by Lucy Smoke
We climbed into the front seat of the SUV, and I watched as the man broke into a jog, heading towards a nondescript sedan a few rows over. He got to the car and I noticed a jagged looking crack across the windshield.
He hadn’t even been on the correct row? What the hell? I thought.
I turned completely in my seat even as I buckled in and kept my eyes on him as Texas cranked the engine and backed out. The man disappeared as we moved through the rows of cars and then turned onto the main road.
“What’s wrong?” Texas asked.
I shook my head and returned my gaze to the front. It’d probably been nothing. A few minutes later, however, I noticed that same small sedan with the cracked windshield change lanes behind us in the rearview mirror. I blinked, sure I was seeing things when I turned and glanced back over my shoulder again. It was the same car. It sped up and then slowed down as Texas drove, maneuvering around slower drivers, keeping pace with us. Not too close but not too far either. It remained a few cars back but always in our lane. I didn’t like it. Not one bit.
"Texas..." I said slowly, rotating back in my seat as my eyes glued themselves to the side rearview mirror, keeping track of the sedan.
"Hmmm?" Texas turned his head to me and noted my preoccupation. "What is it?"
"I think someone's following us," I said. “Are you sure you got all of the PIs?”
Texas looked up at the rearview mirror hanging above the dashboard. "In a car or SUV?” he asked.
“Car,” I said. “A sedan, I think.”
“What color?"
"Dark Gray. It’s got a crack in the windshield. A few cars back."
"I see it." Texas paused for a moment, his fingers hovering over the blinker before he shook his head and glanced back then jerked the wheel over into the next lane. I knew he had looked back to be sure, but it still left me gasping as my hand reached for the handle above my passenger side window.
“Careful!” I said a little sharply as I clutched the handle.
Texas didn’t reply as his eyes flicked back and forth between the rearview mirror and the road. The back end of the SUV fishtailed a bit as he pulled over again and yanked the wheel as we turned onto a two lane street and then sped up. The sedan followed.
I worried my bottom lip as I watched the other car. "Should I call someone?"
Texas shook his head, frowning as he slowed to a stop sign and then quickly slid into a nearby parking lot, pressing the accelerator as he circled the building. "Can you see what the driver looks like?" he asked.
"No," I said. The windows were too dark, tinted so that I could only see an outline. There was a slight discoloration around the crack in the windshield, but not enough for me to truly see more. "But before we left, I thought I saw a man following us into the parking lot. He was tall, Caucasian, dark hair. He’s the one that got in the car.”
Texas nodded. "Okay, I'm going to head towards Alex's Diner. That’s a good neutral ground.”
“She probably already knows where we live,” I pointed out.
He shrugged. “Whether she does or not, I don’t want to lead whoever this guy is there.”
"It’s probably someone new she’s hired, right?” I glanced away from the rearview mirror and looked back to him. “I wish she’d just leave us alone.”
Texas' eyebrows drew down low over his eyes as he concentrated on driving, hitting the road again and sliding around another building just as the sedan disappeared around the previous building we had circled. "Probably." He leaned forward, punching a few buttons on the SUV's radio panel and then the ringing of a cell phone started up, echoing out of the speakers.
"Did you find a dress or do I have to meet you somewhere?" Marv answered.
"We're being followed." Texas slowed to a stop at a red light. Thankfully, the sedan was nowhere to be seen. "We might have gotten away from them, but it was a dark gray sedan. Crack in the windshield. I didn’t get a license plate number. Male driver."
"Shit," Marv cursed. "I thought we caught all of her damn PIs. I must have missed one. How many did that bitch have on the payroll."
And how was she able to pay for them? I wondered. According to Grayson, while she was still richer than the average person, her money was slowly declining due to the split with his dad. If she was blowing money left and right just to have us followed, she must have been getting income from somewhere else.
"Why is she following us now?" I asked. "Do you think it’s because of what I said to her the other night?”
