A/N: Thanks for reading, I'd really love to know what you think of the story so far :)

CHAPTER TEN

Tuesday afternoon.

"So you had a good day?" I ask as Leigh hurries across the street to join me.

"Yeah, thanks for waiting for me." She waves a final goodbye to the girl she'd been walking with before she smiles at me, kisses me as I open the car door for her.

As we drive across town she continues to tell me all about her day and the people she's been working with. She's picked up another casual office job at some firm just down the block from where I'm working and I'm not entirely sure how I feel about it - not knowing the way the guys at our place talk about the boss's secretary if she happens to walk through the workshop. But I guess Leigh hasn't had no problems so far 'cause she's sounding way happier than anybody ought to when they're talking about work.

She continues to speak, but I stopped paying attention a couple of minutes back. I can't stop my mind from wandering, as I try to piece together all the meagre scraps of information I've gathered the last few days. Spent way too long Wednesday night driving aimlessly around, past all the King's old haunts, Myers' family place, even called in those bars where I've seen Pete hanging around, only everything kept coming up blank.

The next night I'd tracked down Lang, hearing Ryan's account of seeing Myers first hand instead of relying on Curly's retelling. Although that turned out to be pretty much a waste of time and money. By the time I'd hung around buying beers and getting him to talk, without making it too obvious what I wanted to know, all I ended up with was a near identical account of what my brother had already told me. Suppose I should have given Curly a little more credit, could have saved myself a whole lot of time and effort if I had.

About the only useful thing I did manage over the weekend was to have a long conversation with Miller over what rumours he'd heard. But then he always did have a talent for knowing exactly what was going on all over town. Guess some things never change, even if he don't put that knowledge to such good use these days. Find myself replaying his words once again, considering exactly what they might mean for me.

"… from what I hear he's got bigger issues than you to worry about. Must have, if he's back around here and talking to Pete again."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Rumour was that he got in deep with some real serious crowd from out of town. Pair of them fell out over it. I think Wayne wanted Pete to go with him, but he refused. I guess he had his own reasons for wanting to stay in town."

"Yeah?"

"Well, that's what I put together from all the talk I heard at the time, fits with the stories I've heard lately too. But then if you really want to know the truth of what went on between him and his brother then I'm pretty sure I ain't the person you need to be speaking to. Reckon Leigh has to know something about that, can't believe they've never spoken about his brother, so she could probably fill some of them gaps about the state of things between them rather than me speculating over it all…"

"… which is great, isn't it? Tim?"

Shake myself as I realise she's asking me something. Don't know that I'm keen to take Nick's suggestion of talking to her about it 'cause there ain't no easy way I can think of to bring it up. Not without telling her more than I want her to know about shit from my past.

"Sorry?"

"It doesn't matter, wasn't all that important. Are you okay?" From the corner of my eye I can see she's looking a little concerned as she turns to study me.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Are you sure? Work was okay, have you had a bad day or something? Just you seem awful distracted tonight."

"Yeah. It was fine. Just thinking about all I got to do now once I get home."

"Oh." She stares out the passenger window for a couple of seconds. "Thought maybe you'd want to come back to mine, being as you waited for me and all. I could have got the bus, if you had other places you would rather be."

"Don't be dumb, Leigh. Ain't no sense in you doing that when we're working practically across the street from each other. And it ain't that I'd rather be going home, you know that."

"Then what's wrong?"

Force myself to smile at her, snap out of this mood before I say something stupid and really upset her. "Nothing. Just I need to collect Ma's pills from the drugstore, then I probably ought to go and see if she's okay. Her and Harry had another big fight last night, were still bitching at each other this morning. Guess its been on my mind."

"Sorry."

"It's alright." Feel a little guilty, that I'm not exactly being honest about the source of my preoccupation. Maybe I should just talk to her about it, find myself on the point of asking her what she knows again. "Say, Leigh?"

"Yeah?"

She's smiling at me again and I change my mind again, I can't do it. Because telling her about Myers opens up the possibility of having to share all kinds of stuff about me. And I'm pretty sure she won't see me the same way if she knows the truth of what I'm capable of, what I've actually done.

"Nothing."

Her expression is puzzled. "Are you really sure you're okay, Tim?"

Sorry, I'm fine, honestly. Maybe I'm just a little tired." Smile at her and wonder if that sounds as fake to her as it does to me. "Look, if I do all I got to at home, it'll take me an hour, maybe two. So I could come over later, if you want still want me to?"

xxxxxx

Seems to take forever to get to the front of the line in the drugstore. So by the time I finally step out onto the street, I figure Leigh must be long gone. We're only a couple of minutes from her place, but she said she needed to call in the store opposite anyway and then walk the rest. So I'm a little surprised to see her still here, a way down the street outside of the bank. Suppose she's run into someone she knows because her attention is elsewhere, but it's definitely her, looking real good in her office clothes, that red dress I really like her in and I wonder if she's waiting for me after all. Smile to myself as I think about maybe getting her out of it later, figure that that's a thought too good to pass up and that maybe I should just head straight back with her after all.

But then the lights change, people start crossing the street and the crowd shifts, and I realise who she's talking with.

Although I guess 'talking with' isn't exactly an accurate description. He's standing real close to her, in her face and almost yelling at her. Her grocery bag has dropped to the floor, the contents starting to spill while he grips her wrist tight as she tries to push him away with her other hand.

Snap myself out of just watching from a distance and pick up the pace. Reckon I'm finally going to get that opportunity to put Pete Myers in his place without having to go look for him.

Only as I cut a path through the people on the street, trying to close the gap and wishing she wasn't so damn far away, another all too familiar figure steps out the side alley and rests a hand on Pete's shoulder.

I'm about three feet away now and hearing him speak sends a chill through me. "Jesus, Pete, calm down. You trying to get arrested, doing this in the middle of town?"

"But—"

"Enough. You got more sense than that, haven't you? Now why don't you just let her go?"

Watch as Pete drops his hand away, steps back and glares across at his brother like a sulking child, while Leigh actually thanks him for intervening as she goes to reach for her things, still oblivious to the fact I'm here.

Realise I've stopped moving and that I'm staring at them. That I ain't exactly sure what the hell to do next.

"Well, appears you've got company, Leigh, so me and Pete'll leave you to it." He grins at me over her shoulder. "Evening, Shepard. Didn't know you were back in town."

At his comment, she glances back at me, relief filling her expression as she steps closer and stands beside me, before looking uncertainly between the three of us.

And really, I know I should be asking her if she's alright and what the hell has just happened, taking her away from this.

But right at this moment that's the last thing on my mind.

Instead, I've can feel that overwhelming need for revenge building again. Same as that day in the mess hall at McAlester. Because now I've finally come face to face with him all I can think of is how much I want to hurt him - even though I know all that business in there was pointless, that it didn't actually achieve anything at all aside from bringing down more trouble on everyone around me.

That the only thing that matters now is finding a way to make Wayne Myers pay for all he's done, for everything he put me through.