Without A Trace

Fourty-Four

"Cora?" Ivy says snapping her fingers in front of my face. I jump slightly as I snap out of my own thoughts and meet her gaze. "You alright?" She asks sincerely, her eyebrows furrowed.

"Yeah. Just a lot of blood," I say clearing my throat wiping the blood off of my lips, my hands shaky as I come down off my adrenaline high. The smell of iron is unexplainable.

Ivy studies my face before looking behind her towards Anna. "Anna start the car, we're taking Cora home," she says slightly demandingly as Anna rushes off to start the car.

I look down at my bloodied hands and run my thumb across my fingers before scanning the ground around me. "My ring is gone," I say abruptly as I turn around, walking back to retrace my steps.

"Cora you're soaked in blood. We have to go home and get you cleaned up," Anna says walking over to me and holding my shoulders. "I'll have Lewis look for it eh?"

I take a deep breath and walk to the car and take the handkerchief from Ivy and wipe my hands with it. I take the rag and start wiping my face to at least get the blood to stop dripping off of it and into my lap.

Anna walks over to Lewis and lowers her tone, "Coras ring is gone and shes in the beginning stages of shock so we have to get her home and get her cleaned up. Her face and hands are drenched in blood so I think thats why she's panicking. But she and Thomas will have all of our fuckin heads if that ring isnt found so get to looking will ya?"

Lewis glances around for his brothers and talks lowley to his wife, "Tommy know?"

"No and keep it that way. Just tell him Cora lost her ring in the commotion and she is meeting him back home," She says glancing around looking for Thomas. He nods his head and gives her a quick kiss before walking away.

Lewis walks over to the boys and grabs their attention, "Coras ring is gone so we're not leaving without it."

"My wifes ring is gone?" Thomas asks walking up to them with his eyes furrowed and a cigarette in his mouth. "Why the fuck is it gone?" He says walking up to his brothers, his demeanor completely changing. The air becomes thick between them.

"It fell off in the commotion of everything happening," Lewis says clenching his jaw slightly.

Thomas stands there with one hand in his pocket, his gaze ice cold. He takes the cigarette out of his mouth with his index finger and thumb, blowing the smoke out of his mouth. His eyes meet Lewis's, "That rings never come off her fuckin hand in the last 7 years since I got the bloody thing unless her hands are wet. So what the fuck happened with Campbell?" He asks coldly.

Lewis stares at his brother for a moment before speaking, "She shot him at close range. Her face and hands are covered in blood and it came off then I'm assuming. Anna says shes in the beginning stages of shock because of all the blood that's on her."

Thomas clenches his jaw, "Find that fuckin ring so we can go home." He says before walking away as the brothers scatter to look for it.

Anna walks back to the car and climbs in before driving away. Ivy takes the handkerchief and tries to get most of the blood off my hands but its just smearing at this point.

"When the fuck did you get that?" She asks pointing to the tattoo on my ring finger.

"I got Toms initial tattooed on me when he was stone poor and couldn't get me a ring. Sometimes he makes me wish I could use a fuckin cheese grater and scrape it off," I say looking out the window. "Anyone have a smoke?" I say turning my head and glancing back at the girls. "I need to get the taste of iron out of my mouth."

Ivy hands me a cigarette and lights it for me, I take a long drag off it and lean back in the chair blowing the smoke out slowly and resting my head back, closing me eyes.