Survivor (The Soul Mates Series Book 1) (13 page)

“Old, rich, wealthy, influential, government, councilor type.”

“I see.”  The ducks all fell together then in a logical row.

“Are you safe?” I mumbled against her shoulder.

“No.  Yes.  I don’t want to talk about this, so please don’t make things unsafe for me.”

Before she could continue a loud banging sounded from the door, “Time!” Raven hopped off my lap and reached for her clothes.  I wanted to tell her that I could get her out of here, but in reality that wasn’t why I’d come.  No fucking way was I going to put myself and possibly Cara out there without more information.  When the door opened, I followed her down the corridor, sandwiched between her and another robotic goon bouncer.

As I rounded the corner I saw her gaze rapidly drop to the floor, coming in our direction was the main guy.

Guiseppe Acerbi.

He looked a mean and edgy motherfucker, his suit was cut razor sharp along with his hair and he was flanked by another man who was clearly some kind of henchman.  “Raven, look at you, so beautiful.  How are you?” he asked her.

“Good sir, thank you for asking,” she was clearly anxious about bumping into him and was still looking at the floor.

“Wonderful.  Keep up the good work.”  The smile on the face of this cold ass hole was telling, she’d pleased him and he suspected he had another mark in the bag.

Guiseppe looked me up and down, his glare lingering in bemusement, unable to place whether I was an intentional target or not.  I didn’t utter a word or change my facial expression and I had to work hard to pull it off.  This was him, the man who was making Cara’s life not worth living.  This was the guy who was scaring her senseless and made her so terrified that she was willing to spend the rest of her days in a remote cabin.  She’d attempted to cut herself off from civilization so much, that she was worried about a satellite or space station tracking her down and giving her away.

I could have grabbed him now and taken my chances.  It would have been easy for me to wrap my hands around his neck and squeeze until I heard his C1 and C2 vertebrae crack and snap under the pressure.

But I didn’t.

I remained impassive, calling on years of skills that I’d learned on the job.  I swallowed down the revulsion that was threatening to overshadow my basic training and reasoning.

He carried on down the corridor, into an office at the end as I was urged to keep moving from the dick head ‘escorting’ me back to the main club.

When we landed back on the main floor I felt the urge to go back to my dad’s.  I needed to tell Cara that I understood, that I’d looked into the eyes of the monster and seen what she feared.  It felt important that she knew I’d realized just how cold and hate filled he was and that she was nothing like him.

“Thank you.  I hope to see you again,” Raven told me, bringing me out of my own ponderings.  I could see the terror clouding the edges of her eyes.

“Sure honey,” here take an extra tip.  I handed her another hundred dollar note and made my way straight to the door.

When I was sure that no one was behind me, tailing me, I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket and dialed.  “It’s me, I’ve had eyes on big brother.  Mean.  Fuckin’ cold.  Anyway, think I’ve just stumbled into the middle of a honey trap.”

“Shit.  Not good.  Stumbled how?”

“Put in a room with underage pussy.  I’m pretty certain it’s just been recorded for posterity too.”

“Fuck!  You know what that means.”

“Yeah, someone somewhere is going to start diggin’, see if I’m worth ridin’ for blackmail.”

I’d confirmed Jonas’s fear.  “Yep.  Not fucking good, but at least we know the brother has a base there.”

“Agreed.  One other thing, there’s a young girl called Raven who is not settlin’ into her role of honey pot.  I don’t see good things in her future.  We may need to extract.”

“I’ll see if I can put my hands on her data before we consider anything further.”

“OK.  I think I’m done here, I’m gonna head your way next,” I advised and heard him sigh.

“Guess I’d best get Chris prepped.”

“Piece of cake,” I laughed, “remember to say hi to Neely for me.”

“Motherfuckin’ shit stirrer,” he grumbled and then hung up.             

Ross had been gone for over a week and I was missing him like mad.  It was like my mind knew he was the constant it needed to fight off the darkness of my past and fear of being discovered.  In the time he’d been gone Sam did his best to keep me busy, like he sensed my demons would swallow me up and that only meant that we became closer.  It was the type of relationship every normal girl had with their daddy.  He was humorous, compassionate, respectful and above all else a very patient mentor and teacher.  Finally coming clean and being honest with him about my past had opened him up more, there was only one way I viewed him now, he was the father figure I’d been missing all my life.

If whatever Ross or I had didn’t work out, or I was forced to do the unthinkable and run again I’d be losing more than just Ross.  I’d have to give up Old Sam too and it made my insides hurt, because it didn’t bear thinking about.

Our lives became normal for the most part, I carried on doing the little bits of book keeping for his friends, only now I didn’t have to take my time and pretend to work through them like before.  My truthfulness had given me the freedom to do with them as I would normally, blast through them with ease.  Sam watched me for a couple of days, I could hear him muttering about my super powers, but in the end he was pleased to see me comfortable and not hiding.  Doing them at my normal pace also gave me more time to train with Sam.

On one occasion he taught me how to load, shoot and reload a hunting rifle.  I promised him that my use of this would be in extreme need only.  He also made me swear that I wouldn’t tell Ross about it, he knew Ross wouldn’t like me handling anything other my hunting knife which I found odd.  Sam explained that taking someone’s life would haunt a normal person, but someone with my recall skills… well, he didn’t finish, but I got the drift.

