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A breath so deep it hurt his lungs stopped the sob he’d fought to control. If only he hadn’t come here tonight. After what happened at her mother’s house, any fool knew she’d be upset, and he was no fool. He’d known better. But like an uncontrollable toddler reaching for the shiny object, he’d stifled any misgivings and followed his craving to be with her.
Even still, after seeing the text, he’d hesitated at the apartment door, almost talking himself into leaving for her own safety. Christ knows, he should have left after reading the threats on his cell. His bad luck had been when Mel had seen him before he could turn away.
And… she’d said the one thing guaranteed to keep him there.
“I’ve never seen Honey like this before, Luke. She needs you.”
Chapter Twenty-six
Earlier…
After Tansy left Luke, she headed for the motel, almost running away at the last minute but realizing she had nowhere to run to. This time, she’d stepped into a whole pile of muck and none of it was her fault.
The only reason she’d even tapped stupid Zed for some weed was to get Val off her back. Plus, she needed the skanky bitch’s backup that night, hadn’t she? Leslie, the girl she usually hung with, had left yesterday with her family on their summer vacation, sticking her with just Val. And now she’d be no help to anyone.
Not that she had ever been up to the level Tansy needed her to be. The whiner only cared about herself and her stupid aches and pains. Maybe it was for the best not having to listen to her bitching anymore.
Tansy wiped away the self-pitying tears. She’d be okay on her own. Hadn’t she always had to look out for herself? No one had ever given a good goddamn about her happiness. Even Ryan, her asshole of a brother, had left without a thought or a look back. No matter what, she always had to take care of number one. And she had.
But now, things had gotten crazy. She couldn’t think straight. Wendi would help her; she’d always come through in the past. Opening the door to the motel room, Tansy slipped inside and pulled off the hood she’d kept over her head to cover her face. The bedroom appeared to be empty, but light came from the bathroom. She stepped closer to find Wendi out cold, draped over the toilet, and disgust beat out compassion.
This wasn’t the way she’d always pictured her cuz. In her mind, Wendi had been the one person in her world who’d climbed the success ladder and made something of herself. She’d had a great career, a flashy apartment, and a sweet ride. The last time she’d seen her at a family gathering, she’d accidentally come across her in her bedroom with a line of coke spread out ready to be snorted. Still… she’d seemed to have it all together. Had offered to share with Tansy who’d been happy to indulge with her older cousin.
What a difference to now! This pathetic, skinny failure with wild hair and a flaccid expression wouldn’t be any use to her. She wasn’t even coherent.
Tansy paced the outer room and found the rest of the stash in a pouch on the side table, lying there as if someone had just tossed them away. Holding them in front of her, the temptation to leap into the sweet world of forgetfulness was overridden by fear.
For some strange reason, she’d always had the self-control to limit her use of drugs. Watching others lower themselves to zombie-like behavior hadn’t turned her on. Throwing the sack back where she’d found it, she fell back on the bed, her hand retrieving the small bag of pills she’d bought from Zed. Cheap and easy to get. That’s what he’d promised her.
Remembering how she’d laughed at his sales pitch and posed a question. “You use them yourself if they’re so good?”
“No goddamn way. My body’s messed up. Can’t handle drugs anymore.” He held up a mickey. “My poison is whiskey.” He began slurring a tune with the words Tennessee Whiskey and they both laughed.
Taking one of the yellow pills into her palm, she stared at it. These fuckers had killed Val. She sniffed it before dropping it back where she’d found it. Must be laced with Fentanyl she thought, having read about this online. Throwing the bag down, she headed for the toilet and the woman who blocked it.
“Hey, Wendi. I gotta use the bathroom. Come on, cuz. Go into the other room. Come on now. You’re fine.”
Wendi stared up at Tansy as if she had no idea who she was, but she drunkenly pulled herself to her feet and with Tansy’s help, stumbled into the bedroom. “Wh-a… wh-ere’s Luke?”
“He’s gone. But he left you something over there.” Indifferently, Tansy waved a hand at the table.
Then she turned away and slammed the door shut for some privacy. Deciding she needed to clean herself up after rolling around in the muddy field where she’d hidden earlier, she pulled off her clothes, switched the water on as hot as the cheap motel allowed, and stepped inside the shower.
Sinking to the shower floor, she huddled under the stream and tried to stop herself from thinking. Failing… words crowded into her brain with a vengeance, words in her father’s growly voice… hate-filled and downright cruel.
The latest were the one’s she’d overhead him use toward her mother yesterday before laying a beating on her for not remembering to put away the shoes Tansy had left out. Why he never hit her, Tansy hadn’t figured out yet. But he sure loved to slap her mom around and had for years. Bellowing his anger, he’d string lines of obscenities together when he got really wound up.
“Your goddamn, sneaky brat is nothing but a drag on us, and you know it. Even her school kicked her out. I’m sick and tired of you making excuses for the slug. She’s selfish and stupid and doesn’t give a crap about anything or anybody but herself.”
Her mother’s whines, filled with the same excuses she always used, had Tansy wishing for a gun. She’d go on about Tansy’s young age and her mental problems. Her Bi-polar and depression – Fuuuuck!
Nothing wrong with her except for her bad luck in being born into such a dipshit family.
Soon the water ran cold, forcing Tansy to step out and wipe off. Redressing in the same clothes, and with the second towel wrapped around her short hair, she went into the bedroom only to see Wendi sprawled on the bed with the bag of yellow pills clutched in her hand.
Chapter Twenty-seven
Honey drove to her mother’s house and let herself in with a hidden key. She tiptoed into the spare room, glad that her mom was either still in bed or she’d gone out. She neither knew nor cared. All she wanted was a peaceful place to hide from the building pain she’d held off with anger.
