Chapter Eighteen
Raven had returned to the broken window and thankful now that it hadn’t been repaired, she snuck inside. Taking a long time, she slowly twisted the doorknob and prayed it wouldn’t creak or give away her presence.
Once she had it opened enough to be able to hear the voices and what they were saying, she listened carefully, hoping to get some idea of what was going down.
Holding back had been a good thing because she soon realized that Cane had chosen to play a role and did a good job of portraying a lowlife.
His tone had become whiny, and the slang he’d adopted gave him a whole different personality…
even his body language had changed from one in control, to a sloucher who didn’t give a shit about anything.
Holding her breath, she opened the door wider to look left, then took a moment.
She scanned the living room to see her old friends very uncomfortable, tied together in a chair, and passed out.
Suddenly, she felt eyes on her and saw Helen sitting on the floor in the corner, holding a child and trying to keep the baby quiet.
She raised her hand to her lips in a signal to be quiet, and Raven nodded.
In the opposite corner, Raven made out Helen’s hubby Mac, who’d also been tied to a chair, and he too seemed to be out of it. What worried her was the red blotches and dried blood on his face that looked as if he’d been pistol whipped.
Turning away from the sight, Raven angled herself better to be able to see into the old-fashioned kitchen. There appeared to be only three people inside. Cane, a young woman who she took to be the baby’s mama, and an asshole holding a gun on them both.
The afternoon suddenly brightened with the storm clouds letting in some sunshine, making it easier to see into the dim areas. Soon, Raven got a whiff of the food being cooked on the old-fashioned gas stove and hoped that it would keep those in the kitchen focused on their stomachs.
Removing her shoes and taking her time, she slithered out of the bedroom to quietly ease herself behind the open kitchen door, still out of sight from anyone not paying attention to her exact location.
Helen’s eyes had followed her, using her hand to shield the sleepy baby from seeing anything.
The worried expression she couldn’t help, made Raven aware of just how vital her intrusion would be.
She’d have one chance at making this happen without anyone getting hurt, and she meant to make the most of it.
Through the gap between the door and wall, Raven watched as Cane slid a filled plate of hot food in front of the scumbag. Praying he’d lay down his gun, she waited.
Fooling her, he waved the girl to come sit on the stool next to him and dragged her over to be close enough for him to lick her face with his sloppy tongue like an untrained dog.
Though she tried to pull away, the knife he’d slid from his pocket and held to her throat stopped her. Then with the grin of a sick monster, he laid down the gun, keeping it close to his right side, and started to eat with that hand.
Cane had filled another two plates with food and after putting one in front of the woman, he sat himself across the counter and began to stuff himself.
“Hey buddy, help yourself why don’t you?”
Cane smirked, his grin lopsided and disrespectful. Yet Dale didn’t seem to mind. “Figured since I did all the work.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Dale pointed his fork at Cane’s plate. “Go ahead. Just messin’ with you.”
Cane suddenly lifted his head, and Raven knew with a certainty that had no explanation, he’d sensed her close by.
His keen gaze picked out her hiding spot immediately, and he shook his head very slowly, making it appear as if he was reacting to the food.
“Man, this tastes good. First, I’ve eaten since yesterday before my car got washed away. ”
“You lost your ride too? Fuck, I was hoping you had wheels.”
Cane pretended to grimace like one might if joking. “Did I say I didn’t? Folks got worried about the weather and hopped in their boats to get the hell outta this place. Picked me up a pretty little Mustang and left it out by the road. Figured once the water recedes, I’d be gonzo.”
“Looks like we’ll both be using that Mustang then, unless you want I should just shoot you now and take the keys.”
Cane pretended to be offended. “Hey. No need to be an asshole or threaten me. I ain’t your enemy. And yeah, you can surely catch a ride with me. But what’s your plans for these folks?”
Dale’s voice turned meaner’n a rabid skunk and his shrug made the hair on the back of Raven’s neck dance a jig.
