Every Way (Brush of Love 4)

My eyes flipped over to the television that had a projection of the front door. A grungy looking man who was teetering on his feet was headed for the door. I felt my fists clench at my sides as I watched him walk in, and then I heard the dinging of the front door bell behind the wall.

He was here, and I saw Hailey tighten up on the camera.

“Keep calm, sweetie. We’re right here,” I said.

“Mrs. McBride,” the man said. “I think you know why I’m here.”

I could feel my heartbeat ramming against my sternum as my anger levels rose. I could already see the fear Hailey was in. It was in the way her body caved and how she was reaching for her taser already. I wanted to rush out there and ring this man’s neck. I wanted to watch the life seep from his bone marrow. I wanted my face to be the last face he saw, the face of the brother of a man his cousin had murdered in cold blood.

“I need my money,” the man said.

“Could you just give me a second?” Hailey asked.

“Now, I was very generous to you. I gave you more than enough time to gather those funds,” he said.

I watched him draw a switchblade from his pocket as he walked over to one of the paintings on the wall.

“How far along are you? Seven and a half months?” Ben asked.

“Y-yes,” Hailey said. “I am.”

“Why aren’t we going in now?” I asked.

“We don’t have enough to incriminate him on the stop. We need more. She’s going to have to pull why he’s here out of her,” the police officer said.

“Old enough to survive in a hospital stay if something were to, you know, happen to the mother,” Ben said.

I watched him thrust his knife through one of Hailey’s paintings as she ran from behind the counter.

“Please! Please don’t ruin any of my paintings!”

“I’m going out there,” I said.

“Not if you want this man in jail for extortion, you won’t,” the police officer said. “At best, we’ve got him for a misdemeanor vandalism charge. He could easily get off with community service.”

“Better than hurting Bryan. Or Anna, I would think,” Ben said.

“Please don’t hurt anyone,” Hailey said.

“You promised me my money,” he said.

“And I told you I would get it for you,” Hailey said.

“Then where is it? Huh? Where’s the money I need to pay off my boss?”

“Pay off your boss?” she asked.

“Good girl,” I said. “Bait him.”

“Yes, you idiot. My boss. The man who killed my brother for the drugs he lost on that drug-head girl in your class! You’re responsible for those drugs. You were then when my cousin dragged your ass out of bed, and you are now.”

“What about the girl selling the drugs, huh? Why isn’t she responsible for all this?” Hailey asked.

“We tried to hold her responsible, but she tried to run. So, she figured out what happens when people run from us,” Ben said.

“Wh-what happens?” Hailey asked.

The man approached her with the knife outstretched, and I watched Hailey back away. He backed her all the way to the register before she grabbed her taser and then held it out in front of her to defend herself. I could see her shaking on the screen as the police officer was muttering into his radio. I didn’t know what the fuck they were waiting for, but I had seen enough.