by Carl Weber
I glanced toward the living room, where I could still hear everyone’s voices. “I know. I have something important to tell you too.”
“Not as important as the fact that Nevada’s been missing since the day before yesterday,” she said.
“That ain’t funny, Paris.” She always said stupid shit just to get me riled up. She knew how close my nephew and I were.
“I’m not laughing, Rio. Serious shit, he’s run away. That’s why Consuela’s here.” Paris tilted her head in the direction of the family room.
“What the fuck’s going on? Why would he run away?” I put aside Roman, Margaret, and any other bullshit that was clouding my mind. Nevada was my little man.
“Everyone seems to think it’s because he didn’t wanna go to boarding school,” she replied. “Not that I could blame him.”
“This is fucked up.” I turned and headed toward the family room with Paris hot on my trail. “I thought Mom was supposed to talk to Consuela about that.”
“Apparently not before Nevada went ghost.”
They all turned to look at me as I strode into the room.
“Rio, have you heard from Nevada at all today?” My mother walked over and touched my arm, her face full of worry.
Vegas stood up from the sofa. “Is that why you been ignoring our calls? I swear, Rio, if you know where my son is, you’d better tell me.”
“I haven’t talked to him in a couple of days,” I told him. “You know if I did, I’d tell you.”
“Can you think of anywhere he’d be?” my mother asked.
“I told you he’s probably with that girl,” Consuela snapped. She was trying to play hard, but her red eyes were evidence she’d been crying.
“And I keep asking you what girl you’re talking about, Consuela.” Vegas shook his head.
“It was the girl at the library,” she barked back at him. “He said they went to school together, but she was studying from a GED book. How many times do I have to tell you this?”
“Does this girl have a name?” Dad asked.
Consuela folded her arms and shrugged. “I don’t . . . I can’t remember.”
“Have you all checked his social media? Maybe there’s something there. A picture of the girl?” I took out my phone and pulled up Nevada’s Instagram. “What’d she look like?”
“She was pretty. Black mixed with something, probably Asian,” Consuela replied.
Vegas and I locked eyes, confirming we were both thinking the same thing.
“You think?” I asked Vegas.
He nodded.
I looked down at my phone and began scrolling until I came to the photo from the day we went to the water park. I walked over to Consuela and showed her the screen. “Is this her?”
“Sí! That’s the girl he was with at the library. You know where she lives?”
I looked over at Vegas. I didn’t want to say anything that might make things worse. Consuela could fly off the handle pretty easily, and this information wouldn’t sit well with her.
“I know where to find her,” Vegas said.
“You do? Where?” Consuela asked.
He didn’t answer right away, probably trying to figure out a way to handle this without mentioning the M word.
“Vegas?” Consuela said. “What are you not telling me?”
He took a deep breath. “She stays at Marie’s.”
Consuela narrowed her eyes at him. “What did you say?” I could hear the rage simmering in her voice.
“She works for Marie,” Vegas admitted.
And why the hell did he do that? Consuela jumped up and started cursing in Spanish, her arms flying everywhere like she wanted to punch someone.
“Shit,” my mother muttered under her breath.
Pop moved quickly in front of Consuela in an effort to defuse the situation before it exploded.
“The important thing is we know where she is. Vegas, you and I are going to head over there to talk to her. Your mother will stay here with Consuela to coordinate things. Rio, you check Nevada’s desktop computer to see what you can find,” Pop instructed. “Paris, go get Sasha and head out to the house in the Hamptons. Maybe we’ll get lucky and he’s out there. Junior, go have a talk with our friends at the Port Authority and make sure Nevada hasn’t purchased a ticket out of town. And ping his phone again.”
“No!” Consuela shouted. “I am not staying here. I am going to that bitch’s place and burn it down if she doesn’t give me my son.”
My mother stood up. “No, you’re not. You’re going to do exactly what LC said because you don’t want your son to hate you. You want him to come back here and hug you. To say he’s sorry and that he loves you. You go over there and humiliate him, and he may never speak to you again. He’s not a little boy anymore, Consuela. It doesn’t matter how much we want him to be.”
