Block's Road, page 22
Mariah crossed her arms on her chest. “I thought we agreed that he’s a sinner and we wouldn’t expose Joseph or Michelle to his… way of life.”
Peyton shook his head. “The real sinner here is you. Exposing our kids to your cheating way of life is more harmful than anything they might see being around him.”
“I didn’t cheat on you. Ask Gary.”
In a tight tone, Peyton said, “You went to his house, when you could have had lunch with me. It’s rare that I get time to eat out, and the Friday before a holiday weekend is one of those times. You know that.”
Block’s head cocked at that information. That mattered for some reason, but he couldn’t put his finger on it.
“Maybe she didn’t cheat. Hate to break it to you, but criminals who don’t want to get caught take the time to plan. You don’t just pile in the car one day and pull a drive-by,” Roman said.
Getting away with a crime did take planning. Block scrolled to the start of the message thread. What he saw was even crazier than the shooting. She sent Gary a text on the Monday prior to Labor day weekend. The same day, Block had taken time on his lunch break to scope out Heidi’s complex. It had been a bizarre whim, but deep down he’d hoped she’d be home for lunch. She hadn’t been, but he’d found her parking spot and determined he could easily get inside the stairwell leading to her unit.
It wasn’t until that Friday he’d broken into her condo. At the time, he’d felt like someone was following him, but he’d attributed that to general nerves. He always felt like someone was watching him when he was breaking and entering.
He knew Gary had most likely slashed Heidi’s tires, but he hadn’t thought Mariah knew who Heidi was until she showed up at his house unannounced.
He glared at Mariah. “Were you following me?”
“Get over yourself. Why would I follow you?”
Her tone had gone high again.
“For the same reason you had someone shoot me. Slashing her tires was senseless. What did you plan to gain from that?”
Mariah’s eyes narrowed. “It would make you a sitting duck. I knew you’d get concerned. Especially after Jolene and Michelle’s accident.”
Block saw red. His fists clenched. He stalked to the end of the driveway. The only thing keeping him from putting hands on Mariah was knowing Joey and little Michelle were both inside, still awake. He couldn’t assault their mother.
Anyone else, they’d haul her off to the clubhouse and decide how to retaliate as a club.
He heard footsteps behind him.
“Shit’s fucked up, Block. What do you want to do?” Roman asked.
He sighed. “Be a no-brainer, if it weren’t for my niece and nephew in that house.”
As he ran his hand over his scalp, the many times Heidi said they needed to tell the cops came back to him. It was unlikely they could report the drive-by so many days later. A knife in Gary’s trunk wouldn’t prove shit about Heidi’s tires.
Block trudged back toward Peyton, but said to Roman, “Shit. This is so fuckin’ wrong, and Heidi was right.”
“What do you mean?” Roman asked in a low voice.
“She wanted to involve the authorities. Told her I was the authority. Now, if we’d have reported shit, the cops could probably do something about it.”
They stood just feet from Peyton and Mariah, an awkward silence growing heavy.
To Block’s surprise, Peyton broke it. “We don’t need money from you, Rob.”
He shook his head. “Say that again.”
“Peyton, don’t you—”
“Mariah, you’ve committed crimes. At least one felony, for God’s sake. Our son just came out here and his eyes lit up at my brother being here. And you tried to have him killed. We don’t need money from the sale of the house. Our church needs the money.”
“We owe it to the church. After everything they’ve done for us—”
“They haven’t done anything for us, Mariah. They gave you a job… and then let you go.”
She said nothing and didn’t even look contrite.
“Right. You had a job with that church, it doesn’t mean we’re obligated to pay them. We tithe enough as it is.”
“Be quiet, Peyton.”
His brother shook his head. “No. I won’t be quiet about this. You tried to kill him. He ought to call the cops and he hasn’t. Do you realize how lucky that makes you?”
“I didn’t try to kill him.”
“Helping his girlfriend who had her tires slashed made him a sitting duck, according to you. That’s premeditation for sure.”
