Humming to myself, I finish cleaning up the office. Another day is over, and I am ready to relax at home with my comfy sweats on. Tomorrow is the big day, and I am barely able to contain my alleviation, knowing that my big brother will finally be home with his family again.
Originally Donna was going to pick him up from Chino, but she asked me earlier today if I wanted to do it. There was no way in hell I was going to pass that offer up. I didn't even ask why she couldn't anymore, that's how happy I was. To think the Winston kids will be back in Charming, together once again; this hasn't happened in five years. Charming better brace itself for trouble.
"Babydoll, you almost done? I could go for a couple of beers right now." JJ is about as patient as a small child. Closing with him on busier days is the biggest pain the ass. He will sit in my office chair groaning on and on about how he is ready to leave. Delightedly, today is not going to be one of those days.
"I am shutting down the computer now, so quit your whining." I press the lit up green power symbol, sticking my tongue out at him.
"Alright, I have had about enough of you today." JJ walks up to me, crouching down to wrap his arms around my legs. My hands adhere to the back of his neck, trying to keep myself from busting ass.
Trying to squirm out of his grip is next to impossible, he has a strong hold on me. "JJ, don't you dare pick me up." The Teller boys have a bad habit of manhandling me, it's a habit they won't kick.
Throwing me over his shoulder, JJ starts walking me out of the office. "Sorry sweetheart, I can't hear you over my whining."
JJ grabs my black, leather purse that holds all my things. Whacking him in the back with my fist, he doesn't even flinch.
He grabs my keys off the hook by the front door. My maroon tank top is riding up, the night air blowing on my exposed skin. When he turns around to lock the door, I spot someone stumbling towards us. Immediately, I know it's not one of my boys; they went to Gemma's for family dinner not too long ago. Who would come to a closed automobile repair shop at this hour?
I can make out some features of the person, but not enough to identify them. He or she is hidden by the darkness consuming the night.
"JJ, I think you should put me down. Someone is walking towards us." Well, the person is trying to walk towards us, but they are swaying pretty badly. Whoever it is, they remind me of the way drunk college girls leave nightclubs in Vegas, needing someone to support them so they can make it safely to a cab.
"Cas, I am not stupid enough to fall for that." JJ laughs, clutching onto my legs a little tighter with his one arm. He moves his shoulder up causing me to be thrown in the air, just a little.
"JJ!" I shout in dismay. The exposed skin on my waist brushes against his leather cut, and any other time it would be marginally funny how this reminds me of the time he first got patched in. JJ was so excited he picked me up like this, spinning me around. All I could do was laugh, breathing in the scent of his new leather.
"Turn the hell around!" I scream. There is very little that scares me in this world, and this wobbling guy surely doesn't, but I am an overly cautious person when it comes to strangers. Especially ones who show up out of nowhere, right when we get done closing. It wouldn't be easy protecting myself if needed when I am thrown over JJ's shoulder like some rag doll.
"If it stops you from yelling in my ear, then fine." JJ puts me down and turns to see the guy I was talking about. The stumbling drunk is almost to where light will shine on his face. Promptly JJ shifts into overly defensive big brother mode. He pivots his body so that I am behind him.
Protectively, JJ throws his arm out so I can't walk forward. Scowling in consternation, he starts to approach the intruder. "Let me take care of this guy."
"JJ, I am not a baby. And I highly doubt this drunk could hurt me." I walk around his arm, but he catches my wrist, harshly pulling me back to him. His blue eyes are icy, his lips turned into a hard frown. You can't tell without knowing him personally, but JJ has this ever-present fear of losing people. And I don't think he would ever forgive himself if it happened when he had the ability to stop it from happening.
"Casey, just stay here and don't do anything stupid," JJ demands, leaving me behind. I swear he forgets I am a grown woman who knows how to use a gun and has a mighty hard punch. With the rings on my fingers, I can do some damage to a person's face. A prime example is when I broke Wendy's nose that one day in the clubhouse.
