Buck, page 20
“We were there, ma’am,” Buck finally says.
“You were there? At his office? How did this happen?”
“I think you’ll need to talk to the police about that,” Buck says.
“The police? What are you talking about? Who shot my husband?”
Luke opens his mouth, but a doctor dressed in blue scrubs comes out through double doors.
“I’m looking for Mrs. Harrison Walker,” she says.
Mrs. Wallace stands. “You mean Mrs. Harrison Wallace?”
“Right. I’m sorry.”
“I’m Rita Wallace.”
The doctor holds out her hand. “I’m Dr. Duluth, the resident on your husband’s case. He’s going to need surgery on his wrist. The gunshot wound shattered it.”
Mrs. Wallace gulps. “But is he okay? Will he live?”
“Yes, ma’am. At this point we expect him to make a full recovery. Though he may have limited movement in his wrist.”
“What about the other wound? The shoulder?”
“The bullet went through. No major blood vessels were affected. We’ve already stitched up the wound and gotten him started on antibiotics.”
Mrs. Wallace sits down in a chair and sighs. “Thank God.”
“I’m happy we could give you some good news,” Dr. Duluth says. “I need to return and prep for surgery. Either I or the attending surgeon will be out to give you an update when he’s finished.”
“Yes, Doctor. Thank you.”
Dr. Duluth nods. “You’re very welcome.” Then she moves swiftly across the waiting area and back through the double doors.
Mrs. Wallace sits with her head in her hands as two police officers walk toward her.
I almost feel bad for her.
Almost.
She may well be innocent in all of this. Who knows? But is she truly innocent? If she were, wouldn’t her daughter have been a better person?
Her husband probably kept his X-rated escapades from her, but Taylor?
None of it makes sense.
We can’t really talk, with Mrs. Wallace sitting so close to us.
Buck stands then. “Mrs. Wallace, we’re very happy to hear that your husband will be okay.” Then to Luke and me. “We should go.”
I know what he means. He’s not suggesting that we leave the hospital. But we need to leave this area, so we can speak freely.
“Yes, of course,” Mrs. Wallace says. “Thank you for being here with him.”
Buck merely nods, and Luke and I don’t say anything as we walk out of the waiting area.
Once outside—
Luke turns to Buck. “Let’s go somewhere secure.”
“Back to your place?” Buck says.
He nods. “Wallace is under guard, so he’s not going anywhere. Katelyn will be worried, and I don’t want her to go through any pain.”
“We’ll see you there.”
45
BUCK
Aspen and I are quiet as we drive to the beach house, following Luke in his Tesla.
I don’t speak because I can’t put one thought out of my mind: If not for Luke Ashton — Lucifer Raven—I could be dead right now.
Most likely not, as the chance of Harrison Wallace making a left-handed shot wasn’t good, but what if he’d been able to?
Even a bad shot could have done significant damage.
Now I’m indebted to Luke.
I don’t like the feeling.
But he didn’t have to take the shot.
Now he’s going to have to answer to the cops, and he may well lose his immunity. Or at least go on probation or something. I can’t imagine any immunity agreement that allows him to be in possession of a firearm.
He fucking saved me.
And boy, that grates on me.
Aspen lets out a soft sigh.
“You okay, baby?”
“I’m so far from okay, Buck. But at least we’re getting some answers. Harrison Wallace almost evaded us.”
“I know.”
“If you hadn’t recognized that conch shell…”
“Even with the conch shell, it was still a long shot. I mean, maybe he just collects shells from South Pacific places. But I just had a feeling when we walked in that office. The hair on the back of my neck stood up. I knew something was off.”
“Your instinct is phenomenal,” she says. “I owe you everything, Buck.”
“I wish my instinct had kicked in a little sooner, before I took you in there.”
“You think you could have kept me out?” She rubs my thigh. “I’m fine. We’re both fine. You saved me. You got that shot to his wrist and got his gun off me.”
I say nothing.
Yeah, I was pretty sure I could make the shot, but I knew there was still a risk.
A risk I probably shouldn’t have taken.
I knew with ninety-five percent certainty that I could make the shot. But what about the remaining five percent?
What if I had missed? And he had shot Aspen dead?
I can’t even allow myself to go there.
“There’s still so much I don’t know,” Aspen says with a sigh. “Like why the albino was impersonating Greg Wallace, why Greg was killed, why Harrison disowned Taylor…”
We pull up in front of the beach house. Luke drives into the garage and goes in the back way. Aspen and I go in the front door.
Jed and Edgar greet us with lots of jumping and licking.
That puts a smile on Aspen’s face, so I’m forever grateful to those dogs.
When we are finally settled on the deck, and the dogs are playing, I turn to Luke.
Katelyn and Aspen are talking, and while I know I should let Aspen in on what’s going on, and I will, right now she needs to be with Katelyn.
“What did you find out?”
“Just that Harrison was the bad guy, not his brother. He framed him.”
Luke turns to me. “How did you figure it out?”
