Chapter 29 – IVY
Chapter
Twenty-Nine
IVY
Iput my phone away after texting Venom, telling him we’re stuck in traffic, and look over to Evelyn in the driver's seat. She frowns when she looks at me.
“I hope you and Venom didn’t have dinner plans.”
“It’s alright. We’ll get there when we get there,” I say with a sigh. She looks back to the road and I place a hand on her arm to get her attention again. She looks back at me, and I ask, “Were you ever married?”
“No. But I was very much in love once upon a time.” Her expression changes and I know that means it ended badly.
“We were high school sweethearts. He was my soulmate. But fate had other plans for us. He died from cancer. Too young. It wasn’t enough time with him. No amount of time would have been enough with Frank.”
I rub her arm, offering comfort. “I’m sorry.”
She places her hand over mine then signs, “I still cherish the time we had together and the memories we made. Those will live on forever. And I know I will see him again one day.”
“I believe that as well. How did you meet Venom anyway?”
“Frank and I owned an Italian restaurant together. Venom used to frequent it often. But after Frank died, I was at a complete loss. My whole world exploded and I couldn’t go on for a while.
” She shakes her head, looking down, lost in the memory.
“I sold the restaurant, but I still needed to work and make a living somehow. That’s where Venom came in.
Being a regular, he knew the situation and he knew how much Frank’s loss affected me.
He offered me a position as his live-in housekeeper.
He said he needed someone discreet, someone he could trust. Also made me promise to make him his favorite Italian dishes from the restaurant.
” Her smile reaches her eyes, and I laugh because of course Venom would add that in there.
There’s a pause and Evelyn’s expression softens as she takes a steadying breath before her hands rise again. “He saved me in a way, from myself, from my spiral. And bit by bit I crawled out of my dark hole. I had a purpose again, someone who needed me.”
I don’t know why I’m suddenly tearing up, but I hold them back. “He needed you too, Evelyn.” Tears brim her eyes, and I reach over and give her a hug. I meet her eyes. “Thank you for sharing.”
“Of course, my sweet girl. And I’m glad you see Venom as I do.”
We smile at each other and then the cars in front of us begin moving.
Finally.
I can’t wait to get home to Venom.
The gate leading to the rest of Venom’s driveway is wide open. It is supposed to close automatically but must have gotten stuck after Venom left.
“Venom will have someone take a look at that. It acts up sometimes. Nothing is without fault.” Evelyn signs.
As we drive closer to the house, I can’t help but feel that something is off, more than just the gate being open.
Evelyn parks the car in front of the stairs leading up to the front door and pops the trunk. I step out of the car and a gentle breeze blows, stirring the tiny hairs on my arms and causing goosebumps to rise across my skin. I slip my sweater on, pulling it tighter over my shoulders.
As I take a few steps toward the back of the car, another breeze lifts strands of my hair from my face, and I catch a scent of smoke. Cigarette smoke to be exact.
Strange.
Neither Evelyn nor Venom smoke.
Something deep in my gut grows heavier, unsettling my nerves further as I glance around the property, taking in everything within view.
Nothing but tall trees swaying in the wind.
Evelyn pauses before walking up the front steps, holding two grocery bags in her hands. She looks at me with concern.
“Sorry, I’m alright. I’ll grab the rest of the bags.” She continues staring for a moment longer as I walk to the trunk and lean in to grab more.
The crunch of footsteps and the sound of glass hitting cement instantly lift my head. Evelyn stands in shock, the bags now on the steps with their contents spilling out.
She is not looking at me. She is staring past the front of the car, toward the garage.
Slowly, I stand and step around the car to see what has her so frightened.
Four men stand only a few feet from the garage, guns aimed. One flicks his cigarette to the ground when his eyes meet mine.
Oh my god.
They begin walking closer, turning their aim to me as well. I look back at Evelyn and meet her eyes. The fear in the sweet old woman’s gaze is enough to bring me to near tears.
“You,” the man with a full dark beard, says, pointing at me. “Step away from the car and keep your hands up. And you,” he looks at Evelyn, “get down from the stairs.” He gestures with his gun for her to move.
We do as he says, Evelyn and I coming shoulder to shoulder to stand before them. She grips my hand and squeezes tight.
I swallow my nerves and force my voice to remain steady. “What is this about?”
“We’ve been looking for you.”
“Me? Why?” This can’t be right.
“You’ll find out soon enough. You’re coming with us. And if you make a fuss, we have approval to use physical force.”
“In other words, I’ll happily knock you the fuck out,” another man chimes in with a sinister smile.
I glare at him as Evelyn lets go of my hand and moves to stand in front of me.
I grab her shoulders and try to move her back. “Evelyn, no!” But it is no use. She can’t see my lips from here, and she doesn’t budge from her protective spot.
The men laugh and my buried anger resurfaces. I try to move around Evelyn but she spreads her arms to block me. I know I could overpower her, but I don’t want to risk hurting her.
“There has to be some mistake. Please, I’m not who you’re looking for!” I plead.
The bearded man smirks as he eyes me up and down. “Nah, you’re definitely her.” He glances at his watch. “Time to go. We’re behind schedule.”
They all move forward and my adrenaline spikes as I pull at Evelyn’s arm, trying to drag her away. She still doesn’t move.
The bearded man reaches us first and presses his gun to Evelyn’s forehead. “Move out of the way, you old hag.”
“Please! Don’t shoot her! I’ll come! Okay.” I throw up my hands in surrender. “I’ll come willingly, just don’t hurt her.”
Evelyn turns toward me and quickly, with both hands, signing for me to run, to call Venom.
I shake my head in disbelief.
I am not leaving her.
“Stop moving your fucking hands!”
She doesn’t hear him, but Evelyn turns back to the men with her chin held high. A fist flies out and crashes against her cheek, sending her to the ground.
“Evelyn!” I scream.
My fury explodes. I charge the bearded man and drive my knee into his groin. His gun goes off as he stumbles back, swearing and clutching himself.
Hands grab me from behind. I twist, clawing and kicking, grunting and yelling as I fight, seeing nothing but red. Hoping I can cause pain to at least one of these motherfuckers.
A body slams into me and I am knocked to the ground. I get on all fours to push myself up, but a boot drives into my stomach and I collapse, clutching myself as nausea rips through me.
Two men close in, wrangling my legs as I thrash. I glance over and see the others stomping on Evelyn and dragging her up the steps.
“No! Evelyn!” I scream, reaching for her.
Arms lock around my waist and haul me back. My screams grow raw until I can’t even tell if I am still screaming, only watching in horror as one of the men pulls out a large knife and drives it into Evelyn’s stomach.
A dark bag drops over my head. Something cracks against my skull, and everything goes quiet.