Chapter 29 Kira
KIRA
Ipick up Gem from school the next day. I’m tired from being out half the night with Stellan, which is funny, since I used to work overnight all the time and survived.
Now that I’m getting normal amounts of sleep, I can see how much of a zombie I was for so long.
I don’t know how I managed to get through the day.
“Whose car is this?” Gem asks, climbing into the passenger seat. “It’s kind of fancy.”
“Stellan gave it to me. He says it’s worth more than a house.”
Gem’s eyebrows raise. “A nice house?”
“Knowing him, probably.” The engine hums as I drive back into the city. “I was thinking we could go get some dinner at the diner and say hello to Pam and Harry. How’s that sound?”
“Works for me. Do you miss them? I honestly can’t believe you’re not picking up shifts anymore.”
I frown a little as some guilt nags at the back of my head. “You think I should get back to work? I mean, it’s probably a good idea—”
She cuts me off right away. “That is not what I meant. I just meant you were working so hard for so long, but this is better. I’m really happy you don’t have to do it anymore.”
“Even if I’m married to Stellan?”
She doesn’t answer and I don’t push her.
We reach the diner and I park in a lucky spot out front.
Pam’s on shift and she makes a big deal about seeing us.
We sit in the same booth Stellan sat in when I first met him.
Pam brings coffee on the house and Harry stops over to say a quick hello before quickly lumbering back to the grill to finish cooking some orders.
“Place isn’t the same without you,” Pam says with a tired sigh. “They’re looking to hire a new girl, but you know how that goes.” She makes a face, nose wrinkled.
“Whoever they get, she’ll be great. You’ll make sure of it, just like you did with me.”
“Please, you basically taught yourself.” Pam walks off when more customers enter and leaves us alone.
Gem’s looking over toward the windows. Her expression’s far off and I let her think for a bit.
It’s nice being back in the diner. The smell of eggs and coffee never really left me.
This place was like a second home, even if it was the kind of home I resented.
Now that I don’t have to be here, I can be a little bit more forgiving of this place’s flaws.
“He’s not all that bad,” Gem says suddenly. I’m halfway done with my coffee and it takes a second before I realize she’s picking up our conversation from the car.
“You think so?” I ask casually.
“He’s devoted to you. That’s pretty obvious. I don’t really know what sort of agreement you two made, but it’s more than that to him.”
I wiggle uncomfortably. “I don’t know about that.”
“You’re blind.” She waves a hand at me. “That man’s crazy about you, but he’s dangerous. You know I’m not an idiot, right?”
“I know.”
“But he treats you well. Dotes on you even. And you look happier and healthier now than you have in a while.”
“Come on, I wasn’t that bad when I was working.”
“You were.” She hugs herself, biting her lip. “I knew it too. I just didn’t know what else to do. I should’ve gotten a job and lied to you about it or something. But I was selfish and you were so insistent. Maybe I could’ve done more.”
“Stop it. You did exactly what you were supposed to do. You focused on school. Now it’ll pay off. I have zero regrets.”
“Then don’t start regretting Stellan.” She says this with a surprising amount of conviction. “That man adores you. He’s the best thing that ever happened to you.”
I laugh at that. “Come on, you’re being dramatic now.”
“No, I mean it. You love him too, don’t you?”
“Love him? I don’t know. It’s complicated. Relationships aren’t always about love like in the movies.”
“Don’t lie to me. You love him.”
“Gem—”
“Tell me the truth.”
I stare at my sister, ringing all over like I’m a bell in a windstorm. How does she see it so clearly when it’s all a muddled mess in my head? But every time she says it, you love him, some physical part of me reacts like my body knows something my head wants to deny.
“Maybe. I don’t know. We’re going in that direction.” I reach out and grab her hand before she can demand more. “It really is complicated, but please, if I ever know for sure, you’ll be the first person I tell.”
She hesitates, clearly unsure if she’s buying it, but finally grins back. “Actually, I should be the second. You should probably tell him first.”
“Good point.”
We laugh together, which is a big relief.
Pam brings over dinner, two big messy omelets we didn’t even order, compliments of the chef.
Harry waves again from his little window, and even though I wasn’t in the mood for eggs, it’s absolutely delicious.
As I eat, I start to think it’s not so bad, being honest with myself.
It’s not so bad being happy. Gem wouldn’t mind at all, and maybe my life wouldn’t fall apart if I stopped and focused on myself for a change.
Even though that’s hard to fathom.
“I should probably warn you,” I say once we’ve finished eating. I leave a fat tip even though Pam won’t let us pay for our meal. “Stellan and I are going down to Florida for a few days to talk to Mom.”
Gem’s eyebrows shoot up. “Seriously? I thought we agreed she was dead to us?”
“I know, but it’s about business.”
“Great, that changes everything.”
“If I could avoid it, I swear I would. You know I hate her as much as you do.”
Gem pauses in the vestibule between the diner and the outside. “That’s the shitty thing. I don’t hate her. I just wish she were someone else.”
That breaks my heart. I put my arm around my sister’s shoulders and steer her into the evening.
“I’ll be back soon, I promise, and I’ll bring you a souvenir.”
“Mom’s head shoved in a duffel?”
“Doubt I can get it through security.”
“You think Stellan flies commercial?”
She’s got a point there. I’m about to make a joke when a car comes to a screeching halt in the street.
It’s a big black truck. The back windows start to roll down, and I don’t know why I do it.
I don’t know how I even realize what’s about to happen.
But I see the gun barrels and I grab Gem, pulling her against me, and I dive to the sidewalk, rolling toward the curb, and end up pinned against the side of Stellan’s expensive car.
Automatic gunfire explodes around us. Windows splinter. Bullets thunk into metal paneling like hammers. It’s so loud and there’s so much chaos. Nearby pedestrians are running, and someone’s screaming, and I don’t even realize that’s me until there’s another slam and the guns stop shooting.
My ears are ringing. I wait, hugging Gem tight, until it’s clear the attack is over. When I pull away, Gem’s sobbing but unhurt, and I look up over the car’s hood.
Prime’s in the street. He’s in a silver BMW, the front all smashed up. The black truck is speeding off, its bumper dragging on the ground and shooting up sparks. Prime leaps out of his car and runs to me, saying something, but I can’t hear him.
“What!?” I yell back, gesturing at my ears. “What did you say!?”
He leans in, cupping his hands. “GET IN THAT CAR AND DRIVE HOME. I’LL COVER YOU. GET GOING!”
I nod as he runs off, leaps back into his car, and speeds after the truck.
It’s a miracle I can move. Gem seems frozen.
I guide her into the car, only belatedly realizing that the windows are all bulletproof and the side must be too, because the interior is totally fine.
The engine starts right up, and I pull out smoothly, hands shaking, nauseous and buzzing with adrenaline.
Stellan’s waiting for us back home. He sprints into the street and doesn’t give me time to park the car. He practically drags me out, pulling me into his arms and hugging me tight. “Prime told me what happened. I have a dozen men swarming the area. I’m going to find them.”
I shove myself tightly against Stellan, craving his comfort, but I don’t let myself linger. I bring Gem inside and take her into her bedroom.
“Why did people try to kill us?” she asks, pale and shaking like a leaf. She’s never looked so much like a high school girl before, not for a while anyway. “What happened? Why aren’t we calling the police?”
“It’s probably time I told you everything about your brother-in-law.” I glance at the door to Gem’s room. Stellan’s waiting there. He gives me the slightest nod of approval. “How much do you know about the mafia?”