Unbreakable

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

“You’ve been far too quiet since we got home.” Lynn sighed, dropping onto the bed while she watched Alexis yank her clothes off in silence. “Alexis, you can’t keep ignoring this. We need to talk. What you did today was crazy.”

“Lynn,” Alexis barked. “I’m a trained cop. I can take care of myself. I have a permit to carry a gun and you have no right telling me I shouldn’t.”

“Do you even realize how irrational it is to carry a loaded gun in the middle of Times Square?” Alexis seemed oblivious to the reason Lynn was furious, which was not really a surprise. Usually, Lynn would drop the subject if her wife behaved foolishly. What was the use in bringing on an argument that she knew she’d lose? This time was different and she was not backing down. Lynn rose from the bed. She walked over, closing the door so that their voices would not carry down the hallway and wake Calista.

“Irrational? People carry guns all the time,” Alexis argued. “It’s called protection.”

“Maybe so, but people don’t run off on their own after some creepy man like that. How do you know he didn’t have a gun too? Do you not even realize why I’m concerned?” Lynn stalked across the floor, grabbing Alexis’s wrist. “Earlier you jumped all over me because of my behavior over the failed attempts to get pregnant. Well you know what, Alexis? Now it’s my turn. You never think before you act, ever!”

Alexis jerked away with a grimace. “I’m perfectly capable of thinking before I act.”

“Really,” Lynn said with a hint of sarcasm. “Is that why you wound up in the hospital a couple months back after being stabbed?”

“That girl wouldn’t leave.” Alexis defiantly crossed both arms over her chest.

“And instead of politely instructing her to leave you came up from behind and jerked her backwards.” Lynn breathed out in frustration. “Lex,” she shook her head. “I love you! That is why I’m concerned. It would kill me if something happened to you because you ran off on some half-c****d mission.”

“I was only trying to protect you. It’s my job!”

“So maybe a piece of paper says that’s your job, but your first priority is to keep yourself safe. Either you straighten up or I’ll hire a new bodyguard. You can stay on as my personal assistant. I won’t allow you to put your life in danger this way because it’s not worth it.” Lynn knew she’d gone too far the moment the words left her lips.

“You’d fire me,” Alexis gasped. “Fire me! But…I’m your wife! You can’t fire me.”

Lynn bit down on her lower lip, counting backwards in her head before she spoke again. It was a trick she learned years ago when her temper would get the best of her after dealing with nosey reporters. She straightened her stance. “Yes.” Her voice grew firm when she spoke. “I would fire you because my priority is keeping you and our daughter safe. I would fire you because you are my wife and despite the fact you seem to believe you’re invincible, you’re not. You weren’t even honest with me today. You knew that man was following us.”

“I’m the one trained for police work, not you!”

“And I’m the one who managed to fight off that crazed bastard who r***d my sister! I can handle myself too, you know. I don’t need to be treated with kid gloves and I don’t need to be protected from the truth.” Lynn found her annoyance escalating with each breath she took. She hated how everyone around her seemed to believe she needed constant supervision or protection. Did being a musician automatically make her incompetent? According to everyone around her it did. “If you want to remain on as my bodyguard then you have to be honest with me too. It’s a two way street, Alexis.”

Strands of gold beat against Alexis’s cheeks when she angrily shook her head. “I don’t want to deal with this right now.” Alexis threw her hands into the air. “You take the damn bed. I’ll sleep on the sofa tonight.” Alexis yanked open the bedroom door and stalked towards the living room.

Lynn dropped onto the bed and closed her eyes. Alexis refused to listen to reason, no matter what the subject was. If she didn’t get her way, she would become angry and shut down. For the life of her, Lynn could not understand why it was so hard to see that her concern stemmed from love. Instead, Alexis took everything as a personal attack against her skills as a police officer.

After the final case Alexis worked, she took it even harder. It was another reason Alexis quit the force. It was a kidnapping case and Alexis failed to put the clues together in time to save the young girl. Ever since, she’d blamed herself. Lynn wished she hadn’t even broached the subject. Now she felt horrible knowing it only succeeded in making those memories resurface. She had half a mind to go and apologize. When they fought that was how the arguments generally went down. Lynn always found herself apologizing even when she wasn’t the one in the wrong. Sometimes, when it came to Alexis, she wondered if she had any backbone at all.

She stood from the bed and walked over to the door, peering out into the hallway. She heard Alexis pounding out her anger on the sofa cushions in the living room. Lynn exhaled before she slowly made her way into the living room. “Alexis,” she whispered. “Don’t do this. I don’t want to go bed fighting with you.”

“Then don’t sleep.” Alexis plopped onto the sofa, yanked the sheet up, and turned her back to Lynn. Silence filled the room when Alexis refused to acknowledge Lynn’s presence.

Lynn stood by the sofa for several minutes before she finally turned to leave. With a long sigh, she stepped barefoot onto the chilly balcony, and stared ahead at the glittering lights of Manhattan. Her body trembled when she tried to fight back the overwhelming emotions that threatened to consume her. A lump formed in her throat and she took a deep breath. Since their marriage, this was the first time Alexis had ever gone to bed so furious with her. That fact alone made Lynn’s stomach twist into a series of knots. “What’s happening to us, Lex?” she whispered. She blinked back the tears when she stared down at the tiny dots, zooming carelessly on the crowded street below. Lynn leaned against the banister, hanging her head to cry.