Another day he lined up a number of cars and taught me how to disable them.  For the most part they were the old rust buckets sitting around the lot, but besides slashing the tire walls, there was a lot to take in.  Fortunately not so much that my brain didn’t find it challenging, putting the steps in order and mucking around in oil and grease was kind of liberating.

I learned how to remove the rotor from a distributor and how to remove, swap and damage spark plugs.  Sam showed me how to cut and slice battery cables.  I learned how to puncture holes in key, vital hoses and pipes so that oil and water would leak silently from the engine.  It was amazing, “I imagine the bad guys will be using newer cars, but providing you can pop the hood, you can do some damage.  It could give you more time to run and getaway,” he told me.

Old Sam encouraged me to head into town more, I was still very nervous and going often and alone made me feel too vulnerable.  It was clear that my time imprisoned with my family, as well as my self-inflicted exile had had an effect on my social skills.  Sam accompanied me mostly and I became less shy, letting him point out people, or his friends who he trusted and could help me if I truly needed it.

Our nights were spent playing cards, I was in my element and able to share a few easy tricks that would help him with his friends.  It was nice to have someone make use of my skills for something fun instead of something sinister.  I’d agreed to tutor him so that he could try his skills out on Ross when he got back.  I was looking forward to hearing about how it went after he got one over on his pal and as each day passed, I prayed that I’d be around to see it.

That was when I realized I began to have faith, I was starting to hope.  I could really see myself living this life, being with Ross and Sam for the long haul.  I’d never risked doing that before and I had to remind myself to put the brakes on occasionally.  I had to slow it all down, I couldn’t expect these people to permanently change their lives for me if we couldn’t figure a way out of my trouble.  Ross had a real life, OK… a number of different lives and it was dumb of me to assume that he’d want this to be long term.  I also knew I’d spent my life waiting and dreaming of everything I wanted, I knew I’d never be satisfied if I had to spend the rest of my life waiting for a guy to come home from God knows where.  I was ready to live outside my head for the first time ever.  Was it selfish?  Absolutely, but I couldn’t compromise and I wasn’t prepared to settle for a relationship that was anything less than full time.

End of.

“So today how about we walk your route to the gas station?  I wanna see what my boy has come up with.”

“Are you sure?”  It was a long way and even though Sam was fit, I wasn’t sure about dragging him, through the forest on a hot summer’s afternoon.

“Listen to you Mouse, I can hike a forest path.   I’ve forgotten more things than my boy has taught you.  Let’s move.”

I followed his lead until it was time for me to show him our route, “Sam, can I ask you something?”

“Of course.”

“You’ve been so kind and I don’t want to overstep but, does… Ross have a girlfriend or someone special in his life?” I mumbled quickly, desperate to get it out.

“Haven’t you asked him?  Seems like the kinda thing you should talk about considering he’s already assaulting you with his friendly weapon,” he chuckles in reply.

I’m hesitant about sharing, knowledge is power and that was a lesson I learned early on.  I’m desperate for the information and need to get the lay of the land before I fall any deeper under the spell of possibilities that this new life is tempting me with.  “It sort of swept me up, he swept me up and I’m not complaining, but I get the impression he’s not in a place for this.  Whatever this is.”

“Alrighty, one thing you must remember, when the time comes that you need to take this escape route, you must always look forward and stay looking forward.   Ignore that impulse to keep checking back.  You focus up ahead and in front, look behind you and you’ll get caught.”

“OK.”

“That means now too.  Face front and keep moving Mouse.  My boy is a pussy cat,” he starts laughing, “the mouse and the pussycat.  But he’s a pussycat wrapped up in an exterior of grit and granite.  He followed me into the life of a Fed and never looked back.  That said, he saw what me being gone did to his momma, always wondering whether I was safe, where I was and hell, whether I was actually gonna make it home.”

Sam seemed to be remembering the time of his marriage with regret.  “My Katherine knew what she was taking on, but I’m fairly sure the reality was more extreme than what she first thought.  Time passed and I was a stranger in my own house and marriage.  My son was loyal to his momma and by the time he hit high school… well, he was the man o’ the house and doing his best to offer comfort and companionship to my wife, something I should have been doing.  That was my job, my responsibility and I never made her a priority.”

“I understand what it’s like to see your mom fall down the priority list Sam.”  At least he was remorseful.  My dad was one step away from sending out invites and holding a celebratory party.

“Don’t mean it’s right and you’ll know that you can never get that time back.  Anyway, Ross was intent on serving his country, despite the lonely life Kathy led, she approved of it.  She taught that boy the value of patriotism and he joined the army.  He did a stint in special forces and came out when his momma got sick.”  Oh no, I didn’t like the sound of this, I didn’t want to make him sad, but before I could stop him, he carried on.  “My Kathy was so ill.  I’d spent my life making the world safe, caring for others, putting them first and missed what was under my own fuckin’ nose.  My boy nursed that woman until the end and she still welcomed me back, like I was a shining star.  It was then that I saw it, saw everything I’d missed.  Their bond and the beauty of a family that I’d taken for granted.”