Mariah’s head tilted and she sighed. “You’re being dramatic, Petyon.”
A determined look crossed Petyon’s face. “You aren’t sleeping in the house tonight, and you aren’t taking our kids with you. If you’ve tried to kill my brother, what would you do to me?”
Mariah scoffed. “What? I’d never do anything to you!”
“Does she need a lift?” Roman asked. “We can get someone here to take her somewhere else.”
“I’m not going anywhere! This is my home.”
“It’s mine too, Mariah. If you don’t leave willingly, I’m calling the cops.”
“And they’ll take those two in for questioning,” Mariah said.
“No. They’ll take you in for conspiracy to attempt murder.”
Mariah looked at each man for a moment, a crazed look filled her eyes. She settled her stare on Peyton. “I won’t fight you tonight. But I am not spending tomorrow night away from my kids.”
Peyton looked down his nose at her. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”
Rather than stick around to watch Mariah leave, Roman and Block left. While waiting at the red light leading into Peyton’s neighborhood, Block gestured for Roman to follow him. He led Roman to a gas station where he stopped and pulled out his cell phone.
“What’s the problem?” Roman asked.
“You can head back to the clubhouse. Victoria drove Heidi to Mick and Stella’s. Call me crazy, but I need to pick Heidi up and take her with me. It’ll make me feel better, and I won’t dwell on my brother’s bitch of a wife.”
Roman hung his head and shook it. Then he looked up and Block could see him fighting a smile. “Don’t have to explain it to me, Block. I wouldn’t let my woman out of my sight after hearing all that bullshit just now. You want me to keep tabs on that bitch, though, I’m more than willing. Work doesn’t ramp up for me until mid-December at the earliest, so… Just say the word. And if you tell me she mysteriously disappeared, well, I won’t argue about it.”
Block exhaled, wishing he could laugh, but he couldn’t. “Thanks, Ro. You’re the shit. And no matter how much you argue with me, you’re the perfect person to take my place as treasurer.”
Roman tipped his head back with a belly-laugh. “Like I said before Block, you’re dead-ass wrong about that.”
He shook his head and hit Heidi’s contact on his phone screen.
“Hello, we’re on our way, biker man,” she greeted.
“Shit. I was going to pick you up.”
“That’s too bad. We’re halfway to the clubhouse, so I’ll see you soon.”
“Okay. I should get there at the same time. If I’m not outside, go in through the front door, understood?”
There was a pause. “What’s really going on here?”
He closed his eyes. “Please just do what I ask, baby.”
She sighed. “I will, but your tone is off.”
“I’ll explain when I get there.”
He ended the call and hauled ass to the clubhouse.
Headlights flashed through the forecourt while he dismounted his Harley. After Victoria parked her car, he opened Heidi’s door for her.
She angled out of the car, smiling at him before she kissed him. “How are you doing?”
“Better now. Let’s get inside.”
Victoria led the way to the back door, but Block held the door for both women. He followed Heidi inside and saw Gamble taking Victoria to his room. Heidi moseyed to the kitchen while Block moved closer to the common room.
Mensa, Tiny, and Har were sitting at a high-top near a pool table. He saw Riley sitting on a barstool with her back to him, her phone to her ear.
A snippet of her conversation penetrated and he saw red.
He grabbed the back of her barstool and twisted her around. “What did you say?”
Her eyes were wide. “What?”
“Repeat yourself!” he thundered.
With a head shake, he slipped her phone from her hand. “Who’s this?”
“What?” an incredulous male voice asked. “Motherfucker, you need to tell me who you are!”
He pulled the phone from his face. Luckily, the screen lit up. The number on display had a Biloxi area code and a common prefix, so he just memorized the last four digits. They coincided with the year of his Harley.
“Mensa,” he said.
His brother moved to him. He held the phone out to him. “Figure out this number. I want every deet you can give me.”
“On it,” he said, taking the phone.
