Rescue Me(82)
“Look, man. I know you’re freaking the hell out here. Shit, we all are, but we don’t even know where to start looking for them, Adam.”
“No we fucking don’t, but driving around beats just sitting here doing nothing. I mean, come on. I am losing it here. I need her. Sierra needs her. FUCK! Erin, where are you, baby?” I place my hands on the counter with my back towards everyone and tilt my head down. Luke, Antonio, and Trevor all stay silent. I know they are giving me the moment I need to try and get my shit together, but I am never going to be right until I lay my eyes on those baby blues of Erin’s and witness for myself that the love of my life is home with me and our girl where she belongs.
When Shelby comes back upstairs and I take a good long look at her, they look so much alike that all I can see is Erin standing in front of me.
“Adam.” Shelby’s voice is soft as a whisper as she approaches me. “We’re going to find her. I know we will, just like I know how strong my sister is. She won’t let him destroy her. She loves you and Sierra too much for that. You rescued her from herself and your love for her brought my sister back.”
She gently puts her arms around me and we share an emotional hug.
“She rescued me too, you know. I love her so damn much that it hurts not being able to have her in my arms right now. I need her more than I have ever needed anyone in my entire life. She’s it for me, Shelby.”
Shelby releases me and with eyes that look exactly like her sister’s she whispers, “I know, Adam.”
The not so funny thing is that I can’t let the fear of losing her undermine the love I have for her because for the first time in my life, LOVE trumps everything.
************
As soon as I open the door for us to leave, Muppet runs outside.
“Muppet! Come on boy, get back in here.”
He barks and barks as if he knows something is wrong.
“Adam, maybe we should take Muppet with us,” says Luke. “You know how dogs are, and he hasn’t left your side the whole time he’s been back at your house. I don’t know how dogs understand when things aren’t right, but they do,” he adds, and he’s right.
“Well when we find them I hope Muppet bites that fucker’s dick off,” Shelby snipes, but I can still hear the apprehension and dread in her voice.
I squat down and start to rub the top of my dog’s head. “You know something is wrong, don’t you, boy? You want Erin to come back just as much as we do. Good boy, Muppet.” I give him one last pet along the back of his shiny fur and open the back door of Luke’s Range Rover. He jumps in wagging his tail. Reluctantly I nod to everyone as we all climb in ready to take to hell knows where to try and find my girl.
Luke is just about ready to pull out of the drive when his phone starts to ring. He picks it up from the console between the two front seats and looks at the screen curiously.
“Luke Schavone speaking.” he answers. “Really? How long ago was that?”
Antonio turns around from the front seat and gives both Shelby and me a quizzical look, shrugging his shoulders.
“No. I am not there. Call the police and have someone get there right now. It’s an emergency.”
He hangs up and turns to look at us with a murderous look on his face.
“That was my security company. I have a silent alarm at the cabin and it went off. Call it intuition, but I believe we just found out where Joel took Erin.”
“You have got to be shitting me?” I say as my head starts spinning. My chest feels like it’s constricting with hope that she is actually at the cabin and safe.
“No. I’m not,” says Luke as he puts the Range Rover in drive and speeds off down the road toward the highway. “Antonio, call Detective Ryan and tell him everything, and if he gives you any type of shit, tell him to go fuck himself because we’re on our way.”
Luke picks his phone back up and makes a call. I hear him talking to Shayne but my mind is all over the place as I sit in the back bouncing my legs and running my sweaty palms over them. I lean my head back on the headrest and close my eyes. I swear, if Joel has so much as touched her, I will kill him with my bare hands.
A few minutes later my eyes snap open when I hear a clicking noise coming from Shelby’s direction. When I turn her way I am shocked as fuck as I see her loading a cartridge into a small semi-automatic.
“Where the fuck did you get that, Shelby? Do you even know how to use it?” Antonio asks incredulously.
“Yes, I know how to use it. And it’s mine. I bought it the day after Joel showed up at Adam’s house.”
“Well put it away while you’re inside this vehicle. You’re staying here when we get to the cabin. We have no idea what we’re walking into,” I tell her.