Текст книги "Inked Armour"

Автор книги: Helena Hunting

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My heart kicked in my chest. I’d hoped to be gone long before the papers for the house reached him. “I did what I had to do.”

“I’m sure. But did you think I wouldn’t find out before you left?” His voice rose, gaining momentum and volume until it was a yell. “That you could go behind my back and give the fucking house away and then run again?”

In one swift move, his chair screeched across the tile floor and he upended the table. The papers flew into the air and rained down, red ink and yellow highlighter flashing amid the white. The table landed on its side, the tempered-glass top shattering into a wave of sparkles. Trey stepped through the debris, glass crunching under his soles, hands cranked into fists as he stalked toward me. “I was still able to have your accounts frozen. I’m sure that made your escape a bit more of a challenge.”

“The problem is fixed now.” I stood my ground, though all I wanted to do was bolt.

He stopped right in front of me, his expression still flat. “I will undo this.”

“You can’t, Trey. It’s out of your control. I won’t give you the house so that you can destroy it. Your father wouldn’t have wanted that.”

“My father is dead. What he wanted doesn’t matter.”

“To me it does. I’m done here, Trey. I won’t allow you to tear me down anymore.”

I turned away; nothing good would come of this conversation. When he grabbed me, I wrenched my arm away. He came at me again and I pulled my sleeve up to my forearm, exposing the bruises he’d created during our last altercation.

“I’d advise you to keep your hands to yourself, Trey. I’ve already documented these with my lawyer.”

“I-I didn’t—”

“Weston will have the keys to the house shortly. I’m guessing you won’t try to bully him the way you’ve bullied me. But if you feel physical coercion is necessary, at least he’s on a more level playing field. Good-bye.” I stepped around Trey, grabbed my bag with a trembling hand, and wheeled it to the door.

Trey recovered from the shock of seeing the damage his temper had done, his response scathing. “You don’t think I’ll permit you to take Connor’s car, do you?”

“I don’t need your permission. Connor’s car is mine now.”

There was nothing else he could take from me. The thing he wanted had been signed over to his cousin; Frank had made sure the agreement was airtight. Trey’s hands were tied and if he’d been through the documentation, he knew it.

I opened the door, ready to leave this all behind me.

“I never should have let you leave in the first place,” he said.

As if the choice had been his to make? I turned, the icy wind prickling the back of my neck. “What did you say?”

“You should have been mine,” he said bitterly.

Trey had always been callous, unrepentant for the hurt he inflicted on others. But in that moment the façade dropped and I saw someone crippled by narcissism.

“Is that what you thought would happen when you brought me back here?”

“I took care of you, and now you’re leaving me with nothing. You owe me.”

As though I were a possession to be passed along.

I left without another word. There was nothing to say.

5
TENLEY

About ten minutes later, Weston called and I pulled over. The keys had changed hands. Only then did I realize I still had my set, and Trey still had his.

“Don’t worry about it,” Weston said. “I’m having the locks changed this evening. With Trey you always have to stay one step ahead.”

“I was never very good at that.”

“Oh, I think you were better at it than you know. And you’re always welcome to visit. All you have to do is call.”

“Thanks, Weston.”

“Take care of yourself, okay?”

“I will. You, too.”

I stopped at a gas station about three hours into the drive. I was halfway to Chicago and utterly famished. For the first time in weeks, I actually had an appetite. I bought a huge bag of chips, a monster chocolate bar, and a Coke.

I called Sarah after I gassed up to let her know I was on my way back, but she didn’t pick up, so I left a voice mail and sent a text as backup. I’d given her my apartment key so she could feed TK.

I considered my options as I continued home. Hayden had a key, but he wasn’t answering my calls, so that ruled him out. Besides, a conversation was waiting to happen when I saw him, and showing up in the middle of the night wouldn’t make that discussion any easier. The possibility that I might not be able to right my wrongs terrified me.

Three hours later I stood outside my apartment building, buzzed Sarah, and prayed she was home, even though her car wasn’t parked in her spot. There was no response to my buzz. Maybe she was at work. I went back to Connor’s car and resignedly punched The Dollhouse into the GPS. I wanted to be home, and I wanted to see TK. If I couldn’t have Hayden tonight, at least I could have her.

Fifteen minutes later, I pulled into the parking lot of the strip club. I called Sarah again but still got no answer, which made sense if she was waitressing. Parking in a well-lit area, I grabbed my purse and locked the car. The building was painted black, garish lights flashed out the name of the club, and a neon light showed a half-naked woman bending, standing, bending, standing, as she flickered on and off, her bare ass on display with each flip of her skirt.

