Total pages in book: 19
Estimated words: 17527 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 88(@200wpm)___ 70(@250wpm)___ 58(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 17527 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 88(@200wpm)___ 70(@250wpm)___ 58(@300wpm)
With a subtle nod, Hush pulls the door open for me. “I’m around, whenever you need me. Just a call away.”
Don’t you worry, big boy, I know.
I step inside and make my way to the elevator. When I step inside, facing the direction I came, Hush is still standing at the door, watching me. Enjoying the view, perhaps, but more likely than not making sure I get upstairs safely.
And as I enter my empty apartment, deathly silent and too cold for my liking, I know it won’t be this way for long. Hush overplayed his hand, whether he thinks so or not.
All I have to do is pounce on the opportunity offered to me.
3
HUSH
Three Days Later
“Things are good then?” Tex asks, a thick-skinned brawler in our merry band of misfits, holds constant eye contact with Jerry Haines.
“No noise in a long time.” Jerry smiles, slipping a hand under the counter and returning it with a package wrapped in brown paper. As one of the few twenty-four-hour establishments in Boulder, he gets special attention on nighttime patrols, always eager to give us something for keeping an eye on him.
“You know we can’t accept that, Jer.” Tex scoffs, holding a flat palm to stop Jerry from delivering whatever’s inside. “Boulder’s as much our town as yours, and it’s in our best interest to keep the streets clean.”
Buzzing in my pocket distracts me. It’s my phone, ringing again at an inopportune time, but seeing Tara’s name splashed across the screen, I can’t stop myself from answering it.
I pat Tex on the shoulder and point to the door, saying I’ll wait outside while he finishes up with Jerry. He nods to give me the go-ahead. I miss the first call, making my way over to our motorcycles, but answer the second before it gets to the second ring.
“Busy?” I don’t even have a chance to greet her, and her voice runs down my ears like honey dripping on a hot biscuit.
I’ve noticed the steady uptick over the last few weeks, going from a few a month to three times a week. I do my best to stay free whenever I can, on the off-chance she needs my help, but sometimes duty calls and business and pleasure have to mix.
It’s one of those nights, though Tara’s timing could have something to do with it. She’s calling five hours earlier than usual. She’d usually be starting her night out now, not finishing it. And just like that, a pang of heartache emanates from my chest and radiates through my body.
As badly as I want to go through with this, how can I? We’re opposites. Maybe it’s my age talking, not that I’m some curmudgeon old man, but she’s younger, has stars in her eyes, and a full life ahead of her. Could be the barrier pulling us apart. My constant reminder that time’s ticking stops for no one, and while Tara’s everything I want in a woman, sometimes you can’t always get what you want.
“Sorta.” Short answers when handling Knight Rider work are the go-to. Can’t have Tex walk out on me gushing like a fool. It’s bad enough that Knight and Talon saw it.
“Well, when you finish, I could use your services.” Tara doesn’t sound upset or threatened. She’s calm, and that scares me more than a direct ask for help.
“Everything okay?”
“Peachy.” What does it say about me that the first thing my mind jumps to is her ass in a pair of yoga pants? “I’m at the Old Fifty-Five. Can you come by when you’re done?”
“I’ll be there,” I say, just in time to see Tex stepping out of the twenty-four-hour convenience store.
“Thanks, Hush. See you soon.” She kills the call.
“Everything good?” Tex straddles his motorcycle, and I do the same.
“Better than.” We strap our helmets on. “How many left?”
Tex grabs a handbook from a satchel hanging off the ass end of his bike. He shuffles to the last page with writing on it, and after scratching Jerry off the list, says. “Three left for the night. Two along this road and one on Lucielle Avenue.”
“Mind taking Lucielle Avenue on your own?” As much as I want to, I can’t drop him on all three stops. With a new shiny badge on my jacket, there’s a certain standard I’ve gotta uphold. And at least with Jerry’s confirmation that things are quiet, there shouldn’t be any trouble along this road.
“Yeah, no prob.” Tex lights a cigarette and reaches for his key in the ignition. “Need to handle that call?”
“Uh-huh.” I pull my riding gloves on and start my bike. Tex is quick to follow, and we ride side by side to the next destination.
Our first stop goes down without a hitch, quick in and out with a smile and a thank you. The second, a fuel station run by two older folks with their daughter running the register at night, is much the same. No trouble, other than the grievances they’ve had in their personal lives that I’ve become an expert at blocking out.