26. Willow
Twenty Six
Willow
W illow’s heart raced as she watched a man dressed in a torn tuxedo with white and green zombie face paint chase after a group of teenage girls. Their shrieks sent a chill down her spine and she wrapped her arms tightly around herself. Gage walked closer to her and wrapped his arm around her waist as the group made their way through the apple orchard, sparsely decorated with wooden signs signaling the way to the haunted house. The night had brought in a cool breeze that caused Willow to shiver.
“You know, if this is too much, we can go back home. I’m kind of an idiot and didn’t even think about how this place is probably triggering after your attack.”
“No, I’m fine,” she assured him.
“You look terrified. My bed is a much safer place, and I wouldn’t mind staying in it all night if I had you to keep me company.”
“It’s a haunted house, Gage, I’m supposed to look scared. As tempting as your bed sounds, I’m trying to make some money here. Speaking of which,” she leaned closer so no one would hear, “do not let Matteo out of your sight. I’ve got my eyes on Marla and between the two of us we should be able to catch them making out at some point tonight. I can already tell they’re going to try to be tricky about it, but I know Marla and she is obsessed with Matteo. Add in the fact that she’s going to be scared and want to feel protected by him, so they’re bound to find a hidden corner to get freaky in. The only thing I’m worried about is how I’m going to spend that hundred dollars.”
“You could take me on a date. A nice steak dinner sounds like the perfect end to this evening.”
“Hmm, yes, that does sound good, but so does getting a mani-pedi.”
Marla whipped her head around and glared at the couple. “I know you two are whispering about us! Cut it out, you’re not going to win the bet.”
“Yeah!” Matteo followed suit with a sarcastic gleam in his eyes. He swung his hand down and smacked Marla on the ass.
“I should have bet more.” Willow frowned.
She stopped in her tracks as a different zombie jumped out from behind a cluster of trees and screamed at them. Sammy’s scream was louder and Horatio burst out laughing as he watched his girlfriend run off, the zombie man hot on her heels.
“Are you not going to go save her?” Willow hiked up her eyebrow, waiting for Horatio to attend to his screaming beauty.
“Nah, I guarantee she is scarier than a fake zombie. I once woke her up trying to get my phone charger untangled from underneath her and she literally bit me, like it was my fault she fell asleep on top of it.”
“I guarantee she is about to be downright terrifying once she comes back and discovers you didn’t try to save her,” Marla said.
Horatio shrugged at her response, but held back a smirk like he was anticipating that moment. The group entered the open field that revealed a few booths selling oddities from taxidermy to custom wands, a cart selling caramel apples and fudge, a shack decorated like the witch’s house from a fairytale, and a long line that started from a large, decaying barn and snaked around the field.
“I take it we’re going to be in line all night?” Willow sighed.
“Yeah, but at least we have good company to entertain ourselves with.” Matteo pulled Marla closer and nuzzled his face into her neck.
Before Willow could make a comment, Gage pulled her toward the shack as the others marked their place at the end of the line. She followed willingly, intrigued by the unusual building.
“What’s in there?” She asked.
“It’s a small bar and they serve the best drink you will ever have.”
They entered the building and she was overcome with the sweet scent of freshly pressed apples, autumn spices, and wood. The dark floor beneath them creaked with every step and a small cast-iron stove crackled to her left. In the middle of the large, open room stood a bar littered with customers, all holding the same drink.
“I’m pretty sure their Poison Apple drink is the only thing they serve here,” he responded after seeing her curious glance at the matching golden liquid.
“Hi Gage!” The perky, cute blonde behind the bar noticed him instantly, and Willow felt a small fire of jealousy start in her gut. She noticed Gage side-eye her with a smirk.
“Hi Melissa, Dad told me you put in for some vacation time at the casino to work here, though he wasn’t very pleased about it.”
As quickly as her fire began, it extinguished once she realized the girl was one of Clay’s employees. She was slightly embarrassed with how quickly she’d let herself grow jealous, and hoped it didn’t show on her face.
Melissa scoffed. “Oh, he’ll get over it soon enough. It’s hard to pass this gig up when I make double what I would at the casino’s bar. Plus, it’s easier, since people only ever order the Poison Apple. Speaking of which, should I make you two? ”
He nodded and Melissa made their drinks, adding a double shot of caramel vodka to some cider. Willow was positive most people only received one shot, but having connections to the head of the Vista Maria family seemed to have its benefits. Melissa graciously took the one hundred-dollar bill Gage handed her. When he shook his head at the change, her smile grew even wider.
“You two have fun tonight!” She called as they turned to leave.
Gage lifted his hand in a lazy goodbye before heading out the door with Willow. She took a sip of the drink and her eyes grew wide.
“You were right, this is the best drink ever.”
“Told you.”
