A Promise Kept Ch. 02

"Hmm," I grinned, "Lead the way, beautiful..."

~~~~~~

"Quit using full contact, bitch," Pamela Delgato, nastily spat, pushing Taylor Johnson backward, after she'd thrown a round house kick, and because Pamela had missed the block, was rewarded with a clearly jarring kick to the head, "This is only practice, dammit."

Taylor was about to retaliate until I stepped in between them and said, "Everyone needs to calm down, ladies. Take a seat on the mat...now."

"But she threw and illegal kick to..." Pamela began;

"ENOUGH," I loudly spoke, cutting her off and getting everyone's attention, "The reason you got kicked in the head was because you missed the block, Miss Delgato, and Miss Johnson, this will be the last time you hear this...use control during practice, okay? Because you both lost control today, I want you both to give me ten laps around the gym floor...hop to it now, ladies," and then with whispered protests, both Pamela and Taylor bowed out and then began to run their laps.

"Who's supposed to be sparring next?" I asked, looking around the class, "The tournament is this coming Saturday, ladies. If I were you, I'd get all of the practice in that I could, because our opponents are waiting to rip you a new ass."

"Right, "Jillian Hendricks cockily replied, "We're gonna beat their asses."

"Oh, really," I laughed, "Are you sure about that, Miss Hendricks?"

"Of course I am," she grinned, "I'm ready for anything they've got."

"Is that right," I sinisterly breathed, now kneeling next to where Jillian was seated, and getting right in her face for the purposes of intimidating her, "Your opponent is going try to try to rip you a new ass, little girl."

"Bring it on," she cooly grinned, not budging an inch when pushed, "I'll show those girls something they've never seen before."

"Uh, huh," I continued pushing, "And what would that be, bad ass?"

"It's simply," Jill emotionlessly replied, "I'll show them what their tits look like off of their chests."

"Ouch," I quietly replied, backing off and proudly observing the predatory look Jillian had on her face when she spoke to me, "I'm sure as hell glad I was born male..."

~~~~~~

Chapter Two

That night during dinner, which Jayne made, and it was delicious, I looked at Kara and told her, "I think that guy who came by my office today was C.I.A."

"Oh really," Kara asked, surprised, "And what makes you say that?"

"I asked him if he was N.S.A., or N.S.C. and he denied both." I replied, "But I didn't ask him if he was C.I.A."

"Is that right," she asked scrutinizing, "And exactly why would you have reason to ask him any of those questions. Michael?"

"Because of what he said," I told her, "He was asking me what I was going to tell Jayne's family about Danny."

"Uh, huh," Kara said, clearly pissed off, "And what did you say?"

"What do you think I said?" I nonchalantly replied, "I told him the truth."

"Dammit, Michael," she angrily said, lightly banging her fist of the table, "You worry me worse than anythoned I know. Baby, please don't do this...you're gonna make the government mad at you."

"Relax, sweetheart," I calmly smiled, "It's not as bad as you think it is."

"Didn't you say that the type of work you guys did was classified..."she began.

"Kara honey, "I smiled, looking at Jayne, "I'm not trying to be ugly when I say this, but you'll hear everything when we get around Jayne's family in a few days...please understand that I only want to go through that part of it one time...okay, my love?"

"I think I see now, sweetie," Kara smiled, a new look of understanding shining across her beautiful face, "I'm sorry, baby...I understand that it's painful for you to talk about..."

~~~~~~

"It's about God damn time you got me outta here," Richard Dresden told Donald Powers, his lawyer, "I thought you said that the judge wouldn't let me post bail."

"He wasn't," Powers replied, "I had to get my father to talk to him in your behalf so; you'd better not fuck up while you're out on bail, which, by the way, cost me a quarter of a million dollars."

"Quit your fucking whining," Dresden spat, "I'll have my wife write you a check first thing in the morning. In the mean time, I've got some things I need to take care of."

"Remember what I told you, Bobby," Powers warned him, "You're out on bond, and it can be revoked at any given time so; try to play it cool, alright?"

"Oh, shut up, Don," Dresden grumbled, "I'm not a total idiot...but, I won't be treated like one either. Is that clear?"

~~~~~~

That night as Kara lay asleep next to me, I'd just come from using the bathroom when I heard movement right outside my bedroom window. Granted, it was dark inside my room, but I could still see through the bedroom window into the moonlit night; and what I saw was someone lurking directly in front of the window trying to see in.

