Thanks to everyone for reviewing. And thank you for the constructive criticism, it is always welcome here. So here's the newest, please let me know what you think...
"He hasn't called me back."
I stopped sanding and looked up at my friend. She was sitting opposite of me, on the section I had already sanded.
"I don't know what to tell Sarah," I shrugged and went back to work. That wasn't exactly true. I knew what I wanted to tell her, but didn't. That men like that were generally only after one thing. And since she already gave it to him, well, now he had no reason to stick around.
"Have you seen him lately?" she asked desperately. I once again stopped my work and rolled my eyes up to her.
"Your kidding me right? It's been three days since the barbecue, and I'm swamped at work. I didn't even get home last night until after two..." All my pent up frustration was beginning to leak out. Sarah gave me a good once over before sighing.
"Hey, I'm sorry. I know your mega stressed out right now. And my...shit, isn't helping any."
I nodded at her. It was true, I was being run ragged. Normally I would be happy has a pig in shit, but this was a little ridiculous.
"Ever consider hiring some help? Maybe even a temp or something?"
I sighed and set the piece of sandpaper down. My arms were killing me, but this table needed to be ready the day after tomorrow. Help would be awesome right now, but I was a little to...paranoid? No. That's not the right word. I was to much of a control freak I would drive them off in less than a week.
"Of course, they would have to survive working for you first..." Sarah sniggered before we both burst out laughing. I heard the small chime from the bell above the front door to my shop go off, signalling we had a customer. I quickly brushed myself off and headed out front. Much to my chagrin, standing by the check out counter was Barney, Tool and Toll Road. When Barney saw me he smiled and I did the polite thing and smiled back. I had nothing against him, just Toll Road. He used my friend, and that didn't sit well with me.
"Afternoon gentlemen, what can I do for you? Looking for some Old World Charm? Or maybe your here to find another friend of mine to use up and throw away like a piece of trash?"
Barney's and Tool's eye went wide. But I was staring directly at Toll when I spoke. He had the decency to look a little ashamed.
"So which is it? I'm really swamped back there." I pointed a behind me to the workroom where I had piece upon piece vying for my attention.
"Why don't you get yourself some help?" Tool asked, looking at a Victorian birdcage.
"I'm not the easiest person to get along with," I replied, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. I must have looked frightful. I had slept less than four hours before getting up, throwing my hair up in a bandanna and calling it good.
"A slave driver...I like that in a woman." Tool grinned as he eyed up an old dental chair I picked up. Even refurbished, it was an eye sore in my store. Didn't go along with the rest of the romantic décor. But it was still a piece I owned, a piece I needed to make money on.
"How much you want for this?" he asked, playing with the foot petals.
"Make me a decent offer and it's yours."
"1200 sound fair?"
My eyebrows shot up. $1200? That was two mortgage payments for me. And the chair was worth half.
"It's only worth $600, tops."
Tool smiled and looked at me.
"Your to honest for your own good sweetheart."
I smiled and shook my head.
"I wouldn't feel comfortable selling something for more, or less than it's worth."
Just then Sarah began screaming. Loud, ear piercing peels of terror. I spun on my heel and sprinted into the workroom. She was behind the table, looking around at the ground frantically.
"SNAKE!"
I was almost to the table, getting ready to reprimand her for being so ridiculous, when the little bastard came slithering out from under the cabinet nearby.
"Sarah, get up on the table. Now, go." She did as I asked. It was a diamond back, and it was pissed as hell. I could hear it slithering and spitting it's way toward me across the floor.
"What's going on?" Barney demanded as he barged through the doors and directly into the path of the snake. I grabbed his arm and yanked, moving him out of the way just as it struck out.
I let go of him and grabbed the first heavy thing my eyes landed on, which was an old axe that I used as a prop. I brought it down hard, cutting the snake in two. But I knew better than that, just because it was bisected, didn't mean it still couldn't bite you. I dropped the axe and moved closer, lifting my booted foot up and crushing it's head quickly. I disgusting wet crunch echoed through the room.
"Holy shit" Toll said from the door. But I wasn't paying him any attention. I was focused on Sarah. I quickly made my way over to where she was holding herself on the table, crying.
"Did it bite you?" I asked looking up at her. "Sarah?"
When she didn't respond I climbed up onto the table and shook her gently. She snapped out of it and looked at me.
"Are you hurt?"
"I don't think so. It just...snuck up on me is all."
