Chapter 12 – Jensen
Chapter Twelve
Jensen
I carried more plates to the kitchen, where Jude and Daniel were doing the dishes and Lucas was standing to the side, organizing some of the leftovers.
“Thanks for letting Kenzie come tonight,” I said to the room at large. “She needed it.”
“How’s she doing?” Lucas asked, glancing up at me as I stacked more plates near the soapy water.
I glanced out to where Lena had been sitting and chatting with Kenzie last. All night long, I’d been getting used to her by my side. But I felt like she could appreciate a little space, so I decided to help clean up. I didn’t want to hover, but I was surprised that she wasn’t there at my glance.
Where’d she go?
“All right, I guess.” I didn’t want to tell anyone that I suspected some of her cheerfulness was a front. All of this was really starting to weigh on her, which was totally understandable.
I turned to Jude. “Any update on the El Camino front?” He’d been the first person I’d called after Charlie.
“Nothing so far, but I’ll keep digging. That style vehicle is unique, but there’re more of them out there than you’d think. Plus, not all of them are legally registered, so I’m looking through other channels too.”
“Okay, thanks for doing that.”
Jude nodded. “Anything to help, man. You know that. None of us want to see Kenzie suffer.”
I didn’t either. Watching her remember that attack in the parking lot had been painful. She had been struggling to keep it together.
Being here tonight had seemed to help—or at least take Kenzie’s mind off the stalker for a little while. I hadn’t been surprised that she’d fit right in.
Although I had to admit, it scared me a little with how good it had felt to have her at my side. To casually and innocently touch her when we were passing food. How she’d reached out to smack my shoulder lightly when I’d whispered a sarcastic comment during someone’s story.
She was so outgoing and chatty and sweet that I felt like having her as my date made up for my tendency to be somewhat antisocial. The gang here was used to it, but I didn’t have to worry if I was being too quiet with Kenzie around. She was so bright, drawing everyone to her.
I looked out toward the table again. Still not there.
I left the kitchen to find her. I needed to see her. Something in my gut wasn’t sitting right.
I checked the bathroom first, but I didn’t find her. As I passed each of the ladies, I asked them if they’d seen Kenzie. Normally, I’d be a little concerned about the knowing looks they were giving me—obviously, they loved that I was asking about her—but right now, I just wanted to find her.
She wouldn’t have left. Hell, she had no way of leaving. But why wasn’t she in with everyone else?
I stuck my head into the main hallway to see if she was standing out there, but I didn’t see anyone. I was heading back inside when I heard a muffled sob.
“Kenzie?”
She was crouched on the floor in the hallway next to the supply closet. She sat huddled with her back to the wall and her knees tucked up to her chest, chin resting on them. She was staring at her phone.
My worry spiked, and I rushed to her side, dropping down on my knees. “Hey, City. What’s wrong?”
She didn’t even look at me. She pressed a button on her phone then brought it to her ear. After a few seconds, she removed it and hit a button again.
Then she repeated the process.
“My-my mom…”
I didn’t understand what was happening here. “You’re trying to call your mom?”
She still didn’t look up. “I called her. I called Dad. They’re not answering. But then… But then…”
She repeated the process with her phone, obviously trying to get through to one of them.
“Okay, hang on. Let’s not assume anything’s wrong. Maybe they’re just busy. They’re watching television or something and can’t hear their phones. Maybe?—”
“I called my mom first, and she didn’t answer. Which is weird. She always has her phone. Then I called my dad and got no answer.”
“Scary, but there’s probably a perfectly good?—”
Now, she finally looked at me. “When I called my mom back, a man answered. He had some sort of weird electronic voice.”
What the fuck?
Kenzie’s breathing was coming way too rapidly as she talked. “He said, ‘If you care about anybody but yourself, you need to stay away from Colorado.’ ”
Holy shit. I leaped up, grabbing Kenzie’s hand and pulling her along with me, running back toward the main section of the lodge.
“Lucas!” I yelled as we reentered the great room.
