Chapter Twelve
Brooklyn
I’m following the loose thread. The tiny breadcrumb. The only hint of information I found at the library.
“May I help you?” she says without looking away from her computer screen.
“Yes, Sheila,” I say, noting the name on her desk. She’s in charge of the property records at the courthouse. “I was needing to look at some local property records, and I heard you were the person who could help me.”
“You’ve come to the right place,” she says without pulling her eyes away from the screen. She adjusts her reading glasses and continues to type. Once she’s finished, she wheels her chair back to a counter behind her and grabs a few pieces of paper.
“Just fill out these forms.” She slaps them on the counter beside me.
“Perfect. Thanks,” I say, taking them.
I’m thankful not to have to say anything out loud. The less chance someone overhears, the better. I’m almost finished with my form when I feel a body behind me. I flip over the papers to hide what I’ve written and whirl around.
“Whatcha doin here, Ginger?” Hawk asks. He’s leaning on the counter, looking me up and down.
“Are you following me?” I say, sweetly. But really - is he following me? I’m starting to wonder.
“I could ask you the same thing. You seem to be everywhere these days.”
I clear my throat. “Small town, right?”
“It’s not that small,” he says.
Well, I can’t really continue this with Hawk staring down my neck. I glance at my watch, “Oh, shit, I told Rose I’d swing by, and I’m late.” A complete lie.
I hug the papers close to my chest. “Sheila, I’ll have to fill these out later and come back.”
“Whatever makes you happy, sweetheart. I’m here all day,” she says as she plucks away on the keyboard.
“Bye, Hawk,” I say without making eye contact. I’m halfway to the door when I hear him call.
“Ginger.”
I turn slowly. Now what?
“Your phone,” he says, picking it up. He flips it over in his hands. His brow furrows as he studies it.
“Silly me.” I snatch it away from him. “Would probably lose my own head if it weren’t attached to my body.”
“Right,” he says, slowly.
“Gotta run,” I say as I hurry toward the door.
I’m so sweaty by the time I make it to the library. I would make a terrible criminal or spy for that matter. I have absolutely no poker face, and my body betrays me with sweat and blushing anytime I lie.
“Ginger,” Rose says as I walk in the door. “Is something wrong?”
“Oh, what? No.”
“You just look flustered.”
“Just trying to remember my to-do list. I should have written it down.”
“Oh, right, I know, so easy to forget things.”
She comes around the counter with a mug in her hands.
“I have something for you,” she says, handing me a mug. It smells nice.
“That’s so thoughtful.” I take a sip.
She lowers her voice, “It’s good for fertility.”
I nearly spit it all over her face.
“Oh, gosh, are you okay?” she asks.
“I’m fine. I’m fine, just swallowed weird.” I sputter and cough.
“I hate it when that happens,” she says as she grabs me a few tissues.
I pretend to take another sip. I’m terrified of this tea now, and I’m not sure how to get rid of it.
“It worked great for my sister. She had tried without luck for months to get pregnant with no luck, and then she started drinking this and...BAM.”
“BAM,” I say, my eyes big. That’s literally the last thing I need. No BAMs for me. No thank you.
“Did you need me to get you set up again today?” she asks.
“Oh, no, I was just going to look at the newspapers, if that’s okay.”
“Of course,” she says.
I’m itching to go back to the courthouse, but it will have to wait until tomorrow.
I can’t risk Hawk seeing what I’m doing.
My shift starts in an hour, so I pass the time going through some newspapers - checking in on my family.
Looking for signs they are missing me. I eventually drink the tea because I can’t figure out how to get out of it without insulting Rose.
Every once in a while I smile over at her, and she gives me a thumbs up.
McKenzie walks back toward the bar and throws her pad of paper down. “Hell no, I’m not serving him.”
I look over her shoulder at the table she’s just stormed away from. There’s a nice looking guy just waiting. He’s more than nice looking actually. He’s really handsome, well dressed.
“I can take it,” I say. “He’s not dangerous or anything?”
“No, not dangerous - not to anyone but me that is,” she says.
Sadie walks past. “It’s her husband.”
“Soon to be ex-husband,” McKenzie mutters.
Oh, interesting.
I serve the mystery man and handle six other tables.
I feel like I’ve gotten into the swing of things.
Kip finally let me take on table service, but true to his word, he inspected the bruises on my side and declared them healed enough before letting me.
I still have to work around my broken wrist, but everyone is so kind and has helped me when I need it, so it hasn’t been a problem.
Tonight, however, I have a problem, and he’s sitting at the bar. An older guy who’s been making eyes at me all night. He’s completely drunk.
I avoid him as much as possible. He’s talking loudly, it’s all quite crude although he hasn’t specifically said anything about me. He just keeps checking out my legs and my ass and my breasts every time I walk by.
