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eighteen
A fter a frenetic morning at the diner, where our half-priced pancake special drew in a huge crowd, I finally stole a moment to myself. The lunch rush had subsided, and I saw my chance to slip away unnoticed. My priority was clear: I had to sneak back into Sal’s office and retrieve the pendant. It was a risky move, I knew, but I was willing to take that risk to ensure Zeke’s safety. I owed him that much.
I waited for Sal’s predictable 2:00 PM bathroom break, his ritual as reliable as clockwork. I knew I had a narrow window, just a minute or two, to grab the serpent. I slipped into his office, my heart racing with anticipation. But when my eyes landed on the familiar spot, my excitement quickly turned to dismay. The pendant was gone. Vanished without a trace.
“What? No…where is it?” I whispered.
My hands swept over the cluttered desk in a frantic search. But nothing. I rapidly scanned the room, my gaze darting from shelf to shelf, but the serpent was nowhere. Anxiety curled around my spine, the fear of getting caught pushing me to retreat quickly back to the front counter.
As Sal exited the restroom, I fought the urge to gag at the thought of him not bothering to wash his hands. My stomach churned, and I couldn’t stop the way my nose scrunched in disgust. My revulsion must have been written all over my face because he suddenly halted in his tracks.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” he asked, a defensive edge creeping into his voice.
I quickly schooled my features, feigning nonchalance. “Sorry, I was just lost in thought,” I lied, attempting to shake off the nervous knot that had settled in my stomach.
He tilted his head, skepticism evident. His brow furrowed, lips pressing into a thin line, but before he could respond, the phone rang, cutting him off.
I stepped forward to answer, snatching the receiver. “Hello?” My voice was clipped and businesslike .
Reggie’s arrogant drawl came through the line. “Brynie girl, how are you? Is Sal behaving today?”
I held Sal’s gaze, locked in a silent challenge. “Oh, he’s being his typical…” My eyes swept over him, “…unappealing self.”
Sal’s nostrils flared, his body stiffened, and I saw his hands ball into fists. A small thrill of satisfaction bubbled up inside me. I'd managed to ruffle his feathers.
A burst of laughter erupted from the other end of the line, followed by Reggie’s booming voice. “Oh, don’t you go getting him all riled up.” He chuckled. “Anyway, I’ll be there in an hour to discuss some business. Can you have some chicken tenders ready for me in a to-go box?”
I pulled the phone away from my ear, exhaling a slow, frustrated sigh before bringing it back to my face. “Yeah, of course,” I muttered, my voice thick with resignation.
“Great. Let Sal know I’m coming,” he said curtly. Then, the line went dead.
I returned the receiver to its cradle with a sharp click and let my hand drop to my side. “Reggie will be here in an hour,” I announced, my tone flat.
Sal’s face twisted into a sneer, his jaw clenched as he took a step forward, his posture stiff with anger. “I really don’t appreciate the way you speak to me,” he spat, before spinning on his heel and stalking off toward his office, his boots striking the floor with each heavy step .
I leaned against the counter, my fingers drumming out a lazy rhythm on the surface. “Since when are you so sensitive?” I asked, examining my nails, pretending not to care. “You really need to relax, Sally.”
Sal froze mid-step, his back to me. His muscles tensed, then, with unsettling slowness, he turned to face me, his eyes narrowing with chilling calmness. “What did you call me?” he asked, his voice quiet but lethal, the air thick with the weight of his unspoken threat.
A sharp sting of realization cut through me, and a wave of panic washed over me. But I tried to keep my cool, brushing it off with a careless tone. “Sal? I called you Sal. That is your name, isn’t it?”
He stared at me for a long, uncomfortable moment, his eyes boring into mine. Then, in a cadence that sent a shiver crawling up my back, he spoke a single, ominous word: “No…” He paused, letting the silence stretch. “You didn’t.” His gaze never wavered. “You know…don’t you?”
I looked down at the floor, my fingers threading through my hair in a nervous attempt to calm the frantic rhythm in my chest. I forced a confused tone, though it came out shakier than I intended. “Know what?”
Before I could blink, he vanished. Then, without warning, he was inches away, his presence crashing into the space between us. I gasped, startled, as he shouted, “I knew it!” His hot breath hit my skin, making it crawl. “How do you know?! ”
For a moment, his expression stayed frozen in fury. Then, a flicker of realization crossed his face. “He’s here—isn’t he?” The venomous intensity of his words made my blood run cold.
In that instant, we both knew the charade was over. The fragile fabric of their deceit had been torn to pieces.
I was in serious danger. I had to escape before Reggie arrived or it would be curtains. Sal wouldn’t wait for him. He’d try to contact him and push things into motion.
