Disgruntled (20 page)

***
Todd saw the light glance off Reva’s car before they were
close enough to recognize anything else.
“Look,” Tim acknowledged, as he pointed at the beam of
light flickering between the trees. “There’s a car.”
The truck bumped over the worn ruts in the dirt path that
had once held gravel. As they eased closer Todd made out
the outline of two people on the other side of the vehicle. A
man and woman. The woman looked over her shoulder at
their approaching vehicle. The simple gesture confirmed
what he already knew. Todd pressed the gas and lunged the
vehicle forward over the remaining bumps and ruts. He
didn’t care that it bounced Tim’s head against the roof, nor
did he care that something in the back of the pickup clanged
loudly.
“Call back and let them know.” Todd tossed the radio at
Tim, flung the truck into park, and leapt out before it
stopped rolling. Reva stood close to the man. He had one
hand behind his back and the other at his side. Todd didn’t
miss the fact that he’d dropped it from her arm only seconds
earlier when they appeared through the trees. He squinted to
take in Reva’s face as he approached.
“Everything okay here?” Todd asked, not shifting his gaze
from her.
The guy shook his head. “Naw, we’re good. I just had a little
car trouble and my friend here was trying to help.”
The guy had no idea that Reva knew their new visitors.
Apparently, he thought they’d just happened onto the scene.
Tim had finished his call on the radio and stepped out of the
truck, rounded the corner, and came forward with his hands
in his pockets.
“Todd, did you know there’s a target shooting gallery over in
those trees? I saw it while I was talking to Ben.” Tim pointed
at a series of small white targets nailed to the tree trunks in
the woods. “We should come out here sometime.”
The guy looked from Todd to Tim, then back. He smiled. “I
come out on the weekends sometimes by myself. It’s pretty
peaceful. The bike trails go along the river bank though so
you have to be careful not to shoot someone.”
The stranger wiped his hand on his shirt and reached toward
them. “I’m Brent and this is my friend, Reva.”
Reva’s face clouded. Tim studied the guy without offering
his hand. “You know her?” Tim asked, “How?”
Todd noticed the startled expression that crossed Brent’s
eyes as well as Reva’s stillness.
“We work together,” Brent answered. “Right Reva?”
“Uh, right.” She slowly stepped forward, a stilted silent glide
toward Todd. Todd flicked an eye at the man as he started
for her hand, then stopped. “Brent’s friends were supposed
to be here and give him a ride but they’ve already gone.
You’ll be okay though, right?”
She glanced back over her shoulder and offered a grim smile
before she slipped her fingers into Todd’s. The iciness of her
skin cooled his palm and he was thankful they’d found her.
He leaned into her hair and whispered. “You scared me.
Sure you’re okay?”
She nodded and waited for Brent’s response. He watched
the three, realizing the error in his assumption that the truck
held random passers-by. “Yeah, sure. I’ll just call and get one
of them to come back. No problem. Thanks for trying, boss.
I appreciate it. You guys go ahead.” He brushed his hand at
them in a dismissing gesture. The smell of pine reached
Todd’s nose, along with a muskier tone. There must be a
dead raccoon or something nearby. He recognized the scent
of decay.
Todd let Reva slip into the seat between he and Tim, then
climbed in behind. Brent stood watching them, hands on
hips. A cloud passed across his face and Todd knew there
was more to the story than either of them had described.
The rearview mirror displayed Brent for easy view as they
bounced away over the rutted road. Brent turned his back to
them and passed a hand through his hair, a movement that
Todd had witnessed once before. Todd frowned.
“He’s more than just a coworker, isn’t he?” he asked.

***
Reva darted eyes sideways. “Excuse me?”
Surely he didn’t think there was something going on with Brent?
“How well do you know that guy?” The calm tone didn’t do
anything to hide the inference. He did. As if there hadn’t
been enough to add to the tension in her life, now this. Reva
wanted to scream.
“Look, I work with him. That’s all. If you think there’s
something else going on, that’s
your
problem, not mine.
What the hell is wrong with men that they automatically
think there has to be something more than just a work
relationship? Can’t you see what he was doing? Do you
really
think I’d be interested in that guy? You know what…why
don’t you and he have a long talk. You both deserve each
other.” She hooked a finger at the barely distinguishable
figure
in
the
back
window.
She
lifted
her
hip
to
pull
whatever was jabbing her in the butt out from underneath. A
walkie-talkie.
Todd glanced at the device in her hand. “We were talking to
Eric and Ben. Only they didn’t answer. Some cousin of
yours was there.”
“David,” Tim interjected, “they’re waiting for us back at the
store.” Tim’s hands were hanging between his knees. He
dropped something on the floor and kicked it under the seat
then readjusted to give her room.
