Chapter Thirteen
Kemara
I kept looking back over our last text. I didn’t want him to think he had to make anything up to me. I just wanted to see him and try to figure out why things ended the way they did. We had a lot of hot and cold moments on nights we dated, but I thought we were on the same page when we left my parents’ house. I hadn’t anticipated that when I seduced him at my apartment, he would stop me, literally tossing my shirt back to me with a confused look on his face. He could barely look at me as he left. It was a pride thing and he had injured mine. I could get past that, as long as he had a good reason why he stopped.
The next night, I headed towards his place. I needed to see him and get down to the nitty gritty of what was going on. As I drove, I thought about everything I wanted to say to him. I considered messaging him to tell him I would be paying him a visit, but decided on a surprise visit.
So, it was just me on the open road, heading to his place, and hoping some answers would be revealed. However, twenty minutes before I got to his house, I stopped at a red light. I was looking around at the businesses in the area and spotted a lodge. In the parking lot was a beat-up pickup truck that looked just like Channing’s.
There’s no way there could be more than one of those beat up pickup trucks in this area, I thought as I giggled.
When I could go at the light, I proceeded to the opening of the parking lot and pulled in. Sure enough, I recognized the dark gray truck with the faded lettering of the Chevy decal. There was also a scratch that ran along the length of his driver’s side door, which came into view once I got closer. He had said that the scratch occurred once when he was in a bar fight and some guy keyed his car. I was always a little prone to the bad boys, so it only intensified the attraction I held for him.
I parked next to him and looked up at the lodge. A million thoughts ran through my mind, starting with, Oh my God, he’s hanging out at this lounge because he’s fucking someone else and that’s why he has no interest in having sex with me. I could feel tears stinging the backs of my eyes as the thought that he could potentially be having an affair dawned on me.
Then, I came down from that fear and considered the lodge was just a place to eat and perhaps that was why he was there. According to the sign they had Great Service and Good Eats, so I calmed my nerves and turned off my car.
Either way, I needed to try to get down to what was going on in the lodge. If it came out that Channing was cheating on me, then so be it. At least, I would know the truth and could attempt to get on with my life without him.
I jumped out of the car, locked it up, and headed to the front door. I took a deep breath, as I entered the rustic-looking lodge, not knowing what to expect once I got inside. When I walked through the doors, there was a large reception desk in the front lobby. I was nervous, but I walked up there, just to see if Channing was there.
“May I help you?” The male receptionist asked.
“Yes! I was wondering if you had a guest here by the name of Channing Holloway,” I asked.
“I’m sorry, Miss, but I can’t give out that information,” he said.
My face fell. I nodded my understanding and thought maybe that would be the end of it. “Where’s your restaurant?” I asked.
He pointed me in the direction, but when I started to head that way, he stopped me. “Uh ma’am, the restaurant is closed today, because there’s a meeting going on,” he said and anxiously rose to his feet. “It will open back up tomorrow at six in the morning, ma’am. Come back then.”
I glanced at him, once again feeling disappointed. “Okay. Thanks for your time.”
As I started to walk back to the front door, something stopped me. I needed to talk to Channing and he was there. There had to be another way. I turned around and saw the receptionist was bent down in a file cabinet and didn’t notice I was still there. I decided to go at least peak in on that meeting to let Channing know I was there. Perhaps, it was a meeting for construction workers, or something like that. He should be able to step out for a short while, so we could talk.
I went off in the direction of the restaurant. When I got closer, I spotted the sign at the restraint entrance. “Closed for New Aryan Nation meeting,” I read quietly.
My jaw dropped, and I tilted my head. I didn’t know much about them, other than they were a group that wanted to kill black people. They were no better than the KKK. I swallowed the lump that formed in my throat, fearful that I would see Channing in the meeting, but I couldn’t turn back. I had to know. I wasn’t sure if it would be better than learning he was having an affair, or worse. I was confident it would have the same lasting results either way. I opened the door to the restaurant and stepped inside.
I stayed in the back, but scoured my eyes quickly around the room, until I spotted him. He sat near the front of the room, several other men gathered around him. I couldn’t believe my eyes. My vision went blurry as all kind of thoughts rushed through my mind. My Channing was in a group that wanted to do away with people like me. A knot formed in my stomach, and I felt sick.
“Hey, bitch! What are you doing in here?” a strong voice yelled out in my direction.
I turned my eyes to a man that was at the back of the room. I recognized him as one of the men from the gas station I’d seen the day Channing and I first met. He was glaring in the way that made me self-conscious and nervous. Then, all eyes were on me. I turned around and my eyes met Channing’s. He stood up and stared in my direction. I wanted to just crawl under a table, until everyone forgot about me. This would go down as one of the worst nights of my life.
Since my legs wouldn’t move, I was stuck there, as daggers shot my way. I wondered how Channing would attempt to get out of this one, or had I been played all along. More importantly, I wondered if I would make it out of that room alive.