Time Sensitive Target

Part 52 - Unhinged

"Bobby! Hey- get uh- what do you want? What do you drink?" Jack turned back towards me, his eyes meeting the movement of his head a second later in a drunken haze. "A bottle of champagne- we're celebrating!" He grabbed the back of the groom-to-be's head and shook it enthusiastically. "Bobby! Champagne- no don't cheap out on me man- I'll fucking pay! You see-" he glanced back to me. "This is what I have to put up with. I'll pay though, that's the kind of man I am- Bobby! Order it and I'll pay, stop being a fucking cheapskate! I'm sorry about this- sorry about him, I have to deal with these oafs, you know it's..."

"Jack, I don't mean to be rude but I really have to go," I leaned closer to him than I'd have liked to so I could raise my voice enough for him to hear.

"No! No- look-" A fluted glass passed through several hands and into Jack's, a large wine cooler topped with a bottle of champagne following immediately after and he seized it triumphantly, pressing the glass into my hand. "See- you can't leave now." He topped the glass off shakily, missing his aim and allowing the gold liquid to slosh onto the floor. "There- drink, enjoy," he implored, nudging my hand back towards my face. Droplets of the carelessly poured drink fell from my fingertips as I held the glass reluctantly, sipping politely as the rest of the group shared the bottle between them.

"Jack, I really have to-"

"Alright, alright!" He exclaimed, rolling his eyes and turning his back to me. "Next! Guys, we gotta move on, let's go to Little Club and shoot some pool- no- the cab's coming at eleven it'll take us straight to the strip joint- down your drinks- Seth!"

I left Jack's hollers in the background as I pushed open the door, filling my lungs with cool fresh air in relief. I paced quickly to the car, almost eager to face whatever fury Jase would direct at me if it meant I was back and away from the messy mistake that had been this evening.

I reached the car and fumbled in my bag for the keys, aware of the sound of advancing stumbled footsteps and drunken laughter behind me.

"You're driving?" Jack narrowed his eyes and swayed towards me away from his pride of friends.

"I've really only had one shot, only a couple of sips of other drinks and then water. I'll be fine," I reassured him confidently, feeling my fingers around for cool metal in the bag.

"I didn't see your minder, where is he?" Jack eyed me suspiciously, a glint in his gaze I didn't like. "I won't tell, don't worry," he whispered.

"Jack- come on!" His friends called, pausing halfway down the street.

"I'll meet you there!" He shouted back and waved them on. "What is it? You lost your keys? You drop them?" He stumbled back slightly as he looked around on the ground for the misplaced item.

"I must have dropped them inside," I frowned nervously, feeling incredibly out of my depth alone on the sidewalk at night.

"Well, you'll just have to hang out with me, we'll drop you at yours on our way in to the city," Jack smirked.

"I'll probably just go back inside and ask-" I pointed to the door of the bar and stepped forward as Jack grasped just above my wrist, holding me still in attention. A lurch of fear leapt up my throat. It's Jack. He can't do anything, because he'd be held responsible for it.

"You know I heard what they did to you-" he mused, his tone noticeably different; controlled in an unhinged way. "You'd never know, would you?" He assessed me slowly, eyes roaming across my face and towards my chest, then down my body with a strange expression.

"I don't know what you-" I tried to pull my wrist back, his grip only tightening in light warning.

"Apart from these," he raised my wrist so it caught the illumination of a street lamp, the tiny criss-cross scars decorating the skin.