He’s the first customer who’s creeped me out. Normally, if there’s a hint of that sort of thing Hawk or Kip kicks their ass out the door so quickly it’s never been an issue. Neither Kip or Hawk are anywhere to be seen, so I’m just trying to keep my distance.
“Hey doll,” creepy guy says. “How about another whiskey?”
Not my job, but okay. He could just ask Kyle who is bartending tonight. Kyle’s literally standing right in front of him. I walk over to the bar and pour him a whiskey.
“Wanna do a shot with me?” he asks. He’s staring right at my cleavage, not even attempting to look at my face.
“Sorry. On the clock,” I say, turning to walk away.
“How about when you’re off the clock?” he asks.
“She’s got a boyfriend,” Kyle says without looking up.
“A really big one,” McKenzie says as she walks by.
I scoot away as quickly as I can. “Hey Kinsey, I’m going to take my break. I’ll be back in ten.”
“Got it.”
I grab my water bottle and take a big drink and then head to the bathroom. When I’m leaving the bathroom, I hear voices coming from Kip’s office next door. I close the door, keeping it just slightly cracked.
“What the hell do you want, Hawk?” Kip says. “You aren’t supposed to come back here. That was our deal, right? Stay the hell out of my way, and I’ll stay out of yours.”
“What’s your girlfriend doing, Kip?” Hawk says. I suck in a quick breath.
“Waiting tables. What do you think she’s doing? Got a problem with her working here?”
“No.”
“Okay, so move the fuck on.”
“She’s up to something.”
“Hawk, what are you talking about?”
“Why is she looking into arrest records at the library and property records at the courthouse? She’s up to something.”
“Is it against the law to research things?” Kip responds.
“No.”
“Then why are we talking?” Kip snaps.
“She’s hiding something.”
“You seem far too interested in my girlfriend, Hawk. I don’t like it.”
“I’m not too interested in her.”
“You’re awfully friendly to her.”
“It’s called being kind. You should try it sometime.”
“Looks a lot like flirting to me.”
“Oh fuck off, Kip. I’m not trying to steal your girlfriend. I’m just doing my job. New mystery woman crashes into town and starts snooping around....”
“Bullshit.” Kip says something I can’t make out.
“She’s trouble.”
“It’s none of your damn business. You made it perfectly clear that you wanted nothing to do with me when Mom died. Let’s keep it that way.”
“This has nothing to do with that. This has to do with you wanting to stick you dick in....”
I hear a bit of a scuffle, and then Kip says, “Shut your fucking mouth. Don’t you ever talk about her like that again.”
I feel like I’m suffocating right now. I have to get out of here.
I slip out of the bathroom, down the hallway, and out the back door to the alley. The cool air hits my face immediately, and I take several breaths trying to calm down. The door shuts behind me, and my back is leaning against the brick wall.
Maybe I should tell Kip why I’m here? Can I trust him to keep my secrets? He might be able to help.
“Hello there, dolly. You waiting up for me?”
I jerk my head up to see the pervy guy from earlier heading my direction.
Oh shit. I hold my breath as he walks closer. I turn and grab the door handle and pull it. It doesn’t budge, locked from the inside. I pound on the door. No one is going to be able to hear me. The door is too thick, and the sounds from the restaurant are too loud.
“Where you going, dolly?” He’s far too close to me, and he reeks of whiskey. All the hairs on my arms stand up.
“I need to get back inside.” I try to step around him, but he grabs my arm.
“Where are you going, dolly? It’s rude to walk away when someone’s talking to you.”
“I really need to be getting back inside,” I say. His grip around my arm tightens. “You’re hurting me.”
He tightens his grip even more and says, “You were asking for it all night. I saw you watching me. Begging me with your eyes.”
“I wasn’t.”
He runs the back of his hand over my cheek. “Oh, a shy one. I like that.”
“I really need to get back.”
He leans into me, pinning me against the wall. His hand starts to slide up my thigh under my skirt.
“Please don’t.” I’m trying to remember all my self-defense training. I need to knee him in the balls, but I can’t the way he has me pinned to the wall. He’s easily twice my size. My whole body trembles.
He wraps his hand around my neck.
“So tiny,” he says. His other hand has reached my ass, and he squeezes it.
I close my eyes. “Please, I need to go.”
“So you’re one of those bitches who likes to throw around fuck-me eyes all night and flirt with everyone for tips, but you’re fine leaving a guy with blue balls. I’m fucking sick of cunts like you.”
His hand is tightening around my neck. I know if I scream he’ll probably strangle me, but if I don’t scream, there’s no chance of getting out of here.
I say a prayer and scream as loud as I can.