Hard Core (15 page)

Chapter 34

-Jacy-

Somehow, I’d gotten
through the work day. I had just been going through the motions, propping up polite smiles and short conversations with my customers but I was relieved when it was time to close up. I would get back into my regular life and routine eventually, but I knew it was going to take some time. Everything had been going smoothly. Yes, I had been alone and still dealing with
molasses
mornings, but I was all right with that. Then, I went and messed it up by throwing my trust and my heart to someone who I never really knew. I wouldn’t make that mistake again. And I was determined to stop thinking about Ledger . . . eventually.

I’d changed up my usual morning routine of walking toward the pier with Rex. We’d started walking the opposite way, just to avoid Bombay Cottage. I didn’t want to run into Ledger. I worried that seeing him would weaken my resolve to stay clear of him for good.

I parked my car and climbed out. Heavy clouds had dropped rain intermittently, and the seagulls were doing their usual nervous dance around the shore, squawking with alarm to let everyone know that there was a storm at sea. It was the perfect afternoon to stay inside and work on purchase orders and read a book. It wasn’t an exciting life, but solitude was a lot easier and less complicated than the alternative.

Rex barked and came running out to greet me. His black coat was wet. “What on earth? Why are you outside?” While I was at work, Rex stayed inside to wait for my return.

I quickly went through the morning in my head. Occasionally, Rex would hang out in the yard while I got dressed. But not today. I was sure of it. We’d gone on our walk and then Rex had trotted happily to his pillow to plop down for his long morning nap. I raced around to the back door, the one that overlooked the beach, certain that I’d left it ajar in my morning muddle.

It was closed. I stared down at my dog. He was sitting obediently smiling up at me, letting me know he forgave me for leaving him outside all morning. “Guess I’m losing my mind, Rex. I hope you weren’t terrorizing the lizards and birds too much.”

I unlocked the back door and went inside. Rex stayed on the back stoop, wagging his tail. But it wasn’t a happy wag. “Come on, I’ll give you a treat to make up for the rough morning.”

Reluctantly, he got up. Then he rushed ahead toward the kitchen to wait for his bone. I dropped my stuff on the small table behind the couch and heard Rex growl.

“So now you’re going to be in a bad mood just because—” I stopped as I rounded the corner into the kitchen. I grabbed the edge of the wall to keep myself upright as the blood rushed from my head. “What—are you—doing here?” I could barely get the words out.

“Is that any kind of greeting for your husband?”

I swayed on my feet. Rex came to sit next to me. “You’re not my husband anymore. I want you to get out of my house.” I took a deep breath. I needed to get a grip on myself. The last thing I wanted was to look weak and scared in front of James. He thrived on weak and scared. “Why are you out already?” I kept the waver in my voice to a low tremble.

“I shouldn’t have been in there in the first place. Dad’s lawyers got my sentence shortened, told them it was cruel and unusual punishment for a man who had to live with the guilt of having accidentally killed his own daughter.”

I blinked hard. No tears, I reminded myself. No tears.

James leaned back against the kitchen counter. He looked thinner and harsher than I remembered. I wondered how I’d ever fallen for him in the first place. His high school hero persona had masked the real man beneath. “Come on, baby, don’t you think we should at least talk about things?” He pressed his hand against his chest. “I mean, I suffered too. I have to deal with what happened every single day.”

I shook my head. “I hope you’re suffering. I really hope you are.” My throat tightened as my mind shot back to that horrible day. “But there’s nothing to talk about. You can’t be here. I don’t want you anywhere near me. Ever. Get out.”

“Guess I’m in the way, huh?” The cruel, taunting tone I remembered so well had returned. It sent a chill through me. James reached behind him on the counter and my heart stopped, thinking he had a knife or a gun. His hand emerged with a piece of folded paper, a letter of some sort.

“This was shoved under the front door. I noticed it as I climbed through the window. You really should keep those windows locked. You never know who might break in.”

I locked my knees to keep from falling to the floor. There was no doubt in my mind that he was still the same dangerous, conceited monster.

James stared down at the paper. His lips pulled tight with anger as he read the letter out loud.

“Dear Jacy, I just wanted to let you know that I’ll be leaving Rockwood Beach. You had a good, quiet life here, and the last thing I ever wanted to do was disturb that. You won’t have to worry about seeing me again. I wish I’d been honest with you in the first place. I’m sorry. I never came here to harm you or cause you trouble. I came here to see for myself, to prove to myself that angels like you do exist. It gives me hope that I can make something of myself, that I can shrug off all the bad and focus on good. I wish you all the best. Know that I will never forget you. Ledger”

I couldn’t stop the tears from forming.

