Текст книги "Fade to Red"

Автор книги: Willow Aster

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Текущая страница: 14 (всего у книги 16 страниц)

He looked at her with tears in his eyes. “Let’s get out of here, Rox, before we both get sucked so far into Crazy Land we can’t find our way out.”

“I hope it’s not too l-late.”

He looked over his shoulder at Coco, who was still knocked out and opened the door.

Roxie’s eyes didn’t adjust right away and she bumped into the walls, yelping each time. The loofah and whatever Coco had poured onto it had inflicted worse pain than everything else put together. Roxie could hardly think straight. They opened door after door, but each led to another bedroom or storage space.

Finally, a door led to stairs. They went up quickly and opened the door at the top, blinded by the brightness. The house had been beautiful once, but was now dirty and reeked. Heavy draperies were ripped and some of the formal furniture toppled over onto its side. A thick layer of dust coated the tables and the high ceilings had a tinge of grey.

“Let’s find the garage,” Ian said.

They moved through the rooms until they found the kitchen. Roxie gagged—the smell was repulsive. Dishes with leftover food had been left out on the countertops. Maggots squirmed in a mixing bowl. Coco had been on tour for months, so the mess was at least that old.

Ian moved past her, opening doors.

“Bathroom. Laundry. Pantry. Garage! Come on, Roxie!”

She followed him into the garage and looked at the row of cars. Five of them.

“Do you have any idea what she drove?” he asked, looking in each car.

“No,” Roxie answered.

“I think I could … oh wait…” He looked in the windows of the white BMW and moved to the trunk. “Jackpot,” he said, holding up the toolkit. He opened it up and found a valet key.

Roxie shuffled to the car and got in. He started the car and pressed the garage door opener. They pulled out quickly. The house was a sprawling mansion.

Ian whistled. “Do you see the address?”

A huge rock out front had the house number.

“4257 Windhill Drive,” Roxie repeated over and over.

When they drove away, the shakes took over. Ian turned the heater up.

“Make sure your seat warmer’s on,” he said. “I … have no idea where we are…”

They saw one other house not too far and then a mountain stood between the other houses. They drove through the canyon, toward the valley. It was ten minutes before they saw a gas station or restaurant.

Ian pulled into the gas station. “I just want to find out where we are and call the police,” he said. “Keep the car locked and start honking if anything goes wrong.”

Roxie nodded but wanted to chase after him so she didn’t have to be alone. She huddled under the blanket. A car pulled in the parking lot and Roxie ducked, but then peeked carefully over the seat to see if it was Coco.

She was chained up and knocked out cold. She couldn’t have gotten out of there so quickly, she told herself. The police would get there before Coco could get out of those chains. But Roxie’s heart wouldn’t stop pounding. A man got out of the car and walked past her to go inside. She let out a rush of air. Ian was talking to the older man behind the counter; they turned to look at her and kept talking. Her body shook uncontrollably and she felt like she was gonna be sick. She opened her car door in time to throw up on the asphalt.

She heard Ian, but his voice came from a tunnel far away. Cutting in and out.

“Need—her—hospital—how—”

She felt him in the car beside her and wanted to reassure him that she was okay, but she remembered telling Beckham she wasn’t a liar. Her vision had black smudges dusting around the edges. She gave her head a good shake and the dark swallowed her up.

Beckham was sick of waiting. He felt helpless listening to Dion drone on about what little they knew regarding Ian’s disappearance. Dion’s phone buzzed and he held up a hand.

“Excuse me. I should take this.”

He was on for a few minutes and when he hung up, his expression was grave.

“They’ve confirmed it is Ian’s car,” he said.

Sparrow gasped and covered her eyes with her hand. Journey fidgeted on her lap, but she was quiet.

“They’re searching the water too but haven’t found anything yet,” he added.

Sparrow’s phone vibrated. She lifted her hand and Beckham cringed at the anguish on her face. She was all splotchy and the tears just kept spilling over.

She swiped her screen and stared at the phone before dropping it.