Consuela didn’t reply, but Ma’s speech did take some of the steam out of her. She sat back down, glaring at Vegas the whole time. Pop reiterated his instructions, and we all quickly disbanded without further questions, happy to leave my mother to deal with a pissed off Consuela.
I was halfway up the stairs headed to Nevada’s room when my phone rang.
“Hey, Sebastian. Look, I’m in the middle of a crisis. Can I call you back?”
“Yeah, sure, but I been thinking about this situation you’re in, and there’s something you should think about before you go running around telling everybody about this Roman guy.”
“And what’s that?” I really didn’t like that he was trying to dictate what I told my family.
“Your mother was pregnant with twins, right?”
“Yeah.”
“You and this Roman look identical, right?”
“You tell me. It was your people who thought he was me down at the club,” I shot back.
“Rio, that’s not fair. I didn’t—”
“Look, I told you I have a lotta shit going on here right now, and I’m really stressed out. Just get to the point, Sebastian,” I said.
“Fine. What if Paris was switched at birth? What if she’s the one who may not be a Duncan?”
He was making my head hurt. “Do you know what you’re saying?”
“Hey, you know I like Paris. That’s why I’m telling you to slow your roll and think this through before you go telling anyone about that birth certificate. This could seriously change your family dynamic and fuck some things up in a big way.”
I paused for a second as his words settled in my mind. His theory actually made some sense, and that scared the hell out of me. Paris had always been my twin, my second half, my best fucking friend. What would happen to her—to us!—if all of a sudden she wasn’t a Duncan?
“Rio, you there?” Sebastian snapped me out of my nightmarish thoughts.
“Why did you have to put that shit in my head?”
“I’m sorry. I just thought it was something you should think about before you tell Paris about Roman.” He paused. “Shit, you didn’t tell Paris yet, did you?”
“No, I didn’t tell Paris yet.”
“Tell me what?”
I froze at the sound of her voice, then turned around slowly. Paris was standing right behind me. I pulled the phone away from my ear and stared at her. DNA or not, she was still my sister, and I loved her. The last thing on this earth I wanted to do was hurt her, and by revealing the secret about Roman, I would hurt her deeply. Being a Duncan was important to me, but it was everything to Paris. Losing that identity would be the equivalent of me ripping out her heart with my bare hands.
“Sabastian wants us to come down to South Beach next month for his birthday party.” It wasn’t a lie. He had asked us to come, just not during this conversation.
“Tell him I’m there. I could use a little fun in the sun.”
“Yo, Sebastian, I’ll call you and we can finish this conversation later,” I said into the phone and then ended the call without a goodbye.
“Is that what you needed to tell me earl
ier?” she asked as we headed down the hall.
“Yeah, that was it,” I said before ducking into Nevada’s room to search his computer for clues.
Vegas
38
“Hey, baby, has anyone heard from him?” Marie greeted me with a hug and wrapped her arms around my neck. The deep frown lines in her forehead let me know that she was just as worried as I was.
“No, not yet,” I said as Pop and I followed her into her office. When we walked inside, I was surprised to see Bubba, the head of security, waiting. He was normally posted where he could monitor who went up and down the spiral staircase that led to the suites.
“Hey, Vegas.”
“Bubba.” I nodded, then turned to Marie. “Did you talk to Kia?”
“Well, before we get to that, Bubba has something to tell you,” Marie said.
My attention went back to the giant of a man. “What’s up?”
“Your son was here the other day, Vegas. But I swear I didn’t know who he was when I caught him.” Bubba looked down.
“Nevada was here?” My voice escalated as I turned to my fiancée. “And nobody said anything to me?”
“I just found out about this ten minutes ago, sweetheart,” Marie explained. “Apparently he came by to see Kia.”
“Where is this girl?” Pop demanded.
“She’s not here,” Marie said. “No one has seen her since Nevada disappeared. Bubba checked her room right before you got here. He found their phones and your son’s laptop. They’re in her room.”
