Sex and the Widow Miles (The Women of Willow Bay) (22 page)

It was Jeannie
’s husband, Brian. He’d come in once before, crying and trying to find her. Sarah had sent him away with a threat to call the police if he ever showed up again. Her mantra,
don’t ever tell them about this shelter
,
sometimes fell on deaf ears, particularly if the woman was young and terrified—like Jeannie. They wanted so much to believe their abusers could change. Jeannie had come and gone twice in the short time I’d been working here. We hadn’t seen her in several weeks.

I heard a sharp intake of breath as Holly appeared from behind a clothing rack at the back of the store, her eyes huge and her chest heaving.

Stay calm. Stay calm.
I repeated the words in my head before I said to her, “Holly, hon, why don’t you go start working on those boxes in the back?”

She remained frozen, obviously too terrified to even take a step, so I gave the man my best charming hostess smile.

“What can I do for you, Brian?”

“
I’m here for Jeannie.” His response was clipped and loud, echoing off the high ceilings. “I know you took her in again. Where is she?” His black hair fell into his eyes as he marched the rest of the way into the store. He wasn’t crying now. Dressed in khakis, a blue button-down shirt, rep tie, and a navy sport coat, he could’ve been any businessman walking down Michigan Avenue, except that his blue eyes were icy, glittering with rage.

I sidled toward the cash register and the alarm button below it, all the while trying to make eye contact with Holly—a futile effort. She was so frightened she stood stock-still with tears coursing down her cheeks. Sliding my hand across the counter, only inches away from the button, I tried to engage the guy in conversation.

“Why do you think Jeannie’s here?”

“
Now, where else would she be?” Brian’s tone was almost conversational, but he eyed me warily. “She came back to her mother’s last week, and called me. I took her back home where she belongs. Everything was going so well, but then she disappeared again.”

“
We haven’t seen her in several weeks.” I maintained my smile and the eye contact, in spite of the fact that I was sick with fright. Sarah had taught me to look these bastards straight in the eye and never show any fear. No matter how innocuous they seemed, they weren’t harmless. They were dangerous.

“
You haven’t?”

“
No, I’m sorry, I haven’t.” I raised my voice slightly, hoping Sarah was listening from the back and calling the cops.

“
You know what? I think you’re lying.” The charming smile remained as in one swift move, he came at me, grabbing my hand, practically yanking me over the counter. “Don’t even think about setting off that alarm. We’re aren’t finished talking yet.”

My astonishment must have been written all over my face because the jerk smirked before releasing my wrist.
“Oh, yes, I know all about the alarm button.” He sighed and shook his head, giving me a pitying look. “Why do you women always make me resort to this?” Almost nonchalantly, he pulled the biggest damn gun I’d ever seen from of his jacket pocket.

Please, please be calling the cops, Sarah.

Holly’s sharp intake of breath echoed in the high-ceilinged shop. I gazed straight into her face, trying to give her some reassurance we’d be fine. Sarah had to be dialing 911 right now.

“
Now, tell you what. Jeannie told me about all the phones you keep at hand, so I’m going to need you”—he pointed the gun at Holly—”to collect them up and put them here on the counter. We may be sitting here all day and I’d hate to be interrupted. I can wait forever. She’s bound to show up at some point.”

Holly bolted to attention when she saw the gun
, hurrying around the shop, picking up the five phones we kept tucked around the store for emergencies such as this one. When she dropped the phones in a row on the counter, I scanned them.

Oh shit.
There are six.

That meant that the phone from the back room had gotten left out in the retail area
again
—something Sarah continually scolded us about.

My heart sank. She wasn
’t calling 911 unless she’d discovered my cell phone on the table where I’d been working, because she’d told me only that morning that hers had gotten dropped in a sink full of water and was no longer functional. We’d even discussed what kind of new phone she should get. I let her play around with mine, which was why it was on the table instead of in my pocket.

“
Is this all of them?” Brian waved his gun over the phones.

Nodding, I put an arm around Holly
’s pudgy shoulders as she sank against me. “We don’t know where Jeannie is.” I was proud that I kept my voice from quavering. “Honestly.”

“
Honestly?” He gazed around the shop before backing the through the racks to the dressing cubicles and sweeping aside the curtains. His calm demeanor was more terrifying than if he’d been knocking over plants or sweeping the jewelry display off the antique table next to the counter. “What would
you
know about honesty?”

What kind of
a sicko remains so composed while holding a gun on two innocent women?

“
Brian…” I began, while sending Sarah mental pictures of the cell phone on the table next to the vintage clothes.

“
Where is she?” he demanded swinging around to point the gun directly at me.

“
She’s not here, dickhead.” Sarah pulled open the louvered doors that separated the storeroom from the shop, and breathing fire, strode toward the man. “Get your fuckin’ ass out of my shop.”

“
No, I don’t think so.” The guy turned his attention from me to Sarah, who marched boldly up to him. “Are you really
this
stupid, lady? I’m not falling for that tough chick act again.”

Sarah rose on her toes and got right in his face.
“I mean it. Get out. Now.”

I
breathed a small sigh of relief to see the outline of my phone in the back pocket of her slim-fitting jeans. The police
had
to be on their way. But the sigh turned to a scream when the man shifted the gun in his hand and struck Sarah in the head with the butt of it. She folded onto the floor with a thump.

“
Sarah!” I cried, trying to shake Holly’s death grip from my arm.

“
Don’t. Don’t you fuckin’ move.” The cruel expression in Brian’s eyes sent a chill down my spine as I realized he was losing his cool. This guy wasn’t going to be reasoned with or talked down.

