Jeanne Stein Anna Strong 02 Blood Drive v1.5 (BD)

[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

Burdick sbreath catches in his throat. His eyes squeeze shut. He reminds me
of an ostrich who thinks because his head is buried, the rest of his body has
disappeared, too.
I cross over to him, clucking my tongue.
He doesn t open his eyes.
I put a hand on his shoulder. He jumps.
I take his shoulders and turn him to face me, away from the mirrors.
But, you know, I think we can work this out.
He grunts.
I want to move out.This weekend. But, gee, that means I can t give the
proper notice. That won t be a problem, though, will it?
At that, he opens one eye and moves his head slowly from right to left. As
far as I can tell, he has yet to draw a breath.
And as for the deposit, I want it back. First and last month s rent and my
security deposit.All of it.In a check on Saturday. That s three days from now.
Think you can arrange it?
That at last provokes a reaction. All of it? I don t think I can do that-
Of course you can, Burdick. It will be a lot less expensive than defending
yourself against the charges I could bring against you for this.Especially
since I have two witnesses right outside. They seem like smart guys. They
aren t going to jeopardize their own skins for you.
He opens the other eye, his lips press into a thin line, and his brows
scrunch together. How do I know you won t press charges anyway?
You don t, I respond cheerfully. Guess you ll just have to trust me.
There s a timid knock from outside and an anxious voice calls in, Burdick,
we re done here. Should we wait for you?
I answer for him. Yeah. He s on his way out.
Burdick manages to gather his wits about him enough to straighten his
shoulders and steady his voice as he prepares to leave. Okay. You ll get your
check. I don t want any trouble. He starts to pull the panties out of his
pocket.
I stop him with an upturned hand. Keep them. As if I could ever imagine
wearing them again. There isn t a disinfectant strong enough. Consider them
payment for the door.
I follow him out and close and deadbolt the door with a decisive click. When
I m alone, I realize my hands are shaking.
How many assholes am I going to have to deal with in my immortal life? How
many monsters like the creeps who hurt Trish, and how many insignificant
insects like Burdick? Is this what I have to look forward to for all eternity?
I return to the bathroom to splash water on my face. The towel I grab to dry
Page 107
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
off has a scent clinging to it-Max s. I bring it to my face and inhale. It s a
reminder that there are good men out there.
Goodmen.
Another complication I can t face right now.
My jeans are in a pile on the living room floor. I fish Ryan s number out of
the pocket. The idea that Burdick might have touched them, too, or the
underwear tucked inside when I pulled them off, makes me cringe. But hopefully
he wouldn t have been depraved enough to touch things in full view of his
workman.
I can only hope.
To be on the safe side, I handle the jeans with two fingers and dump them
into the hamper. Maybe I should burn them.
Then I focus on the number, written in precise, uniform numerals.The stamp of
a budding engineer. I dial it and he picks up on the first ring.
Where is she? he demands in a rough whisper.
Why are you whispering?
I can hear his teeth grind. I m in class. We aren t supposed to have our
cell phones on. Tell me. What have you done with Trish?
I glance at my watch. I never gave a thought to the time. When is school
over?
In about an hour.Damn it. Where is Trish?
What school?
There is a voice in the background calling Ryan s name impatiently. He snaps
back at me, Mission Bay High.
I ll be out front. Look for a red Jag.
He doesn t have a chance to answer. The connection is cut, probably by some
angry teacher. Hopefully, I didn t get him into too much trouble. How am I
going to convince him that Trish is safe and that it s in her best interest to
give me that computer? He certainly isn t easily frightened or intimidated-not
by me anyway.
I blow out a lungful of air, trying to expel the negative energy that darkens
my mood. I look around the apartment. At least I ll be getting out of here.
That triggers the thought that I never did get around to having my furniture
delivered. That number is in my purse, and after calling the store and
arranging delivery on Saturday, I actually feel a little better.Saturday.
Three days from now. I ll be moving back into my own place. The DNA test
results will be back and I ll find out just how good Sorrel is.
Three days.
Chapter Thirty-Two
MissionBayHigh Schoolis located onGrand Avenue , one of the busiest
thoroughfares inSan Diego . When it was built, however, it wasn t so busy. MBH
Page 108
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
is one of the oldest schools in the county and it looks it. The buildings are
sun bleached and badly in need of paint. The meager landscaping shows signs of
giving in to the constant onslaught of salt air and the annual pounding of
seventeen hundred pair of student feet. The grass is brown, and a few scruffy
bushes cling to life. But the school has a surfing team and that makes it one
of the most popular among teens and assures parental support.
I pull up about fifteen minutes before the end of the school day and Ryan is
already at the curb, pacing and frowning with the intensity of a pit bull. He
barely lets me come to a stop before he yanks open the door and jumps in.
Let s go, he says in tight voice.
I look pointedly at my watch. I thought school wasn t over for another
fifteen minutes.
It s over for me.Has been since you called. Now take me to Trish.
His face is so implacably hostile it almost trips an outburst of my own
temper-until I remind myself that this is the kid who helped Trish and
protected her when she had no one else. He deserves some respect for that.
Act likean adult, I tell myself. Say something meaningful.
I turn in the seat to face him. Would you like to get something to eat?
Are you crazy? I want to see Trish. If you don t take me to her, I ll jump
out of this car and start yelling that you are trying to molest me. I can be
very persuasive. Do you want to see?
His response is explosive and full of rage. But under the rage blazes fear.
He s scared to death for Trish. And he now sees me as the enemy-another adult
out to take advantage of her.
I hold up a hand. Ryan, listen to me. Trish is all right. She s safe. I m [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

Tematy