Read Chapter One of Brutal

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Kay

As Kay opened her eyes, flashing lights made it hard to focus, but she was fully aware that someone had placed something over her mouth and nose. As she tugged at the mask, she could see her ex-boyfriend Casey looking down at her.

He was in the shadows with flashes of swirling colors behind him. For a moment, there was nothing else in the entire world but the two of them. And part of her wasn’t sure if she should be afraid or not.

“Casey,” she mumbled. “You’re here?” She imagined her hand reaching up for his face but was also sure it hadn’t moved from her side. Did she have control of anything anymore? 

“Don’t do that,” said a voice much different than his. It brought her head around to reality and she felt cool fingers brush her hand away from trying to pull the mask off. “You need to keep that on. Are you with me again? You lost consciousness, but you’re okay. I’m just giving you some oxygen.”

Kay’s vision focused on a handsome paramedic, who leaned in closer. “Can you tell me your name?” His voice rattled in her ears as if he were speaking through a hollow tube.

“Katie,” she whispered. But that wasn’t right. Not anymore. “Kay Havelin.” Her voice was muffled, but he nodded as if he had heard every word.

“Kay, you breathed a lot of smoke, but you’re going to be just fine. I’ve given you an IV for some fluids, but you’re going to find that your throat is probably a bit sore and will be for a while.”

“My house,” she said. She tried hard to swallow without it hurting too bad.

It came back to her. Portia and her gas can, the young man and the cigarette lighter. They had come to murder her, just like Portia had threatened. And while she had underestimated the girl, thinking she wouldn’t dare come back just hours after making a threat, Portia had underestimated Kay too.

There was no way she could have let her get out. If she had gotten out, she would do it again. And Kay would never let herself be the victim again.

She had improved her life and was on a path to getting everything she had ever wanted and more. Allowing the darkness inside her to rear its ugly head to save her was a necessary evil and one she was more than willing to embrace again if it meant saving her life.

“Just relax,” said the man. “They’re working on your house. I’m working on you. Just focus on your breathing, and I’m sure someone is going to update you soon.” He moved away from her, and in the distance, she could hear him talking to someone else.

“She’s awake,” he said to an unseen party. “She’s stable. Her name is Kay Havelin. You probably know her. She’s the girl from the Eddleman trial and the homeowner.”

She couldn’t make out the muffled response of whoever he was speaking with but didn’t miss the gasp that immediately followed the mention of the trial.

A moment later, he poked his head back in. “Slow, deep breaths, Kay.”

Kay pulled the mask away from her face. “My phone.” She knew she had it when she left the house. She needed to call Scott. He would be able to speak for her. He had knowledge about the harassment and how it had escalated. But the paramedic wasn’t paying attention.

“Give her a few more minutes,” said the unidentified man outside, who was still talking to the paramedic. “They found someone inside the house that didn’t make it out. I’ll need to have a word with her in a second. It might be family.”

The paramedic finally gave her his full attention when he returned. “Did you need something?”

She wanted to tell him she had heard every word, and while her throat felt like she had drunk a gallon of bleach, her hearing was just fine. “My phone,” she said. “My friend.”

“Your friend was inside?” His brows knitted together with sympathy.

Kay grew frustrated and pulled the mask from her face. “No,” she said with a raspy sound. “I need to call him! I need someone here with me. Where is my phone?”

“Take it easy,” he said as she tried to sit up. “I’m here with you. You’re not alone.”

He was delusional if she thought she gave a shit. “Are you going to tell me what the hell is going on? Or do I have to keep wondering?” The sarcastic tone she spoke with agitated her dry throat. “And I don’t need oxygen. I need water.”

The paramedic gave her a bottle of water that he seemed to produce from nowhere. “Drink it slow. It’s going to hurt if you don’t. Trust me. You got much more smoke than you realize.”

As Kay drank, the man let out a sigh. “You should know, your neighbors saw someone trying to break in, and they called the cops. With the substation just down the street, the firetrucks got here pretty fast. You’re very lucky to have gotten out alive. What you need to do now is let yourself get some clean air. And in just a few minutes, someone from the police department is going to want to talk to you and get your statement, as well as the fire chief, so for now, let your voice rest.”

