Page 97 of His Last Shot
“Not good enough. Say it.” He sits motionless. “I have always known you to be a man of your word in the past. If you love me, as you claim to, promise me to spare that family and Micah, and I promise you I will stay away from Johnny. Now say it!”
“I promise.”
“Good. Now I will make you one last promise. I swear, from this day on, I will not speak to you ever again. You are dead to me. Nothing. A nobody. Once I walk out that door, we are no longer family, and I no longer work for you. Don’t call me, don’t send your lackey Drew to check on me. I am erasing you from my life. Do we have an understanding?”
He only stares at me.
“I said, do we have an understanding?”
Fully comprehending that he has lost this battle, he looks at the floorboards. His actions have cost him his niece. “If that’s what you want. I understand.” And he doesn’t even care.
My fingers wrap around the smooth door handle. “Rachel?” I brace myself and face him one last time, the oppression of the moment heavy. “No contact.”
Of course, he has to have the final word.
I swing the door open, and there, standing in the hallway, is Slick. The door clicks behind me. “Did you hear?”
He nods. “I heard everything. Come here.” He waves me toward him and encases me in an embrace full of heart and empathy. I melt into his arms. Just then, Randy, Tiny, and Micah round the corner. I release my hold on Slick. “What are you guys doing here?”
“I rounded them up when I saw you charge toward the office,” Micah says. “They got here a little bit ago. We were listening and ready to barge in there if needed.”
My chest squeezes from the unspoken loyalty.
With a decisive turn, I move to stand in front of my brother, positioning myself between him and the OBGs. “You didn’t have to do that for him. It was just a ring. We could have made something work. Shelby wouldn’t have cared. She would have married you with a gumball ring.”
He covers his face with both hands. “God, I know! It was so stupid of me. I’m so sorry, sis.” With a gentle pull, he gathers me into his arms, the warmth of his body comforting me. “I’m so sorry I lied to you. I wanted to tell you, but I also wanted to keep you in the dark. For your safety.” We pull apart. “And now, he’s using it against you.”
I can’t be mad. There’s no point. We all do dumb things when we feel we have no way out sometimes. And he’s paying the price. Dexter may use this as leverage against him in the future. Or worse.
Micah and I are Dexter’s only living family. I was naïve enough to think that, in a million years, he would never hurt Micah and me. And he hasn’t, physically.
Emotionally, he is murdering us both.
“Please, don’t beat yourself up. Dexter is doing enough of that as it is. But I quit, Micah. I’m done.”
Stepping forward, he pulls me into yet another comforting hug, the warmth of his affection a welcome relief. “Me too,” he muffles into my shoulder.
He releases me. “We are family.” I grin, and so doeshe.
“And family sticks together as one,” Micah and I say in unison, but we aren’t the only ones. Slick, Tiny, and Randy recite it as well.
Somehow, the Oldies but Goodies have become more family to me than the poor excuse of a human on the other side of this door. And I am going to need them to get through the onslaught of sadness that is coming my way.
Thanks to Dexter, Johnny is out of my life. I will never be able to touch him again, hear him call me ‘my love,’ or kiss him. No more stargazing in his truck. No more hidden kisses in the kitchen or snuggles on his couch.
He’s gone.
And nothing will ever be the same.
The five of us walk out of Dexter’s for the last time. As we approach the door, Tiny speaks first. “Great. Now, where are we going to hang out and have a drink? That worthless piece of sh—”
“Language!” we all shout at once as we meander toward our vehicles.
He flicks his hand dismissively. “Fine. That worthless piece ofcraphas ruined Dexter’s for us. What now?”
“Come to my place,” Micah offers. “You guys are welcome there anytime.”
Randy slides into his Jeep. “Alright then. Meet you guys there.”
