Chapter 29
Chapter Twenty-Nine
B
“Just hear me out! The mask. You can’t tell me that if someone was doing you with a Darth Vader mask on it wouldn’t be kinda hot!”
I’m not sure what I just heard come out of Iris’s mouth as I walk up to their table at the crowded bar, but I’m here for it.
“No, that would definitely be hot.” I throw my arm around her, showing my literal and figurative support for my bestie.
Her red curls smack me in the face when she quickly turns her head to look at me. “B, you’re here! Jeez, what took you so long?”
“Sorry, had a meeting that ran late. We were just trying to get our shit together before we leave for Cali tomorrow.”
The rest of the table, full of our friends, greets me and then continues on with their various conversations.
“I’m gonna go grab a—“
“Already got you one.” Lou slides a glass across the table to me.
There’s still ice in it. “How did you—“
“I was watching your location.”
“Stalker.” I swipe the drink off the table and take a sip. “Shit, that’s good. What is it?”
“No clue. I told the waiter to surprise me with something with vodka in it.”
“Look at you, Lou. Really letting go of those control issues.” We clink our glasses together, with matching pink drinks. Her eyes tell me she’s annoyed by my targeted comment, but her smile says otherwise.
I sit down in an open chair between Bear and Sam and slip off my jacket.
The nice thing about my work is that I get to dress how I want.
So, on nights like this, when I come straight from the office, I’m already dressed for a night out.
Obviously, a little more modest than other nights, but I still look hot enough to draw attention.
And as the night continues, I get exactly that—lots of attention.
Throughout the night, I use my charm and flirt up a storm, trying to distract myself from the memory of Kass. It works for the most part, until around midnight when I check my phone.
"Shit." I stare at the screen, trying to understand why I have a missed call from Clover.
The timestamp on the call was only ten minutes ago.
What the hell is she doing up so late? It’s past midnight.
I open my messages to make sure I didn't accidentally open a text from her and not notice.
Nope. No text. Maybe it was an accidental butt-dial.
While I stand on the side of the dance floor, looking at my phone, perplexed, it starts to ring.
"Hello? Clover?" I quickly try to make my way toward a quieter part of the bar. "Clover, can you hear me?"
"B?" Her voice is quiet, and I can't tell if it's because it's loud in here or if she's trying to whisper.
"What's going on, kiddo?"
"I...I ummm. Never mind."
"Clover? Talk to me. Why'd you call?"
I plug my other ear so I can hear her better and turn my volume up all the way. I hear a sniffle on the other end, and my chest tightens.
"Is everything okay?" I press.
"If you're not busy, could you come pick me up?"
Pick her up?
"I'm going to need a little more detail than that. Are you at home? Where's your dad?"
I instantly regret my question. What if she's staying with someone else? That means that Kass is likely out on a date. Fuck me. I can't handle this right now.
"Clover?"
"I'm not with my dad."
My stomach turns, and a pit of jealousy starts to bubble up. Calm down, B. This is not about Kass right now. This is about Clover.
"Where are you?"
"I'm at my Auntie Jade's house."
"Are you okay? Why do you want to be picked up?"
"Well...I don't really want to say."
"Clover, if I'm going to help you, I need you to talk to me. I'm not just going to come pick you up from Jade's house because you asked me to. Why don't you call your dad?"
"Auntie Jade put me to bed a little while ago, and I woke up because I was thirsty. I just wanted some water." Another sniffle.
Panic starts to set in.
"I heard loud music downstairs, and when I went down to go to the kitchen, I saw a bunch of people I didn’t know."
"Like a party?"
"I think so."
"Are you in your room right now? Has anyone been up there?"
I feel bile rising up from my stomach. I swear to god, if anyone touched her, heads will roll tonight. My hands are shaking with rage, and I try to calm myself with a breath.
"I'm in my room with the door locked."
Oh, thank god.
"I'm scared, B." There's so much fear in her voice that I can practically hear the tears rolling down her cheeks.
"Did you try to call your dad?"
"No."
"Okay...Why not?"
"I don't want him to get mad at Jade. He just let us start hanging out again."
"I get that, but Clover, your safety is the most important. He would want you to call him."
"I..." Sobs echo out of my phone speaker and stab me right in the heart.
"I'm on my way, okay! Don't worry. Send me your location so I know where to go. I'll send you mine so you can see how close I am, okay?"
"Okay."
"Do you want me to stay on the phone with you?"
"Yes, please."
