Hot Shot (Chapter 34)

Blake couldn’t let a child’s toy get the best of him. Mac Jr. sat on Blake’s lap with rapt concentration as Blake maneuvered the plastic armature trying to get the robot to become a sports car. His frustration mounted. 

“Nance, this is ridiculous. This toy is way too advanced for a one and a half-year-old.”

His sister tossed the instructions onto his lap as she headed to the kitchen.

Blake handed the robot to Jr and looked over the paper. He turned it around several times.

“Seriously, this is something that you would need an engineering degree to understand,” Blake grumbled.

“That must explain why Mac can do it in about 10 seconds,” Nancy’s chuckle could be heard through the doorway.

“How about playing cars, bud?” Blake retrieved the now slimed robot from Jr.’s mouth and carried the toddler over to the toy box.

“Just bring him into the kitchen, I’ve got lunch ready,” Nancy hollered from the other room.

Blake picked at his sandwich as he watched his sister spoon feed her son.  Jr. was wolfing down the orange mush that had once been squash. All the time his tiny hands grasped at goldfish crackers on his highchair tray and tried to stuff them into his mouth. The mess was growing exponentially.

“How are you holding up?” Nancy asked him looking from his decimated sandwich to his face.

“I haven’t heard anything from Jen. Her mother keeps telling me she’s okay.”

“You didn’t expect to hear from her did you?” Nancy wiped Jr’s face and hands with a wash cloth.

“No, only hoped.” He pushed his plate away.

“But she’s safe and that’s what’s important, right?”

“The detective I have watching the Warren’s says he hasn’t seen anything suspicious. He’s figured out where the safe house is and is afraid that if he was able to do it anyone determined enough will be able to also.”

“Oh, Blake.”

“Mr. Warren is the only thing keeping me from hopping on the next plane to Ohio.”

“How so?”

“I can’t make him feel he is not capable of keeping his own daughter safe. But the minute she is back in New York…”

“She is always welcome here.”

“Thanks, sis but the only bed she will be sleeping in when she gets back will be mine, even if her father doesn’t let me share it.”



Blake growled under his breath when he stepped into the kitchen of the Fire Station and saw Monica draped over Randy. It wasn’t jealousy that flamed in his chest at the sight of her it was unbridled rage. He knew he better leave before he said or did something he would regret later. The woman had been unrelenting in her campaign to defame him and continued to call him. That he could handle. It was her stepping over the line by calling and harassing Nancy that made him see red.

He turned on his heel to leave.

“Blake wait a minute.” Her honeyed voice begged.

“No!” Blake said through gritted teeth as he walked out of the room.

“I just wanted to talk to you for a second.” She followed him into the locker area.

“I’ll only talk to you through my lawyer, so back off.”

“Why are you so angry with me?”

He ignored her as he banged open his locker.

“You can see I’m seeing Randy now.”

He grabbed his t-shirt and shorts and slammed the locker shut.

“Are you jealous?” she purred.

He couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped his lips at the absurdity of the comment.

“Tell Nancy she and I can still be friends.” The words were finely honed like a doctor’s scalpel for maximum effect.

Blake felt his vision go red and his hands convulse with the desire to choke the life out of this manipulative witch.  Jennifer’s voice whispered in his ear ‘You’ve reduced your women troubles to a fishing metaphor?’The thought of Jennifer feeling sorry for Monica sent a calm through him.

“I’ll be contacting my lawyer,” he actually smiled at her. “Randy, keep your girlfriend away from me if you know what’s good for you.”

“You’re a dick head!” she screamed.

“Such language and in front of witnesses.” Blake indicated the audience they had attracted. The room was ringed with fire fighters with their arms crossed.

“You aren’t welcome here anymore.” Randy grabbed Monica’s arm. She pulled it out of his grip.

“You, you, you….I hate you,” she screeched jabbing her finger at Blake’s chest.

Blake just shook his head as Randy dragged her out of the Fire House.

Vincent pounded Blake on the back.

“Told you I didn’t get a good vibe from her,” Vincent said.

“I just hope that’s the end of it,” Blake added.

Blake looked down at the clothes in his hand wondering what he had planned to do with them. He put them back in his locker and remembered he had gone into the kitchen because he was hungry.

Lt came up to Blake and put his arm around him leading him back toward the kitchen.

“You okay, kid.”

“Yes, sir. Hey, did we get the final layout for the calendars?” Blake asked Lt.

“It’s in my office.”

“When are we ordering them?”

“Today, should be back in a little over a week.”



Blake hung up the phone with his lawyer. There was little they could do to Monica but the lawyer suggested he document all of their encounters for future use. Now Blake looked down at his desk at the two manila envelopes laying there. One was a report from the PI he had investigating the activities of Peter Manning and his wife. The other one was bulging in the middle and had an Ohio post mark on it.

Blake tore open the bulky manila envelope and spilled the contents onto his desk. Letters in envelopes, notes on scraps of paper and food wrappers each one marked with date and time. Jennifer had written him a half dozen times a day or more. Laughter broke from him as he shuffled through the bounty and put it into order.

In the midst of all the chaos one plain envelop stood out. It had ‘open me first’ written on the front of it. He could almost guess what this would be. He slipped out the single sheet of paper and unfolded it.

Blake,

I will make one last effort to try to convince you that you would be better off to forget me. You are such a good man. If now that you have had a chance to be apart from me and can see what a mess my life is I will not blame you if you run as fast and hard as you can away from me. At the very least you should keep yourself out there.

If you have finally come to your senses then you can just trash the rest of these letters.

Jen

Blake chuckled to himself. ‘Not likely,’ he thought as he picked up the first scrap of paper and began reading.