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Still, he does not sway in his silence. I stand and walk across the room to the pictures of Reese and carefully remove them from the wall. I need to show him some mercy in hopes he will reciprocate the actions. The jumbled pieces of the puzzle in my brain fall into place. Members of his crew have gone missing, hiding, or died unexpectedly. I could only get to a few of them and help them silently leave this world without notice. The other men from that day died an unexpected death or had enough financial backing to disappear. Every single person had unknowingly been hooked, like Kevin Grafton here, to wipe out an entire village for the benefit and profit of Mr. DuPont. I’ve often wondered how many more had fallen victim to the painful lies he spewed from his selfish lips.
I drop the pictures of Reese into a metal bucket and take them to the bathroom. Kevin watches everything I’m doing. As I place the bucket in the tub, I take out one photo of Reese and put it in my pocket, secretly holding on to it for leverage. Leverage for me, not Kevin. I was mesmerized by the sweet coffee smell that lingered when she was near and the way her bright forest-green eyes pierced my imagination.
I have the utmost desire to protect her from the downfall of DuPont Enterprises. For the first time in years, she is the first person I want to protect myself. I don’t know what that means yet. I’m on a mission, one I don’t expect to walk away from. Before I leave this earth, I want to make sure she never has to worry about looking over her shoulder.
I spray the metal bin with a bit of gas and drop a lit match. The stench of the gas burns my nostrils. Small flames tap against the metal of the trash can, burning the sides black. The crack of the photographs and notes wilt as it disintegrates into ash. The vibrant colors of Reese and her life burn into a gray and dark pile of nothing.
I don’t need to look over my shoulder at Kevin. I can tell he’s grateful. I don’t hear a single clanking of the metal restraints behind me and his once harsh breathing has evened out.
“Who does Greg answer to?”
Kevin can’t even look me in the eye. He knows he is a key to the dominoes falling.
“I will make a deal with you. When I ask for a name, you give me a name. I will ensure Reese continues to walk this earth protected. No harm will come to her. When you help me with the last name on my list, then I will give you your freedom. I will vanish into thin air as if all of this were all a blip in time.”
I can see him thinking about what to do next.
“No one should carry this weight,” I say, whispering my advice.
“Reese is safe and knows nothing of what we do?” he asks. His eyes never break from mine. Challenging me.
“She is safe. She thinks my name is John and that I’m a general contractor,” I respond, matching his firm tone. I puff my chest out further, wanting to prove that my word is good.
“Adam, how do I know you’ll keep your word?” He holds his head higher as he continues to push. The glimmer in his eye isn’t one of anger but of worry.
“I could’ve killed you or her, but I didn’t.” He still doesn’t budge. “You stay with me as a prisoner until I finish my mission. Then you will go free.” I offer again. He still doesn’t seem convinced. “I was at the end of my tour of duty overseas when DuPont gave the green light that took out my men. I heard their cries of death. He killed what was left of me and took away the very sanity I had in my life.” I squat and rest my elbows on my knees with my fists clenched. My knuckles are bright white from the self-induced pressure and lack of blood flow.
Kevin looks away, and my phone dings with a text.
Itching for a coffee tomorrow? Promise not to make you late for work. Reese texts.
I show him the text and his body tenses. The bloodred veins in his eyes that surround the shockingly green orbs fill with rage. The veins tie together like a spider web.
“She has the most beautiful green eyes. It would be a shame to share the same visions I have with her. Blood, body parts left over, cries of the loved ones lost,” I threaten. “Greg will die by my hand, and I know there is a ladder of names to climb to get where I need to be. It would be easier for you to comply now. Don’t make me break Reese’s heart now.”
He doesn’t respond. I up the pressure and swing my phone back to reply to Reese.
I’m good for coffee. I can’t promise I won’t make you late, though. You can’t say football properly.
I show Kevin the text, and he finally breaks. “Greg Johnson. He was my superior, and he’s an asshole.”
I stand and walk to the kitchen, grabbing three bottles of water from the fridge and taking them to Kevin. His eyes watch as I twist open the bottled water. I want him to see that it is untouched and safe to drink. Untying one of his bound hands, he grabs the water and chugs it. He crunches the empty plastic bottle as he coughs for air. Dehydration does a funny thing to the body.
“Where does Greg live?” I ask as he looks up at me. I pull another water bottle from behind me, and he eyes it with lust. “Where. Does. He. Live?”
“Three houses down from Reese.” Kevin squints his eyes. “Just so you know, he’s bugged her house.”
I think back to when I planted the devices in Reese’s house, realizing that’s why I had trouble running a live feed and had to settle for just a recording device. Someone already tied the signal up. Rookie mistake on my part.
“I’ll take care of that and clear her house,” I tell him.
He nods and points to the last bottle of water. I twist the top off for him so he can hear the snapping of the safety seal being broken. He swipes the bottle of water, chugging it to the point of sickness.
When he’s finished, I bind his hand back up. He doesn’t fight me, and I’m thankful he complies and seems to understand my mission. I place fresh duct tape on his mouth, but again, he doesn’t resist. I’ll need to move him to a more secure location. A safe place for us.
Walking to my bedroom, I shut the door behind me. Looking at the tidy and bare room that sits before me, I can feel the demons creeping into my mind now that I am alone. They like to snicker about all the ways my life isn’t worth pursuing. Walking to the shower, I turn the faucet as hot as it can go, feeling the need to scrub my skin raw in order to distract my wandering mind.
Reese has rekindled a long-buried feeling of wanting to protect someone, something that I’d hidden in the recesses of my mind for a long time. After that botched mission, I never wanted to get close to another human being in my life. Losing my platoon, the innocent people of the village, and the personal connections I’d created were never part of the deal. Your senses are the key to the memories that the brain builds. The good, the bad, and the deadly.
