Duke made his way down the narrow stairs that lead to the captain's cabin and the galley. He knew his way about the boat fairly well from his previous visit's in the last week. Some with Callie awake and spitting at him like a corner alley cat and some where she was doped up, asleep on pain meds.
This one was probably going to be one of the latter. Duke wasn't really one of Callie's favourite people right now, all things considered he really couldn't blame her for being a bit on the grouchy side. He would probably be just a nasty if someone was black mailing him too.
But he had to do something to keep her here, didn't he?
He didn't have an explanations for his behavior, it probably would be better for him for her to disappear like she wanted. But when he looked at her, passed out on his boat, bloody, pale and so vulnerable there was a longing for her. Duke's relationships with women usually didn't last longer then a few nights tops, and generally as a rule are light on the conversation and heavy on the sex. He charms, he seduces and then he leaves. Everybody is satisfied.
But he wants to know what Callie's story is, wants to help her and he doesn't know why. Duke looks out for Duke, always has and damn sure always will. So it's a mystery to him why he has protective urges for a dangerous potentially deadly woman.
Oh, Callie didn't think much of his mid night proposal from a couple nights back but then again he didn't like it much when she pulled a gun on him either. She went off like fire cracker when she found out that he had been threw the boat and not only found her scattered stash of guns but had removed the bullets from the clips while she had been in a doped up coma earlier.
He thought he was paranoid with his little secret hatch on his boat. But really, that was for his safety. How could she be mad?
Duke had to give it to the girl, she was well thought out for sure. A dozen different false identifications, for multiple states and even a few international i.d's to boot. Whoever she paid, knew their craft well because he had never seen a better made i.d before. Callie had cash, untraceable guns, silencers and mulitiple i.d's all ready to help her disappear. She was no novice at living an untraceable life.
Duke was fairly certain that she was plotting to kill him. But he figured, she needed something to do all day while he was plotting on how to get her into bed. And figure out why he wanted to help her.
They all needed their hobbies.
"Brought you a coffee but had to sacrifice to Audrey." Duke told her coming into the galley. He found Max chewing on the large raw hide bone he had left him the previous day in the corner of the room. Callie was at the beginnings of making a sandwich, which meant he got here right at the right time. "Making enough for two?"
"Only if you like arsenic in yours." replied Callie levelling him with a ice cold look. She opened the tub of butter and buttered one slice of bread before layering on sliced turkey, havarti cheese and lettuce. She slapped the other piece of bread over top of the lettuce and brought the sandwich up to her mouth for a bit.
"Still not happy about our conversation the other night?" Duke asked as he moved forward to try and snag the sandwich from her.
"Still blackmailing me into staying here in Haven? I think we have a yes." Callie backed away and dodged out of Duke's reach. "And since we're on the winning topic of shit you've done to piss me off in the last four days, stop calling me Callie in from of your two best friends."
"Why, Callie's your name right?" Duke put down the latte and moved to make himself his own sandwich since she wouldn't share. " Or would you rather I call you by your cover?"
"Well considering that's the fucking name that's on all my records in the hospital, which by the way is your fault, yeah I thought calling me by Isla you know wouldn't have been the intelligent thing to do." Callie bit out at him.
" Yes, I agree but if you don't tell me why you need a cover I can't help you." Duke stated as he brought the sandwich up to his mouth and took a big bite. He chewed and continued." She doesn't know Callie is your birth name, and since your false identity is some impressive work I don't think you have much to worry about."
"I never asked you for help." Callie stressed each word, glaring at him furiously." I don't need, want or have any desire for you to help me with anything. All I want from you Duke Crocker is for you to forget what ever you think you saw on your rust bucket of a boat and fuck off out of my life." Callie bit savagely into her sandwich and then wished she didn't. Her jaw was sore and she knew should be eating soup but between Parker and Crocker she was spitting mad and didn't think about food choices." I want to get the hell out of Haven. And for the record, Parker shouldn't even know my real birth name."
"I don't think it matters much want you want." Duke gave her a roguish grin, and moved from the galley area to her bedroom. " We have an agreement between like minded individual's. Your going to stay in Haven, till I'm good and ready for you to leave. Your going to work at the Gull once your all patched up of course. And your not going to kill me either."
Callie gave Duke a wolfish grin, showing a row of perfectly straight white teeth. " I never said I wouldn't kill you Crocker. In fact I fall asleep every night plotting how you will meet your end. Right now I'm leaning towards putting a pillow over your head and blowing your brains out while you sleep but knocking out unconscious then tying cylinder blocks to you legs and drowning you is close second."
"Well call it a professional curtsy then." Duke continued to smile but kept his distance from her. " You have a very vivid imagination, you know that."
"Not imagination, tried, tested and true method's of getting rid of a witness.
"I thought you'd say that." Duke nodded as he took another bite of his impromptu lunch. He waves his sandwich in her general direction." It hurts just a little bit that you want to kill me."
"It annoys me just a little bit that you are blackmailing me with no proof of these so call events you think you saw." Callie finished off the last bit of her sandwich with a grimace and walked over to the counter where he left his cup and took a drink.
Yes, she knew full well she could disappear with out looking back, once Duke sold his story of freakish events to whatever news stations would take him. There might be a grainy picture of her face flashed on the screen but the media wouldn't find her. She change her hair colour, her name, the colour of her eyes. Maybe go up to Canada, she had heard British Columbia was a nice place this time of year or maybe Nova Scotia. She would be fine.
Duke on the other hand would be deader then a doornail within the week. He'd flash his mouth off, because Callie seriously doubted he was bluffing and then the wrong kind of people would come looking. And when they didn't find her, they would work him. Work him in ways, that would make those three thugs look like the amateurs they were.
Crocker thought she maybe owed people drug money, or had an abusive ex. At the most, maybe was got involved with the mob but he had no idea how much worse it could get.
She was being hunted. Like you hunted a wild deer in the woods. Callie had a permeate target on her back since the day she was born because of the difference between her family and the normal's.
" I think you like Haven, just a little bit." Duke walked over to her and took his drink from her. He swallowed a mouthful before handing it back to her. " I think you like me, just a bit more then a little bit."
"As previously stated in our last conversation. I think your fucking crazy." Callie said looking up at him. She meets his eyes and knows, that neither of them are done with each other and that the only person who is going to shoot Duke Crocker is her. But she doesn't know why.
"I'll stop by later, to see how your healing." Duke told her, smiling down at her scowl. She looked better then she did the night he dropped his great big scheme on her. But he figured that mostly was because she had just woken up from drug induced sleep and had drool smeared on her face. "You look better."
"Do you want to hear the other eight ways to kill someone and not get caught?"Callie askes Duke as he moves towards the door.
Duke smiles and replies. " You can tell me tomorrow, over dinner."
Callie says nothing as he turns his back and walks out of her living space. She hears him on the stairs, then on the deck above, then nothing. Callie looks at Max, whose looking back at her. He's got his head cocked a bit crooked and he's giving her one of his best doggie faces. "Shut up, this is still all your fault."