by Dylan Keefer
Laying on his stomach in just his boxers, Micah closed his eyes as his girlfriend swung her leg over his back and straddled him. Raine’s warm body pressed up against his as her hands moved expertly over his stressed muscles.
“You feel good,” he whispered. Her only response was a “hmm”. For a moment, Micah felt like he was going to fall asleep as she simply massaged him. No words. He just loved feeling her. Her torso fell against his upper back and shoulders as her hair blanketed his face and her arms outstretched on top of his.
“I love you,” she said simply. Micah opened his eyes. He could feel her breath on his face. Those three words caused such conflict in him. Until he met Raine, the only person that ever seemed to see that he was more than what he showed was Mya. Kyle and Rachel were there on the sidelines hoping he would show some promise, but they never saw it like Raine did.
Micah turned over on his side and let her fall onto the bed. They stared at each other for a moment. She smiled. “I want to be here. I want to solve this, and I want to help Mya because I know that this is important to you.”
“You don’t have to do this for me,” Micah said.
“And,” Raine continued placing her finger over his lips. “Because Mya intimidates me and inspires me at the same time.”
Micah frowned.
“On the drive back with Rachel, I looked up some videos of Mya online. The way she speaks and her heart for the things she is passionate about is genuine. I don’t know what she got herself into, but I’m pretty sure that whatever it is, she did it with the intention to make the world around her better.” Raine sighed. “So, we’re going to solve this, she is going to get better, and she will see that the guy she believed in back in college is doing amazing things, too.”
Micah wrapped his arms around her. “How did I get so lucky?”
Her lips touched his lightly, and they kissed deeply, wrapped in each other’s embrace. They were lost in the moment together when there was a knock at the bedroom door. Micah rolled onto his back as Raine laughed silently.
“Yeah?”
Rachel’s voice sounded through the door. “You guys need to see what’s on the TV! Hurry!”
Kyle and Rachel were glued to the television when they got downstairs. The news was on, and a very familiar figure was on the screen.
“The husband of Governor candidate Mya Dornel was taken into custody this evening after police were called to a local residence for a domestic dispute. Authorities arrived at the house Dornel’s campaign manager, Brooke Gates, to find Greg Dornel trying to kick down the door to her town house. Dornel was yelling profanities and threating to cause physical harm to Ms. Gates, and police had to wrestling him away from the home in handcuffs. The dispute was likely caused by the leaking of footage of an affair that Greg Dornel was having with Ms. Gates which was leaked online just a couple of hours ago. Mya Dornel is still in the hospital from a car accident that took place several days ago, and she is still in critical condition.”
Micah rested his chin in his hand as he stared at the screen. “She got us,” he said. “She told us just what she wanted us to here. She wanted us to think that Greg was the bad guy so we would let her have that tape.”
“Greg still is the bad guy,” Raine said. “He still cheated on his wife. It’s just that no one is going to believe him after this, and the only one who can confirm it is Brooke. No one else was there.”
“Not necessarily.” They both looked at Kyle. He picked up his remote. “Luckily, I have rewind on this thing. See how they are playing some of that footage from the tape? I know that some things are hard to see, but Micah and I looked at a lot of tapes this afternoon. There is something different about this. Look at the video closely.”
All of them watched until Raine said, “I saw the camera move a bit.”
Kyle snapped his fingers. “Exactly! The security cameras at the Dornel’s house don’t move, and it’s a little clearer. This footage isn’t from there.”
“Someone else took this video,” Rachel gasped. “Someone else was there.”
“Brooke and the other person blackmail Greg,” Micah thought aloud. “But why? Why the private investigator, why would Brooke put herself in the limelight, and why now?”
Raine rubbed her hands together. “I think we should have a talk with Greg. He knows more than he’s letting on.”
“And Brooke?” Rachel asked.
“She has to know that we’ve figured out she leaked the video, and that she lied about the other tapes. We aren’t going to get to her. We need to place our focus elsewhere.”