I couldn’t believe Sarah worked here. But if it paid for her MBA and left her debt free after college, I could see the logic.

I headed for the entrance, a bit nervous. I scanned the lot, searching for Sarah’s car, but couldn’t locate it. The staff might have separate parking, though; safer for the girls who worked there. A huge man with arms the size of my waist guarded the front door. He looked me over in a way that made me feel naked even with my hoodie. I wished I had my jacket on.

“ID.” He held out a meaty palm.

I rooted around in my bag for my wallet and pulled out my driver’s license. He scanned it, looked at my face, then handed it back to me. “Where’s your escort?”

“Pardon?”

“Your escort,” he said, annoyed. “You need a male escort to come in here.”

“Oh, I—” I chewed my lip, unsure how to proceed. “I have a friend who works here, her name is Sarah.”

“Sarah, huh? So you’re looking for a job?” He smiled wryly. “You’re a little skinny, but that porcelain-doll thing might work for you.”

He opened the door and grabbed the arm of a scantily clad woman who passed by. “This one’s looking for a job. Take her to the boss lady.”

The woman looked at me, laughed, and turned back to him. “Are you serious?”

“Says she knows Sarah.”

I thought to correct him, but if it got me in, I’d take it. All I needed was to get my key and I’d be on my way.

She gave me a doubtful look and turned back to the bouncer. “You’re wasting everyone’s time. She wouldn’t last a shift.” With a look of exasperation, she motioned for me to follow her.

I trailed behind her as we skirted the perimeter of the club, taking in all the men in business suits, seated close to the main stage. Toward the back of the club were two smaller stages, cordoned off with red-velvet rope. On either side were plush couches where men in suits lounged while dancers writhed in their laps.

I didn’t want to think about Hayden with his hands all over any of these women, or vice versa. I wondered if money had ever been exchanged on his part. The thought sickened me.

“So you know Sarah?” she asked, eyeing me suspiciously.

“Yeah.”

“You tell that bitch she needs to stay away from my clients.” She flipped her bleached hair over her shoulder. “Otherwise I’m going to mess up that pretty face of hers. Wait here,” she ordered.

“Is she work—”

She slipped through a door guarded by another heavily muscled man before I could finish the sentence.

“Hey,” I shouted to him over the pounding music, my uneasy feeling growing. “I’m looking for my friend Sarah. She works here.”

He tapped his ear and mouthed, “I can’t hear you.” Then he went back to staring menacingly at the crowd.

Frustrated, I turned to look for her. The interior of the club was painted midnight black, casting shadows over the clientele. I searched for Sarah’s almost-white blond hair, but couldn’t locate her through the flicker of strobe lights. Tables full of men watched a naked woman gyrating on a pole, their eyes straying only when a mostly undressed waitress passed by. I hated that my friend waitressed here, and that Hayden had once been immersed in this lifestyle.

The door beside the bouncer slammed opened and Sienna appeared in all her red-patent-leather glory. The dress she wore was suctioned to her body. Her fake breasts were pushed up so high they looked like flesh-colored grapes ready to burst. Marks were on her arms, as if someone had been holding on to her hard, and one of her cheeks was bright red. A man dressed just like the one guarding the door came out behind her, adjusting his belt.

She snapped at the security guard, clearly put out. He motioned to the front; I saw Sarah’s name form on his lips; then he gestured to me. Sienna glanced at me and hatred flashed across her face, before she recovered her composure and a grin distorted her mouth.

I was confused. Hayden had said Sienna used to dance here. But as I saw the way everyone deferred to her, I realized he’d failed to fill in the rest of the blanks. Despite what her state of undress suggested, Sienna wasn’t a stripper anymore; she was in charge of this club. And I was in a bad spot.

“Well, isn’t this a surprise,” she purred. She sauntered over to the bar and leaned on the brass rail, eyes fixed on me. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m looking for—”

Her fake smile dropped and she cut me off. “Oh, I know exactly who you’re looking for. I told Hayden he’d get bored. I told him you wouldn’t be able to handle him, and he didn’t listen.” She towered over me in her absurd heels. “He’s so fucking pathetic. Always thinking he can be better than he is, but we both know that isn’t true—don’t we?”

“I-I don’t—” I was stunned. He’d told me that his life was different, that he was different, prior to me, but I hadn’t imagined anything like this.

