Page 30 of Edging Obsession

I’m patting her hair down, kissing it, and whispering, “We’re good, Jules. Everything is fine.”

Someone is running from behind me, and shouts, “You guys, okay?”

Hendrick comes up to us, and when he sees Jules’ bare ass, he turns away and says, “Oh shit. Sorry.”

“Wait! Don’t go yet.” We stand and I yank her jeans up. Her arms squeeze me tight, shaking from the cold. “We’re good, Hendrick. What happened up there?”

He twists back to us. “It was that crazy bitch sending you the pictures.”

I smash Jules closer into me. “I heard gunshots.”

We walk up the ridge, me carrying Jules, as Hendricks says, “Yeah, she shot into the water. My door was jammed into the railing so I had to slide out the passenger door, and I shot her in the leg. She dropped the gun when she fell.”

Up the bridge, we wait for the ambulance, police cars, and most likely TV crews. Hendrick approaches the woman, standing over her, and when I’m about to sit Jules on the ground, the police and ambulance pull up. A paramedic runs to us, gesturing to the ambulance. I place Jules inside, and when I’m about to hop off, she grabs my arm.

Through a tear-soaked face, she says, “Please don’t leave me, Miles.”

I kiss her hand. “Schatzi, I’ll be right here. They have to check that you’re okay.”

Her distress fades. A paramedic takes her vitals, and I stand next to the ambulance with Hendrick. The police begin to cordon off the area, and as predicted, the TV crews start pulling up outside the taped area. A police officer approaches, the kind you find behind a desk for too long and in a donut shop too often.

The officer stops in front of me, tucking his thumbs underneath his protruding belly and into his waistband, and says, “I’m Officer Bigsby. How’s everyone doing over here?”

Hendrick and I exchange acheck out this dumb assglance, and I say, “We’re fine.”

His head and chins shake as he says, “Good. I’ll need to get a statement from you. The woman who hit you is going to the hospital and will be transferred to the jail afterwards.”

I cross my arms over my chest. “What do you want to know?”

Officer Bigsby tugs a small notepad out of his pocket. Its corners are folded, and the spiral wiring is bent. His shoulders straighten as he says, “For starters, let’s begin with your name.”

“Miles Nash.”

He stops mid-writing and looks up, pointing and shaking the pen in my direction. “You’re the guy from that popular band…uh, what’s—”

“The Coven.”

The pen smacks against the pad when he says, “That’s it.” He shakes his head. “WOW! My daughter is a huge fan of yours.”

As he writes, I give Hendrick a sideways squint and a smug smile, and say to Bigsby, “I’d be happy to give her an autograph.”

His head shoots up. “Oh man, that would be great.” I nod. “Okay, let’s get this over with then. Can you tell me what happened?”

I go over the events and Hendrick chimes in when necessary. Jules’ hands wrap around my waist from behind, her head resting on my back, and I place a hand on top of hers. Bigsby wants to talk to Jules, so I slide her in front of me, arms draped down her front, as she tells him what she remembers. Our statements satisfy Officer Bigsby, so I give him an autograph, and he disappears into the throng of media standing at a distance behind the police tape. Jules buries her face inside my jacket.

Hendrick taps my arm. “Andreas is parked over there.” He points to an area away from the chaos.

I hide Jules under my jacket as we go to the car. We’re faster than the media and pull away from the parking space right when the swarm of bees attack. At home, we get cleaned up and I tuck Jules into bed. She’s still freaked out about what happened, but exhaustion got the best of her. I meet the guys downstairs.

Andreas is eager to please, so he pushes off the wall and says, “We paid someone who is working the case to feed us information about the woman who ran you off the road.” I tick my head for him to proceed. “The police raided her home. In every room, she has an entire wall filled with thousands of pictures of you.” He hands over his phone to show me some of the rooms. “You’re the woman’s obsession.”

I return his phone. “Follow up and find out her release date.” My eyes meet Hendrick while I’m still talking to Andreas. “She could have killed Jules.” I turn back to Andreas. “When she’s out, take care of it, and make it look like an accident.” Andreas gives a stiff nod.

I address the rest of the guys. “On another note, Johann has contacted me. The Turkish clan is rising, and he needs me back home. The band is starting the European tour next week, so I’ll use that as a reason to return to Germany.” My head angles toward Tomas. “You can head back to Germany. Hendrick and Andreas will remain behind. I’ll let my brother know you’re coming.”

After more discussion about the clan, I dismiss them, and the house falls into a peaceful quiet. I collapse in a chair and run my hands through my hair, letting out a long breath. I’ve been in several life and death situations, one being five-years ago, but to see the terror on Jules’ face fractured my control. I’m bringing her into my world. A world wound in danger. The smart and decent thing to do is let her go, so she can remain safe. I can’t though. Loving her isn’t a choice, but a necessity. Jules is vital to my sanity. She’s the only goodness in my life—a path absent of violence.

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