Every bone ached. The glares that he was receiving as he passed by were not friendly. Some of it was jealousy, but most of it was due to the fact that everyone watched the news. You always wanted to see who the next one to get caught was, and if it was a really juicy story…
Greg had been thrown in a holding cell thankfully since gen pop was only if you weren’t going to make bail, and Greg was definitely making bail. His first call had been to a bail bondsman. The only issue was that he wouldn’t be able to get free until the morning. The night on the cold hard metal bed was enough. He hadn’t slept. There were periods of unconsciousness, but not sleep.
“Come on,” the guard said. “We gotta get you to sign a few things, and then you can leave.”
Greg nodded. There was another guard smiling at him. Greg pretended to ignore him, but it wasn’t working. “So, was it worth it? Banging the hot girl over your wife?”
Greg didn’t answer. He was almost dreading going out into the world. He could only imagine what had been said about him in the past twelve hours. He admitted that it was stupid. If he hadn’t gone over to her house, she still would have released it, but the arrest wouldn’t have been added on top of it all. He wouldn’t have looked like a crazy person.
A bag with his belongings from the previous night was thrown at him. Unfortunately, he had left his phone in his car. “Hey, is there a way that I can call a taxi or Uber?”
“Yeah. Go out that door. Go outside and find a phone that you can use.”
He forced himself not to make any smart comments. He simply walked out of the door and into the bright sunlight. He lived at least a thirty-minute drive away from the jail, and he didn’t feel like translating that into walking time. He also didn’t want to think of how many people might recognize him as Mya’s unfaithful husband.
“Hey, Greg!”
Great, it already began. He started walking, ignoring the person. Again, it didn’t work. He heard footsteps coming up to him. Greg looked up and did a double take.
“You,” he said to Micah. Micah nodded.
“Yes, me. Figured you were going to need a ride, and I wanted to catch you before you called a taxi.”
“Uh,” Greg said. “I assume that this ride is going to require me giving an explanation.”
“You assume right,” Micah said. “You’re going to have to explain if you want me on your side, and you’re going to need it.”
Kyle greeted Greg when he climbed into the vehicle. As they pulled out, Greg said, “We need to go get my car. If you don’t mind taking me to Brooke’s neighborhood, I think might need to have some witnesses with me.”
“Sure,” Micah said. “And you can start telling us what happened?”
Greg sighed as he leaned back in his chair. “What did Brooke tell you when you saw her?”
“She told us that she knew you were cheating on your wife, and she knew because she was one of the girls. She told us that you recorded it every time, and that there were tapes to prove it. She said that she hadn’t told Mya because she knew it would break her heart.”
“Son of a…” Greg slammed his fist on the seat next to him. “I cheated. Yes. But it was once, and it was with her. It was because she blackmailed me.”
Kyle snorted. “Okay, I’ve got to hear this. How did she blackmail you?”
“When Mya got this idea to run for Governor, she had a lot of support. There were peopl
e lined up to be a part of this. Brooke was the one who reached out to Mya. She practically begged Mya for several days straight, and Mya never turns down a chance to give an underdog the chance. She hired Brooke.”
“So, was Brooke really a student that Mya helped in high school?” Micah asked looking in the rearview mirror at the man.
“Yes. That’s why Mya did it. It was a redemption story. She always believed in those.” Greg shook his head. “Brooke came by one night. Mya was out, and I knew she knew it. She kept Mya’s calendar, but I let her in anyway. When I did, she caught me in the living room and started to undress in front of me. I started to kick her out, but she told me that if I didn’t want to ruin my wife’s life, I would do what she said. I didn’t believe her, but she tossed me her phone. On the screen was a video of Mya—a live video. Someone was watching her. I tossed the phone back and asked what she wanted. Brooke said she simply wanted me to let her drive and to enjoy it.”
“When did you find out that it was videotaped?” Kyle asked.
