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I got out when Nico’s attention turned to me after the older man gestured in my direction.
I got out of my car and walked towards them, extremely aware that I wasn’t dressed to meet people. I was still in my skin tight running clothes, and I was fairly sure that my hair was still plastered to my forehead, having dried from the massive amount of sweating I’d done.
When I got close, I smiled at the two other men, stopping a few inches to the left of Nico’s shoulder.
“Georgia, I’d like you to meet Chief Rhodes,” he said gesturing to the barrel chested man, “and Detective O’Keefe.”
I nodded to them, “Gentlemen. It’s nice to meet you.”
Their stares were unnerving as they both stared at me. It went on so long that I nearly took a step back, but then they both stepped back and laughed.
“Told you she wouldn’t flinch,” Nico muttered, amusement very clear in his voice.
The Chief snorted, “It takes a strong woman to put up with our shit, darlin’. I just wanted to see what you were made of.”
Detective O’Keefe nodded his head at me, and I tilted my head. There was something very familiar about him.
“Do I know you?” I asked curiously.
He smiled sadly at me. “Yeah, honey. Well, not know me, per say, but you’ve seen me before.”
Although I thought that comment weird, I turned my attention to Nico as he discussed who was going to pick him up in the morning for his shift.
It was when we were leaving that I finally placed Detective O’Keefe’s face.
It hit me in a flash of memory…where I’d seen him before.***I panted, drawing shallow breaths to keep the pain from becoming too severe.
My brothers were all looking to me, knowing that my hands had become loose enough for me to slip free.
The fire raged around us, and I fell face first into the floor when I tried to stand.
The explosion of pain in my midsection was nearly debilitating, but I went to my hands and knees anyway.
I crawled straight to my father, knowing he always had a knife in his pocket.
I ignored the fact that half his face was missing as I reached into his pocket and removed the Old Timer pocket knife he kept there at all times. He, of course, had to have a way to open all those beers.
I found it easily and went to Darby, cutting his hands free in swift movements. Callum, Banks, and Ace were next.
It killed me, but I didn’t even bother to check my other two brothers.
They were dead, and had been for some time now.
They’d died within minutes of my father shooting them. The same with my mother.
“Can you get out by yourself?” I heard my brother ask Banks.
I heard Banks croak, “Yes.”
The next few minutes were a blur.
We went out the side door that led to the mudroom, and then finally to the carport.
Our father had set fire to the front and backdoor, as well as the stairs that led down to the root cellar. We only had the one option, even though it was the furthest to get out through.
I think we all passed out once we reached the driveway, and my last thought had been how dark our blood was when it puddled on the white concrete beneath us.
I’d come to with a man standing over me. One with white and gray hair.
“You’re gonna be okay, sweetheart,” he said.***“You were the one who found us first,” I said in awe.
He looked pained as he agreed. “Yes, I was.”
I walked up to him, staring him in the eyes as I went.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
He nodded and touched the top of my head with the tips of his fingers. “I’m glad you’re okay.”
I was glad I was okay, too.
When we left ten minutes later, I wasn’t aware I was lost in my head again until Nico’s voice cut through my thoughts. “You okay, niña?”
I smiled sadly at him. “Yes. I just never really put much thought into the fact that someone might still be around after what happened.”
“There’s actually quite a few of the cops around still. At least ten that I know of. Niña,” he hesitated. “That was a big thing for our small community. That changed the course of many people’s lives. Y’all were missed after you left. And it broke nearly everyone’s hearts.”
I nodded. “Yeah, I guess I just tried not to think about it.”
I didn’t really want to talk about it anymore. I didn’t like remembering. It was easier that way.
His large, callused hand found mine, and he brought my knuckles up to his lips, then kissed them one by one. “I’m here if you want to talk about it.”
The rest of our day was spent running a few errands around town, grocery shopping and getting grain for the horses.
We went to eat at The Back Porch where I took another trip down memory lane with the man who used to own the butcher shop where my mom had sold bread at.
Luckily, he’d been in a hurry, otherwise I’d have had to endure another trip when I most definitely didn’t want to.
We ended our day with a phone call. One that had taken Nico’s good mood and shattered it into a million, tiny pissed off pieces.***Nico
Rob Johnson’s dead. It was supposed to be you.
Rob Johnson was the officer who’d taken my car because his own had been in the shop getting the new KPD stickers placed on it.
Rob Johnson’s dead. It was supposed to be you.
Those were the last words Luke had said to me over the phone.
“Someone shot Johnson. Straight through the back glass. The sniper shot from the old water tower on Fuller Road. There was a note addressed to your parents explaining why. It was supposed to be you. He would’ve known it wasn’t you if he’d looked at the front, but from the back he couldn’t tell you from Johnson,” Luke explained for the third time.
I was numb.
My hands had lost feeling shortly after he started talking from my hands being clenched too hard.