I didn’t talk much, so when I spoke, people usually listened. I put enough urgency and volume into that one-word shout that the whole house went silent, and everyone turned our way.
“What?” Lucas ran up as I pulled Kenzie into my side. “What happened?”
Daniel was right behind him.
“The stalker might have Kenzie’s parents. She called her mom, and a strange man answered with a threat about staying out of Colorado.”
The Navy SEALs inside my friends broke free—you could almost see the change come over them as they went into fight mode. It had been years, almost a decade, since most of them had been active duty, but that didn’t matter.
The warriors inside them still lived.
Daniel had Charlie on the phone in a matter of seconds and was filling him in on what had happened. Lucas was asking the other guys who they knew in Denver who could get to Kenzie’s parents’ house as soon as possible.
“Zodiac Tactical has an office in Denver,” Jude responded. “I’m on it. They’ll have someone out there as soon as possible.”
“Meanwhile, I’ll try emergency services in Denver,” Liam said, all traces of his normal merriment gone. “They won’t like that there’s not an overt threat, but I’ll see if I can talk them into sending a unit by the house.”
If anyone could talk them into it, it was Liam. He was definitely the most charming of the group.
Kenzie’s eyes were wide as she watched everyone in movement all around her. The guys peppered her with questions—her parents’ address, exactly what the guy said on the phone, her parents’ phone numbers .
The men weren’t the only ones helping. “I’ll keep calling Kenzie’s dad to try to get through,” Evelyn said.
Lena nodded. “I’ll do the same with her mom.”
Jude put his hand over the mouthpiece of his phone. “Have a second phone ready to record in case the stalker answers again. Any details will be helpful.”
I pulled Kenzie closer to me and kissed the top of her head. “It’s going to be okay.”
She didn’t answer, but at least she wasn’t shaking the way she had been before.
The phone rang in Daniel’s hand, causing her to jump. He put it on speaker so we could all hear. “Charlie.”
“Watters is having an officer drive to the address now.”
“Okay. We’ve also called Zodiac Tactical and emergency services to see if we can get someone there. Better to have more than needed.”
“Agreed,” Charlie responded. “Whoever hears first, update the other.”
“Roger that,” Daniel said.
The tension was thick surrounding us as we lapsed into silence, while my mind raced with questions. Maybe someone had paid a stranger to make the threat? A machine to disguise it? The stalker himself?
Kenzie still leaned against me. She didn’t want to sit down—I couldn’t blame her for that—so I just stood with her and lent her my strength as best I could.
And I prayed I wouldn’t need to lend it while Kenzie got horrible news.
The minutes stretched by intolerably long, but finally, Daniel’s phone pinged on the table with a text. Kenzie’s nails dug into my arm as we waited for Daniel to read it.
“They’re okay!” The room erupted in cheers, and Kenzie all but sank into me. “The officer Watters sent got to them first and found them at home. They’re fine. He’s going to have your mom call on his phone.”
As if on cue, Kenzie’s temporary phone rang. Her hands were so shaky she almost dropped it. I gently took the phone, pressed the accept button, and held it up to her ear.
“Mom?” She grabbed the phone.
I could hear her mother’s panicked voice. “Kenzie? What’s going on? Christ Almighty, I was terrified when this officer showed up. He said to call you right away.”
“I…” Kenzie was still gripping her phone with white knuckles. “Where is your phone, Mom? Dad’s phone? I tried to call you both.”
She glanced at me, almost sheepish, and I nodded. I didn’t blame her for leaving it at that. She probably didn’t want her parents to worry about that threat she’d heard, especially until we had more details.
“Can you believe it? I lost my phone earlier today. I was just doing paperwork, finishing up stuff at the park, and it was gone. Or maybe it fell out of my pocket when I stopped to get gas on the way home.”
But it hadn’t been either of those things. We both knew that. Someone had taken it.
“I called Dad too,” Kenzie said. “His also went straight to voice mail.”
“Dale, where’s your phone, honey?” Kenzie held the phone away from her ear as her mother yelled to her father.
