29. Gemma
Chapter twenty-nine
Gemma
Rule #29: Keep holiday decor reasonable.
R uth and Cal's house came into view from where it had been built into the side of a pine-dotted mountain hill. Even in the darkness, I could see that it was a beautiful house that looked like a fancy treehouse with wrap-around porches built around trees, construction that followed the flow of the hill downward, and lots of timber and iron to give it a rustic feel. I could see how it had appealed to Cal first with its masculine energy, but I knew for a fact that Ruth had added a softness and charm to it. As I headed up the many stairs that led to the elevated walkway, I noted the potted plants and flowers that, although dying now, were a testament to Ruth's presence.
I'd tried to call ahead, but Ruth wasn't answering her phone, and honestly, I was too drained to bother doing much of anything but drag myself from the cafe I'd parked my butt at a couple hours ago and then to Ruth's house. And Knox had only confirmed what I'd feared.
I knew, in my heart, he hadn't meant to hurt me, but he hadn't trusted me with the truth either. And that hurt . I didn't want to be seen as someone lesser than. I didn't want to be used as a tool in a plan I had no hand in making. I didn't want to be a cog in the machine that allowed him to get revenge on his mother, however well deserved. And I didn't think it was so outside the realm of reasonability that those things would make me upset.
But I also hated leaving him. I missed him already, and as I hiked my weekender bag a little higher on my shoulder, I had serious misgivings about what the hell I was going to do about any of this. I couldn't continue living with Knox after all that. I sure as hell wasn't going to "pretend" that I was marrying Knox when everyone involved knew it was a pointless sham.
I had been stupid for not seeing it sooner, really.
I reached the front door, and the solar lanterns along the walkway posts illuminated a fall wreath on the door and a bunch of pumpkins off to the right. I smiled, knowing that Ruth had to have brought up pumpkin picking with Cal, and no doubt he'd jumped at the chance to go with her. They were disgustingly cute, those two. I went to knock on the door but found it slightly ajar.
Nervous suddenly, I pushed open the door and peeked inside. Had something gone wrong? Wasn't this usually some kind of indication that there had been a burglary or a murder? My voice stuck in my throat, and I eased the door open, tiptoeing into a dark foyer. Blue light mingled with the warm glow of the lantern light behind me, and I tread soundlessly into the house, my heart kicking up an erratic rhythm in my chest.
"Ruth?" I whispered. Why was I whispering? Maybe they weren't home and had forgotten to lock the front door.
But that wasn't like Ruth at all. She'd never forget that. Genuinely nervous now, I crept from the foyer to where a set of stairs led down to the living room, which was bathed in shadows and muted light from the outdoor lanterns set up around the deck out back. A shuffle from the hallway leading to the bedrooms caught my attention, and I froze in place, clutching my coat and trying to find my voice again. Something was off here.
A light flared from the hallway, and I jumped. "H-hello?" I squeaked. The light briefly illuminated something liquid on the floor, and as I bent down to get a closer look, I released a strangled gasp. Blood. It was a puddle of blood, and in long, laborious streaks, it continued along the floor and to the hallway at the back like someone had dragged a dying body across the polished wood.
Breathing hard and fast, I pulled out my cell phone with shaking hands, fumbling with it, and failing to correctly bring up my lock screen. Suddenly, a scream filled the house, ringing in my ears and squeezing my heart with so much fear, I thought for sure I would pass out like a fainting goat. Thundering footsteps pounded down the hallway and into the living room, and like I wasn't in control of my body anymore, I screamed, backing away and stumbling back up the steps until I tripped and sprawled at the top on my ass.
Ruth came streaking out from the hallway, her hands in fuzzy handcuffs and her body completely naked except for the streaks of bright red she had covering her neck, breasts, stomach, and legs. Her scream dissolved into laughter, swallowing my scream, and she bent over, giving into a fit of giggles just as a naked man in a Jason mask came lunging after her. She shrieked again, and it was only in that moment that I realized she was actually laughing , and the man in the Jason mask wielding a giant knife was laughing with her. He tackled her, taking her down to the ground with gentle strength, and he pinned her with her handcuffed hands above her head. "Nice try, pretty girl," he growled from behind his mask.
Ruth could barely breathe, she was laughing so hard, and she writhed in mock agony beneath him. "No! Please! Mercy!"
I sagged, releasing a breath of horrified air and practically melting into a puddle of liquified flesh and rattled bones. As "Jason" positioned himself between Ruth's thighs, my brain caught up to what the fuck was actually happening here, and a windstorm of fury replaced the cold fear that had numbed my body and brain. Sitting up, I shouted, "Ruth, what the actual fuck !"
Ruth gasped, picking up her head and looking my way. The naked man in the Jason mask whipped his eyeless face my way, and we all had one immobile moment of shock, and then pandemonium erupted. Ruth screamed, this time in genuine horror, and the man, whom I reasonably assumed was Cal, covered her with his body, but only managed to flash me his fleshy ass in doing so. I clapped a hand over my eyes. "Jesus H. Christ, you two!"
"Oh my God!" Ruth cried, and they both scrambled, running for the couch.
