Chapter 29
MITCHELL
“I’m going out,” I said to Watch Dog. “I’ll buy.”
He winced. “I’ve got to take it easy. We’ve got a show.”
“You have a show,” I said with bitterness. “Medusa has a show. I do not have a show. I crossed a shrew who is now doing her very best to slice off my wings.”
“I’ll go with you, only because I can see you need a babysitter.”
“I don’t need a fucking babysitter,” I snapped. “Why does everyone think I have a death wish? When did people decide I need to be told what to do and when to do it?”
“We’re all just trying to look out for you,” Watch Dog said. “Some of us are just a little louder about it.”
“I’ll meet you in the lobby in an hour,” I told him.
“We’ll be there.”
“Who’s we?” I asked.
“Medusa will want to be there,” he said.
“I doubt that.” I laughed. “She seems to be best friends with the woman intent on destroying me.”
“I’ll ask her anyway because that’s the polite thing to do. If we leave her out, she’ll kick both our asses. If she wants to hang out with Sam, that’s her choice, but I’m extending the invitation.”
“Fine,” I sighed.
I took a shower and dressed. Tonight, I was supposed to be in bed with Sam.
I was supposed to be enjoying one of the best nights of my life.
She’d gotten me psyched up for something she never intended on following through with.
She teased me. I never imagined she was the type of woman that used sex to sink her claws into a man and then control him.
I thought she was different. Medusa and Watch Dog had convinced me she was my other half. They made me think I could actually settle down with a woman. She made me think we had a real chance to make something of our relationship. I had never felt so duped in my life.
Watch Dog and Medusa were both waiting in the lobby for me. Medusa gave me a sympathetic look. “I’m sorry,” she said.
“Sorry?” I asked.
“About the grounding,” she said. “Watch Dog says you guys are going out. Can I tag along for a bit?”
“Shouldn’t you be with your buddy?” I asked.
“Stop it,” she warned. “I can be friends with both of you. I think the two of you really need to have a conversation. A serious conversation with your pants on.”
“Yeah, I don’t think that’s possible,” I said with a shake of my head. “We’re either fucking or fighting.”
She slugged my arm. “Don’t you dare talk about her like that.”
“I wasn’t trying to be rude,” I said.
“But you were. Let’s go. I’m coming with the two of you because I don’t trust you to be alone. You two can find trouble anywhere.”
I groaned and rolled my eyes. “I expect you’ll be sending me a bill one of these days.”
“A bill?” Medusa asked.
“For the babysitting services,” I replied.
“Don’t be an asshole,” she snapped. “Unlike Sam, I’m not amused by your charms. I’m not going to want to jump you at the end of the night and forget all about your asshole ways. Be nice or I’ll use my brown belt to put you down.”
She wasn’t lying. She wasn’t joking in the slightest. I had no doubt in my mind she would do exactly that.
We got to the bar that was known to be a frequent hangout for the Marines stationed at Miramar.
We found a table, ordered a pitcher, and got busy drinking.
At least I got busy drinking. They were sipping from their glasses.
“So, what was it that got her so pissed?” Watch Dog asked.
“Watch Dog, don’t,” Medusa warned.
“I would love to tell you why she was pissed, but I don’t think I actually know,” I said.
“She and I had talked about me not taking risks. She made me promise. I agreed and that was that. I’m not sure why I agreed to it.
She’s no one to me. I can’t turn around every five minutes and have her screaming in my face about one thing or another.
I’m not a child. The only person I’ll allow to shout at me is Honcho. ”
“You scared her with that Split S,” Medusa said.
“She’s been around pilots and flying all her life,” I said. “Why in the world does she get so weirded out when I fly? I don’t get it. I don’t know if I’ll ever get it. I don’t think I want to try. She’s way too much work for me. I don’t have that kind of energy.”
“You’ll regret it if you don’t try and work this out with her,” Medusa said.
“I’m regretting a lot of things right now,” I muttered.
I ordered another pitcher. I was looking forward to getting completely shitfaced. I felt like I had been turned inside out. I needed to get drunk enough to forget. “I’ll be back in a minute,” I said and got up from the table.
On my way to the bathroom, there were a couple of jarheads eyeballing me. “Got a problem?” I asked with a scowl.
“Keep looking at us like that, and you’re going to be the one with a problem,” the taller one said.
I looked them both up and down and made sure they understood I wasn’t afraid of them. I walked to the bathroom and took care of business. On my way back to the table, I gave one of them a soft bump with my shoulder. They didn’t get up and try to fight me, which was just a little disappointing.
I flopped into my chair and poured myself a glass. “I’m taking off,” Medusa said. “Can I trust the two of you to behave yourselves? I see things are picking up a bit in here. I don’t want to hear about a problem.”
“Yes, mom,” I teased.