“Sparrow?” Beckham moved toward the phone and picked it up. A picture filled the screen and long blonde hair caught his eye. He held it closer and felt the wind get knocked out of him when he saw the whole picture.

Roxie was on top of Ian, naked. Her hair was wet and she looked beautiful. Beckham’s vision clouded and he blinked, trying to focus. Her breasts were on Ian’s chest; her hair splayed out through his fingers. Ian and Roxie?

Sparrow stared at him with haunted eyes. He gulped.

“We don’t know what this is,” Beckham said. “We don’t know.” He reached in his pocket and pulled out his phone, feeling it vibrate. His picture showed Ian leaning over Roxie, kissing her face.

“Let me see,” Sparrow said.

Beckham hesitated to hand it to her.

“Let. Me. See.”

Dion stood up and took a look at both pictures. “Have either of them given you reason to suspect they were having an affair?”

Both were quiet, thinking through the past few months.

Beckham spoke first. “Not at all.”

Sparrow shook her head. “No. It’s never once crossed my mind…”

“Do you recognize this number?” Dion asked.

Sparrow sounded dejected when she answered. “It’s Ian’s number.”

Beckham nodded.

“The good news is they probably won’t find Ian’s body in the water,” Dion said, lightly.

Beckham and Howie glared at Dion and the older man had the decency to look remorseful.

“I think this is all Coco,” Beckham said. “Sparrow, look at me. I know this looks bad, but just think about it. Neither of them would do this to us. Well, I don’t have any claims on Roxie, but she wouldn’t do this to you,” he clarified.

Sparrow’s eyes glistened with tears. “You’re right. She wouldn’t. He wouldn’t. I trust them.” And then softer: “I do.” She shifted Journey onto the other hip. “I don’t know how he’d have time to have an affair…” She tried to smile.

“We can’t let this distract us from finding them.” He looked at Dion. “You’ve already run a track on Ian’s phone?”

“Yes. I’ll run another, though, see if anything new turns up.”

Dion made a few phone calls, and Sparrow walked in front of the window, back and forth, until Journey fell asleep. She sat on the couch and looked exhausted herself. When her phone went off, she jumped and nearly dropped the phone while trying to answer it.

“Baby?”

Beckham could hear Ian’s voice through the phone. He raised his head to the ceiling and took a deep breath. Thank God.

“Ian?” she cried.

Dion stopped talking and everyone stared at Sparrow.

“Okay. Okay, we will. I’m with him right now.” She glanced at Beckham and stood up. “They’re together,” she told Beck. “Mission Hospital. We need to go now.”

Dion nodded and got on his cell, while they all walked out of Dion’s office.

Sparrow sniffled. “Are you okay? Is she?”

The tears kept falling down her cheeks. Beckham was divided between making sure she was okay and snatching the phone out of her hands to hear what Ian was saying.

Sparrow was quiet, listening. Then she put her hand on Beckham’s arm, her eyes wide. “Roxie’s unconscious—she was beaten pretty badly,” she said.

“What?” Beckham paused mid-step then rushed forward when Sparrow gripped his arm.

Howie held up the keys and Beckham nodded.

Sparrow shook her head and choked up. “I can’t believe it.” She paused. “We’re on our way. We’ll get there as soon as we can.” She could barely get the words out. “I know, babe. I’m not gonna let you out of my sight.” Her voice shook. “I love you.”

She hung up and Beckham stared at her.

“He hung up? I need to talk to him,” he said.

“I know, I’m sorry—the police got there,” she said.

Will stepped up. “I’ll take Sparrow and Journey,” he said.

Beckham nodded. “Did he say anything else about Roxie?”

She shook her head and wiped her face. “Just that he’s worried about her.” She opened her car door and squared her shoulders. “She’ll be okay, Beckham. We have to hurry so she knows we’re there with her and that she’s safe.”

Both cars drove at breakneck speed to get to the hospital across town. Howie and Dion flanked either side of Beckham as they rushed to the ER.