“I-I don’t. I-I,” she mocked. “You’re a waste of his time. Did you come here thinking I might give you some pointers on how to keep him interested?” She sounded bitter. “I can save you the trouble, sweetheart. There’s nothing you can do. Hayden likes to keep his options open. He’ll never be satisfied with you; it’s just a matter of time before he comes running back to me.”

It had been a long, difficult day and my nerves were already frayed. This was not what I needed. If I let my emotions get the better of me in front of her, I was liable to lose it.

“I shouldn’t have come here,” I said, backing up. “I’ll go.”

Sienna stepped to the side, trapping me between the bar and the wall. “You sure you don’t want to have a look around? See what it’s going to take to keep him for a while longer?”

“I should just leave.” I swallowed hard as she came closer, penning me in.

She tilted her head to the side. “I don’t get it. What does he see in you? Look at you.” She picked up my ponytail and wrinkled her nose, then dragged a fake nail down my cheek.

I jerked my head away. “Don’t touch me.”

She caught me by the chin, holding on hard. We were in the shadows, covered by her entourage of security. She leaned in close, her mouth beside my ear. “You think you know Hayden, but you don’t. When I discovered him, he was busy fucking his way through the girls in this club. Everybody wanted him and I was the only one he came back to, over and over again. I gave him what he needed, any way he needed it. You know what’s going to happen when you can’t keep up? He’s going to come back to me. He always does.”

“Let go of me.” I pulled at her hand.

Her grip tightened, nails digging into my skin. “I’m feeling generous, so I’ll give you a little tip. If Hayden starts to wander, there’s one sure way to get his attention. Do you want to know what it is?”

When I didn’t react, she said, “Just fuck Chris. That’s what I did when I found Hayden fucking three other girls at the same time.” Sienna let go of my face and stepped back. “Oh, you look shocked. You poor little thing. Didn’t he tell you about that?”

“You manipulative whore,” I whispered, stepping away from her.

“What did you just call me?”

I should have expected the backhand. I was a second too late when I raised my arm to deflect it, although I prevented the full force of the hit. As her nails raked across my cheek, my elbow connected with her nose. There was a satisfying crunch; she screeched an expletive and shoved me; and I went down. Unable to brace for the impact, I landed on my tailbone and my head smacked the black tile, starbursts obscuring my vision and sharp pain shooting through my hip. Her security detail intervened as she came after me again; a massive arm wrapped around her waist and hoisted her in the air as she kicked and screamed obscenities.

“Put me down! I’m going to fuck that bitch up!” Blood ran down her mouth and chin, dripping on her plastic dress. She was hauled back through the door she’d come out of, the security guy struggling to keep a solid grip on her.

I pushed up on weak arms. My hip was screaming; my head didn’t feel much better. I gathered the scattered items on the floor and shoved them back in my purse, checking for my keys and wallet. Both were there. I could sense eyes on me even though the music was blaring and the girl on the stage was still gyrating away. If I weren’t so focused on the pain in my body I would have been mortified.

I had to use the brass rail along the bar to pull myself up. It hurt so much, I tasted bile in the back of my throat. I looked around, searching for the exit.

When I finally found it, the bouncer who’d let me in was heading my way, eyes narrowed, hands clenched into fists. I looked around for another way out, but the emergency exit sign was all the way across the club.

I’d never make it.

6
HAYDEN

It was one in the morning. The TV was on but I wasn’t watching it. I was staring at the series of pictures on my wall. All Tenley. All the time. My phone rang. “What?” I grunted, aggravated by the interruption.

“You need to get your ass over to The Dollhouse and clean up your mess.”

“The fuck? Who is this?” I held out the phone and checked the screen. The number came up as unknown.

“It’s Jay, dipshit. Your girl broke Sienna’s nose.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Jay was head of security. We’d known each other for years and we didn’t have any problems.

“Jesus. Don’t you keep tabs on the bitches you’re fucking?”

“Wait. What?”

“For the love of Christ, I thought you quit the blow. Your little china doll came here looking for you and got into it with Sienna. Get your ass in gear and come get your girl before Sienna puts her in a ditch.”

“You mean Tenley?”

“How the fuck should I know?” There was an irritated sigh. “Long black hair, tiny thing. Knows one of Sienna’s girls, Sarah. Ring any bells?”

“That’s not possible. She’s not even in Chicago.”

“I don’t know where she told you she was, but right now she’s in the damn club, and Sienna’s on lockdown. You have ten minutes to get here.”