"At the gala? I don't know, Sunshine. But she probably knows we've been invited to the charity and that you're attending with Grayson. That probably pissed her off."
"It seems that everything I do sets her off.” I sighed. “What I said at the Care Center probably caused her to do what she did at the gala, and now…” Something occurred to me. “Do you think she'd go back there?" I asked.
Marv was quiet. "I'll send Bell and Knix there now."
Texas glanced at me and cursed under his breath. I didn't have to look in a mirror to know that my face was drained of all color. I felt it when the blood rushed away. A distant buzzing noise slid through my ears. "Don't bother," Texas said. "We'll head there now."
What could she do? I asked myself. I mean, it wasn’t like she could hurt my mom. Even she wasn’t that crazy. Just crazy enough to have me stalked and followed by dozens of private investigators… I swallowed stiffly.
"Okay, I'll let Knix know and I'll contact this new guy. If I have to call all the PI offices in Charleston, I will. I don't like this bitch hiring people to watch us. It's creepy as fuck."
I nodded even though he couldn't see me because I just didn't know what to say. Something felt off. I reached into my pocket as Texas responded for me. Pulling out my phone, I fingered open the lock screen and scrolled through my contacts. There were no calls from the Care Center. Would they call me if someone new visited my mom? Probably not. What could she do? My brother’s name popped up on the screen—one of my few contacts after he had finally gotten back with me on his new phone number. My finger hovered over him before I clicked away. Though a part of me wanted to call him, I didn’t think anything good would come from me involving him.
"Don't worry," Texas said, drawing me back out of my mind. "She's after Grayson because of his inheritance. Your mom’s probably safe. Teddi might have enough money to still remain in the socialite circles now, but you know what Grayson said—she's running out fast. She doesn’t own the world. She can’t have all of us watched at all times, especially not since we’ve gotten rid of most of her PIs. Your mom is in a safe place with lots of nurses and people looking after her."
I nodded again, still not sure what to say. He was right, I knew that. The likelihood of my mom being put in danger by all of this was slim to none. Now that the thought had crept up into my mind, however…I knew, logically, she was fine, but I just wanted to see her and make sure for myself.
Texas pulled a U-turn at the next light and headed towards the Care Center. Within fifteen minutes, we were pulling up outside. As soon as he parked, I had my seatbelt undone and was out and heading for the front doors.
"Harlow!" one of the nurses at the front desk said. "I didn't know you were coming in today, sweetheart."
"Is my mom in her room?" I asked as I bypassed the front desk.
"Yes, of course, but you have to sign in—"
I didn't stop to listen to let her finish. Instead, I took off running towards my mom's room. My heart raced as I slammed open the door into my mom's room and stopped. There was nothing—no one there—but my mom, who dropped the book she'd been reading when I burst in.
"Harlow," she said with a smile. "You startled me. I didn't expect you to be here today."
I was frozen in the doorway, glancing around as if to make sure that everything was normal, that everything was okay. I felt like a crazy person, but Teddi was putting me on edge. She’d already been here and she knew which room was my mom’s because she’d seen me
the last time and I just...I really didn’t like that. I contemplated asking my mom if she’d be okay moving to a new facility, but one look at her—the hollowness in her cheeks and the tired dullness of her eyes—and I realized she might not be able to.
When Texas finally reached us, stepping up behind me with his hand on the small of my back, it finally brought me back into the moment. I stepped forward, leaving his comforting touch and headed for the bed.
"I'll be outside," Texas said quietly and quickly left the room, closing the door behind him.
"Honey? What's wrong?" my mom asked, worry coloring her tone as I headed straight for her.
I stopped by her bed and dropped. My knees slid to the floor as my head came to the mattress and rested there as all the adrenaline that had just been shooting through my system dispersed. My mom's hand landed on the back of my head, stroking softly through my hair. I sighed and scrunched my nose up as I rubbed my cheek against her bedsheets before finally getting to my feet once more. She looked up at me curiously, patting the place beside her. But for some reason, I just stared at her.