“In this case, you need a mom to set you straight,” she said. “Be good. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Things are going to be okay,” Watch Dog said after she left.
“You don’t know that,” I said.
“Look, even if this thing with Sam doesn’t work out, it’s not the end of the world.
You’ll have next season to do what you do.
The way I see it, it will be easier without the constant shouting matches every time you finish a show.
I know you’re sleeping with her. You’ll want to make sure Honcho doesn’t find out.
He will not be okay with that. It’s already causing enough problems as it is. ”
“I’m not admitting anything,” I said.
“What are you going to do?” he asked. “You’re clearly crazy about her. I don’t know if I’m happy for you or worried. You’re off your game.”
“I’m not off my game,” I said. “I’m fine. I’m flying perfectly. I’ve made no mistakes. My game is just fine.”
“Your flying is fine for now,” he said. “How much more can you take before it does affect your flying? You can’t be distracted with this kind of nonsense. Fix it or forget it.”
If only it was that simple. I would love to tell her things were okay and to relax.
Unfortunately, she was the kind of woman that got something in her head and she didn’t just let it go.
We were both set in our ways. I couldn’t make her understand my point of view and I was never going to understand hers.
I wasn’t in the mood for a lot of talk. I continued to refill my glass until the pitcher ran dry. “Order me another,” I said with a slight slur. “I need to take a piss.”
The noise level in the bar seemed to have amped up since we first sat down. I managed to make it to the bathroom without stumbling but it wasn’t easy. I washed my hands and was on my way out of the bathroom when I ran into one of the Marines from earlier.
“That’s the second time,” he growled. “And the last.”
He shoved me hard enough to knock me off my balance. I bumped into the wall and nearly fell over. I quickly righted myself and smirked at him. “You’re probably right, but that’s going to be the last time you put your hands on me.”
I swung and hit hard. His head snapped back with spit and blood flying out of his mouth.
For some stupid reason, I started laughing—until I got whacked upside the head with a fist I never saw coming.
I blinked to clear the stars from my eyes.
Apparently, I was fighting two of them. I did my best to keep up.
I swung, but it was my two fists against their four.
“Break it up!” I heard someone say loudly.
I couldn’t see straight. It was a combination of what I suspected was blood in my eyes and maybe sweat. I shoved at the bodies pressing against me.
“It’s me,” Watch Dog called out. “Let’s get out of here before the police show up.”
I let him drag me out. I could hear shouting behind me and what sounded an awful lot like more fighting behind me. I had to know what was happening. I turned around and burst into laughter. “We started a bar fight.”
“Oh no,” Watch Dog said. “That’s all you. Maybe not your best move.”
He ushered me out of the bar and into the fresh air that did little to sober me up. I was feeling very drunk. My legs didn’t seem to want to work correctly. I stumbled and found myself leaning pretty hard against Watch Dog.
“Hey,” I said.
“What?” he asked irritably.
“I’m drunk.”
“No shit,” he muttered. “You could have warned me you were getting that smashed.”
“I didn’t know I was.” I laughed. “Hey, is there blood on my eye?”
“You’re an idiot,” he muttered.
A cab finally came to a stop. He opened the back door and ushered me into the backseat. He climbed in on the other side and shook his head as he looked at me. “What the hell were you thinking?” he asked.
“He started it,” I said and then flinched. I touched my fingertips to my lips. “Ow.”
“You have no idea what you look like,” he said. “Does anything feel broken?”
I grinned again. “I’m not sure I feel anything right now.”
“Fuck me,” he sighed. “I’m going to sneak you in a side door and take you straight to your room. If Honcho sees this, he’s going to flip. He’s not only going to be pissed at you, he’s going to be furious with me for not keeping you out of trouble.”
“Where were you?” I asked with a frown. “I was getting my ass handed to me.”
“I was on the other side of the bar,” he protested. “How in the hell was I supposed to know you were going to go pick a fight with half the Marines?”
“I didn’t pick it,” I said. “Not really. I did try and pick it earlier and they didn’t rise to the occasion. The fuckers waited until I couldn’t fight back.”
“I don’t think you’re wrong there,” he said. “You’re sure your nose is okay? Your eye is jacked. You probably need stitches.”
“I don’t need stitches,” I said.
“You don’t know because you can’t see yourself.”
“He’s right,” the cabby said from up front. “Do you want me to take you to the hospital?”
“No,” I quickly answered. “I’m fine.”
Watch Dog helped me to my room and that was when I got the first look at myself. It made me laugh. “Shit, I look rough.”
“Sit down, asshole. I’ll get a washcloth. I did not sign up to be your nurse.”
“I hope you’re a better nurse than you were a babysitter,” I joked. “Because you suck at babysitting.”
He was still complaining and bitching when he returned with a wet cloth and tossed it at me. “Clean yourself up.”