Chapter 26 – Kenzie
Chapter Twenty-Six
Kenzie
For the second occasion in too short of a time frame, I woke in the back seat of a car. When I’d been hit with the stun gun, all I could do was ride out the jolt of pain. It left me numb and unable to fight back when the tall man approached and jabbed another needle into my arm. I vaguely recalled the woman giving Baldie the order to shut me up. Shut me up. Ha. I hadn’t even opened my mouth long enough to ask what the hell was going on before I was zapped.
I didn’t delay opening my eyes this time. Why bother, when I’d already seen the two thugs and the woman who’d approached? I was in a different car now. It was roomier and had that new-car smell. Only the woman was in the car, driving. The two goons were absent, and I wasn’t sure if that was good or bad news.
I blinked, trying to refocus on being awake again after being forced to sleep. Fuzziness filled my mind, and my mouth felt dry and desperate for water after whatever they’d injected me with twice now. I definitely wasn’t functioning at one hundred percent.
All I could do was rock with the motion of the car in the dark. No lights around, no moon’s reflection anymore, just darkness.
I narrowed my eyes at the back of the woman’s head, still trying to place her exactly from her hair and the slim rectangle view of her face that I could see in the rearview mirror.
She’d been to one of my workshops. But why would I remember her? I met literally hundreds of people who’d attended my workshops.
The woman sighed, an, annoyed sound, and it hit me.
This woman hadn’t been to just one of my workshops; she’d been to at least two . That’s why I remembered her. She’d asked questions—always tagging that sigh to the end of them.
Jennifer?
Janelle?
That was close, but not right. I grimaced, racking my tired brain to dig deep and think hard.
Jada?
Jada. Yes, her name was Jada something.
Her eyes met mine in the rearview mirror. “You’re awake.”
That same damned sigh was attached to the end of her statement.
“I remember you.” My words came out rough and mushy. My mouth wasn’t working right. “You’ve come to a couple of my workshops. Your name is Jada, right?”
“You do remember. I’m a little impressed. I’ve actually been to four of your precious workshops.” Another annoying sigh.
“What the hell is going on, Jada?”
“Now, now. No need for that tone. There’s no reason we can’t be civilized.”
I squirmed, testing to see if my hands were any looser in the bindings. They weren’t. “Civilized? You hire thugs to kidnap me, and you want to talk about being friendly?”
She shook her head. “You’re not usually this snarky.”
I rolled my eyes. “You’ll have to excuse me if being drugged and kidnapped makes me a little testy.”
She shrugged. “Couldn’t be helped. ”
“What is going on?” I hated the anxiety that snuck into my tone. I didn’t want this woman to hear my fear.
But she still picked up on it. “There’s no need to be afraid.”
I narrowed my eyes at her. “Forgive me for not believing you on that claim.”
“I don’t want to hurt you.”
“That would be more convincing if you hadn’t hired thugs to kidnap me and knock me out.”
And Jensen. I had to cling to the hope that he was okay. I wouldn’t be able to function otherwise.
“Seriously, I don’t have any intention of hurting you.” She sighed again. “I just want you out of the way. I need you to be far, far away. Everything I’ve done has been working toward that.”
Holy shit. “You’re my stalker?”
She shrugged. “Let’s just say I’m the one who organized the stalking events. You’re not the only person who’s good at multitasking.”
I shook my head, trying to get rid of the fuzziness. “What?”
“The parts I could do—the notes, the messages, even the animal blood in your house—I did. The other stuff…I hired out.”
“Hired out,” I parroted.
“You know, the physical stuff. Knocking you down in that parking lot a couple months ago. Taking you from the cabin tonight. Tampering with your car. I wasn’t capable of doing those things myself, so I hired it out.”
I didn’t even know what to say.
“And some of the technical stuff. Finding out you were in Garnet Bend and where your boyfriend’s cabin was. I have some basic computer experience, but not for stuff like that, so I paid someone else. Actually, I learned that from you.”
I felt like I was Alice falling down the rabbit hole. “From me?”
“At one of your workshops, you mentioned hiring out menial labor so that you could spend your time focusing on what was important. So that’s what I did.”
Stalking and kidnapping as menial labor. It sounded so reasonable coming from her lips.
Which made this all the more terrifying. I tested the zip ties at my wrists again, wincing as the bindings dug into my raw flesh.
“Why are you doing this? If I did something to offend you, I promise that was never my intention.”
“No, no. If anything, I respect you.” She met my eyes in the rearview mirror. “I admit, after the first one, I came to your workshops more for research about you. But each time, I learned something. You’re such a gifted teacher.”
Great. I’d somehow taught this woman everything she knew about stalking and kidnapping.
“But why are you doing this?”
I watched her face in the mirror as a soft smile came over her lips. “Because I love my man, and I’ll do whatever I have to do to make sure we make it.”
“Your man?” I asked, but I had a sickening feeling I already knew.
“Alan Ard. I know you have to remember him.”
I knew it. I knew Alan had been behind all this somehow.
