“Oh.” The light in her eyes faded, and he cursed their environment.
“Let’s get this wrapped up, and we can head back to my place.”
They needed to talk. Clear the air between them and speak honestly about what each of them wanted. A quick fling with her would never be enough.
“I’m all done.” Iciness crept into her tone.
“I’ll turn it in. Did you want to go from here to your house?”
“Might as well. I need to get it over with and assess the damage.”
“It should be covered in your insurance.”
“The surface damage maybe. The violation…” She scowled. “Nothing short of time is going to remove that.”
“How about we get a start on making good memories to replace those tarnished?” Her eyes burned, and he cursed his boss.
After filing the paperwork they drove to her home. They pulled up to a cream-colored house with a garage and Spanish style terracotta tile on the roof. She had rose bushes with flowers the size of his fists in shades of pink and red beneath the windows on both sides of the house.
“Bastard broke my rose bushes.” Instead of anger her voice was soft and full of sorrow.
He glanced to the right side of the house and winced at the broken window, boarded up by plywood.
“I planted those in memory of Campbell. It’s like they keep finding ways to hurt him, even though he’s gone.”
“It’ll be set right soon.”
“Will it?” She turned to look at him. “You can’t promise that.”
“The odds are stacked against them.”
“Yes, but will I feel vindicated at the end of the trial? I know nothing can bring Campbell back. I’ve waited so long for this moment to come, to see these murderous savages brought to justice, and now …” She shrugged. “I must sound insane.”
“No.” He shook his head. “The fact is no matter what punishment they receive it won’t feel like enough. ‘Cause the fucked up shit they’ve done is so heinous it’s impossible. Death would be too swift and easy. Yet, life in prison isn’t enough. There’s no way to make them suffer that pain and loss. ‘Cause they have no decency and they don’t care. Not like you and I.”
“How can you keep doing this?” Her eyes were wide and filled with awe.
“Someone has to fight for people who can’t defend themselves. I watched my Father do it for years. It cost him just about everything, my Mom, and their marriage. But he helped so many people. He was my hero. I wanted to be just like him, still do I guess.” He cleared his throat. “That’s enough about me. We’re supposed to be checking out the house.”
She placed a gentle hand on his arm and squeezed. “That was beautiful, Kelly.” Heat spread across his cheeks and to the tips of his ears.
“Just my ramblings.”
“Mhhmm.” She let the conversation drop, and they exited the car.
She unlocked the door and gasped. Things were strewn about, vases and lamps shattered. It looked like a tornado had come through.
“I’m not even going to be upset. I won’t waste one more ounce of emotion on those men. Their comeuppance will arrive soon.”
“You know you’re kind of hot when you’re all smevil.”
“What?”
“Sexy and Evil … no?”
She laughed.
“That’s what I wanted to see. Where do we start?”