“Go get it!” I yelled, glancing at Pop. That was Nevada’s doing. He knew we’d be tracking his phone and internet use. Obviously, he wasn’t going to make this easy. “And go get Danielle. No way she doesn’t know where Kia is.”
Bubba moved faster than I would’ve expected. He returned a few minutes later with the electronics from Kia’s room. Danielle was with him.
“Young lady, where is my grandson?” Pop asked immediately.
“Huh? I don’t know.” Danielle shrugged. “I didn’t do anything. Am I in trouble?”
“Not as long as you’re telling the truth,” I said, the threat evident in my tone. “Now, where the hell are Kia and Nevada?
“Seriously, I don’t know where she went,” Danielle said, sounding annoyed by the questions.
“Danielle, listen. This is not a game we’re playing. We need to know where the hell they are. Now ain’t the time for you to be trying to hold on to girl code or whatever the hell it is y’all do,” I warned. “You need to tell me what you know.”
Danielle’s eyes went from Marie to me. “I don’t know nothing, Vegas. I swear to God. I didn’t even think she was with Nevada. I thought she was somewhere with Bob.”
“Damn, you right. Bob didn’t show up today, didn’t he?” Bubba chimed in.
I turned to Marie. “Who the fuck is Bob?”
“He’s Kia’s biggest client,” she said.
“Biggest? That’s an understatement. He tips her more than it costs for the date. Everything she has, Bob gave it to her: bags, shoes, jewelry, hair, makeup, you name it. Whatever she wants, she can have. I should’ve snatched his nerdy, cornball ass when I had the chance. If I knew then what I know now.” Danielle shook her head. “He wants to marry her.”
“Biggest as in every day, sometimes twice a day,” Marie clarified.
“What’s his phone number? I need to talk to him,” I told Marie. “As a matter of fact, give me his address too. I can go find him myself.”
“Vegas, I can’t give you my client’s private information.” She said it like it was a ridiculous request.
“What do you mean, you can’t? This is my son we’re talking about! Your future stepson.”
“My clients expect confidentiality. It’s the mainstay of my business. I can’t just go around giving you their addresses and numbers.”
“You think I give a shit about some pussy-paying motherfucker’s privacy right now? ’Cause I don’t! This is my son we’re talking about, Marie! Now, either you give it to me, or give me back that fucking ring on your finger.” I stepped toward her, and Bubba went into defense mode and jumped to Marie’s side.
“Calm down, Vegas,” he warned.
I almost felt sorry for poor Bubba. Big as he was, he knew he couldn’t take me. Hell, I’d taught him a few take downs. “You better sit your big ass down, Bubba, ’cause it’s a long way to the floor.”
“Bubba, please sit down,” Marie told him.
I felt Pop’s hand on my shoulder. “Let’s all just calm down for a second. Marie, how about you call this Bob guy now while we’re here? That way you can still maintain his privacy.”
Marie looked at me like she wanted to slap me as she sat down at her desk and started typing into her computer. I guess I’d embarrassed her in front of Pop and her employees. I tilted my head back and exhaled. Snapping on my fiancée wasn’t my intention, but she needed to learn that when it came to my son, she was either with me or against me.
She picked up the phone and dialed a number, then put it on speakerphone so we all could hear. The first call she made went straight to voicemail, but thankfully, the second call was answered.
“Copy Hut.” A woman answered.
“Uh, hello, I’m looking for Bob Jessup. Is he available?” Marie said.
“He’s not here. Can I take a message?” From her girlish voice, I could tell she was a younger employee.
“My name is Marie. I needed to talk to him about a large order for my business.”
“I’m sorry, miss. Bobby is on vacation with his girlfriend,” the woman said.
“Good for him. I didn’t know he had a girlfriend.”
“I know, right? Neither did we.” The young woman tried to contain a laugh. She sounded like the type that loved to gossip. “Is there anything I can help you with?”
