Chapter 27
Chapter Twenty-Seven
SIMON
“Simon, I’m so glad to see you back at work, sweetie.” One of our administrators, Luella, pats me on the shoulder while I’m scarfing down a lunch of microwave noodles. “Poor thing, I heard you were so sick. I never got to thank you for being such a huge help before the storm.”
“Mm.” Of course the woman had to catch me when I’m eating. And while I’m busy thinking about the last words Sebastian said to me. It’s been days, and I keep playing them on repeat.
Who do you belong to?
When you are ready to be with me without money or obligations in the way, you will come and let me know.
I’ve been living in a daze, flipping back and forth between wanting to believe him and knowing I can’t.
I can’t talk with my mouth full, so I force a painful swallow. “I’m glad I was able to help, Luella. Glad everybody got transported okay.”
She stands before me with her nude pumps tapping on the fake hardwood flooring.
I’ve learned it’s something she does when she’s thinking.
It can be unnerving, though, because it sure seems a hell of a lot like she’s waiting for you to finish whatever the hell you’re doing so you can stop inconveniencing her.
Fuck it all. Even if it’s the second thing, I’ve still got six minutes left on my break.
“Something else I can do for you, Luella?”
She glances at the clock. “Do me a favor and come see me at the end of your shift. There’s something I’d like to discuss with you.”
Oh. Shit. I’m getting fired. “Is this about that time I handed out condoms on the fifth floor? Because those folks were going to be getting busy regardless, and it’s only right to encourage safe sex. You know rates of STIs among adults over the age of sixty-five have more than—”
“Simon, stop. Relax. I hadn’t actually heard that story, but I’m going to let it go for now. You’re not in trouble.” She glances to another table where two nurse aides and a food service worker are oddly silent and looking anywhere but in our direction. “Just stop by before you head home, okay?”
“Sure. Great.”
Fuck. This could mean literally anything.
Maybe I’m going to get a Buzz Buzz Buzz coffee card or one of those free scoop ice cream certificates as a thank you for almost dying on the job before the hurricane.
Maybe I really am about to get fired. She may have said I’m not in trouble, but then she probably wouldn’t have when people were listening.
Appetite gone, I push aside my noodles. It’s been a stressful enough week trying to help my brother acclimate to the real world and teach him how to use a smartphone and to not ask directions or buy anything from the corner boys in my neighborhood.
Not to mention the huge hole in my chest that only gets bigger with every day that passes without hearing from Sebastian.
I told myself not to get my hopes up, but I guess I did.
Truthfully, the number of times I’ve come close to breaking down, going downtown to his office to tell him I’ll wait however long it takes him to work out his divorce and the issues with his company just so I can get him to fuck me over his desk again? It’s honestly embarrassing.
After what happened with Elijah I swore to myself that I would never again let love blind me.
That I wouldn’t let myself get hurt that way again.
I know Sebastian’s not the same, but I’m still me.
And there’s that little voice in my head telling me that what Sebastian said was all too good to be true.
I glance at the clock. Break’s over. So is my time for rumination.
Who the fuck am I kidding? I’ve got four hours left on my shift and there’s plenty of time to ruminate between patients.
My phone buzzes as I’m leaving the break room.
Little brother: Hey, this guy in your building told me I can go down to the hardware store and sometimes people come and hire for jobs there. I was thinking that might be worth trying out.
Simon: Day labor work is dangerous and a lot of the folks who hire there are shady as fuck. Don’t take advice from my sketchy neighbors.
Little brother: You’ve found something wrong with every job I’ve tried to get.
You don’t want me to meet Brennan. I’m used to getting up at first light to work and I don’t know what to do with myself now.
I’ve been going to the beach and teaching Penelope some tricks, but I’m tired of sand in my shorts and your cat spends a lot of time napping.
Fuck’s sake.
Me: I know. I’m sorry. I remember how much shock I had after I left. Everything was so new and scary I almost went back. There are so many scams and ways people can take advantage of you. I’m trying to protect you.
Little brother: I’m tougher than I look.
No doubt. Growing up where we did, you had to be. We were also insulated. I learned the hard way that a few miles away from the farm may as well have been a different planet.