“When she left. She told me that they had proof. So, if I ever said anything, it would go public, and the right people would back her up. I didn’t know what to do. Brooke was dangerous, and I didn’t want to take a chance that whoever was behind Brooke was really dangerous.”
“So, you hired a private investigator,” Micah said. “Diana Richter?”
“She tried to find out what she could on Brooke, but she said that whoever she worked for had her taken care of really well. She wasn’t able to find anything aside from breaking into her house. She found the tape, and she brought it to me. She brought it to me the night of the accident.” Greg ran his fingers through her hair. The pain in his face was evident. “I never thought about cheating on Mya. No matter what happened in our lives, it was Mya. She’s the best thing that ever happened to me, and I—I didn’t know what to do.”
“I get it,” Micah said. “So, maybe it’s safe to say that when your detective friend stole the tape, Brooke’s bosses reacted.”
“I don’t know,” Greg said. “Maybe. Maybe, I—I just need to get my car and get back to the hospital. My life is ruined if she doesn’t wake up, guys. I need her.”
Micah looked at Kyle. Kyle turned to his side a little. “Greg. The mission hasn’t changed. We’re going to find out what’s going on, and Mya is going to wake up.”
“We hope,” Greg said softly.
Pulling up to the car, Micah frowned at the writing on the windows and windshield of the car. Greg got out and stared at the words, “cheater”, “liar”, “unfaithful”, and a few more.
“You gonna be okay?” Kyle asked from the window. Greg shook his head.
“I just wanna get to the hospital, but thanks.”
Micah sat watching him go before slamming his hand on the steering wheel. Kyle patted his shoulder. “I don’t get why someone deliberately wants to ruin Mya’s life.”
“It almost seems like the tape was insurance,” Kyle said. “I mean, if Brooke did this a while ago, then why didn’t she release it sooner.”
“So, you don’t think this was about Mya?”
“I do,” Kyle said. “I just think it was more about making sure that Mya didn’t get close to something. Something tells me she did.”
Micah started up the car. “See if we can get a hold of Diana Richter,” he said. “I know that Greg said she didn’t find much, but maybe she didn’t know what she was looking for.”
“And you do, huh?” Kyle said. “Raine is really rubbing off on you.”
He drove down the neighborhood as Kyle began to look up the private investigator. Micah glanced in his mirror and noticed that a gray sedan pulled out and stated to follow them. For the next few minutes, he took several different turns and watched as the car mimicked him. Kyle looked up from his searching and saw Micah glancing in his mirror.
“No way,” Kyle said turning to looking in his. “Are we being followed?”
“We are,” Micah said. “Someone was watching Brooke’s house. Something tells me that they aren’t going to want a friendly conversation.”
Micah stopped at a stop sign. “Can you get down their plates?”
“Yeah,” Kyle said. He started to type down the letters and numbers, but quickly noticed the car behind them jump forward as if picked up speed. “Shit!”
Micah saw the car coming, too. He hit the gas pedal causing the tires to squeal before their car jerked forward, too. He took the next turn, and then the next. The gray sedan kept up with them well.
“Get out of these side streets! We’re going to hit someone, and we need more chances for a cop to see us. Turn right here!” Kyle pointed, and Micah swerved to the right. He saw signs for a major road. “They’re still behind us!”
“Damn!” The car was gaining, too. Micah knew that they didn’t know who was in the car, if they were armed, or if those people knew who they were. He couldn’t take the chance of them following. He turned to Kyle. “Kyle, I don’t ask much from you, but I’m going to ask something really big!”
“What?” Kyle said confused. Micah nodded to the bar above the glove compartment.
“Hold on! Really tight!”
Kyle’s eyes widened as he grabbed the bar. Micah looked in the rear-view mirror and slammed on the brakes. He prayed that he timed it right. The impact from the crash drove both of them forward hard. They heard glass shattering and the collision of the cars. Micah didn’t wait. He hit the gas without looking back. The car limped forward, but at a normal speed.
