Chapter 4

"I-I am so sorry, Freddie! I don't know what happened! I went to make sure the backup was working properly, and it's showing that it hasn't been saving anything for a whole week."

I can hear Freddie and Darryl from the kitchen. Darryl is apologizing to Freddie for something he has done.

"How hard is it to not touch my computer?! God, Darryl! I told you everything backs up on its own. Get out while I try and fix this!"

I walk down the hallway and make my way towards Freddie's office. Since he has Darryl with him, Ryder feels Freddie should have his own space with Darryl. He just doesn't want Darryl finding his weaponry.

Darryl walks out of the office with his head down, holding his tablet. He walks everywhere with that thing. When he sees me, he gives me the saddest smile and heads straight to the kitchen.

I peek into the office. Freddie is typing furiously on his computer. I slowly walk towards him.

"Ummm...working hard?" I ask as I stand behind a sitting Freddie, putting my hands on his shoulders.

"Well, I thought I would be taking it easy until I saw this mess!"

I have never seen Freddie this upset.

"Do you think you are treating Darryl a little unfairly?"

"Absolutely not!" He snaps. "The one thing I told him never to do is touch my computer. It's the only thing I've ever told him. Imagine if Ryder had a pending assignment or something. Darryl's curiosity would've messed that up! I am stuck with an incompetent assistant!"

"Well, Darryl is an accountant. Maybe he was looking for something important."

I take my hands off of his shoulders and sit on his desk, looking at him.

"I am going to talk to Darryl. You know you make the boy nervous as hell. Maybe he went digging through your computer to impress you with something. All you have to do is ask, not explode."

Freddie huffs as he leans back on his chair. He's past annoyed.

"I don't care what you do! Just as long as he stays the fuck away from my things!" He looked towards the door.

I shake my head, getting up. "Temper! Temper! Stop being a grouch! You know that's Ryder's department. And don't forget we're going to meet Joe today. You better be in a great mood by then!"

I smile at him. He completely ignores me.

I find Darryl sitting near the window in the kitchen. He is looking out the window, sulking. When he sees me walk in, he clears his throat and pretends to go through his tablet.

"Darryl, let's chat a bit," I say, smiling at him and pointing at the table. He nods and waits to sit before getting up from the window sill and taking a seat in front of me. He folds his hands and exhales—a nervous look on his face.

"Freddie doesn't like me, huh? " Darryl asks as he nervously plays with his fingers.

I feel so bad for him. Freddie indeed hates the guy. However, I will not tell him that. I don't have a response to his question.

"Listen! Freddie is used to working alone. Think of him as the only baby. Then a new one comes along. It's a recipe for disaster. He's throwing his tantrums and wants nothing to do with the new baby."

Corny, but it's the only logical thing I can think of telling him. Hopefully, the analogy will at least make him smile.

It doesn't.

"Give him some time. He will come along, I promise." My words do little to comfort Darryl, but he puts on a brave face and nods. I place my hand on his.

"Okay, Ms. Hallowell. I'll stay out of his way and hope one day we can work well together. I just wish he understood that I'm not trying to replace him. I'm just trying to help take less off his shoulders. That's all! Mr. Fornay hired me because I am great when it comes to punching in the numbers. I don't want to let him down. It's just that Freddie makes me nervous."

If anything, Darryl is giving Freddie more work with all the screw-ups. I have to talk to Freddie. He has to have a challenging conversation with Darryl.

He can give Darryl some boundaries, but at the same time, let the kid breathe. Letting him know what he can or cannot do is a good start.

I smile. "I understand."

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"I'm so nervous!" Freddie yells. He is driving me to his boyfriend's cafe, and the sun is starting to set. "I feel like I'm going to throw up! Maybe we should reschedule?"

I laugh as Freddie's knuckles go white, holding onto the steering wheel.

"No, I want to meet my potential, future brother-in-law! You can't reschedule. I've been looking forward to this all week."

It's been a week since we got back from Shanghai.

Freddie decided it was time for me to meet Joesph. I gladly accepted.

"What time is Ryder coming?" He asks as he pulls into a parking spot.

We were in a big plaza. The cafe sat in the middle of a dozen stores.

"He went to see the doctor about his sperm count."

Freddie cuts the ignition off and grabs my hand, smiling. "I'm so happy for you both! I think Ryder needs that push to stop with his old ways. And to stop carrying his guns around like a paranoid lunatic."

He then suddenly pales. "Oh god, Sam! I hope he doesn't bring a gun into the coffee shop. The last thing I need is Joe questioning me."

