Chapter Forty-Three

We all stared at Dawnie as we were thrown in a holding cell. We sat down on the bench while our information went through. None of us had ID, so we all went through as Jane Doe. The one thing we could do was not give up our names.

“You really screwed us here, Dawnie,” Juliet said through her teeth. “They took our prints.”

“So?” Pepper asked. “We’re not in the system.”

It didn’t calm Juliet. “I’m in the system. Guess what happens next.”

Before we got to find out what that meant, the arresting officer came back to us. “Do you girls want to cooperate now?”

“Nope,” Pepper grinned.

The officer sighed like we were putting him out. “All right then. You each get one call. I suggest you make it to your parents, so they can come get you.” He unlocked the cell and took me out first.

I was brought over to a wall of payphones, and handed a quarter. “Five minutes.” He stood next to the phone, and I dropped the quarter in.

I thought about calling Phin, but I couldn’t get my fingers to hit the buttons. I dialed Fitz, because it felt like the right thing to do.

One ring, and he picked up. “You snuck out on me this morning. I’m more than a little offended.”

“You’ve done far worse, I’m sure. But I need you.”

There was a moment of silence, and I wish I didn’t word it like I did. “What do you need?”

“I kind of got arrested for breaking a store window. Dawnie didn’t understand that she couldn’t do that so…”

“Three minutes,” the officer told me, and I glared at him.

“You…got arrested?” Fitz laughed. “I can’t let you go anywhere. Where are you?”

I gave him the info and said, “Don’t make fun of me. This wasn’t my fault.”

“I know, Sugar. See you soo—” The officer ripped the phone from my hands, and hung it up before I could say goodbye.

“Let’s go.” He grabbed my arm, and yanked me forward on the walk back. He tossed me back in the cell, and pointed to Pepper. “Get your ass up. I don’t have all day.”

“I already called Fitz,” I told her. “You don’t have to do anything.”

“Sit down,” the cop ordered me.

I stayed standing just because he asked me to sit.

His eyes narrowed with anger at the little girl defying him. “Sit down or I’ll make you sit down.”

Juliet stood next. “Touch her, and you’ll regret it.”

He laughed. “You’re quite wrong about that darlin’. How’d you like to get socked and another charge added?”

Pepper, looking to do some damage, stepped right in front of him. “How about you go ahead and close that now? Because what’s coming for you won’t be pleasant if you hurt anyone. Our boys are coming to get us.”

He smiled. “Aww. Your boys? I could throw them in here too if they decide to get plucky.”

This guy was looking to get hit. Everything about him was smug, and far too cocky for the body he was in. He looked like a brisk walk would wind him.

“Yes,” I said with a serious tone. “Our boys. If you think we’re a pain in the ass, you ain’t seen nothing yet. For your own safety, I suggest you close the door, and leave us the fuck alone.”

He slammed the door closed. “You little girls are gonna regret this attitude.” He went to his desk, which happened to be a few feet from us. He pretended to do paperwork while the four of us sat in the corner.

“I am sorry I got us here,” Dawnie crossed her arms, and leaned back against the wall. She threw one leg over the other. “I don’t think they should show you pretty clothes if you can’t always buy them.”

I rested my head in my hands. “It’s fine, Dawnie. We’ll be out soon.”

“Not likely,” the officer laughed.

We ignored him, and I silently wished for him to choke on a ham sandwich next time he had one. I moved closer to Dawnie, and spoke in a whisper. “Do you think my parents are still where they were?”

She returned the whisper. “I felt that they’d been there at least a couple days. So maybe.”

I supposed that was a good sign. They could be in another safe house somewhere. It meant we may have a little time before they moved again.

Only ten minutes passed before the boys came. Ferris and Phin walked through the doors, and right to the officer’s desk, but Fitz came up to the bars. I did the same.

“It’s been a while, Willow.” Fitz smiled. “I should catch you up on the new ways of the world. We finally got hoverboards.”

“Yay!” I laughed.

“And our girls have a new mommy now.”

My smile left. “That one isn’t funny.”

“It is.”

“Is not.”

“Quite wrong.”

“My fake daughters would never forget me.”

“I don’t know about that. June has your attitude. She does things just to piss people off.”

I clicked my tongue. He named our fake baby… I didn’t know what to do with that one. “Sound like she got that from you. Not me.”

“Why don’t you just stick your tongue in his mouth?” Juliet moaned at us like the sight itself was annoying.

