Chapter 39
Chapter Thirty-Nine
J
My Jinx phone rings and rings. It’s Kelly calling. She hasn’t stopped since the day Shawn’s lawyer told her about the divorce.
The phone goes silent.
Then it starts screaming again.
I haven’t picked up, obviously.
Kelly doesn’t know that I’m the one who sent a Jinx-text to her husband, and I’m not going to make her any wiser.
However, I do feel kind of bad that I made a very painful situation worse. By the way she keeps calling, Kelly’s beyond upset.
But she’s targeting the wrong person.
I’m not the one in the wrong here. Shawn is. She’s fighting so hard to save her marriage like she believes a “good woman” would do. Why can’t she see that she deserves better?
I’ve considered digging up Shawn’s deleted search history, so she sees his flirtatious messages to half-naked social media models. But each time I consider it, I realize that Kelly won’t budge. Especially not if Jinx is the one who gives her the information.
It’s so frustrating.
“Not everyone is like you, pumpkin,” Gran used to say. “Some miracles take a little time.”
Well, I have nothing but time. And I’ve decided that I’m going to get Kelly to see her self-worth, no matter what.
I look up Kelly’s maiden name and find her family’s home address.
Sure, I made a promise that I’d never poke into Kelly’s privacy, but technically, her parents are a separate matter.
Based on my research, Catherine and Lucas Miller both died in an accident, but Kelly’s aunt lives about three hours away.
I grab my purse and order an Uber.
Three hours later, my Uber slows down in front of a mansion with a beautiful front porch and Victorian-style pillars. The lawn is meticulously trimmed with rose bushes blooming fragrantly. Sunlight bounces over the little garden gnomes that guard vegetables and fruits.
I knock on the door.
It opens slightly and one eyeball pokes out. “Can I help you?”
“Hi, I’m J. I’m a friend of Kelly’s.”
The one eye that I can see widens.
“She told me to meet her here?” I smile as innocently as I can.
“Kelly told you that?”
Okay. That was a long shot. I’m better at hacking into a surveillance system than inventing a cover story.
“Yeah, she told me her aunt loves…” My eyes stray to the garden. “…miniature roses, and I just so happen to be a florist. I wanted to talk to you about some new rose varieties I’ve been, uh, breeding.”
Do people breed flowers? I don’t even know.
The eyeball narrows.
I laugh nervously. “Did Kelly forget to mention me? This is so embarrassing.”
“Yeah, right.” She starts closing the door.
I jam my foot in before she can close it all the way.
She’s surprisingly strong for an old lady, and she pushes back, pinching my toes. “Get off my lawn before I call the police!”
“Ma’am, I swear I’m a friend of Kelly’s. She’s going through a tough time right now. I just want to understand her a bit more to see how I can help.”
“You can’t help Kelly. You scammer!”
“Scammer?” We don’t know each other, sure, but there’s no need to call me a scammer.
“Look.” I grunt to keep the door open. “I’ll trade a secret for your time. The thing is Kelly’s going through a divorce—”
“Kelly’s dead!”
My jaw drops. “W-what?”
How can Kelly be dead? I literally saw her a few days ago?
Suddenly, the door flies open, and a tall woman with brown hair, blue eyes, and big boobs swoops into view. She holds the door wider, her chest heaving and an apologetic grin on her face.
“Miss Merna, what did I tell you about opening the door while I’m hanging out the clothes?” The woman looks at me and smiles. “Hi, who are you?”
I blink unsteadily. Should I admit to being Kelly’s friend or not?
“She’s here for Kelly.” Merna makes the decision for me.
Now that the door is wide open, I can see her more clearly. She has deep wrinkles, beady blue eyes, and lips that look slightly asymmetrical. Thanks to my years at the hospital, I recognize the symptoms of a stroke.
Given the way she’s not moving her left arm, she probably had a right-side brain stroke, and now the left side of her body is paralyzed.
“Oh!” The younger woman’s eyelashes flutter. “Hi, I’m Abigail. I’m Miss Merna’s live-in nurse. I hope she didn’t say anything to upset you. She suffers from dementia and isn’t that nice to strangers.”