“So, we have the whole family out here?” She breathed in
deeply. They had rounded the small twist in the road and the
pavement of the highway quickly approached. The smell of
dust and pine filtrated into her head. Todd’s fingers were
white on the steering wheel.
They had a search party out for me.

Now what?
Brent stood watching the truck disappear. Silently,
he thanked whatever force compelled them to leave without
lingering. The last thing needed at this point was an outdoor
adventure
by
her
group
tramping
around
in
areas
he
preferred left alone. They saw the target practice site, he
reminded himself. No biggie. There’s no law against having a
gun, nor in learning to shoot it.
Fortunately, they didn’t find what was beyond the targets.
He’d said too much though. Things would get difficult at
work. Admittedly, the comments weren’t appropriate but he
knew
she understood. They
were
alike. That’s probably why
she’d been so hard on him in the office. Well, she’d just have
to get past that. He’d managed to charm the others—he
could manage her too. And, if he couldn’t, then he’d just
make sure the others trusted him more, believed him more.
Either way, he’d conquer this mountain. With or without
her. She was
not
standing in his way again. Not this time.
Not ever again.
Brent felt behind his back to make sure he’d left the pouch
zipped. Yes. Good. He pulled it from his waist, removed the
contents and headed toward the target in the trees. It was
probably best to stash it and take the shortcut through the
woods to get his truck. He needed to kill some time anyway
before the commotion at the convenience store cleared. On
the off chance that they came looking for him, there was a
lot of undergrowth to conceal his travels.
And they did. Come looking for him, that is.
He heard the grumble of two engines and, from his perch
several hundred yards away in the brush, he saw tracks of
dust cloud puff through the trees. It surprised him a little to
see two cop cars, but not so much as to panic and run. The
officers walked around a bit, called out, then left.
This was a good spot to watch. He could see the road in
front of the store plus the opening with the dock. He
expected to wait long enough to ensure Reva and her friends
were gone, then hustle up to get his truck. The cops added a
new element he needed to think about. While he’d had a
clean record up to this point, he doubted he’d be able to
speak with them calmly.
When the last of the sun’s beam flittered down behind the
trees, the glow in the sky cast some fairly ominous shadows.
Brent noticed that the noise of cicadas and other unknown
life kicked up a notch. His ears rang with it. Several cars left
the store and headed back toward the city but he stayed put.
The lights from inside the store cast a yellow stain across the
lot and out into the road.
He perched in his cocoon of underbrush and waited until
the lights clicked off and darkness engulfed the road. When
a lone set of headlights left the store and headed down the
road, he decided it was okay to move.
But not in that truck. He only had a few hours before it
would all erupt.

Brent considered his options for the umpteenth time on the
short trek to his house. None of them panned out in his
mind the way he needed. Admittedly, he’d crossed the line.
Not just crossed it, he was practically across the continent
from it. Why had she pushed him so far? He’d never wanted
to react like that. He wasn’t a violent man. He didn’t do that
type of thing.
He strung his fingers through his hair. One of the men that
came for Reva had directed the cops to his truck. Brent had
watched
as
they
took
the
license
and
walked
around,
surveying his new vehicle as if it were—evidence.
Shit.
It was like watching an episode of CSI as they stalked
around, surveying the vehicle, running hands along the bed.
They knew.
He was screwed. He had to get out. Go away.
Forget work, he needed a new life.
Damn Reva.
She could
have just left him alone and none of this would have
happened. The project would have been completed by now.
And he’d have been virtually in command. Of everything.
No, she had to be a bitch about it.
It had taken forty minutes to jog the five miles to his house.
Thank God it was such a short distance. Trying to hurry in
the trails through the trees had been tricky. He could have
made it faster on the road but didn’t want to risk being seen.
Inside the house, Brent grabbed his backpack from the
closet. He filled it with supplies, tossed in his gun and clips,
then headed out the back door. Can’t let the neighbors see
him leave. The time on his watch told him an hour had
passed. He needed a vehicle and planned to make one last
stop before saying adios to this town. There was a thrill to
starting over. He’d never done it before. Not like this.
Brent left his neighbor’s “borrowed” van at the park near
Reva’s house. A quick jog put him in the backyard where
he’d watched her a few times before. The house was dark.
He turned to view the other house where the cell phone had
nearly exposed him. Dark too.
He skipped the doors and pried a window to one of the back
rooms open with his pocketknife. Once inside, a quick scan
of the rooms told him she was still out. The woman had
quite the social life. He hunched into an easy chair in her
living room, dropped the bag on the floor at his feet, and
clutched the weapon in his lap. He’d just wait for her return.
No rush now. This was the last item he needed to take care
of before moving on.
