Free Tomahawk by Erica Hale Page A

The kid's name escapes me now, but he was with his mother coming from the store when they were hit by a drunk driver.  Tonya put on a brave face for the kids in her class.  Grief counselors came and set up a memorial for him in their class, but when she came over that night she looked weak like she did now.
    I could tell that she had cried all the way to my place. Mascara was everywhere and her eyes were red with pain.  That night I followed her in the shower and I held her as she cried, never wanting to see her in pain.
    Now, in the hotel room, I whispered, "Tonya." She looked over her shoulders and rolled her eyes. I took the tip of her elbow between my thumb and pointer finger pulling her closer to me.
    "Vic, I'm tired."  She didn't pull away, which in my mind was a good sign.  "Let me go to sleep."  She turned, tears still ran down her face. Her eye lashes all spiky again.  I was being torn apart.
    I slid my hand down the length of her thin arm.  She was the water to a thirsty man.  Her skin was softer than I remembered. Her arm was warm like it always was. "Let me make it better."  She inhaled sharply and I shook my head.  "Let me try."
    "You can't."
    "I'll try."
    "Don't bother."
    "It's not a bother."
    "Well, it is to me."
    "What can I do to make it better, beside me killing the animal?"  I was holding her hand now.  It was so small, she no longer wore the acrylic nails, and they were now short and polished.  They were recently clipped from the detective getting DNA samples from her attacker.  I squeezed her hand tighter not wanting to ever let her go.  Afraid if I loosened my hold she would slip through my fingers...again.
    "I'm going to kill him. After everything, I think you owe me that much."
    "I owe you everything in this world and I would give it to you. Everything but that."  She put her head down in defeat, but she still let me hold her hand.  "Tonya, I know about the baby.  I wish you would have called me. You shouldn't have went through this all by yourself."
    The side of her mouth rose in a half smile, not the reaction that I thought I was going to get.  "How do you know it was yours?” Not the response that I thought she was going to give.  "My world doesn't revolve around you."  Pulling her hand out of mine.  "You’re not the only man that I've ever been with."
    I remembered the hospital notes.  The timeline was perfect. She was lying to hurt me and I knew it.  She was trying to get back at me, but true or false it still hurt.  "I know that he was mine."
    "He?  Why couldn't it been she?"  She shook her head at me.  "Everything is not always about you and what you want.  The baby, my baby, never saw the light of day. It happens.  No need to talk about it. Just like you and me, it is ancient history."  She put her hand over her stomach.  "Beside my baby wasn't your responsibility anyway."
    "Don't do this.  I know that he… the baby was mine."
    "What makes you so sure?"
    Doubt fell on me like an avalanche.  I couldn't be sure, shouting from the rooftop that she had carried my child was just adverting my enormous ego.  Believing this lie would make me doubt what her and I once shared.  "I would have helped you with the baby, mine or not."
    "Well, thank God we will never have to find out."
    We both looked at the bedroom door. There was a  hard knocking coming from hotel door room. "Stay here."  I pulled my gun out and walked to the door.
    I internally thanked Tonya for coming to a decent hotel with a peep hole.  I opened the door.  "Detective Stone I would say that I’m surprised, but I'm not."  I opened the door to let him in. He took a quick look around.
    "Mr. Moore, I told you in a subtle way not to stick your nose into this investigation."  Stone took a step closer, a little too close for me.  If it weren't for Tonya being in the next room I would have punched this guy.  “Were you expecting someone else?"  Looking down at the gun still in my hand.
    "You