For You(50)

He kept his hand at her neck but tightened it.

He gave her a minute before he took his hand away but only to slide her hair out of his way so he could hold her there skin to skin. Again she didn’t resist, didn’t move away, even standing in his kitchen, in the middle of the night, her wearing nothing but a t-shirt, Colt wearing nothing but a pair of shorts.

“You okay?” he asked.

“No.”

He gave her neck a squeeze.

“I know, Feb,” he said softly, “but you okay to keep talking?”

Her head came back and she looked at him. “More to say?”

“I gotta ask a few questions about Denny Lowe.”

Those lines formed at her eyebrows again and she pulled away. He dropped his hand, took her glass, refreshed it and walked back to her, resuming his position.

She let him, didn’t move away, just tipped her head back to look in his eyes.

“They’re investigating Lowe,” he told her. “You remember him?”

“I, yes, I…” she stopped and her head tipped to the side, “Denny had it rough, Colt, Susie was a bitch to him. But he pulled it out, got the last laugh. He was gorgeous when he graduated. Half the girls in my class had a crush on –”

She stopped talking suddenly, her face blanked of everything and she took a step to the side, sliding down the counter.

Then she turned to face him, put her hand to the counter and leaned into it heavily.

“What?” Colt asked but she didn’t speak, so he moved into her and repeated, “Feb, what?”

She focused on him and said, “Freshman year, in lunch, during lunch…” she stopped and shook her head, looking to the side before she hissed, “fuck!”

Colt slid his hand under her hair and curled his fingers around her neck again, putting pressure there for a different reason, to keep her attention on him. He got what he wanted, she looked back to him.

“February, tell me what.”

She nodded but it was jerky. “Susie was going after him, her and some of the cheerleaders, a few jocks. God, I don’t even remember who was there but I remember it was Susie doing most of the talking.”

When she stopped speaking, Colt prompted, “What happened?”

“I waded in,” she told him, “me and Angie, but mostly me. I was always the one with the big mouth.”

This was true.

“And?” he pressed.

“And nothing, that’s it. I just walked over to them and told them to fuck off, leave him alone. I wasn’t nice about it either. Susie had a few words for me but the jocks drifted away, probably because they knew you and Morrie wouldn’t like it if they got into it with me. Once she realized she didn’t have anyone at her back, Susie backed off too. Denny was long gone by then. He didn’t do anything, say anything, just escaped as quickly as he could. I didn’t even see him go since I was into it with Susie. He just vanished.”

“That the only time you did that?”

She nodded.

“Denny ever say thanks, show gratitude, anything?”

“Nothing, I didn’t know he knew I existed,” she told him then her eyes, still on him, went far away and she went on. “I’d smile at him in the halls. I remember. I’d smile at him even when he was scrawny. But also when he filled out,” she focused on Colt again and finished, “he never smiled back, looked right through me.”

Colt had never been scrawny and he’d never been teased, growing up he had his own hell to deal with but it wasn’t that.

February had never been scrawny either and, because of him and Morrie, definitely never teased. She was a pretty little girl who grew into a very pretty teenager who grew up to be a very beautiful woman.

A pretty girl smiling at a shy, skinny, taunted kid with greasy hair, fuck, it must have felt like the clouds opened up and angels shined their light on him.

“Denny come into the bar very often?” Colt asked.

“I haven’t seen him since I’ve been home,” she answered and then said, “Colt, I don’t think I’ve seen him since high school.”

“Far as we can see, he fits the profile, Feb, and he’s disappeared and he took fifteen K out of his bank before he did.”

Feb dropped her head back and closed her eyes. “This can’t be.”

He gave her another squeeze at her neck to get her attention and he got it. She righted her head and looked at him again.

“All sorts of shit trips triggers,” Colt said gently, “maybe that tripped his.”

“That’s insane.”

Colt couldn’t help it, he smiled. “Honey, he’s the guy, he’s not acting exactly normal.”