I got up, hand still over my eyes. "Do not bother covering yourselves up, you sex-obsessed degenerates!" I shouted, stumbling back and going to the foyer. "I already saw everything, and no, I will never recover."
Cal started to laugh, loud and long, and the clarity of it told me he'd removed his mask. "Gemma," he wheezed. "I'm sorry."
"We're so sorry!" Ruth moaned, and I heard the regret in her voice, but I was already at the door.
I picked up my bag from where it had fallen. "I knew it!" I roared, wrenching open the front door. "I just knew you two were going to obliterate my retinas with your disgusting—"
"Gem, come back!" Ruth called, but she had already begun to join Cal in his uncontrollable laughter. "You can stay! I'll wear clothing!"
"—nasty sex lives!" I went through the door, my voice echoing as I marched down the walkway. "You two are the worst!"
"We're sorry!" Ruth called, and I shook my head slapping my face with both of my hands. There was no way I was going back there. Not a chance.
I stomped back to my car, hefting my bag and feeling a sudden surge of overwhelming emotion. The despair over my feelings for Rook suddenly mingled with intense, heart-stopping fear about the blood on Ruth’s floor, which had then been rapidly replaced with white-hot fury over the absolute absurdity of this situation. The concoction boiled a storm of conflicting emotions to the surface, and as soon as I got to my car, I dissolved into tears.
Big, fat tears rolled down my cheeks, and I let out a sob, crouching down in front of my car and leaning my forehead against the cool metal door. There really was nothing for it. I let myself cry silently, releasing the torrent of pathos that had built up inside of me and had literally buckled my knees.
When I'd finished, wiping my cheeks and sniffling loudly, I got back in my car and started the engine, puffing out a breath to force some calm back into my buzzing body. My random thoughts slowly solidified into something reasonable, and I pulled my phone out again. With trembling fingers, I pulled up the gaming app to text Emma.
GemsNLace178576:
Hey, about that visit. You up for one tonight? Things went south with my roommate. Wouldn't stay long. Just need a night to think.
Emma responded immediately.
Emmaculate94:
SLEEPOVER! Get over here! I'm sorry about your roommate. Tell me about it when u get here. Drive safe.
GemsNlace178576:
address?
Emmaculate94:
Here’s the link to my location
GemsNlace178576:
K, I'll bring drinks.
Sniffling, I clicked the link to pull up the address and smacked my cheeks again, trying to put some life back into my face. I could stay in a hotel, but my bank account wasn't super happy with me after buying Pumpkin a shelter and putting her and Mini up in a kennel, so this was probably the better option. Plus, I didn't want to be alone. I liked Emma and I hadn't seen her since we'd gone to the movies a couple months ago. I needed a girls’ night. And clearly, Ruth wasn't it.
While I drove, I tried to process my day, but it was all honestly a bit much. The nasty not-mother-in-law, meeting Arabella, the words that looped on repeat in my head…
She is nothing. She's no one.
And now I could never look my best friend in the face again without imagining her handcuffed, covered in blood, and being chased by a naked man with a rubber knife. I tried to forget it, but even during the two-hour drive to Portland through dark streets and nearly abandoned highways, I couldn't seem to scrub the image from my mind. I was going to absolutely kill her.
I followed the GPS to the coordinates, taking an exit and then slowly meandering through pretty, shrub-lined lawns and cookie-cutter suburban houses until I found the one Emma had texted me. I knew she had been pretty stable, but for her to upgrade to a pretty, two-story colonial like this one, I was somewhat impressed. I pulled into the driveway, which led to an attached garage, and feeling a sudden niggle of doubt, I double-checked the address she had sent me and the point on the GPS map.
It was eight o'clock at night by this point, and a few children still walked through the well-lit, safe neighborhood, knocking on doors and yelling, "Trick or treat!" But Emma's porch light was off, so I didn't run into any kids when I left my car and walked down a stone-paved walkway, past beautiful bushes and leafy plants, and to the front door.
Tentatively, I knocked, holding my breath. It had been a hot minute since Emma and I had seen each other, but we did talk almost every day. It would be fine. In the background, a child screeched, followed by laughter, and then an inflatable witch on the lawn next door cackled maniacally.
When the door opened, I came face-to-face with… not Emma.
Dain, her boyfriend, opened the door and smiled. "Gemma! Hey, nice to see you."
"Oh, hey Dain," I hedged. "Is Emma here? I texted her."
Dain had a soft, round face and a blunt haircut that cut straight across his heavy brows. When he smiled at me, I'd always gotten the impression that he did it with nothing behind the lens, like he was making a mimicry of a smile rather than feeling the emotion he was trying to portray. Frankly, Dain and his watery, gray-brown eyes had always freaked me out a little, and I thought Emma had said she'd broken up with him at some point, but here he was, still in her house. "Come on in," he said, stepping aside and opening the door for me.
"Thanks." I walked past him and into a beautiful, small foyer area with the staircase leading upstairs and the main living area off to the left. The house appeared to have been built in the early nineties, so the foyer was tall and open, but the living room had lower ceilings, a fireplace, and a walled-off layout.
