Knight In Black Leather by Gail Dayton (ebook reader ink .txt) 📕

"Don't fuck with me, Court. If you don't have him, you know where he is. You fuck with me, you pay. Or didn't my friends with the tire tools convince you of that? If you don't care what happens to the bitch, why'd you warn me away from her?"

"I owed her. But we're done now. That was it, my last favor. What happens to her after that is on her head. She's in trouble now, she's shit out of luck."

A wavering scream sounded through the phone, ending in pitiful sobs. It could have been any woman, but Eli's gut told him it was Teresa. He bit his tongue to keep the protest inside. Any sound would only amuse Flash. Eli tasted metal and knew he'd bit it through, but he'd be damned if he'd give the son of a bitch the satisfaction of knowing it.

"I am going to kill her, Court," Flash said. "Piece by piece, if you don't bring me the boy by midnight. I know you. You always had to ride to the rescue back when we were kids. Even if it got you a kick in the face. You haven't changed."

"Neither have you."

Flash laughed. "Fuckin' great, ain't it?" His laugh cut off like a light going out. "Midnight, Court. I'll be waiting."

The phone went dead in Eli's hand.

"Fuck!" Eli spun around and threw the phone into the couch. It hit and bounced off, bouncing again off the living area rug to go spinning under the kitchen table as he kept swearing.

"Eli, what's wrong?" Marilyn's voice, her touch on his arm broke through the black haze of rage darkening his mind. God, she didn't need to be mixed up in this.

"Nothing." He pulled away from her. Which did about as much good as he'd expected.

She followed, got a better grip on his arm. "Bullshit. What boy were you talking about? Who is 'she'? What's going on?"

"It doesn't involve you, okay?" He tried to pull back again, but couldn't. She held on too tight, moved in too close. God, he was going to get her hurt.

"Eli, let me help."

"Haven't you helped enough?" He regretted snapping at her the minute he did it. He didn't mean that the way it sounded. "I mean--aren't you tired of helping? I'm sorry--I just--there's nothing you can do. There's nothing I can do--well, except for something I won't--would never--"

"What? Tell me. What's happened?" She tugged gently on his arm and he followed.

He let her lead him to the couch, sat down at her urging and held the hand she offered.

"Talk to me, Eli."

He slumped back into the sofa. Might as well get it over with. She wouldn't let up until he told her everything.

"This wasn't a random thing, like I thought." Eli waved a hand at his casts. "A woman I used to know--we were on the street together--she was having trouble with this guy--"

"Flash?"

Damn, she listened to everything. "Yeah. So I came back to help her out. Found a safe place for her and her kid--the boy--Pete--and told Flash to leave 'em alone." He sighed.

"I guess this--" he waved at his casts again, "was his first answer. Now he's got Teresa and he wants to trade her for Pete. But I can't do that."

"Of course you can't."

Eli looked at her then, startled by her instant agreement. "It's not because I don't have the kid. I know where he is. I could go get him. Not by midnight, I don't think, but I could do it. But I won't."

"I never thought you would." Her absolute belief in what she just said showed in her face. She truly believed. In him.

And he'd already failed. "So when I don't show up at midnight with Pete, Flash is going to kill Teresa."

"Are you sure? I mean, maybe he's violent, but would he actually kill her?"

"Oh, yeah. He's killed before. He likes killing. It's one of his favorite things." Eli knew what the bastard's most favorite thing was, but he intended never to share that with Marilyn.

"What are you going to do?"

"What can I do?" He'd been racking his brain ever since Teresa had called last week.

"Call the police."

"The minute Flash smells the hint of a cop nosing around, Tee's dead."

Marilyn bit her lip, obviously thinking hard, as hard as he'd been for over a week. Maybe a fresh brain could come up with fresh ideas. "What if they don't have to nose around? What if they knew where she was and could go in--Bam!--and get her?"

"How would they know that?" He didn't understand her thinking. It didn't make sense.

"You could tell them."

"I could." He nodded, letting the sarcasm out. "If I knew. But I don't. I don't have a clue."

"Could you find out? Go out and look, maybe? Quietly, without upsetting anything? I mean, you probably have some idea of where she might be."

Eli's eyebrow drew itself down as he got his first inkling of where she might be going with this. "How am I going to do that? It's a little tough controlling a Harley with only one good arm, forget the one good leg."

"I could drive you."

Ten

***

"No." The word came out of his mouth almost before she finished making the suggestion. He was right--he damn sure did not like the idea. He was not going to expose Marilyn to any of this. Except she was already exposed. She knew about it. He wasn't letting her any deeper into the sordid mess that was his life. "Hell, no."

"Why not? If we don't do something, he's going to kill her. Isn't he?"

"It's not we, Marilyn, it's me. I'm the one who has to do something. Teresa is my friend, not yours."

Marilyn's temper flared hot. "Who gives a shit whose friend she is?"

She could see her descent into vulgar language shocked Eli. Good. She wanted to shock him, wanted him to see her as something other than a helpless woman needing protection from the ugly realities of the world. She'd had her own share