Indigo's Dawning: THE BRICK HOUSE SERIES

By A.W.Parker

Lennox is a walking red flag, but something about him still draws me in. He says my list is not a deal breaker, but as I have learned, saying and doing are two different things. Is it safe for me to let him in, or am I so broken that I will never find someone just for me?

Boundaries are nothing new to me. Indigo thinks that a few little rules will scare me away, but she is wrong. I don't mind working for what I want, and what I want is her.

• Language: English
• Publisher: A.W.Parker
• Release date: Oct 29, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223892014

Book preview

Prologue

Indigo

Prey for Another Day

MOVE, MOVE, MOVE! That's the only word screeching in my brain. I would shout it, but who would hear me over the loud squeal of oncoming trains with the squeaky brakes and the general noise of the crowd?

The subway tile flashes by as I do my best to run on the congested platform, trying to become invisible in the crowd. Terrified to look back, I push forward, even as my lungs burn, a stitch piercing my left side. I can't think about it yet. Then, an image pops unbidden before my eyes, and I have to push it to the side.

Rook! He pushed her! Oh my God! Is she okay? The last thing I heard was, 'RUN,' and then screams. I tell myself not yet. I will think about it later; I need to keep moving for now. I am fighting the panic and tears, and though my eyesight is getting blurry, I see that I am almost to the stairs.

MOVE, MOVE, MOVE!! It's rush hour, and there must be at least a million people on this damn platform, and all of them seem to be in my way. He's going to catch me! I ignore the angry shouts of people as I push and shove them out of my way, desperate to reach that exit.

Someone grabs my hand, and the scream bubbles up from my gut but never reaches my lips. I can only make out a figure through the tears, but the hand gripping me seems to be propelling me forward instead of dragging me backward.

My confused brain is officially in survival mode as I try to break free. He will kill me this time, but I intend to put up the bloodiest of fights. In a split second, I decide that he will have to die with me. There is no other choice.

Sheer panic fills my ears with cotton, muting sounds and makes my heart pound uncomfortably. As I pull back and try to loosen my hand from its death grip, I blink a few times, clearing my vision just enough to realize that it's Rook miraculously gripping my hand, and she is yanking me to keep going. She turns back for a second, and I can see her lips, and they seem to be saying RUN!

Adrenaline gives me another boost, and we fly up the stairs. Rook pushes people out of our way, and we break free of the hot air of the subway station but not the crowd. She is slowing a bit, crouched down to be invisible in the group, and I follow her example as my brain catches up. Maybe she didn't actually fall into the tracks after I saw her struggling with Ivan. The absolute relief is overwhelming. As we turn a corner, I gulp in the icy cold morning air, and the building comes into view. The modern architecture stands out among the surrounding rundown buildings.

I make the mistake of turning around for that split second to ensure he is not behind us, and overwhelming dread grips me when I realize he has caught up, moving at full speed. He looks up, and we are eye to eye, his lips twisted into a smirk, and my heart drops to the floor. He is so close that I feel he can just stretch out his arm and grab me.

Just then, Rook gives me a hard yank, and I fall right through the doors of the school. Sprawled on the super clean and shiny vinyl floors, I am right at the feet of a security guard. As my eyes travel up from his scuffed shoes to his irritated-looking face, I think to myself, 'Yes, Indigo, you are totally fucked'.

AS MY ASS FALLS ASLEEP sitting on this beautifully polished and incredibly hard wooden bench, I have to think, where did the morning that had started so calm and collected go wrong?

For once, I woke up on time. I didn't have to fight my mother or sisters for the bathroom. Instead, I could enjoy the usual measly ten-minute tepid shower undisturbed before pulling on my clothes and combing my hair into my signature ponytail braid.

My mother, pouring me a cup of coffee filled to the brim with milk and sugar, sided with toast and butter, was an absolute miracle and should have been my first clue that today would go to shit. But ever the optimist, I grabbed my bag and headed out the door with no foreboding feeling to warn me.

Racing down the three flights of stairs, I burst through the front door that you have to kick to get open because of its consistent habit of sticking. Ice-cold air in my lungs and a clear blue sky with puffy clouds greet me. With the last remnants of my toast in hand, I meet up with my two friends, and we briskly walk the two blocks to the subway along with the rest of the early commuters looking to pack into the seven twenty-three morning train bound for the city. Though Rook and Cindi don't go to my high school, we take the same train in the morning, and I am grateful for the company. Otherwise, I would be nose buried in a book trying to get that last chapter in before my stop.

