SUMMER

 

Escalators have always terrified me. There’s just something about the idea that I’m always one loose shoe string away from being dragged to my death that really just turns my face pale white. Ascending or descending, it doesn’t matter.

There’s a nervous knot twisted inside my stomach as Taylor and I descend from the third floor to the first. Once we land on the tiled floors of the first floor, I breathe a sigh of relief.

Taylor nudges me with her elbow and offers me the type of playful grin that only an older sister could ever provide. Since the time we were young, she has always kept me close and protected me, even in the moments I swore that I could protect myself.

With both hands occupied with shopping bags from assorted stores, it’s my intention to make a beeline for the parking garage so we can get home before the evening rush hour starts.

Taylor seems to have other plans, cocking her head to a kiosk in the center of the bustling mall. Diamonds glitter underneath the harsh glow of overhead lights. The expensive jewelry is sealed off with what has to be bulletproof glass.

“Don’t you have enough diamonds already?” I grumble under my breath, all the while realizing this isn’t a battle I’m suited to win. Nothing, and I do mean nothing, could ever stand in the way between Taylor and jewelry.

Certainly not money since she and her husband are loaded with it.

“You know me.” She cranes her head over her shoulder, a glowing teeth-baring smile hitched across her face before she’s racing towards the kiosk. She slings her bags on top of the counter and then bends to her knees, her eyes filled with lust as she gazes over the selection of rings, necklaces, and watches.

I stand in the background with a lopsided stance, patiently waiting for her to make her selection. It’s been this way for as long as I can remember. It seems I’ve always played second fiddle to my older sister.

She always had the drive, the intelligence, and the wisdom. I used to think my parents thought I was broken or something because I could never live up to her potential. She got married young, got married to the right guy, and now they live the perfect upper-class existence.

I’m not jealous though. I’m more than content with my life. Nine months out of the year, I wake up early in the morning and return home late at night. Knowing that I’m making a difference in young students’ lives is more valuable to me than any diamond could ever be.

But when my eyes catch a particular diamond pendant strung along a white gold chain, I can’t help but to take a closer look. I drop my bags onto the ground beside me and drop to my knees, gazing at the glittering piece of jewelry that has to cost more than a month’s salary.

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Taylor questions from beside me and turns to me with a grin.

I offer her a frown in return as my gaze meets hers. “That I’m going to go home and drown my sorrows in a bucket of rocky road ice cream?”

“You’ve always been a pessimist.” She shakes her head and twists back to make heart-shaped eyes at the diamond pendant. “You need to learn to think more positively.”

“I’m thinking realistically.” I sigh before scooping the bags back off the ground and standing up, my knees creaking as I do so. For being thirty years old, I often feel like my body is aging twice as fast as it should. “Now can you hurry up and make a purchase? I have an appointment with the six o’clock news and I’d hate to get stuck in traffic.”

“Excuse me?” The woman behind the counter says as she braces each hand against the glass top. With long, sleek black hair, she looks intimidating but there’s a sweet softness to her voice that’s calming. “I can’t help but to notice that you both have your eyes set upon the same diamond and just so you’re aware, we have two in stock.”

“That’s okay.” I muster a smile. “It’s a little out of my price range.”

“But not mine.” Taylor draws a finger to her plumped up lips—just one of a few minor enhancements she’s made to her face since her husband sold his first company.

“Yeah, yeah,” I mumbled under my breath, “you don’t have to rub it in.”

“Stop being a Debbie-downer.” She cocks her head to me, and then back to the saleswoman—whose name is Sheila if her gold-plated name tag is to be believed. “Can I see that pendant?”

“I figured you’d ask.” Sheila twists a key into a lock and slides the glass panel open. She bends down onto her knees and gently pulls the pendant out of the case to hand it over to Taylor.

I exhale a breath of hot air. Though I’m happy and fulfilled in my life, and take great pleasure in being a lowly paid government worker, sometimes I wish I could just splurge thousands of dollars on something nice.