"Okay, but I'm going to mute myself. It's pretty loud where I am. I'll still be able to hear you if you need me, though. Okay?"
"Okay."
"You scream for me if anyone tries to come into your room. You hear me?"
"I hear you."
I mute myself but keep my phone pressed to my ear as I run down the stairs at full speed. I run across the dance floor as fast as the crowd of people will allow, all the way over to the table where my friends are sitting.
"Does anyone have a car here?"
The dumb looks on their faces infuriate me. There's no time to explain.
"Hello? Car? Anyone?"
"I drove here." Bear raises his hand sheepishly.
"Are you good to drive?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"I need a ride." I glare at him, and his eyes get big. He starts to fish the keys out of his pocket when Iris walks around the table to me.
"Hey, what's going on?"
"I'll explain later. Someone needs my help, and I need to get there fast."
Bear steps up behind my friend with a pensive expression.
"Let's go," I urge.
Iris grabs my wrist as I try to leave. "Wait. I'll come with you guys. Let me grab my jacket."
I nod, and she releases me, scurrying off to where she was sitting moments ago.
Returning with her jacket and purse in hand, I'm reminded that I left my purse and jacket on my chair.
Shit. I'm clearly not thinking straight.
Once I locate my bag, the three of us start to weave through the crowd, making the daunting trip from the back of the bar to the front door.
As we walk, I fish my headphones out of my bag and put them in. Once we exit the building, the sounds of bass and people's obnoxious singing fade behind us. I unmute myself to make sure she's still there.
"Clover?"
"Yeah?"
"Just making sure you're still okay. I got your location, and I'm sending mine to you right now."
"Got it."
"I'm fifteen minutes away."
"Hurry."
I had hoped that the ten minutes it took me to get to this point would have given her time to calm down and feel better, knowing someone was on the way. I know now that that was wishful thinking, since I can still hear the fear in her voice.
The memory of Kass telling me about Jade floods my brain. I remember thinking that maybe Jade wasn't as bad as Kass made her out to be. We all make mistakes. I thought maybe he was just holding a lifelong grudge and hurting two people in the process, so I urged him to give her a second chance.
Is this my fault?
I send the location to Bear, and not long after, we're hopping in his car.
The silence of the car is deafening. The only sound is my ears still ringing from the loud music in the bar and my heavy breathing.
I feel a bead of sweat run down my arm, and I can't tell if it's from the stress of this situation or practically running the whole way to the car to keep up with Bear's long strides and sense of urgency.
Iris turns around from the passenger seat to look back at me. "Are you going to tell us what's going on now, or do we have to just live in the dark while driving you to a sketchy part of the city?"
"What?" I didn't even look at the location. I check it again, and sure enough, it's a part of town that I'd never personally live in.
"I heard you say Clover. Is that Kass's daughter, or did you happen to meet someone else with that name that I haven't met?"
I mute myself again, so Clover doesn't overhear us talking about her. "No, it's Kass's kid."
"Why is she… I'm so confused."
I lean forward in my seat, so my head is between the driver's and passenger's seats. "Long story short, she called me and asked me to come pick her up at her aunt's house because she doesn't feel safe."
"The aunt that was her mom's best friend?"
I didn't tell the girls all the details of that story, not wanting anyone to judge Kass for not turning Jade in, but they know the gist of it.
"Yeah, that one."
"Shit. Is she okay?"
"I think so. She's just scared of being in a house full of strangers. I think Jade decided to throw a party once Clover went to bed."
"Uh, okay...I have so many questions."
"You and me both."
The quiet voice in my ear whispers, "B?"
Unmute.
"I'm here."
"Someone's knocking on my door."
I listen closer, trying to hear over the road noise. I can barely make out a man's voice.
"I think he thinks this is the bathroom," she whispers.
Fuck.
"Don't say anything. I'm ten minutes away."
Clover doesn't say anything else, but I know she's still there from her heavy breathing. I put my hand on my chest to ease the pressure building under my sternum.
Iris's hand reaches over the center console and rests on Bear's large forearm. "Babe, can you drive any faster?"
The car accelerates forward, thrusting me back into my seat.
"Make that five minutes," I tell Clover.
Six minutes later, we're pulling up in front of a duplex that's seen better days. Bear throws the car in park, and I practically tumble out of the car as I try to get out as fast as I can.
Bear's door opens slightly. "Do you want me to come in with you?"
"Yeah, I might need you to beat the shit out of someone for me."
He steps out but leans back into the car before closing the door. "You okay staying out here by yourself?"