Rise of The Iron Eagle (The Iron Eagle Series Book 1) (17 page)

“So how’d you sleep?” “Okay until about five minutes ago. I woke from a hell of a nightmare.” “Want to talk about it?” He shook his head. The shower was running, and Gail stepped into the glass enclosure. Molly looked at her body on the other side of the shower glass and said, “Well, I can tell you one thing, honey, I’m glad we put in the double shower when we remodeled the bathroom.” She laughed as she stepped in behind Gail. The shower had areas to sit to steam and sauna, as well as double shower heads on opposing walls. Molly was under one and Gail the other, and they were chatting away when Steve stepped in. “You are very dirty, Steve.” Gail smiled and soaped up a washcloth and started to bathe him. Molly joined in, and he got a good cleaning from the girls… and then got dirty again. They exchanged kisses all around, and the girls got out of the shower, and Steve stayed in to wash his head. He started losing his hair when he was sixteen and had only light patches of hair on the sides of his scalp. He had been shaving his head since he was in college, and the look fit his personality. Molly always thought it made him look both sophisticated and intimidating. He massaged the shampoo onto his bald scalp as the girls continued their conversation.

“Really, Moll…the next time you come out to see me, I’m going to take you to my stylist in midtown, so you can get a new cut but also see just how much better you look than the prunes that come into the shop.” Steve laughed under his breath as he put shaving cream on his face and scalp and shaved. When he was finished, he stepped out, and Gail put her hand on the top of his head and said, “Smooooth!” He smiled. “I always wondered how you kept that shiny cue ball look.” She laughed a deep belly laugh, and Molly smacked her on the hip with her towel. “Be nice! That’s my husband.” The three looked at each other and broke out laughing hysterically. They finished up and went downstairs for some breakfast.

It was Wednesday and Steve didn’t have any appointments until late in the afternoon, so they lounged around the house sharing war stories and memories of Gail’s mother, the funny and the poignant ones. Gail’s mother, Patricia, had passed away from breast cancer several years earlier. Molly knew her well, and the two had been lifelong friends. Steve knew her through Molly and had told Molly on many occasions that he liked Patricia a lot. Steve looked at Gail who had removed her robe because she was hot and was laying nude with her back arched over an ottoman in front of his leather chair and asked, “What would your mother say about what we’re doing?” She got a serious expression on her face then a pouty one and said, “She’d be pissed!” “So, she wouldn’t like your behavior or ours?” She started to giggle, “No…silly. My mom loved you very much, and she had a real hard and heavy crush on you. She confessed it to me only days before she died. She told me that the first time Molly introduced the two of you she felt sparks.” He looked over at Molly sitting with her robe open and her feet up on the foot rest. She had a smile on her face, “Gail,” she said, “I never told Steve how your mother felt about him.” Gail frowned. “My mother would be jealous, Steve, and she also wouldn’t have wanted to share you with Molly or anyone else.”

He looked at the two of them and said he really had no idea that she felt that way about him. Molly moved over onto the main couch next to Steve, “She was one of my best friends, and she was very much in love with you. But she also loved and respected me, and she would never have gotten in the way of my happiness.” Gail asked, “Since we’re on the subject of my mother, Molly, are we ever going to talk about the elephant in the room?” That question was met with silence. Steve knew what it meant, and so did Molly, but it wasn’t a conversation Molly wanted to have. Molly laid her head on Steve’s lap. “What’s the point? Steve and I have talked this over with three doctors. My life is in limbo, Gail. I just finished the second round of chemo and was hoping we could have a nice week.” Steve didn’t say anything; he just put his hand on Molly’s head and stroked her hair. It wasn’t a conversation he wanted to have either; he’d made that clear in several arguments with Molly. Gail asked, “What stage are you, Moll?” There was no response. “So you have a prognosis, don’t you?” Molly started to cry and sat up. She was angry and said, “Howard Cohen is handling our affairs. He’s been my friend all my life. Steve and I are leaving things in his hands. I’m in remission, and that’s all I’m going to say about this.”