I had been listening to Cindi telling some horrible story about her brother's latest girlfriend issues when Rook pointed out the strange guy in the next train car. People were pointing and laughing, wondering why he had a Freddy Krueger from Nightmare on Elm Street movie mask on when we were in May. We laughed, too, thinking he must be not all there. Their stop was next, and as everyone got up from their seats and adjusted book bags, I glanced back in the direction of the crazy guy, and my heart leapt into my throat as he removed the mask, and I realized it was Ivan.

I screamed as the train car doors opened, and Rook looked in the direction that I was staring and grabbed my hand, dragging me, as my petrified eyes stuck to the door on my left that he was trying to get open, and mercifully was stuck.

Between the pulsing crowd and Rook, I made it to the platform and told her that I just saw Ivan. She nodded, and we tried to move deeper into the group, but he was on us and grabbed me. I struggled to get out of his hold, and Rook screamed at me to run while she fought him on the very edge of the platform.

Cindi, swept into the crowd, was too far to help. They both saw the bruising and knew Ivan was a deep regret I couldn't move on from. He had threatened me, and both had witnessed his brutal nature more than once. It had been months since I had seen him, and silly me, I had thought that after everything that happened in the alley, he had finally got the message and left me alone.

I stood there glued to the platform and watched, horrified, as he continued to punch her, but she hung on to his coat and was so loud that people around were turning and watching the fight as the train pulled out of the station.

He turned one more time towards me, and in slow motion, I watched as he purposely thrust her onto the tracks with a smirk on his face and started my way. Strangers screamed and backed away from him, and finally, I was untethered from my spot on the platform, my feet already running before my brain could catch up. I ran, dodging stunned bystanders as best I could until Rook amazingly reached me.

DONE WITH THE POLICE, Rook came over and gripped me in a bone-crunching hug as I cried on her shoulder. Cindi joins us in a group hug as I stutter, I thought... I thought.. I couldn't even make my mouth form the words of that horrific nightmare.

I'm fine. I'm right here., Rook whispers. They both comforted me and stayed by my side until my father came to take me to the police station and later to the courthouse to get a restraining order for Ivan, the last guy I let treat me like a possession.

Chapter One

Indigo

Surprise!

The wine was already flowing when Cindi arrived, so she grabbed a glass and settled on Rook's super comfortable couch while I shoved lasagna in my mouth. Of course, this was not how I planned to spend my evening, but how lucky was I to have baked pasta dishes, wine, and two of the best friends in the whole wide world having my back in my time of need?

I absolutely can NOT believe that happened!! says Rook. I, too, still felt shocked at the evening's earlier events.

Okay, start from the beginning, says Cindi. She had been late to the party and had missed the fireworks.

Okay, so we are all hiding in the living room, and the lights are off.

No, wait! I say, jumping up and heading to the kitchen to top off my half-full wine glass, You have to start from earlier.

I had been planning that asshole Josh's surprise birthday party for a month, and he managed to blow it to bits, along with our relationship, in a matter of minutes. Wait... so Josh and Alyssa? Cindi asks, finally catching up. I dramatically roll my eyes, Yes! Hang on... we'll get to that.

Rook and I take turns getting her up to speed on what had happened. So, I was pretending that I had a late meeting like usual and just acted like my normal self while Josh followed me around doing his stupid nodding thing, LIKE USUAL. Just thinking of his no-response was causing me to lose my wine-induced calm.

I'm giving him instructions for the lasagna, reminding him to pick up the car from the mechanic in the morning and to stop and get milk and shit like that, and he is just nodding and smiling like usual.

I relay to Cindi the rest of the setup details to the point that he finally goes to the bedroom to shower when he thinks I'm about to head out the door, but instead, I let in the party guests through the back door.

There are about ten people in all, shockingly, the quietest people on the planet, as they try and find hiding places behind the couches and kitchen island.

Rook jumps in, And then here comes Josh coming out the bedroom on his phone leaving a voicemail message... 'Alyssa, hey baby.. some bullshit like that, I can't wait to taste that sweet pussy of yours. Cindi gasps and nearly drops her wine when she jumps up. Are you fucking kidding me?!

I must be a bit drunk because I laugh at her reaction to that part. She has no idea!! He is just sooooo bad at the licky-licky!! We all look at each other for a full five seconds before we dissolve into a fit of giggles.

