Business had ground to a halt for the night. They didn’t have an enormous crowd stampeding in that late, so Casey spent most of his time cleaning up and preparing to close for the night. Casey was polishing down his last table when resonating gunshots reached his ears; a sound he’d learned to recognize easily living in New Syracuse. It hadn’t been too far from the bakery either.
“The hell was that?” Xavier emerged from the back room with blood-shot eyes. He stuffed the rest of his joint back in his hoodie pocket so Lani didn’t catch him with it.
“It was probably nothing,” Lani called out. “Just finish up so we can go home already. I don’t wanna have to stay after any later than we need to.”
“Someone shot off a gun,” Casey replied, gazing outside beyond the glass windowpane. “Sounded like it, right?”
Xavier shrugged. “Maybe some teens are fucking around.”
“Yeah, maybe.” Casey agreed.
It wasn’t like someone would come shoot up the bakery, right? There hadn’t been reports of any robberies in their area yet, and Casey didn’t want the bakery to be the first on the block. Gangs ran rampant over New Syracuse, but their bakery rarely fell in the cross-hairs of their territory fights.
An unnerving sensation in the pit of his stomach made it difficult for him to relax. What if that gunshot came from their neighborhood? It sounded like it could have. Casey knew how their family locked their doors up at night, but it still had him on edge to consider someone robbing their home and hurting his son. He sent a quick text to his mom, asking how Wyatt was doing. When he got a message back from her promptly, he let out a breath of relief.
Just finished tucking him in. Exhausted from playtime!
Casey couldn’t stop gazing outside. No one lurked around on the sidewalk, but he couldn’t rid himself of the feeling that he was being watched. Was it just the night jitters getting into his head? Maybe they should leave now and hurry home. Casey wanted to get back to their house and see his son.
Something urged Casey to hurry around the counter to fetch the keys. He needed to lock up the entrance. As he leaned over to collect the ring, the tinny and grating chime of the doorbell reached his ears. Casey gulped, trying to process what to do and what he could defend himself with if necessary.
Xavier asked, “Can’t you see we’re closing?”
Casey paused behind the counter of sweets, trembling. The first thing that caught his eye was the laceration inflicted on the dark-haired stranger’s arm. Drops of blood dripped onto the pristine, white-tiled floor as Casey shrunk back. Did someone shoot the guy? Stab him? That was a lot of blood soaking through his hoodie sleeve.
“Can you help me? You got a first aid kit, yeah?” The mysterious man asked, coming closer to the counter. Pieces of black hair poked out from the hood pulled over his head, revealing a small cut to the side of his face. It didn’t look fresh. “I’m sorry. Your bakery’s the only one with lights on. They stole my damn phone.”
With cautious steps, Casey moved around the counter to examine the young man better. It was obvious the man worked out from his buff build, and his deep voice sent shivers down Casey’s spine. He’d met guys like him before that ran around with the gangs. They could be brutal.
Casey met the man’s gaze for a split second, then focused it back on his bloody arm. Considering his injury, Casey expected the guy to be more frantic about bleeding out or having his attacker come back after him. Shouldn’t he be wanting them to call the police or an ambulance for a hospital?
“You need us to call 911?” Xavier asked. “That doesn’t look good, man.”
“No hospitals, no cops. Just help me and I’ll leave.”
“Um, alright,” Casey stammered. “We, uh, have a first aid kit.”
Lani peeked out from the back, gripping a mop tightly in her hand. Casey flashed her a brief look, and she backed away from the door, hopefully realizing the man might be dangerous. Surely, she’d call their mother, who worked for the New Syracuse Police Department. Casey hoped the man didn’t see his sister back there. By the way he eyed the display of sweets in the case, Casey figured he must not have seen Lani.
Casey stepped behind the register. His hands trembled so badly, he could barely sift through the cluttered mess his dad had left for him. With each passing second, Casey grew more concerned. This guy didn’t seem like someone to be trifled with. He hoped Xavier didn’t try fighting him while stoned, either.
The man asked, “Could I have a cupcake too? I mean, I’ll pay for it.”
Casey nodded. “Yeah, uh sure. Just let me finish here.”
Cleaning the stranger’s bloody arm made Casey wonder what happened, but he couldn’t bring himself to ask. A viper tattoo on his forearm stuck out to Casey, but he disregarded it. The only thing on his mind was getting the dangerous man out of their bakery without angering him. While Casey wanted to hide in the back with Lani, he knew he couldn’t put her in harm’s way and needed to keep the guy calm. Hopefully, his attacker didn’t show up.
All Casey could think about was getting home safely to Wyatt. The injured man hadn’t been hostile toward them yet or threatened them. And Casey wanted to keep it that way.
“What’s your name?” the stranger asked.
“I’m Casey. And that’s Xavier.” He gestured to his friend. “You?”
“August. Same as the month I was born. My mom wasn’t very creative.”
Casey forced a grin at his joke. “Is that so?”
“Yeah. Thanks again for this,” August said after Casey got him patched up. “I know how suspicious it must look. I just got into some trouble with those gangs. Didn’t want the police hounding me over this. Ain’t my first fight and they’ll be wanting to throw me in the slammer.”
“No problem,” Casey told him before retrieving the cupcake that the man desired.
After August got his treat, paid for it, and left their bakery, Casey hurried to lock the front door. He wanted no more night travelers wandering in.
Lani peeked out. “Is he gone?”
Casey nodded. “Yeah, he just left. Didn’t threaten us or try to take any money. He just wanted help with his wound and a cupcake, oddly. He better get that wound checked out by a doctor. Those bandages won’t keep it from getting infected.”
“That’s so creepy.” Lani shuddered. “Jeez, you guys acted so calm about it, too. I was so worried he’d try to hurt y’all. I called mom, and she’s coming down here. Wants to make sure we get home safely and the guy doesn’t come back.”
Xavier sighed. “Guess I can wait a little longer to leave. At least we’re officially closed now. No more weirdos like him will stop by.”
“I hope not,” Casey murmured.
Casey tried to calm his throbbing heart, taking a seat to cool off until his mother got there. All he wanted to do was curl up in his own bed and read Wyatt one of his favorite bedtime stories.
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