Taylor turns to me, her teeth mashing against her lower lip. She steps towards me and lowers the pendant over my head. The white gold chain is cold against my neck, and for some reason my heart begins to race as she pushes my long hair out of the way.

She takes a measured step back, folds her arms over each other and offers me an approving glance. My hand drops to the diamond pendant, caressing it softly before letting out another hot sigh.

“You know I can’t afford this.”

“You still don’t get it, do you?” She rolls her eyes and twists back to Sheila. “I’d like to buy both of them, please.”

“Wh… What?” I stutter and rush forward, reaching to unhook the chain from behind my neck. “You can’t do that.”

She shoots me an icy glare. “This is America and I can do whatever the hell I want.”

As a history teacher—yes, there are women history teachers—I’m well aware of the benefits and privileges that come with being an American. And I’m grateful, but that has nothing to do with anything.

“How much are these?” I question Sheila with a burning in the back of my throat.

“They’re just under two thousand… each.”

“Yeah, no thank you.” I reach across the counter to hand the necklace back to Sheila, but Taylor’s hand catches my wrist. “This is absurd.”

“What this is is a loving sister gifting her beautiful sister something she more than deserves. Now, put that damn necklace back on before you make me cause a scene.”

I was once the sole witness to her having a public meltdown in a suburban Target store and it’s not an event I wish to relive. Also, she’s right, I do deserve something nice. Or maybe I don’t, but I’m more than content to talk myself into believing I do as I hook the chain back around my neck.

Taylor digs into her clutch and hands the woman her Black card.

# # #

The exit sign is just up ahead and we’re almost out of the mall when Taylor’s eyes once again drift away. This time, she finds herself window-shopping a line of petite evening gowns that glitter with metallic sparkles. Thankfully, it doesn’t keep her attention long and we’re back towards finally getting out of this darn money-trap of an establishment.

The automatic glass doors slide open as we approach and something grabs my attention in the glass reflection—a man behind us with dark sunglasses standing with his arms crossed by a vending machine.

The hot summer air of the parking lot threatens to steal my breath, and as I look over my shoulder the man I had seen earlier is gone. I stare for a second longer, my eyes searching for him until I’m smacked in the chest and a horn blares in my ear.

I jump in place and let out a yelp as I twist back to reality. My chest heaves as I fight to catch my breath. Taylor glares at me, her arm still pressed tight against my chest as a car speeds off into the distance.

“Jesus, Summer. Are you trying to get yourself killed?”

“There was a…” I begin, but quickly get distracted while looking over my shoulder once more. “Never mind.”

“You’re welcome, by the way.”

“For what?”

“For saving your ass.” She smirks. “And for buying that necklace.”

“Right.” I swallow nervously and clutch the diamond hanging from my neck. “Thank you for both.”

“If you would have gotten run over, I would have been extremely sad. Both because I love you and that diamond would have probably been scratched as well.”

I roll my eyes and elbow her playfully as we cross the parking garage. She leads slightly, her high heels clicking against the concrete pavement.

The garage itself is slightly desolate, with more open spaces than occupied ones. I had read a while back that shopping malls were a dying breed and that online stores would force the majority of malls into closing.

In the near distance, a car alarm begins to squeal, the noise piercing right through my ears.

When I look over to where the loud beeping is coming from, my throat tenses and the back of my throat dries in an instant. There’s a man standing behind an open door of a black SUV with sunglasses perched atop his head.

Thud!

I crack my head on a concrete column, dropping the bags from my hand. I groan behind closed eyes as I wipe my palm against my throbbing forehead.

“What has gotten into you?” Taylor questions as she reaches down to collect my bags off the ground. “You almost get hit by a car and now you’re giving yourself a concussion. I’m starting to get worried about you.”

I look back at the man beside the black SUV to find the car speeding down the aisle next to us.

“Can we just get out of here?” I turn back to my sister, grab my bags back from her and cut diagonally across the garage. From behind me, I hear her heels clicking against the concrete and then her phone ringing.

“Crap,” she groans, her feet coming to a stop.

I turn back to her, my heart racing, to find her digging through her purse trying to find her phone. She retrieves it from her bag and holds it against her ear. “Yes, baby?”

