“You tell Sal and all those other fuckers there are new players in town. And they aren’t as badass as they think they are. No one is safe from us. Not their women, not their children,” he threatened, his hand wrapping painfully around my neck. He started to squeeze and I clawed at him in panic.
Holy shit, he was going to kill me.
No…
Air…
“You gonna tell them?” he demanded.
I nodded rapidly, desperate for him to let me go.
“I think I’ll come pay you another visit. Armstrong doesn’t know what to do with a hot little piece like you. Looking forward to seeing you again.” He grinned salaciously before he hauled himself off me and ran, leaving me lying on the garage floor gasping for breath.
For an indeterminable amount of time, I laid there staring up at the fluorescent lights overhead. My ears were ringing and my heart was hammering so loudly in my chest I was afraid to move. I knew the message had been conveyed, but I definitely didn’t want to linger. Somehow, I picked myself up off the ground and hobbled over to the elevator. I knew I should call the police, that was what a normal person would do, but back when things were rough with my parents the authorities always managed to fuck things up. They’d just put me in foster care, which was sometimes worse than being with my folks. And I always ended up back with them anyway.
It was one of the ways I’d related to the club early on, the police weren’t ever a part of their life or the way they exacted justice.
I needed to call Cole and I would. I just needed to get my shit together first.
I let myself into my apartment building. Luckily, it was late so I didn’t encounter any neighbors as I made my way clumsily down the hall and through my door. I grabbed some ice and some heavy-duty painkillers I had left over from an accident the previous year. I fell onto the couch with a wince. The bed felt too far away despite it being mere feet. I placed the ice on my eye, wincing at both the cold and the tender feel of my swollen flesh. I’d have a black eye for sure, not something I’d had for a long time. And my hands and knees were badly scraped from the scuffle. My throat hurt from being pressed so tightly, but that was the beauty of the pain pills. Once I took one I was able to quickly drift into a fog and fall asleep.
I heard a distant pounding and ringing, but it sounded like part of the dream I’d been having. At some point I’d taken another pill or two; I’d lost track. My whole body throbbed and I had no interest in pulling myself out of the pain pill induced sleep. Then I heard a large crash, but it was all part of the fog.
“Fuck, baby,” I heard a pained, familiar voice bite out as my body was carefully lifted from the couch. Sal’s voice being so close to my ear made it feel more like a dream. “Baby, wake up,” he was more insistent now, clearly worried.
“Hmm?” I murmured drowsily.
“What the fuck?” I heard another voice bark from farther away. Mack? I couldn’t quite place it.
They exchanged words I didn’t understand, and then freezing cold water was suddenly cascading over me.
I garbled and gasped in the tub where I found myself. “What are you doing?” I wheezed in complete shock at the cold.
“Sorry, sweetness, had to wake you up. You were out cold,” Sal explained as he hovered over me, his brows pinched with concern.
“Am I dreaming?” I asked seriously. Sal being here was confusing.
He looked more concerned for a moment before he shook his head. “No, baby, you’re not dreaming.”
“Why are you here? How did you get in?” I asked, shoving my wet hair away from my face. I looked down to find he’d stripped me down to my bra and underwear as I shivered violently.
“I’ll make the water warmer now that you’re awake,” he assured me, moving to adjust the nozzle.
I tried to cover myself up, feeling completely vulnerable half-naked in my own bathroom. “No, just g-g-go. I’m f-fine,” I protested, my teeth chattering.
“What do you want me to do, man?” I heard Mack’s voice rumble from the other room.
“Get Cole over here, now,” he bellowed from over his shoulder. “I don’t think she needs to go to the hospital but hang tight,” he barked, clearly agitated.
“N-no!” I cried desperately, feeling utterly helpless and exposed. “Just go!” I exclaimed, extremely distressed.
He regarded me cautiously for a moment, unsure of what to do with me. “Do you want Mack instead?” he asked and it wasn’t a threat. He clearly wanted me to calm down and to feel comfortable.
I groaned. “I don’t want anyone. I want to be alone. I’m not dying. I’m fine. Just go,” I pleaded again.
“Not gonna happen,” he shook his head, leaning in closer still. He took my face in his hands and looked down at me with large, worried eyes. “I know I don’t deserve this, but I need to take care of you right now. Please let me do that,” he requested softly. Sal had never asked me for anything. He was the bossiest guy I’d ever known. When something mattered to him, he usually just pushed his way in. And I’d never seen his face look the way it did now. He looked…haunted.
I didn’t know what the hell he was doing here or why he wanted so badly to take care of me, but he was the only one I would be comfortable with in this situation. Despite all of my turbulent emotions surrounding Sal, he made me feel safe and protected.