“Sam please, you don’t have to talk anymore if you don’t want to.”  I could tell he was on a trip down memory lane and it was both pleasuring and painful.

“I jacked it in and got to spend the last six months with her and each day she did her best to make them special for me. 
For me
, that’s what still undoes me, even when she was being eaten alive by fuckin’ cancer, she was excited I was back and she wanted it to be a special time for us.  Ross and I never spoke about things until after she’d gone.  I didn’t go back to the service, I couldn’t.  I blamed them for the time I’d missed having with my family.  It wasn’t right though, I was the reason, because I just kept taking the assignments.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“Not for you to be sorry for and remember,” he said pointing, changing the subject.”  If you’re being pursued on this route, only change it up when it’s safe.  Twist and turn quick when you can, but never back track.  It’s got to be absolutely vital to your survival to justify back tracking.”

“Alright.  So… Ross doesn’t have a girlfriend then.”

“Not that I would know, but I don’t believe he has, he saw the lonely life his mom had and swore he’d never put someone through it.  I always figured that until he found someone worth making the jump for, he’d just keep on going.”

“Oh,” I was hoping I was playing down the assumption and excitement that was showing on my face.

“Giving up the job, before he found that would mean he had nothing and I guess it’s better to have something rather than nothing.”

“I don’t even know where he lives.”

“A man can sleep anywhere, a bed just sits in a house, a room or a hotel, but to live somewhere you need to find a home and I don’t believe my boy has that.  He’s a sure thing thinker and by that I mean, when he goes all in, he’s really all in.  Me, I sold our family home and bought the junkyard, a rash decision but I needed the change.  Ross, well, he’ll settle down somewhere soon and I have a feeling you’ll know where that is before I do.”

Hope and longing was surging and taking root inside me.  Sam was convinced that Ross wanted to be with me and I was crossing my fingers that he was right.  “Thank you for sharing all that with me, I imagine your wife was a wonderful woman.  She sounds like a fantastic mom.”

“That she was.”  It was a final statement that signaled the end of the Wilkes family sharing time and history lesson.  “I like this route, it’s a great option, covered and fairly direct.  You need to make sure you don’t get cornered though.  If things start to go against you, use obstacles if you can find them and slow the bad guys down.  If your escape route is blocked, make for crowds.  Only the desperate will do something stupid in a public place or crowd.”

“Got it,” I replied confidently.

Sam stopped and I knew what was coming was serious, “Mouse, listen to me.  Don’t ever underestimate how emotions can affect you.  Being chased by someone when you’re in a car is intense, but being chased on foot, hunted like prey, is terrifying.  Blood curdling, heart thumpingly terrifying.  Keep your wits about you.  Maintaining sense and composure, that’s the key to survival.”

“I understand.  I’ll never be able to thank you enough for taking me in.”  It was important that he knew what he’d done for me.  “When I found you I was coming to the end of my sanity.  I didn’t know how I was going to see this through and the thought of carrying on was feeling like my own death sentence.  Teaching me all this, just the simple act of taking back a little bit of control has made all the difference.  I don’t think I’ll ever be able to repay you.”

“You already are.  My boy cares about you, seeing him realize there is something other than the job he’s focused on, is how you’re repaying me.  Knowing that my boy gets a glimpse of what could be is enough for me.  It may work out, it may not, but I’ll know he had his chance.”

Sam’s words were beginning to affect me, I’d never seen my father paternally care for his son’s, it was expected that there was some kind of love between them.  Any hugging or manly back slaps were done out of showmanship and pride that he was being seen to raise the next generation of Acerbi mobster.  I began to wonder whether my brother’s missed that gentle, loving support from their dad.  It was odds on that the cold mannerisms they’d become accustomed to would be passed onto their children too.  Learned behavior is the saddest of all human traits and I pitied them because of it, especially Guiseppe.

“Sam, even if this kills me and running turns out to be the biggest mistake of my life, I wake up every day and send a prayer of thanks to God that I stopped outside your junkyard gates.”  He stopped and smiled at me and in what I assumed was some father/daughter gesture of affection, he leaned forward and kissed me on the top of my head.  His cell phone began to ring in the pocket of his coveralls.

“Yeah,” he said as he put it to his ear.  I saw him stiffen before I felt it beside me.  “And what did this stranger look like?”

Then it was my turn to freeze.

“And he was looking for Ross?  OK, text me the plate number.  Thanks Chuck.”  Sam could sense I was a brief second away from losing all sense of collected reasoning, “Calm down they were looking for Ross.  It could be anyone.  He’s had a mysterious and colorful life, could be an old friend from the army.  I’ll admit I don’t like the coincidence but Chuck watched whoever it was drive back out of town.”

“Who is Chuck?”

“Gas station.  Other end of town.  He’s a friend and I asked him to give me a heads up to any random newcomers in town.”

“Did he say what he looked like?”

“No, but I’m gonna suggest we head back anyway.  We’ll do some recon from the forest edge and if the coast is clear you go into the house and stay put.  We’ll warn Ross and get him to run the plates on the car.”