The line went dead. I grabbed my keys and bolted down the stairs to the parking garage.

There was no way Tenley was back. I would know if she was. Or maybe not. She’d called twenty times today and I hadn’t answered. She didn’t leave a voice mail, and I was too pissed off for calling her early this morning to trust myself to talk to her again. Still, I assumed she would have texted if she was coming back. Even if she didn’t, the news would pass through someone else.

I called Chris as I pulled out of the underground parking. It went straight to voice mail so I tried Sarah and got the same damn thing. It took me less than ten minutes to get to The Dollhouse. I drove right up to the front entrance and parked in the tow zone. I got out and locked the door.

Max said, “Stryker, man, you can’t do that—”

“Jay called and asked me to pick something up. I’ll only be a second.”

“That little spitfire belongs to you?”

I stopped. “Shit. He wasn’t fucking with me? Tenley’s here?”

“Little, dark-haired thing? Sweet face with an ass to match?”

I wanted to grind his face into the side of the building for that comment, but he was twice my size. “I won’t be long.”

The smell of sweat and sex hit me when I walked through the door. What sounded like heavy bass when I was outside became a crap dance beat inside. I surveyed the club, searching for Tenley among the suits and dirtbags. In the back corner, I saw a well-dressed businessman put his hands on a dancer.

Security stepped out of the shadows, prepared to shut the guy down. A wordless conversation took place between the guy on security detail and the dancer, then she stepped down off the couch and reached for the suit’s hand. He followed her into the shadows. While security and the suit exchanged words, the dancer picked at her fingernails, looking bored. When the men were finished dealing, the suit and the dancer disappeared through a hidden door. Business as usual. The possibility that Tenley could have witnessed any of this made me ill.

I headed to the back of the club, where security guarded the hallway leading to Sienna’s office. Jay had been working here longer than I’d frequented the establishment. He’d seen a lot of dancers come and go, and a lot of management, too.

“You called.”

“Sienna’s a little worked up over what your girl did to her face. It took a lot of persuading to keep her from dragging this one out back and tossing her in a Dumpster.”

“Hayden?” Tenley said.

I closed my eyes briefly at the sound of her voice, then turned.

She looked terrified. She was tucked into the corner, sitting on a barstool with her hands in her lap. I didn’t want her exposed to this place, seeing what went on here, coming to obvious conclusions about what I did when I was a regular patron.

“What the hell are you doing here?” I asked, anger replacing my relief at seeing her.

“I needed to find Sarah.”

That Sarah would be the first person she sought out was just another kick in the balls. I bit back a bitter retort when the strobe lights hit her face, illuminating a trio of vicious red lines. I moved closer, lifted her chin, and tilted her head. Scratch marks ran from her temple to her mouth. Even still, the contact was as electric as it had always been.

“What happened?” I asked with more bite than I meant to.

“I had a chat with Sienna.”

“She did this to you?” When Tenley nodded, I looked to Jay. “I want to talk to her.”

“I don’t think that’s in your best interest.”

“Tough shit. I want to know why the fuck I’m picking Tenley up with marks on her face.”

“Well, Tenley’s right here. I’m sure she can tell you.”

“I want to hear it from Sienna. Tell her I’m here—I guarantee she’ll want to see me.” I was banking on her anger and her bitch tactics. She’d jump at the chance to try to fuck with my head because that was what she was good at.

“Maybe we should just go,” Tenley said softly, sliding off the barstool.

“Not a chance,” I snapped.

Tenley ignored me and shifted forward, wincing as her left foot hit the floor and then her right. When she took an unsteady step toward me, her knee buckled, and she latched onto the bar.

I grabbed her by the waist. “What the hell?” I shot Jay an irate glare.

Fights happened all the time at The Dollhouse. The girls got territorial over clients, drugs, whatever. But security never let it get far. After a couple of slaps they were hauled off each other. Messed-up faces and ripped-out extensions didn’t make money.

Whatever had gone on between Tenley and Sienna, Jay had let it happen on purpose. Probably until Tenley defended herself. It pissed me off.

“I’m fine,” Tenley said thinly, her fingers digging into my shoulders.

“Bullshit,” I spat, annoyed she was lying.

She could hardly bear her own weight. I drew her closer until her entire body was pressed tight against mine. As angry as I was, I was too fucking needy to give a shit that she was only holding on to me because she’d drop like a stone otherwise. That ratcheted up my frustration even more.