JJ's hand reaches for his gun, to be ready if the unwelcome guest is a danger. Not that he looks like a threat, he can barely function from what I can tell.
JJ isn't very welcoming to strangers, of any kind. He is the one who bought the sign we have on the gate to the garage saying, 'trespassers will be shot'. That pretty much sums up how he deals with outsiders, or at least how he wishes he could.
When the man staggers into the light, I immediately know who he is. He's wearing dress pants and a nice shirt, as always; he must have lost his blazer somewhere. Jason never leaves the house in anything less than business attire.
"Can I help you with something?" JJ asks, his voice is stern, and I can tell he is now gripping his gun. Jason isn't a weapons guy, he has security for that. Well, he does now; if only he had security when I was around.
With a roll of my eyes, I walk towards JJ. "Don't pull that gun on him. Jason won't hurt either one of us. He loves me, and he knows you are like my older brother."
"There she is...my beautiful girl. Tell me something, love." Jason sounds obliterated, he's almost unable to speak. His green eyes widen at the sight of me, a smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth.
JJ looks at me with perplexity. I pretend to not see his eyes digging into me. JJ has heard stories of Jason, individual ones I chose to share, but he's never seen him. Everything else that has to do with Jason he is in the dark about. I feel it's better for everyone if they didn't know about my life in Sin City.
"You aren't a drinking-till-I-get-drunk type of guy. What's going on with you?" I stop a couple feet away from him, already smelling the booze on him.
I know exactly what's going on. Jason hasn't shown his face in a couple days, not since I told him everything. Secretly, I had hoped this meant he left, but I knew better than that. Jason is a closure kind of guy and what I told him may have answered one thing, but it also brought more questions to mind.
"Ha! Are you really asking me that, love?" Jason stops walking, putting his hands in the air out of frustration. He has stopped right in front my jeep, needing something to lean on. "Unless...oh my. This one doesn't know either! Ha, you hid it from everyone. And here I thought it was only me who got left out." Jason attempts to point at JJ, but it looks more like he's waving or some bullshit.
JJ's stare on me intensifies, singeing my skin. I feel the heat of his curiosity growing, trying to piece together what Jason is talking about. JJ saw me at the hospital, he is somewhat aware that Jason was a big part of my Vegas life, and now Jason is unleashing the fact that something big happened, something I am not telling anyone. Anyone with that knowledge could see leaving Vegas wasn't one of my 'on a whim decisions', it was much more.
"We aren't doing this here," I hiss. Wherever this drunken fool is staying, he needs to go back to.
"You...you lied to me. Do you know how much that hurt me." Jason barely chokes the words out, his distress turns into tears; tears that I can't handle.
Something in me snaps, letting out the pent up anger I had for Jason. I lied to him? I kept him from impregnable pain!
"I hurt you? Are you kidding? It was me who warned you not to trust that scum bag. I told you he needed to go. I kept saying over and over that things with him weren't adding up. Yet, you are blaming me? You have some audacity, Jason." His name tastes bitter in my mouth. I grab tight onto the top of his collar, it bunches in my hand. When I thrust him against the trunk of my car, Jason's eyes widen. This is not a side of me he has seen since I shot Hobart, the part of me scorching with anger. "You trusted him with EVERYTHING."
Emotion is rising inside of me, my throat feeling tight. I will not cry, he doesn't deserve my tears. Tears are weakness, and I am not weak. Casey Winston doesn't cry. I hate that he's done this to me. Right now, I hate him.
"Guess what? I turned out to be right all along! What do I get for being right? I get to carry around a loss greater than you can ever imagine! You, you practically allowed it to happen! But, you almost got off scot free! If you hadn't found that paper, you would never have known." JJ grabs my waist, trying to pull me off of Jason. He tries to calm me down, whispering to me that maybe I need to talk to Jason tomorrow when he's not drunk, and I am not so wound up. This only causes me to hold on tighter to Jason's collar, because I haven't said all I wanted to yet and he needs to hear this.
