I laughed for real this time and let it drift into a sigh. “The lawyer may have had something to do with the enlightenment and he most definitely had everything to do with this.” I pointed to my tear-streaked and makeup-smeared face. “Some things aren’t meant to be.”
“And some things are meant to be even if they seem like they shouldn’t be.” He sounded so much like my dad that it was eerie and I told him as much. He gave me that heart-stopping smile again and replied with a firm, “Good.”
I rose to my feet and couldn’t stop myself from circling the desk so that I could wrap my arms around his neck for a quick squeeze.
“I’m glad this bar and my dad found you, Rome. I really am.”
He patted my arm awkwardly and stood so that I really had to crane my neck back to look up at him. “I’m glad you finally found you, Avett.”
I swallowed back the emotion that crawled up my throat and threatened more tears. I’d never been so weepy or quick to cry but all this being in touch with my emotions was wreaking havoc on my well-worn barriers.
“The trick is staying found, I think. It’s easy to get lost when your life is constantly in a state of disarray. The right path gets obscured as quickly as you make it.”
He put a hand on my shoulder and told me solemnly, “That’s why you find something or someone that guides you, someone that won’t lose you, and someone that you don’t mind getting lost with when that inevitably happens.”
I winced involuntarily because I’d walked away from the guy that I was pretty sure was my magnetic north, the guy that hadn’t let me wander or get off track since the moment I met him. Quaid didn’t lose his way in the storm; he rode it out.
“I’ll keep that in mind, big guy. Thank you for making this easy on me. We both know you didn’t have to.” My voice was scratchy and I could feel the tears threatening again because I couldn’t pull my mind away from my legal eagle.
He didn’t reply as he followed me out of the office and back into the mostly empty bar. Church was leaning against the long bar top talking to one of the regular daytime patrons and a bartender I didn’t recognize.
“Where’s your dad?” It took me a minute to realize he was looking around for whoever was supposed to be on Avett babysitting duty for the day.
“I had a meeting at the courthouse about Jared’s trial. I went alone because I wasn’t sure how long it was going to last. He’s at home waiting for me to check in with my mom. I should call them and let them know where I’m at. I need to call a cab and head that way before they worry.”
Rome grunted and crossed his arms over his muscular chest, which was covered in a faded Eagles T-shirt. “It’s slow. I can run you home since Church is here to keep an eye on things.”
I was getting ready to agree when my phone flashed and I saw my dad’s number on the screen. I held up a finger and told Rome to hold on as I put the phone to my ear.
“Hey, Dad. Sorry I didn’t call sooner. That lawyer Jared hired was a real piece of work, a total slimeball. I needed a minute. I’m at the bar with Rome. He offered to run me home.”
“Tell him you have a ride waiting for you outside.” The voice definitely wasn’t my father’s. I didn’t recognize it at all, and before I could ask who in the hell had my dad’s phone the person on the end snapped, “You better make whoever you’re with think everything is okay or your parents are going to experience what it’s like to lose everything from the inside.”
Rome was looking at me curiously, so I forced a shaky smile and took a few steps away from him. I put a hand to my churning stomach and whispered, “I understand.” I had to lock my knees because they felt like they were going to buckle right out from underneath me.
“Do you? To be clear here on what’s going to happen, you’re going to walk out front and get into the black Yukon that’s waiting. You’re going to tell my associates where you stashed the drugs your boyfriend jacked from my boss, and then you are going to take them to the location. If you call the police, if you alert anyone as to what’s going on, this cute little house where you’ve been staying will go up just like the other one did, only this time your parents will be left inside to burn.”
I cleared my throat and looked over my shoulder to see that Church had joined Rome and that both of them were staring at me intently. I shivered and fought to get out quietly enough so that I wasn’t overheard. “How do I know you haven’t hurt my parents already?”
There was some rustling, the sounds of an obvious struggle, and then my dad’s strained voice came on the line. “Don’t you go anywhere with these people, Avett! You hear me! Call the police and keep yourself safe. Do not worry about me …” There was a sickening crunch and a heavy-sounding thud that made me gasp and had me putting my hand up to my mouth.
“If I were you, I would ignore your father’s advice. If the police show, this place goes up like a tinderbox and we’ll go after the lawyer. We want the product. Once we have it, we’ll be on our way. Your freedom and your parents’ safety for our drugs. Seems like an easy decision to make if you ask me.”
Maybe it would be if there were drugs and if I didn’t already know how these men did business. I still had nightmares from my last run-in with them and it looked like this time around a baseball-bat-wielding landlady wasn’t going to be enough to save the day.