She picked up a white bowl with pawprints stenciled on the side from the counter beside the sink, started the water running, and after checking its temp with her finger, she filled the bowl and set it on the floor. A second, smaller matching bowl that I assumed was to contain Mafic’s food was placed on the floor beside it.
“You’ve got a regular routine.”
“Yeah,” she said as she stood from placing the second bowl beside the first. “I’ve had some practice.”
Willow’s home looked small on the outside, but it was much larger on the inside, the house narrow but deep like a typical townhome. My bag in hand, I tromped up the wooden steps to the second floor, the steps dumping me out directly in front of the master suite, a large room that took up the entire back third of the house. Like the rest of her house, it contained simple, elegant furniture, but what I found most interesting was her bed. It had no foot board and the mattress seemed to float above the floor without visible support.
I turned and walked into the guest room at the front of the house where I tossed my bag onto the bed. Taking a quick peek in the other rooms, I found a third, tiny, windowless bedroom she’d converted into an office, a bathroom, and a laundry room. I heard the thump of a car door closing as I paused at the thermostat, studied it a moment, and then adjusted the temperature before returning downstairs. She had her laptop out on the kitchen counter and was staring at it intently.
“I turned the A C on upstairs.”
“Good, thank you. That was my next stop.” She nodded at the device. “Checking to see if it’s broken.”
I looked around the large kitchen, family room, and dining area. The three rooms occupied the entire downstairs and were open to form one large area with wood floors throughout, an island with pots and pans hanging from a rack above providing visual separation for the family room and kitchen. Like upstairs, the decoration was sparse but tasteful. There were a few paintings on the wall for color, a large ruddy red and beige rug in the center of the family room containing caramel colored leather furniture, and the recessed and directional track lighting gave the house a modern and dramatic flair.
“Nice place,” I said as I admired the bright white cabinets, dark marble counter tops, and stainless-steel appliances.
“I like it. The best part is I don’t have to worry with it. I have a cleaning lady who comes in once a week, and I pay a guy to keep the yard, so I know when I come home everything will be taken care of.”
I stepped into the kitchen and peered out as she swiped her finger rapidly over the touch pad and typed on the keyboard. The fenced backyard was small and dominated by a large patio made from cobblestones. In the corner of the yard was a raised and covered patio, with a grouping of chairs arraigned under a large fan. Raised beds made from the same stone as the patio meandered along the six-foot, white vinyl fence on the right and left sides, and along the higher brick wall at the back, softening the edge and leaving a strip of perfectly maintained grass in the middle. The beautifully landscaped yard was made more magical by hidden lighting and spots that drew the eye to various plants and features. The house was very Willow… beautiful, elegant, and yet at the same time, welcoming.
“It doesn’t seem to be broken,” she said, drawing my attention from the yard.
“Good.”
She blew out an exhausted sounding sigh. “I’m going to bed,” she said as she poked at her computer.
“Yeah, I think I’ll turn in, too.”
I waited until the screen on her computer switched off. She shoved it into the bag, and started to sling it over her shoulder, but I took it from her.
“Thanks,” she said with a yawn.
We trudged upstairs, Willow leading the way, but Mafic scampered up ahead of both of us, sounding like he weighed five times what he probably did. She reached for the bag. “I’ll put it in your office,” I said as I reached the top of the steps.
A faint smile danced over her lips. “Thanks. Just put it on the desk somewhere. ‘night, Colt.”
“Goodnight.”
I went into my bedroom and closed the door. I needed to check on Goose and Big Dick, so I pulled out my phone and dialed Deb, Goose’s wife, while I waited for the room to cool down. The call went to voicemail, and I had to force myself to not read more into it than was warranted. I next dialed Haley with the same result. Despite my efforts, I was becoming concerned. I was debating calling Limpkin, or another of my brothers, when my phone vibrated. I nearly wilted with relief. It was Deb.
“Hey. I was calling to check on Goose,” I said.
“We’re home,” she said, her voice cool. “He’s sleeping.”
“What about Big Dick? Heard anything?”
“Haley is staying with him in the hospital tonight. They think he’ll probably be able to come home tomorrow or the next day.”
“That’s good news. Is everything okay?” I asked, “Other than the obvious I mean.” Deb sounded… different… than I expected.
“Everything is just fucking great. How’s the bitch?”
The hostility in her voice caught me off guard. “You need to check your attitude, Deb,” I said firmly. “She didn’t cause this. If you want to be pissed at somebody, you should be pissed at me.”
She was quiet for a long moment. “All I know is Ken has a badly broken arm and is going to miss a lot of work, Reed is in the hospital, four of my friends are now widows, and it all started when you got involved with that bitch… so pardon me if I don’t feel like inviting her to afternoon tea.”
“That’s on me, not Willow,” I said, keeping my tone carefully neutral.
“That’s not all that’s on you. When we need you the most, rather than being here for your friends, your brothers, you go off to fucking Houston with her?”
“Deb, I know you’re upset, and you have every right to be, but we took the job. I had to make sure she got to Houston safely. Would you prefer she dies, and then everything that’s happen so far is for nothing?”
“What I’d prefer, Colt, is if you hadn’t dragged us into this shit at all, then none of this would have happened. I’m wondering if we’d wouldn’t be better off if you just stayed with that bitch there in Houston.”
“I’ll be back, maybe as early as tomorrow. If that’s what the brothers want, I won’t fight it.”
“Yeah, but that won’t bring any of them back, will it?” she said before the line went dead.
I stood, holding the phone for a long moment. I wanted to be angry with Deb, but she was right. It was all on me and I felt sick. “Fuck…” I grunted as I tossed the phone into the center of the bed.
Using the bathroom off the hall, I brushed my teeth, my conversation with Deb playing on a continuous loop in my head. I couldn’t fix this. Maybe everyone would be better off if I walked away from the club. I was rinsing my mouth when Willow appeared in the bathroom door wearing a pale blue night shirt with the words Don’t take a Geologist for Granit in bold letters on the front.
“Will you hold me tonight?” she asked, her face twisting as if she were struggling not to cry.
“You okay?” I asked as I dried my hands and face.