“Can you tell me which room Roxie Taylor is in?” Beckham asked the receptionist. “Miss, please?”

Her shiny blue nails clicked on the keyboard as she finished typing whatever she was working on. Finally, she looked up at him in annoyance. Her mouth dropped.

“Roxie Taylor?” he repeated.

“I’m a big fan of yours,” she said. “Like, the biggest.” She scrolled down the screen. “She’s been moved to ICU.” She pressed a button on her phone. “Can you cover the desk? I’m taking a break.” She looked at Beckham. “I can take you to her room,” she said softly. She didn’t look at the people in line behind him.

Several made a commotion about her walking away, but she didn’t respond. When the whole group moved with Beckham, she turned and frowned at Sparrow and the baby. “Only one person at a time.”

Beckham sighed. “She’s here to see her husband. We’re not sure if he was admitted. If not, he’s probably with Roxie. Ian Sterling?”

“If Ian Sterling is here, I’ma throw a hissy that I didn’t hear about it.” She looked at the hulking men staring her down and took a deep breath. A code alert went over the sound system and seemed to jar her into moving. With a flick of her hand, she motioned them back and they walked through the double doors. When they reached Roxie’s door, it was open and the room was full of doctors and nurses. The receptionist looked alarmed and backed up.

“You’ll have to stay out here for now,” she said. “I’ll take you to an empty room, so you can be close.”

“What’s going on?” Beckham asked. “Please.” He was stunned by all the doctors around Roxie’s bed. Her body rose and fell beneath the CPR. “No,” he whispered. “Roxie!” he cried louder. “I’m here.”

Leo.

Beep—beep

Beckham.

Beep—beep—beep—beep—beep

Beckham was pulled away and taken to a nearby chair. Sparrow clutched his hand and they watched as activity continued to be hectic around Roxie. An officer stood nearby and Dion began talking with him. Howie and Will stood like a barricade close to Beckham, Sparrow, and Journey. A nurse stopped when she saw them.

“Are you Sparrow?” she asked.

Sparrow nodded and the nurse smiled.

“Your husband has been describing you in great detail to anyone who would listen.” She looked Sparrow over. “He was right on the money.” She leaned in closer and whispered. “He’s a little happy on some meds right now. I can take you to see him whenever you’re ready.”

“Thank you!” Sparrow glanced at Beckham. “Can you tell us about Roxie Taylor?” she asked.

“Yes, I’ll see what I can find out,” she said.

Beckham put his hand on Sparrow’s back. “Go be with him. I’ll text you when I hear something.”

Sparrow gave him a quick hug. “I’ll be close—I’ll check on Ian and come back.”

The sound from Roxie’s room seemed to shift, a flurry of white lab coats and green scrubs exiting the room. Beckham stood up and moved closer. He stopped one of the nurses walking out.

“Is she okay?”

She seemed startled but nodded as she pressed the antibacterial foam hanging on the wall into her hand.

“And you are?” she asked.

“Her boyfriend.” I hope.

She nodded. “The gentleman who brought her in said you’d be coming. She’s stable. I’ll have the doctor who’s in with her now come talk to you as soon as he can.”

“Thank you.”

It was some time before the doctor came out. Roxie’s parents arrived in the meantime and they sat together, trying to piece together what little they knew of the kidnapping and what she’d been through with Coco. The doctor introduced himself and launched into his update.

“Roxie is stable. Because of a broken rib, she had a tension pneumothorax, which caused her to code. A chest tube relieved the pressure and she’s breathing a lot better now. I’d still like to see her saturation levels come up. After speaking with Dr. Herring at Cedar Sinai and also Mr. Sterling, we know her lungs were under duress before the kidnapping. What her body endured after that…” He shook his head. “She is a fighter. We’ll keep a close eye on her. She seems to be responding well to the oxygen now. We’ve given her something to help with the pain, so hopefully she can rest well tonight. You should get some rest too.”

