Chapter 7 #2
“Why would it be? I’m not asking to be bent.
” I cleared my throat because I knew that sounded worse than I intended.
“Look, it's none of my concern what you do or who you do it with.
This conversation has left the realm of professionalism, so I think it's best I excuse myself. Besides, I need to make the rounds.”
“Ah, I’ve made her nervous. Never thought I would see the day when that happened.”
“Whatever. Keep your feet on the floor, please.” I pointed at the black sneakers he wore. “How many times do I have to tell you about the germs those things carry? I don’t need that near my face or hands.”
The illness that took Luke down had spread throughout the team.
The next day, it was Sandra, and then Greg after that.
Each night, there was someone we had to fill in for, which unfortunately meant I couldn’t escape Raymond.
Even when I suggested he cover on his own, he would pretend he didn’t know what to do and play on my desire to make sure everything ran smoothly.
And so, he and I would end up covering the night shift together.
“Looks like this is the last night we’ll share,” Raymond said after ending a call with his assistant. “Everyone’s all healed up, and the new recruits are ready to step up to the plate as well.”
“That’s good. Everyone passed the training?” I looked up from the clipboard in my hand.
“With flying colors.” The grin stretched across his face. “Sandra and Greg will move into their managing roles as of tomorrow.”
“What a relief.” I sighed. “Don’t get me wrong, I love what I do, but this is the more boring side of things.”
“You mean looking after property isn’t fun?” he teased.
“I got into this business because I wanted to protect people, but the bigger contracts are more about assets. I understand that. Taking a large contract like this means I can continue offering affordable services to individuals.”
“That’s a great way to think about it,” Raymond said. “I never asked why you chose to be in security.”
“I learned at an early age I needed to know how to protect myself, and not too long after that, I realized I wanted to protect others.” My throat dried as I talked, bringing up a memory I wanted more than anything to forget.
“There are some actual monsters out there and too many people who are vulnerable to those beings.”
“Something happened, didn’t it?” Raymond asserted. “You don’t have to tell me what it is, but I can see it in your eyes. Some life-changing event pushed you to do this.”
“Well, yeah. That’s how everything works. There’s always a cause.”
As I looked at him, I realized Raymond had slowly learned more about me.
During the nights we spent together, I’d softened to him, each time revealing more about myself.
I talked about my time in college, the decision to buy a fixer upper for my first home, and even my friendships.
I was a lot like Natalie. Long-distance besties was the name of the game.
Just as I was about to tell him to mind his damn business, the alert sounded on the panel.
In front of me was a full dashboard full of cameras that gave a view of nearly every angle of the studio’s lots.
I pressed the key on the dash that lit up, and the view on the screens shifted.
The image shown was at the back of the east lot, an area that had had no activity yet.
I used the controls to zoom in and scan the area, but there was nothing of apparent concern.
“What is it?” Raymond moved to peer over my shoulder. “Anything there?”
“I’m not sure. Something triggered an alert, obviously.” I peered at the camera, shifting the view again. “But I don’t see anything.”
“Maybe it was an animal,” Raymond offered. “Not unlike those things to trigger security systems.”
“Maybe, but I think we should check it out, just to be sure.” I stood. “Our systems are sophisticated enough to be able to distinguish between a threat and a stray. I’m going to go check it out just to be on the safe side.”
“Do you really think that’s necessary?” He stood as well.
“What? Are you afraid?” I laughed. “After the way you tossed me around, I wouldn’t have taken you for a scaredy cat!”
“Oh, don’t do that. Don’t try to play on my male sensibilities.” He sighed. “Fine, let's go.”
“You can always stay here,” I teased as he followed me to the golf cart used for transport around the lot. “I won’t tell anyone about your fears.”
“Always in control,” he muttered.
“You think you’d understand that by now.” I winked, and as soon as he sat down, I hit the gas.
We drove through the darkness to the area at the back of the studio.
It was late, almost midnight, which would be when the next shift change would happen.