“Away from the inmate,” the officer groaned at Fitz.

Inmate? Really?

Fitz looked back at him. “Excuse me, but I believe you can’t actually tell me what to do. I’m behind the line.” He looked down at the yellow line dividing us.

“Step back,” the man ordered.

I had my hands on the bars, and Fitz moved forward to put his hand over mine. “Are you okay? Did they do anything I need to punish them for?”

I smiled, and then the officer stood. “Get away from her or I’ll throw you in the cell with her.”

Fitz looked back, but he didn’t move. “So the punishment for touching her is being moved to a place where I can touch her more?”

The man was ready to beat Fitz with a club. “One more chance to move. You are not allowed to touch.”

I smirked at the man before I put my hands on Fitz’s chest, and obnoxiously started touching him everywhere. “WHATCHA GONNA DO!? THROW ME IN JAIL?”

Ferris stepped in to avoid a bloodbath. “Sir, can we get the girls out?”

He smiled. “I can’t do that ‘til we get names. They refused to tell us them.”

Ferris and Phin exchanged a look. I think they agreed with our plan. Names would only bring trouble. I was still touching Fitz, and staring at the reddening officer.

“I don’t think you need their names,” Phin told the man.

The officer turned to protest. “I really do, kid. If I don’t start getting some respect, then I’ll throw you all in there.”

Phin took an angry breath. “Look, let them out. Or maybe I’ll throw you in there. Get your keys and open the door.”

The officer’s eyes went dull, and he nodded. He reached for his keys, and came to unlock us. We all looked at each other as we tried to figure out if this was a trick or not. That was too easy. But sure enough, he opened the door and walked back to his desk. Then he blinked a couple times, and the life came back to him.

Fitz had his hand on my lower back as I walked out. We all stood in front of the desk, not sure what to do.

“Do we, do we go?” I asked.

He looked up at me with annoyance again. “Are you stupid as well as a belligerent, little bitch?”” He smiled, and looked me up and down. “Maybe cut back on the late night nachos a couple times a week.”

All of the boys stepped forward with fury, but Fitz spoke. “Hey, is that camera recording us?” He pointed to one that was hung up in the corner of the room. The man looked behind him, and then back again. When he did, Fitz sent his fist into the man’s nose so hard that I heard a painful crunch. Blood gushed in half a second, and poured onto the desk. The officer doubled over.

“That was awesome!” Ferris yelled.

“We should leave.” Fitz put his arm around my shoulders, and we walked out.

I looked up at him, and stopped walking when we got outside. He stopped moving with me, but everyone kept walking.

“Something wrong?” Fitz asked me.

I shook my head. “Thank you.”

“I have to defend my girl’s honor. I would have killed him, but I thought you would be disappointed in me.” He waited for me to say something that I never did. “Right?”

“Yes. You can’t kill him.”

“Dammit.”

I rolled my eyes, and we got in the car. We were back on the road, but we lost a couple hours with our little adventure, so we wouldn’t get where we needed to go tonight.

“Did they get your prints?” Fitz asked us.

“Yes,” Juliet sounded angry again. “We have a day at best.”

“’Til what?” I turned to her, but Fitz answered.

“Base is alerted when one of us is run through the system. It means that they now have our location. But we’re moving quickly. It would be surprising if they actually found us. Sadly, this means they know that we’re alive. At least Juliet.”

“What’s new?” I threw my hands in the air. “Something is always trying to kill us. I say we get a little cabin in Canada and—”

“NO!” Phin shouted. “Anywhere but Canada, Willow. Your obsession is getting a little weird.”

“They have Mounties! It’s a lovely place,” I reminded him while Fitz laughed at me.

“Mounties are stupid.”

“YOU’RE stupid!”

That went on for a while before he decided to tap out on me. Weak, whatever.

We got a safe distance out of the city before we stopped to get lunch. Sitting in the car would have been miserable, so we went inside. There was a round booth big enough for all of us, so we squeezed in. We got four baskets of fries for the table.

Twix sat between Ferris and Pepper while they both fed him. He was playing the both of them, and it was nothing short of adorable.

Fitz nudged me with his shoulder to get my attention. “What are you getting, Sugar?”

“Cheeseburger I guess. Why?”

“Because I’m ordering for you.”

I smiled. “Again, I ask, why?”