Wasn’t he going to let her make a call? “I want my phone. I had it. I know I did.” It might be all she had left, and she wanted it back immediately.

“I have it. It’s right here.” He gestured beside him. “Just breathe, Kay. I don’t want you getting too excited and passing out on me again.”

“Give it to me,” she said, not going to take no for an answer. “Or else you’ll see me get excited.”

The paramedic sighed. “Fine, if you want to talk, you can talk to the chief.” He stepped away, and she sat up to see him leave the ambulance. She took the time he was away to look for her phone, which she knew couldn’t be too far. She found it in a plastic bag as if it had been put there for safe keeping.

But before she could reach it, a man came inside the vehicle to speak with her. He looked exhausted, and his emotions were completely unreadable beyond that. “I’m Captain Pollard with the fire department. Can you tell me how many others were home with you?”

“I was home alone when the others showed up.” Her voice cracked with each syllable. “They threatened me and said they were going to burn my house down with me in it.” She sputtered a bit, put the mask back over her face, and took a deep breath. Maybe she needed the air after all. Her chest suddenly felt as if a ten-thousand-pound gorilla had just used her chest as a chair.

“Just take your time, ma’am. You’ve been through quite an ordeal tonight.”

Kay was glad they were all concerned but she would never tell them the whole story. She could still feel the weight of Portia’s body under her foot as she kicked her. And the look on her face when she realized she was on fire. “I managed to get away from them. I took the back door out, and I’m not sure what happened after that. I think I passed out.”

“You’re very lucky that’s all that happened.”

Kay needed them to get to the point. “Did the girl get out? I saw the guy run away after he lit the fire. It’s all a bit fuzzy.” She put her finger to her temple as if trying to remember, but she couldn’t get the image of Portia flailing around on fire out of her head.

“The police are out looking for him,” said Captain Pollard. “And I’m afraid we found the girl in the front foyer. She didn’t make it.”

Kay tried to show some emotion but wasn’t about to overdo it. “Oh God,” she said. “I can’t believe this is happening. I don’t know how I’m supposed to feel.”

“I understand,” said Chief Pollard. “You’ve been through your share of trauma, that’s for sure.”

She knew he was probably referring to the case that had been in the public eye for months. She had worked hard to move on from being a victim, only for this to happen. Attention was the last thing she wanted these days, especially where police were involved.

As the fire chief left her, a policeman appeared at the door. “I’m Officer Joseph,” he said. He wasn’t completely unfit, but instead of a six-pack, he had more of a beer gut under the uniform. The anxious look in his eyes told her that he also wasn’t used to such an active situation, which was probably why he was there talking to her and not out searching for the man who set her house ablaze. “Are you the homeowner?”

“Yeah.” She started coughing again.

“You can nod if it helps,” said the paramedic, who had taken a seat to her left. “And for God’s sake, use this.” He held up the mask as if he were growing impatient with her.

She put the mask over her mouth and took a deep breath as the officer made his way in closer. This time, she held it there.

“Your neighbor claims that she saw a young man running away just as the fire started. They said they heard the sound of a window break, and that’s what alerted them in the first place. We have officers looking for the guy. Is that his red car in your driveway?”

Kay nodded but realized she wasn’t sure if the car was his or what Portia had been left with after the pink Jeep had been repossessed. She had seen him behind the wheel. Although why he had abandoned the easy ride out for an on-foot escape was beyond her. “As far as I know.”

“How many people were involved with the break-in?”

Kay held up two fingers to indicate instead of talking.

“Two of them? Just the girl and the guy?” Officer Joseph clarified.

She nodded again.

“Did you know either of them before tonight?” He met her eyes as if he could read her mind, but Kay wasn’t going to lie about that. She was a victim, and the truth was their motive for what they had done to her.

She nodded again and pulled the mask off her mouth. “The girl. She is my former client’s girlfriend. Her name is Portia Penland. She held a grudge when he was convicted.”

“And the man? Do you know him too?”

She shook her head. “I don’t know him. He lit the fire and ran. I think she called him Trevor.”

Officer Joseph nodded as if he had already put that together. “Could you identify him if you saw him again?”