James’s face was tight when he looked up at me from the letter. “No tears for your husband’s homecoming, but for this sappy mush, you cry? I’m going to go out on a limb, since the name is so damn weird, and assume that you have been fucking my lowlife cellmate. How the hell did that happen? I knew there was something not right with that asshole, always asking about you, only ever listening when I was talking about you.” A sinister laugh shot from his mouth. “I knew he wanted badly just to kill me in my sleep or pound me against the wall, especially after I told him about that day, about how all of it was a mistake and that I didn’t belong in jail with a piece of trash like him.” Another ill-timed laugh. “I was sort of disappointed he never took a swing at me. Not that he’d have had a fucking chance against me, but I wanted him to be stuck in that cell longer. Would have served him right.”

James crumpled the letter up and threw it at me. Rex barked sharply. James grinned meanly down at him. “Still coddling mangy dogs. Especially Cain. He is mangier than the rest. Some things never change.”

“No, they certainly don’t. My god, you’re even worse than when you went in.”

I swallowed back the bitter taste in my throat and took a deep breath to keep from throwing up. James was still in the same fierce physical shape from high school, from his football playing days. If I turned and ran, he’d tackle me. He’d hurt me or worse. I was sure of it.

“Exactly what the hell is going on between you and that lowlife? I have a right to know.”

“When it comes to my life, you have no rights at all.” I pulled out my phone. “I’m going to call the police.”

He took three sharp steps toward me. Rex snarled. “I will fucking hurt that dog,” James said through gritted teeth. “Give me the phone and put that animal outside. I just want to talk.”

I knew James well enough to be worried about Rex. But I held tightly to the phone and blindly searched for the numbers I needed for the police. I walked Rex to the back door with a plan to run, hoping I’d have a better chance once I was outside.

My hand was shaking as I reached for the doorknob. I swung it open. “Run, Rex!” I cried and took off behind him.

I hadn’t heard James creep up behind me. I opened my mouth to scream but his big hand covered it, stifling any sound. He smacked my wrist hard, and the phone flew into the bushes. Rex looked back just as James dragged me inside and slammed the door shut.

I screamed the second his hand left my mouth. No one would hear me. I swung my fists at him and managed to clip his chin, but it only made him yank me along harder. I knew enough not to make him any angrier. He would only get more violent.

He threw me hard on the couch and stared down at me, his nostrils flared with rage.

“So, sweetheart, let’s talk about how you came to know Ledger. Then you can tell me where he lives because I’m going to fucking kill him.”

Chapter 35

-Ledger-

As much as
I needed the money, I was just fine with the work day being cut short by bad weather. The truck sputtered and rumbled a few seconds after I turned it off and then finally took its last breath. I climbed out and headed to my door. I had an unexpected visitor.

Rex came bounding toward me. My heart raced ahead as I looked around for Jacy. I’d left the letter under her door this morning before work. I really hadn’t expected to hear from her because of the letter. It was just my way of feeling a little closure. I needed to tell her good-bye.

Rex hopped up on his back legs and pressed his wet front paws against me. I patted him. “Where’s Jacy? Still on the beach. I’ll bet you aren’t supposed to be up here.” I led him along the side of the cottage to the beach side of the house. I stared down at the sand. There was no sign of Jacy.

“Did you get out of the house, buddy? You better head back home before you get in trouble.”

Rex whined softly as if he needed me to understand him. He trotted to the steps, looked back at me and barked.

“Go on, Rex, before the rain starts again.”

The dog didn’t budge. I swept my gaze over the beach and across the hill to Jacy’s house. A chill ran through me that had nothing to do with the stormy weather. I looked back at Rex. He was waiting. He wanted me to follow him.

Adrenaline pumped in my veins as I considered the idea that something was wrong, that Jacy was in some kind of trouble. I followed Rex down the steps. He wagged his tail in triumph that he’d gotten the outcome he hoped for. I ran toward Jacy’s house and hoped to hell that the jolt of worry I felt was for nothing.

Rex glanced back and barked one more time before racing up the steps to Jacy’s house. It looked quiet and dark. I knocked. The door didn’t open, but I heard movement inside. “Jacy, I’ve just brought Rex back.”

The door opened. I knew, instantly, from the pallor of her skin and fright in her eyes that something was wrong. Rex sat obediently next to me but seemed afraid to go inside. “I, uh, I found Rex at my door. Is everything all right?”

“Everything’s fine, but I’ll have to cancel our dinner date. I’ve got a headache.” The waver in her voice and the odd mention of a date sent more adrenaline pumping through my body. I tried to get a look inside, but she held the door open less than a foot.

“Right, the dinner date. No problem.” As she went to close the door, I pushed my foot inside. “Get back, Jacy!”

She gasped and jumped out of the way as I threw open the door.

“He has a knife!” she screamed.

I saw the blade and the hand before I noticed who was holding it. I jumped clear of the tip. It grazed my shirt but didn’t cut me. “Get out, Jacy. Just run!” I lunged at James. Again the blade flashed through the air, but my fist met his forearm as it arced in front of me. He sliced my shoulder before losing his grip on the knife. It took me a second to catch my breath from the stinging pain.

Jacy ran for the back door, but James snatched her by the hair and circled his big arm around her waist. “Get the fuck out of here, Cain. This is between my wife and me. You shouldn’t even be here.”

