Page 75 of One More Chance
I forced a smile. “Yeah. Just… the detective called.”
Her eyes searched mine. “And?”
“They’ve put the case on hold.”
She blinked. “What?”
“They said the shutdown changed everything. Limited staff. Focus is on public health now.”
Sloane stared past me for a long moment, something in her hardening. “So, she gets away with it?.”
“Not forever,” I said, standing. “We’re not going to let her scare us. I’ll do whatever it takes to protect you and the kids. Pandemic or not. I sent over last night’s video and the voicemails she left me. It’s got to be enough, and Harlan said he's going to try to get it in front of a judge.”
She nodded, "Okay."
My phone buzzed again on the counter. I silenced it and flipped it over.
But we both knew that didn’t stop her.
Chapter 25
An hour or so later, fueled by coffee and anger, I cleaned up Sloane's SUV as much as possible before the kids woke up. I obviously couldn't replace or repair the broken windshield, but I at least got rid of the lipstick and shattered glass.
I called a guy that owned a local body shop who owed me a few favors. He joked that I might be his last customer for awhile, given the mandatory shutdowns, but he assured me that he could have Sloane's car towed in, windshield replaced, and dropped back off by tomorrow. I thanked him and told him that we were even.
It pained me to remember that his business didn't make it through the pandemic in my previous life. I couldn't even remember if he had.
With Sloane's SUV squared away, I planned to head up to the Master Builders Inc. office to shut it down and lock up for the coming weeks. On my way to the door, Sloane asked me if I'd run by the grocery store whenever I finished.
I kissed her neck and murmured, "I would do anything for you, Sloane."
"Hmm… that's great and all, but I really just need eggs, milk, and meat."
I pressed myself against her as I said, "Meat and milk, huh?"
After she called me an idiot with a laugh and a playful slap, I headed out to my truck. The roads were mostly empty on my drive up to the office.
I double checked the place was locked up before I sat alone in that empty building to hold a conference call with Jose and our accountant; we needed to finalize the paychecks and ensure my people would be taken care of while the world shut down.
"That's a lot of outflow without any revenue, jefe." Jose’s voice was sharp with doubt after he heard the accountant announce the amount needed to pay everyone. "Are you sure about this?"
"Yeah," I said. "The guys have earned this break. That includes you, Jose. Take the money, rest up. When things open back up, we'll hit the ground running. Trust me."
Jose’s breath came through the line, a heavy pause before he said, “Okay. I trust you.”
I thanked him and the accountant, told them both to take care, and then the line went silent. I sat there in the dark and empty office for a time, thinking.
I was used to being the one who was in control, the one who gave orders… but at that moment? I was trying to keep everything from falling apart.
According to the news and my memories of the first time I'd lived through this pandemic, it would be at least three weeks before the national lockdown was lifted; three weeks before society attempted to claw its way out of this chaotic pit, back to some semblance ofnormalcy. Three weeks hadn't been long enough, as the death toll continued to rise.
The first strain of the virus had been the deadliest; practically melting people's lungs into liquid shit. There was no way in hell I was letting Sloane go outside without a mask. In my previous life, she had gotten sick, causing her to miscarry in a hospital alone. This time might be different, but I didn't dare risk it. Not when the world felt as if it was teetering on a razor's edge.
Come on, big guy. We're done here and we need to get back to Sloane.
I finished up at the office and headed to the grocery store. The place felt like a scene from some post-apocalyptic zombie movie. The shelves were nearly bare. The store had been stripped of toilet paper, bread, hand sanitizer, milk, eggs; as if society had collectively agreed that these were the first things to hoard when the world began to crumble. I adjusted my N95 mask and ignored the wide, uncomfortable stares of the people around me. I kept my head down and focused on the task at hand, but it seemed impossible to escape the tension in the air.
That’s when she appeared.
