Brain Storm by Cat Gilbert (ebook reader computer .txt) 📕

“HE’LL NEVER ACCEPT this,” I told Mac, staring at the closed door, “and I don’t blame him.”

“It doesn’t matter, Taylor. It’s the way it is. He’ll either come around or he won’t, but it doesn’t change things.”

“Well, thank you Mac. That was really helpful. That just makes everything better,” I snapped at him.

He flinched at the impact of my words, but I didn’t really care. Taking it out on him wasn’t fair, but at the moment, it felt pretty darn good. I couldn’t look at Mac without thinking about the reason he was now in my life. Trinity had caused a huge problem with the whole gold business, so I wasn’t very happy with her, and then Jonas had just walked right out the door. Something I wished I could do. Walk away. No people. No responsibility. No nothing. Just gone.

Needing some space, I picked up my empty coffee cup intending to head over to the kitchen, but decided to check on Mama D first. The cabin wasn’t big, but the kitchen and eating area were separated from the living area by a wall. It was open at both ends, providing more of an illusion of privacy than anything else, but it was better than nothing.

I peeked around the corner, not knowing if Mama D had taken refuge in there or one of the two bedrooms. She was propped in one of the recliners, sound asleep, a daytime soap opera playing on the television across the room. Mama D loved her soaps. I snorted at the thought that my whole life had become a soap opera and headed back into the kitchen to put on a fresh pot of coffee.

Both Mac and Trinity had disappeared, and I wasn’t sorry to see it. I wasn’t what you’d call a people person. I loved Trinity and Mama D, but I needed space, and there was little to none to be had in the cabin. I did have a bedroom to myself, but I’d been so tired the night before, that I hadn’t been able to enjoy the solitude.

I watched as the coffee began to drip into the pot, completely absorbed in the process as it slowly covered the bottom of the carafe, making its way up the sides. The last few drops were hissing out when I felt Mac slide up beside me.

“Trinity went out to tell Jonas about the gold. I thought it might be a good idea to turn off the alarm systems before they set them off.” He sat his cup down next to mine, and I filled them both without a word.

We went back to the table and sat in silence sipping our coffee. I couldn’t help but wonder about Mac. Seven years, he’d been watching me, but I’d never even known he existed. He’d been on the fringes of my life. A downstairs neighbor. The guy who handed me a coffee in the morning. But ever since he’d made his appearance last night, he’d known what I was feeling, practically before I did. Something Keith had never managed to do, and he had been closer to me than anyone.

How many times had I been close to losing it only to have Mac caution me, bringing me back from the edge? Even now, there were things to be said, decisions to be made, but he sat quietly sipping his coffee, giving me the space I needed.

I slid my eyes up slowly, to find him watching me, and I knew. Something else was going on here.

The door flew open, causing us both to jump, as Jonas and Trinity came in from outside. Mac announced he was going to reset the alarms as Jonas led Trinity to her seat and pulled up a chair next to her. She had obviously been crying, a near perpetual state, it seemed, since this whole thing began, but other than puffy eyes and a runny nose, she seemed none the worse for wear. I had a million questions I was dying to ask, but none of them were important right at the moment. What was important was that Trinity had told Jonas the truth, and he was back.

“Trinity explained about the gold coins,” Jonas said when Mac came back into the room. “Obviously, I don’t agree with what she did, but I can understand why she did it, and why you feel the need to go after them. For what it’s worth, I still think it’s a big mistake.”

Mac looked at me, waiting to see if I would step up or not. Heaven knows I didn’t want to, but if what he said was true, I didn’t have much of a choice. I was caught between the proverbial rock and a hard place. Somehow, while I was watching the coffee stream into the pot, I had made the decision. I might have the ultimate responsibility, but that didn’t mean I had to go it alone.

“I understand Jonas, but before we get into that, I want to say a couple of things, clear a few things up, if I may.” I looked at Jonas, who reluctantly nodded. I was treading on thin ice here, and I knew it. “Jonas, I have relied on your advice in the past, always valued your opinion. It’s the same with you, Trinity. You both have knowledge and information and experience that I will never have. I may know, instinctively the direction we need to go, but I don’t know how to get there or maybe even what to do once we arrive.” I paused, at a loss for words to explain what I wanted. Not sure how to convince them of how important they were to the whole process.

“I guess what I’m trying to say is that I have no intention of running blindly into the fray. I need your help, just like I always have.” I paused, letting my words sink in before offering him an option out. “Jonas, it’s not too late for you. They don’t know you’re with us and your connection with me is weak enough that I don’t feel they would go after you. If you want out, there’s still time.”

He sat there, looking at me and I could practically see the thoughts tumbling around in his head, weighing the options. He could go back, back to his job and his life and pretend this had never happened. If he had half a brain, he would jump on the chance. I only wished it was still an option for Trinity and Mama D.

Trinity looked at me like I had lost my mind, and I wasn’t convinced she was wrong. Mac had come through in the clinch, but he was still an unknown. Jonas was our security blanket, and the prospect of losing him and essentially being on our own was daunting, but I couldn’t deny him the choice. He had been trapped into this, and there was a way out if he wanted it. I held my breath, waiting for his decision.

“I’m sticking,” he finally said, with a grim smile. “I can’t leave Mac out here alone, with three women.”

“That’s a good choice because Taylor is wrong,” Mama D announced from the doorway, surprising us all. “You can’t go back now, Jonas. None of you can. According to the news, you four were tragically killed last night in a fire.”

We rushed into the living room, but they were already onto the next story. Mac flipped the channels and landed on one of the local stations, just as our pictures flashed onto the screen.

Jonas took top billing, being a Little Rock detective, tragically killed during a rescue attempt. Trinity and I had apparently been trapped in the blaze, which had spread to the adjoining condos, resulting in the additional death of homeowner, Julian Hayes. I cocked an eye at Mac. Poor Julian. So much for finding love and living happily ever after.

We watched as they got comments from some of the surviving neighbors, and a statement from the police about Jonas’ record with the department. When they cut to the weather, Mac grabbed the remote, and the screen went blank.

“Well, at least you died a hero, Jonas. Taylor and I were apparently too stupid to run out of a burning building,” Trinity said, sarcasm dripping from each word. “Julian, what can I say, except that photo did not do you justice.”

I looked over at her in surprise. It was the most she’d said since she’d come back inside and I took it as a positive sign that she was getting some of her sass back. Coming clean about the gold with Jonas and me probably had a lot to do with that. Mama D announced she was going to go try to get some more sleep, and Trinity decided to join her, leaving Jonas, Mac and me alone in the room. I waited until they had disappeared down the hall to voice my question.

“Just how do four dead men become two dead women and a couple of dead guys?” I asked. “What happened to the three Mac got outside the condo?”

“That agency you work for powerful enough to have fingers in this, Mac?” Jonas wanted to know.

“Worked for, Jonas. Past tense. And you have no idea how powerful they are.”

I was afraid we were going to find out.