“No, he was the one who thought up the idea. Where did they venture off to? He’s not answering his cell phone.”
“I don’t know exactly, but when I talked to him, he was excited because he’d just left the Dr. Pepper museum. Bobby loves Dr. Pepper. It’s his favorite soda.” She giggled.
“Okay, well, thank you so much,” Marie said. “When I talk to Bob, I’ll be sure to tell him how pleasant you are on the phone with customers.”
“Thanks. Maybe he’ll give me a raise.”
“She’s lying,” Bubba said after Marie ended the call. “There’s no such thing as a Dr. Pepper museum.”
“Nah, she’s not lying,” I said, holding up my phone so they could see the results of my Google search. “There actually is a Dr. Pepper museum.”
“There is? Where?” Pop asked.
“In Waco, Texas,” I said. “And If Nevada’s with Kia and Kia’s with Bob, then they’re in fucking Texas.”
“How can you be sure?” Danielle asked skeptically.
“We can’t, but there’s only one way to find out,” I replied. “We’re gonna have to go down to Texas.”
“Well, at least it’s not El Paso,” Pop said halfheartedly.
Nevada
39
I’d been lying there, staring at the cracked mirrored ceiling for hours, and to say I was uncomfortable and bored was an understatement. To begin with, the dingy bed I was laying in was hard as a rock, the sheets were scratchy, and the pillows were lumpy. It was a far cry from the bed I’d been sleeping in at the hotel with Mom or my bed at home. But the bed seemed luxurious compared to the nasty stained comforter, which I’d thrown in a corner five minutes after I entered the room. To top it off, the TV was broken, along with the showerhead in the bathroom.
The only silver lining so far was that I wasn’t in Texas alone. Kia was there with me. Well, technically, she was in another room at the motel, but still, we were together.
Getting to Texas had been quite an adventure so far. The day my grandmother came by to visit at the hotel and my mother dismissed me, I’d gone into my room and started digging a little deeper into Kia’s
sister’s arrest records. They turned out to be extensive and spread out through Tennessee, South Carolina, Louisiana, and most recently, in Waco, Texas. I couldn’t wait to tell Kia, so I slipped out of the suite through the bedroom exit and went to Marie’s Hellfire Club.
“So, she’s in Texas?” Kia asked when I told her what I’d discovered.
“She was a couple of days ago. I’m gonna go find out.”
“What do you mean, you’re gonna go find out?” She looked at me like I was crazy. “You can’t do that, Nevada.”
“Look, my mother is about to ship me off to boarding school. I promised you I’d help you find your sister, but if I’m gonna do it, I gotta go now before my dad and grandpa find out. They’ve made a living tracking people down,” I said.
Kia shook her head. “Well, I’m not letting you go to Texas by yourself. I’m coming with you. She’s my sister. I need to be there.”
“No. You have to, uh, work,” I said. “I don’t want you to get in trouble with Marie.”
“Marie’s my boss, not my pimp. I work when I wanna work, and if I don’t, then that’s on me,” she said, equally defiant. “Now, how the hell are we getting to Texas?”
There was no way I could get on a plane, train, or bus without running the risk of getting caught by my family, who I knew would be out in full force looking for me once they discovered I was gone. I only had one option.
“We can hitchhike.”
“Hitchhike? Are you trying to end up in the hands of a serial killer?” She sighed. “No, I have a better idea.”
“What is it?”
“You’re just going to have to trust me. I’ll get us to Texas. You okay with that?” She stared into my eyes. Even if I didn’t trust her, I still would’ve said yes.
I didn’t even realize I hadn’t answered her question until she said, “Nevada?”
“Yeah.” I nodded. “If you think can pull it off, do it.”
That was a day and a half ago, and she was right. She’d gotten us to Texas. I just wasn’t so sure how happy I was about how we’d gotten there.
I heard a knock on the door, and I jumped up from the bed to open it. I was greeted by Kia’s smiling face. Seeing her standing there was like somebody had plugged me in and repowered my battery. I was grinning from ear to ear.