I kept my arm fixed around her waist, feeling her gasps against my stomach as Tenley found her balance. She kept a hand on my forearm as she took a step back and struggled to put weight on her right leg.

“Sit down and don’t move,” I ordered, lifting her back onto the stool. She complied, which was pretty fucking atypical. She looked to be seconds away from tears. Rightfully so. Sienna was not a person Tenley should be messing with, nor were any of the other people who worked at or frequented The Dollhouse. At least here, in the shadows, she was safe from the lecherous stares of the douche bags in the club.

The standoff with Jay ended when Sienna burst through the door, which almost hit the side of his head. “Time’s up, bitch—” Then she saw me.

Of the two women, Sienna was definitely the worse for wear. Her eyes already had shadows underneath and her nose was swollen. Her hands went to her hips and she pushed her chest out. She wore some horrific red pleather getup that was so short it barely covered her ass, and the front was so low her nipples were almost showing.

“Came here to collect your trash?” Sienna asked. It came out all garbled.

I stepped in front of Tenley, blocking her from Sienna’s sight.

Sienna said, “You know, after that bitch fit you threw at Lisa’s, I did what you asked. I backed off because you needed to do that stupid girl for whatever reason. But I sure as hell don’t appreciate your toy coming to my club, talking smack to my face.”

Tenley huffed from behind me but I ignored the commentary on my relationship with her. Sienna wanted to rile me up and it wasn’t going to work. “What kind of smack?”

She gestured to Tenley. “That slut broke my fucking nose!”

I bristled at the pejorative. “Watch your fucking mouth.”

“Your little plaything called me a whore!”

I kept my tone flat to avoid feeding into her dramatics. “So you thought you’d fight her?”

“She came in here and acted like she had you all figured out. She got what she deserved. I should have her arrested for assault.” Sienna swiped under her swollen nose, where a thin trail of blood was making its way down to her lip. I was sure her coke habit didn’t help the problem.

“So you’re telling me Tenley hit you first?”

“You need to muzzle your bitch,” Sienna hissed.

I leaned in and Jay shook his head in warning. I put up a hand in a show of submission. I wasn’t stupid; he’d lay me out with one shot. “Answer the damn question. Did Tenley hit you first?”

“She came into my club!”

I’d heard enough. “You really are a piece of work.” I started to turn away.

Sienna grabbed my arm, her nails digging into the skin as she pressed herself up against me. “Get your head out of your ass, honey,” she said in my ear. “Her purity isn’t going to rub off on you. Once the novelty wears off, you’ll do what you always do. And then what will you have? Nothing.”

“I’m not looking to purify myself. I’ll own the shit I’ve done, but I don’t have to end up like you. You keep falling into the same hole, wondering why, when you’re the one holding the shovel. I hope you enjoy burying yourself.”

“Fuck you!” Sienna shoved my chest. “Get out and take your skank with you!”

“Glass house, Sienna. Watch yourself.”

“You asshole!” she screeched, grabbing for an empty glass on the bar, but Jay snagged her around the waist before she could reach it.

Tenley’s eyes were wide as I hauled her out of the way. When Sienna went on a rampage, it meant lots of broken things, and sometimes that included people. Security swarmed her, keeping her from getting her hands on anything she could throw at me. She lived a sad life, and I was glad not to be part of it anymore.

I half carried Tenley across the club. When I burst through the front door, my car was being towed out of the parking lot.

“Fuck.”

Max just gave me a look that said I should have known better.

“Where’s your car?” I barked at Tenley.

“Over there.” She pointed across the lot.

I headed in that direction, my arm around her waist. She was still having trouble walking without support. Her Prius was nowhere in sight. “Where’s—”

Tenley lifted a remote, a red BMW beeped, and the engine turned over.

“Whose douche mobile is this?”

“It was Connor’s. It was my only way back home,” she replied, looking up at me with sad eyes.

Well, wasn’t I an asshole.

“Thanks for getting me out of there.”

There was an awkward moment when I wanted to kiss her, but I realized she was waiting for me to let her go so she could get in the car. When I did, she dropped her head and started to hobble toward the driver’s side.

I grabbed her hand with the keys in it. “Uh, yeah, you’re not driving.”

She passed the keys over without an argument, which told me how much pain she was in. I helped her around to the passenger side. She had to lift her leg at the knee to get it into the car. I got in the driver’s side, where I practically ate the steering wheel, the seat was pulled up so far.

