Gracie - Sherry Foster Page 0,14

how many times she read it the words didn’t change. He was gone. She didn’t even know where to look for him.

She didn’t understand, He made her laugh. She made him laugh. They had fun together and in their line of work fun was hard to find and harder still to hold. Why would he walk away from the possibility of a future. He wanted to be happy, he had told her he did. For some reason he didn’t seem to think he deserved to be happy. But in deciding he didn’t deserve happiness he had taken hers.

She curled up on the couch with her arms around her knees staring at the phone where she had placed it on the small end table. Was it something she had said? Something she had done or not done? He was happy with her, he told her he was. She thought, if she stayed in his life maybe he would see that she didn’t care about his past or what he thought was broken about himself. Didn’t broken crayons still color? Another thing she had told him. He wanted her to be happy but how could she when he took her happiness with him when he left.

Her silent sobs were not as silent as she thought when she felt herself gathered in strong arms and held.

“Don’t cry. Baby don’t cry. He isn’t worth a single tear you shed for him. If he was any kind of man he would stay and fight his demons with you.”

Gracie turned her face into Halo’s chest. “I know.” She sobbed. “Inside I know that if he can walk away then he doesn’t care. But, he isn’t doing it for himself. He is trying to save me from his demons. Don’t he know we all have demons?” Gracie looked up. “Why wasn’t I good enough to fight with him?”

Halo swallowed hard and reached over her head to the table. Turning the screen around he saw the video was no longer playing. It should have been. He hadn’t been gone long enough from the room for Gracie to see what he had seen. As he rocked Gracie with one arm he fiddled with the laptop until he could back the video up. He wanted, he needed to see if what he had seen on the screen earlier was an alcoholic illusion or—. Well, there was no or to the matter. Either he saw what he saw or he didn’t. With Gracie’s head pressed against his chest he pressed play as he rocked her in his arms. This time, when Hendrix became a wolf in front of his eyes he knew he wasn’t imagining things. Still, he didn’t say a word, he just watched. A few minutes later he saw the new guy turn toward the door and give a start of surprise. He watched as the man’s eyes narrowed and fury filled his face before his hand rose. The video shook as the drone was lifted down from the perch above the door. He continued to watch until darkness enclosed the drone and the footage stopped. Dragging his finger across the screen he set the video back to before the whatever happened event. What did one call an unbelievable event that could not happened but had?

Giving Gracie a slight shake he told her. “I have something I need you to watch. I don’t know if it will help, or hurt, but you need to see what the drone picked up last night.”

“Another woman? He has someone else doesn’t he?”

“I think you will probably wish it was another woman. Gracie? Remember how I have always told you what a strong woman you are and how utterly brave you were to track down the man who took your sister? Remember the training, all the bruises and aches you took to be an agent who could save the ones who needed saving? I need you to take a deep breath and remember you are that woman. You are the woman who took a grown man and fed him his dick for hurting innocent children. You are a take charge and take them down woman.” Halo took her shoulders in his hands and shook her.

Gracie gave a wobbly smile and told him. “But in the end I am human, with the desire to love and be loved, and my heart hurts. I hurt so bad. For a moment can you let me be the innocent one in need of comfort? Just hold me