"I used to admire you Jase. You built a life for yourself, turned something horrible into something great. Then, you let him ruin it. You let him ruin you, our bar, and he tried to destroy me, but I got out. Now when I look at you, all I can see is the blood on your hands!" My trembling fingers release Jason's collar and I all but collapse into JJ's arms. JJ tries to turn my body so that I can rest my face in the crook of his neck, but I resist.
Jason slides down to the ground, tears now falling down his face. Aren't we quite the pair; letting our emotions spill down our faces like it's not our own faults that we got into this mess. Because as much as I hate to admit it, I am also to blame here. I could have left sooner. I should have run when that man walked through the front doors of my place in Vegas.
"I want you to remember something, Jason. No, I want more than that. I want the fact that it isn't just my blood on your hands to haunt you."
Leaving Vegas was supposed to help relieve the pain, not bring it all back.
"He makes shitty drinks," Charlotte complains. Her black locks spill onto the bar as she checks her phone, to see the time. It's about time we both retire for the night, leaving behind the lighted city streets to collapse into our beds and repeat almost the same day over again tomorrow.
Charlie has been working at the bar for the last two years. He's also recently become an unwanted roommate, due to wanting to start saving money. The whole thing feels like a horrible nightmare. All he does at work is flirt with girls, hoping one of them will open their legs for him at the end of the night. He's one cocky son of a bitch too. He's constantly bragging about shit, stuff I am sure he made up.
At home, I have to worry about walking out to see naked women in my kitchen. Women who have the boldness to ask who I am, like they own the place. I don't have the fingers to count all the times one of our cars have gone missing, just to show up hours later with him driving them. Charlie reminds me of an arrogant, irresponsible teenager whose parents give him no boundaries. He thinks he can do anything, whenever he feels like doing it.
Him having access to all these things in our life pisses me off. And I have expressed that to Jason a multitude of times. You know what Jason does? Nothing. A tiny slap on Charlie's hand and a stern talking to is all that twit gets.
"He's a shitty person, so I am not surprised." I wipe the damp counter dry. "I can make you something way better if you want."
"No, you are almost done closing. I don't want to get in the way." Charlotte sighs, realizing it's the average time she heads back to her place.
Every night, right as we are closing, I come to the bar to check how we did for the evening. And to make sure our drawers come out right, which they haven't been in the last couple months. Hundreds of dollars have 'mysteriously' gone missing. Jason tells me he is keeping his eyes out, but there is no reason to when we can just fire Charlie, and our problem will be solved.
"You would be using one freaking cup. It's not a big deal. Dalia, the bar closer tonight, hasn't closed down this side of the bar yet." I rest my hand on my hip. Doctor Charlotte always thinks she is inconveniencing me somehow, which she never is.
Charlotte is my best friend here; we drink together, she helps around the bar when I close, and sometimes we just leave for the weekend and go wherever we feel like going. Most days I am convinced she and this bar are the only reason I stay in Vegas. "You know what, I don't know why I asked. You are getting a drink whether you like it or not."
I throw the ratty towel in a small hamper I pull out around closing. Grabbing a bottle of our best vodka, I start making her a mixed drink.
"Hey Ms. Winston, our drawers are short again."
I cringe at the sound of someone calling me Ms. Winston. It makes me feel old and reminds me of my mother. My mom who hates me. "Dalia, hun, call me Casey or boss lady or anything other than the name you just said."
"You ready to turn in for the night, love?"
I slide the fruity drink to Charlotte and see Jason walking towards me. "No, we have a problem." I snap, tired of telling Jason night after night that Charlie is stealing from us, just for Jason to do nothing.
"What would that be, darling?" Jason stands next to Charlotte, leaning on the bar. Charlotte and Jason get along pretty well, and even she agrees with me that he is ignorant with this whole Jason situation. He refuses to open his eyes to what is right there.
