need her to do the grocery shopping anymore. Ginny always
showed up with a bag of groceries. Cooking was one thing they enjoyed doing
together. Well, he knew how to cook, but he didn’t like to. He used it as an
excuse to sit at the table and stare at her ass while she cooked. He smiled to
himself.

Just then, a
car pulled in behind Rosa’s. Grizz watched her body language change as she
heard the car and turned to see who’d parked in her driveway. She seemed to
stiffen and pasted on what he was certain was a fake smile as a guy got out of
the car and sauntered up to her. Grizz knew the type. What was a quiet,
studious, hardworking girl like Rosa doing with a total punk asswipe?

His brows
furrowed as he studied the scene. The guy pulled her so close their bodies were
touching. He watched as he got in her face, whatever he was saying clearly
making her uncomfortable. His sneer was meant to intimidate, and he couldn’t
hide the fact that he was enjoying scaring the girl.

Grizz used
to eat guys like this for lunch. It was almost dinner, and his stomach growled.
He was hungry. He was frustrated. Where the fuck was Ginny?

He closed
the blinds and headed out the front door.

“Justin, no.
Please, Justin! You’re squeezing too hard. You’re hurting my arm!” Rosa’s eyes
were wide.

“You can’t
tell me no. You know that, little bird, don’t you? Nobody tells me no.”

Grizz could
hear the whispered threat as he approached the couple. He hadn’t been noticed.

Without
missing a beat, he said loudly, “No.”

They both
turned at the sound of Grizz’s voice, and Justin let go of Rosa, his eyes
round. She stepped back, and Grizz noticed she was trembling.

“This a
friend of yours, Rosa?” Grizz asked when he got to them. He casually leaned
against Rosa’s car and crossed his arms over his chest.

Justin gave
him the once-over, his glance at first hesitant and then replaced with false
bravado. He’d decided the big tattooed guy wasn’t much of a threat. Besides,
all he had to do was make a phone call, and his homies would be on this fucker
like stink on shit.

He sneered at
Grizz. “None of your fucking business, hombre.”

He started
to puff out his chest and say something else when Grizz pushed off the side of
the car and walked right up to him.

“Which one
do you want to eat, hombre?” Without waiting for an answer or taking his eyes
off the guy, he said, “Go inside, Rosa. It’ll be fine. This piece of shit won’t
be bothering you anymore. Tell your parents not to worry. They don’t need to
call the police.”

She did as
she was told, and Grizz heard her front door open and close.

“Which one
do you want to eat?”

“What’re you
talking about, dude? The only thing I’m going to be eating is tiny pieces of
your ass when my boys show up later.”

“I recognize
the ink,” Grizz growled. “I know your boys. I’ll give you one more chance. Your
choice. Which one do you want to eat? Is it going to be eyebrow, ear, or nose?
If you don’t pick, I’ll pick for you.”

“You are
totally fucked in the head, dude.”

“My choice
then,” Grizz said.

Before
Justin could react, Grizz grabbed him by the throat and ripped the ring out of
his nose. He was so stunned, he couldn’t react. He howled in pain as Grizz spun
him around and held him in a chokehold, forced him to open his mouth by
squeezing his jaw. “You should’ve said ear. It would’ve been less painful.”

He shoved
the nose ring down the guy’s throat. “Swallow it.”

Grizz
whispered something in Justin’s ear that made his eyes go wide. He let go of
him then and shoved him toward his car, telling him, “And that is why you won’t
come back here. Am I right?”

Shaking, Justin
nodded and fumbled with the car door. He got in and drove away.

Just then,
Grizz noticed Ginny pull into his driveway next door. How much had she seen?
Shit.