Page 15 of Protecting Silver
“Yes.”
“You get promoted, and take over Simon’s office. We’ll remove Marc’s old desk, and together we’ll interview people for the assistant position, but for the time being, until we get more work coming in, we’ll share whomever we hire. However, I want us to both interview them. I want the three of us to be able to work together.” Lorna watched Silver’s face intently before she saw understanding, then acceptance come over her. She gripped Lorna’s hand and nodded her head.
“One question.”
“Shoot.”
“Pay. Do I get a raise?”
Lorna had been prepared for this question, so she pulled the paper out of her pocket and handed it to her. No sense wording it like Finn did, but she could write the figure down on the paper. Lorna gripped one of Silver’s hands as the younger woman unfolded the paper, and Lorna swore if Silver could have opened her mouth, it would have dropped to her knees.
“No way,” Silver said as she shook the paper at Lorna.
“Way,” Lorna laughed. “And no, that’s not pity pay, you’re being paid for the work you do, and you, Silver Roundtree, do good work.”
“When can we start?”
“Tomorrow when I go into work, I’ll tell Deb what we’re looking for. Here,” Lorna pulled Silver’s small clutch purse from her larger one and handed it over. “I made sure your battery was charged, and you have my number already programmed. I want you to think of what you want in an assistant, and text me your requirements, but remember we have to share whomever we chose. I can set up the interviews for a week from today.”
“That will work. Do you care if it’s a male or female?”
“No, as long as they know that they work for both of us. I won’t tolerate them playing favorites. I, myself, am looking for someone to answer the phones, keep us organized, and do some of the things for the fundraisers that we don’t like.” She grinned when Silver snorted a laugh.
“Like address all the envelopes?”
“Exactly.” Lorna laughed, then looked up when the door opened and four people walked in. She didn’t see the fifth person slip in just before the door closed, and stand off to the side, out of the way.
Chapter 8
“Thank god,”Amber said as she rushed forward. “I thought you’d never wake up.” She leaned down and hugged Silver as she sat in the bed. When she stood and gripped her hands over the bedrail, she burst into tears.
“What’s wrong?” Silver demanded as she looked around in a panic. Her eyes locked with Patch’s, and he only shrugged, but stayed where he was. Tymberly stepped forward and wrapped one arm around her daughter, and brought her in for a hug. She took her other hand and gripped Silver’s.
“Amber feels so guilty for not waiting for you after you left the ladies’ room.”
“Stop.” Silver held up her hand, rose to her knees, and took Amber’s face in her hands. When the younger woman looked at her, Silver spoke slowly, trying to get her point across. “You have nothing to feel guilty for. When I left the ladies’ room, it was so crowded that I was pushed in the opposite direction. I was only out in that hall for less than a minute before Eddie took me.”
“You knew your attacker?” Tymber looked at her in shock.
“Wait,” Amos Bronson said as he stepped up to the other side of the bed, and pulled out his notepad, then he looked at her and nodded. “I’d like your statement, please. I understand your jaw is wired shut, so I’ll be as quick as possible, but I really do need your statement.” He looked at the other women in the room, and shrugged. “You don’t mind, do you?”
“No,” the others said, and Amber helped Silver settle back down in the bed, then fluffed her pillow, and fussed with the blanket. Silver had to grab her hands and shake her head at her to get her to stop. With both of Amber’s hands gripped in hers, she turned to the Sheriff and nodded.
“I’m sure you know that it was crowded in the club. Just before the band stopped, Amber and I went to the ladies’ room. It’s a two-stall bathroom. After I was finished, instead of waiting for Amber inside, I told her I’d wait for her out in the hall, giving the others I heard a chance to come in. She told me she would be right out.” Silver had to pause to regulate her breathing, then take a sip of the water that Amber handed to her.
When she was ready, she looked at Amos again, nodded, then continued her tale, “Like I said, it was so crowded in the hallway. I thought it was bad out in the seating area, but it was worse back there. Everyone was pushing and shoving, trying to get a place in line, and the men had to go through the line to get to their bathroom. I ended up leaning against the wall between the two bathrooms. My shoulder was propped against the wall, facing the ladies’ room. I was going to yell to Amber when I saw her come out. Next thing I know, an arm reached around me from behind, and placed a hand over my mouth. They picked me up and I found myself going backwards. I fought with all my strength, I even got in some good scratches on his arms.”
“We know, and thank you for that. We were able to get DNA from beneath your fingernails. Take your time, but please, tell me what happened next.”
This time when Silver went to continue, Patch had moved closer, and he’d taken the pitcher and refilled it in the bathroom. When he returned it to the tray table, he stood next to her head, and laid a gentling hand on her shoulder. Silver reached up and gripped it tightly with one of her own, holding it while she finished retelling her ordeal.
“Once we were outside, the man whipped me around, and slammed my back to the building. I hit my head and saw stars. He held me by my throat, and I knew I was off the ground, because Eddie is six foot three and I’m only five three. We were eye-to-eye, and I didn’t feel anything beneath my feet. Before I could say anything, he started punching me in the face, and berated me.”
“Did he yell? Scream? Holler?” Ronnie asked then.
“No, that’s not Eddie’s style. When he gets pissed, he gets quiet, and you can barely hear him. Normally, he’s a loud man, except when he’s pissed, but when the quiet sets in, it’s time to run. Except for this time, he wouldn’t allow me to run. The entire time he beat me, he told me that he was pissed at me, because I left him without a backward glance, that he had to even kill his own dog, because the dog took my side during an argument, and not his. Please, pardon my language, but his rantings were fucked up, and all over the place. For one, I was being beaten and my ears were ringing, and two, what he was saying didn’t make any sense to me. It was like extremely quiet rantings of a lunatic.”
Everyone stared at her when she paused, and Patch gave her a sip of water. When she slumped back against the pillows, she let out a sigh, then looked at Amos. “The next thing I know, I’m looking at Patch here, and I could barely see him, through the red haze of my eyesight. When I tried to talk, my jaw wouldn’t move, but he was able to understand my hands enough to get me a piece of paper to write on.”
