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“Thanks, Slick,” he said, taking them from her.
“Do you- do you think anyone called the police?”
Chris considered it. “Probably not. Your bedroom window is right across from mine. That’s how I heard you. It wasn’t all that loud outside. I think if they haven’t come now, they probably won’t.”
“I’m sorry,” she repeated.
“It’s not your fault,” he assured her. “Slick, you know, the deadbolt on that door isn’t a cheap piece of shit. The wood on the frame’s a little old so it won’t stop anyone from booting it in, but it can’t be picked by your average burglar. And most of them aren’t gonna breach a door the way I did. You are safe here. Unless there’s somebody out there who might kick in your door.”
Hayley could feel him watching her even as she kept her eyes on the front door. “Probably not,” she told him. “But I’m still alone, and it can be…scary….sometimes.” She turned her head to catch his nod.
“I’ll have the guys here in the morning,” he assured her. “Go get some rest.”
Hayley went back to her room, and even though she knew it was a terrible thing to do, even though she knew exactly what it said about her, even though she knew there was no rational reason to do so, she pushed the dresser back against the door.
******************************
Chris woke up early and fired off a text to all the boys. Hawk and Tex were re-routed from the garage to the home improvement store with a list of supplies. Chris hadn’t wasted much time with details and they hadn’t asked for them at the time. They each simply sent a reply of acknowledgment of the orders and an ETA.
Hayley had woken up shortly after him. Or, from the dark rings under her eyes, had emerged from her room in the morning, not having slept at all. She made them both coffee and set about doing something with a mixing bowl.
When he’d gone to lock up his own place last night, he’d thrown on a pair of sweats and a t-shirt, and didn’t bother with going to change in the morning since Hawk and Tex were on their way already. Instead he took Hayley’s cup of coffee and stood on her front porch, waiting for the troops. When they pulled up, it was not lost on them that he was next door to his own place and wearing the equivalent of skivvies.
“I don’t suppose,” Tex said, “that you and Slick had some kind of tequila-induced circus sex and tore up her house?”
Chris shook his head. “Not even close.”
“You owe me ten bucks,” Tex told Hawk.
Hawk rolled his eyes. “Don’t remember making that bet.”
“It was implied,” Tex insisted to Hawk. To Chris he said, “So what’s the damage here?” Tex asked. “And why?”
Chris glanced behind himself to make sure the door was as closed as it could be. “Okay, look,” he said in a low voice that caused Hawk and Tex to step closer to hear him. “She had a nightmare last night.”
“Okay,” Tex said cautiously.
“It was bad. She was screaming like a banshee and it woke me up. I came over not knowing what was what and kicked down her door to get to her.”
“Damn,” said Hawk. “Must’ve been really bad.”
Chris nodded. “It was. She was a little shaken up then, and she’s probably not feeling great about it now. So we’re not gonna bring it up to her or make her feel worse about it.”
“Copy that,” Tex said. “Let’s get the garage door open and unload the truck.”
The men set about building a work station in the garage, using Chris’s tools. Hawk cut a new frame piece and Tex routed it out. Chris took a drill and added a chain lock that the boys had picked up to the door on the inside. It wasn’t much in the way of security. The door already had a peephole and if the deadbolt didn’t hold or wasn’t engaged in the first place, a boot to the door would pop that chain easier than Chris had managed it last night. But damn if he didn’t know any other way to make her feel better.
Tex and Hawk hammered in the new frame piece and tested the slide of the bolt to be sure. Then Hawk asked what they needed the spackle for. Chris directed the men to Slick’s bedroom. Hawk tilted his head and frowned at the hole in the dry wall. “Which one of you managed this?” he asked.
“I did,” Chris admitted. He gestured to the highboy. “She put the dresser in front of the door and when I couldn’t get it open, I accidentally toppled it. Didn’t know it was there.”
Tex surveyed the wall and door. “Fairly ingenious,” he deduced. “Couldn’t possibly get in here unless she moved it. Not unless you come in through the window.”
