Suits & Aces (#3)

48 // Flames

It was so strange finding herself at this location again after everything that went down the last time she was here.

She had just finished taking a quick shower when she received a text from Logan, asking her to meet him at the harbour. She could have said no like she has done many times before, but it felt like until she and Logan had talked everything out, there would always be this unresolved tension between them.

MJ was still trying to process everything Sasha told her earlier, and she was also concerned about her own health, she was spiralling and she knew it, but she also knew that she could not stop, there was so much do be done in such a short time; but she was not complaining because it was necessary.

The place was unexpectedly quiet, she would have imagined that it would be busy, swarming with men loading their goods onto the ships to prepare for their shipments, but instead, it was deserted.

Maybe Logan gave them all a night off. MJ thought as she stepped out of the car. It was a bit chilly, she did not give it much thought when she left the house, but now that she was here, she realised that a coat would have been useful.

The light in Logan’s yacht flickered on. Is he here already? MJ wondered. That was quick, she was pretty early herself considering there was literally fifteen minutes before 9p.m., which was understandable considering how she sprinted the beach house at lightning speed.

Since they were both here, they might as well get it over and done with. She closed her door and locked the car, and then she paddled towards the boardwalk. However, her journey was counterfeited but headlights lighting up the entire place, and she was surprised to see that it was Logan and he was only arriving now.

Her eyes flickered to the yacht for a moment, wondering if she had perhaps imagined the light going on a second ago.

“You are quite early, I didn’t think you would show up,” Logan commented, approaching her in long strides.

MJ cleared her throat, trying to look anywhere except at him. He looked great even though he was dressed in dark pants and a blue shirt with the long sleeves folded up to his elbows. His hair was still short, but it was showing signs of growth. Logan always liked to keep his face clean and smooth, he never grew a beard, MJ imagined he would look even sexier if he had a beard.

She drew in a long breath, trying to keep her mind from wandering off. “Uhm… yeah. I didn’t think I would come either, but I shocked myself,” she responded in a high-pitched voice and shut her eyes in annoyance before smiling tightly at Logan’s seemingly confused face.

Logan was about to say something, but the frown on his face only grew bigger when he looked over her shoulder. “What’s going on here? Why is the place so deserted, where is everyone?” MJ was thrown off, didn’t Logan send his workers away for the night? “The light at the yacht is on, maybe Zunaid knows what is going on. Come on, let’s check it out.”

That was strange, the light was off when Logan arrived. MJ did not et the chance to argue because Logan grabbed her hand and dragged her towards the boardwalk, all the way to the yacht. For once, she was glad that she decided to wear sneakers instead of heels.

Every step she took brought back memories, she wondered what it would be like if the next time she boarded the yacht she looked forward to it. What if there was a chance for excitement and happiness in her life? What if things could be different between her and Logan?

She waited on the deck while Logan went to check inside. He came back, looking more confused than he was a few minutes ago.

“Did something happen?” She asked.

“There’s no one here,” he said, gesturing at the control room with his thumb.

MJ frowned. “But I could have sworn that I saw the light go on and off, and on again.”

“Yeah, me too. But let’s not panic, maybe there’s something wrong with the power here, not to mention that the lights and everything need to be serviced.” MJ nodded even though something told her that there was more to it. “Where do you come from dressed like that, did I catch you at a bad time?”

MJ looked down at her outfit. “What is wrong with what I’m wearing?” She asked, slightly offended.

“Nothing!” Logan quickly cut in. “That’s of course if you look past the fact that you look like you chasing or demons if not trying to outrun them.”

“Are you trying to be funny? Because I think you would have a total failure if you were a comedian.”

Logan threw his head back and laughed. “Come on, don’t be like that, I’m just teasing you. You look great in everything.”

“If you say so.”

“Probably not as great as you look in nothing.”

It took some time to finally process his words, and her face burned like hot lava when she replayed them. “Logan!” She screeched, but he did not look remorsefully or playful, and that shook her.

“Are you afraid of me?” He asked quietly, and MJ did not know what to say. “Do I… Am I a trigger?”