He spoke a little quieter. “Apparently my behavior in restaurants has been less than kind, so I’d like to try being a little kinder. Just to you,” he corrected. “I hate everyone else.”

“You don’t.”

He shrugged. “Kinda do.”

When the waitress came by, he made good on his word. He even ordered the soda I liked. The girl lingered a little too long when she was talking to Fitz, and a flurry of jealousy almost had me growling. But he wasn’t mine. If he wanted to flirt with other girls, he should. He wasn’t flirting, though. He wasn’t paying attention to her at all.

He noticed my angry look at her as she walked away. He leaned in to my ear, and tried to comfort me in the only way he knew how. “You’re the only one I see, Sugar. The only one I ever think about. Dream about. I want to have you in a million ways for a million years and a million more. You are everything.”

I turned my face, and that was a mistake. He was close enough that our noses brushed against each other. He smiled, and his eyes were only half open, like he was in a trance.

“Do you believe me?” he whispered.

Before I could answer, a fry hit Fitz in the face. “Back off my sister,” Phin ordered him.

Fitz sharpened his gaze, and set it on Phin. “I could snap your spine in half like you’re a pencil.”

“Bane did that,” I heard Ferris quietly comment.

“Just don’t touch her,” Phin said, a little less aggressive. “She doesn’t like it.”

Juliet started laughing, but covered it with a fake cough. Phin asked if she was okay, and he patted her back while she waved him off. I needed to remember to kill her when I got the chance.

Fitz very quickly ran out of barbeque sauce, and took to dipping his fires in mine. I glared, but it did nothing.

“Don’t be selfish, Sugar. Share what you have.”

I kicked his foot. “You can ask for more. Don’t make me suffer cuz you drink the stuff.”

“I don’t drink it. I just put a lot on my fries. That’s perfectly normal.” He dipped another fry, and I flicked him.

“Don’t double dip! I don’t want your cooties,” I scolded him before lightly shoved him.

He smirked, and leaned down again to whisper to me. “Your stubbornness is nothing, but a turn on for me. And I think we both know you kinda like my cooties.”

I rolled my eyes. “You wish.”

His voice got lower as he upped his game by making a bunch of promises on just how much I would like what he had planned for us. Ignoring the fact that I wasn’t going to do it. While he was still talking, he started reaching his hand over the table to steal my fries.

I slapped his hand, and said, “Are you kidding me?”

“You know they taste better stolen. We’ve been over this.”

“Don’t touch my fries or else.”

His eyes narrowed as the corner of his mouth turned up. “Or else what?”

I didn’t have much to threaten him with now that I officially cut him off from fooling around with me, and I kicked him out of my bed. Dammit.

“Ha,” he said. “You have nothing to take from me.” He stole another fry, and ate it whole. “I’m a man with nothing to lose.”

“How about I buy a whole bag of gummy bears, and make you watch me eat them.”

“In your underwear?” He smiled, and Phin threw another fry at his face.

“In sweat pants and a matching sweater, under the covers,” I promised.

He shrugged. “Still pretty sexy.”

Again, I rolled my eyes. “You are despicable.”

“Maybe I am,” he said before he sipped on his drink.

We went back to eating, and I went back to trying to keep my food from Fitz. He thought it was so funny when I smacked him for it. I think it was why he kept trying.

Dawnie went into another story about her Alligator, Bitey, and we all tried to not express how shocked we were that she was alive.

“He must be so worried that I’m not home,” she said on the verge of tears. “I haven’t seen him in so long.”

Phin reached over to pat her back. “You’ll be with him soon. We just need to find our parents, and we’ll give you some money and a plane ticket. Anything you need.”

“Thank you. I really want to go home.”

“You’ll be home soon,” I promised her. “Maybe a couple days. We should get to my parents tomorrow, and then we can buy your ticket. Are you going to be all right on a plane alone?”

She smiled sweetly. “I’m not new to the metal bird. I am quite old.”

I smiled back. “Okay. Once you’re back, we’ll leave you a way to get a hold of us if you need to.”

“Maybe you can visit, and meet Bitey.” She beamed. “He would love you.”

The waitress came back to get our dessert order, and the girl wouldn’t get her eyes off of Fitz, even though he wasn’t looking at her. He grabbed my hand under the table, and held it loosely. His thumb dragged back and forth over the top of my hand.

“We’re splitting that chocolate cake you have,” Juliet said.

