NIP 26

“Oh Sari. I have wanted you since the day I met you.” Brad holds my cheek in his hand. I melt. My entire being experiences a sensation unknown to me. I am lost in his eyes and his touch. It feels so good. “I never knew how to…”

“Ahhh!” I nearly jump out of my skin. The glass crashes and scatters all over us. Brad instantly dives out of the car with fists blazing.

I freeze…staring at the glass in my lap. My eyes cautiously travel to the glass all over my arms. Am I cut? Oh my god, am I bleeding? Is Brad?

“What the fuck!” I hear Brad holler. I jolt at the echo of knuckles cracking cheekbones. Whose? Who is out there? Is Brad okay?

“You no good piece of shit!” A male voice roars. Something about that voice is oddly familiar to me. “Sari is a cop whore just like her mother! You all deserve what you get!”

Mark!?! I immediately snap out of my trance. Mark!?! Mark broke the back window?

“Mark!” With shock and horror I poke my head over the car. Brad and Mark are brutally twisted together…punching, kicking, cussing. They are covered in each other’s blood and sweat. Dear god. “Stop!!!”

To my surprise they freeze. Like deer caught in headlights four wide eyes stare back at me.

I barely recognize Mark. His eyes are wild and his appearance disheveled. His coloring is pale, his clothes are in disarray and his energy is jaded. I can hardly believe this is the man who I agreed to marry…was so blessed to marry…couldn’t wait to marry. The man whose life I was so eager to share. The man I would spend the rest of my life with. Is the person I am seeing right now…right before my eyes…is this man the real Mark?

“What are you doing here?” I meant to scream but my voice is quiet and low. Seeing this vulnerable and violent man actually invokes pity in me. Pity I was unprepared for to feel for him.

“Trying to protect you!” He seethes. “Why? Why am I doing that?? I have no fucking clue.” Mark breaks from Brad’s grip and punches the air. He huffs and puffs in circles.

“I don’t even know what to say…” I slowly come around the car and approach them.

“Who do you two think you are? Some sort of perverted Bonnie and Clyde?” He pauses with his arms in the air looking as if he has truly lost his mind. “I should have blown you both to bits at Marcy’s?”

“Marcy’s?” Brad and I stutter in unison.

“Oh god.” I swallow hard. Is Mark the killer? Not until now did I even consider this a possibly. My blood goes cold and I fear Brad and I are in serious trouble.

“You were at Marcy’s?” Brad asks point blank. Good god he is calm under pressure.

“Yeah. I know about her and Ed Hayes.” Mark says matter-of- factly…almost sarcastically.

“Is that why you killed her?” Brad calmly slithers towards Mark…ready to pounce. “She had something on you. Truth about Hayes? Your involvement?”

“What!?! No!” Mark nearly giggles. “I was trying to protect you! God damnit Sari! Wake up.”

“Protect me?” I am baffled. From Marcy?

“This is all getting so out of control. Who knew Ed would be released and start murdering everyone.” As Mark speaks I see sadness creep in his eyes. “My stepfather knew…he is the one who was so adamant about keeping Ed in prison for good.”

“There is no way Marcy committed suicide. You know that.” I confide.

“She did.” His eyes turn their familiar blue. He is being honest. “She must have been crushed to find out Ed had been lying to her all of these years. He had zero intention of running away with her. He only wanted revenge.”

“But…I don’t…”

“Just keep your distance Mark.” Brad cuts me off. An unspoken force between us tells me he did this on purpose. I have faith and shut it. The palm of Brad’s hand on the small of my back guides me to his car.

“Sari…please Sari. Come with me.” Tears fill Mark eyes as he reaches out his hand to me. “Can we please work through this together? I love you so much. I was only trying to protect you. From the bottom of my heart I thought I was doing the right thing. I really did. You have to believe me.”

“Mark.” I hush him fearing he could go on pleading like this forever. My heart feels nothing. Well nothing but sympathy for him. I truly wish at moments like these I had a tiny bit of hard wiring to be a cold-hearted bitch. But I don’t. He hurt me but I still don’t want to hurt him. Not more than I have to.

“We are so good together. This will only bring us closer…”

“No Mark. I’m sorry. I need to figure this out on my own. I need answers.” I step away from him. Out of his force field.

“I can give you answers. I have told you everything. They will catch Ed and this will be over.” He wipes a tear from his eye. This gesture physically makes me nauseous. My gut telling me I cannot trust this guy.

“I’m sorry.” Is all I can say. At least for now.

“Oh.” I literally witness a shift in his demeanor. “Sorry that you are a cop fucker just like your mother! Watch out Brad. You are the first but history tells me you are not the last.”

His rage propels him in to his car before Brad and I can even utter a syllable. His slamming car door announces we are too late for any rebuttal. He peels out of our lives as fast and dramatically as he entered.

“Clara’s. Get in.” Brad instructs with what seems like giddiness. Odd.

I do as I am told. Brad starts the engine and we are off. I fidget trying to arrange my thoughts. I want to discuss the surreal scene that just took place. But I feel so incoherent.

“I cut you off because Mark is in the dark.” Brad offers. I wonder if I am this transparent to everyone. “He has been and probably is being used. We need to figure out by whom.”

“Oh god.” I groan.

“Oh no. Do not go feeling sorry for dum dum. Yes, someone is leaving him in the dark but he knows it. And he has known it was wrong all along. Which is why he is backpedaling so fast trying to get it cleaned up.” Brad exhales like the Olympic champion of the 100 meter dash.

“Shit.” I say blankly.

“It’s a lot to digest. I know. But he is dropping clues left and right.”

“He is playing a cat and mouse game with us?” My inability to keep up with Brad’s train of thought is making me feel like English is not my first language.

“Ha. Cute. No. He keeps calling your mom a ‘cop fucker.’ So it seems Ed Hayes was not the only cop she had a thing for or possibly with.” Brad clicks his tongue as punctuation. “And he keeps talking about Dan. His stepfather knows something. He is in deep. I promise you.”

“Shit.” I say blankly. Again.

“Clara must have some old photos or some effects from your mother. We need to dig up your mother’s past. Our answers can only come from her.” Brad is so sure of himself. I am sure of nothing.

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