They all had questions and he answered them patiently, but really the bottom line was that they’d have to wait and see…

They were allowed to sit with her and when Beckham got his chance to hold her hand, he whispered into her ear.

“Hey, Rox. I’m here, and I’m not leaving you for even a second. Doc says you’re a fighter and I have never been happier hearing those words about you. I love my kitten with claws.” He leaned in closer. “Do you hear me? I love you, Roxie.” His voice caught in his chest and he sagged into the chair by her bed, still clutching her hand. Her parents were sitting on her other side.

He looked down at the hand he was holding and his heart plummeted. What the hell had happened to her? The hand that had been hurt in the fire looked infected and the one he was holding looked raw and exposed.

She was covered with bruises and cuts and blood. One side of her face looked normal, but the other side was puffy and shades of blue, purple, green, and pink. The pictures of her with Ian seemed even more strategic now that he saw her. She’d been photographed on her good side.

He’d never wanted to kill anyone, but the thought crossed his mind that he didn’t care whether Coco lived or died, just as long as she didn’t get away with this.

The day stretched on, endless, and late that evening, Roxie was moved to a different room. The nurses allowed Beckham and Roxie’s parents to stay with her. Beckham was grateful—he couldn’t stand the thought of leaving her. Daniel left around midnight so he could be with Leo and Chloe the next morning, but her mom stayed. They were hoping the staff would let Leo visit Roxie. Her levels had been good for a few hours. They encouraged them to keep talking to her.

Beckham did just that, pouring his heart out to Roxie, and in the process, her mother, Rachel, also got an earful.

“I hope you can hear me. I want to start over, not forgetting what we’ve been through, but having a clear slate from here on. I’ve made so many mistakes, and you’ve paid for a lot of them. Some that you don’t know yet, but I’ll tell you everything, I promise. I don’t want any secrets.”

He looked at her mom. “I know you heard about the paternity test. If I’d just trusted Roxie when she told me the truth, it would have saved us both a lot of pain. I just wanted him to be mine so badly. That kid is …” Beckham smiled faintly, “something special. Like his mom.” He looked at Roxie, lying there so helpless, and felt his heart break. “I want both of them more than anything. My life felt complete for that brief amount of time when she let me in.” His voice broke. “Please wake up, Roxie. Come back to me. I’ll get it right this time. You’re the only one for me.” He leaned his forehead on the side of her bed. “I will live every day trying to deserve you,” he said quietly. “Let me show you how much I love you.”

Rachel blew her nose and cleared her throat. Beckham looked up at her, startled from his heart-to-heart.

“If you say half the things you’ve said to her when she’s awake, I don’t see how she can refuse.” She smiled and dabbed her eyes.

A nurse brought in a few extra pillows for them and Rachel eventually fell asleep. Beckham kept talking and faded with the sunrise.

She hadn’t been this angry in a long time.

Three years.

This might even surpass that anger … in fact, she was sure it did. Loving Beckham had cost her something. It had not been easy. She’d made sacrifices, lost years of her life, and the people she loved … she’d risked everything to have him.

She shook the chain and felt it cutting into her skin. Tears rolled down her face.

Her parents tried to stop her.

When they realized she wasn’t going to let anyone stand in her way of getting Beckham Woods, they threatened to put her away, lock her up.

“You can’t stop me,” she screamed.

Her parents had forced her to kill them. She’d lost part of herself that day. It hurt. The rage nearly sunk her. It wasn’t fair. They’d been decent parents—older and reclusive. She still missed them every day. They were ‘building wells in Africa’ and other exciting things in remote destinations. She periodically went through their email and had ‘them’ touch base.

She should be able to have whoever she wanted and still have her parents around to enjoy it with her. In a way they were. They weren’t far.

It felt like poetic justice somehow.

One day, when he moved in with her, it would be complete.

But this was the worst—two people who had everything, everything handed to them, and they still stood in her way. Ian had a successful career, a beautiful wife and daughter. Roxie could have a dancing career anywhere in the world and she had a perfect little boy. And they couldn’t let her have Beckham?