"Did you see where it came from?"
She nodded at the large, linen wardrobe I just got in. I felt my stomach. Chances are there were more in there. They were probably using it as a nesting spot.
"Stay up here." It wasn't a suggestion and she complied without question. I hopped off the table and quietly made my way over to the closed cabinet. I put my ear to the door and listened. Nothing. I gently shook the the frame and almost had a heart attack at the sudden turmoil coming from within. I backed away quickly and ran over to my workbench, looking for tape. Fast as a bunny I placed the tape on the edge of one of the doors and began jogging around the cabinet, wrapping the tape around it as I went. When I was done I stood back and sighed. 200 bucks down the drain.
"Didn't you check that thing before you brought it in here!?" Sarah yelled as cautiously got down.
"Of course I did! I don't know how they got in. Maybe some snakes in the area smelled the old pheromones or something."
I watched as a look passed between the men.
"What?"
Barney turned to look at me.
"Where'd you get that thing?"
"Local guy, said he found it in his grandpa's garage. Brought it over to me. I checked it out, paid the man and then he helped me get it back here. Why?"
They once again looked at each other, with knowing glances.
"Wait...You don't think someone deliberately put the snakes in there do you?"
It was a ludicrous notion. I had no enemy's to speak of, or at least none that had made themselves known to me. And I wasn't attached to anyone, in my knowledge, who would have enemy's nefarious enough to do something like this.
It was like a light bulb going off in my head. Why had I not seen it before.
"May I speak to you, all of you, in private?" I pointed towards my office and they reluctantly trudged in. I pulled up the rear, and as soon as I closed the door I laid into them something fierce.
"What the hell have you gone and drug us into?"
"What are you talking about sweetheart," Tool asked, trying to placate me. But I was having none of it. They were involved in something, and it was dangerous and probably illegal. Now had it just been me here, I wouldn't have been nearly as angry. But Sarah...
"Don't give me that shit. I may have been born at night, but it wasn't last night. Now your gonna tell me what the hell that was all about, or I'm gonna ask you to leave, and never darken my doorway again."
"She's cute as hell when she's angry," Tool snickered out. I narrowed my eyes at them.
"I'm not foolin'. What just happened didn't just put me in danger, but Sarah too. And I won't let that shit happen again."
I took a few moments to study each one of them. Barney had his arms crossed over his chest defensively, Toll was leaning against the wall, looking to Barney, and Tool was sitting on the edge of my desk, grinning like a fool.
I sighed. It was going to be really strange trying to ignore them.
"Please leave," I said, after several minutes of silence. None of them moved. I knew I could stand here all day and scream at them to get out and if they didn't want too, they wouldn't. So I did the next best thing. I opened the office door and headed back into my shop. I had work to do. Sarah was shooting questions at me, but I shook my head no. She got the message, and didn't push it.
"Hand me the electric sander please, I've wasted enough time today."
Sarah passed me what I asked for. I slipped on my goggles and set to work finishing my table. In almost no time I had finished the entire top. I really needed to stop being so stubborn and just use this all the time. All the time I could have saved...
"Avolene..." I heard Barney say my name, but I ignored him. I squatted down and turned the sander back on, doing a leg.
"Avolene!"
I just kept right on sanding. Well, that is until he pulled the power cord out of the outlet. I whipped my glasses off and stood up quickly.
"What do you want?" I snapped at him. Damn I was on a short fuse today.
"Were you supposed to pick up the chest, or Sarah?"
I looked at him like he had grown a third head. But I took a deep breath, calming myself down before I spoke.
"It's a linen cupboard and Sarah was supposed too, but she became...preoccupied."
No sooner had the words left my mouth then I once again had a little light bulb moment. The snakes were meant for Sarah the whole time...but why? She wasn't into anything...but she was into Toll, and Toll was with Barney, and they were...into something naughty at the very least
My eyes narrowed at Toll.
"What have you drug her into?"
"He didn't drag me into anything. Avie they help people..."
"The kind of people who try to assassinate a woman for spending time with one of them. Sounds pretty thin to me."
"What's thin?" Toll Road asked.
"The ice your skating on."
They all laughed at me at the same time. Granted I wasn't the most imposing woman on earth, and generally when I was making threats I had my brothers behind me to back me up. But I wasn't letting this go. I wanted to know more about them, about this. Sarah said they helped people. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe I had jumped to conclusions and labelled them incorrectly.