“Guess we’ll have to get rid of the evidence.
Figure we can drown ’em before the water drains away.
Let’s see, we can take the boat out, knock ’em out and throw them overboard, then make it look like they were capsized.
They’s a rowboat we can use to get back to land. ”
“That’s a lot of carrying for one guy, ain’t it? The three in the living room look to be unconscious.”
“Nah. Just sleeping. Exhausted, I guess. They can walk under their own steam.”
“Look, I gotta tell you sumpin’. I might be a thief, but I ain’t no killer, never hurt nobody on purpose and ain’t gonna start now.”
“You will or I’ll shoot the baby in the next room, and don’t think I won’t.” The woman being held by Dale struggled and then words erupted as if she couldn’t stop them. “No. You promised us that you were just holing up for a few days and that nobody would get hurt. You promised.”
“Hey baby, sorry about that, but I lie a lot. Before I killed him, it’s one of the many bad habits my probation officer said I needed to work on. That and liking to hurt sweet girls like you.”
Before he knew she’d react, the same sweet girl pushed against Dale so hard that his high stool toppled over.
Though he’d tried to grab for his gun, it got shoved out of reach, and Cane, swiftly moving around to their side, had his own weapon pointed right in Dale’s face. “I wouldn’t move if I were you.”
Unaware that Dale hadn’t dropped the knife, Cane didn’t see it aimed at his thigh, but Raven did. Unable to shoot the bastard before he stuck the blade into soft flesh, she did manage to get to the scene before he rammed it in again.
“Stop. Right there. Drop it, asshole.” She held her weapon within inches of his face.
Up until he’d thrust the knife into Cane’s leg, she’d felt in control of herself.
But once she witnessed this cruelty to someone that mattered, she lost all sense and only her training stopped her from pistol whipping the son of a bitch and then putting a bullet in him.
As if sensing the razor thin edge of her restraint, Dale froze, his hand opened to let the knife fall.
No sooner had it hit the ground, the young woman had it in her hand.
Wildly reacting to her new freedom, Val’s arm flashed toward him.
She sliced the blade across Dale’s groin, mostly cutting material.
But he reacted immediately, bending over, and trying to scurry away, using his hands to cover his jewels.
And when the wall stopped him, he cringed from her fury.
She followed him, crawling like an animal, screaming all her pent-up terror and anger, while violently swinging the knife in mad circles, trying her damnedest to cut him again.
Cane’s voice calling her name seemed to get through her madness. “Val, stop. Killing the pervert isn’t worth the payment they’ll demand from you. Think. You have a baby who needs you.”
In the meantime, Raven hadn’t taken her eyes from Dale, her icy glare daring him to move or defend himself. But like all cowards, his arrogant facade had vanished, leaving behind the scared, whimpering simpleton who now faced retribution.
Once Cane had talked Val down and retrieved the knife, he held the hysterical woman while she sobbed away the tension she’d been forced to bear. “Shush, Val, it’s over now. You’re going to be fine. Helen has your baby, and the child needs you to be strong.”
Val turned her sopping wet eyes, filled with unfathomable pain, to where Raven waited, her gun never wavering.
“He-he and his friend shot my boyfriend and took us hostage, beat me and forced me to do unspeakable things. I have to kill him, don’t you see?
” Her voice held a weird kind of reasoning mixed with a child-like vulnerability.
“He needs to die like… like an injured animal needs to be put out of their misery.”
Before Cane could answer, Helen appeared holding a sleeping baby, the child’s curls awry over her sweaty forehead. “Val, something’s wrong with Bonnie. She needs you.”
In a flash, all thoughts of Dale were overridden by her child’s needs. Val thrust herself from Cane’s arms straight to Helen. Though his leg bled profusely, Cane stumbled to his feet and moved over to where Raven held her gun on Dale.
“You got him?”
Rusted nails in her voice, she rasped, “Trust me, he isn’t going anywhere, but I sure-as-shit wish he’d try.”