Chapter 2
Kathryn
Saturday morning, I had difficulty forcing myself out of bed. My head hurt from the thoughts spinning around in it, and I was still reeling from last night’s confrontations.
Both of them.
It was hard enough to come home after the experience at the night club. Seeing Zane, having the best sex of my life, feeling like I was walking on air as my body buzzed with the afterglow. Those things had me on a natural high. But it was all distorted by the cryptic things Zane said, the way he was still holding back and keeping secrets, and the discovery that two men who looked like assassins were watching his every move. It didn’t help that the reason they were hanging over his shoulder was to find me – or rather, Crystal, who they assumed was the woman putting a serious kink in some other chick’s plan for a future with Zane.
The question was, who was she?
And the answer presented itself at my door, shortly after I got home. The blond woman I’d seen in the promotional photos and again outside my apartment came right to the door and announced herself and her intentions in no uncertain terms. The image replayed in my head amidst all the questions, over and over, in complete clarity.
She’d said her name was Samantha, which didn’t really mean much to me and obviously meant nothing at all to Crystal. I tried to intervene. “Hey, maybe I…”
But Crystal turned a glare at me that shut me up instantly, waving me away. She had turned right back to the blonde, and I moved so I could at least see her expression and watch the stranger at the same time, assuring there was no danger. I wouldn’t let Crystal get hurt because of my predicament.
Whatever that was.
Her brows drawn tightly and creasing her brow, Crystal shook her head. “I’m sorry. Should I know you? Or Zane, for that matter?”
She was really convincing, and I had to wonder if some of her naivety was a complete farce. To see her pretend to be oblivious and pull it off so well made me wonder about the personality she showed the world.
But the woman – Samantha, apparently – scoffed. “Don’t play stupid with me, you lousy little bitch. I know all about you and Zane, and I’m telling you to stay away. I’m not someone you want to mess with, okay?”
Crystal gave her wide eyes and a blank expression. “I’m sure that won’t be a problem, since I have no clue who you’re talking about.”
“This is serious business!” Samantha exploded, and she pointed a finger at Crystal, that long nail looking like it was going to stab right through my roommate’s eye. She had a short fuse and a violent temper, and I didn’t put it past her to do just that. “Look, maybe I didn’t make myself clear. But you’re a goldfish swimming with piranhas right now. This is way bigger than you, and you’re not equipped to deal with it. So, I suggest you take the free pass I’m giving you before you get eaten alive. Stay away from Zane!”
With that, the blonde had turned and stomped down the steps in her expensive heels. Crystal leaned out the door, calling after her, “Come again sometime!” just as the door on the ground floor slammed shut.
Crystal closed the door, locked it, and turned to me, folding her arms over her chest. “Why on earth did you even think about telling this woman you were the one seeing Zane?”
I gaped at her. “Because it’s true? And because I didn’t want you involved.”
“Well, let her be confused. She doesn’t seem to know your name or mine, and she’s never seen you with him,” Crystal said, yawning. “Listen, I’m exhausted, and that woman got me all riled up for a minute, which made me even more tired. I’m sure you’ve got a lot to tell me, and I want to hear every detail, but I don’t think I can give it all the proper attention right now. I’m going to bed, and we’ll talk over breakfast in the morning.”
I’d gone to bed, too, although it took me forever to actually fall asleep. I couldn’t seem to get Samantha out of my head, and she ranked at the top of the list of red flags, beside those gorillas at Zane’s side last night.
Luckily, when I finally dozed off, I was too tired to dream. I’m sure I would have had nightmares. But now, I had to remind myself that wallowing in self-pity in my bed all day wouldn’t get me anywhere. I felt defeated, and that wasn’t the sort of thing I took well. I could lie here and fester in my frustration, or I could get up and either do something about it or move past it.
So, I forced myself to stand and traipse over to my closet, dress, and go to the bathroom to wash my face. It was time to tell Crystal everything. She’d gotten involved last night, made herself a target, and she needed to know what I knew.
I thought back to what I’d overheard in the car between Samantha and the whining man. There was a lot I needed to explain to my roommate before she blew off the threat.
And maybe she could help me figure out if the heated discussion I’d overheard might be related to whatever Samantha had meant by ‘something big’ that I was getting involved in. And if it was possible that Zane, too, was involved in something scandalous.
Staring at myself in the mirror and noting the dark circles of a restless night under my eyes, and shook my head. “I can’t believe I’ve gotten myself wrapped up in something so complicated,” I said to my reflection. Christian might have been boring, and he wasn’t right for me, but at least that had been simple. Ever since I met Zane, life had been a big fat mess.
I met Crystal in the kitchen, just as she pulled some cheddar biscuits out of the oven and turned off the gravy she’d heated on the stove. “Good morning, sunshine,” she said with a chuckle. “You have some explaining to do.”
“I know,” I grumbled, grabbing plates so we could sit down to eat. “The problem is, I don’t have the information I need to explain all of it.”
