High Voltage (16 page)

~ Minka ~

So Long, Asshole

H
ayes’s new receptionist waves us back without
asking our names. She’s clearly a keeper, and I give her until the end of the
day to quit. Hayes is bitching at someone on the phone when we enter his
office. He glares at Dino and flips him off. I only smile and take a seat.

Rafael called on the way over. He said Black
contacted Cooper, who made the sheriff’s choices clear. He retires his position
and leaves Common Bend, or he dies. Black played tough and mentioned how his
death would draw too much attention from the state law. Cooper explained that,
at this point, he was losing Common Bend to the Serrated Brotherhood. If he had
to walk away from the territory, he planned to make a mess of it for the other
club.

“The asshole quit,” Hayes says as soon as he hangs
up.

“We heard he was getting skittish.”

Narrowing his dark eyes, he studies us. “Those two
deputies were your handiwork, right?”

“Nope. We were in a waiting pattern until the
Arizona Moving Company sent their representative.”

Hayes leans back and grins. “That’s your story, and
you’re sticking to it, huh?”

“We only came by to say thanks for saving our asses
that time and being such a wonderful host.”

“Fuck this guy,” Dino growls.

Hayes frowns at Dino and then looks at me. “You
like pussy-whipped men?”

“Not really, but he’s also hung like a horse, so
the pros and cons even out.”

Hayes’s laughter pisses off Dino even though I
suspect he likes the big dick compliment.

“So, if Black is gone, things will settle down for
you,” I say, changing the subject. “Everyone will go back to their corners and
behave.”

“Sure. Assuming Johansson puts in a solid team this
time around. I think the kid might lack the balls.”

“You wouldn’t be saying that now if you knew how
willing he was to kill everyone in Common Bend. He was also pretty okay with
killing you.”

“Of course he was.”

“We wouldn’t do it, though,” I say, smiling
sweetly. “We owe you and all.”

“Yeah, we’re fucking besties now.”

“We're done,” Dino says, standing up and grabbing
for me.

Hayes shakes his head. “No man should be so deeply
entrenched in a woman’s pussy.”

“We’ll agree to disagree,” I say, standing next to
Dino, who tries to block my view of Hayes. “Good luck finding a secretary who
tolerates your personality.”

Hayes waves off my comment while Dino nudges me out
of the office. I struggle to return, only to piss off Dino. He nearly wrestles
with me until we’re outside.

“I won,” he says, grinning.

“Won what?”

“You.”

“I don’t think anyone else was challenging you,
Dino.”

“Everyone is always challenging me. That’s why I
remain on guard.”

“Your insanity is so sexy.”

“And I’m hung like a horse.”

“Well not really,” I say, climbing into the car.

Joining me in the SUV, Dino glares. “Not cool.”

“Hey, a horse’s dick is frigging scary. I’d close
my shop permanently rather than let something that gross anywhere near me. On
the other hand, I’m a big fan of giant man-dick, and that’s why I’m keeping
you.”

Dino smiles and leans over to give me a kiss. I
spread my lips to deepen the kiss since his possessive crap both annoys and
arouses me.

“We ought to stay in town a few more days.”

“What in the fuck for?” he murmurs against my neck.

“A little vacation. We could check into a new hotel
and start fresh.”

“Or we could head to your hometown and deal with
your mom.”

“That sounds like a bummer.”

Dino takes my hand and kisses the palm before
pressing it against his chest.

“I’m sick of this place.”

“Then let’s go back to Houston.”

“Let’s yank off the Band-Aid. You’ll worry until
it’s done, so let’s get it done.”

“That’s easy for you to say.”

“Not really. I hate seeing you unhappy.”

Smiling, I believe his words. He’s a bull-shitter,
but not with me when it comes to us.

“She might not even be around right now. I should
organize a visit.”

“Where is she going to go? You made her sound like
an old lady who spends all her time at her house.”

“She might be visiting my sister.”

“Then we’ll wait for her in Salem until she comes
back. You can show me where you went to school.”

“I can show you where I was first felt up,” I say,
taking his hand and pressing it against my breasts.

“I like to believe you were a virgin before me.
Let’s not allow facts to interfere with my fantasy.”

“Can I imagine you as a virgin too? I might have
been wrong about that not being sexy.”

“Apples, you can imagine anything you want, but
we’re going to see your mom. I want that done.”

Yanking free of his groping hand, I mutter,
“Shouldn’t it be up to me?”

“Back when you were alone, sure, but now you’re my
woman, and I make the calls.”

“You want me to smack you.”

“A little bit. You’re sexy when rough.”

Laughing, I sit back while he drives us to the
hotel. I know he’s right about facing my fears. Knowing and doing are different
things, and I really want to procrastinate.

