Aurora
“Okay,I’malldonehere at the bar,” Madison, our other bartender says as she puts the last load of glasses on their spot.
It’s been a long, grueling, and exhausting night and Madi and I are the last ones standing, cleaning up.
“Do you want me to stay with you until you close everything up?” she asks, but I wave her off.
“Nah, you go home. I still need to finish with the floors, so it’ll take me a minute.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yep, go home to your babies.” I send her a smile she mirrors.
Madison has two kids at home and a husband who’s constantly trying out something new in life. Sometimes those ventures play out well, but more often than not, they fail, leaving them with overdrawn credit cards. So, she picks up a shift at the bar whenever she can, but I know she worries leaving the kids alone with him for too long.
“Call me if anything, okay?”
“Will do.”
I watch her pick up her purse and jacket as she strides over to the front door. “Damn it, it’s still raining buckets there.” And with that, she disappears into the night, leaving me to these filthy floors.
Well, there’s no reason to complain. It won’t get the job done faster, so I tune everything out and start washing. Only, Severin refuses to be tuned out and my mind conjures up pictures of him as if he was here and there.
I lift my eyes to where he sat just weeks ago with my son, coloring, smiling and…and quickly I look away. This is pointless.
So, so stupid.
I renew my washing with new vigor, scrubbing the floors as if that will help to ease the feelings inside my heart.
The front door opens, making that chime sound, and I twist around, half expecting to see Severin standing there. And for a second, just one tiny, miniscule second, my heart thrums with excitement only to start a completely different tune as soon as my eyes land on the newcomer.
“What are you doing here?”
“Why do you always have to be so nasty, sis?” Aaron walks in leisurely. His wet boots making squeaky noises against the polished concrete as he drags the mud from outside across the floor I just washed.
He looks just as ragged as he always does. His jeans filthy, his checkered coat, soaked from the storm. I never want to hazard a guess at how long ago his last shower was, never mind when he cut his hair. Aaron was always a bully, but he was never this far gone before.
“There’s never any ‘Hi, Aaron’ or ‘I missed you, Aaron,’” he whines.
I knew it was too good to be true for him to simply vanish.
“Because we both know you’re never here for the pleasantries,” I bite out, tracking his slow movement. It’s almostas if he’s stalking his prey. Every hair on my back raises as another lightning slashes across the skies, and I hear it.
I hear the soft mumbling of the storm. Just like before. And just like before, I might be too late in understanding its meaning.
Aaron lets out a sinister laugh, flashing me his yellow teeth, and that’s when I notice the crazy in his eyes. My brother is unpleasant on the best of days, but when he’s on something that unpleasant morphs into something far more dangerous.
“You know me so well, sis,” he says and takes another step closer, but by this time, my feet are slowly moving away.
I know that I need to get to the front door. I know I need to get away and run as fast as I can, hoping the dark night and the storm will hide me from him. From his crazy eyes. From the hatred that’s been occupying his heart since the day I was born.
“So, what do you want, Aaron?”
“Don’t play dumb, Rory. I’m here to collect what you owe me. Your boyfriend interrupted us last time.”
“What makes you think he won’t interrupt now?”
Aaron grins wide. “Because I’ve been watching you and you’ve been all alone. Just like you deserve, but that’s beside the point. Give me the money and I’ll leave.”