“She’s a scam artist!” Merna points a gnarled finger at me. “She’s a thief!”
“Don’t be rude to the nice young lady, Ms. Merna. We talked about this. What’s your name, dear?”
“Uh… my friends call me J.”
“Would you like to come in?”
“Liar!” Merna thrashes her head, and her grey hair bounces around her bony shoulders. “She’s a liar!”
“Merna, calm down.” Abigail hugs Merna’s frail body and then frowns worriedly at me. “I’m sorry, J. I don’t think now is a good time. I need to settle her down.”
“I’m sorry to bother you.”
“Scammer! Don’t let that scammer into my house!” Merna’s crazed eyes fix on me, and fear shoots through my veins. She looks like a zombie come to life.
“I’m so sorry,” Abigail says, holding her back. “Next time, you should come here with Kelly, and hopefully she’ll be more calm.”
I mutter my apologies and dart out of the house.
A moment later, the door slams shut, and Merna’s agitated shouts turn to creepy silence.
Well… that was something.
Kelly’s aunt has dementia and doesn’t remember her. Maybe that’s why she feels so attached to Shawn? Her parents are dead, and she doesn’t have any siblings. Her only family is an ailing aunt off her rocker.
I turn back to look at the mansion.
Something feels off about this, but I can’t put my finger on what.
By the time I return to the hospital, the sun is setting. The emergency room is busy as always, and I wave to several of the nurses who notice me walking by.
Bailey is noticeably absent.
Thank God.
I don’t like being around her anymore. The way she looks at me expectantly, like she’s waiting for an order or something… it just gives me the creeps.
Back in my room, I pull the curtains, change out of my outside clothes to my regular hospital gown—it’s surprisingly comfortable—and sit behind my computer.
The whole Kelly situation will take a bit more thought, and I have more pressing matters.
Like Finn.
I still haven’t figured out what Ren and his buddy are doing hovering around him. Should I let Finn know they could be dangerous?
Mindlessly, I reach into my snack drawer and realize I’m out of my favorite candy. Irritation spreads through me all over again, and I kick the drawer.
“Disgusting.” I kick it once more for good measure and then scoot out of my chair. Finn might have switched all my candy, but guess what? The hospital has a vending machine. I’m going to buy it all back tonight.
I stalk to the elevator, smack the button, and fold my arms over my chest. My warped reflection flashes from the metal’s surface.
Stupid Finn.
My strategy was to be nice to him until I got what I wanted, but I don’t have it in me to act like a lovesick idiot. It doesn’t even work on him anyway.
The doors open with a ding!
I nod at the nurse and the three patients who shuffle back to give me room as I walk in.
Soft jazz music pours from the speakers.
When I was hanging with the cancer patients, we all decided to sign a petition to have that music changed to something less boring, but alas…
none of the administrators approved our hip hop soundtrack.
The elevator stops.
The nurse and two of the patients leave. Three guys wearing over-sized T-shirts and baggy pants swagger in. The elevator gets a little crowded, so I press into the corner to make room.
“What floor?” one of the guys says.
“I don’t know, man. My find-your-phone just said it was here in the hospital.”
Those words capture my attention instantly.
“So your plan is to walk up and down every floor?”
“Damn, just get another phone instead of chasing this one down.”
“I just bought that phone,” the first one says. “And if it wasn’t for that Asian guy, I’d still have it.”
That Asian guy?
I look up and immediately start panicking when I recognize Ace from the Grave City Crew.
My watch beeps.
The elevator stops again.
The patient waddles out.
The doors close.
It’s just me and the Grave City Crew now.
My breaths turn shallow and spread fog on the wall that I’m standing in front of. Ace is here in the hospital. How? Why? I’m sure I turned the phone’s location off, and the device was only powered on for a short time while I was ripping its data for Henry to sort.
Oh crap. Henry.
I left the wi-fi on so Henry could unlock the secure folders. And while I definitely turned off the location, if the owner tried to ping his device with the find-my-phone feature, it would have connected to the hospital’s internet.
Dread pools in my stomach.
I need to get out of here.
The elevator stops on another floor, and the door spreads open, inviting me to the safety of the hallway where I’ll be able to blend into the crowd of doctors, nurses, and patients.