“Hey, looks like Sammy came back in one piece. I wonder if she ripped Horatio a new one for not running after her.” She quickly made her way back over to their friends, and noticed that they had not moved up very far in line.
“Ooh, is that their famous Poison Apple drink?” Sammy’s eyes grew wide and she sniffed the cup in Willow’s hand. “Horse, you owe me. Please go get us one!”
“You too!” Marla nudged Matteo toward his brother. The twins rolled their eyes in unison, but were obedient to their girls.
Willow smiled at the cute scene, but felt Gage tense up next to her. When she looked over to him, he was as still as a statue and glaring toward a small group of couples that were a few people ahead of them in line.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.” He pulled out his phone and sent a text to someone. Willow had to fight her urge to peer at his phone to see who he was messaging.
“You don’t seem too fine.”
Instead of a reply, he quickly took a photo of the group and frowned at the even quicker response from the other person .
“Stay close to me for the night, okay? And you two,” he nodded toward Marla and Sammy, “stay close to Horatio and Matteo. There are some people here from Waldo’s family, and I’m not sure if it’s a coincidence, or if they’re planning something. I highly doubt they would come all the way up here from Miami just for a haunted house, though.”
Another text lit up Gage’s phone and he sighed as he read the message. “Also, Robby has decided to join us tonight with some of his boys.”
“Was that who you were texting?” Willow finished her drink and looked up at him with what she hoped were round, curious eyes, and not a suspicious glare.
“Yeah, I had to make sure they were from Miami before I got paranoid. Robby has a better memory for faces than me.”
They fell into an uncomfortable silence before Gage kicked her foot playfully. “What’s up with you tonight? You seem really on edge and more jealous than normal.”
“I’m not jealous.” She shot down the rest of her drink, handed him her empty cup, then chewed on the side of her cheek as she mulled over what she was feeling. “I just feel…off. My mom, she was always intuitive, taught me how to listen to my gut. Most people ignore that sixth sense, but not us. It has come in handy too many times.
“I still remember the day I discovered how powerful that sense was. I was about sixteen years old, and we had been at a grocery store. These two men had been following us, but I had been completely unaware and absorbed in some stupid teen magazine I picked up. My mom, on the other hand, had been aware of how they had always been in the same isle as us, but never picked up items to buy. She had known they were planning something, so she turned around and started yelling at them to leave us alone. Of course, they had played it off like they were minding their own business, but she had shoved the cart at one of them and hit him with it. She’d chased after them, continuing to curse them and call them horribly offensive names until they left the store and drove off in their van. I was so mortified, I seriously thought about opening one of the freezer doors and crawling in there to die a slow, cold death. She had walked back into the store with everyone staring, but continued shopping like nothing happened. When we got back to our RV I had cried so hard from shame and embarrassment, but she’d stood her ground and said it was her duty as a loudmouthed Irish woman to chase off the demons that prey on women.”
She continued, noticing that Marla and Sammy were both enthralled with her story. “It’s funny now picturing this tiny woman that weighed no more than a hundred pounds soaking wet chase off these two men simply by shouting Celtic curses at them in a thick Irish accent. It turned out she was right to do that, though. A few days later on the news, we saw those same two men get arrested for kidnapping and murdering a nineteen-year-old girl. They had kidnapped her from a busy mall, raped her in their van, then bashed her head in with hammers before dumping her in a truck stop dumpster. That could have been me.”
They were quiet as they processed her story. Sammy was the first to speak. “That’s one perk about being a vampire, I feel so much safer. Yes, terrible things can still happen to me, but I know I can hold my own against human men. Hearing stories like that makes me want to hunt down those disgusting pigs and rip their throats out. That’s how I can justify killing to stay alive—trash like that dies while we live and continue to rid the Earth of horrible creatures.”
“Yeah, but how do you know if someone is terrible like that?” Marla asked.
Gage replied, “It’s easy, you hunt them. My favorite place to start is the sex offender’s registry. From there, you stalk them until you catch them doing what put them on the list in the first place. ”
He turned and his eyes darkened in concern as he looked down at her. “So, what is your gut telling you tonight, Willow?”
Her stomach flipped at the way her name rolled off his tongue, and for a second she lost touch with the warning that was building as a tingling began between her legs. She cleared her throat and focused again on the sixth sense she’d inherited.
“I’m not a fortune teller, so I can’t exactly say what is going to happen, but tonight does feel off. And I think seeing the Miami vampires further proves my point. Since this line hasn’t moved in a few minutes, how about we come back another night?”
Marla frowned at the suggestion. “But how do you know something bad is going to happen here? What if it happens because we left? Wouldn’t we be safer to be out in public like this? I really wanted to go through this haunted house with Matteo, please don’t make us leave.”
“Marla, those two men tried to kidnap me in a grocery store. Just because we’re in public doesn’t mean we are safe.” Willow watched as the twins returned and handed the girls their drinks. “But, it would be much easier for me to ignore that nagging sensation if I had another drink to numb my thoughts.”
