He turned back to me, and I froze. “So this one,” he stuck his finger in my face, “is going to get us out of trouble. First guy will be here in five minutes.”
Rustling sounded from outside. Not heavy footfalls, but something or someone was out there.Shit. Guess he showed up early. It’s now or never.
8
Jackson
Ifigured I’d give Iris five minutes to cool off before I went after her. It shouldn’t be too hard to catch up with her at Savannah’s. Savvy was close by, and that was the most likely place she’d go to blow off some steam.
But when I remembered her car was still at her job, since I’d been driving her back and forth, I cursed a blue streak for letting her run off at all.
Better she cuss me out loud enough for the entire neighborhood to hear than walk around Oakdale Springs by herself past dark when Sue was on the loose.
My hands shook as I started my car. She’d just left. She couldn’t have gotten far.
Sure enough, I checked her location on my phone. I’d made her share it with me yesterday, thank goodness.
She was only a few blocks down the street and not moving, but when I rushed to the spot, heart pounding in my ears, she was nowhere to be found.
As I was frantically searching up and down my street, looking for any sign of her, something glinted in the low light of the street lamp. Her phone, lying on the ground, screen smashed.
A lead ball hit me in the gut as I tucked the destroyed phone in my pocket and whipped out mine. Following instinct, I turned toward Timber Drive. My tires screeched as I yelled a command to my phone to call 911.
I wasn’t sure what I expected them to do, but it seemed like it was better to call the cops and have paramedics on hand than not.Fuck, I hoped I didn’t need paramedics.
The garbled explanation I gave the 911 operator didn’t put me in their good graces, but I left the line open and answered their stupid questions to the best of my ability while I crawled along Timber Drive, eyes taking in every detail as if life was suddenly in high-definition.
No, I don’t know where she is. No, I don’t know what happened. Yes, I’m sure I need someone.
Luck was finally with me. I spotted the beat-up red Chevy Iris had described sitting in the driveway of a run-down split-level.
It could have been anyone’s house, or anyone’s car, but I’d dragged Hunter out of a fair few flophouses. I knew the type. The grass was too tall but beaten down in spots where people had been parking all over the lawn. Half the windows were covered with makeshift curtains, and the rest not covered at all. The house itself wasn’t as well-maintained as the rest of the neighborhood, either.
I shouted the address into my phone before hanging up, tires screeching as I pulled into the driveway.
I didn’t waste time peeking in the windows, just kicked in the door, spurred on by the muffled screeching and banging noises bleeding through the door.Please let Iris be okay.
Inside was pure chaos. Iris—bruised but alive—was half-tied to a chair. Both hands were free, and she was using them to untie her legs.
Sue was too busy fighting with…an orange cat?…to stop her. The cat looked to be winning, clawing at Sue’s arms and hissing up a storm.
Some skinny redneck I assumed was Joel rolled on the floor, clutching his nuts. I hoped Iris had popped him good.
With another glance at Iris to assure myself that she was still breathing, still moving, I went for Joel. Luckily, these two knuckleheads still had some rope lying around, so I tied his hands behind his back. He was skinny, his limbs too shaky to put up much of a fight, but he cussed me soundly.
“Shut up,” I said.
“Fuck you,” he replied.
I jammed the first thing my fingers found into his mouth: a wadded-up piece of cloth, wet on one side.
When I turned to look for Sue, she’d knocked the cat off her and was looking between me and Joel. “I don’t suppose I could get my usual two grand?” she asked.
I spluttered.
Iris cursed.
Sirens wailing in the distance saved me from having to come up with a response and prompted Sue to bolt for the door.