Freddie's right! However, I know Ryder won't expose his weapon unless he needs to.

"Are you going to tell Joe the truth? About Ryder?" I look over at Freddie.

He slumps over and hits his forehead against the steering wheel. Then he sits up looking out of the front window.

"Well, it's been about a year. Eventually, I will have to tell Joe. Oh, no!" Freddie pales again. "How do I even begin that conversation? Hey! I just wanted to tell you that Ryder is an assassin. He kills for a living. But don't you worry, as long as there isn't a hit put out on, you have nothing to worry about!" He shrugs his shoulders and exasperates.

"Yeah, go with that!"

We laugh.

We get out of the car, and I look up at the sign above the cafe. "Joe Beth's Cafe?"

"Yeah," Freddie says, adjusting his sunglasses. "Beth is his mother's name."

Aww, I thought to myself.

I walk into the cafe nervously. It's as if I am meeting my date for the first time.

I instantly forget my worries when I inhale. The place smells so good! Nothing but the scent of coffee and pastries.

There is a long line in front of us, but no one is sitting. All of the chairs have been flipped neatly onto the tables.

When we finally make it to the front of the line, Freddie giggles as he puts his hand out. The barista grabs it and kisses it.

"Sam, this is Joesph. My boyfriend!"

I look up at him, and my mouth falls. Freddie struck gold with Joesph. He is a catch!

"Wow, I knew he was cute but umm...wow!"

Joesph laughs at me. I notice his perfect teeth and his beautiful olive eyes. I also realize we are the only ones in the cafe.

"Thank you, Sam! Call me Joe. It's great to meet you finally! Freddie talks so highly of you. I'm excited you're here." Joe grabs a white from his shoulder and begins to wipe his hands. "So, you hungry? What can I get you guys?"

I don't waste any time. "Can I get that cheese danish, please! Actually, make it two. One for Ryder." I point to the biggest pieces I see.

"Sure thing!"

Joe grabs the tongs and a small blue bag. He slides open the glass case and removes two danishes. My mouth waters as he places them into the bag.

"Here you go! It's on the house!"

"Really?" I look at Freddie excitedly. "Thanks!"

Joe turns and grabs a to-go cup and hands it to Freddie.

"Thanks, babe!" Freddie beams. He blows into the cup and looks around. "So why are all the chairs put up?"

"Well," Joe sighs. "I'm closing early today—perks of being the boss. I want to hang out with you guys. If that's okay?"

Freddie and I smile at one another. "Okay!"

Joe wipes the counter and looks at Fred. "Do me a favor, hun. Lock the front door."

"Sure!" Freddie takes a sip of his coffee, puts it on the counter, and runs to the door. He locks the door and walks back to us.

After Joe finishes wiping down the surfaces, he removes the till from the register and walks to the back. "Come back here, guys! I just have to count today's earnings, throw it into the safe, and we can go."

We go behind the counter and into a tiny office. It has a desk, a laptop, and a printer. There are papers scattered everywhere!

"Excuse the mess! We had to do some auditing."

Joe bends under the table. He starts to turn the dial on a big, black safe. It opens, and he removes a till with money in it. He then grabs his till and combines all the funds, and starts counting.

"Shoot!" He says out loud. "I forgot to take out the trash."

"Oh, I'll do it!" Freddie jumps up excitedly. "Come on, Sam."

"No, sweetheart, it's fine! I can do it," he says happily to Freddie. "It's getting dark anyway."

"I do it all the time for you. It's fine!"

I smile as I help Fred remove all the bags from the cans. It's a tedious task, but I don't mind it.

Since the one bag fell into the can, customers were throwing their trash on top of it.

Fred is so happy, and it's all that matters to me.

I hold up a new plastic bag while Freddie flips the can and dumps all the trash into the bag.

"How's it going?!" Joe yells from the office.

"We're done! Taking it out back now!" Fred yells back, tying the bag up.

"Okay, I'll be done in two minutes!"

I grab a bag, and Freddie grabs the other one. We walk out the back of the café into an alleyway. The dumpster is a couple of feet from us, across the way. It's already dark.

"I hate it back here," Freddie whispers to me.

I agree! It's very eerie and quiet. Freddie holds the lid open for me as I throw the bags into the dumpster.

Suddenly a big, black cat jumps out from behind the dumpster! It causes me to yell and Freddie to jump, making us both howl with laughter. I have my hand over my heart. It feels like it wants to beat out of my chest.

We turn and make our way to the store when we see a woman. She is standing near the back door entrance to the café.