A loud rap on the door startled him awake. He glanced at his
watch. Too dark to read it but the glow-in-the-dark hands
told him it was around nine ten. He swiped a hand down his
face. No need to answer the door since it wasn’t his house.
A
scratching
noise
caught
his
attention.
Someone
else
wanted in? Without a key?
No way.
He stood and looked
from side to side for a good spot to conceal his presence.
The door swung open and a big man with a burr head
stepped in.
“Stop right there,” Brent commanded. He raised the run.
There was enough light in the room to see the shock on the
man’s face.
“Hang on now. Who are you? ” The man held up his hands.
“I’m not here to cause trouble. I just wanted to talk to
Reva.”
Burrhead wore a starched shirt and slacks as if he were a
salesman making a call.
At this time of night?
Not likely.
A
motor’s whirring signaled an arrival out front. Brent peeked
at the glass to see Reva’s car.

Reva had given up the driver’s seat to Todd at his insistence.
If he wanted to drive, fine. She’d only grumbled a smidge
because the day had been so tiring she really didn’t care. She
felt cocooned between the two bulky men beside her and
her brothers and Eric in the back. Her Dad had insisted on
riding along until they were at Todd’s.
She glanced from
one solemn face to another.
“Do you ever wonder what makes a person decide to be
violent?” She blew upward to ruffle the bangs out of her
eyes, her hands were pinned to her sides. “I mean, think
about it, one day a person seems completely charming and
normal. Then without any warning, something sets him off.
Out of nowhere.”
Both men in the front seat shot her a look as they turned
into her drive. Neither spoke. She knew they weren’t sure
whether she really wanted their opinion or not.
“Only it’s not really out of nowhere, is it? Something triggers
it but you don’t know what it is. You don’t even know
there’s
a
problem.
You
just
wander
through
your
day,
thinking everything’s all great. Then
wham
. “ Reva pushed a
shoulder into her father. “Let me out Dad, and I’ll run in
and get my stuff. You guys can stay here. I won’t be a
minute. Eric, you want to go? We’ll get the paint and maybe
we can paint a shirt or something tonight?”
She placed a shaky hand over the back of the seat. Todd
noticed. They all probably did. Reva needed to stay busy and
nothing like a five-year old boy to keep one distracted from
personal issues.
“Sure,” Eric answered as he crawled up on the seat. By the
time Tim had pulled the handle on the door, Eric had
already scurried over the seat and dropped his legs to the
ground. “Be right back.” He grinned at Todd.
“We’ll grab your lawn chairs from the backyard.” Todd
slipped from the car with Ben and Tim alongside and headed
to the gate. “You probably don’t want to do that inside and I
don’t have anywhere to manage it-we can spread it across
the chairs.”
Reva took Eric’s hand and they swung arms as they pranced
up the steps to the door. They were already at the threshold
when she looked up to see the door ajar with a man’s back
to
her.
A
chill
cursed
through
her,
causing
an
abrupt
stillness. A man she had hoped to never see again. Nick.
What the hell?
She clenched down on Eric’s hand but it was
too late. He’d already slipped past her and ran through.
“Come on in, boss.”
Brent
.
Reva swallowed hard and started to motion to the car.
“No, I said come in, now. Don’t make me get ugly.” Brent
tilted the gun just a hair, then narrowed his eyes. He was
comfortable with the weapon, no doubt. Not a good idea to
challenge that and find out.
“Brent,” she stated flatly as she swiveled from one man to
the other, “and Nick. What’s going on?”
“Good question,” Brent answered.
Nick glared. “You put a
restraining order
on me, Reva? On
me? Looks like you have bigger issues than someone that’s
halfway
around
the
damn
globe.”
Nick
nodded
at
the
firearm staring them down. “Don’t you think you have the
wrong guy? They served me at my apartment, right in front
of Jessie.”
Reva assumed Jessie was the new girlfriend. “You sent me
hate mail.”
“I didn’t send you shit. You left. I moved on.”
“Who the hell are you?” Brent thrust the gun toward Nick.
“The fiancé.”
“
Ex
-fiancé and why are you here? You didn’t fly all the way
here just because of a restraining order.” Reva
glared. She
desperately tried to ignore Brent’s shaking hand on the
firearm.
“You had me arrested, then ran out in the middle of the
night to God knows where. After no word for all this time,
you decide to slap a restraining order on me. What the hell?”
The clip-clop of heels on the concrete walk in front, signaled
another woman’s approach.
“Shut up. Don’t move,” Brent hissed.
Clump. Clump. Clump. The heels mounted the steps and
tromped to the door. Reva could feel Eric’s tiny form
snugged against her legs. His fingers bit into her thigh.
“Hello?” A female voice. “Reva Zamora? Are you there?”
The streetlight behind the fading sun cast an iridescent glow
on the short-cropped blonde hair of the woman as she tilted
her head in the door. Damn.