Almost a year ago, our lives had been so very different. A year ago, she wouldn't have been acting like this, patting the bed at her side and offering me the comfort and love a mother was supposed to give their children. She would have been screaming and flip-flopping between emotions while I would have been slowly falling apart on the inside. I was almost terrified that one day I'd walk back in here and she'd be that woman again. She wouldn't be this woman I'd come to know—understanding and loving. I had nightmares about it—that I'd walk back in here and she wouldn't recognize me or she'd start screaming at me and throwing things like I was a devil child. My eyes misted over as she reached up and grabbed my hand, squeezing lightly.
"Harlow?"
That one word from her and I crumbled. I leaned down and hugged her tight, wrapping my arms around the woman who had raised me and at the same time, had never been fully there. I cried but held her close so that she wouldn't see. She didn't fight me and let me hold her as she stroked my hair back against my skull. Even though she didn't see the way the tears tracked marks down my cheeks, I knew she could tell. I made no noise, but my shoulders were shaking so badly, there was no doubt as to what I was doing.
"My sweet Harlow," she whispered. "It's okay, Honey. It's going to be okay."
She had no clue why I'd run in here like the devil was on my heels. She had no idea why I was crying, but she was trying everything in her power to make me feel better and somehow...it worked.
Finally, after several moments of clutching onto her like I was a small child again and my mom could make all my troubles go away, I pulled back and she wiped my cheeks. "Won't you tell me what's wrong?" she asked, cupping my cheeks in her hand.
I didn't know how to. It was irrational—I knew Teddi wouldn't do anything so evil as to hurt my mom, but it really bugged me that she'd been at the Care Center. That she knew things about my life—about where my mom was staying, about where I went with the guys. It made me wonder what else she knew and what she could possibly be planning. A part of me wondered if we should have just gone away until it all blew over, but another part of me—a much larger part—realized that trying to run from my problems wouldn't fix them. I wanted to fight back, but sometimes, the pressure just became too much.
I smiled against my mom's hand and reached up, putting my fingers over hers. "I just needed my mom," I admitted.
Blinking in confusion, but obviously pleased by my response, she smiled back at me. "Honey, I'm always here when you need me."
"I know," I said. "I love you."
"I love you, too, Baby. Do you want to invite Texas in now?"
I shook my head. "No, we have to go soon, but I just want to sit with you for another few minutes. Is that okay?"
"Oh, Baby, you know I'm always happy to see you." I wondered if she knew how much those words meant to me—because there had been a time when that wasn't true. I didn't say as much, but I did turn my face and press a kiss to her palm. "Why don't you tell me how those boys of yours are doing?" she offered with a smirk.
I laughed at her expression and nodded. "There's actually a new one," I said.
She gaped at me. "Dear Lord, girl, you're popular."
I shook my head. "No, it's not that. He's kinda been there all along, but he was always so..." I didn't know how to explain Grayson. "He's had some bad influences," I finally finished.
"Ahhh." She nodded in understanding and dropped her hand down to pat my lap. "Some good men just need better friends before they can come into their own."
"He's got good friends now," I admitted. "The best."
"Then he'll be okay," my mom said.
I talked to her for a little bit more, telling her about Grayson and filling her in on how the others were doing. We talked about Bellamy's art and Knix's company. And when Texas knocked on the door and asked me if we needed anything, I shook my head.
“I’ll be right out,” I said.
“Take your time, Spider-Monkey,” he replied. “I’ll be in the lobby.” With that, he disappeared from the doorway, leaving us alone once more.
"I'm sorry I can't stay longer," I said as I got off the bed.
My mom shook her head. "Don't worry about it, Honey. I'll see you next time you come. I love you."
I almost choked up and started crying again, but I managed to hold myself back as I headed for the door and for Texas. "I'll see you again soon," I promised. "I love you too, Mom."
