My Number One: Kasha & Knox (16 page)

~

Who couldn’t help but notice the way Rory took in Teagan? His fixation wasn’t subtle either. And for her part, I believe she felt the same. I’m not sure what kept either from pursuing the other. Ironic, since Knox and I had fallen into the same trap. This wasn’t the type of thing I should’ve been focused on, though it was the type of thing I needed to keep my mind occupied.

“Tea, I know you see the way he looks at you.”

The left side corner of her lips twitched. She was either holding back a smile or trying to avoid showing how uncomfortable my observation made her feel.

“Smile,” I encouraged.

She did, only to shake her head and grunt out, “Ughhh, he’s no good for me, girl.”

“And you’re good for him? You’re better than him?” I thought they were safe questions. “He has a bit of dark allure, don’t you think?”

“Sooooo, you feel that’s what I need?” Tea made fish lips, leaned her head against mine and blew out heavily.

“You prefer boring?”

“How do you know I haven’t had my share of all types of men, Kash?”

“I guess.” Then, shoving her from off me, I spun to the side. I’d always wondered about her. Sure, I understood the need for privacy, but it had been about five years since she’d rescued me from Van. Today, I didn’t know how or why she’d just dropped into my life that way, yet I’d followed like a mindless idiot. No regrets now, but . . . “You’ve gotta be the oddest person alive.”

She giggled. “Me?” A squeaky type of sound escaped. Standing to her feet, she headed for her purse.

“Teagan Boone, you saved my life on the day we met. You helped me get away from a situation that might’ve turned deadly. Granted, I came blindly, but you never once asked much more; I thought it was your way of keeping me in the dark about your drama at the time.” I waited for some sort of rebuttal, yet all she did was clutch the purse to stand over by the window. Her gaze extended out into the open sky. It was massive, clear and perhaps freeing; freeing since it probably didn’t make her feel constricted in the way I was now doing.

“Kash, there are certain things you don’t get to know, shouldn’t want to know either,” my elusive friend spat.

“Like what?”

No response, though I noticed a slight glistening of moisture escape down her cheek. I prepared to stand. She dropped her purse and extended a palm up.

“Like what?” I asked once more. I never once questioned her motives; figured that she’d someday explain. Actually, it had gotten to the point where I didn’t care to know, but this present drama with Knox had me thinking. What if our past had tracked us down? What if whatever it was she’d escaped that day in Miami had come looking for her? What if, God forbid, Van and Axel decided to finish me off after all this time? If I turned up missing or dead or vice versa, there wouldn’t be any closure. “Like what? Teagan, that day—”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to bring up that day or that life. We’ve got something safe here in Delaware.”

The room grew cold; her expression, with her forehead tipped forward on the window, made me want to know. To hell with warnings.

“After all this time, if our skeletons haven’t found us yet, then I don’t think they’re coming.”

“I can’t imagine yours are nearly as bad as mine.” When she faced me, her face was smeared up with tears. Her pupils were terrifyingly huge. “My past is a whole lot worse than some tired-ass club owner with issues.”

“What exactly do you know about Van?” My fingers swooped up to hold onto my lips. That name rode my mind over the years, not too frequently, but enough. “And you never told me how you happened to turn up just as I needed you.”

“Sweetie, some day, when and if the time is right, I’ll—”

“No!” I jumped up. Within two steps, my hands prepared to reach out for her.

She waved me off. “I don’t think you understand, Kasha. Our friendship is too important to me. I don’t want to drag you into my mess. Why do you think I never agreed to move into your house? Why do you think I try to stay off the radar? You think I enjoy living in Delaware?”

“Tea, if anything were to happen to you, what then? They wouldn’t be any closure.” At the mere thought of the possibilities, I wept. I cried for the what ifs, the maybes, and all things that could ever be. “You’re my best friend, my sister.”

“And I plan on keeping it that way. I promise you, I’ll explain things one day soon. Let’s just get over this Knox thing first.”

I moved to reply, but she held up her hand. Before I could protest further, my phone rang. Teagan reached it a second before me.

Unavailable.

Teagan snatched it open, yanking from my direction to direct it to her ear. “Who’s this?” After pulling away briefly and switching to speaker, we concentrated on the screen. “Who?” she asked.

“Kasha?” a deep voice asked.

“Who’s—”

“I ask the questions.”

“What? I’m here. This is Kasha. Who’s this?” I pleaded, aware of the desperation in my tone. The veins in my temple flexed; there was a tightening in my chest. A wash of anxiety raced over me. I squeezed Teagan’s hand, while gripping onto the cell.