“Who the fuck are you?” Brent asked.
Annie flung her hands into the air and evaluated the room.
Nick with hands up, Reva with Eric tucked in behind her,
one hand on his shoulder, and some unknown crazy man
flailing a gun at everyone. Reva could feel the disapproval in
her fear-laced glare. “Holy shit! I’m no one. I’m just the wife
of her neighbor and I want my kid.”
“Ex-wife,” Reva corrected, “of my neighbor.”
“The peeping tom in the backyard?”
While the others were distracted with Annie’s appearance
Reva slipped her cell and Officer Teckley’s card into Eric’s
hand. She looked down and mouthed
Go call
. Then gave Eric
a small shove down the hall toward the back of the house.
Crack
. She turned back to see Nick fling himself on Brent.
The gun had gone off but she couldn’t tell whether he’d
been hit or not.
He tossed out a few curses and landed
heavy on Brent’s chest, knocking both to the floor. The gun
dislodged and tumbled across the carpet. Nick took the
opportunity to straddle Brent, then started pummeling him
with bare fists. Bones crunched, flesh turned to raw steak,
and Reva could hardly see Brent’s eyes or nose for all the
blood.
Fabric ripped. The starched shirt tail pulled loose from
Nick’s waistband. He’s really not going to like that, she
thought. Then she noticed the blood drips seeping through
the fabric.
A voice boomed from the open door. “Oh, hell no. You’re
not doing that again!” Reva’s Dad barreled into the room,
grasped Nick’s head in a vice grip and yanked back.
“Hey!” Nick yelled.
“You are not
ever
beating on one of my kids ever again, you
piece of shit.” José Zamora
held tight, and dragged Nick
away from Brent. Nick went limp in his arms and sagged to
the floor. Reva hadn’t seen the hole in his shirt from behind,
she’d registered the blood but thought it was Brent’s. The
stain of blood seeping through the shirt told her otherwise.
“He’s shot, Dad,” she mumbled. “Let him go.”
Brent flailed around for his handgun but the blood in his
eyes seemed to make it hard to find.
“Looking for something?” Todd’s voice called from his
back. Reva hadn’t seen him come in. Hadn’t seen him creep
around Nick. Yet, there he stood with the gun pointed dead
at the man’s eyes. “I’d recommend you calm down and have
a seat.”
The sound of sirens in the distance sent a relieved sag
through Reva’s shoulders. Eric had called. Thank God.
“Todd, what the hell is going on, and where is my son?”
Annie yelled. “Who
are these people
and what have you gotten
yourself into with this crazy woman?” The fear in her eyes
was replaced with fury. “Eric, get out here! We’re leaving.”
“He’s not here, Annie.”
“Yes, he is. He came in with that bitch.” Her finger jammed
at Reva.
“He climbed out the window and came and got me in the
backyard right after he called 911. I sent him over the fence
to my house and came back. He’s fine, but he’s not here.”
“You’re done playing Dad with my son, Todd. I don’t know
what kind of crazy—”
“Shut up Annie. I’m not
playing
Dad, I
am
his Dad. Don’t
you remember the adoption papers? I’m the only dad Eric
knows and you should be glad about that, since you have to
be the shittiest mother on earth.”
“How
dare
—” Annie started.
“No! How dare you. Dumping your kid off like a sack of
groceries whenever you want to go have some fun with your
married boyfriend. Not even checking to see if he’s okay.
Did you see what Reva did? Did you see—”
“Yeah, I saw. She put my son in front of some crazy man
with a gun.”
“
Our
son. And she
saved
him from the crazy man with a gun,
in case you didn’t notice. What the hell is wrong with you
that you can’t understand how to be a mother? Or a wife?”
“I—”
Todd’s shoulders drooped. “Just stop, Annie. Just stop.”
Officer Teckley and his crew swarmed the room, cuffed
Brent,
and
called
an
ambulance
for
Nick.
Great,
Reva
thought, we spent most of the evening giving statements and
now we go back and do it again.
“Hey Todd.” She waited for him to cross the room to her.
He’d handed the gun to Teckley as soon as possible and
stood back while the others did their jobs.
Todd pulled Reva in and hugged her. “You okay?”
“Yeah, but do you mind if we just do something normal and
boring next time you want to impress me? You know, like
maybe grill burgers in the backyard or order KFC?”
He stared at her and she knew he couldn’t muster a laugh,
though she’d tried to lighten the moment. He clenched his
eyes for a second, then opened them and lifted a lip in a
forced grin. “I guess we could do that.”
The police hefted Brent to his feet and started to escort him
to a waiting squad car.
“Brent?” Reva summoned.
“What.”
She felt the coldness in his body language. Every nerve – ice
cold. “You are
so fired.”