I backed up as he headed into the rear of the shop, feeling rage emanating from him when he brushed past me. As he ransacked the place, knocking over boxes and tables in his fury, I made an executive decision.

Sarah was out cold but still breathing. She was okay for now. I knew we had to move immediately. Grabbing Holly’s hand, I started for the door, shooting an arrow of prayer heavenward.

P
lease, please, Charlie, a little help here, okay? If you’re still with me, help…

I shoved Holly ahead of me and just as
we rounded the end of the counter, I heard a familiar voice say, “Julie? What the hell’s going on?”

TWENTY-THREE

Will stood in the open door of the shop, looking to my terrified
mind exactly like a knight in shining armor.

Will! Thank God!

Charlie, you did it.

The insanity of that thought flitted through my mind even as I grabbed
Will’s bicep and held on for dear life. How and why he ended up here didn’t matter a damn. He was here, and at that moment, I was overjoyed to see him.

“
Jules? Are you okay?” His eyes narrowed as he surveyed the scene before him and repeated, “What’s going on?”

“
There’s a crazy guy in the back,” I whispered, releasing my grip on his arm. “The husband of one of our girls. He hit Sarah.” I pushed Holly past him and out the door. “Go, Holly, now! Meet the police down by Michigan Ave. If you don’t see them, run into one of the buildings and get some help. Go!” I turned her in the direction of the street corner and gave her a shove as Will headed into the shop.

“
Stay here.” He stopped by the counter, head cocked to the side listening to the banging and crashing coming from the back room.

“
Will, he’s got a—”I came up behind him and peered over the counter to see Sarah moaning on the floor. Her head was bleeding where Brian had struck her. “Oh dear God, Sarah.” Scurrying to the other end of the counter, I grabbed a scarf off the display.

Will
was hot on my heels.

We knelt on either side of her and
he felt for broken bones as I dabbed the wound at her hairline with the scarf.

“
Sarah?” Will patted her cheek. “Sarah, talk to us.”

“
Where is that asshole?” Sarah mumbled, clearly struggling to open her eyes.

Quiet suddenly reigned in the back room
, and when I looked up, Brian stood in the doorway, his gun trained on Will.

“
Well, this is cozy.” Brian sounded calm but the gun wavered slightly in his trembling hand.

“
Hey, man.” Will rose, his hands out at his sides, palms up. “What are you doing?”

“
Trying to find my wife. I know she’s here.” His eyes shifted nervously from Will to me and back to Will before finally focusing on me. “Give me the key.”

“
What’s your name?” Will edged toward the counter, and I was certain he was trying to draw Brian’s attention away from us.

“
Why does that matter?” Brian waved the gun in our direction. “Which one of you bitches has the key to the gate?” He referred to the courtyard gate behind the shop. It led to the actual shelter and was kept locked at all times. Apparently, Jeannie had told her husband more about the operation here than we ever imagined. So much for never sharing any information with your abuser.

Damn her.

“His name is Brian Jenner.” I stood up and parked myself between the gun and Sarah, who had risen to one elbow and then dropped back down again with a moan. “He thinks his wife is here, but I told him we hadn’t seen her.”

Still no sirens. Where in the hell were the police?

“Look, Brian.” Will leaned one hip against the big glass display case, his elbow resting on the counter near the cash register. I had to give him credit—he appeared way more relaxed than he possibly could’ve felt. “You don’t want to do this. Put the gun down and let’s talk.”

“
I don’t want to talk to you, asshole.” Brian’s face reddened as he dismissed Will with a wave before stepping closer to me. “I want
you
to give me the key.”

My heart
jumped to my throat as I moved back, almost tripping over Sarah, who was still prone on the floor. “I don’t have it. I’m only an employee.”

“
Liar.”

Will eyed the gun and I could tell he was calculating his next move.

I tossed him a panicked glance, begging him wordlessly not to do something stupid. Surely the police would be here any second. We just needed to keep this guy talking. “I’m not lying.”

“
She doesn’t have it.” Sarah’s voice rose from the floor behind me, and when I looked down, she was sitting up, one hand pressing the scarf to her head. “Only the director has a key.”

“
Let’s go find the director then.” Brian grabbed my arm, pulling it up behind me as he spun me around and shoved the gun in my ribs. “Come on. You can help me convince him to open up.”

“
No!” Will leapt forward with a roar, shouldering Brian away from me while at the same time pushing me toward the counter. I stumbled and caught myself on the edge of the cash register just as the gun went off with a loud pop.

“
Goddammit!” Wrestling like a pissed-off bear, Brian took Will down with him as he crashed onto his butt. The gun flew across the room, landing just a few feet from the open door.

The two men scuffled on the floor in the narrow space behind the counter.
One of them was bleeding, but I couldn’t tell which of them it was. However, Brian was definitely gaining the upper hand as he curled his fingers in Will’s blood-soaked shirtfront and punched him in the jaw. Will’s head bounced against the wall and he tried to return the blow, but missed, grazing his fist along Brian’s shoulder. As I watched in horror, Brian pulled his hand back to strike again.

Oh Jesus, i
t’s Will who’s bleeding! No, no, no. I can’t lose him. I won’t!

F
ear and fury galvanized me into action. That little jerk was not going to take Will away from me. No way. Ears ringing from the gunshot, I ran around the glass case and picked up the weapon, hefting it in both hands. “Get up, Brian.” The calm in my voice amazed me as did the steadiness of my fingers as I aimed the pistol. “Now.”