Just a few steps to freedom.
I shuffle forward, but I’m too slow.
The doors start closing.
I hesitate.
I’m all the way at the back of the elevator. Creeping forward now at my snail-like pace will only draw attention to me. And then not only will I be trapped in the elevator with them, but they’ll know I’m here.
I watch in horror as the elevator locks me in with the thugs from the Grave City Crew for a second time.
My watch is beeping steadily.
Get out, each chirp screams. Get out.
My pulse jackhammers in my throat. On the bright side, I don’t have the most memorable face, and I definitely am not much to look at in the shapeless hospital gown. They have no reason to turn around, but even if they do, their eyes will just skip right over me.
It’s fine. Everything’s fine.
In fact, it’s safer to ride the elevator until they get off first. I’ll remain invisible back here until they leave.
“Have you tried calling it?” The thugs are discussing amongst themselves.
“Do you think I’m an idiot? Of course I did. Whoever stole the damn thing turned it off.” The owner of the phone curls his fingers into fists and says in a low voice, “When I find that bastard, I’ll wring his neck.”
His friends laugh and egg him on.
My heart lodges in my throat.
So much for talking myself into a calmer state. My pulse is thrumming even faster now.
“What the hell is that beeping noise?” one of the crew says.
I gasp and slap my hand over my watch.
But it’s too late.
The three large men turn to look at me.
“Is that your watch?” one of them asks.
I lower my head.
“You got an alarm or something?”
Why are they being so friendly? Why don’t they just ignore me? I hold my breath and reach into my purse where I keep the knife that Finn gave me.
The elevator door opens while I hold my breath.
“Hey, Ace,” one of the thugs calls. “Let’s check this floor. Maybe there’s a lost and found or something.”
Footsteps thud.
A shadow falls over me.
“You look familiar,” someone says.
My watch continues beeping.
“What do you mean?” Another guy chuckles. “You know her?”
Gathering my courage, I lift my head and see Ace looking me up and down. His eyes are dark and assessing.
“Yo, stop messing around. We got things to do. Let’s go.” His friend grabs his shoulder.
Yes. Go. Please!
Ace shrugs his friend off. “I remember hearing something beeping when I was at that school.”
“Which one? Redwood?”
“Yeah.”
“You’re saying this chick goes to Redwood?”
Ace steps closer to me, crowding my space. “I think she was with that Asian guy.”
I tremble and grab the knife tighter while trying to make myself as small as possible. The elevator doors are wide open, but no one is getting on, and Ace is not getting off.
“She doesn’t look like a Redwood chick. Aren’t they supposed to be rich and hot?”
My heart thuds painfully.
Ace grabs my chin and wrenches my head up.
I grunt and wield the knife at him. He laughs and smacks it out of my hands.
My only weapon clatters to the ground.
Ace’s grip on my chin tightens. His eyes are hard as marbles, and my watch screams bloody murder.
“Yeah, it sounded just like this.” His smile reveals uneven, yellow teeth. “You’re the blonde who threatened to call the police.”
Behind him, the elevator doors are closing fast.
It’s my only escape, but Ace has me pinned to the wall. I’m a fly in a spider’s web, stuck with no way out. Even worse, my chest is tightening painfully the more I see my window of escape closing.
Ace presses forward. His putrid breath washes over me as he leans down and whispers, “Where’s your boyfriend now?”
Black spots dance in front of my eyes.
I clutch my chest, struggling for air.
“Answer me!” Ace slams his hand into the wall by my head.
I flinch and bend over as the pain from my racing heart stabs through each and every one of my ribs. My mouth opens, but no sound comes out.
His friends look on, amused smiles on their faces.
Is this how I die? In the elevator of the hospital? Surrounded by thugs?
I watch with waning hope as the elevator door becomes a sliver.
It’s over.
Suddenly, a hand slides into the middle of the tiny line of space left and stops the elevator from closing.
The world is a spinning top around me, and my chest feels like someone is prying at my ribs, but I force myself to remain upright.
I need to stay conscious long enough to beg for help from whoever entered.
A walking shadow storms into the small space.
Cold brown eyes pierce into mine.
Finn.