Chapter 29
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Luna
Two days in L.A. were fun but I’m glad to be back home.
I have a bunch of regular work to catch up on, and Rage wants me to do some digging on this Bronco guy that he’s going to fight.
He and Grim have gone to meet with Metal and Silver to talk about what’s going on with the girls, so he drops me off and I head up to my apartment absently.
I’m going to put in a load of laundry and then get in the shower. I’m still dealing with the period from hell but it’s not as bad as it was last week. At least now I’m not in constant pain. It will probably amp up again before it ends, but I can’t worry about that.
I’ve been dealing with this since I was a teenager, so it’s just part of my life. I was starting to miss sharing physical intimacy with Rage, but he took care of that in the shower last night.
I smile just thinking about it.
Then I see it.
Another package.
God fucking dammit.
Why can’t Roger give up already? I’ve got a new boyfriend and moved on.
There’s nothing he can do to change my mind so what’s the point of this?
Not to mention the cost of mailing me a bunch of random shit.
Annoyed now, I toss the box on the counter and go into my bedroom to start gathering everything I want to wash.
There’s a tiny part of me that’s still worried.
What if it isn’t Roger? Should I call him and ask him what the hell is wrong with him or would that just open another can of worms?
Taking out my phone, I pull up the security app and watch the feed from while we were gone.
There’s nothing.
Everything is perfectly normal.
Mrs. C came by to knock once but then walked away—I’ll have to call her tomorrow—and there’s normal activity in the hallway during the day. But no one else came to my door, other than our normal mailman.
I can be super hormonal and emotional when I’m having a period. I can manage it at work for the most part, but the rest of the time I can be a mess.
I throw the clothes into the washer and then go back to my room to change the sheets.
I spend a lot of time doing that these days.
Obviously, Rage and I spend a lot of time in bed, so I have to keep up with it.
There’s been a lot less since I got my period, but I need something to do other than overthink everything.
I can’t shake this tiny, nagging feeling in the back of my mind that something is going on. I have no proof. There’s nothing shady on the security footage.
I don’t know why I feel this way.
Walking into the kitchen, I pour myself a glass of wine and then stand there for a while. I sip the wine and try to convince myself that this is just Roger being a jerk. Not someone from the past coming after me.
I wish Rage was here.
But do I want him to see me like this?
Not really.
Instead of spinning out of control, I opt to postpone my shower and sit down at the computer instead.
That’s usually my happy place and Rage wanted me to do a background check on this Bronco guy, whose real name is Benjamin Guerin.
He’s forty years old, twice divorced, with a fifteen-year-old daughter from his first marriage.
He was arrested once for a domestic dispute, but the charges were dropped.
He’s got not one but two bankruptcies. The first after his first divorce and the second after his second. That makes sense, I guess.
I delve a little deeper, but everything else paints a picture of a guy who’s struggling.
He can’t seem to hold down a regular job or stay in a healthy relationship.
It seems his only claim to fame was fighting, but now he’s just a guy that doesn’t have much going for him. On paper, I almost feel sorry for him.
Since he’s not that interesting, I decide to be a nosy woman and dig into both Candy’s and Garth’s lives.
And there’s quite a bit more to dig into.
Both of them have also filed bankruptcy, she’s been arrested multiple times though nothing seems to stick, and she’s been married and divorced.
She’s only twenty-four but her past is a bit checkered.
She dropped out of high school at seventeen and moved to L.A.
to model. Got married at nineteen—to a man twenty-five years her senior—and divorced at twenty-one.
Garth was successful a decade ago but he seemed to have lost everything when his wife got sick. I can’t tell if they had health insurance or not, the common denominator here seems to be financial issues.
Despite a successful modeling career, Candy’s broke. There’s less than five hundred dollars in her checking account and if she has any kind of savings, I can’t find it.
I’m still digging into Garth when I get a text from Allora.
ALLORA: Are you still awake?
LUNA: I am! What’s up?
My phone rings, and I answer with a chuckle. “That was fast.”
“I have news and I needed to tell someone.”
“Oh, do tell.”