“It was a hunch, really. I just had a feeling when I walked in that office that something was off. Then I saw the South Pacific conch shell on his desk. The only time I’ve ever seen a shell like that was on Derek Wolfe’s island. When I went to rescue”—I clear my throat—“Emily.”
Luke simply nods.
He doesn’t add anything, and I don’t expect him to.
I shot him that day, in the shoulder. Nearly the exact same shot that he gave to Harrison Wallace today.
“Where’d you learn to shoot?” I ask Luke.
“My old man, of course. You saw the shooting range in his bunker.”
I nod. “So not on the streets of LA? Hustling drugs?”
“I never hustled drugs on the street. I was higher up than that.”
I say nothing.
He’s probably waiting for me to acknowledge that he’s not that man anymore. That he saved my life today. Man, I totally don’t want to do that.
But damn…
He thanked me. He thanked me for what I did for Katelyn when we were both being held captive by King Winston.
Today he saved my life.
After I saved Aspen’s.
Listen,” I say, “I’m in your debt now.”
Luke draws in a breath and then exhales. “No. We’ll call it even.”
I nod. “Thank you. I’m glad you were there to take Wallace out of commission before he shot me. Or worse yet, Aspen.”
“That wouldn’t have been pretty.”
“I know. A left-handed shot. He could’ve done some damage.”
“But he didn’t. And he’s going to be put away now.”
“Is he? I just have a feeling that Chris Pollack and the albino are not long for this world.”
“It doesn’t matter. You and Aspen got the whole story out of him. You’ll need to testify.”
I nod. “So what’s the connection to the albino?” I ask.
“Turns out he was a buddy of Wallace’s from the island. He’s the one who took care of Greg Wallace in prison. Seems Greg kept protesting, saying he was an innocent man, that he had been framed. The thing is? He never knew his brother was the one who framed him. No one believed him because he’d been dishonorably discharged from the Navy.”
“Right. Darnell Davis told me all about that.”
“Right,” Luke says.
“So what happened then? Harrison must have used Greg’s name when he went to the island.”
“Yeah. Greg Wallace’s name was on that manifest. Harrison used his brother’s name to go to the island and commit horrific acts, and somehow or another he met the albino, Fernando Smith. Whether they knew each other in LA, I don’t know. It doesn’t really matter.”
“How did Fernando Smith end up taking Greg Wallace’s place in prison?”
“He got in under the guise of being a guard. Then he took care of Greg and simply put on his prison orange jumpsuit. Obviously they had a man on the inside helping. The guards don’t pay a lot of attention to the prisoners. They’re all numbers. Not faces or names.”
“But Smith is albino. Surely they’d remember him.”
“Nope. They see all kinds in prison, and they cease to be human to the guards after a while. Apparently Smith had a deal with Harrison to get sprung after Pollack was taken care of.”
I nod. “It’s a pretty brilliant plan when you think about it.”
“I know. Somehow the albino escaped prosecution. The name of Fernando Smith doesn’t appear anywhere on any of the manifests.”
“Well, he was there. He…” I shake my head. “I wish I could kill that motherfucker with my bare hands.”
“Yeah. Now you know how I feel about Chris Pollack.”
I nod.
Seems Luke and I have finally found common ground.
I’m not sure I’ll ever call him a friend.
But at least I can call him an ally.
I don’t feel like he’s my enemy anymore.
I believe he truly cares about Katelyn. I only wish he could’ve cared about my sister that same way, but then? Things may have turned out completely differently.
Sometimes things happen for a reason. Little puzzle pieces all fall into place, kind of like Tetris.
And maybe Luke is part of the puzzle that brought me to Aspen.
He did save my life today. And for that I can’t help but be grateful.
“So…” I rake my fingers through my hair. “Help on the inside? How do we find out who’s helping them? And how do we get our hands on this albino?”
“I’ve been thinking about that,” Luke says.
“Yeah, so have I. There’s only one way, isn’t there? Aspen’s going to have to file a report. Tell the police what the albino did to her.”
Luke nods. “That’s the only way. I mean, you and I both have contacts. The Wolfes have contacts. We can get them all offed, but I made a promise to myself when I asked Katelyn to marry me that I would be legit. I wouldn’t commit any crimes or cause any crimes to be committed.”
“You just shot a man today,” I say.
“So did you, and that’s different. I was defending someone.”
I nod. “Yeah, so was I. Is this going to affect your immunity deal?”
“No. I’ve already talked to my old man about that. Technically, I’m not supposed to be carrying a firearm, but my old man cut a deal with the officer on my case.”
“And you’re okay with that?”
“I am. Because I saved your life today, Buck. Your life is important to Aspen and important to Katelyn. The two of them are important to me.”
I nod.
That’s what it all comes down to in the end.
He loves Katelyn, and I love Aspen.
I love Katelyn and he loves Aspen, as well.
The two of them are what bind us together.
We’re no longer bound by my sister, but by the women we love.
And I can learn to live with that.
I have to.
46
ASPEN
I’m still shaking when I go to bed.
Buck comes to me, holds me.