“I remember his fist crashing into my face and him throwing me into a wall so hard it dislocated my shoulder two years ago. He’s in prison, you know.”
That sigh again. “Of course I know. That’s where I met him when I went to visit my brother. But what happened to you was a misunderstanding. Alan freely admits he lost his temper. But he’s different now. He’s changed.”
What happened to me . She made it sound like I’d tripped on an uneven piece of carpet. Nothing had happened to me. Alan had attacked me, and I had been sure to press charges .
“He’s abusive, petty, and a bully. That’s a bad combination, Jada. You should stay away from him.”
“You don’t know him at all anymore!” Her scream caught me off guard, and I sank back against the seat. “He’s changed. He’s different now. But he talks about you enough that I know he’s not over you. If you would just leave us alone, he and I would be fine!”
I took a breath, trying to regroup. Jada was unstable. I needed to handle this with as much care as possible, no matter how I felt about Alan.
“You’re absolutely right. I see that now. But I promise you, I have no intention of getting back together with Alan ever . You guys make a much better couple than he and I ever did.”
Especially given how they were both psychotic.
She seemed to relax a little. “I know. But you’re still on his mind. So, I need you out of the picture, far away. I need you to never come back to Colorado. That way, he and I can have a fair chance at a normal life. He can build up his reputation as a Realtor again, without you holding him back like you were before.”
“Okay. Consider it done.” I had to grit my teeth between words, but I would tell this woman anything to get out of this in one piece. “I’ll leave Colorado for good. Never see or talk to Alan again so that you two get the happily ever after you deserve.”
Jada glanced at me. “Oh, come on. That’s not possible. You’re too big. You’re too established in the industry. Truly, I respect what you’ve done, but because you’ve been so successful with all of it, there’s no way you can just step back. But soon as you’re out of the picture, Alan can have a chance at the life he deserves. With me.”
I sucked in a breath. “Out of the picture?”
“Oh!” Jada smiled. “Not like that. I don’t want to hurt you. Definitely don’t want to kill you. ”
“It didn’t feel that way when you put a rattlesnake in my tub and locked me in my bathroom.”
Jada shook her head quickly. “Well, first of all, again, outsourced. I didn’t do it myself. But that snake wasn’t actually venomous. I got it from a breeder who removes venom. It’s called venomoid surgery.”
I did not give a flying fuck what the sick surgery was called. I pressed my lips together to keep from stating that.
“A bite would’ve hurt, but it wouldn’t have killed you. I was just trying to scare you. To spook you into running like I told you to. Alan and I can’t move from Colorado because of his parole issues. But I was hoping you’d just leave and start a new career somewhere far away.” Another sigh. “Wishful thinking on my part—I finally figured that out.”
I was trying to wrap my head around her plan since no part of it seemed to be steeped in logic.
She wanted a life with Alan but felt like my presence in Colorado was keeping them from having that. All the crazy stalking stuff hadn’t been because she was obsessed or angry with me; it was because she’d wanted me to leave.
It was why she hadn’t killed me, like Jensen and the Resting Warrior guys had pointed out. Killing me had never been her endgame. If she’d wanted me dead, it would’ve already happened.
So what the hell was she doing now? Driving me out of the country? She had to know it wouldn’t stop me from coming back and pressing charges. Although I’d happily lie to convince her that wasn’t true if it got me out of this.
“Where are you taking me?” I asked as calmly as I could manage. “What do you plan to do with me?”
“Well, I know this is going to seem farfetched…” she said.
Now I let out a sigh. More fucking farfetched than this situation already was? Difficult to believe.
“I outsourced one more time. My brother—the same one who is in prison with Alan, so this kind of brings the entire situation in a nice full circle—has connections with some people who have developed a black-market memory drug.”
I blinked. Once, twice. I’d been wrong. This was definitely more farfetched.
“Memory drug?” I asked, not liking any single syllable of what Jada said.
Once again, I looked out the window, wondering if I could survive a jump. Definitely not at this speed.
“Yes. I’ve thought this through, and it’s the best possible plan. The drug will pretty much wipe your memory—you won’t remember who you are or any part of your life.”
“Jada…”
“But you won’t be hurt, you see? I’ll drive you really far away from Colorado, maybe Florida or something. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you’re safe and okay. Then I’ll inject you. You won’t remember anything about your past, so you’ll just rebuild a new future. You’ll be fine!”
It was obvious she’d spent a lot of time thinking about this and convincing herself that her words were true.
“The effects of the drugs might wear off after a few years, but that won’t matter, because once you’re gone, Alan will move on. With me. And when he realizes how happy he can be without you in his life, then it won’t make a difference if you eventually come back.”
I couldn’t even figure out what to say.
“There is a chance it could permanently affect brain function.” One more sigh. “But I have to try this. For Alan’s sake. He deserves a full life without any hangups about you. He’ll get out next week, and this is the best gift I can give him. He’s worth it.”
“Listen.” I shook my head, frantic to make Jada see reason. “Jada, no. This is not what you want to do. This is not how you want to start your life with him. ”
“Kenzie, I trust my gut. Another thing you taught us in your seminar, remember? Working out what we feel is right in our gut.”
