Page 60 of Dancin' with Demons

My eyes move down the fence to four words in red that drips down.

Welcome Home, Fuck Toy.

My stomach heaves again, the murmurs of my bosses and co-worker not registering in my ears.

That’s when I notice the pool of red on the sidewalk. To the left is a large lump that’s gray in color. Taking a step forward, my eyes dart to the right and I yelp, spinning away from the sight and darting to the side of the parking lot as everything in my stomach comes up. Bracing my hands on my knees, I puke my guts out as a gentle hand rests on my back.

“Deep breath, hon. Tyler call the cops. James, call Catacomb. Get Renegade here.”

I heave again, this time dropping to my knees. Renee squats next to me, slowly rubbing my back.

“That-that was a fucking dog,” I sputter, gagging as I try to get the words out.

“I know,” Renee says softly.

“Its head was like six feet away from the body, Renee.” I heave and lean over as another round of my stomach contents comes up.

“Yeah,” Renee says with a sigh, “not exactly pleasant. Stay here a second, okay.”

The pressure from Renee’s hand disappears, her feet crunching on the gravel as she moves away. I don’t know why, but I glance over my shoulder. Just as I do, she stops in front of the severed dog head and pulls something white from its mouth. Folding whatever it is in half, she slides it into her back pocket before coming back to me.

“What did you get,” I ask as she squats next to me with the first wail of police sirens echoing through the air.

“A note, I think.”

“Why did you take it?” My voice hitches and I know a panic attack is coming, and I don’t need that right now.

“For Renegade,” she says quietly as the sirens deafen us, the parking lot being bathed in flashing lights as several police cars pull into the lot. “Over here!”

Renee raises her hand, so the police see us. The first one out of the closest car yells instructions to the others before coming over to us.

“Ma’am, we’ve got an ambulance coming to make sure you’re okay,” the officer says as he squats on the opposite side of me. “Can you answer some questions?”

“I’ll try,” I say with a nod.

The cop smiles at me. “First, do you know who that is in those pictures?”

Nodding, my stomach rolls again, and I cover my mouth with my hand. Renee rubs her hand across my lower back, and the cop rests a hand on my shoulder. “It’s me.”

The cop stares at me with wide eyes. “Do you know who took them?”

“A few years ago, I was kidnapped by some men. I don’t know who they were. I got away and ran. Left the state.”

“The college kidnappings?”

“Yes,” I whisper a second before having to lean forward and puke again. “Renee, please call Renegade for me.”

“James is already callin’ Catacomb to get a hold of him, sweetie. I’m sure he’ll be here soon.”

“Renegade?” the cops says. “As in Smoky Mountain Regulators member? That Renegade?”

“Yeah,” I say, confused at the cop’s tone, “I’m his girlfriend.”

The cop’s eyes widen further. “Fuck.” He glances behind us and sighs. “I’ll be right back, okay? If you want to, you can move to the back of the lot and sit down. Try your best to stay calm until we can get the rest of the questions out of the way.”

“Wait, why can’t you just ask me now?”

The cop brings his eyes back to mine. “Because I know better to question an ol’ lady without her ol’ man here. Ain’t a cop on this force that don’t know that club.”

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