I walk over to Dalia, grabbing the receipt paper that would show him that we are yet again short a couple hundred dollars.
"Go home sweet girl, you have class tomorrow. We will finish up here." I send Dalia home, knowing Jason and I will be here arguing over this for some time. All we seem to do is argue anymore.
I hand Jason the papers, giving him a furious glare. "Your shithead of a little brother is stealing from us, and you are letting him get away with it."
"How can you automatically assume it's my brother?" Jason looks at me questioningly. There is no anger or hostility in his voice. He seems genuinely curious, but not shocked at the accusation. He's aware, just as I am that Charlies is a shady character. Yet, he refuses to stand up to his little brother.
"The first couple of nights I was assuming, not that you can blame me for that with his track record, but then I set up cameras. Now I have proof that it's Charlie. Proof that not only is he a thief, but he's also a terrible employee." I cock oneof my eyebrows, my lips pursed. "And if that isn't good enough, several employees told me he's been giving free drinks away, taking bottles when he leaves, and drinking on the job."
Jason licks his lip, looking down at the counter for a second. "Okay, I will talk to him tonight. I will take care of this. Maybe you and Charlotte should have a girls night tonight."
I grab Jason's hand, making him look up at me. "Thank you, babe. I will see you tomorrow morning."
"Of course, love."
Flipping all the lights off, I pull out my phone to call Charlotte. Jason went home to talk to Charlie, and it makes me nervous the conversation didn't take that long. Thirty minutes after he left Jason texted me saying we should get brunch in the morning and 'discuss Charlie's future actions'. I am unsure if this brunch will be pleasant or turn into another fight.
Closing took longer since I did it all by myself, so I sent Charlotte home. She said she was gonna grab takeout and meet me back at her place, which sounded perfect to me. I walk out of the bar, closing the door when someone puts a rag over my mouth.
"One move and you're a dead bitch."
The pounding in my head is making me nauseous. Any minute my head is going to combust, at least that's what it feels like. Squeezing my eyes shut, I pretend I am cuddled up to my favorite pillow in bed. Unfortunately, since I may have a concussion, I am not allowed to be in bed yet. Instead, I am in my living room with Jason trying to question me, Charlotte taking care of my wounds, and Charlie sitting on the couch watching. He's useless in every situation.
"Are you ready to tell me what happened, love?" Jason's voice booms in my ears, making me want to pull my hair out. His voice exacerbates the pounding in my head, causing me to groan in pain.
Talking while getting stitches in your forehead has proven to be tough. Charlotte keeps hitting me and telling me to sit still every two seconds. "I already told you. These two guys kidnapped me, and they weren't very good at it. The two men didn't wear masks, I know exactly what they look like-"
Jason cuts me off, clearing his throat. He's rather choleric about the fact that I am not taking being kidnapped seriously. "Enough critiquing their kidnapping techniques. What happened next?"
I wince as I feel Charlotte finish stitching up my forehead. There was a mighty big gash on it from the guy slamming my head against the wall of the bar when I tried to fight back. The stupid man thought whatever was in his rag would knock me out instantly, amateur.
"Is there a way to kidnap someone properly?" Charlie chuckles to himself, thinking mocking me right now is a good idea. Charlotte sits next to me, holding my arm, so I don't attempt to get up.
"When you know outlaws, you learn a lot of interesting things." I lean back against our leather couch, wishing I was home with my boys right now. They would be getting some sweet revenge on the two guys who put their hands on me.
"You knew outlaws in your quiet, little town-"
"Will both of you shut your mouths! Charlie if you can't keep your mouth closed, then get out. Casey, skip your comments and tell me what happened." Jason's exasperated voice makes me feel guilty. He's tearing himself up over the fact these guys hurt me, and I am over here joking about it.
