The Blood Barn (Book #2 in trilogy)

Chapter 14: Country Relaxation

Walking into the dark living room, I turned the television back on as Marta sat down on the couch.

"Baby, what's in your pants?" The question seemed sexual at first, but then I realized she was referring to the gun.

Worried it might trigger a bad memory for her, I turned to face her. "Oh, that's Martin's gun," I replied. "I had it cleaned and then practiced at the local gun range as well. So if I ever need to use it to defend the house I can."

"Why would you have to defend the house, baby?" I knew it was probably as good a time as any to finally tell her about the visitors I had after she left.

I walked over to the couch and sat down so I faced her. Grabbing her hands, I wanted to make sure she knew what could potentially happen, but not frighten her.

"Baby, Martin's old driver found the house."

"What?" Her expression showed she was worried, but not horrified.

I nodded then sighed. "He showed up after I got home. Since I followed you on the bike, I had just parked it in the storage building when the Mercedes pulled in the driveway."

"What happened, baby?" Her eyes were locked intensely on mine.

"Nothing, really," I answered. "He asked if you were here and I told him no. We talked for about five minutes or so and then he told me he's Martin's replacement."

"He's Martin's replacement?" I could tell she was upset by the news because it also meant her role in the circle had yet to be filled.

"Yeah," I nodded. "You need to know what he is planning to do and we need to be prepared. He's looking for you. He actually wanted it to be a surprise, but I could never do that to you."

Marta began to pull her hands away from my grasp, but then stopped as I gently squeezed.

"What are we going to do, baby?"

Leaning forward to look deeply into her eyes. "We fight, that's what we do. That's why I went to the gun range."

"And what about me? I don't have a weapon, baby."

"Stand up," I ordered with a smile, taking her by the hand as I led her into the kitchen.

She followed me as I flicked on the light and then brought her over to the knife block. I let go of her hand as I drew the fillet knife and held it out in the palm of my hand.

"It's not the original one you used, but it's yours. I bought it as a replacement, and also a reminder of the past. And I haven't used it on any food in case you're wondering."

Marta looked hesitantly at it. The knife symbolized a lot for her, so I wasn't exactly sure what she was thinking about as she stared at it.

"It's yours, baby," I urged. "You don't have to take it from me now, but just know that if something happens, you can come get it at any time and protect this house." With my right hand I lifted her chin so she made eye contact with me. "Okay?"

She nodded as she sucked her lips inward. "Okay, baby. Only if they come for us."

"Only if they come for us," I repeated, making the agreement official.

After the hesitant start to our night, Marta warmed up to me quickly as we finished watching Bangkok Dangerous and then headed to bed. I spooned her from behind without pressuring her for sex, but just as I was about to drift off to sleep, she suddenly turned around and slid her leg in between mine.

She was super passionate that night as we made love. There wasn't the usual aggressiveness like a cat in heat, which meant she understood we had something special to protect. I could tell she was saving the animalistic behaviours for when an unwanted guest came knocking on the door. She was saving her crazy side for when it mattered most.