They have heard about Josh's anti-fabulous bedroom skills. Maybe I should have told Alyssa too. Ugh, just thinking about her is pissing me off. Let her find out on her own.

She is Josh's assistant and, for months, had been trying to get herself invited to things with me and the girls. She was new to the area, and feeling sorry for her, we let her tag along a bit, but the girls told me they didn't like the back-handed comments she made about me, so the invites had been getting rarer lately.

So right now is when someone flips on all the lights, and Josh turns and jumps like a cat and drops his phone.

No, not the precious phone! roars Cindi.

Yes! Rook shouts and claps her hands, and we are all cracking up again.

So now everyone is absolutely silent, and all eyes are on Alyssa, Rook says. And she is fire engine red, I interject.

And what does Josh say? Cindi asks.

He is just standing there staring at his phone like he is about to cry, Rook says with a straight face, and there is a moment of silence before yet another fit of giggles hits.

JOSH LIKES 'NICE THINGS.' He likes his new house with the lakeside view, the heated Italian tiles for the three-point-five bathrooms, and the white Oak hardwood flooring that I just got delivered and should be installed next week. Add in the special-order light fixtures because they are the best, and he deserves only the best, right?

He loves the new appliances and furniture, and we won't even go into his love of clothes, shoes, and watches.

So many watches! He only has two wrists!

He converted the third bedroom into a walk-in closet all for himself. He upgrades his phone whenever a new model is released, saying that his whole life is on his phone, so he needs all the latest features. The girls joked that he tucked the phone in each night instead of me. They weren't that far off from the truth.

Josh was handsome, intelligent, and funny but tame compared to my previous relationships. He was easygoing, nothing like the guys I went out with in college or after, with no violent meltdowns or fits of cursing and accusing me of crazy stuff. I definitely had a type, but he was different.

We would take nice vacations to places like wine tasting and golf resorts, where he attempted to keep up with his co-workers and bosses while I sat by the pool. My only real issue was his lack of passion.

PDAs were a big no-no. Josh didn't believe in public displays of affection: no hugs, no pecks on the cheek, nothing. I wouldn't have minded, except it extended to the bedroom too.

I already had issues in that department, but Josh's skills in the bedroom were just plain dull. Thankfully he also didn't last too long, so I had plenty of time to myself after he rolled over, snoring softly.

I was willing to look past that, convincing myself we could work on it. Still, Josh dismissed any suggestion that I made. Instead, he would tell me he was offended and say something stupid like, Well, my other girlfriends never complained. Maybe it would be better if you didn't have so many rules.

It didn't take long for me to start to believe he was right; maybe it wasn't so much him as my list of rules holding us back. But I still felt like I needed the rules to help me, so I left it alone. I reasoned that no relationship was 100%, so I figured you couldn't have everything. Josh checked other boxes for me, and I accepted that this was us for now.

After a few months, I gave up trying and using the gift cards he gave me as a present for every special day or holiday; I just invested in my toy chest. Mr. Roboto always respected my boundaries and never let me down.

After hitting the one-year milestone, I felt like we were moving in the right direction despite the minor issues, and instead of paying double mortgages, we opted to buy a house together. At the time, I thought this was the next phase of 'normal' relationships.

The house needed some love, and I had taken on the task of overseeing the renovations because, in Josh's words, 'Indigo, you do such a great job with that stuff.'

Stupid, stupid! I knew better.

My inner voice had been telling me, 'House needs to be in your name, so WHEN he messes up, you can give him the boot!' But he was so oatmeal, so safe, or so I thought. He is the complete opposite of my usual type, and silly me thought it would be fine, but I still managed to get burned.

NOW, HERE I AM ON ROOK'S couch, blowing my calorie count for the month. So for tonight, I will just be. I have enough money saved to reset but Ugh! It's such a pain to resettle AGAIN. I shake off these thoughts for tonight. There is plenty of time tomorrow to kick myself and figure out my next step.

Rook had picked up the story now and was saying how Josh looked like he was going to wail over his phone, and Alyssa had run out the back door crying.

What did everyone say? Cindi asked.

Rook replied, What could they say?

I turned to Cindi and said, It should have been awkward as hell, but I just told everyone to grab a plate and a goodie bag, and we'll have to catch up later. Mostly they shrugged and got a to-go plate.

Thank God she grabbed the lasagna before it was all gone, Rook pipes in.

