So he did. "City Council will never pass your permit! I've got friends on there. Unlike you, I go to church. I know people, girl. I know a whole lot of people, and they don't like the brand of deviants that place brings. We don't need fags and Blacks around here."
What?! Oh, that was going too far. The homophobia was bad enough, but now he was bringing race into it? This man had not only crossed my line in the sand, he'd left it far behind.
"I know people too," I reminded him. "Bigger ones than you. While you're so busy gossiping with the boys at the grill, I've been going right around you. I'm talking to the state senator for this area about reopening. The governor's on board because it sure helps his 'family values' platform. You want to play? Well, c'mon. Let's go. While you're dinking around with who knows who around here, I'm going straight to the top! Oh, and that Senator? He went to Southwind!"
"What?" he asked.
"Roberto Caruzo?" I asked. "Yeah, try checking the Board of Directors. You can't fucking stop us. Not now, not ever, and I don't really care if you like it. I'm here tohelppeople. Not just the ones the rest of you think are good enough to count, butallof them. I don't give a shit if they live in a run-down single wide, a big ol' brick mansion, or anything else. My 'big-city values' aren't about putting myself ahead, Paul. They're about helping the ones who need a fucking hand up. It's about wading in when the rest of you are too worried about getting your hands dirty, and look at these hands!" I shoved my acrylic nails under his nose. "They've been in more shit than you can imagine."
"Only an idiot would take prime real estate like that and make it completely worthless!" He threw up his hands. "But fine. You just keep on trying. Tell yourself that you're hot shit. You might even believe it, but that doesn't make it true. Trust me, little girl, I've been playing these games a lot longer than you have, and I don't quit."
"Me either," I assured him, grabbing the door of my car and yanking it open. "Now, just so you know, you can't claim I'm trespassingandblock me in."
"Oh, but I'm waiting for the cops. Round here, we take this sort of thing seriously. For all I know, you're trying to mess with my cows, right?" And he smiled, the kind that proved just how sleezy he really was.
Then the door opened and Luke stepped out. "Just let her leave already, Mr. Simmons. I already told her not to come back."
Mr. Simmons crossed his arms over his chest and glared. "How do you think your girlfriend will like spending a night in jail?" He slowly looked back over to me, much too proud of his pathetic idea.
"Not my girlfriend," Luke said, his voice hard enough to cut right through me.
"Then what else was she doing inside your trailer at this time of night?" The jackass lifted a brow. "She may be easy, but I don't let trash come around here."
Luke didn't contradict him. Instead, he said, "Violet, just go. You've overstayed your welcome."
"He got what he wanted," Paul added. "Maybe next time, you should think about keeping your legs closed."
"You are a bad cliché," I said as I slid into the front seat of my car. "Tell the cops where I live - if they don't already know. And while you're sitting there patting yourself on the back? Yeah, I drive a fucking Audi in the country. Know why? Because it comes with all-wheel drive."
Slamming the door, I started my car, put it in gear, and cranked the wheel. I might not be able to back up without hitting his damned golf cart, but I had enough room to go forward. Making a hard left, aware that there wasn't exactly a yard to worry about trashing, just some unfenced pasture, I pressed the gas.
My car whipped around him, turning tightly. When the wheels hit the dirt and grass, they dug in. I didn't burn out. I didn't tear off, but I also didn't creep away. I simply drove, making it clear that just because something was pretty didn't mean it was useless. I didn't have to play by their rules to win. I didn't need a truck to survive out here, and I sure as shit didn't need either of those men in my life!
But as I headed to the gate, I could still see Luke and Mr. Simmons in my rearview mirror. I should've known better. I should've seen all of this coming, but Luke was supposed to bedifferent!He was my hero. He'd been the only person in this fucking town to give a damn about me, and he did it when I needed him most.
When I hit the black top, I pushed the gas a little harder. Fuck this town. Fuck these inbred, redneck yokels. Fuck Gran for fucking dying! I wouldn't let them win. If Southwind was all I had left of her, then they'd have to try a lot harder to get rid of us. Besides, I didn't need Luke. I still had Ash and Cy. We had each other, and that was all we needed to pick up the pieces and keep going.
But I was pretty sure I'd just left a chunk of myself back there in that run-down trailer. I'd felt my heart crack. The world was blurry at the edges again, and my throat was so tight, but not even that would stop me. I was going to make something good come out of this. I didn't even care what.
Unfortunately, it wasn't getting better, and I was going too fast to deal with this. A moment of wisdom made me pull over by the ditch, and I threw my car in park. Then I just tried to breathe. I would not cry. I would not think about all the things Luke had said. I would not think about my heart slowly breaking in my chest. All I had to do was breathe.
Reaching beside me, I found my phone. Trying to hold onto what little composure I had left, I swallowed, I gasped, and then I pressed the button for the very first contact. It only rang once before he answered.
"Where are you?" Ash asked.
"He's done with us," I managed to get out. "Ash, he's done, and I don't know what to do without him!"
"It's ok," he promised. "Violet, where are you? I'll come get you."
"You don't even have a car," I told him.
"Then I'll send Cy," he shot back, the worry clear in his voice. "C'mon, sweetie, just tell me where you are."
"I'm ok," I promised. "I pulled over. I just..." I paused to swallow. "Ash, I think he hates me. I ruined everything. I was so stuck on how far we'd come that I didn't think! Everything was going so good. We were on top of the world, and..." I had to pause again. "Gran was wrong, Ash. Dreams don't come true. Even if we work hard enough, we don't always get the happy ending. I was trying so hard and I think I ruined it all."
"I'm not going anywhere," Ash promised.
Then I heard the phone rustle and another voice took over. "Come home, Violet," Cy said gently. "Come back to us. We will always love you."
