Galin (5 page)

Chapter 3

On the way home from the store Dusty stopped
at the new shop that Judith had opened. She was jealous of what the other woman
had been able to do in such a short amount of time, and even looked longingly
at the building next to JJ&P, as Judith called her shop for short. By the time
she pulled up in front of the building, Dusty had a million ideas.

“As you can see we’ve used most of the original
walls in here.” Judith showed her around the large open space that served as
both a shop and a little tea room. “My contractor worked so hard to make sure
that all the artwork stayed. I’m thinking I’d like to use the mural as part of
my business logo, but am not sure how to make it work.”

“You could use the wheat as your logo with
the initials of the shop incorporated within the design.” Dusty took the sheet
of tissue paper that the girl at the register handed her and the large marker.
“See? Like this. It would be easy for you to get this same design printed on
labels you can pick up at a local store and put them on the bags yourself. It
will save you a fortune.”

Dusty worked as she spoke, not really
thinking of anything but to give the woman, a woman she’d come to admire, a
helping hand. And if she gave her a little business down the road, it would be
nice but not necessary. Dusty handed her the rough sketch as she looked around
the shop.

“I love this.” Judith turned when the little
bell over the door chimed. The woman coming toward them looked like she was
going to burst at any second. Dusty had never seen a woman look so enormous
during her pregnancy. “Look at this, Kala. I have a designer and an advertising
firm. And a bonus of a good friend. Kala, I’d like you to meet Dusty McGee. Dusty,
this is Kala Trainer. She’s married to Riss. ”

Before Dusty could tell her no, she didn’t
have an advertising firm, Judith was pulling her along to a table and ordering
tea and scones for them all. The woman, Kala, sat down and huffed at them. Judith
laughed.

“You should have a couple. You are eating for
a lot of you, you know.” Dusty looked at Kala’s belly, then at her face. She
knew that she looked shocked but wasn’t sure how to hide it from her. Judith
continued talking before she said something really stupid. “I also have some
jams for you to take back with you. I’ll have Dennis load them up for you.”

“I’m going to waddle over to the deli case
too. I need something for dinner. I don’t suppose you have any of those chicken
breasts like you had marinated the other day?” Kala looked at Dusty when Judith
moved off to check for her. “I’m sure you’re slightly overwhelmed right now.
Not that I blame you, but I get it. I understand you met a few protectors last
night.”

Dusty nodded and took a sip of her tea. She
wanted to ask her if she was one too, when Kala laughed. Her head was starting
to do that spinny thing again and she needed to get out. Dusty thought it was
time she should go, and started to rise when Kala caught her hand.

“Don’t. You’re overwhelmed and out of sorts,
but I can tell you that you’re going to be fine. So will Kip.” Dusty sat down
but didn’t put her things down just yet. “You can trust us. We are only here
for your wellbeing.”

It occurred to her at that moment that she’d
been manipulated. Dusty wasn’t sure when it had happened or why, but she’d been
bamboozled into all of this. It hurt her more than she wanted to admit that
she’d been so stupid to think someone wanted to be her friend.

“Judith didn’t just happen to be in the store
when I walked in, did she?” Dusty looked at the woman at the counter laughing
with a customer. “I should have known that something was up. Why would a woman
who has a place like this one need to go to the store—where there are enough
chemicals in one box of cereal to supply a small country—instead of here? I’m
so incredibly stupid sometimes.”

“No, you’re far from stupid. You’re lonely is
all. And you’re right. A protector called us to help you with some of the
questions you have running in your mind. And we were going to do it anyway, so
decided today was as good as any. We protect those that mean something to us.” Dusty
looked at Kala when she spoke. “Your nephew, he’s all right then?”

“I have no idea.” Dusty fought hard with the
tears but like usual, they won out. She stood up again, determined to leave
this time. “He has shut me out as much as his mother ever did. And he blames me
for everything. Though I don’t know why he wouldn’t. I’m a major fuck up and
I’m barely hanging on. I need to go. I have…I need to get home.”

“Stay. Please. I want you…we want you to
stay. You need a friend and we’re going to be here for you.” Kala patted the
chair again. “Please sit down. We can help you if you let us.”

“I don’t know what I’m doing.” As soon as the
words left her mouth, Dusty knew it was true. “I’m failing him and I don’t know
what to do. He won’t let me in. I don’t mean just his room…he won’t let me in
his heart. He’s closed it off to me. And so much of me wants to be in there, to
be his friend, his aunt. But I don’t know how to do that.”

“He hit you.”

Dusty put her hand over her mouth. The medic
had told her she needed stitches, but she’d told him to just tape it shut…the
wound, not her mouth. Though now that she thought about it, she should have had
him tape that as well. What did she care if there was a scar or not?

“I’m sure he feels badly that he hurt you.”

“And I’m equally sure he wishes he could have
hurt me more. Though I don’t know how he could have. He’s already torn my heart
out.” Dusty sat down and watched as Judith made her way to them. Once she was
seated, Dusty didn’t look at the two women but told them what she was feeling. “I
hate what I’ve done to him. I wish…I knew that taking him from his home was
wrong, but I had no way of taking care of the money she owed in order for us to
live there. And the place…I’m surprised that someone hasn’t condemned that place.
It was disgusting. The officer was really nice, but he said that the apartment
and all its contents were seized by the state. They wouldn’t even let me go in
and get a fucking picture for him to take home of his poor dead mother.”

“Have you told him what happened?” She shook
her head at Judith. “He should know what you’ve given up for him. What you’re
doing for him. Then he needs a good kick in the ass for the way he’s been
treating you.”

“I suppose Boss told you everything.” When neither
of them answered her Dusty looked at them. Judith looked guilty and Kala was
looking at everything but her. When they still didn’t answer, Dusty had finally
had enough. “What is it you’re trying really hard not to tell me? I think I can
take it, and even if I can’t I want to know.”