“Where’s Rory?”

Teagan elbowed me.

“He-he’s—”

“Look,” Teagan undid my grip as she spoke. “We’re not answering any questions until you fill us in. Where’s Knox? Why do you have him? What the hell—”

“This is my show!” the guy yelled into the line and terminated the call.

“What was that, Teagan? He’s gonna hurt him, or worse.”

“Why do you think he called? He’s looking for Rory. If he was only looking to do away with Knox—” she paused to shrug off her insensitive words “—we would’ve found a body. Call Rory.”

Teagan didn’t bother to have me follow through. I didn’t fight it. My bestie was passionate enough for the both of us. She knew how deep my emotions ran for Knox. I think she might’ve wanted a Knox and Kasha even more than I did; believe me, I wanted it badly too.

This whole thing with Knox being taken.

Honestly, who takes someone anymore?

Who kidnaps a grown man?

Furthermore, what kinda crap is Knox involved in?

Is his darkness worse than mine?

“Rory just got to Erika’s family’s place, but there’s no Erika there. And guess what, no one knows an Erika either.” The eye that had just been sad and detached now brightened. I’m sure it was the challenge of solving this puzzle that got her going.

“What do you mean?”

As Tea explained the missing case of my Knox’s illusive fiancée, I couldn’t help but get angry over his choice. For whatever reason, he’d allowed himself to get suckered in like that. “How the hell could he get fooled like that?”

“I don’t know, Kash, but don’t take it lightly. There has to be more to this.”

“Tea, you thought life would be different in Delaware.”

“It was. It is. Don’t worry, my BFF. Rory doesn’t seem like the type of guy to let things go.”

We stood at the corner, waiting for Rory’s black mustang to pull up. Teagan wore sky-gray tights with a light pink, cotton tee. I’d thrown on khaki shorts and a green tank. I personally felt out of place, dropped dead smack in the middle a fashionista’s haven. Our surroundings were overtaken by women in high end designs with a world of class. While I got drawn in, Teagan drew others in with her nonchalant persona. This had to be one of the reasons I valued being around her.

She reached for my arm, wrapping her fingers around my wrist and drawing me to stand beside her. “You stick out like a sore thumb.”

“Really?”

“You didn’t know?” She formed a wide O with her mouth as her eyes expanded.

“Of course I do. It’s that darn pun.” I jabbed her with my forearm.

“Glad you can joke around.”

“I gotta do something to keep my mind off Knox. It’s not that I don’t care or anything. I’m hella tense. The fresh air—”

“Fresh air.” Teagan quickly looked around, dropping my hand as hers extended around us. Before she could get back to her overly dramatic self, a horn sounded. We glanced up in time to see Rory’s ride rush in front of two cabbies and halt directly in front of us.

“My kinda guy,” Teagan said out loud.

I shook my head and took the back seat without a second thought. Rory’s hand quickly reached over to yank at Teagan’s seatbelt, once she secured it. I leaned my head to left, from behind the driver’s seat. Teagan shifted just enough for me to see a sly grin cross her face.

“Their ratings just went up,” Rory stated from out of nowhere.

“Whose ratings? What are you talking about?” Teagan shifted to her left, then ran her hand along the side of his face.

I would’ve asked the same question, but the vibe between the two kinda caught me off guard. I’m not entirely sure why I hadn’t noticed it before now, or maybe it was something new.

“You didn’t see the cameras?”

“What cameras?”

“TV cameras.”

“Why would there be cameras on a random street?” Teagan questioned, immediately sitting up in her seat. “National or local?”

“What’s going on?”

“National or local?” she reiterated in a shaky tone.

“Calm down. Don’t know why—”

“Damn, Rory, are you a frickin’ idiot?”

“Must be to still have you in my car when your ass is behaving like a total—”

“Don’t you dare say it!”

“Then don’t act it.”

“Are you guys kidding me?” I was finally able to interject. I shifted to the edge of the seat. Rory had just pulled onto the Whitestone Bridge. To keep from getting knocked over by his shifty driving, I placed my palms on the headrest of each chair.

“Kash, we need to talk.” Teagan scooted around, then undid her seatbelt. “Pull over.”

She literally grabbed at the wheel. I fell to the seat, hitting the top of my head on the door. I completely lost balance and nearly ended up on the floor.

“What the hell?” Rory grunted out. I watched him maneuver around and beside other cars that came within inches of slamming into us.

“Kasha,” Tea said by way of drawn out syllables.

“What's up? You're acting totally irrational.” I caught a glimpse of Rory through the car window. He was hammering away at his phone, not paying attention to our chat.