Riley hopped off the barstool and shouted after Mensa. “Gimme back my phone!”
He backed her toward the wall. “Why did you say her name?”
“I didn’t.”
Fear shone from her eyes, but he caught a glimmer of calculation there too. “You fucking did. Why?”
“You’re scaring me,” she whined.
“First honest words from your lying lips, bitch.”
“Get away from me,” she demanded and brought her hands up, but stopped short of touching him. She’d been around. She knew the brothers didn’t hurt women, and she knew she wasn’t to touch a member without his permission.
He leaned closer. “Thing is, I could’ve sworn I heard you say ‘rat,’ too.”
She shook her head. “No! I called her a brat.”
His eyes narrowed. “You called her a ‘cunt’ to her face, but a ‘brat’ to your friend. Are you high? Or do you think I’m that stupid?”
Heidi’s voice came from behind him. “Block, no woman should be scared the way you’re making her.”
He glared at his woman over his shoulder. “And no woman should be scared to go to her condo, either.”
“Why’d you Venmo this asshole three hundred dollars, three different times, Riley?” Mensa asked.
“Why were you in my Venmo?” Riley yelled.
Block stepped back a pace, and turned so he could see Mensa.
Mensa’s brows went up. “Why do you look guilty?”
“We’re blood! You’d do me this way?”
Mensa grinned. “We’re blood, but he’s my brother. And you got guilt in your eyes.”
“Fuck off! I owed him money.”
Mensa shook his head. “I’d believe that if the asshole didn’t live in the same complex as Heidi.”
“When did she make the payments?” Block asked.
Mensa rattled off the dates. The last payment coincided with the rat being on Heidi’s doorstep.
He caught Har’s eyes. “Final installment is the same day I had Mensa bring a carpet cleaner to Heidi’s place. You need more proof?”
Har shook his head. “No. She’s out.”
“What? I didn’t—”
Mensa closed in on them. “I’ll take her, that way we know she’s gone.”
Heidi
I let myself into Block’s room using his key. He and Har were having an intense conversation, and Block promised he’d be in shortly.
If I’d learned anything today, it was to never cross Block when he was angry. The idea that he got that angry on my behalf though… That felt almost foreign to me, because nobody had ever done something like that for me before. Blaine might have lost his mind in a similar fashion, but it wouldn’t have been as impressive as the way Block did it.
Then again, I didn’t get targeted by crazy jealous skanks very often, either.
At Mick and Stella’s I had wished he’d been there, now I knew he had to come with me the next time.
He didn’t have to tell me he loved me anymore. The way he stood up for me to Riley said it, but so did the tone of voice he used on the phone earlier. I didn’t know exactly what happened at church or after, but it had to be big, and I knew it had something to do with me.
The door opened, and Block stepped inside, his blue eyes laser-focused on me.
I wandered toward him, but he reached out, grabbed my hand, and pulled me flush to him. His arms wrapped around me and he gave me a fierce hug. I glanced up at him as he held me, thinking how much I loved him.
His eyes turned probing. “That might be the best look you’ve ever given me.”
My eyebrow slid up, but I didn’t harden my look any.
Before I could say anything, he traced the side of my faux-diamond hoop earring. “Are these too heavy? Do you need to take them out?”
I grinned. “You mean my Reba's? If they were real, maybe, but spoiler alert – they’re fake.”
He chuckled. “I would think so, otherwise, I’d wonder what job you had on the side because a PM can’t afford that kind of bling.” His head shook once. “You name your earrings?”
My grin widened. “Yes, some of them. I’ve got my Reba’s, J-Lo’s, P!nk’s, and a pair named after Julia Roberts. All of them I bought after seeing those women on stage or on a red carpet.”
A strange smile curved his lips. “You name any of your other types of jewelry? Like say, your rings?”
I aimed a mild dose of side-eye his way. “No, but I could call a ring Beyoncé , if you’re planning to put a ring on it.”