"They took me to some empty parking garage. Nothing about it felt similar, no recognizable land markings or anything either. They went on this spiel about how they looked into who I was, telling me I grew up in a little town where nothing happens, and they knew who I was, blah blah blah. Then they threatened me, saying that if Charlie didn't have his debts paid soon, they were going to hang my body off a billboard, where all the people in my town can see. And the worst part of it all was they were going to pin it on you, Jason."
Letting out a sigh, I thought about how idiotic the whole plan was. How were they going to hang my body off a billboard without anyone noticing? Why a billboard? And how did they plan on pinning my murder on Jason? The whole plan was too much. And it makes zero sense that they would involve my hometown.
"Honestly, the whole thing sounds like a load of bullshit. Charlie, I don't know who you owe money, but they aren't that bright. I mean they let me go, and I didn't find them all that intimidating."
"Dammit Casey!" Jason brings his fist down on our glass coffee table, sending a spiderweb crack up the table. "That's it, you aren't working at the bar anymore. You can work from home, and lay low for now. Charlie will have to pick up the slack."
"Pick up the slack? Jason, he has been stealing money from us! There is no slack to be picked up; he needs to be fired."
"I have not been steal-"
"All of you shut the fuck up!" Charlotte screams, shocking all of us. I glance over at her, seeing her face a deep red. Clearly, she is just upset about this as the rest of us are. "Casey is going to be staying with me, seeing as I don't see her actually resting like she should if she stays here with you two. No need to worry about her safety at my place, I own guns and know how to use them.
Jason, I will consider letting her come back when you pull your head out of your ass and realize Casey is telling the truth about your little brother; he's obviously using you. Whether you are too blind to see it, or you are choosing to ignore it, I don't know. Charlie, you are a shitty person. You steal from your brother's bar, use anyone and everyone for whatever you want, and are causing two people that I love dearly to detest each other." Charlotte starts packing up her first aid kit, ready to get me out of here.
None of us say anything, because all of us know she's right. For a couple seconds there is only an awkward silence, then Charlie stomps out of the room. He slams the door as he leaves.
Jason stands up from his seat walking over to me. "Char, can I get a second with Casey please?"
Charlotte walks out of the living room, leaving the two of us alone. "My love, I am going to fix this. You don't have to go, please don't."
Jason's green eyes plead with me. What Charlotte said is a hundred percent true, I have slowly grown to dislike Jason. The Vegas atmosphere is the thing keeping me here, the meeting new kinds of people every night. It's a thrill I don't want to give up
The love I have for Jason is still there, but it's overshadowed. Charlies is tearing us apart, and if someone can come between us; how sturdy is our relationship?
Taking a deep sigh, I lean to place my forehead on the top of his head. "Jason, you gave me a chance once. From the time you met me three and a half years ago, you have been one of the kindest people I have ever known. You gave me so much, without asking anything in return. So, I am going to give you a chance. I know you love your little brother, but I can't live or work with him. He needs to go Jason. I am going to go to Charlotte's for a couple of weeks and let you figure things out. Call me when you do."
After giving Jason's forehead a kiss, I leave the apartment. I flashback to three years ago when I left Jax behind, the immense pain that ate at me when I drove out of Charming. The hurt I felt leaving Jason wasn't comparable. Maybe it was because if he shapes up I will come back or maybes it's because Jax was the one.
Maybe I do have a concussion, and everything is just mixed up in my mind.
A/N: I know I have been absent, and I am so sorry! I am ending Casey's time in Las Vegas, so I wanted to make sure the ending was perfect. I have the next two episodes written out. They will be posted after Christmas (maybe one before if I have time). Thank you for being patient with me and I hope that you enjoy this chapter!
decadenceofmysoul: Thank you for your continued support!
Khyharah: I hate Wendy and Charlie more than words can describe. The next chapter will tell all; you will soon know what Jason does!
xxcuriousmexx: Wendy will get what she deserves. I have big plans for her.
Bikerbitch645: Thank you :) Next episode will tell all, though I did hint at it in this one!
Foreverkee: It's going to send Casey over the breaking point when she finds Wendy.