“I can read your mind.”

Dusty waited for the punch line, and when
none was forthcoming she stood up. She was out to her car when she realized
that she’d just lost a client, something she could not afford. As she brought
her groceries into the house the phone was ringing. Answering it without
checking the caller ID, she nearly dropped it when the man at the other end of
the line starting talking.

“None of them will help you when it comes
down to it. I’ve got him now because of my mark, and he’ll turn to me long
before he will you. He’s mine and I plan to take him as soon as I can.” The
laughter made her think of nails scratching down a chalkboard, and she sat down
on the floor as he continued. “I’m going to eat him alive…peel his skin from
his tender body and then eat every part of him. Then when I’m finished, have
eaten the last little morsel of him, I’m going to—”

The phone was taken from her and she stared
at the man kneeling in front of her. She had no idea who he was or what he
wanted from her. But before she could scream, if she could have, her vision
blurred and she fainted.

~~~

Galin picked her up and carried her to the
bedroom he’d seen her in earlier. She was light and he wondered briefly if she
was eating any better than her nephew. Laying her down on the bed he reached
for Michael. He appeared in the room in seconds.

“He’s called her.” Michael nodded and moved
out of the room, only to return a few seconds later. He had a wet cloth in his
hand, as well as a cup.

“I have brought her some tea. If you could
wake her, she would do well to drink it. I think the sugar will do her some
good.” Galin was just reaching for it when Kip walked into the room. “I have
had him come to your aid.”

“Who are you? And what are you doing in my…?”
Kip moved to the bed and took his aunt’s hand. “What did you do to her? I’m
calling the cops.”

“I’m not the one that hurt her. The man from
your dreams did it.” Kip stood up and moved back from the bed, paling as he
moved. “I’ll not hurt you, either of you, but your aunt needs you to help me
keep her safe. You too.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I
just had a bad dream. My mom died and all, and I—”

Galin cut him off. “You dreamt about a man
who changed into a large demon. And he grabbed your leg to bring you back to
his hell with him. But something stopped him. I don’t know if it was your aunt
or the fact that you woke up. Whatever the reason, you’re safe, for now.” Kip
was shaking his head and Galin went to him. Grabbing him by the shoulders, he
shook him just a little. “Get a grip, boy. Your aunt has had a horrific scare
and she’s fainted. What do you know about her that would help me?”

“Nothing.” Galin knew that but he could see
that it had startled the kid to say it aloud. “She took me from my home a month
ago and has me staying here with her. As soon as I get enough money together
I’m going back and staying in my home.”

“It’s gone.” They both turned to Dusty, who
was sitting up on the bed but not looking at them. “The Feds took it all. They
went in and seized everything because your mom had been muling for someone and
they rolled on her. The day she was killed they found over nine thousand pounds
of drugs in her car, and she was stoned out of her mind.”

“You lie.” Galin knew that she wasn’t and
nearly told Kip that when he continued. “You’d say anything to make it so I
didn’t want to go back there. Well, I’m going and you can’t fucking stop me.”

“I’m not sure I want to anymore.” Kip looked
at him at his aunt’s confession. “You might be better off living on the streets
than here with me. I’ve done nothing to help you. I’ve given up…do you have any
idea what a funeral costs? Thousands. And the hospital wouldn’t even let me
bury her without paying off her bills. All of them. I’m broke, Kip.” She looked
up then and Galin watched her face for any signs of hysteria.

“She had money. Lots of it when she went out
of the house. I saw it.” Galin watched Dusty as Kip spoke. “She said she’d be
back and we’d go out to dinner. We were going to go to the park and spend the
day. She and I were happy until you had to come in and take over. How do I know
that you didn’t have her killed so you could make my life terrible?”

“She was dead when I got there and you know
it.” Dusty stood up and moved toward the door. “I’m going to go outside. Say
goodbye to your friend and then have him go. I’ll…I’ll see about making some
arrangements for you to go to a home. You don’t want to live here and I don’t
have the energy to fight you any longer. You win.”

Galin looked at Kip when Dusty left the room.
The kid was as close to crumbling as he’d ever seen a human to be. When he sat
down on the floor, his back sliding down the wall as if he’d lost all feeling
in his legs, Galin sat in the chair directly across from him.

“I don’t know what to do now.” Galin didn’t
either. “She really does hate me. I mean really hates me.”

“I think you’re wrong on that score, buddy.” Galin
stood up and put his hand out for the kid as he gave Kip some advice. “Here is
what you should do…go out and let her tell you everything. I mean everything. Including
how she feels about the crap you just said to her. And for the record, that was
extremely mean of you. You’re going to hate most of what she tells you, but you
should know what she’s been doing for you.”

“You just want to fuck her.” Before he could
think about what he was doing, Galin slapped the kid on the face. Kip stared at
him, shocked, and if looks were any indication, more shocked than Galin was at
what he’d done.

“You say anything like that about her again,
and I will hit you again. I’ve never…you’re the rudest kid I’ve seen in a very
long time.” Galin looked around the room at the bareness of it before looking
at Kip. “At first I didn’t want to like her either. She didn’t seem to be
giving you what I thought you needed, and I even went so far as to have you
clean up your room so that maybe she’d like you a little. But you’re a spoiled
brat. Why should you be told to clean up after yourself? You’re a teenager, not
a baby. And look how much she has in comparison to what you have. Do you see
any other room as well-stocked as yours is? Does she have a computer at this
desk? Does she look like she’s living in the lap of luxury? No. You want to
know why? She’s given it all to you. To try and make things better for you.
I’ve never seen a kid have as much as you and not care a nickel for the person
who has given up so much to give it to you.”