Chapter 3 #2
Kayla, enveloped in a fur coat, stood laughing with a group.
The popular kids. Heather. Preston Colson, Kayla’s former high school boyfriend.
Dylan McCrae. Nick Farrow, his arm wrapped around his wife, Cameron Wells.
The quiet brunette had spent as much time in the library as Annie, but her striking good looks had prevented her from being labeled a bookworm.
A familiar dread slowed her footsteps. Approaching this group on her own would’ve been bad enough, but with Tate in tow…
she already imagine the not-so-quiet whispers.
Her eyes swept the area, landing on an empty corner near the supply closet.
“I’ll wait over there while you say hi to everyone.
” Annie took Kayla’s laptop bag from Tate’s shoulder.
“Don’t tell them about the attack. It’s better to speak with Kayla privately first.”
Tate hesitated, almost as if he were going to say something, and then gave a short nod. But Annie didn’t miss the flash of regret and worry that crossed his face before he turned away.
She retreated to the corner and watched as Tate was greeted with fist bumps from the guys and hugs from the women.
He’d always been a chameleon. Shifting his personality and attitude to fit the needs of whomever he was with.
It probably made him an excellent law enforcement officer.
Annie had no trouble picturing Tate befriending a criminal to get a confession.
But that same fluidity made him an unreliable friend. Untrustworthy.
Something she’d learned far too late, and would be wise to remember.
Tate extracted Kayla from the group and escorted her to the corner where Annie waited.
Kayla’s expression soured. “Where have you been? I asked for my cell phone and my laptop bag nearly two hours ago.”
Tate stiffened, but before he could speak, Annie beat him to it.
“Someone attacked me while I was getting your things.” She handed over the laptop bag and Kayla’s shattered cell phone.
Kayla blinked in surprise, but then she glanced at her phone and her nostrils flared. “You broke my cell.”
“I’m fine,” Annie answered dryly. “Thanks for your concern.”
“Well, obviously you’re okay. You’re standing here.” She held up the shattered device. “My whole life is on this phone. Surely you know I’m an influencer. My followers are expecting content from me, and my photos weren’t backed up!” Kayla shook her bag. “Is my laptop okay? Did you check it?”
Annie was on the verge of informing Kayla that no, she wasn’t her personal assistant, when Tate intervened. “Kayla, let’s focus on what’s important. Annie was attacked getting your things from your car. Can you think of any reason someone might want to hurt you?”
“Hurt me?” Kayla froze, and then her eyes widened. “You think someone wanted to attack me?”
Her voice was nearly a screech. The emotional swings were giving Annie whiplash. Tate, however, took them in stride. He held up a hand. “I didn’t say that. There’s no need to panic. These are standard questions for this kind of investigation.”
“Oh.” Kayla puckered her plump lips and glanced down at her shattered cell phone.
She still seemed more upset over the broken device than the attack.
“I can’t think of any reason someone would want to hurt me.
” She tossed her blonde hair. “Of course, someone as popular as I am has a few haters, but I don’t let them bother me. ”
“What kind of influencer are you?”
She looked miffed that Tate didn’t already know. “Makeup. Lifestyle. I’ve worked with all the top brands.”
“Do you get threats?”
“Not that I know of, but you’d have to ask my social media manager. I don’t waste my time actually replying to the comments. I have people for that.”
“Right.” Tate tapped open the notes app on his phone. “Do you have the name and number of your social media manager?”
She waved her broken cell and glared at Annie.
“Obviously not.” As quickly as her irritation surfaced, she shoved it aside, giving Tate a flirtatious look.
“If my laptop is still in one piece, I can forward you her email address and her phone number.” Kayla stepped closer to him.
“It’s a real shame you and I lost touch. We shouldn’t let it happen again.”
Tate ignored her comment. “What about in your personal life? An ex-husband? An ex-boyfriend?”
“My ex-husband lives in Switzerland, and we parted years ago. No kids. He has no reason to want to hurt me. As for the men I date, none of them would stoop to something like this. They have too much money to bother.”
He asked a few more questions, but didn’t uncover anything that could shed light on the attacker.
After giving Kayla his business card, Tate reminded her once again to forward her social media manager’s information.
She promised to do so before flouncing back to the group.
Within seconds, Kayla was captivating her audience with news of the attack.
Annie crossed her arms. “What do you think?”
Tate didn’t answer for a long moment. “I’m not sure.
As an influencer, she’s active on social media, and that can attract trouble.
It’s also possible this was just a robbery.
” He faced her. “The attack itself bothers me. The assailant didn’t just threaten you with the knife, he tried to use it on you.
That speaks of desperation or of intent.
” H studied her. “In your opinion, which was it?”
Annie forced her mind back to the attack and ran through it, this time with the dispassionate eye of a seasoned cop. A shudder rippled through her. “He never tried to grab the laptop bag. I dropped it almost immediately. It was between him and me. But he stepped over it to continue attacking me.”
Tate dipped his chin. “So the real question is, was he after you? Or Kayla?” His attention drifted to the darkness beyond the open doors. “And why?”
Annie didn’t believe the assailant was after her.
“Maybe Kayla picked up a stalker. Like you said, she’s active on social media, and that can attract trouble.
” Worry churned inside her. “Come on. I want to speak to my property manager, Dwayne. He may have noticed someone lurking around. If a stalker followed Kayla here, he won’t give up just because the first attack failed. He’ll try again.”
And next time, someone could end up dead.