Chapter 16 Nova #2
As we rolled down the gravel driveway in Max’s big, black truck, I wondered how much money it cost to keep these security guys working in shifts around the clock.
I doubted Vaughn was hurting for money, but still.
He had never asked for a penny in return.
It was a question that had taken up residence in the back of my mind, along with the excitement of finally going out for the first time in weeks.
I missed the simple pleasure of heading to a restaurant and being around people.
If someone as uptight as Vaughn thought it was safe, it had to be.
He sure as hell never took chances. What had changed?
I figured he would tell me tonight at dinner.
In the meantime, what would I wear? “I might raid my closet for a minute or two,” I announced. “I don’t have anything nice at the house. Just the basic, everyday stuff.”
“Maybe I should’ve brought some packing boxes,” he grumbled. Funny how the thought stirred butterflies in my stomach—moving in for good. The idea was looking better all the time, even if Vaughn hadn’t asked. I could still imagine it now while I felt so cheerful and full of hope.
“Darn it.” I snapped my fingers, smirking. “I wish we had thought about that before now. You can probably carry plenty in your arms, though. They look strong.”
He chuckled while driving the last mile or two.
It was a beautiful day, the air a little cooler than usual.
Refreshing. Or maybe that was the way I saw things because I was so glad to be out and about.
Either way, I was in a good mood, already wondering if I could convince Vaughn to take me to see a show after we ate.
No doubt he could get in anywhere at any time with no warning.
He had connections all over town like Dad did.
He had certainly never hesitated to call on favors if there was something he needed tickets for at the last minute.
That was how the town’s wheels kept turning. Everybody owed everybody something.
“So you kind of work freelance for Grayson, is that right?” I asked, smiling as we passed a group of girls clustered together for a group selfie.
He tipped his head to the side in a quizzical way. “How do you know about that?”
“Oh, I met him recently. He seems like a nice guy,” I offered. Handsome too. Did men like them gravitate toward each other?
“He is,” Max agreed. The brilliant sunshine streaming through the windshield highlighted some of the silver threads running through his dark hair, making me wonder about him.
“What made you get into this line of work?” I asked.
“You’re full of questions today,” he observed, chuckling.
“I figure we spend all this time together that maybe I should ask you about yourself. You already know so much about me,” I pointed out.
With a soft laugh, he admitted, “Maybe I’m not used to the people I take care of asking me anything about myself.
And there isn’t much to tell, really. I mean, you don’t get into a job where you end up spending more time with the people you look after than you do at your own home if you’ve got this great personal life. It takes a particular kind of person.”
“I see.” Did that mean Grayson lived that kind of life? “How long have you known Vaughn?”
“A pretty long time. Since he was a kid. His old man used to have me follow him around. It was supposed to be a secret,” he joked.
“He made it his mission to lose me whenever he spotted me. It was kind of a game. Once he took over the casino, Vaughn approached me to see if I’d work for him.
I ended up meeting Grayson through him, and more work came from that. ”
I was still stuck on the image of Vaughn ducking him. “Did he get into a lot of trouble? Is that why you had to follow him around?”
“He got in his fair share, but he was a good kid,” he assured me, sounding almost fond of him. “Maybe a little quick to throw hands, if you get what I mean. Kind of spoiled.”
Gee, what a surprise. Then again, I had no room to criticize. I had never been denied anything I wanted. At the time, I’d imagined it was because Dad loved me. I wasn’t so sure anymore.
The car pulled to a stop, and I looked at my building.
It was strange coming back here. It hardly felt like home anymore, not that it really had, so soon after moving in.
I felt more comfortable in Vaughn’s house.
How could life change so suddenly? By the time we reached my floor, I was floating on air.
Could I be falling for him? Would it be the worst thing in the world if I were?
“Wait out here.” Max unlocked my front door and eased it open, pulling a gun from his waistband. I hadn’t noticed it back there, under his slightly loose shirt. Now, he held it as he entered the apartment. I hated to think he still felt it necessary.
Where would we go to dinner? I was in the mood for a nice steak and all the trimmings after days of eating the sort of light food normally stocked in Vaughn’s kitchen.
Not that I would complain. Sometimes, a girl needed something hearty, especially after a recent sex-a-thon.
I bit my lip, blushing at the memory. Would we go for Part Two tonight?
Finally, reality leaked back in and woke me up.
Max was taking too long.
Why was he taking so long?
“Max?” I called out.
Silence.
My heart now in my throat, I looked up and down the hall. Afraid to breathe, afraid to move. Should I go? The stairwell wasn’t far from where I waited, only a few steps. Instinct told me to go, but still, I waited, hoping. Praying.
“Max?” I called out again, only now my voice was soft, tremulous. “You okay?” My heart thudded painfully.
Something had to be wrong.
I needed to go.
I knew I did, but I couldn’t move.
Until I heard Max’s voice echoing inside the apartment. “Run!” he barked, strained, like he was hurt or fighting.
A strained cry burst from me as I turned to run like he said, throwing myself toward the stairwell and stopping short when the door swung open, and a familiar man rushed out. A man with a dark, slicked-back ponytail, dressed in black from head to toe.
I opened my mouth, sucked in a breath, prepared to scream.
He was too quick, though, throwing me against the wall to my back, knocking the air from my lungs and leaving me stunned.
With a hand clamped over my mouth, he dragged me into the apartment, coming to a stop in the living room and kicking the door closed behind us.
The living room where Max was now on his knees, bleeding from his head, while Nico stood beside him. The gun in his hand was pointed at Max’s temple, pressed against it. My shriek was lost behind my captor’s hand, my kicks barely landing on his legs.
“What did I tell you?” Nico showed no sign of the struggle that must have taken place—his breathing was slow, and his voice was measured. “I warned you, didn’t I? What happens to smart girls who think they know more than they do? This is your fault.”
Maybe there wasn’t a struggle after all. Max blinked up at me like he was fighting to focus, swaying almost drunkenly on his knees, blood pouring down the side of his face from the wound Nico had given him. Blindsided, probably. Still, he tried valiantly to climb to his feet.
I clawed at the hand over my mouth, barely able to breathe over the top of it. Nico jerked his chin slightly and the hand lowered enough to leave my nose free. That did nothing to calm my panic. What was he going to do?
“Now you watch,” Nico murmured, his voice soft, almost tender. Sickening. “Watch because you did this. This was all you.”
Then he pulled the trigger.
My screams were lost behind the hand over my mouth, screams of horror and sorrow.
My fault.
It was my fault.
Blood splattered the sofa I had taken so long to choose, soaked into the throw rug I had coordinated so perfectly.
Max dropped to the side, falling lifelessly to the floor.
And I screamed. I screamed soundlessly, pointlessly. I screamed for him, me, and everyone I had gotten roped into this mess.
But my screaming stopped when Nico approached, the gun held at his side, wearing a smile that chilled me to the bone. He had blown a man’s brains out and could smile.
“Now. We’re going to take a little drive, and we’re going to get things settled once and for all,” he almost crooned tenderly, raising his hand to stroke the side of my head.
Before raising the other and bringing the butt of his gun down against my skull.