I immediately hit the floor, and reaching beneath my pillow, I retrieved the Walther PPK .380 pistol I kept there. I crawled on my hands and knees until I made it to the back patio glass door, which I slid open, and then was outside in no time, moving through the back yard as silently as a cloud.

Once I rounded the back of the house and on to its side, and then on to the left of the house where my bedroom window was. The moment I crept up behind the figure I saw there, I brought the butt of my weapon down, before he knew what hit him, onto the backside of his skull, knocking him completely unconscious before he hit the ground...

~~~~~~

"Jesus Christ, Ken," I said, surprised at who I caught lurking around the house, "Why didn't you just knock on the door?"

"I wasn't sure if anyone was awake," he groaned, rubbing the plum sized knot on the back of his head, "I didn't want to wake up the whole house if someone was still up."

"Dammit, Daddy, "Kara scolded him, changing the bloody washcloth, where I'd accidentally nicked his scalp, making it bleed, "You could've been seriously hurt, or God forbid, something worse."

"I'm really sorry, you guys," he chuckled, "You can bet your ass that I'll be sure to call from now on."

"Speaking of which," I smiled, "Now that we're all awake, what was it that you wanted to talk to us about?"

"It's about Richard Dresden, Michael," Ken forebodingly replied, "He's out on bond and I'm afraid that he'll make another attempt on your life."

"Let him try," I growled, "The next time he, or any of his minions try to do anything to any of us, I'm not going to screw around this time...I'll kill them outright."

"Michael," Kara quietly asked, "Do you realize what you're saying?"

"Of course, I do," I told her, "Have you forgotten about the last two assholes that Dresden sent to blow up the house?"

"No," she began to cry, "But I don't want to see anyone die, baby," and by this time she was crying, "I'm so afraid, Michael."

"Aw, Kara," I soothed her, pulling her into my arms, "Don't you know that as long as I'm here, there's nothing to be afraid of?"

"I'm not afraid for me, baby," she wept, "I'm afraid for you."

"Me, too, Michael," Jayne sniffled, placing herself beneath my other arm that wasn't holding Kara, "I don't want to see anything happen to you either so; please be careful."

"Okay, you guys win," I smiled, "I promise to call the police...at least before I kill anyone that is," and then I began to laugh, with Ken catching the joke and laughing along with me.

"Dammit, Michael," Kara smiled, playfully slapping my chest, "That isn't funny."

"What an asshole," Jayne also laughed, leaning over to look at Kara, "Does he always act like this, Kara?"

"Not always," Kara giggled, "Only when he's trying to be a brat," and then she smacked me on the butt, "Like right now."

~~~~~~

Kara called her mother and told her that Ken would be spending the night with us, as well as apprising her of his silly antics and how I accidentally cracked his open head for him, thinking that he was a prowler.

"It serves him right," Sara chuckled, "He should've picked up the damn phone and called you like normal people."

"Don't be too hard on him, Mom," Kara giggled, "There's no harm done, other than getting some sense knocked into him maybe..."

~~~~~~

The next day was very enlightening for me, because I had no morning classes to teach, I decided to go see my sister in the hospital. I know that she was getting ready to go in for the final phase of the reconstructive surgery that was being performed on her that following day. I wasn't ashamed of the fact that I loved my little sister very dearly, and as far as I was concerned, for anybody to get to Brittany, they were going to have to get through me first.

"Good morning, baby girl," I smiled, coming in and giving her a hug, "How're you feeling, sweetheart?"

"Bruised, sore and ugly," she groaned, "Oh, and let's not forget about bored, too."

"I'm sorry, kiddo," I grinned, "I promise to make it up to you when you get outta here in a couple of weeks. I'll take you anywhere you wanna go. How does that sound?"

"A couple of weeks," she scoffed, "Shit, Mikey, it's gonna take a couple of months before the swelling goes down, much less the bruises," and then she suddenly began to bitterly weep.

"Hey, now," I consoled her, "I know that you're upset with everything that's happened so; what can I do to make you feel better, tell me, baby sister?"

"Can you take me out of here for a little while?" she quietly asked, laying her head on my shoulder, "There's a park across the street, and I want to go there and get some fresh air, please Mikey...just for a couple of hours, or so?"

"No problem, pretty girl," I quietly soothed her, just like I used to do when she was little; "You leave everything to me, okay sweetie."

"Thanks Bubby," she softly replied, calling me her special name she called me when she was a small child and couldn't yet say the word, brother, "I love you so much..."