“Ooo.” Ferris smiled down at the menu. “You wanna do that, Peps?”

She blushed, and stuttered. “Um, y-yeah.”

The waitress wrote down the orders, and looked to Dawnie. “Anything for you?”

Her nose twitched as she looked at the menu Ferris handed her. “Can I get a chocolate milkshake? Three cherries?”

“Sure. And you, sweetheart?” She smiled at Fitz.

He squeezed my hand. “What do you want, Sugar?” The waitress frowned when she heard his pet name for me, then she turned her eyes in my direction to show me just how ridiculous a notion it was that Fitz could want me.

“Nothing,” I said.

He tightened his grip on my hand. “I bet I know what you want.” He took the menu with his free hand, and looked in over. “The sundae. Two spoons,” he said flatly to the waitress.

She gave him a false smile, and walked away as she wrote.

“How’d I do?” Fitz asked in my ear.

I squeezed his hand, and smiled for my answer.

When waitress came back, she left our food, and then turned on her heel before she marched away to pout. That made me feel real good.

The first thing Dawnie did was pluck the stems from her cherries, and pop all three in her mouth.

Phin groaned a little. “Keep those stems from Will unless you wanna puke in your mouth.”

Juliet laughed at him. “Come on, Babe. It’s s useful skill to have.”

“Not if you’re my sister!”

My face burned, and I groaned into my hands.

I heard Ferris speak up. “Um, what are we talking about?”

Juliet said with amusement, “Last Christmas we found out that Willow has a very special talent.”

I uncovered my face. “Don’t call it that, and I only tried it because you made me.”

“Please,” Fitz leaned forward. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“Willow can tie a cherry stem with her tongue in amazing time. Her first try was twenty seconds.”

Fitz stared down at me. “Please show me.”

“Why? It’ll only hurt you.”

“But it’ll hurt so good.”

“NO!” Phin decided.

“We should all try it.” Juliet smiled and started handing out stems. Each cake had a cherry, and so did the sundae.

“Uh…” I stared down at mine. “I won’t feel good about myself after.”

“Then don’t do it.” Phin dropped his stem in front of Juliet. “Stop trying to dirty up my sister.”

“God did that, Phin.”

Pepper picked up hers, and stared at it. “I’ll try.”

“No,” I squeaked. “You are fourteen. You’re not allowed to know how to use your tongue.”

She smirked, and put it in her mouth. Her eyes were focused on the table as her tongue moved in her mouth. Ferris was staring at her like, well, like a fifteen-year-old boy would be staring at a pretty girl who was good with her mouth.

“This is very upsetting,” Fitz said with a disturbed expression.

Staring at Pepper I said, “I know. Just look away.” I turned my head to his chest in time for Pepper to remove the stem from her mouth.

“Got it.” She smiled. “And it only took five minutes.”

Ferris was still staring at her with his mouth open. “Cool.”

“Now you.” Fitz handed me a stem. For whatever reason, I took it.

“Make good choices,” Phin said seriously.

I sighed and put the damn stem in my mouth. I made sure not to make eye contact with Fitz, because part of me believed if I did, he’d pick me up and pin me to a wall in the back room.

I very quickly tied the stem, and took it out of my mouth, showing them what they wanted to see.

The girls were laughing while Fitz plucked the stem from my fingers to stare it down. “That was a maraschino cherry stem… hardly two inches long. How…”

I shrugged. “Dunno. I can just do it.” I started eating our sundae while he marveled at the stem. Everyone else gave a try to the stems, but sadly for them they couldn’t do it. I didn’t really care that I could, but Phin and Fitz did. A lot.

Fitz eventually calmed down, and helped me eat our dessert. I had to use the hand he was holding to grip my spoon, so he took to keeping his hand on my knee. I didn’t have the heart to make him stop, especially since it wasn’t something terrible inappropriate he was doing.

Once we paid, and got up, he took my hand again. Phin was glaring, and I pulled away from Fitz. I didn’t look at him as I got in the car, because I knew what I would see.

It was starting to hurt now, not being with him. I didn’t expect it, and it hit me out of nowhere. I missed him in my bed when I woke up, and he wasn’t there beside me. I knew it was wrong to want someone like him. I knew it made me stupid.

I wasn’t going to do anything about my feelings for him. It was a line I couldn’t cross. Not with him. After everything he’d done, I shouldn’t let him get what he wanted. Even if it was what I wanted too.