“Did you not hear what Rory said?” Tea's pupils shifted around. “Kash, your guard didn't shoot up?”

Maybe it was the traffic all around as we leaned against the sporty ride, while wasting time on the streets. Maybe even the fact that this hiatus was only taking away from us being able to track down Knox. I couldn't be too sure.

I shrugged.

“The damn cameras he mentioned,” she threw out, and then walked off. After causing several strangers to swerve around her straight march to the front of a Golden Krust storefront, Tea turned to face me. Her dramatic side was sometimes too much for me to handle.

I felt the urge to shout out accusations, but something told me she was dead serious about something I'd missed entirely. With me teetering against the car, peering her way suspiciously, she returned a desperate gaze. The rattling of an approaching train from nearby just seemed to give me a headache.

“What the hell is this?” Rory shouted, finally stepping out of the car. “I thought we had something better to do than stand around the godforsaken streets.”

Tea stormed over to me, gripped my arm and whispered into my ear, “These friggin’ cameras are national, right?”

The light bulb flickered on as her sentence formed. I guess it didn't necessarily make much sense to me, since we were here and our past lives were there.

“But-but . . .” I couldn't formulate a reason to not worry, with the exception of the miles from Florida to New York. “What if it was local news, as opposed to national?”

“You got five seconds to get in the car before I drive off,” Rory shouted out, bringing Teagan and I back to the present moment.

Tears lingered on my lashes, but I refused to let the tears fall. Instead, I stretched my arms around her neck and squeezed just enough. Turning slightly, I spewed a lie into her ear, “We're okay.”

“Now!” Rory barked, causing all attention to turn in our direction.

We hustled along. She reclaimed the front seat and I hopped into the back just in time for Rory to drive off. My fingers shook and a helluva lump formed in my throat, but those fears had to be minor. Knox’s life hung in the balance. As the saying went, I needed to pull on my big girl panties, or maybe man up would be the better analogy. Either way, I needed to dig deep down, in order to rescue the man I’d only allowed myself to give into.

Rory barked out order, over how we’d take on this mission. I listened wholeheartedly, even as the sun settled in the distance and my fears of the past held me captive.

~

~

An intense light burned through my eyelids, accompanied by the stale stench of mold as I woke. Not entirely sure how I’d ended up there, I surveyed my surroundings. My hands were tied and secured to a wooden chair. A single light bulb hung in the center of the cold, basement-like room. I could hear low crackles, as if liquid was dripping through the ceiling; which had to be about twelve feet from the ground. Just my luck I had a psychotic friend, one that I’d known for years.

“Du-dude,” I managed. My throat had a raspy feel, sorta like sandpaper. “You gotta have a plan. Come talk to me.”

I could hear footsteps nearing the door; one tread heavier than the other. I shifted around in the seat, which was damn uncomfortable. Keys crashed together at a solid wooden door, then the lock turned. I formed a scowl. A flashlight trailed Bash’s path, but then right behind him I saw a thin hand.

Erika appeared at his side. My Erika. My frickin’ fiancée. The chick I’d saved. The chick I’d made the sacrifice of a friendship to marry. Yeah, Erika.

“Hi, Knox,” she handed out, detached. Her gaze played peekaboo with mine.

“Hi, Knox? You’re caught up in this shit, and all you have to say is ‘hi Knox?’” I slumped into the high-backed wooden seat, exhaling in her direction. Only then did I realize my feet had also been secured to the chair, though the slack ran past me to somewhere beyond the wall.

“How long have you known each other?” Being unsure of their plans, I couldn’t imagine someone going through the trouble of taking a person and tying them up in a godforsaken room to just set them free. I needed closure if they had plans to kill me.

“I’ve always known her,” Bash confessed.

“Help me understand this shit, you’ve known her longer than we’ve been boys?” I coughed, the musky air flying down my throat.

“Yeah, something like that.” Bash smirked.

“Whatever the hell is going on here, I’m gonna need you to lay this shit out for me and do whatever the hell you need to do.” I rattled the chair, wanting to break it, tip it or something. I had abso-frickin-lutely no patience with this sort of thing.

“We need to wait for Rory first,” Erika stated coyly.

“He’s in on this too?”

“Nah, but he’ll find you.”

“How the hell is he supposed to find me?”

“Because I set the trap.” Bash walked over to me with his hands holding steady behind my back. His lips formed a thin, overly wide grin.

“Look, just knock my ass out again and wake me up when you’re ready to explain things because—”

A blunt force connected with my head.

~