“I’ll see if Rafael wants us to stick around
longer,” I say as we walk into the room.

“He won’t, and we’re leaving tomorrow.”

“You’re so bossy.”

“I’ve been waiting for months to get my hands on
you. Now that I have you, I don’t want anything distracting you from me.”

“Do you ever listen to the things you say?”

“No,” he says, flopping on the bed. “Let’s cuddle
and talk about cuddling.”

“I’m cuddled out.”

Dino glares at me, so I glare back at him. “What is
your problem?”

Dino only frowns harder. I finally laugh at his
expression. “Is this because of Hayes?”

“You were too nice to him. I need to stink you up
with my scent again.”

“Okay,” I say, crawling into bed, “but I’m tired
and likely won’t appreciate your efforts.”

“You say that now. Then in twenty minutes you’ll
break the headboard. I’m on to your bullshit.”

Giggling as his lips suck at my throat, I still
want to bail on the trip to see my mom. I’ve lived years without facing this
fear, and I’m in no hurry to do anything about it now. With Dino at my side,
I’ll likely ace the test. I’m just unsure if he’ll find me quite so
intoxicating when he realizes the shithole I crawled out of years ago.

~ Dino ~

Let’s Go Already!

M
inka sits across from me at the local Waffle House.
She’s edgy about visiting her mother. I want to be sympathetic, but I’m sick of
White Horse and these hotels. We need to face the grifter in Salem before we
return to Houston.

“I was waitressing at a strip club when I did my
first job,” Minka says softly. “The target was the husband of one of the
strippers, and he was always beating on her. She constantly came in crying
because he’d yell at her or slap her before work. I asked why she didn’t leave,
and she said he wouldn’t let her.”

“You are such a do-gooder.”

Minka leans her head back against the wall and
smiles at me. “It looked like a suicide. He blew his brains out while drunk.
Not so different than our deputy friends.”

“A tried and true method.”

“She cried when he died. I don’t know why I
expected her to be happy. I guess because I would have been, but she cried and
cried. She ended up getting fired for always crying. I only worked there a few
more months before I was recruited by a guy who hung out at the club. I thought
he was just a loser like most customers, but he was an operator.”

Minka takes a sip of her hot coffee and looks a
little sad remembering. “His name was Corey, and he somehow figured out what
I’d done. He liked how I didn’t freak out afterward or look guilty. Corey was
recruiting since he claimed to be too old to take assignments. I thought he was
full of shit, but he was the real deal. I ended up flying to Miami for my first
job. Soon I was traveling all over the world, and I eventually met Troy, and we
partnered up. Later, we met Rafael at an airport, and the dots all connected.
Now I’m here with you.”

“A happy ending if I ever heard of one.”

Minka smiles at my comment, but the past is still
bugging her. “I went back to the club years later. At first, I wasn’t sure why,
but I guess I wanted to know what happened to that girl. Before I’d left, she’d
gotten her job back. I’m sure there were some favors given, but she returned
and promised only to cry during her off hours.”

“When you visited, was she still crying?”

“Yes, but because her new boyfriend beats her.”

“Bad habits die hard.”

“I wondered then if people could ever really
change.”

“If they want to, I’m sure they can.”

“What about us?” Minka asks, looking tired. “Do you
think we can do the marriage and kid routine after so long of doing other
things?”

I lean forward and reach for her hand. “That was my
job, not me. When I felt it becoming me, I walked away. You retired because you
wanted to fall in love and have a family. We wanted to change, so we changed.
We’re not the crying girl.”

“I hope you’re right. I’d hate to build something
with you only to destroy it.”

“Not going to happen,” I say, patting her hand
before sitting back. “You’re not self-destructive. Neither am I.”

Minka smiles slightly, and I realize she can’t
truly be free to move on until she faces her greatest fear.

The Reapers aren’t nearly as scary as Minka’s mom.
Not to me anyway. They do look fucking grumpy as if they didn’t sleep well.

“You should be happy, boys,” Minka says as we walk
outside the Waffle House to meet them. “You won.”

“That we did,” Vaughn mutters. “Are you leaving
town?”

“Today,” I announce. “Do you have this situation
handled?”

“Yeah. Already got a new sheriff lined up.
Operations should be back up in a few weeks.”

“And Black?” I ask.

Judd smirks. “He’ll go away on his own until one
day someone makes him go away permanently. He’s made too many enemies to live a
long, healthy life.”

“Sorry if the Arizona thing upset you,” Minka tells
Vaughn. “I hadn’t realized Rafael considered you guys his friends. Or that you
were such sensitive weenies in need of that much hand holding.”