“You okay!” Kyle continued to grip the steering wheel without saying a word. “Kyle!”
Kyle nodded slowly. “A slight moment of PTSD, but I’m over it.” He sat back in the seat and looked in the mirror. “How is this thing still driving?”
“They swerved. Hit between us and a parked car on the side of the road,” Micah said. “Enough to stop them, and not us.”
“Awesome,” Kyle said with a sigh of relief. “Awesome. So, we don’t tell the wives about this, right?”
Chapter Six
The apartment buildings were rough looking. Several little kids played out in the parking lot while parents or guardians talked. Apparently, none of them were worried about the little ones getting hit or run over. Rachel sat in the car fuming as periodically those several pairs of eyes wondered over to their car.
“They are more worried about two white women in their apartment complex than about their kids playing unsupervised,” she said. Raine shrugged.
“Well, you get what two white women present to them. We’re here to tell them something is wrong with one of theirs. Which we are.”
“You don’t get it, Raine. I teach these kids. I teach the ones from low income housing and the ghetto. I have to worry every day that I’m going to offend some parent by saying something racists or that I’m not pro-black enough. When I try to help and love on these kids, I’m either trying to tell their parents that they aren’t doing a good enough job, or that I’m trying to be a white savior.”
Raine hadn’t seen this part of Rachel yet. She really hadn’t found her voice in all of this until now.
“So, I guess you don’t have a problem walking up to L.A.’s door with all of them watching us like hawks, huh?” Raine saw the twinkle in Rachel’s eyes.
“Let’s do this.”
Those eyes followed the two visitors down the sidewalk with hushed whispers on their lips. “You lost?” One lady yelled out from the group.
Raine started to say something, but Rachel took a step forward. “We’re just looking for a friend’s apartment. I believe she lives around here. La’Trena Caldwell?”
The group laughed. The lady shook her head. “Naw. You ain’t friends with La’Trena. You aren’t her type.”
“What do you mean?” Rachel asked.
“You’re white. La’Trena doesn’t not like white people; especially white women. I don’t know what you’re here for, but you might as well go right on back to wherever it is, lady.”
Rachel started to take a step towards the group, but Raine held her back. One of the groups had just gotten on her cell phone as soon as Rachel had mention La’Trena. She pulled Rachel.
“Come on,” she hissed. Rachel followed as Raine started to jog down the sidewalk.
“Wha—why are you running?” Rachel asked as she followed.
“They were warning her,” Raine said. Just a few doors down, Raine saw a door open and a figure take off down the street. Raine bolted after the girl. She was thankful she had worn the right shoes for the situation, but it had been a while since she had to run like this. Rachel was on her heels, and both of them were gaining on L.A.
“Stop, L.A!” Raine yelled. L.A. ducked around a building and headed to the main street. Raine poured out as much energy as she could to try to gain on her. The girl ran out into the street without looking and dodged a car. She ran into a small convenience store across the street and disappeared.
“Go around to the back just in case,” Raine told Rachel. She walked into the store. The man behind the counter had a TV on the counter. He nodded without looking up at her. That’s how you get robbed, buddy, she thought. There was no movement in the store except for the counter-guy. Raine walked around the back of the store and saw that the bathroom door was closed. Then it hit her. She listened to the television from the front counter and turned back to the counter. The cashier still didn’t look up at her.
“Sir,” she said as she walked up. “I’m sorry to interrupt, but I didn’t know if you had a key to the bathroom. I think it’s locked.”
“Occupied,” the man said with a broken Spanish accent. She nodded.
“I’ll wait,” she said. “And sounds like you’re watching a great show. Didn’t peg you for a soap opera type person.”
The man looked up at her. She smiled. “Actually, I peg you as the guy who turns on the television quickly in order to hide the fact that someone is hiding behind the counter to avoid being caught. Someone like you, L.A.”