“Yeah.” Felix dropped a couple of dollars on the table. “I need a haircut. Definitely need a haircut. That should cover the tip.” He hurried for the cashier.
There were no other customers at the counter. He ran out, gave them a short wave, and disappeared through the door.
“That was odd.” Julie turned back to Leo after watching Felix leave.
“You’ll get no argument from me.” A wave of guilt washed over him. “I’ve been so wrapped up with Aud lately, I haven’t seen a ton of Felix outside of work. Is there anything going on that you’ve noticed?”
Julie pursed her lips in thought before she responded. “Nope. I think he did have a date last night with that guy he met online.”
Leo sat up a little straighter. “The logging wood guy?”
“Woodsyaxeman. Yeah, that’s him. I was going to ask him how it went. I’m betting it didn’t go well. Maybe he just didn’t want to hear you singing Aud’s sexual praises when he struck out or something like that.” She finished off her omelet.
“I just hope he’s all right.” Leo glanced through the windows in time to see Felix’s yellow Honda disappear into traffic. Worrying about Felix helped him take his mind off the trouble at Aud’s house.
“SO WHAT
can I do?” Aud asked the man standing across the counter from him. He’d been thankful that the lawyer who had given him a card at the opening had agreed to come down quickly. It was easier than making an appointment and going in to see him.
“With stalking cases, it gets a bit awkward,” replied the lawyer, Howard Hemlick. “You’re going to need to prove that this Randal Hudspeth is stalking you. For that, you’ll need to actually catch him at it.”
Aud raised a bushy blond eyebrow. “Catch him at it? Like take his picture? Or find him outside my window and beat the shit out of him?” The moment the words left his mouth, he chastised himself. He didn’t talk like that, particularly not in his gallery.
Hemlick shook his head. “I don’t recommend physical violence. If it comes to that, he’ll be able to file charges against you. You did say you’ve called the police with both of the incidents at your residence.”
“Yes. There are reports both times.”
“That’s good. It leaves an official paper trail. Right now, should things escalate, you have that to fall back on.”
Aud picked up a pen near the cash register and then immediately put it down. He didn’t have any reason to have the pen in his hand. “Even if the first time they thought it was an animal of some kind?”
“Exactly.” Hemlick looked up from the yellow tablet he was taking notes on. “Now, if you want, we can get a restraining order on him. That will also give you a legal paper trail. The problem with restraining orders is that they don’t help much and can often push stalkers to take more extreme measures.”
“I probably don’t want to know about any of those.” Aud picked the pen up again. Although he tried very hard to hide it from Leo and Heather, he was more than a little disturbed by Randal’s actions. He had no doubt that the face Leo saw in the window had been Randal.
“Even if I could tell you, you definitely don’t. Now, are you sure you don’t want to file suit on the gym for releasing your personal information? That could be a very profitable move. It will also send a message to them that they need to make sure they understand client confidentiality.”
The phone rang, and Aud checked to see that Heather picked it up before he replied. “I’m sure. I’ve filed a complaint with the branch I went to and their corporate offices. In both complaints I gave veiled threats of lawsuits, but that’s all they were: threats. Ultimately, they shouldn’t be held responsible for things their employees do. The employees should be, but I don’t know who gave out my information.”
Hemlick capped his pen and slid it into his shirt pocket. “You do understand that most people don’t share your opinion on that?”
Aud nodded. “I do. But that’s how I feel. Everyone should be responsible for their own actions, not the place they work for or some nameless god. It’s just the way I was brought up. If more people owned up to everything they did, the world would be a much better place.”
“You’re a refreshing breath of air, Mr. Sorenson.” Hemlick took the pad and dropped it in the briefcase that rested on the floor at his feet. “You have a lovely gallery here. Think about the restraining order. If you decide you need one, just let me know and I’ll get it filed quickly.”
“Thank you.” Aud stuck his hand over the counter. “Especially for coming down here on a Saturday, and with short notice. What do I owe you?”
The lawyer returned his handshake. “The first consultation is free. Don’t worry about it.” He turned toward the door. “Just make sure I’m on your list for your next gallery opening. Last night was a delight, even with Mr. Hudspeth providing entertainment.”