When the door closed behind me and Texas took my hand, I paused in the Care Center's hallway and turned to him, crushing my face against his chest as his arms wrapped around me. I didn't cry this time, I just pressed my nose against the fabric of his shirt and inhaled his scent, letting him comfort me and letting his smell calm my soul.
Without him—without the others—I didn't like to think of where I would have been, where my mom would have been. There was no way I would let Teddi ruin that.
Chapter 11
Texas and I stepped into Alex's Diner and a waitress flitted by, the smell of fries fresh out of the fryer drifted over to meet me. I could almost see the steam rising from the basket as I licked my lips. Texas took one look at my expression and laughed.
"Hungry?" he asked. I hadn't been before, but I certainly was now. I nodded as we headed for the counter and found spots next to each other on the stools. A waitress I didn't recognize met us and asked us for our drink orders. I watched her walk away with a puzzled expression. I had just been in here a week or so ago...but before then, I had hardly been in at all. I remembered a time when this place had been my home away from home.
Texas reached over and took my hand. "What's wrong? Was it your mom?"
I shook my head. "No," I said absently, "just thinking." About how much time had changed since I first met the Iris Boys, how much my life had changed, how much I had changed.
"Okay." He released my hand and reached for a plastic menu. "Are you thinking about what you're going to get?"
I shrugged. "Probably a burger and fries. Something easy for Carl, I don't want to make him work too hard." I gestured to the rest of the restaurant. "It looks like there are already a lot of people here. He's probably backed up."
Texas grinned and leaned back. "I think you'll find that Carl has an extra hand these days," he said. "I'm sure even if you order the most difficult thing on the menu, he'll give you whatever you want."
"Huh?" I understood what he meant, however, when a moment later Grayson stepped out of the kitchen. I froze and blinked at him. How had I forgotten? I knew he had been going off to do something some days—coming back smelling like grease and sugar. I had suspected...but suspicions were different when they were finally confirmed. It was odd to see the boy that I had adamantly complained about several months ago, walk out of the Alex's Diner kitchen with a grease stained apron looking tall and wide and manly.
"Yo." Grayson raised his hand in greeting and Texas did the same, ke
eping his eyes locked on my surprised face. "Everything okay?"
Texas tore his gaze away. "Just a little trouble on the way over," he admitted. "But it should all be cleared up now."
Grayson's winter blue eyes narrowed on him before switching to me. "Tell me," he commanded.
My mouth went dry, but I shook my head instead of answering. "It's not a big—"
"We were followed after we left the mall. Harlow was worried about her mom so we stopped by the Care Center," Texas said, cutting me off.
I shot him a look, but he wasn't paying attention. Grayson looked less than happy. "Marv taking care of it?" he asked coldly.
Texas nodded and, finally, the tension in his shoulders leached away. "Good, that's good."
"How long have you been working here?" I asked, switching topics.
Grayson shrugged. "A few weeks."
“I was just here last week.” It was a statement, not a question, but he answered as though it were anyway.
“I was working at one of Knix’s construction sites.” Well, that explained how he was building muscle rapidly, too. It wasn’t just the workouts—or rather, not just the pumping iron he did at home.
"You don't have to work here,” I said. “Or with Knix. Why are you?”
"I need something to do."
I eyed him, but watching him move and clean up the counter, though I knew from experience that wasn’t part of his job, I kind of got the feeling that he needed to feel useful. I relaxed in my seat and sighed.
"I'm taking Harlow on a date," Texas announced.
A blush rose to my cheeks, the heat spreading outward like wildfire. I turned my eyes away in embarrassment, but not quickly enough to miss the jerk of Grayson's head as he glanced my way before returning his gaze to Texas. "Oh?"
I felt more than saw Texas nod his head. "Not sure where I want to take her, though. Any ideas?"
It was odd how calm they were about it—dating me, sharing me—but they were. I had a feeling that if it was any other way, it wouldn't work. I slowly allowed my face to turn back to them. Grayson kept his eyes on Texas.