She screamed and cried and twisted and shook until she felt the chain begin to loosen. One hand got free. She shut her mouth and focused in earnest then to escape.

Melissa, Ian’s nurse, came in the room and smiled. “You ready to break out of this joint?”

Sparrow roused out of her place on the couch and sat up.

Ian grinned. “So ready. You letting me out of here?”

“Dr. Michaels is on his way to tell you when, but like he said earlier, your scan looked fine.” Melissa took his temperature. “You’ll be sore for a while, I expect, but we’ll send some meds home with you. Temp is normal.” She wrote on her chart. “The police are wanting to speak with you again. You up for that?”

“Sure,” he said. “You’ll be glad to see me go. Grand Central can slow down.”

He looked over at Sparrow and Journey. When Sparrow wasn’t checking on Roxie, she’d been in the crowded room with him for hours, along with a revolving door of other people. He’d talked to Dion and several guys from his team, three police officers, doctors, nurses. Between answering questions and having tests run, he felt he’d hardly gotten to talk to Sparrow.

She’d been quiet and looked exhausted. Journey had finally settled down after a long stretch of being restless.

“I’ll be back shortly with a prescription list,” Melissa said.

Ian turned to Sparrow. “Have you gotten any sleep at all since … everything?” he asked.

“No.” She laughed lightly. “I’m a mess.”

“You’ve always been a thousand kinds of beautiful,” he said. “Inside and out. My Little Bird of a thousand and one faces.”

Her eyes filled.

“I made it out of there—I’m fine.” He lowered his head but kept his eyes on her. “I can’t imagine what it’s been like for you, not knowing where I was. I was going crazy not being able to get to you.”

Her tears spilled over. “Right before you called, we’d gotten word that your car was found in the ocean. The thought of you being in that water…” She shook her head. “I don’t think it’s all hit me yet, everything that’s happened. I’ve imagined every worst-case scenario since you didn’t make it home for our anniversary dinner.”

He groaned and picked up her hand, kissing her knuckles. “Happy Anniversary. I want a do-over. I had a … it doesn’t matter.” He touched her cheek. “We’ll have our celebration. I need a date with you. Bad.” He grinned at Journey sleeping next to Sparrow.

Sparrow looked down at her hands. “I need to ask you about something.”

There was a long pause. “Okay…”

“Beckham and I got texts of you and … Roxie…” She looked up at him then.

He stared back at her, his heart pounding. “You saw those?” He sat up higher and winced. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Sparrow leaned forward but didn’t come as close as he wanted, so he shifted his legs off the bed and pulled her closer.

“Baby, come here. Coco is sick in the head. Sick.” He shuddered. “You’ve seen how awful Roxie looks. I’m guessing that didn’t show in the pictures? And Beckham saw that too?” He made a face and leaned back against the pillows. “I’m sorry you saw that. I … really hoped you wouldn’t. That crazy bitch forced us into those poses.”

“Beckham didn’t believe it was real. He talked sense into me,” Sparrow said.

“So you believed it?” He couldn’t hide the hurt he felt over that.

“No. For a moment, I was … uncertain. It did look real. But I knew I could trust you.”

Ian’s shoulders sagged as he exhaled. “You can. Always.”

Someone knocked and a police officer leaned in. “Mind if we ask you a few more questions?”

Ian shook his head. “Come in.”

Two officers walked in. One had a folder in his hand and opened it up to show Ian a picture. “Do you recognize this room?”

Ian’s eyes narrowed. “Yes. It’s where I was locked up, and where I left her chained to the bed.” He swallowed. “Did you find her?”

The officer looked down at the picture. “There was no sign of the suspect. We have a team searching every inch of that property. Her picture is already up on every news channel. We will find her.” He closed the folder and stood with his arms crossed. “The fact that Beckham Woods’ girlfriend was kidnapped makes this already a high-profile case. But add you to the mix, and the public is in an uproar. No one is going to let her get away.”