She nodded. “I won’t forget that face. Not ever. He seemed like a harmless kid. I don’t know what his problem is with me. I think she was the instigator. She told him something about how he owed her. I guess he figured lighting the fire was his way to pay her back what he owed.” She closed her eyes and squeezed a tear from the corner.

“Can you tell me anything about what happened today? Your neighbor said there was some kind of problem at your place.”

She wondered who he had spoken to and if Dickie Duhon was one of them. The entire neighborhood probably knew about the stupid door incident. It was those stupid painting pranks that caught her off guard and made her believe Portia was just a harmless little girl. All that mattered was that she was nothing anymore. 

“They admitted to throwing red paint on the door. It was a warning, I guess.” She shrugged her shoulders and eased back as her lids grew heavy. “I think they were trying to scare me into moving or something. I’m unsure.”

Exhaustion was trying to take over. But she had to try and be alert, at least until she got a chance to call Scott. He would handle it from there. And with him knowing everything that had happened, he could corroborate her story of their harassment and what they had planned on doing about it.

“Could you tell me how the fire started and where you were when it did?”

Kay took her time, as if recalling were difficult. “I heard glass breaking downstairs, and so I went down to find Portia sloshing gasoline around my foyer. I assume it was gasoline by the smell. She was arguing with the young man. About owing her. She caught me trying to leave and didn’t want to let me out. I pushed her away from me about the time she called to him. He threw the lighter inside the door, and before I knew it, there was an explosion. It all happened so fast, and I don’t think she was ready for him to do that. She was in the middle of the flames. I couldn’t help her.” She covered her mouth and closed her eyes while she put the mask back over her face for a deep breath. “I had to get out. That’s all I could do. So I ran.”

“You did what you had to,” he said, giving her a sympathetic look. “It sounds like they were very determined to harm you.”

Kay nodded. “There have been other incidents. I’d like to call my friend down here. He can tell you more.”

He patted her on the forearm. “Sit tight. We’ll get a more detailed statement later.”

“I need to make a call. Why can’t I call him?” she said to him, hoping he would make it happen for her. She understood they needed to get her statement without any influence, but it wasn’t like she’d started the damned fire.

The officer nodded as if it was okay with him. “Sure, you can. That’s fine,” he said as he climbed out of the ambulance. “Johnson will help you with that.” He patted the side of the ambulance door and walked away.

Kay took another deep breath and put the mask down from her face as the paramedic sighed. She read his nametag. “I want my phone, Johnson.” 

“Fine.” Johnson took the mask and put it to the side. “Go ahead. Who are you going to call?”

“My friend.” She took the phone out and pulled up her contacts where Scott and Marnie’s names were at the two top spots.

Marnie would be useless, and she could already hear her complaining that she wasn’t in the loop. Scott was the obvious choice and had always been good in a crisis. He would get the information she needed to know, even though he was going to be a pain in the ass and give her a big fat “I told you so.” 

But it was difficult to figure out what was going on from the back of an ambulance, and she wanted to know more about what was happening than which responder looked best in his uniform.

She pushed the call button, preparing herself for his reaction. He would flip out when he realized his worries about her safety had been vindicated.

His voice was rough from sleep when he answered. “Hey, Kay. What’s up?” As if a call at that hour was something casual.

“Scott, I need you to come to the house. There’s been a situation.”

He gasped as panic set in at the sound of her voice. “Are you okay? What’s going on?”

“Just get down here.” She didn’t have the time or the energy to explain.

“Tell me!” he demanded.

She sighed, knowing she may as well tell him. “Portia Penland burned down my house. You were right about her. I was wrong. Get down here, for fuck’s sake.” It aggravated her to no end that he had been right, but what was done was done.

There was a silence that followed that made her think the phone may have gone dead. But finally, Scott’s angered voice came through. “I’m on the way. Stay on the phone and tell me everything.”

“I can’t stay on the phone with you. I have to use oxygen, and they barely let me off of it to call you. I’m in the ambulance now. Hurry.”

“Are you sure you’re all right?”

“I’m okay, Scott.”

“Sit tight. I’m already on my way to the car.” She could hear his keys rattling just before the call ended. Scott would know just what to say and do. It was best to let him handle it. The less she had to say, the better.