Grieving Hero

Joseph

There he was. I could feel my blood boiling beneath the surface. He was crying on the shoulder of an attractive young news reporter. "Detective Burd, have you heard anything from your missing wife, Sandra?" She looked at him earnestly. A picture of Sandra popped up on the screen. It must have been a recent one. She was fake smiling and had makeup covering up a bruise on her eye. I noticed the signs. She seemed to tense at the sight of the picture. I reached over and put my hand back on hers to let her know she wasn't alone. She flipped her hand without warning and squeezed mine as well. I took a sharp breath in. " Well Laura, us at the police department, have been searching all over the city for my beautiful Sandy, still no luck." he cleared his throat. " Sandy." He looked directly into the camera. " If you can see this, I will never stop looking for you. I will never let you go. Not ever. I love you My sandy." He looked over and flashed that winning smile at the pretty reporter. She squeezed my hand tighter. This asshole just basically threatened her on the news. If I heard it, I know she did. Her phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out, looked at it, and reached it to me.

From: Punk Ass Bitch (changed that shit)

Smoke. If you bring me back what belongs to me. I will stop coming after the brotherhood. We will leave New York.

- Detective Ryan Burd.

This motherfucker is pissing me off. I looked at the message and stood up. "I won't do that Sand, I won't take you back to him." I watched her face change when I spoke. "I promise." I was afraid she hadn't believed me. She looked up at me with misty eyes. "Somehow, I already knew that." she put her hand on my chest briefly and started to walk out of my office. "Do you want your phone?" She just shook her head no and kept walking. I looked down at the message on the table and saw her wedding band sitting beside the phone. I picked it up examining it. It wasn't expensive but it sure held her captive for a long time. I opened my safe and stuck it inside. I sat at my desk continuously staring at the message from the detective. I pulled out a picture of me and my guys, When Mason was still around, and thought about what to do. There was something in me that wanted to protect Sandra Burd. I picked up her phone.

To: Punk Ass Bitch (changed that shit)

I don't see anything around here that "belongs" to you officer. You have taken something very dear to me as well. We aren't afraid of you Ryan.

-S

I hit send. It felt good to defend her. God knows no one has before. I waited a minute but the coward didn't respond. I considered going and showing her the message I replied with, but I decided to give her some time to herself. I called in the guys so we could discuss what's next. How to get her things from the house. Hopefully,y she remembers to write her list. By the way,y she hugged me when she realized I would help tells me she won't forget. She thought her hug angered me, but didn't, it knocked the wind out of me. I didn't expect to feel that way being close to a woman again. It had been way too long since I had that kind of reaction to anyone. I have to keep those feelings under control. stop holding her damn hand then idiot I smiled at the thought of her small hand in mine. Why was there something still so familiar about her? I heard a loud knock on my door. Zeus, of course, always knocked even when I had called for them. "You called Juhh.. um... Smoke." I laughed at his mishap. "She isn't in here bro, I think she went to her room," I told him to ease his worry. We got down to business. I explained about our guest requesting we fetch some things from Ryan's house. Henry looked at me like I was demented but Zeus was instantly on board. He explained we had some low-level members on the outside of her area that could do a quick smash-and-grab. "Maybe they could even leave a few bruises on him for good measure." Zeus always thinking one step ahead. I had to decline his idea as this couldn't look like she had sent them. They were to take more than what was on her list. Valuables that they could keep, so no one suspected Sandra had anything to do with it. He left the office to make the arrangements. Henry was to call the contractors to get the doors changed on for her room, but he just kinda stood there staring.