“You’re a natural peacemaker.”

“You’re too kind, but my man doesn’t like when
other men compliment me.”

The three bikers look at me, and I shake my head.

“What about the Hickory Creek bikers?” Minka asks.

“They know their place for now. Eventually, they’ll
want us out of their state, but today ain’t that day.”

Nodding, I wrap an arm around Minka’s shoulders.
“It’s been fun, but we want to get the hell out of here.”

“Thanks for the help,” Tucker says, and I wonder if
he’s talking to Minka. He doesn’t seem like he’s paying attention to either of
us.

“Why does he look like he’ll cry?” Minka asks.

“He misses his woman and kid.”

“Aww, that’s adorable.”

“We’re leaving,” I say, turning her away from them.
“Don’t look back,” I tell Minka.

Being the woman I love, she, of course, looks back
and waves at the three men.

“You’re a pain in the ass,” I mutter, opening the
door for her.

“Hey, I was just gonna say that about you.”

I give her a quick yet deep kiss. A little reminder
about who she belongs to and how I won’t be replaced. Minka smiles once my lips
leave hers.

“Your insecurity is hot. Let’s find a hotel.”

“We’re leaving Redneck Paradise and heading north.”

Now pouting, Minka crosses her arms and ignores me
as I join her in the car. We pull out of the parking lot while the bikers walk
inside for breakfast. Driving as fast as I can, I dodge anyone going the speed
limit until we reach the highway and I can finally put White Horse in the
rearview.

~ Minka ~

For Fuck’s Sake

T
he green house doesn’t look much different than
when I ran off years ago. Wind chimes hang from the too-low screened porch. A
cat sleeps on the old rocking chair Gilda got at a yard sale when I was in
eighth grade. I remember how she conned the owner into basically giving it
away. Like many men, he’d been a sucker for a woman’s tears.

“I think I might vomit,” I admit, standing stuck at
the fence.

“I’ll hold your hair.”

Even wanting to smile, I don’t manage. “I could
freak out. What then?”

“I’ll make a video, and we’ll laugh about it later.
Now get going. That cat is watching us, and it doesn’t look friendly.”

“I don’t know that cat.”

“It’s been a long time since you lived here.”

Leaning back against him, I whisper, “Doesn’t feel
so long ago.”

“Because you’re half stuck in the past. Time to cut
that shit loose and be fully in the now.”

“What if it doesn’t go well?”

“It probably won’t. That’s not the point, and you
know it. Now stop stalling.”

I walk past the raggedy wooden fence. I remember
when my brother painted it white the last summer he lived in Salem. Taz told me
the fence was his goodbye gift to our mother. She hadn’t appreciated it,
regularly complaining that white fences were ugly and showed dirt too easily. I
think she was really just angry about Taz leaving. Just like Verina left.
Everyone left her because staying was fucking suffocating.

I stop at the porch steps and look at the sleeping
cat. My dog, Baby, didn’t like cats. I knew he was long dead, but seeing the
cat brings the reality home.

“I wish I took my dog with me.”

“You couldn’t take care of it.”

“No, but he was mine.”

Dino leans into my ear and whispers, “Then why
leave him?”

I realize my cheeks are wet. Wiping them angrily, I
sigh. “I didn’t want her to be alone, and he was a good dog.”

Taking my hand, he walks up to the door and knocks.
I’m surprised Gilda hasn’t already appeared. She always knew when people were
around the house. The woman can simply sense trespassers. It was her gift. Like
crying on cue and having sticky fingers.

“Who’s there?” Gilda says even though she knows
we’re coming.

“It’s Minka.”

“Oh!” she cries.

The big wooden door opens, and my mother’s face
appears. She isn’t as old as I imagined. For a moment, I don’t recognize her,
though. I think it’s the curly red hair.

“You came back,” she says, hugging me tightly.

Despite everything I promised myself, I hug her
back and begin crying.
My mommy loves and misses me!

Gilda looks at Dino and smiles sheepishly. Wiping
away my tears, I continue to cry, but my brain is desperate to run the show.
Don’t
trust her! Gilda lies! It’s all she knows how to do! Run!

My heart only wants to make nice with the lady who
gave me life.

“Hello,” Gilda says, shaking Dino’s hand.

“Hello, ma’am.”

“Call me Gilda.”

Dino flashes a heavenly smile at her, and my brain
again screams for me to wake the fuck up.
She’s flirting with him! Punch her
in the face and run!

We walk inside the house, and I’m overwhelmed with
nostalgia. The potpourri scent fills my nostrils, and I hear the sad melody of
the grandmother clock ticking. This house was where Taz, Verina, and I played
before we were old enough to know where the toys came from. I still remember
the last time Santa visited and how angry I was about the necklace in my
stocking. Weeks earlier, I’d seen the nice woman at the food bank wearing it.