Jesus fucking Christ. She’d taken every single thing I’d said and twisted it to suit her own purposes.
“But you’ll never?—”
The blaring ringtone of a phone cut off my next words. With the sound, the dashboard lit up.
“It’s an unknown number.” She shifted in her seat. “You have to be quiet now, or else I’ll hang up and inject you again so you’re unconscious for the rest of the trip.”
“I’ll be quiet.” The lie slipped easily from my tongue as I thought about what I could yell to get help from whoever was calling. I’d only have a few seconds before she would hang up. Maybe my name? That I’d been kidnapped? Maybe mention Resting Warrior?
She cleared her throat and shot me a stern look before answering. “This is Jada.”
“There’s the voice of the woman I love.”
Alan. Shit. No help to be gained there.
“Alan!” Jada squealed. “Hey, baby. How are you calling me right now?”
“I’m so glad I could reach you, my precious queen,” he crooned in that falsely sweet tone he used to use with me. “I have good news.”
“Yeah? What news, sweetie.” Jada sat up straighter, so giddy and enthusiastic to be able to talk to him. She clearly clung to his every word. “What is it?”
“I got out a little earlier than expected.”
She gasped then squealed again in excitement. “Early? You’re already out now? That’s how you’re calling me!”
“Sure am. I can’t wait to see you.”
She took her hands off the wheel to clap for a second. “Where are you? I thought I was going to pick you up.”
“Well, once I got out, I headed to Denver. I went by Kenzie’s apartment. You know, for closure. But she wasn’t there. Her neighbor told me that Kenzie hadn’t been around for a while. Weird, huh?”
Wait.
He didn’t know I wasn’t in Denver? Jada must not have told him what she was doing. She’d been working on her own.
“Why did you need to see Kenzie?” Some of the giddiness was gone from her voice. “I thought you said you wanted to get over her.”
“For closure, baby, like I said. I just feel like if I could see her one more time, then I could leave her behind me forever. Just one more time. That’s all I need. To settle things.”
Could she not hear the menace fairly dripping from his words? Yeah, he wanted to see me one more time—but not to shake my hand so we could go our separate ways.
He wanted revenge on me for putting him in jail.
“You really feel like you need to see her one more time?”
“Yes, baby. For us. To give us a clean slate to start from. But I’m afraid no one is going to understand that if I’m looking for her, you know? So, maybe you can help me. For us. Would you do that for us?”
That gaslighting son of a bitch.
Jada giggled again. “I can do us one better.”
“Oh yeah? What’s that?” I could tell his voice was a little colder, but Jada didn’t seem to notice.
“I can bring Kenzie to you right now.”
“Oh yeah, my queen.” All coldness was gone from his voice now that Jada was being compliant. “You know where she is? Why don’t you tell me, and I’ll pay Kenzie a little visit and get this over with.”
“I have her in the car with me right now.”
Silence lingered for a long moment. “Right now? ”
“Yep. I talked her into leaving Colorado.” Her eyes met mine in the mirror, and she put a finger up to her lips, signaling me to be quiet. “I was going to help her get set up somewhere else before you got out.”
More silence.
“Alan?”
“I’m just trying to wrap my head around all this. Where are you right now?”
“We’re in Wyoming, coming from Montana. We were headed to Florida.”
His voice turned pouty. “I can’t go to Florida. I can’t leave the state.”
“How about if I stop by my cabin north of Denver? You won’t have to violate your parole by meeting us there. We can’t take a chance on anything that will land you back in jail. If seeing her one last time is what you need, we can do that. Closure, like you said.”
“You’re amazing, Jada. That would be perfect. I love that your cabin is in the middle of nowhere.”
Her sigh was much softer this time. “I love that you found it for me to buy.”
“I’m so glad I met you, my queen,” he praised, laying it on thick. “I live for you, Jada. Only you.”
Jada giggled, smiling shyly.
“And you’re my king, handsome man. I love you so much.”
I wanted to gag at all the gooey mush. Jada was eating it all up, and I knew nothing I could say would make her change her mind about what Alan claimed.
I remembered how it felt so long ago before things went sour between us. Early on in our relationship, Alan was extravagant with his affection for me too, but then it quickly sounded so fake, just like it did now.
Nothing at all like Jensen. The man called me City as his term of affection, for God’s sake. Nothing about him would ever be considered extravagant. But he was so much more real than Alan had ever been. So much more of a man.
Tears stung my eyes. I prayed Jensen was all right. That he’d somehow gotten himself help. I couldn’t stand the thought of anything else.
Promising to see Alan in just a couple of hours, Jada disconnected the call.
“Don’t you worry, Kenzie. It’s all going to work out. You’re so smart and talented that even after the memory-loss drug, you’ll still land on your feet, I’m sure of it. Let’s get Alan his closure, and we’ll all move on with our lives.”
I tuned the other woman out. I wasn’t going to be able to talk any sense into her. She was determined to bring me to the man who’d attacked me so brutally, then take me somewhere and wipe my whole life away.
All in the name of love.