Ian looked at his wife and little girl and wished to God he’d made sure Coco couldn’t walk out of that house alive.

“God help us,” he said.

After Ian was discharged and assured Sparrow he was fine—a little sore, but fine—they went to Roxie’s room. The hospital was willing to bend on the rules a little bit for him. He didn’t have to leave in a wheelchair. No one was quite sure where they should go anyway, with Coco still out there. It seemed like more guards had accumulated outside his door during the night, and when they reached the outside of Roxie’s room, it was also fully secured.

Dion smiled when he saw Sparrow and Journey, and he shook Ian’s hand.

“Good to see you up and around. You had your wife worried sick,” he said, patting Sparrow on the back.

Ian cringed and leaned over to kiss Sparrow’s temple. “Not my finest hour,” he said.

“I was just getting ready to head to your room,” Dion said. “We need to talk.”

Ian bit his bottom lip and nodded.

“Any word on Roxie?” Sparrow asked.

Roxie’s dad stepped out of the room, looking exhausted. He introduced himself and apologized in the same sentence.

“Sorry I’m leaving … I’ll be right back—gonna pick up Chloe and Leo to come see Roxie. Just wanted to see her before I brought Leo…” His voice cracked at the end. “You should check on Beckham. He hasn’t left the side of her bed all night.”

Beckham leaned his head back and his neck and shoulder blades made a loud protest. When he righted himself, he looked at Roxie and she was staring back at him.

He gasped and stood up then quickly sat back down.

“Roxie!” He wanted to wrap his arms around her, but he was afraid of hurting her. “How are you feeling?”

She swallowed and sounded hoarse when she finally spoke. “Like I’ve been beat up.” One side of her mouth lifted and she briefly closed her eyes. “You look so tired, Beckham.” It seemed like it hurt for her to even talk. “How long have you been here?”

“Ian let us know you were here yesterday afternoon. I came as soon as I heard. Not leaving you,” he said with a smile.

“How is Ian?” she asked.

“He’s doing well. In some pain, but Sparrow texted that he’d be discharged soon. They’ve been asking about you every ten minutes. When you see all the texts on my phone, you’ll see how popular you are,” he teased.

He remembered the text from Coco and his smile dropped. He pushed it down. It didn’t matter.

“I’m … so sorry, Roxie. I can’t imagine what a nightmare that was.”

Roxie’s eyes filled and she leaned her head back on the pillow. A tear dropped on her cheek. “Yeah.”

“I need to let your mom know you’re awake. She just went to grab coffee. She hasn’t left your side before now.”

“Has Leo been here?”

“Your dad said he was gonna bring him in a little bit.”

“Good,” she whispered. Her eyes closed and she dozed for a few minutes. She jolted and her eyes were huge when she opened them.

“You’re safe. I’m not letting anyone near you,” he said.

He stood and leaned over her, kissing her hair, the one spot on her that didn’t look hurt.

The nurse came in and thoroughly examined Roxie. Beckham watched in amazement as she didn’t flinch even once. His insides cringed just looking at her bruises. And the broken ribs—she had to be in so much pain.

“The doctor is on his way to see you. He was pleased with the way your night went, but he’ll want to see you now that you’re awake,” the nurse said with a smile.

She looked at the tray of food that Roxie hadn’t touched. “Can you try to eat a little something?”

“I’ll try,” Roxie said.

“Good. Time for meds. Why don’t you try some of that juice?”

After the doctor had been in, Dion arrived. Roxie was taking a nap and Beckham stepped toward the door and held his hand up to keep it quiet. Dion was in full business mode, so much so that Beckham was about to tell him to come back later, when he brought up leaving the hospital.

“Once Roxie is physically out of danger, I think we should get you both out of here. The Sterlings too. We can hire full-time care until Roxie is feeling 100%, but I’m not comfortable with this…”

Beckham got in Dion’s face.

“They haven’t found Coco?” Beckham snapped. He tried to clear his head with a shake but just wanted to punch the wall. “What have you guys been doing all this time?” He knew that was a bit of a low blow, but he couldn’t seem to rein in his rage.

