02-16-2019, 12:37 AM
Details about the night’s meeting populated his Wallet just as a knock warned an intruder. Stripped to his shorts, Natalie froze him to surprise. Half of him wanted to yank a blanket over himself while the other half wanted to chuck the shorts toward sea. Instead, he snatched the pile that was his pants from the floor and shimmied quickly into them. He fumbled with the zipper as he turned to regard the banter.
A playful grin illuminated his freshly rested expression, “Would it have done any good?”
If Jay ever suffered from delusions of modesty, the habit was long ago crushed. Communal living did it if the high school locker room didn’t. He walked the hotel hallway after Anna Marie in more skin than presently revealed, but there was something microscopic about doing so in front of Natalie. Like she was looking through the skin and dared to glimpse the man inside. Probably a bad idea to even attempt it. Sounded like a good way to burn those incredible eyes from her skull. But the ceiling fan brushed air across his chest, and a brief flush gripped the base of his brain. A mix of shock and heat, a rush like falling followed. The sense passed with the blink of an eye, but Jay found a palm pressed to his abdomen and a frown pulling his brow low. He shivered and quickly found a t-shirt to shrug overhead. Then he flicked off the damn ceiling fan with a knick of the power.
Wallet slipped into a back pocket. Arms folded over his chest. He attempted to summon as much command as he could muster. “I go alone. You should stay with Cayli. If anything happens, you’re her best shot to get to safety. There’s someone here you can trust, too. His name is Axel Miller and he runs Thrice’s security team. We served together.” Haunts shadowed his gaze briefly. Of jungles and heat; light flashing like punches to the dark. He could smell the humidity still. Humidity thickened with the hanging veil of gun smoke. Smelled good.
“Go to him for help if you need it.”
Friends are the ones to watch the most, a warning invaded. One he almost spoke aloud. Instead, he tucked the doubt into the back of his mind and opened his Wallet to accept the transferred money.
Cayli’s limbs froze in place as soon as she heard the shuffling of feet. A quiet thud and then the visitor retreated. A narrow slit of one eye peeked over the blankets, and she realized it was Natalie, not mom. Her parents must still be asleep.
She rubbed her eyes and greedily gulped the water. So nice. A stretch and she slipped to her feet. Her brother’s hushed voice echoed muted mumbles down the hall. The door ajar, she knew where Natalie must have gone. It wasn’t like Jay was carrying on a conversation with mom and dad. Not anymore.
Just a quick listen.. she tip toed closer.
“I’ll take the car and turn on gps tracking. That way, in case anything happens, you’ll know where I am. Or at least.. where I was.”
Between prepping the car, dinner, and a clean of the guns, it seemed they had time to spare. Jay sat on the edge of the bed, bare toes nestled in the fibers of the rug, a grin haunting his lips. “It’s a while until midnight. I can’t think of anything to pass the time.” Lies. A cat-like grin roamed her profile. He thought of plenty.
Cayli’s heart beat erratic in her chest. Conversations she didn’t understand washed through her fingers, but what was grasped formed enough of a picture for comprehension. And horror. Jay was doing something dangerous and alone.Like always. He was leaving at midnight. Her wild heart sank to her stomach when she realized it had to do with her. All of this was her fault. Her family was in danger because of her. Jay was miserable because of her. At the very least, she should be part of fixing all of this mess.
She set a self-alarm for quarter to midnight and hurried back to her room to see if she had any black clothes in her bag.
A playful grin illuminated his freshly rested expression, “Would it have done any good?”
If Jay ever suffered from delusions of modesty, the habit was long ago crushed. Communal living did it if the high school locker room didn’t. He walked the hotel hallway after Anna Marie in more skin than presently revealed, but there was something microscopic about doing so in front of Natalie. Like she was looking through the skin and dared to glimpse the man inside. Probably a bad idea to even attempt it. Sounded like a good way to burn those incredible eyes from her skull. But the ceiling fan brushed air across his chest, and a brief flush gripped the base of his brain. A mix of shock and heat, a rush like falling followed. The sense passed with the blink of an eye, but Jay found a palm pressed to his abdomen and a frown pulling his brow low. He shivered and quickly found a t-shirt to shrug overhead. Then he flicked off the damn ceiling fan with a knick of the power.
Wallet slipped into a back pocket. Arms folded over his chest. He attempted to summon as much command as he could muster. “I go alone. You should stay with Cayli. If anything happens, you’re her best shot to get to safety. There’s someone here you can trust, too. His name is Axel Miller and he runs Thrice’s security team. We served together.” Haunts shadowed his gaze briefly. Of jungles and heat; light flashing like punches to the dark. He could smell the humidity still. Humidity thickened with the hanging veil of gun smoke. Smelled good.
“Go to him for help if you need it.”
Friends are the ones to watch the most, a warning invaded. One he almost spoke aloud. Instead, he tucked the doubt into the back of his mind and opened his Wallet to accept the transferred money.
Cayli’s limbs froze in place as soon as she heard the shuffling of feet. A quiet thud and then the visitor retreated. A narrow slit of one eye peeked over the blankets, and she realized it was Natalie, not mom. Her parents must still be asleep.
She rubbed her eyes and greedily gulped the water. So nice. A stretch and she slipped to her feet. Her brother’s hushed voice echoed muted mumbles down the hall. The door ajar, she knew where Natalie must have gone. It wasn’t like Jay was carrying on a conversation with mom and dad. Not anymore.
Just a quick listen.. she tip toed closer.
“I’ll take the car and turn on gps tracking. That way, in case anything happens, you’ll know where I am. Or at least.. where I was.”
Between prepping the car, dinner, and a clean of the guns, it seemed they had time to spare. Jay sat on the edge of the bed, bare toes nestled in the fibers of the rug, a grin haunting his lips. “It’s a while until midnight. I can’t think of anything to pass the time.” Lies. A cat-like grin roamed her profile. He thought of plenty.
Cayli’s heart beat erratic in her chest. Conversations she didn’t understand washed through her fingers, but what was grasped formed enough of a picture for comprehension. And horror. Jay was doing something dangerous and alone.Like always. He was leaving at midnight. Her wild heart sank to her stomach when she realized it had to do with her. All of this was her fault. Her family was in danger because of her. Jay was miserable because of her. At the very least, she should be part of fixing all of this mess.
She set a self-alarm for quarter to midnight and hurried back to her room to see if she had any black clothes in her bag.
Only darkness shows you the light.