“I’ll ensure you’re on the list. Thanks again.”
Hemlick waved as he opened the door and strolled out onto the sidewalk.
“That doesn’t sound reassuring.” Heather emerged from the back room.
“No, it doesn’t.” Aud grabbed a rag and walked out to dust. “I hate the idea that I’m going to have to wait until Randal gets caught doing something. It doesn’t make me feel safe.”
“Do you have access to a camera you can get to quickly if he shows up again?” Heather asked, taking the rag out of his hand. “And you’ve already dusted the gallery twice today.”
“Sorry.” He looked at the floor and tried to remember if he had vacuumed when he showed up two hours early. “I’ve got several cameras, plus the built-in one on the phone, so yeah, I think I can get to one quickly.”
“Good.” She put the rag back behind the counter. “Next time he shows up, take his picture. I don’t care where it is. It can be in line at McDonald’s—”
“I don’t eat McDonald’s,” he interrupted. “You know that.”
“It was an example.” She looked at him, concern flowing from her blue eyes into his. “If you weren’t so stressed by all this, you’d have realized that. It doesn’t matter where you see him. Document it. When more shit happens, you’ll have that as proof he’s been up to no good.”
“That’s a good idea.” He desperately wanted to change the subject. “Heather, do you mind covering the gallery for me next weekend?”
“Next weekend?” She looked thoughtful. “I think I’m open then. What’s up?”
Aud walked back behind the counter and started playing with the pen again. “I want to take Leo to the mountains for the weekend. To make it up to him for our screwed-up dates the past two weekends.”
She smiled at him. “A quiet romantic weekend. It’s been forever since you had one of those. Of course I can cover things for you. Where are you going?”
“I don’t know yet. I’m going to make some phone calls and see what I can do about securing reservations and get somewhere nice.” His mind turned from Randal to Leo and he relaxed. There was something about Leo that acted as a balm to him. It was a pleasant change. He’d never dated anyone who was as laid-back as Leo was.
“Save yourself some time. Go online and see what you can find. Might even be able to find some major discounts. We’re slow right now, so go into the office and get busy.” She shooed him off the gallery floor. “The longer you take, the higher the prices will be. If anything happens, I’ll holler for you.”
He stopped halfway there. “You sure?”
“Yes. Now get.”
“Thanks.” He smiled at her. As he walked toward the back, he tried to think of what Leo would like better.
Cabin or condo? Now if we’re lucky, everything will go smoothly and we can have a relaxing weekend all to ourselves.
LEO WATCHED
the clock on his phone and silently prayed he wouldn’t get a call in the last thirty seconds before he could log off and go home. His finger shook with his impatience as the seconds ticked down until it was time for him to punch the button and be free for fifteen hours, when he had to be back the next morning.
Felix waited for him in the breakroom as usual. His friend looked haggard. Since the weekend it had just gotten worse, and Felix was trying to withdraw from him and Julie both. It made him nervous about what was going on in Felix’s head. With a gesture, Felix walked past Leo and toward the door out to the parking lot.
After not saying anything on the way to the car or while getting in, Leo had enough. “Okay, Felix, what’s going on? Are you upset that Aud and I are hitting it off so well?”
“No.” Felix started the car.
“If it’s not that, then what is it?” Leo persisted. He’d known Felix for years and had so rarely had to press him about anything that he had no idea how his best friend was going to react.
“I don’t want to talk about it.” Felix put the car into gear and drove out of the parking lot.
“I know you, Felix. Whatever it is, it’s eating you alive. You look like hell.”
“Thanks. But I really don’t want to talk about it.”
“You’re not getting off the hook that easy.” Leo squared his shoulders and continued to poke.
I have to get this out of him. It’s consuming him.
“Come on, Felix, we tell each other everything. When was the last time either one of us got laid and didn’t tell the other? Hell, you even told me about that time you went to get a tattoo and passed out before the guy could start.”
Felix gripped the steering wheel with white knuckles. “You’re not going to let up on this, are you?”
Leo put his hand on Felix’s leg and Felix jerked away.
Felix never jerks away from casual contact. This is bad.
“No, I’m not going to give up on this. Something’s very wrong.”
