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He flinched as the weapon was cast in his direction and barely wooshed past his head. “Layne, please, let’s just talk about this.” His words were calm and slow as he attempted to de-escalate the situation. Another step forward was taken.
“I don’t want to talk about this! I want to know why!” She ran her fingers through her hair, as the tears burned her cheeks leaving a trail of red behind them. Layne closed the last few feet of distance. Her hands harshly shoved him back. “Were you ever going to tell me? Huh?!”
Joey let her create some space when she shoved him, but he didn’t let it stay that way. “Was I going to tell you? No, because I knew you’d go fully unhinged before I could explain shit.”
She half laughed through the tears in her voice. “Unhinged? That’s putting it nicely. She was my mother! She was the one beacon of light and love in my life and you robbed me of her!”
Layne lunged at him. Her fists swung wildly without any mental clarity to support a thoughtful or well-executed attack. The only thing that fueled her right now was erratic emotions.
Easily avoiding any blows, Joey grabbed her wrists stabilizing them. Layne dug her feet into the ground but unsuccessfully planted herself there. Her arms yanked back from his grasp but found herself unable to overcome his strength.
“Layney, I’m so sorry. If I could go back and change things, I would. If I could have seen you coming into my life, then I wouldn’t hesitate to fix things. I can solve a lot of things, but going back in time isn’t on the table here.”
“Fuck your apology!” She flung her weight down to try and free herself from his restraint. He lowered himself down with her until they were both sitting on the ground. He tugged her into his chest and wrapped his arms around her in hopes that he could chase away the agony she was experiencing.
Squirming against him, she let out a scream against his chest that broke down into heavy sobs. Joey’s chin rested on top of her head, his hands soothingly rubbing up and down her spine as she let out all her pain. It wasn’t only the pain of knowing his past had violently collided with hers, but it was the pain that couldn’t be healed even after taking Franzetti’s life for his wrongdoings.
When the tears had slowed, and her sobs had quieted, Joey pulled her away from him slightly and looked down into the bloodshot eyes. “We can’t stay here much longer, I need to clean things up. Go wait for me in my car, and I will take you home. I don’t want you driving like this. Okay?”
All the emotions left her feeling drained and numb. Layne’s face was blotchy from all the tears that had been shed, and her eyes were swollen from crying herself dry. She wanted to argue with him, but she didn’t have it left in her so she simply nodded.
While she went and sat in the passenger seat of the Challenger, Joey took care of the gory task of dumping the heaping corpse off into the churning waters of the river. Shell casings were collected. All evidence of what had transpired was erased.
Meanwhile, Layne sat there studying the mundane-looking dashboard as she tried not to think about the painful truths she had learned tonight. Insult to injury, Franzetti’s death didn’t even soothe her soul as she had hoped it would.
The driver’s side door opened and she looked over at Joey as he slid into the leather seat. “We should be good to go.”
“Thanks.” Her voice was quieter than a mouse.
The engine churned to life, and they left the dock behind them. During the ride home, the silence was beyond uncomfortable, yet she didn’t care. What was she supposed to say to him? Layne looked out her window, taking in the scenery of passing by various buildings, parked cars, and pedestrians still walking about on the sidewalks and living their dull little lives.
The silence allowed her to begin rebuilding the wall inside of her that Joey had started disassembling from the first moment he had laid his eyes on her. He had effectively begun making a path inside of her heart to allow her to open up. Layne realized that it was her mistake in allowing him to do that.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Though not his typical parking spot, Joey pulled into the parking garage underneath his apartment building and found a space not far from the elevator.
After the engine quieted, he immediately got out of the car and opened her door for her. “Let’s get you inside.”
Finally paying attention to their location instead of escaping inside her head, she found herself not where she had expected to be. “You said you were taking me home.”
“I will, but I’m not driving all the way uptown tonight. Besides, you look like you’re ready to keel over.” Was part of his reasoning selfish? Perhaps, but he still felt compelled to ensure her safety even if she currently wanted nothing to do with him.
He escorted her inside, and when she was in the comfort of his unit, she drew in a cleansing breath trying to feel more at ease. Her body wanted nothing more than to render into relaxation mode, or perhaps a coma.
Joey stood by the front door, hands tucked into his pockets. “A bath will help.”
She ignored his advice. “I’m just going to get some sleep on the couch.” Her words were heavy with fatigue.
He shook his head. “Not happening. I’m not leaving you to your own devices.”
“I’m not in a mood to argue, Joey. Just go into your damn room and leave me alone.” She rubbed her hands over her face trying to push away the exhaustion and combined frustration. Yet, he remained right where he was standing without any indication he was willing to budge.
She looked up at the heavens at her wits end that he was being his typical stubborn self.
Giving up this particular battle after deciding it wasn’t worthwhile, she tiredly looked at him. “Then, make yourself useful and get a bottle of booze.” She left to see her way to his master bath, where she began drawing the steamy water for a soak.
Morbidly, she gave a quiet chuckle to herself. Here she was about to take a bath in the same tub that Michael Franzetti had tried to drown her in on the very night she blew him away down at the docks.