The terrified look on Jacy’s face sent a rush of rage through me. I flew at James. My plan worked. Even with blood pouring down my arm, he knew he’d need both his arms to fight me off. He released Jacy. She stumbled out of the way as I slammed into James hard enough to send him onto his ass.

He jumped up fast, that ugly, mean grin I knew too well, slathered across his face. “Oh, I’ve been fucking waiting for this, Cain.”

His fist plowed into my stomach, pushing the wind out of me. There was no time to recover my breath. I caught him off guard with my quick right hook. I heard his jaw snap shut as my knuckles slammed into his chin. My lungs finally filled with air.

He came at me like a fucking mad man with eyes bulging and blood seeping from his mouth. I threw my fist into his chest. He stumbled back, trying to suck in air like a landed fish. I took advantage of his state of shock. I wrapped my hand around his throat and shoved him hard enough against the wall that his head snapped forward and back.

He tried hard to pry my hand off his throat, but my hatred for him made me hold him as tight as a fucking steel trap. His eyes bulged and blood and spit sprayed from his mouth.

I pushed my face closer to his. “You wanted to show her what suffocation felt like? Isn’t that what you fucking told me? Now you can experience her horror firsthand. Only I’m not letting go, even if your lips turn fucking blue.” I clamped my fingers so tightly around his throat my hand was cramping up and growing numb.

I could hear sirens in the distance, and a thin, frail voice behind me as I stared at that asshole in my grip and pictured myself choking the life out of him. But the voice floated through again.

“Ledger, no. Please don’t,” Jacy sobbed behind me.

James’s face was dark red and shifting slowly toward purple. So many times I’d wanted to hurt the guy, to see him suffer for what he’d done to Jacy. So many times.

“Ledger—” Jacy’s plea came again.

My hand was nearly cemented around his neck, but I slowly moved my fingers. As I released him, he dropped to his knees coughing and gasping for air.

A loud knock on the door startled Jacy.

“Police. Someone reported screams.” Jacy raced to the door. Rex bolted inside and ran down the hall to the bedroom. Apparently, he’d had enough drama for one afternoon.

Two cops, a man and a woman, entered the house with guns out of holsters.

Jacy curled her arms around herself to keep from shaking. “Officers, that man on his knees is my ex-husband. He was just released from jail for assault.” She spoke fast and through sobs. “He came here, threatening me, and this man, my neighbor, came and saved me. You can see from the blood that he’s been injured with that knife.” She pointed to it on the floor.

James was just recuperating and couldn’t speak yet, but I was sure he’d have plenty to say once he could. His neck and face were red as he glared up at me with a look of murder. The officers wasted no time in searching and handcuffing James. The entire time he yelled at them that I’d nearly killed him and that his father would see to it that they lost their badges for false arrest.

We waited to give our statements. I was sure we’d have to go down to the station for questioning, and I considered the distinct possibility that I wasn’t going to come out of this clean. I’d tried to kill James. My hand was around his throat for one reason. I wanted to squeeze the fucking life from him. I wasn’t sure what would have happened if Jacy hadn’t stopped me. I’d never taken a man’s life before, and I wasn’t completely sure I would have finished James off. But the idea of doing it had sure tasted sweet at the time.

Jacy looked shaky and as if she might break into a million pieces at any moment. She avoided looking in James’s direction.

She walked to the kitchen and returned with a towel. She pushed my sleeve up and pressed the towel against the knife wound. “Hold this over the cut,” she said weakly. “We need to get you to the doctor for some stitches.”

A few minutes later, it seemed the small private street in front of Jacy’s house was swarmed with police cars of every size and shape. Red lights lit up the dark, rainy day, and there was a flurry of activity. The arresting officer walked over to us and looked at Jacy.

“Turns out he escaped a minimum security prison up north about three hours ago. One of those high dollar facilities that we like to joke is no more than detention in the principal’s office. We got the APB just before we got the call about the scream.”

Jacy wobbled on her feet. I took hold of her arm for support. “Just get him out of here,” she said through tears.

We watched them lead James out. He kept his face pointed down until the last second when he lifted it to look at Jacy. She swayed again and I caught her. It seemed she finally took her first real breath when they got him outside.

She lifted her eyes to me. “Thank you.”

“I think the real hero just ran into your bedroom to hide. If Rex hadn’t come by, I would never have known you needed help.”

A flicker of a smile turned up the corner of her lip. “When are you ever going to accept that you’re worth a thank you and praise. Not one in a million people would have stormed through that door, knowing full well there was danger behind it. Did you know it was James?”

“I confess I was pretty shocked to see him standing there with that knife. The rain gods were with us today that’s for sure. Otherwise, I’d still be at work and . . .”

We both grew quiet at the thought of what might have happened if fate hadn’t lined things up perfectly today.

“Maybe you should change Rex’s name to Lassie,” I suggested.

Jacy laughed weakly. Then the laugh turned to sobs, and she fell into my arms.