“Fine, here.” Marla took a quick sip to taste it before handing it over to Willow. “I want to be fully present for this experience, anyway. It won’t be as scary if I’m tipsy, and Matteo is paying good money for me to be scared.” She giggled and looped her arm around his neck to pull him into a kiss.
Gage coughed and Willow raised an eyebrow.
“Are you willing to lose the bet already?” Willow asked.
Marla quickly dropped her arm.
Gage kept the Miami group in his sight until they disappeared into the haunted house. The line moved slowly, and it took over an hour before they were finally at the entrance. Once there, the worker held up his hand and closed the door .
“Once this group goes through, you’ll be the next batch,” he said.
Marla began bouncing in her spot and turned her attention to Gage. “Where’s Robby at? I thought you said he would be joining us?”
“He should have been here by now, I’ll text him.”
Five minutes passed before Gage started to tense up. “I think you were right, something is wrong.”
Willow looked up to him as a cold chill swept through her body. “What do you mean? Can’t you get in contact with Robby? Maybe he’s driving and can’t text.”
“No, that’s not like him. The man will text, eat, and put on eyeliner all while driving. Something’s up, I’m going to call.”
His sentence was cut short as his phone lit up, with Robby’s name displayed. Gage swiftly put the phone to his ear, but before he could say a word his face turned grim. Willow could briefly hear Robby’s hurried voice on the other end as he shouted something through the phone. Time seemed to move in slow motion as Gage hung up his phone, ordered Horatio to contact Nikolas and tell him to meet them at Clay’s house, then grabbed Willow roughly by the arm and began dragging her toward the exit with Matteo also dragging Marla.
“What happened?” Willow tried to remain calm, but the panic in her chest was making her voice shrill.
“They attacked Robby and killed three of the men he was out with. We need to get you and Marla to Clay’s house. I don’t know what Waldo is planning, but I want you safe.”
“I have to go home and get Snickers!”
“There’s no time, Robby is on his way to Clay’s house right now and I told him I would meet him there.”
“But what if Waldo goes there to hurt me and kills him? Or burns down my apartment complex? He knows where I live, he walked me home after my attack!” A negative storm of thoughts began swirling around in her mind at the potential loss of her pet. “Please let me go get him, Snickers is more than a rabbit to me, he is the only family that I have.”
Gage paused and looked at her before sighing and looking over to Matteo. “Tell Robby and Clay we’re on our way. We have to make a quick pit stop to pick up this fucking carrot eater.”
Matteo frowned. “Are you sure that’s a good idea? You said that they killed three of Robby’s men right in front of him. That’s more than a warning, this is the start of something bigger.”
Guilt washed over Willow. “I think he’s mad because I turned him down. I haven’t had a chance to tell you yet, but he came into my café last night and I rejected his offer to move to Miami with him. I’m so sorry Gage, that should’ve been the first thing I told you this morning.”
Gage’s jaw clenched. “Did he hurt you?”
“No, but he told me I would fall with the rest of you. He also told me something else.” She paused and made eye contact with Sammy, who nodded her head. “He admitted to killing Venice.”
To her surprise, Gage didn’t even flinch at the news. Instead, he looked at her with a face full of concern, like he was worried she would be next. “I’m not surprised. He’s a psychopath that enjoys torturing people for no fucking reason. Let’s go get your rabbit, you’ll be staying with me until we kill the bastard. There’s no way I’m letting you out of my sight.”
The group split up, with Willow and Gage in his truck and everyone else in Matteo’s BMW. Gage trailed behind the car, his eyes constantly shifting from the road in front of them to the review mirror.
“What are we going to do once we get to Clay’s house?” Willow asked to break the tension.
“I need to consult with Robby about what happened and go from there. If he knows specifically who targeted him, we’ll go after them first, before trying to locate Waldo. If he initiated this attack, we have the right to attack him back. There’s only one problem with that. ”
“What’s the problem?”
“If we attack and are successful, then I’ll have to go—”
His sentence was cut short by Willow’s scream as she watched the BMW explode from the impact of a semitruck that appeared out of nowhere. Gage hit the brakes and whipped his truck around to follow the semi as it continued at full speed, dragging the small car with it for almost a half mile before coming to a screeching halt down the road. He had not put the truck in park yet as Willow ripped off her seatbelt and launched herself from her seat to run toward the car, which was imbedded into the front grill of the semi. She could faintly hear Gage calling her name behind her as she raced over and began pulling on bent door handles, desperate to get her friends out of the metal chaos that had flames beginning to rise from it.
“You have to get them out! You have to get them out!” She screamed as Gage ripped her away and forced her back to his truck.
The door to the semi opened up and three men hopped out of it, snarling and laughing. The biggest of the three took a few steps forward and grinned at Gage. “Jesse James sends his regards.”