Dion lowered his head and nodded. “Trust me, I understand your anger. We’re going to find her and we’re going to protect you in the meantime. We’ve been questioning Ian on this, since he has more insight on the house and Coco’s state of mind. And I know you’ve needed to concentrate on her. Now that we know she’s going to be okay, we need to talk about the next plan.”

Beckham took a deep breath.

“One of my men took pictures of the scene and I’d like you to go through them. I tried earlier, but you were in no state of mind to look then. Are you up for it now?” Dion asked quietly.

Beckham swallowed and rubbed a hand over his scruffy jaw. “Yes.” He suddenly felt all the energy eke out of him.

Dion held up a folder. “You sure?”

“Yes. I’m sorry for blowing up.”

“No apologies necessary,” Dion said.

He handed the folder to Beckham. The first picture showed a room with photographs on the walls. There were so many it was hard to tell what the pictures were. He flipped to the next one. It was a close-up of one of the walls. He took a step back and dropped some of the pictures. Different shots splayed out on the floor, the charred ones of him with Roxie shocking him the most.

Dion helped him pick up the pictures and handed him one of a bedroom. “Do you recognize anything in these pictures?”

“Other than the pictures of me that I never knew she was taking? No. Some of these are from when I was a teenager. Family events … who is this girl?”

He went through dozens of pictures and then reached a photograph of the outside of a house. His blood went cold.

“I recognize this house. I … know who she is.” The truth hit him like a brick. “Oh my God. She’s been watching me for at least half of my lifetime. How is that possible?” He stumbled back and sat down in the chair by Roxie’s bed.

He was fifteen and had been going out with Lana Redley for about a month. She was a few years older and already had her own car. She’d sneak into his bedroom late at night and they’d make out for hours. She was a little reckless for him, but he liked her.

His first time had been with Lana. He didn’t want her to leave afterward, but she had to work early the next morning, so he walked her to her car that night. Someone jogged by and stopped when they saw him.

“B-beckham? What are you doing here?” she asked.

Beckham could barely see her in the dark, but he recognized that awkward voice. He’d met her at school and every time he saw her he tried to be friendly—she was such a loner.

“Hey, Colette! I live here. What are you doing here?” He laughed.

The night was brisk, so he put his arm around Lana and pulled her closer.

Colette made a weird sound and he looked at Lana, wondering if he’d imagined it. She gave a subtle shrug.

Colette coughed. “Oh w-wow,” she said. “I live right there.” She pointed at the house next to his, their only neighbor for miles.

“So crazy!” he said. “I had no idea.”

Distracted, he turned to Lana and gave her ponytail a tug. He nuzzled his nose into her hair, and if Colette hadn’t been around, he’d lean Lana against this car and go again.

Colette coughed again.

“I’ve gotta go,” Lana said, backing up. “Thanks for the best-” She leaned in and said the rest in his ear.

He laughed and kissed her. When she got in the car, he closed the door for her and stood staring at the car after she’d driven away.

“She your girlfriend?” Colette asked.

For a moment, he’d forgotten she was there.

“I think she is now,” he said, smiling. “Night, Colette!” He jogged backwards, waving at her before turning around and going back in the house.

Lana was found dead two days later. She’d hung herself with a rope in her bedroom.

Beckham could never reconcile the fun-loving girl he’d known with a girl who would kill herself, but everyone had their own theories about her being depressed and not having the greatest family life.

He’d started drinking shortly after that.

“Beckham?” Roxie called.

Beckham turned, dazed. How many other casualties have there been? He looked at Roxie. She was looking at him with concern.

“We have to get you somewhere safer,” he whispered.

It was a few more days before the hospital was comfortable releasing Roxie. Although she was still sore, she was breathing much better. Her hand hadn’t been infected, just needed cleaning. Once it was treated, it improved. The bruises and cuts still looked awful, but she was moving around better and never complained about how she felt.