"I know you aren't afraid of me, I'm not scary, It's something I've never strived to be. But I am afraid, for my friend. I can't pass judgement on what you do, you have to be free to live your lives in any way you see fit. But you need to remember, be conscious of the fact that your lives impact those around you."
"Well said sister." Tool's usually smiling face was serious and almost sad.
"I'm sorry, for what I said earlier. It was wrong of me."
"Didn't say anything that wasn't true." Barney replied, his deep voice startling me.
"The truth cuts deeper than the sharpest knife. I'm really sorry."
He nodded his head, his dark brown eyes staring into mine. Why did he always have to be so intense? It was hard for me to hold his gaze for very long.
"We're mercenaries."
I nodded my head.
"Is Sarah in danger?"
"No. That was a warning from an old friend."
"Some friend."
He graced me with a rare smile. I couldn't help but smile back.
"Thank you, for being honest with me."
"Your taking it well, all things considered," Toll chimed in.
"That's probably because I have no clue what a mercenary does these days."
Everyone laughed at the same time. Barney opened his mouth to speak when the bell chimed again. I quickly scuttled through the group to the store front.
"Hello, welcome to Old World Charm...ABRAM!" Once I realized it was my oldest brother, I ran and threw myself into his arms. He caught me and spun around a few times before setting me back down.
"So this is the store huh? I like it."
"Thanks. What...How? What are your doing here?"
"Flew down to meet with a potential new client. A mill down here. Thought I would stop in and surprise you."
"Check up on me more like." I grinned.
"Gotta make sure your doing all right. Ma worries like crazy up there."
"I call her every other day."
"Your the baby, and her only girl. You could live with her and she would worry."
I sighed and nodded my head. Just then Sarah and the group came walking up front.
"Everything is all right, right?" He asked after one look at Barney, Tool and Toll.
"Yeah. Abram, this is Sarah, Barney Ross, Toll Road and Tool. Barney is my neighbour. Everyone this is my oldest brother Abram."
Tool's POV
The little firecracker had Barney cornered, and it was hilarious watching him try and climb out of the hole he dug. He called her bluff, and when she left the office, she took Barney's light with her.
"Oh brother, she has got you whipped and she doesn't even know it!"
Toll laughed with me as Barney threw us a glare. I wiped the corner of my eye before straightening up and throwing the poor guy a bone.
"The way I see it you got two options. Let her go.." He threw me a dark look. "Or tell her what we do. She's tough. She can handle it."
"What if she can't? What if when I tell her she decides she doesn't want to know any more?"
"I doubt that brother. She's put up with us this long. If she didn't want nothing to do with us, she'd have already dismissed ya."
He let out a sigh and I felt bad for him. He had her on the brain, both of them, for over two months now. That was one serious case of blue balls.
"Just go for it man. Worst she can do is shoot you down."
"Give the sister some time. Sarah said she had some man troubles back in Los Angeles."
Give that girl a drink and she would spill state secrets. Which is what he and Barney had been doing for the last two nights. From her actions and words she seemed like a warm, joyous, happy go lucky girl. But upon closer inspection, you could see her cracks. She was jaded, tainted by the ugly world just like we were.
I followed as Barney went out to make peace. She was cold enough that I felt the chill. But after some time, her harsh words had eaten away at her and she was almost in tears. The girl couldn't even pretend to be mean. I watched as they made up, grinning when she blushed slightly under his intense look. By god if it had been any other guy but Barney, I would have done my best to get that girl under me. Thankfully for her, a customer walked in. She bounced off to greet them, Barn's eyes never leaving her.
"Abram!"
Hearing your woman scream another man's name was never an easy thing. He was looking ready to kill when we walked up front to see her standing with a dark haired giant. Built like Gunner, only broader through the shoulders, you could tell instantly they were related.
"Brother, you are going to give yourself a heart attack..."
"Tell me about it."
"What are you gonna do if she ever does meet someone?"
"You'll clean your guns on the front porch when he comes by of course," Sarah pipped up. I sometimes forgot the girl was around at all.
"Where's all that bra burning, sisterly love?"
"Fuck that stuff. Avolene needs a man who can protect and provide for her, someone to make her feel cherished and loved. If you can't give her that, then back off and I'll find someone who can."
"You chicks always so involved in each other's love lives?"
"Please, no guy gets anywhere with out the girlfriend's stamp of approval. Which, by the way Barney, I'm giving you. Don't fuck it up."