My head throbs. That fucking flickering light out in the hallway isn’t helping.
Then my brother follows up with, I don’t want to be a bother. I just want to learn and contribute.
I smile to myself. Of course he does. He’s my brother, after all.
Me: I know. Let’s talk about this when I get home. I’m not scheduled for the next two days. We’ll figure this out.
“Texting with my husband?”
What the fuck? “What the fuck?”
I’d recognize that slimy, smug-ass voice anywhere. That voice I always hated, but tolerated because I was getting paid good money. What’s not working in my brain is what in the absolute fuck is he doing here?
He snickers at me from his post against the door to the facility’s barber shop.
It’s closed now, because the “barber” is actually a retired hairdresser who comes here one morning a week on a volunteer basis.
The entire hallway is darkened in the direction leading away from the break room, because it’s mostly non-essential services like the recreational director and the gift shop.
“What are you doing here, Tony?” Guesses fly through my head, everything from he’s got a family member in residence to he’s here to kick the shit out of me, but I’m too surprised to think clearly.
The smile on his face is odd. Fake. Faker than usual. Bet that casual lean with his hands in his pockets is fake as well. But I don’t know what he’d be doing here of all places.
“You know, my father was old money. His father and grandfather got rich buying businesses, squeezing all the money out, and selling them for parts. Really had a knack for it.”
What a thing to be proud of. “What the fuck do I care?”
Tony chuckles. “The big problem was my dad did not have the knack. Zero business sense. If he’d never worked a day in his life and just let my grandfather’s inheritance earn interest, he might still have it today.
Instead, he threw cash into every shiny idea like it wouldn’t run out. Except eventually it did.”
Jesus, this guy is unhinged. “Okay, well that’s a sad story, and I’m sorry about your tough lot in life, but I’ve got to get back to work. I’m pretty sure the folks from the behavioral health unit at Belle Argo General are out looking for you as we speak so—”
What happens next is confusing. One second I’m walking away from Sebastian’s red flag of an ex, and the next a hand has clamped down on my shoulder, near to the spot Sebastian likes to sink his teeth in. But it’s not pleasure I’m feeling, it’s a sharp shooting pain.
I shove my elbow backward. There’s a pained whoosh of air, but Tony only clamps down harder.
Brennan’s shown me a few self-defense moves, but it’s not something I’ve practiced in a while.
Clearly my reaction time is too slow, because the next thing I know there’s a blade pressing into the skin of my neck. Right over my carotid.
Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.
Is this how I die? Bleeding out at the hands of a glittery-suit-wearing snake?
“You tried to take something that belongs to me.”
What the hell?
Nothing but air comes out when I open my mouth.
“I know who you are, Isaiah Jessup.”
How the fuck does he know my name? “What are you talking about?” The question is almost a whisper.
He’s pulled me back into the darkened hallway.
There’s not a single person, not even an employee taking advantage of the quiet space to make a phone call.
And boy is it quiet. Not to mention it’s darker down here than I realized.
“I’ve got connections to big people, you know.
Cops. Security guys. I had them investigate you.
I know you grew up on a farm near Beacon Hill.
I know you ran away because you were a suspect in your own father’s death.
” He tsked. “Probably why you changed your hair and your name and everything. I also know you’ve been bending over for my husband and letting him bite and spank you like the sick little whore you are. ”
I tense. That doesn’t sound like Tony drawing conclusions because someone told him I’d been in the building. That sounds more like…
“Do you have cameras in his place, you sick fuck?”
I shove his arm. If I can get that knife away from me then I can get away from him.
“Oh, you bet your ass I do. You pulled out all the stops, didn’t you?
Letting him fuck you raw. What. A. Slut.
And so you know, I have someone watching his office right now too.
And your brother. He’s a sweet one, am I right?
All wide-eyed and fresh off the farm. Wouldn’t mind getting a piece of that action.
So you know, he took a walk to the beach today.
Just thought I’d share that information. In case you get any cute ideas.”
I freeze. Risking myself is something I might be willing to do, but not Sebastian and definitely not my brother.
“Leave them the fuck alone. You want me to stop seeing Sebastian? I already did. So go the fuck home and move on with your life.”