“So, I don’t know if you know this, but I was an extra on Dusty Peaks a million years ago.”
“I think you mentioned it.”
“Well, when they green lit the reboot, and I found out Lacy was going to revive her character, I kept joking with her that I want to be an extra again. She’s been dating one of the directors and said she would make it happen.
Well, she just called me and they want me to read for a tiny but recurring role! ”
“Oh, my God!” I squeal. “Yay! I’m so happy for you.”
“Well, I didn’t get it yet, but Lacy said not to worry. She thinks I’m a shoo-in. Though that’s not usually a thing in Hollywood.”
“What does that mean?” I ask suddenly. “Are you moving to Atlanta?”
“No, no, nothing like that. I’ll fly back and forth when they need me. It’s the barista at the local coffee shop so there will be a lot of repetitive lines like, ‘good morning, Joe, your usual?’ And they’ll probably film a few at a time so they can use them as needed.”
“That’s really cool,” I say with genuine excitement. “What does Grim say?”
“He’s happy, of course, though I think it makes him a little nervous. Me being in the spotlight, so to speak.”
“Why nervous?”
“You know how these guys are—overprotective and bossy. And with me being kidnapped and all that, he’s probably more protective than normal.”
“Yeah, overprotective and bossy is kind of hot, if I do say so myself.”
“I knew you’d understand.” She laughs. “I figured Grim and Rage are cut from the same cloth.”
I pause. “If I tell you something, can you keep it between us? It really has nothing to do with the guys.”
“Of course. Girlfriend talk is sacred.”
“I’m worried that I’m having some…mental health issues.”
“What does that mean?”
Slowly, I spell it all out.
The knocks on the door.
The packages.
My bank account and credit cards being hacked.
The lack of concrete evidence that anything beyond bad luck is going on.
“Do you think this constant worry is related to the PMOS?”
“It could be. It doesn’t cause mental health issues, but women with the disease are three to eight times more likely to develop anxiety and depression.
Hormone imbalances can impact mood and brain function.
In addition, insulin resistance, which I definitely have, can lead to metabolic issues and inflammation, which are known to play a role in mental health as well. ”
“Why is this a secret?” she asks carefully. “Wouldn’t you want to talk with Elliott about this? Isn’t that what being in a relationship is?”
“I feel…foolish,” I admit. “When I talked to him about it before, he was kind, and he basically said that he would have a chat with Roger if I needed him to, but it made me feel like I can’t handle my own life.
My own issues. Like, I have a boyfriend now, so I’m nothing but a helpless little woman. ”
“Ugh.” Allora makes a frustrated sound.
“I’m going to talk to my doctor about it, but in the meantime, I feel like I’m going crazy, you know?”
“Is Elliott coming over later?”
“Yeah. After they meet with your dad and Metal.”
“You know, it’s not the worst thing in the world to lean on the man in your life.
I mean, you don’t have to tell him you’re freaking out, but it’s okay to say, ‘hey, I don’t feel like myself right now—please be patient with me.
’ Landon and I went through a lot of that in the aftermath of my kidnapping. ”
“Yeah, but you had a solid reason. I’m just a fucked-up mess.”
“You have a disease,” she says softly. “It’s not the same.”
“I know. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have rained on your parade.”
“Oh, no biggie. I may not get the part, so it might be moot anyway.”
“When do you try out or whatever?”
“Landon and I are flying to Atlanta next week. He’ll do the security thing, and I’ll read for the part.”
“You’d better call me the second you know!”
“Believe me, I’ll be shouting it from the rooftops.”
I laugh. “I’ll bet.”
“And Luna—for real. Lean on Elliott. If having him sleep over makes you feel safe, then ask him to sleep over. If you feel better when you’re together, ask him for that attention. This should be the honeymoon period of your relationship. It’s okay to ask for what you need.”
“I’m not good at that,” I whisper. “Especially not with guys. I’m too used to them saying no.”
“Elliott isn’t going to say no. Not a chance in hell.”
The good news is that I think she’s right.
The bad news is that I might be too afraid to find out.