The air in the car was thick with tension, and Tenley was quiet as I pulled out of the parking lot onto the street. I glanced at her every so often. I had too many questions I wanted answers to– about tonight, about the last three weeks, about the night she left.

Finally, the silence too much, I asked, “What the hell would make you think it was a good idea to come to The Dollhouse?”

“Sarah has the key to my apartment and she wasn’t answering her phone. I figured she was working.”

“I have a key to your apartment. I would have let you in. Then we could have avoided this shit.”

“You weren’t answering my calls. I wasn’t sure you wanted to see me.”

We were right back to the very beginning, when she was all skittish around me. What damage had Trey done while she was in Arden Hills? I had a feeling her time there had been pretty fucking horrific. Which meant I needed to stow the anger brigade and stop snapping at her.

“No matter what’s happened between us, Tenley, you still could have come to me. I wouldn’t have turned you away.”

For whatever reason it was the wrong thing to say because her shoulders sagged and started shaking.

“Kitten?”

That made it worse. She pressed her hand over her mouth, but a sob slipped out. Thankfully, we were almost home. I pulled into the underground parking and cut the engine, flicking on the interior light so I could see her.

She was caved in on herself, the way she’d been after the first tattoo session. I smoothed my hand down her back. Like me, she’d lost weight. I could feel the prominent ridges of her spine through the layers of clothing. It scared me that she was more fragile than when she’d left.

She sucked in a couple of deep breaths, shuddering on the exhale. When she lifted her head, her emotions were under control again, but just barely. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get so upset.”

“It’s okay—dealing with Sienna would make anyone crack. Why don’t you come up to my place? You’ll never be able to handle the stairs to your apartment.” I hoped the excuse would be enough to get her to agree. I had no idea where we stood, but I didn’t want her to go.

“I want to see TK,” she whispered.

“She’s up there. She’ll be happy you’re home.”

“TK’s at your place?”

“I’ve been taking care of her while you were away.”

“Oh.” She sniffed, then swiped at her eyes with the back of her hand. “That’s good. Thank you for doing that.”

I shrugged. “I wanted to.”

I got out of the car and came around to Tenley’s side, where she was already hoisting herself out. If she was still having this much trouble tomorrow, I was taking her to the doctor for X-rays or something. Her lips were set in a thin line, which I took to mean she was in pain and wanted to hide it.

“You need anything from the trunk?” I asked.

She shook her head, so I locked up the douche mobile and we headed for the elevator. She kept looking over at the staircase. No way could she hike three flights to my condo with the way she was limping. I told her so.

“I don’t like elevators,” she said as the doors opened.

I wasn’t partial either, but carrying her wasn’t an option. “It’s a quick ride.”

She hesitated, but when I put my foot over the sensor to prevent the doors from closing, she went inside. Tenley tucked herself into the corner, gripping the handrails that circled the mirrored steel box. I hit the button for the second floor, then put my arm around her. When we started to move, she latched onto me, burying her face in my chest with an apology. She had no reason to be sorry; the motion of the elevator probably mimicked the sensations of the plane when it dropped. And the windowless, confined space would worsen the vertigo.

I held on to her, stroking her hair, watching our entwined reflection in the mirrors surrounding us. When the elevator stopped and the doors slid open, Tenley practically pitched herself into the hall.

She’d only been to my place once, but she remembered where it was and started down the hall. I wouldn’t make her wait until I’d checked all the rooms tonight, as I normally would; she needed to sit down immediately.

Inside, Tenley braced herself on the wall as she gingerly removed her shoes. I put them in the closet beside mine.

TK bounded down the hall and came to me, winding around my legs, peeking out at Tenley.

“Come here, baby girl,” Tenley cooed as she melted into the floor.

TK cocked her little head to the side uncertainly and stayed close to me.

Tenley clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth and snapped her fingers. The expression on her face was heartbreaking, as if she expected the snub.

I crouched down and scratched TK’s head. “It’s okay, little buddy, that’s your mom. She went on a trip, but she’s back now.” TK mewed and peeked out from between my ankles. “That’s right, go say hi. She missed you, just like we missed her.”

TK trotted over and sniffed at Tenley’s outstretched hand. It took TK a minute, but eventually she got close enough for Tenley to pick her up. The real crying started then. Silent sobs shook Tenley’s body as she folded around the kitten.

I tried not to be jealous of a stupid cat, but it was difficult to not feel slighted that she got a more heartfelt greeting than I did. The only reason Tenley had touched me so far was because she needed my help, and the elevator freaked her out.