We can only make out her silhouette. It's pitch dark in the alley, and she's standing near a spotlight.

I don't think anything of it until we get close, and she blocks the entrance to the cafe.

Squinting, I see her more clearly. She has her blonde hair up in a ponytail. She's wearing a black button-up shirt with black pants.

"Uh, hello! How are you?" Freddie asks her.

"Oh, I'm fine! Especially now. How are you, Freddie?" She asks menacingly.

Freddie looks at me, confused, and moves in front of me.

"Do you know her?" I whisper to Freddie.

Something isn't right. We both can feel it.

"No, he doesn't, Samantha," the woman says softly.

I gulp. Who is she? And more importantly, how does she know our names.

"How do you know my-?"

The woman takes a step forward. "Where's the shop owner, Freddie?"

I look at Freddie, confused. Why does she want Joe?

"Hey, did I hear someone scream?" Joe asks, walking out of the cafe.

The woman is now standing behind him. She clears her throat. He turns to her, takes one look, and gasps.

"You!!"

"Yup! Me!"

Out of nowhere, she chops Joe in his throat. His hands instantly go up to his neck while he bends over in pain.

The woman then kicks her left leg and holds it up with her hand while she smiles. She then brings it down, hitting Joe in the back of the head. He falls to the ground, unconscious.

"No!" Freddie yells.

He races towards the woman and swings at her! She grabs his knuckle and then starts to squeeze it. Freddie yells in pain as he falls to his knees.

I panic as I look around for anything for a weapon! I have to help them!

Next to the dumpster is a broken leg to a chair. I grab it and run back towards Joe and Freddie.

The woman punches Freddie in his face and draws a gun, pointing it right at me. She fires and hits the dumpster. I yell and duck!

"I never miss, in case you were wondering," she laughs. Freddie turns to me, nursing a bloody nose.

"Now, now! Do you even know how to swing that thing?" She taunts me as she lets go of Freddie and slowly makes her way to me.

"So you want to be a hero, Samantha? I am only here for the shop owner, but..."

She eyes me up and down. My hands violently shake as I hold onto the leg chair. Her heels echo through the alley as she continues to walk towards me, gun still pointed at me.

I drop the leg and slowly put my hands up.

We suddenly hear tires screeching. A black sedan drifts into the alley at high speed. We both turn and look in the direction of the car. The now dark path is slowly illuminating as the vehicle gets closer to us.

Once it is close enough, it skids to a halt, and the driver's door is thrown open. A hand comes out above the door with a gun in it.

A barrage of bullets heads straight to the woman. She laughs as she shoots back and runs back into the cafe. I suddenly hear Ryder call my name, and I immediately exhale.

I run to Freddie to make sure he is okay. Ryder takes off into the cafe with his gun drawn. We suddenly hear glass break and then silence.

Freddie grabs onto me frantically, and we make our way to Joe!

"Oh, God!" Freddie cries. "Is he okay?!"

I check for a pulse. "Yes! He's breathing! He's just knocked out!"

"She got away!" Ryder yells, running back out.

"We have to get him to a hospital! Help me put him into the car!" Freddie yells as he tries turning Joe over.

"No!" Ryder yells. I can tell he is beyond livid. "Tell me exactly what happened here first!"

We both tell Ryder what happened. How she appeared out of nowhere, wanting Joe, and knew our names.

Safe to say, he is not happy.

"Well, she's out to get him. If that's the case, then you need to stop seeing him, Freddie. She may not rest until she gets what she wants or worse. I can't get involved either. If I do, it puts you and Sam in harm's way."

I feel so bad. I don't know what to say at this point, and it still doesn't change the fact that Ryder is beyond mad.

"Sam, get in the car. Now," Ryder commands.

"Please, Ryder! I never ask you for anything, and I love him. Okay?! We love each other! I can't stand by and watch him get killed. Not when my family prepared for this stuff. You fought for Sam, and I helped you. I will do the same for Joe. With or without your help."

Freddie looks from Ryder to me and then back down at Joe. Tears slide down his face, and he wipes them away as he stared at his unconscious boyfriend.

I look up at Ryder. His facial features are calming.

Freddie is right!

He helped both of us when we had no one else. His help came immensely back in Santorini.

Max kidnapped Ryder and my parents. I thought LeAnn was dead. Freddie helped and stood behind me when there was no one else.

Ryder looks at me and exhales deeply, holstering his gun.

"Fine, Freddie. Let's put him in the car. You both take him home. I'm going to stay here and get rid of any evidence. No one can know what has happened here."