He doesn’t try to fuck me or even kiss me.
Instinctively, he knows what I need.
I could’ve died today.
Buck could’ve died today.
We’re here. We’re alive.
So why am I lying here like a dead fish?
I turn in his arms, and I press my lips to his.
“Baby?”
“Please. I need you. Make love to me. Slowly this time. Show me why we’re still here. Show me what’s important in life. What’s beautiful.”
He kisses me then, a sweet yet passionate kiss, and as soon as we’re naked, I lift my leg over his hips, and he slides into me.
Such sweet completion.
And exactly what I need in this moment.
The next morning, a detective from the LAPD and an agent from the FBI come to the house to talk to me.
Katelyn sits, holding my hand, while Buck sits on my other side with his arm around me.
And I tell my story.
My memory—the one that wasn’t very reliable when I first left the island and even after I got to Manhattan—now has no holes.
I tell the whole story.
All about the albino, and all the other men who hunted me, used me, tortured me, raped me. Violated me in the most horrific of ways.
Then the detective—a woman—takes me privately into one of the bedrooms.
I disrobe, and she takes photographs of my body.
I’m not embarrassed. I’m not humiliated.
It’s freeing, in a way.
This is what it will take to get the albino put away for a long time.
For good.
As for Pollack?
Katelyn doesn’t have to have her body photographed. First of all, he didn’t put any marks on her. And secondly? We’ve already got him on two murders and an assault and battery.
But Katelyn has told her story anyway.
Buck hugs me and soothes me after the detective and the FBI agent leave.
“We’re almost there, baby,” he says, kissing the outer rim of my ear. “Almost. Soon we’ll be able to leave all of this behind us.”
I hope he’s right.
I’m almost afraid to let myself feel that he may be right.
The albino, as far as we know, is still in prison impersonating Greg Wallace.
Chris Pollack is in the county jail, awaiting his trial.
And Harrison Wallace?
He’s in the hospital, his one good hand handcuffed to his bed.
Taylor is dead.
Gloria and her husband are dead.
Nancy is in prison for six months after pleading guilty.
I’ve succeeded, for the most part.
I succeeded in getting all of my questions answered.
So why do I feel so…
What exactly do I feel?
I’m loved, cherished by a wonderful man.
A man I love in return, who I know will be with me, by my side, for the rest of our lives.
I smile against his shoulder.
Still… something else isn’t sitting right with me.
I have the most wonderful man in the world.
I have answers to my questions, and the people who sent me to that island have paid or will pay.
I have Luke and Katelyn, the best friends a girl could ask for.
I have my mother and my father, who love me.
And I have little Edgar.
I nuzzle into Buck’s shoulder.
Whatever this thing is that’s bugging me?
I will tamp it down.
Because my life is good now.
I don’t want that to change.
And ruminating on something that may not even exist?
I don’t need that.
Still… The albino’s out there.
If he wasn’t supposed to be in prison in the first place—if he only went there to take the place of Greg Wallace—he won’t stay there for long, even with the testimony I just gave to the LAPD and the FBI. He clearly has connections, which is how he got in there in the first place. He can get out…
And he can come for me.
Harrison Wallace is no consequence at the moment. He’s recovering from two gunshot wounds, and he’s handcuffed to his hospital bed.
But he has people on the outside—people who got rid of his brother and put the albino in his place.
I still haven’t gotten revenge on everyone who did me wrong.
I want them all to pay.
Especially the albino.
He needs to pay for what he’s done to me. But how? As far as the authorities know, he’s Greg Wallace. I’m still not exactly sure how all that took place.
The only one who can tell us is Harrison Wallace, and he’s recuperating from gunshot wounds.
If only…
“Buck?”
“Yeah baby?”
“How do I know? How do I know the albino will pay for what he did to me?”
“Well, you just gave a statement to the local PD and the feds.”
“But he’s in prison as Greg Wallace.”
“Baby, it’s already been started. They’re going to check the fingerprints against Greg Wallace’s. They’re on file because he was originally framed by his brother. They will easily be able to prove that the albino is not Greg Wallace.”
I heave a sigh. And tears squirm out of my eyes.
I know all this. I don’t know why I’m worried. The albino will get what’s coming to him.
As for Greg Wallace?
In his way, he was as much a victim as I am.
Victimized by his own brother—framed for actions he did not commit. But also dishonorably discharged from the Navy.
“We have to tell my dad,” I say. “He has to know that it wasn’t Greg Wallace—the SEAL he got kicked out—who hurt me. He thinks this is his fault.”
“You can call him whenever you’re ready, baby.”
I nod. “I will. When I’m thinking clearly.”
“Aspen, no one can blame you if you’re not thinking clearly. Believe me, I’ve been there.”
I cup his stubbly cheek, run my thumb over his lower lip. He’s so handsome, my Buck. So big and strong and magnificent.
And he’s been through…
I don’t even know everything that he’s been through. Just like he doesn’t know everything that I’ve been through. We have our lifetimes to learn everything about each other. And some of those things? Some of those things we may just keep bottled inside.