“Well, tell me what you can, I’ll ask questions and see if you missed anything, and we’ll try to fill in the blanks from there.”
Sometimes, I felt like a child around Crystal. She was spunky and scattered, but when it came to difficult situations, she was level-headed and succinct.
“Where should I start?” I asked.
“Why don’t we start with our visitor last night? Who is she, and why does she care who Zane’s dating?”
I slid into the chair and grabbed my coffee mug. A few sips and the warmth of the cup in my hands helped me think. “I don’t know a lot more about who she is than you do. I saw her in some of the pictures I found of Zane online, and it looked like they might have been a couple at some point.” I sighed. “I can’t really put her into context without telling you about the club last night. Or the conversation I overheard from stalkers on my way home from work.”
Crystal leveled a chastising gaze on me. “You’ve been keeping a lot to yourself, haven’t you?”
I turned away, feeling guilty and embarrassed.
“I’m not mad,” she said. “But I can’t help you with this sort of thing if you don’t talk to me, sister.”
“I know,” I said, hearing the whine in my voice. I hated disappointing people I cared about, and I could tell Crystal was disappointed and maybe even hurt that I hadn’t shared everything. “Well, I’m ready to talk now.”
I started back at the beginning, which meant going all the way back to the day I hadn’t been able to get in touch with Zane and had searched for him online. I told her about the search, about the pictures, and about the suspicions I’d formed, but had set aside when everything else was cleared up.
Then, I told her about seeing Samantha again, outside the apartment, and dodging her and the man she was with, and everything else, including everything that had happened at the Machine. The guards, the warning look, the secret escapade in the closet – to which she wanted details. I gave her the basics and explained what Zane had told me about someone trying to keep us apart.
“Well, that right there confirms it’s that plastic woman who came to the door,” Crystal said. “It all connects. The only question is, why does it matter to her so much?”
“I wish I knew,” I said.
Crystal continued, “And I think she’s a crazy stalker . Which means she’s going to escalate and turn into a violent maniac ready to stab both of us to death.”
I had the same thought. But there was more to share, and now, I went back to the episode in the SUV outside our apartment and told Crystal what I’d overheard. I shivered, remembering how I’d thought she wasn’t someone I wanted to cross even then. “She told the guy she needed him to keep her investments clean.”
Crystal gaped at me. “I read a suspense novel about this. That sounds like insider trading. If she’s getting information in advance on what to invest in and what to get out of so she can make more money, it’s a felony.”
I sucked in a breath. “The guy said something about a felony. He was worried about getting caught.”
“Then he’s feeding her that information, and they could both go to prison for a very long time. It’s practically stealing. He’s stealing trade secrets and proprietary information, and she’s stealing money by using that information to get a head’s up on the stock market.” Crystal spoke in a tone that told me this reeked of conspiracy and intrigue. “Did you hear the guy’s name at all?”
I shook my head. I didn’t think so, but I ran back over everything in as much detail as I could remember, trying to make sure. “No, I don’t think she ever said it.”
“And you’re sure the woman at the door, Samantha, was the same woman in the photos online and in the car across the street?” Crystal asked.
“I’m positive.” My heart pounded in my chest. What if Samantha came back with a weapon of some kind? Or worse, with the overstuffed monkeys in the suits from last night? I couldn’t let Crystal take the fall for me again, that was for sure. But there was something else that was of more immediate concern. “Crystal, what if Zane’s caught up in this insider trading thing, too? What if that’s why this woman and those wrestler types are tracking his every move? What other reason could there be? He must at least have some kind of information about it that could cause a problem.”
“Or she could just be a really jealous ex-girlfriend who thinks Zane is her property,” Crystal said. “If she’s really that cuckoo, she could easily afford to hire some muscle to intimidate both Zane and you – or me, apparently.”
I knew it was possible, but something about it didn’t sit right. This seemed like something bigger than that, just as Samantha had hinted with her threats. I didn’t know what to think at that point. All I knew was that, sooner rather than later, I needed to find out the truth. I wanted the whole story, and I was going to get it, if I had to pry it from Zane’s beautiful, talented lips.
I wanted to find another way first, though. Up until now, I’d only gotten pieces of information from him. I never got the whole story at once.
What I really hoped to find was that he wasn’t hiding something from me that would ruin our relationship, but rather something that he was keeping from me to protect me.
“You can’t sit and stew all day,” Crystal told me. “It’s game time. I’m on your side, sister, and I’m tired of seeing you settle for less than you deserve. You did it with Christian, and I won’t let you do it with Zane. You’ve got to clear him or dump him before you get any deeper into this.”
I didn’t tell her I was already in over my head and thought I might drown if I had to leave him. I didn’t want to worry her. But I also knew she was right. I needed to make a decision, and that choice had to rest on pure fact and not feelings. I had to be objective to save myself before the knife settled any deeper into my heart.