“What are you doing these days?” Gilda asks as we
sit across from her.

I watch her rocking in a brand new La-Z-Boy chair.
The couch under my ass is leather. Funny how well she lives with only her
settlement from a slip and fall accident she suffered ten years back.
Was
Verina sending her money?
I knew Taz couldn’t afford to help.
Did the
supposedly disabled Gilda have a few side businesses?

“We’re in security,” I finally say, knowing she
regularly speaks with my big-mouth sister.

“Is this your boyfriend?” Gilda asks, laughing
behind her hand.

“Fiancé,” Dino says immediately. “We’re getting
married soon.”

“Oh, really, when? Will it be somewhere close?”

“We haven’t decided,” I mutter.

Noticing me shiver, Gilda looks a little
embarrassed. “Sorry about the cold, but keeping up with the heating costs got
to be too much. I was going to put on a fire, but I forgot.” Gilda sighs. “My
mind ain’t what it used to be.” Her eyes moisten as she looks at me. “You
probably think I’m a mess.”

“What happened to Baby?”

Gilda’s thrown off by my question. Her expression
freezes while she catches up to the shift in my mood. Tears are flowing again
as she points to a picture on the mantle.

“He kept me company after you left. Even scared off
more than one burglar. He was such a good dog, but the years caught up to him
as they have with me.”

Without thinking, I stand up and stare at her. I
want to yell something. Or accuse her. I want to say something, but I can’t.
Frustrated, I storm out of the house and stand in the yard where Dino joins me.

“That went better than I expected,” he says,
studying the street.

“She’s fucking playing me. No way can she not pay
the heating bill. She’s just playing me. Me! Like I’d be stupid enough not to
notice the new furniture or her fucking hair.”

Dino cups my face. “That’s who she is. That’s who
she’ll always be. I know you hoped she’d magically changed, but you’re not
stupid. You knew she’d pull something.”

“Yeah, but I hoped she’d wait until we visited a
few times. Maybe she’d go to the wedding and fake an injury for sympathy. Fuck.
I thought she’d put more effort into scamming her own daughter. It’s rude for
her to half-ass it so much.”

Dino kisses my forehead. “No doubt she’s a horrible
host. Didn’t even offer us coffee that she might spike so she could steal our
wallets. Maybe she’d blame home invaders or squirrels.”

I laugh even though I’m still pissed. “We do have a
lot of squirrels around here.”

“So her lie wouldn’t be too farfetched.”

“My family is full of losers,” I mumble, feeling
like one of them.

“Naw. You have a lying, cheating mother, but
otherwise, your family ain’t so different than most. Your dad was a sap, but
being a nice guy isn’t a flaw. Your brother likes bad women. A lot of men have
that problem. Your sister married a dork and had ugly kids. Nothing weird about
that.”

Laughing again, I smack his arm lightly. “Her kids
aren’t ugly.”

“They ain’t cute, Apples. I saw the pictures, and
they look like their dad. Oh, well, not everyone can be good looking. I’m sure
they’re lovely people, and he treats her okay.”

“He does. She made a good life for herself. Boring,
but she’s happy.”

“You made a good life for yourself too. I bet even
your stupid brother is happy most days.”

Smiling easier now, I look at the house. “We did
have some fun times here.”

“Here’s what I think,” he says, stepping behind me
and wrapping his arms around my shoulders. “You need to forgive your mom. She’s
a loser, sure, but she’s who she is. Just let it go. Stop hoping for her to be
more. I’m not saying I want to see her again or have her over for the holidays,
but you need to let go of that bad feeling inside.”

“She’s embarrassing.”

“Mostly because you’re Romani and she’s a grifter.
If you were French, would this even be an issue? She’d just be the loser in
your family.”

“True.”

“Let’s go back inside and let her cry for us. We’ll
say we’ll call her when we’re back in Houston and make plans for her to visit.
She’ll think you fell for her bullshit. You’ll get out of there without too
much drama. Hell, you can even hug her again while I snag that picture of your
dog.”

Turning around to hug him, I stare into his dark
eyes. “Will you snag a few pictures of my siblings and me too? I like that one
where we’re eating ice cream.”

“Consider it snagged.”

“I love you.”

“As you should.”

Laughing again, I kiss him gently. He returns the
kiss without pushing for passion. I’m vulnerable, and he’s my anchor. Sex isn’t
what I need. His heart is what keeps me sane and brave. Dino talks a lot of
bullshit, but he knows me better than I know myself now.