I wanted to get there, check out things, and make it back in time to hand things off to Piper, a spunky guard with an amazing MMA background.
She worked with Lucky, a guard who stood just over six feet and was built like an ox.
At least if there was a threat, the two of them would be fine to guard things until the next shift.
We had three more weeks until we were supposed to have four times the staff on hand. Filming would begin, and we would need more staff onset. The last thing we needed was an issue before we even got to that point.
As soon as we parked, Raymond hopped from the cart, maybe to prove he wasn’t afraid. He did a quick jog around the area, flashing his light into the shadows.
“See, I was right.” He returned, putting the flashlight back in his pocket. “There’s nothing here. Must have been an animal, and they’re already on their way to be a menace somewhere else.”
“I guess you were—” I started, but I stopped when I heard a weird sound like rushing air, though there was no wind blowing. “What was that?”
“What?” he looked around. “Did you see something?”
“I thought I heard—” I looked over his shoulder and paused. “We’re not alone.”
At first, there was nothing in the darkness, but when my eyes adjusted, I could just make out four figures.
They stood, lined up, cloaked by the shadows.
I holstered the flashlight in my hand; I could already tell by their stances that they weren’t there for a friendly visit.
Maybe they were there to rob the place, or maybe they thought there was something of value here. It didn’t matter.
I stepped to the side so they could see a clear view of me and waited as Raymond positioned himself to see who I was talking to.
Though I kept my gaze locked on the offenders, I struggled to see them. Their bodies looked like they were phasing in and out. I blinked to clear my vision. Maybe I was tired. It had been a lot of late nights staying up far later than I was used to.
After several more forced blinks, the figures settled into men, all of them tall, bulky, the kind who landed punches that hurt like hell. Didn’t matter; if it came to that, I could take them.
“Hey!” I called out. “You can’t be back here. I’m only going to give you one warning. Turn around and leave!”
They didn’t respond to me at all.
“Did you hear me?” I shouted. “Leave, or I’ll be forced to call the police.”
Maybe the threat of the law would convince them to leave, but something in my gut told me it wouldn’t. Whatever they came for, they wouldn’t leave without a fight.
“I don’t think they care about the police being called.” Raymond’s voice sounded far more serious than I’d ever heard it before.
Without looking at him, I could tell we were on the same page. At least there was no question about whether we could hold our own. This would be a fight.
“Oh darn, I left the phone back in the booth.” I sucked my teeth. “Guess we won’t be calling the cops after all.”
They must have taken that as confirmation of a fight, because no sooner had the words left my mouth, the first guy lunged forward. He moved silently, no battle cry, no verbal exclamation of his efforts. I stilled myself, ready for a fight, but before I could even move, Raymond was there.
Guess I wouldn’t be able to call him a chicken after all.
Raymond took it straight to the man. I tried to see the intruder’s face, but he wore a hood that hung low across the bridge of his nose.
Raymond seemed sure as he charged forward, but then, a half step later, he hesitated.
That hesitation cost him, because the man landed a hard fist across Raymond’s face.
Before I could jump into action to help, Raymond recovered.
He threw two blows back at the man, who stumbled back, holding his jaw.
Hell yeah! I kept my cheers to myself; I didn’t want to distract him. Also, the fight was only beginning. I couldn’t celebrate yet, especially because the other three took that as a challenge to move forward.
When they moved, they split up just as I expected. The first two headed for him, joining their pal in a collective beat down. The last one made a path for me. This would be their biggest mistake. Underestimate the woman in the room and get your ass handed to you.
I couldn’t be worried about Raymond. I had to trust he could handle his own at least long enough for me to deal with the guy who charged me. The plan? Quickly disarm him and go to help Raymond with the others.
I braced myself, locking in on the guy who came at me.
Even as he neared, I was struggling to see him.
It didn’t matter; my instincts would work in my favor.
When he got close enough to reach me, he sent a blow to my head.
I ducked under it and hit him with an uppercut square in the jaw.
The impact of my fist against his face knocked his hood back just enough so I could see him.