She gulped, thinking of all instances she has had to answer that question in the past. “Not you specifically,” she admitted narrowly. “There’s a lot of hiccups surrounding that, and I’m not sure if I’ll ever get the chance to tackle them all.” The cold breeze that hit her body was more calming than freezing, and it made her look at everything with ease. “Logan, when I think about everything that has happened since that night, it feels like it was just yesterday, no amount of medication could ever erase the events of that night from my memories.”

“Don’t you think you are holding on to everything because you want some closure?”

MJ shrugged. “Maybe I do, but I can’t really be sure. Thirteen years have gone by, and soon it will be twenty years, and yet, I feel like I’ll carry that burden for the rest of my life.”

Logan stepped forward and leaned against the rail, letting out a deep sigh. “It’s never easy leaving past pain behind. One day it is you, and the next it’s someone else. Life doesn’t let you forget. I used to look at it as a burden before, but after having witnessed how others succumbed to their… problems.” Addiction, you mean. MJ thought. “It made realise that I had come too far and that I was stronger than I gave myself credit for. I never allow myself to be controlled by my struggles, it is not something I randomly think about during the day and get sad about. It’s too easy to tell yourself that you can’t beat your past, that you can’t break free from the chains that bind you. Your brain is a powerful organ, MJ, you’d be surprised by how much you can overcome if only you learned to control your thoughts, take charge of your mind, and you will never ever have to take antidepressants or anxiety pills ever again.”

MJ stared at him in wonder, trying to imagine the possibility of freeing herself, but it sounded like a far-fetched dream, it was unrealistic. She gave him a sad smile. “You have always been the strongest between us two. I’m not like you, Logan, I’ve always had my way of dealing with things, and choosing positivity was never one of them.”

“That’s true, but clearly your way is not working. Maybe it’s time you considered dealing with things differently,” He challenged, staring into her dark orbs.

The sound of something falling disturbed their talk, and they both looked at each other with uncertainty.

“Did you hear that?” MJ finally asked after a minute of silence.

Logan nodded. “It came from downstairs. Maybe it’s Zunaid, wait here while I check on him.”

MJ had no intention of following him, she turned around and placed her arms on the rail as she let the cool air engulf her.

Logan walked into the yacht and took the stairs that led to the first compartment. “Zunaid!” he called out as he went from room to room, until there was only the storage room which sat behind the stairs. “Zunaid?” He opened the door and turned on the light, and his eyes widened at the sight that greeted him. “You?!”He stood frozen at the door, a million question running through his mind as he stared at the thug chained to the steel chair. “How did you get in here?” He asked, but all the man did was shake his chair, his words muffled behind the gag.

Logan realised that he would have to step further into the room and remove the gag if he wanted to get a straight answer. He lunged forward and untied the rope that kept the gag in place before pulling out the cloth from the man’s mouth.

He did not get a chance to repeat his question when the man yelled, “Bomb! There’s a bomb!” He pointed towards the door with his head.

Logan swiftly turned around and pulled the door, and he saw a bomb attached to the doorknob, clearly he had activated it when he opened the door.

The timer was counting down, and he had less than three minutes to get out of there.

“Don’t just stand there, get me out of here!” The man yelled, bringing Logan back to the present.

His feet moved involuntarily and he started checking out the chains, but there was no way of getting him out of there

“Where are the keys to these things?” he asked, fumbling with the chains.

“I don’t know, man!”

The device adapted a beeping sound, and Logan realised that he was out of time. He looked at the ticking bomb and back at the man, and then at the ticking bomb, and he remembered that he was not alone. “MJ,” he breathed and dashed out the room and up the stairs, ignoring the cries of the man he left behind.

He could hear the ticking of the clock in his head as he raced against time to get to MJ.

“MJ!” He yelled as soon as he saw her standing next to the rail, she turned around, looking at him in confusion. Time seemed to slow down as his hands reached her, tackling her off the yacht as an ear-splitting sound roared into the night, leaving everything in its wake in flames.