My feet tap nervously against the ground. Something is off or something appears off. I’d rather be safe than sorry. My eyes shift across the way and in the aisle opposite us I see what looks like the same black SUV traveling in the opposite direction from prior.

“That’s fine, baby. I mean, I really wanted to see you tonight, but…” A car races forward, speeding past the both of us with the radio blaring rap music. Taylor braces one hand over her ear. “Yes, I’m telling you it’s fine. I’ll be fine…. Yes, baby, I love you too.”

She hangs up the phone and drops it back into her purse just as the Black SUV rounds the corner up ahead and turns into our aisle.

“I can’t remember where I parked the car.” Taylor cocks her head both ways, blissfully unaware that in my own mind, something terrible is about to happen.

I’ve always been a cautious woman. Growing up, my parents and everyone around me would say I’ve been too cautious and it’s caused me to miss out on certain opportunities. In my mind, it’s always been better to be safe than sorry.

I reach for Taylor’s arm and tug her forward, back towards the mall entrance.

She drags her feet along the cement, forcing me to brake as she breaks away from me. “I’m sure the car is back this way.”

The black SUV creeps forward slowly, the windows themselves also tinted a dark black. The headlights flicker on and off.

I’m frozen in place, trying to convince myself that I’m worrying over nothing. Trying to convince myself that the SUV is going to pass us and be on their way. I just can’t reconcile the feeling squeezing tight around my gut.

I reach for her arm once again, this time gripping her with enough force to hold onto her as I rush back towards the mall opening.

“Have you lost your mind?” she questions, trying to break away from me once more. “What is going on with you?”

I come to a sudden halt as the man I had seen earlier, the one wearing dark shades, steps through the glass doors of the entrance as they slide open.

She breaks away from me and shakes her wrist. “I think you might have cracked your head a little too hard.”

“Taylor…”

“What?” she snaps, her voice breaking with frustration.

“I think these men are following us,” I whisper under my breath and reach back for her hand, but she swats mine away.

“You’re being paranoid,” she scoffs and readjusts the bags hanging from her arms. “Now, can we please get out of here?”

She twists on her feet and begins walking in the opposite direction, deeper into the garage. I follow her, keeping an eye on the man in the dark sunglasses. But as my pace quickens, so does the man’s. He’s gaining ground on us and I have no choice but to rush forward, tearing past Taylor.

Her heels begin to click faster against the hard surface beneath us, and thankfully it seems that she’s finally caught on that something is amiss. And then joining her loud heels, I hear the sounds of sneakers padding against the cement.

It’s a scene right out of a nightmare, a scene right out of a Lifetime movie. You never expect it to happen to you.

“Miss,” the man yells, and for God knows what reason, I stop dead in my tracks and turn to face him. Taylor drops a hand to the small of my back, pulling on the fabric of my shirt.

“Why are you following us?” I yell back, standing firmly in front of Taylor, protecting her.

His chest rises and falls as he reaches under his shirt and pulls out a badge hanging from a lanyard around his neck. “I’m with mall security,” he says, his breath low and husky.

“Jesus,” I scowl, and then chuckle to myself. “You scared the hell out of me.”

“You need to come with me.”

“Why?” I question, shaking my head. “We didn’t do anything.”

He takes a cautious step towards me, holding one hand out as if to prove to me that he’s harmless. My gut instinct says to trust him, but my alarms are still raised so I eye him cautiously in return.

“I think someone is following you.”

My heart stops. The hairs on my arm stand on end. The hot California air threatens to choke and suffocate me. I can’t force the words from my throat, but soon enough, I don’t have to.

The sound of bags hitting the cement comes from behind me. And then muffled screams. Instinctively, I twist on my feet back to my sister. My eyes go wide at the sight—a rough hand cupped over her mouth as a man wearing all black drags her backwards.

And then there’s a thwack against the back of my head, forcing my eyes into a dizzied state. The parking garage around me becomes a blur as I fight to remain standing. A strong hand grabs me around the stomach and pulls me backwards.

I don’t have the strength to fight back…