Chapter Six
Jericho
Sunday evening, we ordered a damn good pizza. Once we finished eating, Sean went to the primary bedroom while I settled my clothes in the spare room, though I’d sleep on the couch so I could be the first line of defense if someone tried to get into the condo. I was lights-out at ten.
Monday morning, my eyes opened at five like usual.
There were no sounds in the condo, so I dozed until six, grateful for the extra rack time.
I made myself a cup of coffee, wishing the Wallis’s had a regular coffee pot like the one Mom and I had at the ranch.
Making a whole pot was a lot more convenient than one cup at a time, though the coffee tasted better from the one-cup machine.
I scrolled through the news on my phone, not seeing a word about the explosion at the Eye Street Building on Friday.
Someone was keeping a tight lid on it, and I was guessing it was the cops, not wanting to give the culprits any glory or indication that they were looking at anyone in particular as a person of interest.
I figured I’d better check in with Lawry Schatz since he—or his organization—paid my fee. I sent a text.
Hi, Lawry. I’m with Sean at the Wallis’s condo.
The police came over to question him yesterday, informing him that there was a body burned beyond recognition in the trunk of Sean’s car.
An unmarked van with no license plate blocked the view of Sean’s car from the security cameras for 15 minutes early Friday morning.
The garage cameras caught 1 shot of the front windshield.
2 occupants, both covered with red ball caps, sunglasses, and flag-colored kerchiefs.
That’s all we know at this point. Jericho
It was early to send the message, but I had information to report, so I did. What Schatz did with it wasn’t my call.
Shuffling in the hallway caught my attention, so I glanced at the clock on the microwave to see that it was just after seven. Where had the time gone?
Under ordinary circumstances, I’d be spreading manure by now. It was nice to be sitting in a fancy kitchen with a cup of coffee for a change.
“Good morning,” Sean said as he went to the coffee maker and grabbed a pod, picking up the mug I left for him.
“Good morning. What’s on your agenda for today?”
“I’ll work from here today, but beginning tomorrow, I have meetings on The Hill and lunch meetings as well.
I’m not sure how we handle those. I’m going to guess you’ll want to be close but maybe we can keep you out of sight.
I’m not trying to be a bastard, but I don’t want this bullshit to overshadow what I’m trying to accomplish before Congress takes the holiday break for Fourth of July. ”
My phone buzzed on the table, so I picked it up to see a text from Lawry Schatz.
Thanks for the update. I need you to call me when you get a minute. We need you to do a few things to get an expedited security officer license in DC so you can accompany Sean to Capitol Hill tomorrow. It won’t take long. My boss was able to streamline the process. Schatz
I sent a thumbs-up and flipped my phone over so I wasn’t distracted. I wasn’t sure what Schatz had to say or how necessary it was for me to get a security officer license. I didn’t plan to take up being a bodyguard as a career path. I was already doing what I loved in Davidsonville.
“Okay. I’ve got an errand to run that will take me into DC. Do you need me to get you anything while I’m out?”
Sean sat in the booth across from me, smelling soft and warm. He was wearing glasses that perfectly accented his handsome face. I’d give anything to crawl into bed with the man for a nap, but that would be inappropriate—though very appealing.
“I can get food delivered to the front desk and have someone bring it up. How long do you think you’ll be gone?” His voice was unsteady. Was he scared to be alone for a little while?
“I’m not sure yet. I got a message from Schatz. I need a security license to show up with you at The Hill. They’re going to quick-walk it through, I suspect. Let me call him and I’ll tell you more. Order your breakfast, and I’ll go pick it up for you.”
Standing from the booth, I headed out of the kitchen. “Oh!” The gasp had me stopping in the doorway.
I turned to face Sean. “Something wrong?”
His gaze was fixed on my prosthetic. I’d slept in basketball shorts and a T-shirt, and I hadn’t thought about whether Sean knew I wasn’t one hundred percent. I was guessing it was a surprise.
“Sean, it’s just a prosthetic. I lost my foot in the Army and was medically discharged.” I was prepared to grab my shit and go if it bothered him too much. Schatz or Wallis should have told him.
“I’m so sorry.” His guilt dripped off him like flop sweat.
I shook my head. “Sean, you don’t have to be sorry. You were miles from where I was when it happened. Will this bother you? I can call Schatz and tell him to find someone else.”
“No, no. I’m sorry. Ugh. I was just surprised. Nobody said anything about you being…” I could see he had no idea what to say.
I, however, did. “Less than perfect? A cripple? Disabled? Sorry if I don’t fit into your world.”