Steve walked over to the living room window and looked out on the street and the valley below. Gail frowned and said, “I’m sorry. It just feels like you’re trying to hide from your illness by spending time with me. It’s not my place to judge, and I’m very sorry that I brought it up. I love you both. I just want the best for you.” Steve turned around and said, “Gail, Molly and I have had long and heated heartfelt conversations about her situation. Neither of us is willing to allow a doctor to take away our hope, so they can dish out all the prognosis’ they like. I have been, and will continue to be, supportive of Molly, whatever she chooses to do in her battle with cancer. There’s nothing more to be said on the subject.” Gail sat with her head down as if she’d just been scolded. Molly dried her eyes and asked, “Who wants some food?” Gail forced a smile as did Steve. Over an early brunch, the three agreed that there would be no further conversation of Molly’s illness for the rest of the visit. Molly could see the pain in Steve’s eyes, but they had made an agreement before Gail’s visit, one that included details that would be shared with no one, not even her.

Jim woke up confused. He looked around the room and for a few moments he didn’t know where he was. He felt an arm on his chest, and he looked over to see Barbara sleeping next to him. The alarm clock showed six thirty a.m. “Who needs a damn alarm clock?” he muttered to himself. Barbara nuzzled into his chest. It all came back to him, and he laid there trying to make heads or tails of what had transpired. He was also concerned for Barbara’s safety after learning about Jill and her hunch about The Eagle. Jim moved her arm and kissed her on the forehead as he slid over to sit up on the edge of the bed. Barbara woke up and said with a sleepy voice, “Oh God!” Jim didn’t respond. He walked bare-assed to the bedroom window and looked out. “Having some regrets, Barb?” She was visibly hung over. “Too much scotch but no regrets about last night.” His clothes were strewn all over the bedroom. He began picking them up without saying a word. “Are you regretting last night, Jim?” “Not at all…it was nice to have you in my arms again; it’s been a long time.”

She complained that it was hot and threw the covers off so that she was lying nude on the bed. Her graying red hair on the pillow and pale skin against the sheets made the freckles on her legs and arms stand out against the white linen. He must have stared at her a little too long because Barbara pulled herself up on her elbows and asked if he was okay. He nodded, putting on his underwear, “Just taking it in, Barbara; a mental picture for lonely night activities.” She laughed, “Do you have to go now? It’s so early; come back to bed.” He didn’t know what to do. He knew that he still loved her very much, but he also knew that the two of them were oil and water and any reconciliation would be short lived. “Barb, I stayed because you were afraid. You were vulnerable, and, well…I was horny…I’m a guy. I’m not going to pass up a nice piece of ass, especially if it’s thrown at me. But you know as well as I do that this is going to lead down a bad road.” She got out of bed and grabbed a robe off the back of a rocking chair. “It doesn’t have to be that way, Jimmy.” He was pulling on his pants when she said it. “Then tell me how it can be, Barb. You miss Jill; you had a moment of weakness, and I took advantage of it.” “Do you really think that’s what happened?” As he continued to dress, he answered, “Hell… Barb. I don’t have a damn clue. You seem to have the answers. You tell me.” She walked over to him and gently put her hands on his face, “Oh Jimmy…I’ve missed you. You’re right. I loved Jill, and I still do, but I love you, too… I have always loved you. What happened between us had nothing to do with weakness. It had to do with desire and being with the man who always made me feel safe.”