Slamming on the brakes, Felix stopped the car in the middle of the road. Around them horns blared. He glared across the car at Leo. “While you were off having the best sex of your life with Aud, I got raped. Okay?”
Unsure what he should say back, Leo stared openmouthed as Felix moved away from him and took off down the road.
After the second stoplight that Felix nearly ran, Leo broke the heavy silence that filled the car. “How did it happen?”
Felix stared at him as they waited for the light to change. “What?”
“How did it happen?”
“I went on a date and the bastard didn’t take no for an answer.” Felix hit the gas when the stoplight flashed to green. He barely missed the car that crossed in front of them, trying to get through the intersection before the waiting traffic started.
Leo tried to touch Felix’s arm. “I’m so sorry.”
Felix jerked away and swerved, almost hitting the car just ahead of them in the lane to their left. “Don’t touch me!”
“Okay.” Leo yanked his hand back. “Did you go to the cops?”
“And tell them what? That I met a guy through a cruising app and he raped me?” Felix’s laugh had a sick, disturbed edge to it. “Come on, Leo, even you can’t be that naïve about how things work in this town. We’re in Colorado Springs. If I went to the cops, I’d get laughed out of the building. They don’t care about gay men here. Hell, they barely believe women who go in claiming to be raped. The first thing they would ask is if I asked for it. Do you think anyone really asks for it?”
“But what if they actually cared? Maybe this guy could go to jail or something. Do you remember his name?”
“Oh, you mean Axe?” Tears started rolling down Felix’s cheeks. “I’ll never forget his name or what he did to me.”
Leo hugged himself, wanting to comfort his friend, but unsure of how to help.
Probably the best way right now is to listen, but I want to do more.
“Why do some guys think the rest of us should worship them? Just because we might not be everything they are physically doesn’t mean we’re put here for their pleasure.” Felix hit the steering wheel, then slammed on the brakes before he drove past Leo’s street. Behind them a horn erupted before Felix completed the turn.
“I wish I could answer that one,” Leo mumbled, trying to ignore the way his heart rose into his throat at Felix’s driving. “Maybe they’re all wrapped up in their own egos and that’s all that matters.”
“That’s not fair. The way they treat us isn’t fair.” Felix pulled into behind Leo’s car, parked at the curb. “I thought now that I was an adult, I’d leave all the high school shit behind. But then the football players in high school didn’t rape us; they just tormented us with their words and occasionally their fists. I think they would’ve been afraid to rape us. People might’ve thought they were gay.”
Even after the car was turned off, Felix didn’t look at Leo again. He stared out the windshield with tears streaming down his face and sniffled. “I think that was better than the way I feel now. At least in high school, I knew it would be over at some point. Now I don’t know. Will I ever be able to trust another man?”
“Felix, not all men are like that. You know that.” Leo’s throat tightened at Felix’s pain. He fidgeted with his glasses, taking them off and putting them back on for no reason. “You’ve had good encounters in the past. You’ve met men who listened to you.”
The streetlight flickered on at the corner; it made Felix’s tears glisten. In the light, his knuckles on the steering wheel were still white.
“It’s going to be a long time before I can deal with men again.” He finally turned toward Leo. His face was twisted in pain. “I don’t know if I can trust myself.”
“What?”
“Do you know what the worst part of it was? The part I can’t ever forgive?”
Leo shook his head, unable to find any words that would be comforting.
“I didn’t fight back. I mean, I did try and get away. When our making out got more forceful than I liked, I tried to get out of the bed. After he hit me one time, I stopped struggling.” Felix swallowed, his face collapsed, and sobs wracked him. “I… I… just… stopped. I laid… there… as he… used me. Just… one… hit.” He covered his face.
Not being able to stop himself, Leo touched Felix’s hand.
Felix yanked backward, hitting his head on the driver’s side window. “Don’t touch me!” he shrieked.
“Okay.” Leo fought back his own tears. “I won’t touch you. God, Felix. You need help. This is really tearing you up.”
Shaking, Felix glared across the car. “You think? You think? Let me tell you about torn up. I’m still bleeding. I can barely stand the pain of taking a shit.”