Swallowing, I imagine all the nice times we could have watching movies on my couch. The snacks. The laughter. The love making that changes the very foundations of a man’s soul. But like the smoke that plumed from the end of the gun that put me here, it all floats away, like it was never there to begin with. The bullets remain, the damage is done, but the smoke is gone.
“I’m done, Dee.” Say her name. Show her the respect she deserves, then let her go. Like a free bird, she deserves to fly away. “I’m saying it calmly, without a tantrum, and without an excess of drugs in my system.” I slide my hand over Ninja’s back and scratch her ears. If I don’t keep my hands busy, I might grab Dee and beg her to stay. “I don’t want you here, I don’t want you in my home. Frankly,” I clear my throat. “I don’t want you in my town. I want you to go back to your world and live a long, happy life exactly the way you were living before we ever met.”
“A long, happy life the way I was living?” Her bright eyes blaze with anger. She holds it in, barely shows her shaking hands, but she can’t control her eyes. “My happy life, working for a tyrant, living alone, missing my babies? Yeah, I sure was happy all the way over there, though I’d spend my savings and paycheck as often as I could to fly back here to see them. To see you.” She stands from the bed and jostles my leg again. “Eat your soup, Riley. I’m not leaving.”
“You just said you would if I told you–”
“I said not on the day you come home from the hospital.” She shrugs and walks to the bedroom door. “Looks like I win this round, and just a tip for the future; I wineveryround. I’m not too proud to cheat, lie, or steal. And since you’re not a cop anymore, I can admit that and not get into trouble. You have your cell and charger. You have food.” She opens the door, reaches into the hall, then comes back with my crutches. “And now you have these.” She walks across the room and sets them against my bedside table. “I promised I’d stay out of your space in the evenings, so I’ll leave you to yourself. If you need anything, you just have to call out. Don’t be proud, Riley. Call me in and I’ll come running. Otherwise, it’s getting kinda late, so…”
“It’s six o’clock.”
“Yeah, late.” Faking a yawn, she nods toward the window. “It’s the first snow of the year. Exciting, right? It’s like mother nature waited for you to be home again.” She turns and walks back to the door. Resting her hand on the knob and watching me over her shoulder, her eyes cloud with a deep sadness; it’s something I know too well, but not something I ever expected to see in her beautiful eyes. “I’m really glad you’re okay, Riley. I was scared out of my fucking brains for you, but you’re here now. Right in front of me and safe. I intend to keep it that way.” She opens the door and steps out. Stopping, she drops her eyes. “If you don’t call out tonight, just know that I’ll be here anyway. Anything you need, any time, I’ll be here. If you don’t call out, I hope you have sweet dreams and a good rest. Goodnight.”
She closes the door with a soft snick and silently walks the hall. Her feet make no noise on the timber floor, but the fast staccato of nails remind me she has a pig.
A fucking pig.
“Ninja…” I pull in a long breath, then let it out on a sigh. At least we didn’t argue. I wasn’t particularly mean. I didn’t throw anything. Dropping my head back and closing my eyes when the thump reverberates through my leg, I scratch my cat’s ears and prepare for a long night all alone.