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He kicks at me as he flails his arms wildly. I avoid any serious blows as he attempts to punch me. Had it been someone else, I would’ve had my knee in his back already. But this is my son.
“Let me go!”
I need him to get help. And I fear that if he doesn’t, soon I’ll be identifying his body.
“Let me the fuck go!”
My heart breaks for my little boy. And I make a gut-wrenching decision. Slowly, I loosen my grip on him. As I do so, he almost falls to the floor. But he manages to stay upright. He opens the door wildly and storms down the corridor. The outer door slams, and he is gone. I want to go after him, but my feet feel as though they are glued to the floor. I want to get a team to watch him, but the phone remains in my hand. I want to take the hard road and say I don’t care what he wants to do as I gave him too many chances to accept my help, but I know I can’t. This is myson.My only child. So I put aside Archer Colleymore the security company CEO and ex-military officer, and become Archer Colleymore the father. And the state of my son scares the hell out of me.
I sit at my desk, my head in my hands as I wonder where Grant could be right now. Belatedly, I think that I should have offered him my coat or something. But I’m glad I didn’t. If he could trade his very clothes for a fix, my expensive coat would have fetched him a few fixes.
At the thought of fixes and money, I come to a stark realization. Not only is Grant in danger from himself by being out in this weather poorly clothed, but he is also in danger from his debtors. I recall the issues with Sidney and can only hazard a guess as to the possibilities that can unfold if Spike knows that Grant is back.
At the thought of Sidney, I check the roster and pick up the phone. All is well. She is inside and safe. I go through a somewhat sleepless night as my thoughts are filled with dread at getting a call about Grant. The next morning, I arrive at the office as usual and pour myself into work. I don’t come up for air until sometime after ten. I pick up the phone to do my usual check on Sidney. Ben is on duty today. After the club fiasco, I had chewed him out properly and had been on the verge of even firing him. But Sidney had begged me to give him another chance. I did. But I made sure to take him out of the rotation for Sidney’s close protection. I also ensured that he worked with a partner who could keep him in check and focused. When Frederick had called in sick this morning, he had been the quickest fix to take the rotation.
“Ben. Colleymore. Report.”
“Good morning, sir. All is well.”
“Good.”
I go through the remainder of the day as best as I can. My travel agent calls at some point and it’s then that I remember I’ve been planning to book tickets for Sidney and me to go to Hawaii. I ask her to put the trip on hold until the new year. Maybe, by then, this thing with Sidney will be sorted out and we’ll be able to take that well-needed trip. That’s what I hope will happen, at least.
At about four o’clock, I call to check on Sidney again.
“Ben. Colleymore. Report.”
Before he can speak, I attune my ears to his background and hear random noises. I frown.
“Is she out of the apartment?”
“Yes, sir. We’re at the mall, actually. She’s gone to pick up a few personal items, and I thought I’d give her a little space to—”
“You what!? She’s not in your line of sight!?”
“N-Not quite, sir. I just wanted to give her some space.”
“Close protection services does not accommodate a client being given space. Close protection means if they’re taking a shit, you wipe their ass. Find her. Now!” I disconnect the call, furious. This is his final strike. There is no way I can keep him on staff as a bodyguard. He is a risk and a liability. I won’t fire him this close to the holidays. But he is going to have a rude awakening come January when he finds himself without a job.
I sit looking into space. All I can see is Sidney on the bathroom floor of the club after Spike threatened her. She was a mess. And if what she had told me is true, Spike is becoming more problematic. There is an unease in the pit of my stomach as I think about the few minutes she has been out of Ben’s sight. Anything can happen in a second much less a minute. All it takes is one bullet. Or one slash. I dare not think about the possibilities.
Chapter seventeen
Sidney
Itfeelsgoodtobe away from the overbearing guards. When I see Ben on duty, I know I can leave the apartment and get some wiggle room. After that first day that I had stayed home, I simply refused to leave the apartment at all. But now that I’m low on groceries and other household items, I’ve made up my mind to grin and bear the shadow of the guard. Ben is like a breath of fresh air due to his being more lenient with me.
He drops me in front of the mall and I hurry inside while he parks the car. I’m in the supermarket when he catches up to me. I’m slightly deflated at his closeness now as he follows me up and down each aisle. Then I have a stroke of genius. I wander into the feminine products aisle and pick up a box of tampons and a pack of pads. I hold them up and turn toward Ben.
“Which do you think makes more sense? This is a bit bulky and tends to shift. And honestly, it feels as though I’m wearing a diaper. These on the other hand—”
He holds up his hands. “How about I give you a few minutes to sort out our ‘stuff’? I’ll be in the next aisle.”
I smirk as he walks away. I dodge in and out of the aisles, keeping an eye out for Ben. I don’t need him to be on my tail again until I’m ready to go back home. I dodge into the cosmetics aisle and get caught up looking at lotions when the hair on my neck stands up. I look up and my heart flies to my throat. The access to the aisle is blocked by two men who are staring at me intently. I have a bad feeling about this. I begin walking in the opposite direction and am almost at the end when I come to a screeching halt. Spike!
I look around wildly, hoping that Ben will turn up. Spike closes the gap between us.
“Let’s take a walk, little lady.”