Our eyes locked on the phone simultaneously, and I acted swiftly, dashing over to rip it from the wall. It crashed to the ground, the sound shattering the silence.
“You stupid cow!” he bellowed, his face red with rage. He stormed over, grasping my arm with a vice-like grip, and dragged me across the floor in the direction of the kitchen.
I struggled to free myself, reaching up with my other hand to claw at his flesh, desperate to break his hold.
He roared, the sound splitting the air. My nails sank deeper into his skin. With a snarl, he let go of my wrist. I sprinted toward the front of the room, but Sal was faster. He caught my arm and yanked me around with a violent jerk. His hand lashed out, striking my face with such force it knocked me off my feet .
I flew backward and hit the floor hard, my body slamming into the side of the counter. The impact drove the breath from my lungs and left me stunned, pain exploding across my ribs.
He loomed over me, lip curling in revulsion. “You’re a wild animal,” he sneered. “I told Reggie he should’ve kept you caged.”
He grabbed a fistful of my hair, yanking me back toward the kitchen. My scalp screamed, pain shooting through my skull as he dragged me forward. Every step was a fresh stab, my body jerking helplessly behind him.
I silently begged Larry to appear and intervene, but he was nowhere to be found. He was probably indulging in one of his frequent smoke breaks, oblivious to my plight.
The kitchen doors swung open, and Sal hurled me into the walk-in freezer, slamming the door shut behind me. I stumbled, my breath catching as the cold air hit me like a physical blow, wrapping me in its suffocating grip. Panic surged as I banged on the solid door, screaming against the icy walls, but my cries were swallowed by the frigid silence.
Then I remembered the phone Zeke had given me. I fumbled beneath my shirt, fingers trembling as I reached for the small device tucked in my bra. My thumb hovered over his name— Zeke —before I jabbed the call button, hands shaking too much to keep it steady .
He answered almost immediately. “Bryn, is everything okay?”
My voice caught, barely a whisper. “They know, Zeke...Sal figured it out.”
“Where are you?” His tone was controlled and calm, but I could hear an edge of urgency beneath it.
“I’m...I’m at the diner,” I managed, my words trembling. “He...he has me locked in the freezer...in the—”
Zeke materialized right in front of me, cutting off my sentence. I jolted, a sharp gasp slipping out before I could stop it, his sudden presence startling me. But the surprise ebbed quickly, replaced by something steadier— him . A beacon of hope in the darkness.
When he looked at me, a flicker of something crossed his face, concern perhaps, but it vanished before I had time to register it. He reached out, his fingers gentle as he stroked my cheek where Sal’s blow had landed. Then, his expression shifted into pure, unadulterated anger.
He grabbed my shoulders and squeezed, his voice calm, almost soothing. “Everything is going to be okay.” But in the next instant, his face went blank, his eyes draining of all emotion.
He rose to his feet, his hands shooting up into the air, palms facing forward. The door, as if responding to some unseen signal, burst off its hinges, crashing against the wall opposite us with a deafening roar.
I froze, wide-eyed. I knew Zeke was powerful, but this…this was on another level. The force of it rippled th rough me, making my teeth chatter as the room vibrated around us. It was overwhelming, almost as if the very air itself bent to his will.
He extended his hand, and I grasped it gratefully, letting him pull me to my feet. As I stumbled out of the freezer, I was met with a surreal sight: Larry, frozen mid-pancake flip, spatula suspended in the air. His eyes were the only thing moving, darting back and forth between me and Zeke, a mix of shock and fear.
Zeke’s voice was smooth and steady as he addressed Larry. “You should head home.” He casually brushed a hand over his suit, the gesture dismissive, as if signaling that both the conversation and Larry were beneath his attention.
Larry didn’t need to be told twice. He nodded quickly, dropping the spatula with a clatter, and scurried out the back door, eager to escape.
Zeke’s focus was entirely on me as his eyes met mine, his hand reaching up to tuck a stray lock of hair behind my ear. “Just stay behind me,” he instructed.
With a swift, intimidating motion, he strode out of the kitchen and into the front of the diner, his long strides eating up the distance. I followed closely after him, my heart thundering in my throat.
We entered the dining area, and Sal was standing there, his back to us, frantically trying to reassemble the phone. Zeke’s voice cut through the air like a cold wind. “Salvador. ”
The sound of his name froze him, his stare colliding with Zeke’s. “Ezekiel,” he said, features twisting into a snarl.
But despite the anger etched on his face, I could see the fear lurking in his gaze. He took a few steps back, his eyes darting between Zeke and me, as if searching for an escape route.
The air crackled with ominous energy, thick with anticipation. Zeke stood perfectly still, his gaze sharp as a blade, his blue eyes glowing with fierce intensity—twin flames of silent fire that seemed to sear the space between us.