Just then, Rook's phone starts beeping with incoming messages. They are from people at the party who recorded the whole incident. We gathered around her phone, watching the scene. I forgot that I had asked Josh what the fuck he was thinking, messing with Alyssa right under my nose.

His cell phone had his full attention for most of the conversation, but he looked up at me at one point like I was a stranger.

Finally, Josh got right in front of my face and said we were over, and I needed to get out.

Get out of where? I asked him.

My house! he shouted. This is MY house, and you need to get out and take everything that's yours with you because I don't want you to come back.

I look so shocked in the video, and then there is Rook dragging me away. At the last minute, she turns and says, We'll leave for now, Josh, and come back tomorrow to get Indigo's stuff. I am so proud of her for not losing her cool in my defense. Although he didn't see it since he was back to staring at his cracked screen, she was smiling and threw one more comment over her shoulder as we got our coats on, So Josh, when we come tomorrow, you want us to take everything, right? Everything that Indigo bought for the house?. YES!! Everything she fucking bought.. okay?! Now everyone, get out!. He really should have been paying attention to what he was saying.

LIKE, REALLY, ARE YOU okay? Cindi asks me, looking all worried. They both are staring now, but I am alright. Or at least I will be once I reset. So I bypass their question, ignoring the concern on their faces. My only regret is that damn Italian tile! I exclaim with a smile as I get up and go to the bedroom to change into a borrowed nightgown before I end up falling asleep in the jeans and sweater I have on.

AFTER WASHING MY FACE and tying my hair into a messy bun on the top of my head, I go back to find Rook searching for the chick flick to make this night complete and Cindi busy on her phone. She is searching and looking up she says, Please tell me that you have all the receipts from the renovations.

Duh. Of course, I do, I reply. Even if my job didn't require me to be super organized, I am one of those detail-oriented people who file every receipt in a folder with the project. I guess I will have to change the label on the file with all the house's receipts from Dream Home to That Asshole's House.

Without missing a beat, Cindi is dialing on her phone while shushing us. I should have seen what was coming, but my wine-soaked brain was distracted thinking about what I needed to do next. I was homeless and needed to rethink my poor choices, but not tonight. Tonight was about getting as drunk as possible, watching badass chick's revenge movies, and hopefully, forgetting what a cluster fuck the evening had been. Apparently, Cindi didn't have the same idea of what this evening would entail.

Mike? Hey, it's me. Yeah, I need your help. We have a situation.

Chapter Two

Indigo

Receipts and Returns

Imet Rook, my longest and best friend when we were in second grade. She and her family had just moved to our area, and all the kids had weird names; King, Bishop, Rook, and Knight. Her father had a thing for chess and named all his kids accordingly.

I always thought the names were cool, but as we got older, I can't even count how many times I ended up dragging Rook off of some stupid girl who decided to test her patience by calling her 'Rooker the Hooker' or something like that.

They were jealous, and I can't blame them. Even then, Rook was gorgeous. Tall with long beautiful jet-black hair, perfectly straight teeth, eyes that look like the Caribbean ocean, and a tight athletic body that no amount of exercise on my part would ever develop. I've never seen her NOT put together. She comes from a family of doctors and lawyers, while mine seemed to be a family of misfits. I could have law enforcement or thieves at any function, sometimes both. So it was always a good idea to watch your purse no matter which side you chose.

Rook's family had these elegant parties, and Cindi and I would always get to go with her, but I personally never quite felt like I fit in. Despite that, she was my best friend, my sister from another Mister, and though I'm not much of a fighter, I would always have her back. And she always had mine.

We met Cindi in eighth grade. Though Cindi was quiet, her hair was as loud as a rock band from the 80s. She was adorable, which she hated, with giant expressive blue eyes and flaxen blond hair dyed a different color each week; the brighter, the better, while nearly all her clothes were black. Her style hasn't changed much, but we are no longer shocked when she decides to change it up. She is the smart one in our group. We always joke that if she fell into the wrong hands, she would probably be in jail or working for some villain who strokes his Persian cat.

She laughs, but it's times like this that I am glad she is on our side. People totally underestimate her since she is quiet, but Rook and I know she is not one to sleep on. She is the youngest, with five older brothers who are all black belts. That's how they unwind—sparring and flipping each other.

Her father is in Real Estate, and the brothers do various jobs, including security, renovations, and house flipping. The girls and I used to make some side money in the summers working with them, and later, after college, I ended up working for them.

Too bad Josh forgot that.