Unforgettable (32 page)

“
Tired,” I muttered and
leaned on Jack’s shoulder.

He walked me to my bed,
helped me undress, and lay me down. We watched
The Book of Eli.

A gun fight blasted across the screen
and I shut my eyes. I could feel the bullets hit again and I saw
Welsh’s dying, frightened eyes.

“’
Want you,” he said in his
deep, rumbled voice.

“’
Want you, too. Just don’t
know if I can.”

“
Tell me if anything
hurts.”

Arnie's aunt handed him the
envelope full of cash.

"You headin' out
tomorrow?"

"Yes."

"Got a map?'

"Yes."

"You never was too bright.
Better let Luther help you with it. You know where she
is?"

He scowled at her while he
counted the cash.

"Yeah. The whole world
knows where the fuck she is."

"Sure am glad I had my boys
heavily insured, aren't you, Poppa?"

Luther grunted.

"Yeah," she laughed. "Bobby
finally did somethin' right. Got hisself killt. Hot damn. Now you
got it all down?"

"Yes, Aunt Mae. Got it
down."

She slapped him.

"Don't be disrespectful. I
raised you to be respectful you little bastard.
Luther..."

The old man stood up,
unbuckling his belt.

Arnie stood, then quickly
walked out the door.

We made love tenderly, exploring as if
we were new lovers, despite the narrow bed. He kissed my wounds and
finally entered me.

I moaned scaring him.

“
Hurt?”

“
No, so wonderful. Makes me
feel alive again. I love you so much.”

“
I thought I’d lost you,”
tears slowly ran down his cheeks. “Don’t you ever leave me again.
Never ever…”

At last there were no more tubes, no
more monitors, just the warmth and comfort of Jack. I felt like the
richest, luckiest human on the planet. I slept in peace, home at
last.

Biggs stood in the middle
of the rubble. A small grocery store that now was a crime scene.
The bodies were strewn about, none complete. Matching body parts
would be easy, though. Only one baby. Only one little girl. Only
one pregnant woman. Only one incinerated man.

He took his phone
out.

"Emmett, we got nothing.
They'll do their thing but I guarantee you nothing will be
found...uh huh...homeland...how...oh, I see."

He closed his phone and
smiled.

"Listen up! I just got
word, this is Homeland's jurisdiction right now. Thank you for your
time. You are no longer needed."

The fire chief stormed over
to him.

"By who's
authority?"

"The Mayor. The Governor.
And mine, Randolph. Gotta problem with that? I know you hate to
call Eugene this late at night."

He smiled and jiggled the
coins in his pocket.

A Month Passed

I had just gotten off the phone with
Silverman. He'd been pushing the FBI on filing charges against
Dennington but it was going nowhere. I knew and he knew the answer.
Proving it was another matter. The Chief of Police had mysteriously
lost all of the scene evidence and the FBI had no knowledge...
Silverman was always agitated when he called.

I had distanced myself from it. Made
peace with it. It was over.

The party had started about an hour
ago, and, as usual, Jack was missing. He finally wandered in, hot,
sweaty, smelling like a goat. He gave me a kiss then went upstairs
to get a shower.

He came back wearing old jeans and a
tee shirt, towel drying his hair.

“
What’s wrong?” Jack
asked.

“
Last night? ‘Could’ve
called.”

“
Sorry. I had to go over
some scenes. They were crap.”

“
You were late today but the
crew has been assembling for the party. How could they be here and
you were working?”

“
Finishing up…don’t be mad.
It’s a party. And you look fantastic. You’re getting some color
back in your cheeks.”

“
Well, as long as I look
fantastic.” I wondered off into the house, settling into the den’s
recliner. I was tired, in pain, and bitchy.

Frank, dressed as a
homeless man, was dumpster diving outside RCC Electronics. He had a
theory and was close to assembling the pieces. Rats sat calmly in
the corner watching him.

He laughed.

Then he found the molded
black ABS components he knew would be there. In a nice, tidy, nylon
bag. You couldn't miss them.

He called
Oliver.

"Got 'em."

Oliver laughed.

"Miller time. And I am
gettin' laid tonight. Meet you there."

"Nah, got something I gotta
do."

"Little brother,
huh?"

"Have a cold one for
me."

"Need company?"

"Not yet. Let you
know."

Frank climbed out and
disappeared down the dark back streets.

George, two blocks away,
listened and smiled.

He eventually found me.

“
Actually, Samantha Rose, I
wasn’t working late tonight. I had a little shopping to
do.”

He got me up and walked me to the deck
in front of the pool. He signaled to the DJ.

Unforgettable
came on, the group grew quiet, and everyone moved
back, watching.

Something was going on. David wouldn't
look at me and I couldn't see Fritz. Everyone seemed to have an odd
smile on.

He knelt before me and I gasped, not
believing what I was seeing.

“
Samantha Rose Sinclair.
Woman who is the most remarkable, loving, most courageous woman on
the planet, not to mention sexiest...would you please marry this
man who cannot live without you? I love you. More than life. More
than air. Please, babe, marry me.”

He slipped a stunning diamond and
emerald ring on my finger and kissed my hand. “Please,
Sam.”

He looked up at me and caught me as I
almost fell.

I stared in his eyes.

“
We have a deal,
right?”

“
Absolutely.”

I thought of Shandi and the video from
John Black. But then I remembered him, praying and crying at the
side of my bed. His eyes...those eyes that could be hot and erotic
one minute yet stormy and raging the next...were boring into my
soul.

And I knew there was only one
answer.

“
I love you more than I have
ever loved anyone in my life or all my previous hundred lives. Yes,
I will marry you.”

He picked me up, spun me around...with
cameras flashing...and my life seemed to begin in that
instant.

THE END