Yeah, I sounded a little bitter, but I’d seen this bullshit too many times. I decided to go ahead and rip off the Band-Aid. “Oh, I’m a recovering alcoholic, too.”
I didn’t wait for him to respond. I went back to the second bedroom, grabbed some clean jeans, a shirt, underclothes, and my Dopp kit before closing myself in the hall bathroom.
I sat on the closed commode, taking off my foot before looking in the mirror. “Just like you expected.”
I turned on the shower and hopped inside, washing myself as quickly as possible so I could get the fuck out of Bethesda. The money would have been nice, but I wasn’t willing to be humiliated and treated like I was worthless because I’d lost my foot.
I wasn’t crippled or disabled, and even though I was missing a foot, it didn’t mean I wasn’t a man… one with pride and self-confidence. I wouldn’t let one stuck-up asshole take that away from me.
After I brushed my teeth, shaved, and combed my hair, I strapped my foot on and proceeded to get dressed.
Once I had my clothes on, I straightened the bathroom, hung the towel on the hook to dry, and hurried to the room across the hall.
I pulled on my socks—I still used one on my prosthetic foot so my boot wore evenly—and then my boots.
I packed my shit and dragged my suitcase with me out of the bedroom, settling it by the front door. My phone was still on the kitchen table, so I picked it up and called Lawry Schatz, putting it on speaker.
“Golden Elite Associates-America. Schatz speaking.”
“It’s me, Jericho Hess. I can’t believe you didn’t tell him I’m an amputee.”
My voice was harsh, but come the fuck on! The guy freaked out, and it could have been avoided if he’d only known.
“I’m sorry, Jericho, but I didn’t think it mattered. I didn’t consider that Sean might be judgmental in that way. Give me a couple of days to free up one of my guys, and I’ll send him down to DC. Can you stick around for a few days? Say until Friday?”
“Please don’t go,” Sean said quietly. “I’m terribly embarrassed about my reaction.
I had no idea you’d been injured at all, much less so severely.
I don’t judge you in any way, Jeri. I’m sorry if you thought I did.
I appreciate your sacrifice for our country.
I also don’t judge you for the other thing you told me.
We’re only human.” I glanced up to see Sean standing at the end of the kitchen booth, his expression showing tremendous guilt.
I nodded. I didn’t want to shame him for his initial reaction to seeing my prosthetic. “It’s okay. I’m sorry you weren’t informed that I’m missing a foot before I arrived. I mean, someone as perfect as you shouldn’t be saddled with someone as imperfect as me.”
“Hello?” It was Schatz, whom I’d forgotten about. Much to my surprise, Sean picked up my phone.
“Mr. Schatz, it’s Sean Fitzpatrick. Please don’t send anyone else. I’m perfectly safe with Jericho. I don’t want another bodyguard.” He ended the call and handed me the phone.
I gazed into Sean’s beautiful green eyes. “You’re not afraid of me? You don’t doubt that I’ll be able to protect you because I’m missing a body part?” I put the phone on the table in front of me.
He shook his head. “I’ve never felt safer in my life. Please don’t go.”
After an exhale, I sat in the booth across from him and slid off my boot and sock, showing Sean the prosthetic.
“This is part of me. Touch it. It’s just fiberglass, plastic, a little metal, and screws.
The other one has a weird synthetic covering that someone thought looked like skin, but I don’t wear it often because I’m not really a sandal guy.
This one is easier for me to walk and run with.
I even ride horses with it. The other one I have mostly for a backup. ”
Sean lifted my foot—my prosthetic—to rest on his left thigh. He gently turned it from left to right before he touched my calf. “Does it hurt?”
I grinned. “That thing? Naw. The hurt part is long over. It took me a while to get used to it being gone. That phantom limb shit ain’t no joke.”
“How’d it happen? I mean, how’d you lose your foot?” Sean’s palm was warm on my shin, and I wished he were touching me a bit higher up… Maybe my dick?
“I was on patrol in South Korea and accidentally tripped a trap.” It was all I was allowed to tell, not that I really gave a shit about what the Army wanted to keep secret. Those fuckers didn’t give a damn about me, so why should I give a fuck about them?
“How long were you in the hospital?” Sean asked.
“Long enough for them to repair what they could. They had to take a little more of my leg to properly fit me with the prosthetic. After I healed from that, I had to go to a rehabilitation facility to learn to walk again, and here I am.” I took another breath before glancing up to see tears in Sean’s gorgeous eyes.