Page 89 of Tiny's Law

Chapter 27

Kourtney

Tiny has been acting really freaking weird the last two days, ever since he called to tell me he had a headache after work on Thursday. He said he usually never gets headaches, but it was a bad day at work, and he wanted to just go home and sleep it off. But since then, it’s almost like he’s been paranoid.

I’ve been wondering if Evie told him what happened with Matt on Wednesday. I feel like he would have said something by now, and I feel like too much time has gone past that I can’t be the one to bring it up. He’d just be mad that I kept that from him.

I vaguely wonder if this is him pulling the same stunt I did when Ben spooked me.

No, Tiny wouldn’t play silly games like that.

This morning, he seemed fine when he brought me coffee. He convinced me to come to a barbecue at the clubhouse with him today. I’m actually pretty excited because I ended up having a blast with all the girls after Evie and I had our heart-to-heart in the private room.

I don’t remember much after Owen picked Reggie, Emma, and me up, but waking up next to a naked Tiny and the delicious ache in my muscles told me all I needed to know about what happened after I got home.

It's a pity I don’t remember any of it.

Tiny left early this afternoon with a promise of seeing me later at the clubhouse. After promising I’d meet him there, he finally agreed to let me drive myself.

I spend the rest of my Sunday afternoon pampering myself. I’ve been to Chloe for my nails and waxing a few times now, and I’ve almost come to love her even more than my old girl in Phoenix.

When the clock hits four, I decide to start getting ready. It’s chilly out, so I go with a pair of jeans, converse, and a fitted cropped sweater. Luckily, my jeans are high-waisted enough that the breeze shouldn’t be too much on my stomach.

When I’m done getting ready, I toss my phone into my bag, drop it on the counter, and round the corner to refill Meatball’s feeder and water dish before I leave.

My front door alarm chirps, and I roll my eyes. I had a feeling Tiny wasn’t going to trust that I’d show up on my own.

“Really? You thought I wouldn’t come? I told you I was coming!” I call out, laughing as I bend at the waist to put Meatball’s water dish back.

Tiny doesn’t respond. A wide smile pulls at my lips, and I spin around to face him.

The smile falls immediately at the sight in front of me. Dread pools in my stomach, and a fear like I’ve never known consumes me.

A very disheveled Matt is holding a sobbing Evie by the arm. Tape covers her mouth, and I can’t tell from my position behind the counter, but I’d bet by the angle of her arms that he has them tied behind her back.

My own tears burn the backs of my eyes as I watch Evie sob against the tape. Her hair looks as if he’s been pulling her by it, and snot and tears run down her face. She looks like she’s been through hell. My heart immediately clenches for her.

It isn’t the sight of her sobbing that has my blood running cold, though, but the small handgun Matt has pressed against her shoulder. Evie sobs harder as he shoves her forward, jamming the gun farther into her arm. “Shut up. All you had to do was come home with me, and all of this could’ve been avoided, darling.”

My fingers tremble against the counter as I think of what the fuck to do. He has a fucking gun. What the hell am I supposed to do? I’m way too far away from the front door to trigger my emergency alarm. The other alarm is on my phone, which is closer to them than me. There’s no way I could get into my purse without him noticing.

Fuck. Sweat pools at the back of my neck. I feel like I’m going to pass out.

Matt waves the gun, gesturing towards a tied and taped Evie. “It’s a shame you couldn’t just shut up and help me convince my wife to come home. Charlotte won’t answer the phone, Evie won’t come home to me, and you–” he cuts off, and he turns a crazed stare to me. I refuse to look into his eyes. Instead, I hold eye contact with Evie.

“Don’t look at her.” I gasp as he throws Evie to the ground and stalks closer to me, though I’m momentarily happy to realize Evie’s hands are not tied.

Evie’s sobs and Matt’s harsh breaths echo in the otherwise eerily quiet house. Nerves rage inside me as he stalks closer and closer. “If I can’t have any of you, no one can have you,” he says with a creepy grin. I hold my breath and crane my neck as he runs the barrel of the gun along the side of my neck and uses it to flick my hair away.

Something is seriously wrong with him. Is he on drugs? Is he going crazy? So many thoughts race through my mind, and even as terrified as I am, I can’t help the thoughts that emerge.

With the angle of my neck, I can’t help but look into the unhinged look in his eyes. It’s like he’s not even in there. His stare is blank, sinister. An ominous smile covers the rest of his face as he trails the gun along my chest. “Bang,” he whispers. I flinch and let the tears fall silently as he mimics shooting me in the chest. “Bang,” he points the gun at different, deadly parts of my body as he repeats the movements. “Bang. Bang. Bang.” His cackling laugh sounds eerily like the Joker’s. “You could’ve been dead so many times just now. But I’m not done with you yet.”

I release a breath as he takes a step back and only briefly relax as he swings the gun back towards Evie. “Bang,” he says, but this time I let out a blood-curdling scream as he actually shoots. “Oops,” he says. “I missed.” My chest heaves, and nausea rolls within me as Evie curls herself into a ball. I lock eyes on the bullet hole now in the wall next to Evie’s body.

Spinning back toward me, Matt grins. “You think I could purposefully miss twice?”

I nod, with tears racing down my cheeks. My eyes widen as my phone rings from my bag on the counter. I flick my eyes to the clock on the stove. It’s already five. I was supposed to be at the clubhouse. That’s no doubt Tiny, calling to see where I am.

---