His brows jumped. “After tonight, you ought to run for the hills, baby.”
“Why?”
“Riley arranged for that damned rat to be on your doorstep. But my sister-in-law had your tires slashed and insisted on that drive-by.”
“What? I met her one time.”
His lips pressed into a firm line. “She wanted to kill me, Heidi. Knew I’d freak out about you having tire problems. Figured it would make me a sitting duck, hanging around your car. Her thought was that if I died, the house would go to Peyton. She was wrong.”
My mouth fell open. After a moment, I said, “That’s… whacked.”
“Yeah. I need a shower and then sleep. Got one helluva headache, baby.”
I shook my head. “I could give you a massage. Try to make it go away?”
He made a skeptical face. “I’d take you up on that, but it’s been a damned long day. And tomorrow, I’m taking you to work just in case Mariah has some other bullshit up her sleeve.”
My eyes widened. “Call me crazy, but I feel like that should be reversed, biker man. I need to take you to work so I know you got there safe.”
He chuckled. “Not the way shit works around here, but I appreciate the offer.”
In the morning, I drove myself to work. Whether it was the first-thing-in-the-morning blow job, or whether it was just logic, Block relented on bringing me to the office. I walked into the building feeling ten pounds lighter. Knowing who had been responsible for the various shit swirling in my life lifted a burden I hadn’t realized I was carrying.
My boss, Jacob, stepped out of his cubicle as I approached my desk. “Heidi. I need you to come with me to the conference room.”
My stomach pitched, and not in a good way, as I followed him. It was rare he showed up before eight in the morning, let alone singled any of us out for one-on-one meetings like this.
We walked into the meeting room and Charlotte from HR was waiting for us.
Tentatively, I asked, “What’s going on, boss?”
Jacob opened a file folder and slid a sheet of paper toward me. It was grainy and poor-quality but a picture of me, Block, and Kaitlyn took up most of the page.
Great.
“You’ve violated a major company policy, Heidi,” Charlotte said.
I looked between her and Jacob. “I really haven’t. The acquisition isn’t final, and he doesn’t work here.”
Jacob shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. It could jeopardize the acquisition, and upper management has no intentions of doing anything to harm this deal. I’m sorry, Heidi. It’s out of our hands.”
I considered letting them know that Block had already consulted his legal team, but my curiosity got the better of me.
“Just one thing. You and I aren’t connected on social media, and this,” I tapped the paper. “This is clearly a social media post. How did it come to your attention?”
Jacob waved a hand over the paper. “That isn’t relevant.”
I shook my head. “It is. Someone left a dead rat on my doorstep, slashed my tires – which could have made me late for work and get written up or worse. And now someone is sharing my private life with my boss. That’s harassment. What I do in my off-hours shouldn’t impact my job. If someone is targeting me, the authorities want to figure out who vandalized my building and my vehicle.”
Jacob’s face went slack and pale. If pressed, I’d have to admit that Block was the authority I referred to, but for now, what he didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him.
Both Charlotte and Jacob kept quiet and it hit me. “Oh, that’s right. Kirk friended me on social media… you must have received it from him. The police officers—”
“Now, we didn’t tell you that,” Charlotte said.
I smiled. “Not in so many words you didn’t, no. But your quick interruption says it all. I’ll clear out my desk and get out of your hair.”
Maybe I should have fought to keep my job, but at the end of the day, I knew this was a sign. Bottom line, I didn’t love my job. And life was too short to waste my time doing something I didn’t love.
A couple of key decision-makers on previous projects had left the company, and one of them, Kristen, had been my biggest cheerleader. I wasn’t the best at networking, but I had to wonder if her company had any open positions.
In less than an hour, I carried my paltry cardboard box of personal items up to my condo. While I tucked the box into a corner of my home office, someone knocked on my door. The buzzer hadn’t rung, so I tip-toed to the front door.
My breath left me on a whoosh at the sight through the peephole. “Not today, Satan,” I whispered.