"Have a seat," Dain said graciously, gesturing to the olive-green couch set.
I hadn't brought my bag inside, so I plopped myself on the couch, looking around the living room with interest. I knew Dain did something in finance, and he'd made some gains in his job the last I'd heard. But this looked like a full, family-friendly house. Had Emma actually bought a house with him? Maybe they wanted kids or something.
The idea of Emma with kids made me smile. She would totally be the fun mom. But she wasn't a huge fan of anything that smacked of "belonging" to a man, and I really thought if she'd bought a house with Dain, she would have mentioned that. It didn't seem like something she would do. Then again, she had mentioned that she had a new house, so maybe it tracked.
Dain disappeared into the kitchen, but I didn't hear him call for Emma. A little worm of doubt slithered across my subconscious. I ignored it and checked my phone. No new texts from Emma. Dain came back in with two cold beers, and after handing me an opened bottle, he sat down next to me on the couch. Like right next to me. There was a whole other couch across from me, and several feet of space left on the one I had sat on, but he sidled up to me and clinked his glass against mine. "Great to have you here, Gemma."
My brow furrowed and I took a sip of the beer. "Uh, yeah. Thanks. Is Emma here, or…?"
"Oh, she said something about you needing a place to stay. I made up the guest bedroom for you already." Dain took a swig of his beer, his eyes never leaving me. "You're welcome to stay."
He hadn't answered my question. Come to think of it, I'd asked twice, and both times, he hadn't answered. I swallowed more beer, suddenly insanely thirsty and getting edgy on top of that. I bit my lip and peered at him over the lip of the glass bottle. "Emma is here, though, right?"
"Well," Dain looked around like he might see her lurking. "Yeah, of course. She stepped out for more drinks, but she should be back." He gave me his full attention again. "For now, it's you and me. Emma seems to have a great time with you in Thornwind, and she's told me so much about you." Dain had one of those faces that looked simultaneously baby-like and perpetually middle-aged, so I had no idea what his real age was.
All I knew was that he was creeping me the fuck out. I pulled three big swallows of my beer and put it down on a butterfly-printed coaster. That did not scream Emma to me. She was a little grunge, a little feminine, and a lot of sass. She was not seventy-six years old with a hummingbird-watching hobby. Feeling uneasy, I stood from the couch. "Can I use your bathroom?"
"Sure thing," Dain smiled. He gestured for me to follow him deeper into the house.
My stomach grumbled with some kind of warning at that. But I knew this guy. He was Emma's boyfriend. He wasn't some stranger. Right? I followed him, passing by a gaming setup in an office to the right—that must be Emma's—and he led me to a powder room just past the kitchen. "Thanks," I smiled.
He stood just outside the door. When I closed it, I didn't hear him move away. As I sat on the closed toilet lid, my vision gave a concerning little side-tilt, like I was on a carnival ride, and I looked around the powder room with a worried gaze. Burgundy towels monogrammed with cursive Ls hung from the small towel rack, and the bathmats matched the towels. Emma's last name was Vanderbilt, but I didn't know what Dain's was.
Seriously, really bizarre, this house. It almost looked like it belonged to a much older couple. As I sat on the toilet, too nervous to pee and suddenly way too woozy for five sips of beer, a horrifying thought occurred to me.
The gaming setup wasn't Emma's. Hers was pink. I knew because she'd sent me pictures before. Breathing faster now, I picked up my phone and pulled up Ruth's number. No, she was busy. Clearly. Rook had occurred to me first, but we were fighting. I was getting space from him. A knock sounded on the door softly. "Gemma?" Dain asked. "Are you okay? Do you need help?"
Do I need help? I thought with crazed incredulity.
This wasn't safe. Red flag after red flag had been thrown at my feet, but I'd ignored them until I'd found myself trapped in the powder room with a man I wasn't even sure was still dating Emma. And if she had texted me the address, then that meant…
"I'm sure you're wondering where Emma is," Dain said on the other side of the door.
Slowly, quietly, I stood, and trying to make it as surreptitious as possible, I clicked the lock into place. "Yes, I am, Dain," I said. But my words slurred. My vision was going blurry. Shit. Shit. Serious, fucked-up shit.
"I'm sorry," Dain admitted. "She made a new account a while back. But she left it logged-in on my computer after she left."
"Oh my God," I squeezed out, feeling my chest tighten and my lungs work for air. But it was like I was doing it from far away, and the world was receding from my sight. I started to float away from my body.
"We've been friends for months, Gemma," Dain said, his voice pleading. "You like me. We play Thornwind together almost every day."
I fell hard against the wall, my legs going numb. Desperately, I pulled up Rook's number, but I could barely see it, let alone type words. With trembling fingers, I did the only thing I could think to do. I shared my location with him, mashed the keyboard with whatever nonsense my fingers could conjure, and then I hit send.
My hand went numb and dropped the phone. As it clattered to the ground, I heard Dain from the other side of the door, this time louder, like he'd pressed his mouth right up to the crack of the door.
"You already love me, Gemma."
Then my world went dark.