Riding Blind

Chapter 20

I stood at the bottom of the stairs, listening to Trixie's version of events.  No one had noticed I even came down. They were too fixed on what she was telling them.  Hearing it all out loud, and from another's point of view, made it all sound even sicker than it already was. 

I took a few slow and short steps near the living room where they were. They heard me that time.  They all swung their heads in my direction.  Trixie's cheeks had smears of mascara running down them. Joanie looked as if she wanted to jump at me and hug me to try and make everything all better. Jeff.......his facial expression was the scariest.   It was completely blank. Which I knew from experience, could mean a lot of things. A lot of bad things.  I began to walk over next to him, when he suddenly turned and stormed out of the house. 

His exit left us all quiet and shocked.  Don left Joanie's side to go after him.  But I wasn't sure if he made it, seeing as you could hear the sound of his bike peeling away down the street.  An overwhelming feeling began to course through my now shaking body.  I had never felt anything like it before.  It felt like someone had shot me square in the chest.  At first I didn't know what it was, then it hit me.......this was utter heartbreak.

I could feel myself falling to the floor, but was caught by Joanie before I hit the ground fully.  She lowered me down so that we were both sitting there in the middle of the living room, holding onto me tightly.  I began to sob uncontrollably. "He doesn't want me anymore." Was all I could say.  Hearing the words coming out of my mouth made the thought hurt even worse.  I clung to Joanie's arms.  "Sweetie, of course he does. He's just trying to take everything in. He'll be back." She tried to console me.  I began shaking my head. "No. He won't be. No one wants a girl who's been used up like that. Tainted." I said as I buried my face into her chest, trying to make the pain go away. But it wouldn't.

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Jeff's POV

I drove my bike back to it's parking spot next to my garage.  I practically jumped off of the damn thing.  As I started storming towards the house, I saw Don whipping down the driveway.  I continued on in. Don followed shortly after. "What the fuck are you doing man?! Why did you leave?!" He yelled. I just glared at him. I was angry. I wanted to kill someone. "Talk to me asshole!!!" He screamed.  I turned my head quickly and saw him about to pounce. I wasn't worried. I could take him. But he was the only one I knew who could get close to taking me down. "I had to get some things." I said.

I continued into my bedroom and walked over towards a hidden closet. Unlocking the door which revealed my gun collection. Don followed, of course. "Your girl is back at her place, broken down on the floor.  She's scared as fuck man. And even more so now because she thinks you hate her!" His words cut right through me the moment he said them. "Hate her? Why would she think that?" I was completely confused, about a lot of things apparently. Don just sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Because after you found all that shit out, you ran out of there without saying anything.  Hell, I wasn't sure either." His explanation made me think back. Did I not say anything when I left? I couldn't even remember.  I practically blacked out from hearing all that shit. I don't even know when I left. But I knew what I left to do.

I shook my head, mostly at myself.  "I'm getting shit together Don.  Ain't no one gonna touch her.  Even if this dick doesn't lay a finger on her, I'm going to hunt him down and kill him with my bare hands.  Doing that shit to girls. To my girl.  I ain't letting him get away with it." I was on the brink of a rampage and I knew it.  I wasn't thinking clearly, but at the same time, I was thinking perfectly clear.  I started grabbing a few guns off their pedestals, grabbing boxes of ammo and putting them in a duffel bag. "Bro, I know you're pissed.  But you need to calm down and think everything through first. You can't run into a fight without knowing anything. What if he's not alone man?" Don's words made me even madder. I threw the bag down hard on the ground in front of us. "Don't tell me to calm down! You heard all that shit.  He needs to pay.  You know damn well that if someone did that to Joanie, you wouldn't even be standing around talking to me right now. Your ass would already be past the town border ready for blood." And I was right. He would never let anyone get away with things like that with his girl.

Don just chuckled and shook his head. "Yeah man. You're right. But Joanie and I are a family. We're in love man." Why did I want to punch him in the face so badly when he spoke. Annoyance? "Yeah well, the way you feel about Joanie, is the same way I feel about Mina." I had never said it out loud before. It was scary as shit but at the same time, felt like a weight was lifted off my shoulders.  Don just grinned at me. "Shit man, never would have thought I'd live to see the day you would fall in love. Let alone admit it out loud." He said through his light laughter. "Yeah well, it happened man. And I'm not letting her go. Now you can either stand there and watch me pack this shit up, or you can help me so I can get back to my girl sooner rather than later."