~~~~~~

"Here we go," I smiled, pulling Britt's wheelchair, (hospital requirements for letting her leave for a couple of hours) up to a picnic table in the park across the street from the hospital, "Is this better?"

"Fuck this fucking wheelchair," Brittany spat, "I can walk, Michael. I'm not a mother fucking invalid."

"Hey, don't cuss at me," I chuckled, "It's the hospital's rules, not mine, little girl. Besides, since when did you start cussing as bad as you do? You never used to talk like that before."

"I'm sorry, Michael," she began to sniffle, "I'm not sleeping well and I have nightmares every other night."

"I'm sorry, baby," I softly told her, gently pulling her into my arms, "Is it about the rape?"

"Oh that, they used the end of a pool stick on me, and that's where all the damage came from," she began to laugh, "The two of them came before they could stick their little dicks in me, and I swear, Michael, my little finger is bigger that Tommy Powers' tiny dick, because he stuck it in once and then pulled out and came on my tummy...when I began to laugh at him is when they used the pool stick on me," and then she grabbed her abdomen and told me, I have nightmares about God rejecting me for not being able to bear any children," and then she placed her hands over her face and began to cry.

"That's not going to happen...not ever Brit," I reassured her, "What happened to you was not your fault and God's well aware of it, trust me."

"But I must've done something wrong," she quietly wept, placing her hand to cover the now small after the initial surgery, but lightly scarred portion of her face, "I'm not pretty anymore."

"You've got one surgery left," I lovingly assured her," After that, your beautiful face is going to look like nothing ever happened, I swear to you, baby sister."

"If you say so, Michael, then, I believe you," she sniffled, hugging me tightly, "Thank you, Big Brother. This is just one of the many reasons that I'm so glad that you were there for me when I was a little girl...I used to idolize you when I was young, and you're still looking out for me, Mikey...I love you..."

~~~~~~

I drove back to the U of H feeling a little blue because of the fact that my precious little Brittany was about to face something that she could, never in a million years, ever be prepared for. All of our lives I'd always been there to protect her, and ten in one night, everything that I'd fought to maintain went to hell in a hand basket when Tommy Powers and two of his friends, and I was going to take all three of them down with my bare hands if necessary, raped and brutalized my precious baby sister, Brittany.

What was it that she was going to face, you ask? I'll tell you now, that the moment the last of her reconstructive surgeries had totally healed, and once the swelling and bruising had gone, she would face her assailants in court, and although she put up a brave front, I could tell, because she and I were so close growing up, that it was going to take a great emotional toll on her. In the mean time, the only thing I knew to do was what had always worked the best when we were young, and that was to simply put my arms around her and hold her while she cried, poor baby...

~~~~~~

Brittany stayed in my thoughts throughout the whole drive back to work. And with that in mind, I made a phone call to Detective Gavin Phelps the moment I got to my office.

~~~~~~

"Hi, Gavin," I smiled, when he answered his phone, "This is Mike Walker, and I was wondering if you and I could talk sometime today. I've got a few questions."

"Of course, Mike," he cordially greeted me, "When is a good time for you?"

"Within the hour," I replied, "If it's okay for you, that is."

"That's perfect," he grinned, "I was going to head out that way anyway...I'll see you thirty minutes. How does that sound?"

"Sounds good to me," I grinned, "Thanks Gavin, I'll see you soon," and then I hung the phone up and gathered some papers together that were in need of grading.

~~~~~~

"Hello, Mike," Gavin said, as he entered my office shaking hands, "What can I do for you?"

"I want to know about Tommy Powers," I plainly asked, "And also the other two little bastards that were with him when they raped & brutalized my little sister."

"No complaint was filed against them," Phelps repentantly replied, "Therefore he hasn't been arrested."

"HE WHAT," I suddenly boomed, making Gavin jump a little. "If that's all it takes then I'm filing charges against those three little fuckers right here and now."

"It doesn't work that way," he unfortunately told me, "Your sister has to be the one who files the charges against those guys because she was the victim."