He finished buttoning his shirt and was putting on his shoes. He grabbed his shoulder holster with his nine millimeter in it and said, “Just because you feel safe with me doesn’t mean that we should keep this going. I love you, too, but you know that when push comes to shove we’re oil and water, babe. I had a great time...” She interrupted him mid sentence, “Then let’s work with this from the great time aspect. We both have something the other wants.” He stopped fastening his holster and looked at Barbara with curiosity. “Okay, I’m listening.” He sat down on the window ledge as she walked over and sat near him. “We agree that we still love each other, right?” He nodded. “We also agree that we both have physical and sexual desires that we want fulfilled.” He nodded again. “I also agree that we were definitely oil and water when married, but last night proved we are still best friends, and we have a lot of years between us, and we know each other like the backs of our own hands. So, I propose, and I want you to think about this, that you move back into the house with me. I’ve been thinking about it for a few weeks. You can have the guest room, and I will keep this room. We’ll come and go as we please, and we’ll see whoever we please, but when the day is done if we’re home together and there’s no one else in our lives, and we’re in the mood, we’ll have sex!” He started to laugh, “So, friends with benefits, fuck buddies!” She frowned at him, which drew a smile out of his otherwise sullen expression. “No, we’re not fuck buddies. We’re old friends who know each other and… can live together without conflict…provided that you keep your bad habits in your room.” She laughed.

“Look, Barb, you make a compelling case, and to be honest I was laying here with you this morning concerned for your safety. But given our past, do you really think this is a good idea?” She stood up and dropped her robe then laid back down on the bed facing away from him, “You tell me!” He pulled hard on his holster and stood up, “Oh hell, woman…you flash that ass at me and then ask me to turn you down? I don’t need to think about it, just give me a goddamn key and the alarm code, so I don’t get my ass shot coming into the house if you’re not here.” She smiled and jumped off the bed like a little girl. She ran over to her nightstand and pulled out a white envelope. She handed it to him. He looked down, and it had his name on it with the words ‘Welcome Home’ underneath. “Well, you have been giving this some thought.” He opened the envelope and there were two house keys, a remote for the garage, and a piece of paper with the alarm code. There was also a product label inside, ‘Anal delight, light lubricant.’ He looked at her with a strange face. “Oh, don’t look at me like that. You know I love it, and so do you. So, if I’m going to be back with a man, I want
this
lubricant! He laughed out loud, “Where do I get this stuff?” “It comes from Europe. I’ll email you a web link, so be a doll and order two large bottles.” “Hey, why do I have to pay?” “Because it’s my ass that’s taking the pounding, baby!”

He laughed and Barbara grabbed him and laid a big kiss on him while he was putting on his jacket. He shook his head, “Fuckin’ women…you can’t live with ‘em, and without ‘em you have to jerk off.” He was walking toward the bedroom door when he yelled back, “I’m keeping my fuckin’ apartment!” “You’re goddamn right you are,” she hollered. “If I get tired of your shit, I can kick you to the curb again!” As he walked out the front door and headed to his car, he stopped halfway across the walk and went back inside. “Hey Barb…” “Yea.” He had a serious tone in his voice, “Listen…keep the doors and windows locked and set the alarm when you’re here alone.” She came to the top of the landing, nude and striking a pose, “Why Detective O’Brian… are you worried about little old Barbara Spencer?” She had a little southern twang in her voice. He looked up at her standing in the early morning light. “Yes,” he said softly. He had a look on his face that she had never seen before. “Yea…I’m worried about you, especially after everything you told me last night.” A half-hearted smile crossed her face as she thanked him. “I’ll do everything in my power to protect you, Barbara, but you’re going to have to do your part.”

She agreed. “Set the alarm when I leave; you don’t want to fall into the hands of The Eagle.” She turned toward the bedroom but stopped and called to him before the door closed. “Jim…you’ve been trying to nail this guy for nearly ten years. Killing Jill was WAY out of this guy’s norm. Do you really think he will come after me?” Jim looked around the house and said yes and no. “The Eagle, with the exception of killing of Jill and Barry, has only killed other killers, and, between you and me, I don’t have a problem with it. I also think Jill and Barry were killed for reasons we may never know but were related to something really bad. I think that if he feels or knows that you have an idea of who he is, yes, he will come after you. And if he does, he’s not getting you without getting me. But I think you’re safe as long as he feels that you don’t know his identity.” He closed the front door, and she heard the key turn the deadbolt lock. She went back into the bedroom to take her shower and set the alarm to “stay,” so that the motion detectors were off in the house. Everything else was armed.