It took a few moments before Kenzie’s mother spoke again. “Oh, sorry, sweetie. He put it back in his office then it ran out of battery. He’s charging it now.”
“Okay, well, you need to get yourself another phone to replace yours,” Kenzie said.
“Well, it might still show up.”
Kenzie glanced at me, obviously searching for a reason to give her mom for getting another phone immediately without giving her the truth. I shrugged. I wasn’t sure what was best in this situation. Obviously, she and her parents were close, but she didn’t want to tell them what had happened.
“I tell you what, just get a temporary phone like the one I’m using so we can be in touch with each other, okay? Then if you find yours, the temporary one could be for emergencies or something.”
Plus, Kenzie was going to need a new one, too, since the stalker now had this number. I would make sure that happened.
“Yeah, that’s a good idea. I’m sorry we worried you, sweetie. But I’m going to go so this officer doesn’t have to stay here any longer.”
“Okay. Call me tomorrow when you have the new number. And tell Dad to keep his phone charged.”
“Will do, sweetie. And don’t you worry about us. You just keep enjoying spending time with your handsome mechanic.”
I smothered my grin as Kenzie’s face turned beet red. I was glad no one else around us could hear what her mother had said.
But I was damn sure glad I could. And that she’d mentioned me to her mother.
“Yeah, Mom. I love you guys. Call me tomorrow.” She pressed the button to disconnect before her mother could respond.
We looked up to find everyone watching.
“Everything good?” Lucas asked.
“Yes, Mom’s phone has been taken—obviously—but she just thought she’d lost it. My father is a little bit of a scatterbrain and let his battery go dead.” She looked over at Lena and Evelyn. “Thank you for trying.”
“We’re just glad they’re okay, hun,” Lena responded.
“I explained the situation to the Zodiac Tactical guys,” Lucas said. “Sarge is going to set stuff up so they can keep an unofficial eye on your parents.”
“Sarge?” Kenzie asked.
“Harrison McEwan—goes by the name Sarge,” Lucas explained. “Works for Zodiac Tactical, a world-renowned private security company.”
“Why would he do that for me? He doesn’t know me at all.”
“But he knows us. He and his now-wife, Bronwyn, hid out here for a while when some shit went down for them. He’s happy to help out.”
“I am very thankful. For you guys, too.” Her tone was completely sincere, but her face said she still didn’t understand why everyone was doing this for her.
“That’s how things work in a small town, City,” I whispered in her ear. “We look out for each other.”
“I talked to Charlie some more,” Daniel said. “They’ll be investigating the theft of your mother’s phone. Without it, there’s not a lot that can be done. The stalker is trying to scare you.”
Kenzie rubbed her forehead. “Well, it’s working.”
“They’ve got protection on them now, Kenzie,” Lucas said softly. “And you’ve got protection here. It’s going to be okay.”
“Would you like to stay here tonight?” Daniel offered. “I’d hate for you to go back to an empty apartment and think about this all night.”
Lena grinned. “We can make a slumber party out of it.” The other ladies added their agreement.
“Thank you, but no. I’ll be okay.” Kenzie smiled sweetly. “I’m just glad my parents are safe.”
After more reassurances from everyone, we headed out. Kenzie was quiet next to me, exhaustion damn near pouring off her. As we pulled into town, I couldn’t seem to stop the words that came out of my mouth.
“Stay with me tonight.”
“What?”
“I know you didn’t want to stay at Resting Warrior. They meant well with their offer, but I’m sure you didn’t want to be around a group of people you don’t know very well.”
Shit. Not that she knew me much better.
She didn’t immediately reply or react. At the next light, I darted a quick glance in her direction. I found her staring right at me with a pensive look on her face.
“I just don’t want you back at your apartment feeling alone and scared. Don’t want to give your stalker that satisfaction, even if they don’t know it.”
She still didn’t respond.
“Forget it. It’s fine. I’m not trying to make things awkward.”
I was about to turn toward her apartment complex when she touched my arm. “Yes, please. I’d like to stay with you.”