The sky above darkened to an eerie, almost black hue. I could hear the distant rumble of thunder, and I saw streaks of lightning illuminate the clouds.
With a sudden, aggressive motion, Zeke thrust his hands skyward, and a primal scream of rage tore from his lips. The sound was unlike anything I’d ever heard, an elemental force so raw, it seemed to shake the very foundations of the diner. In an instant, every window shattered, sending glass flying in all directions.
Yet, amidst the chaos, something strange gripped my attention: despite the shards whirling around us, not a single one came my way. It was as if I were shielded, cocooned by Zeke’s power, protected from the razor-sharp edges that rained down like deadly hail.
On the other hand, Sal wasn’t so fortunate. The shattered glass tore into him, jagged slivers ripping through his skin with brutal precision. Blood welled in streaks as the fragments sliced through the air, each one carving deep gashes into his flesh and leaving a trail of crimson in its wake.
Zeke’s hands fell still, and the tempestuous wind ceased, its ear-piercing shriek fading into eerie silence. Shards of glass that had been orbiting us like war-born satellites froze midair, their violent dance suspended, then plummeted to the ground in a chorus of sharp, ringing impacts.
In a single, fluid motion, Zeke raised his hands again, sending Sal hurtling across the room. He slammed into the wall with a resounding crash.
Without warning, Zeke vanished, only to reappear inches from Sal’s crumpled form. His presence was sudden and suffocating, his gaze locked with unnerving intensity.
With a twitch of his wrist, Sal’s body lifted off the ground, dragged up the wall by an invisible force. His feet dangled above the floor, eye to eye with Zeke. Terror filled Sal’s eyes, wide and glassy, while Zeke’s burned with quiet, controlled fury—steady, unblinking, a cold rage that swallowed everything in its path.
His face was inches from Sal’s, his words a lethal promise. “You will regret ever laying a finger on her. I’ll take all you cherish and leave you nothing but the ruins of the man you once were. ”
Sal’s eyes glazed over, his expression contorting into one of pure, raw terror. He screamed, a sound so chilling it seemed to freeze the air, and clawed at his head as if trying to rip away the tormenting visions that haunted him.
Suddenly, Reggie’s call came rushing back to me, and a wave of anxiety seized me. My voice tightened with urgency. “Zeke!” I called, my heart pounding. “We need to leave! Now! Reggie will be here any minute!”
He glanced over his shoulder at me, nodding briefly before turning back to Sal. He spoke with a chilling calm, the warning clear: “This isn’t over.”
With that, Zeke spun on his heel, and Sal dropped to the ground with a loud thud. Zeke surveyed the room, his hands sweeping through the air like an architect reshaping reality. In an instant, the tables and chairs splintered with a deafening crack, their legs snapping and scattering in all directions. The walls shuddered under the impact, and the once-worn linoleum floor buckled, cracking as if it couldn’t bear the weight of the destruction. Everything in its path was reduced to rubble.
Then, as if on cue, the gray skies outside vanished, and warm sunlight flooded the room. I blinked, taking in the damage. The diner lay in complete shambles: broken furniture, shattered glass, and splintered wood. Everything stood as a chaotic testament to the storm that had just erupted .
Zeke swooped in, his hands firm around my waist as he lifted me effortlessly off the ground, his stride long and purposeful as he headed toward his car. I pushed weakly against his chest, protesting. “I can walk, Zeke!”
He grinned, the playful glint in his eyes matching the mischievous curl of his lips. “We’re in a hurry, and you’re injured. Trust me, my longer legs will get us there faster.”
Once the door clicked shut behind us, Zeke pivoted to face me, his expression soft but intense with concern. He leaned in slightly, his gaze searching my face for any sign of distress. “Are you okay?”
My voice wavered as I replied, fingers fidgeting in my lap. “I’m fine…I think. Just shaken up.”
As I raised a hand to my throbbing head, Zeke’s gaze followed the motion. He gently took my arm, turning it over, his fingers brushing against the red marks where fingerprints had been pressed into my skin. His eyes darkened, his anger barely contained as he examined the damage.
“I promise he’ll pay for this,” he muttered, his voice tight with fury. His jaw clenched, and his body went rigid, struggling to contain the rage building inside him.
I nodded, my throat constricting. I shifted slightly in my seat, unable to meet his gaze, the weight of my emotions making it hard to speak. “Thank you, Zeke…for coming for me.” The words felt inadequate, but I didn’t know what else to say .
His reply was immediate and unwavering. He leaned in a little, eyes locked with mine, a quiet intensity radiating from him. “I will always come for you.”
The car fell silent, the only sound the hum of the engine as we sped away from the diner. I glanced back at the ruined building, watching it shrink in the distance. It was gone now, along with my old life. Good riddance.