"And you call yourself a public fucking servant?" I angrily replied, "You should've been on top of this when it happened. It's been well over ten days. Going on two weeks and you haven't arrested those assholes? What the hell is wrong with you, Gavin? Damn, man!"

~~~~~~

Because Brittany was still in the hospital, a notary public was brought in to verify the statements that were made by not only Brittany, when she was sworn in by Gavin, but also another Police Detective, a female named Melissa Adkins. She very effectively, yet very sensitively questioned my sister on the night that those three animals attacked her; and when she was finished, she comforted Brittany with a quality that all women possess, a motherly type of comfort, making sure that Britt wasn't in need of anything before the questioning was complete. I was very pleased at the comfort level that Brittany maintained, due to the compassionate way that she was treated by Detective Adkins; and this particular lady became one of a tiny few people in my life who earned my respect upon our first meeting.

After Detective Adkins had completed her questions, she moved aside so that Gavin could ask some questions, I asked her to step into the hall with me, just right outside my sister's hospital room.

"I wanted to talk to you about the way you treated my little sister," I honestly said, "You treated her with complete and utter respect, and you made sure that she was able to maintain her own dignity while answering some emotionally painful questions, and I wanted, not only for the sake of my whole family, but also for me, to personally thank you from the bottom of my heart, Detective Adkins."

"Please," she gently smiled, "Feel free to call me by my first name, Amanda, or just plain old Mandy. As far as your sister in concerned, Mike is it? Brittany is one of the strongest young women I've ever met, especially for her age. I know in my heart of hearts that she going to be alright once she heals up."

"I sure hope so," I sighed, in relief, "I worry about her so much sometimes."

"Aww, I think it's sweet that you worry about your little sister," she smiled, "Besides, Brittany told me a lot about how she idolizes her big brother, and from my point of view, I 'm beginning to understand why she loves you so much."

"We were very close growing up," I replied, warmly smiling at the memories of when Britt was just a little girl, and how she would always follow me around the house. I never minded, because Mom and Dad told me that as her big brother, it was my place to look out for her, and for a kid to be given a responsibility like that, it made me step up and become more responsible, not only for Brittany, but also in my actions as I grew older.

"I can tell that you two love each other very much," Amanda sadly smiled, "My older brother was like that with me...and then right after he dropped out of college to go to work, he got drafted and sent to Vietnam...I was fourteen years old the last time I saw him right before he shipped out, the second time," and as she spoke of this, I saw her eyes begin to water, however; she never once spilled a single tear.

"It's okay to hurt," I softly told her, "and it's okay to cry here, too. No one will bother you, I promise you that."

"Yeah, I know about how you are where that is concerned, too," she quietly chuckled, "Navy SEAL, huh?"

"Yes," I simply replied, "But that was then and this is now."

"I understand more than you think I do," she knowingly replied, "I remember when Mark, that was his name, came home on leave for Christmas and surprised us. He was home for a week, and I remember him waking up from some the most God-awful nightmares that I've ever seen any one human have. I never said anything to him about it, but I knew it was from him seeing some of the terrible things that went on over Vietnam."

"So, he did two tours over there then," I said, as she nodded her head, "Damn, he sounded like a tough guy to me."

"He was only tough when his hand was forced," she gently smiled, "And Brittany told me that you're just like that. She said that you were always as gentle as a kitten with her when she was growing up."

"She was such a little sweetie," I grinned, "And she still is as far as I'm concerned."

"I can see that, Mike," Amanda grinned, "Relax, big brother, you're doing just exactly what you're supposed to be doing as far as Brittany is concerned."

"Jeez, Amanda," I said, "You almost sound like a Doctor."

"I am a Doctor," she humbly replied, "A Clinical as well as a Forensic Psychiatrist for the Police Department, hence the rank of Detective."

"I'll be damned," I good naturedly teased, "I just got my head shrunk and I didn't even know it."

"Yes, you did," she heartily laughed, "And I'm not even charging you a fee...Masterchief."

"Not anymore," I quietly replied, "I'm a humble College Professor and an Athletics Coach.

"Oh yeah," she knowingly grinned, "It's a specialized athletics program, too, I believe, yes?"

"Okay, here it is," I admittedly laughed, "I'm an Instructor/Coach for the University of Houston's first all girls Karate team."

"Now that is very cool, Mike," she excitedly smiled, "I earned my black belt in Tae Kwon Do while I was in college. Is there any chance that I could come and sit in on one of your classes?"