"Smoke, Do you think she will be staying long? I don't think she should leave anytime soon. I don't want him to get ahold of her. I know you told her she didn't have to stay, but she does, so he can't hurt her again, right?" Henry and his bleeding heart. I assured him that she wouldn't be leaving soon, but if she did, we would be sure that she wasn't in any danger. I sat at my computer and worked on some everyday work. Trying to clear my head. I received notice that the doors had been switched out. I am pretty sure that will make her happy, or at the very least more comfortable. A little while later, I heard a tap on my door. When I looked up, she was looking at me almost in an admiring way. Oh no sweet woman, don't look at me like that. II done deserves it. "Thank You for the door." she smiled at me. "I wouldn't have had to change them if I wouldn't have put you in a cag,e to begin wit, h," I said matter of factly. Trying to show her I wasn't someone she should admire. She looked troubled at my words, walked closer to my desk, and started to stare a hole through me. I looked up, unintentionally, into her grey eyes. "Can I help you, Darling?" I asked her a bit impatiently. "You freed me from my cage." She plopped down in one of my guest chairs crossing her legs under her with a notebook. I cleared my throat to try and get her attention. She just kept writing, eventually ripping out the piece she was writing on and handing it to me and then walking out of my office. I scanned the list. Wondering what meant so much to her. shoebox of pictures and crap in garage Yes that must be it. I will make certain the guys grab that first.

It was getting close to dinner time and Henry was busy with tasks I had given to keep him busy. I called for delivery service from a place I thought to be her favorite. One of the guards ran to the Shack at the end of the road to wait for it. It was more or less about 20 mins away. No one knew the address to the safe house. We had policies in place to ensure that. The other guys enjoy a good pizza as well. Henry ran into my office without knocking which was strange, "Boss, What will she have for dinner if I am not here to cook for her?" I looked at him and shook my head. I told him I ordered pizza and had arranged for someone to get it at the shack. He is visually relaxed. He left to work on the tasks I had assigned him. When the pizza arrived I could swear everyone followed their noses. First, the guys came in, and then Sandra. She took two pieces and gave them to the guards in case they were hungry. I could have sworn I saw the one they call Jay smile. That was rare. She started to tell me how Guards had to eat too. "They are not robots, Smoke, They too get hungry." I just smiled knowing they too have dinner time. "Are you guys Psychic?" She asked Zeus with a straight face when she noticed where the pizza had come from. He laughed, explaining to her that we watched her for a while until we knew for sure what to do. "Stalkers." they all laughed. I just sat back and watched them. Somehow she looked at a piece sitting here eating with her captors. It must have been hell for her in that house. Hell, they were all three talking like old friends. They were all younger than me. I realized I may be the old guy at the table. I stood up and walked back into my office. Though not without noticing that she watched me leave.

Before leaving for their rooms for the night Zeus and Henry came in with a report. Sandra had already cleaned up and excused herself to her room. Henry had completed all the tasks I had set for him. This young guy was going places. He shook my hand as he always did at the end of a long day and headed to his room. I then looked to Zeus. He had carried in a large cardboard box. "What the hell is that Z it better not be another batch of abandoned kittens." He shook his head at me laughing. We both remembered when he saved a litter of kittens from one of the targets we had followed. That was a fiasco. He started to tell me the guys he sent to Ryan's place got in early when he left for dinner with the press. Probably that little pretty news lady from earlier. What a grieving husband, I rolled my eyes. "Would you like me to take this box up to the girl boss?" He saw me getting loss in thought. I shook my head no and told him that I didn't want her disturbed if she was getting some rest. He gave me a strange look, nodded, and headed to his room for the night. Each of my guys had their rooms and bathrooms in the country-safe house. The Guards had their floor, that matched the floor plans for ours. All I had to do was call and any of them were there in seconds. I preferred it that way. I had the top floor. Complete with a master bedroom and bathroom. I had a bit of work to finish before I headed to bed. Not that I could sleep much anyway. Something kept pulling me to look in the box. I had to be sure it was safe, didn't I? I stood up and walked over to it, opening the nicely folded lids carefully. All the clothing she asked for seemed to be there. A few books. and the shoebox. I pulled the shoebox out from under the clothing. I opened the top quietly afraid someone would hear me snooping. I wasn't even sure why I was snooping. I seemed to have a strong want to keep learning more about her. I looked in the shoe box and saw some boxing ribbons, I read the name, Charlie Oxide. where have I heard that name?

I picked up the pictures out of the box. A small girl and her dad I assume... my heart started beating faster. The next one was of an older girl with boxing gloves, sitting in front of a punching bag her father was holding. I couldn't breathe.

The last one of a teenage girl, with bright grey eyes. Elizabeth