Chapter 24
Liar Liar
The little cracks and cuts on Terry Grizolli's fragile heart grow deeper and deeper as she silently watches her lover working on the locks of another woman's door. She knows she should step out of the shadow and calmly ask him what he's doing here, but her legs feel so weak and she can't utter a sound. Maybe she should just turn around and walk away. Maybe she should just forget everything she's seen and pretend nothing has happened like she always does. But she's just human. She hates feeling betrayed and hurt. And she does have her limitations. Slowly she takes a small step forward, and then another, and another. Joe curses under his breath. He is totally focused on the task at hand. But the locks stubbornly remain locked and refuse to budge. She inches closer and closer. She can smell his sweat and cologne. As his impatience and vexation grow, his movement becomes rougher.
"Joe."
She can hear the tears in her own voice. Very slowly Joe Morelli turns to her, his face expressionless and unreadable. The eerily cold and bright gleam in his dark brown eyes makes Terry cringe inside. She doesn't want to come any closer. He looks too much like a complete stranger. At the moment she finally realizes she doesn't really know him. Maybe he has never loved her as much as she loves him. Tears escape her eyes. Her heart breaks and shatters. And maybe now it is time to say the last goodbye and finally walk away. She vaguely thinks. She's so absorbed in her sorrow that she's not aware of the 2 dangerous men standing in the shadow of the stairwell behind her.
Suddenly the look on Joe Morelli's face changes as a slight movement in the darkness catches his eyes. His survival instincts kick in and take over. He knows he doesn't have enough time to reach for his gun. Like an agile and ferocious beast he reaches forward, grabs hold of Terry, and uses her as a human shield. Bullets fired from silenced guns fly through the air. Shock and immense pain hit Terry. Her eyes widen in hurt and disbelief. She screams. Stephanie's next door neighbor opens his door to see what the noise is. Joe Morelli drops Terry, forces his way into the door, knocks the old man to the floor, and firmly locks the door. He pulls out his gun and looks wildly around. His eyes then fall on the fire escape outside the living room window.
The 4 hitmen go after their alert and reckless target. Terry Grizolli lies on the floor dying as the man she loves runs for his life. Several terrified residents call Dillon Ruddick, the building supervisor, while the other call 911 or their children. At the other end of the city, Lula Washington smiles shyly at Lester Santos as he places the plate of spicy fried rice in front of her with a huge charming grin. She was almost scared to death the day he and Brown woke her from her afternoon nap and told her in a hushed tone that they needed to move her to a safer place. Luckily she was born with a strong heart and soon fell in love with this new...place. And things has also changed a little between her and Santos. Everyday she learns a little bit more about him. Every day she feels more comfortable and confident around him. And though visions of that gruesome night still haunt her from time to time, she knows she's braver and less frightened now. Tomorrow he's going to teach her how to use a gun correctly to defend herself. She, on the other hand, is going to teach him how to make apple and blueberry turnovers.
And maybe after they have coffee and share a few jokes, she will finally have enough courage to ask Santos if he is joking when he calls her "Beautiful"...