“Nothing. I found a book about firemen’s headgear from the 1600s to 1900s. I’ll bring it home for you.”
God, she couldn’t be any more different than Kalya if she tried. How the hell did I get so lucky?
“I love you, Juls. Go back to Jenna now, please.”
“I love you too. Be safe.”
Even in the fire truck with my brothers and chaos surrounding me, the silence that lingered after Juliette broke the connection was too loud. “Hey, guys? When we get back, you mind if I call this in quickly? I’ll make up for it later.”
“No worries, do what you need to do,” Liam said.
I nodded my thanks. It was non-negotiable that everyone pitched in to clean and restock and ensure we were ready to roll again. So it meant a lot to me.
I walked to the picnic table at the back of the station, not wanting to spare time to clean up before trekking inside, and listened to all of Kayla’s voicemails, my blood boiling more with every minute that passed.
“San Antonio Police Department,how may I help you?” a professional but detached voice answered.
“This is Dylan Larke from SAFD. I’m calling for Officer Quint Axton.”
“Hold on a moment.”
I may have overplayed the department’s connection when this was a personal matter, but whatever got me through the red tape.
“Dylan, it’s Quint. What’s going on?” He was all business, which was fine with me.
“Leo got himself in trouble with gambling and loan sharks and skipped town to hide away. Kayla is blaming me and sending me threatening messages.”
Quint was not happy. “Do not go rogue on me, Larke. Let the police handle this the right way.”
“I’m calling now, and I’m sharing Kayla’s threats.”
Quint just sighed. He knew the score, even if he didn’t like it. “I’ll send someone out to record everything she said. Keep me informed and be careful.”
“I’ll be fine. It’s Juliette I’m worried about.”
“She tried to hit you over the head with a beer bottle, and she’s threatening you.”
“A beer bottle she snagged off the shelf that she shoved Juliette into.”
“You both need to stay on alert. If she makes more threats or does anything, report it immediately. Don’t handle it on your own.”
“No worries. I’m reporting everything, and I’m filing for a restraining order for Juliette. I’m scared for her. Kayla’s out of control.”
Me:I have no idea what you are talking about
Kayla: Leo had no problems, then after running into you, he’s busted. I know it was you
Me: I’m sure he deserved whatever happened, but I had nothing to do with it
I trudged backinto the bay and helped clean the trucks, scrubbing with more force than necessary. I filled the guys in while we worked. I appreciated that Quint was taking it seriously, but I knew there was not much they could do about Kayla’s veiled threats.
“She should be thanking you for getting that asshole out of her life. But they never fucking see it that way,” Ryan fumed.
“Yeah, there was definitely no gratitude in her messages.”
“Fucking bitch.”
Despite everything, I still wouldn’t have said it myself, but I agreed wholeheartedly. She was a vindictive, drugged up loose cannon, and that was scary as fuck.