Terri Austin - Diners, Dives & Dead Ends

When I felt steadier, I drove to the college. In the IT office, Eric was in his usual spot and Steve occupied the corner, deeply engrossed in some crazy code bouncing across his screen. But Axton’s seat was empty. My heart sank to my stomach.

“Where is he?” I heard the panicked edge to my voice.

“Hey, Rose,” Eric said. “He’s in the restroom.” He stood from his chair and moved toward me. “Are you okay? You look like you’re going to faint.” He placed a hand on my arm and gently moved me toward an empty chair.

Steve hovered behind him with a water bottle in his hand. “Here, drink this.”

I gave him a grateful smile and twisted off the lid, taking a long drink.

“Just breathe.” Eric patted my back.

Axton came through the door, his gaze taking in the scene. “What’s wrong? Rose, you okay?” He bent down in front of me, placing a hand on my knee.

I burst into tears. Axton pulled me into a hug and I clung to him. I buried my face in his neck and sobbed. I couldn’t quit. The tears kept coming, along with little hiccups.

Axton soothed me. “It’s okay, Rose. It’s okay.”

Finally, the tears tapered off. Eric squatted next to me and handed me a tissue. Steve held the water bottle I must have dropped at some point and rubbed my back.

I dabbed at my eyes with the tissue and tried to delicately blow my nose. Poor Axton’s T-shirt was drenched. “Sorry,” I said.

“No worries.” He flashed his goofy grin. “What’s a little snot between friends?”

I laughed a little. “I really missed you.”

“I missed you, too. You’re my hero, Rose.” He kissed my forehead.

“Stop.”

“No touchy feely stuff. We’ll set her off again,” Eric said.

Steve offered me the water bottle. I took it and drained it.

“All better?” Eric smiled.

“Yeah. Thanks.” I looked back at Ax. “So, you’re not fired?”

“Took my urine test this morning.”

“Good. And by the way, I think it’s all settled. This Sullivan thing.”

Eric frowned. “Did he contact you?”

“I went to see him. At his house.”

Gasps all around.

“Rose, what did you do that for?” Axton ran a hand through his swirly, shaggy hair, making it stand on end. “And why didn’t you tell us you were going?”

“I didn’t want anyone to stop me.”

“That was a really dumb thing to do, Rose,” Steve said.

“I returned his files and told him it would all go public if he didn’t leave me and mine alone.”

Eric smiled. “You and yours, huh?”

I blushed. “You know what I mean. My friends and family are off limits if he wants all that stuff to stay buried.”

“Did he believe you?” Eric asked.

“I hope so.”

Axton looked at me, his eyes wide. “You aren’t just a hero, Rosie. You’re like She-Ra and Wonder Woman all rolled into one. I love you.”

I stared into those blue eyes I’d missed so much. “I love you, too.”

Steve cleared his throat. “I’m glad it’s over. For your sake, Rose. You’ll never have to see Sullivan again.”

I glanced up at him and shrugged, thinking about Sullivan’s parting shot. “I guess we’ll see. I think I need to go home and get some sleep.” I stood up and hoisted my purse on my shoulder.

“Sure you don’t want to go celebrate, Rose? Let’s go to The Carp,” Axton said, “and I’ll ply you with margaritas.”

“How about Friday?”

“You are so on,” he said.

If I could bottle the dull personality that is Assistant Professor Carter and sell him to insomniacs, I’d be a millionaire. And perhaps win some kind of medical award. Sadly, I couldn’t do that, so instead I doodled in my notebook during accounting class, in an effort not to die of boredom.

During the break, Janelle filled me in on her kids, Asshat, and his skanky new girlfriend, Flat Ass. Chicken Licker was history.

Same shit, different day. And I loved every normal, routine, ordinary minute of it.

I drove home feeling lighter than I had in days, maybe even months. With Axton, Pack, and Sullivan out of the way, I could concentrate on what I’d been avoiding. My own future.

The last two weeks proved to me how much I can accomplish when I’m proactive. I’d been sleepwalking through the last few years of my life. A big part of it was a screw you to my parents, but it was time to grow up and move on. Time to pick a major and go for it. Get a degree, maybe even a job with a nice perk package, although I didn’t want to think about leaving Ma and Roxy. But a bigger apartment with a separate bed and sofa would be nice.

I pulled into my parking lot and automatically scanned for any wayward underlings. All clear on that front. It might be weeks before I dropped that habit.

As I approached the entrance, a man stepped out of the shadows. “Hey, Rose.”

I froze for a second, then breathed a sigh of relief. “Steve, what are you doing here?”

“Waiting for you.” He pushed at his glasses, the parking lot lights reflecting off the lenses. “I thought you might like to grab a cup of coffee.” He walked toward me with a crooked smile.

“It’s really late.”

Disappointment and anger clouded his features. “You’ll never have time for me, will you? Not like Axton or that lawyer or Sullivan. What more do I need to do to get your attention?”

Awareness hit me and in a flash I knew. God, had I been stupid. Steve broke my car window. Steve trashed my apartment. “It was you,” I said.

The look on his face scared the crap out of me.

I turned to run, but he jerked me back by my ponytail. “Why not me?” He rubbed his cheek against mine.

I screamed and he slapped a hand over my mouth. “Shhh, be still,” he whispered. He let go of my ponytail and snaked his arm around my still bruised ribs and squeezed. He began pulling me away from the building.

I kicked at him with my heels, tried to pry his hand off my mouth, tried to bite his palm. It didn’t matter. He was much stronger than he looked. He carried me to his car as if I was no more than a toddler throwing a tantrum. He’d parked around the back of the building where the dumpsters were.

His arm still around my waist, he released my mouth and I screamed. When he slapped his hand over my mouth this time, he wasn’t as gentle. “Shut up, Rose,” he said, calmly. “I don’t want to hurt you, but I will.”

Steve-freaking-Gunderson was kidnapping me.

He removed his hand and opened the trunk to grab a bungee cord lying on the floor of the cargo area.

I screamed again.

Then I lost consciousness.

The left side of my face throbbed. I’d never felt pain like that before, and if I had my way, I never would again. He clocked me so hard, I was afraid my jaw was broken.

I slowly opened my eyes. I was bound in a fetal position on a concrete floor. A basement, maybe. My hands, tied tight in front of me, were tingling. My feet were also tied together.

I tried to pry my wrists apart, but the knots held firm.

I struggled to sit up and the pain was blinding. Bile rose up, but I choked it back, trying not to pass out. Gray concrete walls and floor surrounded me. There was a cheap wooden door on the wall in front of me and a bare half window to my left. A furnace and hot water tank sat in one corner. The only light in the room came from a single old fashioned bulb dangling above my head. The basement was completely bare of furniture, appliances, boxes, or tools.

I didn’t see my bag anywhere, either. So no pepper spray or stun gun to subdue Steve.

The floorboards above me squeaked. A minute later the door in front of me opened and Steve stepped into the room with a plastic container in his hands. He walked gingerly, so as not to upset whatever was in the bowl.