"I don't think you'll have to worry about that," Daniel said darkly.
"Why?" She'd never seen such a dark glint in his eyes before.
"My family has a way of making unwanted things disappear," he said.
"Daniel!" She didn't like hearing him talk like that. "Your family murders people?"
She stepped out of arms' reach.
"Who said anything about murder?" Daniel asked. "People just mysteriously end up in the heart of the Russian wilds."
Shipping people out of the country wasn't that much better than killing them. She punched him in the arm again and he scowled at her. She left the dorm room with Boris following, praying that Daniel had just been kidding about shipping family enemies to Russia.
****
The bell rang, signaling it was time for lunch. Annamarie tucked her books in her bag and zipped it up. Boris was nowhere to be seen. She had to admit she was pretty impressed with his hiding abilities. The guy was as large as a mountain but effectively used every nook and cranny to shield himself from prying eyes. Just as she swung her bag over her shoulder, the bodyguard stepped out of the hall and walked over to her. Mrs. Dallas, the science teacher, eyeballed Boris with unease.
"Sir, you aren't allowed to enter this school without a special pass," Mrs. Dallas said. "Do you have permission to be here?"
Boris stared down Mrs. Dallas like she was a pathetic slug. The woman withered beneath his stare but showed her his ID badge anyway. The teacher was still quivering as Annamarie walked out the door and into the hall. She turned on her phone and saw a message from Owen.
I'll meet you at the top of the stairs by the gym.
The stairs by the gym were pretty close by. She took a right down the hall. Pounding feet came from behind her. Her fists tightened into balls and she saw Boris also take a fighting stance.
Fortunately, that was when she heard Daniel cry, "Annamarie, wait up."
It was Daniel. Both she and Boris relaxed.
"Were you going to leave without me?" Daniel sounded furious as he caught up with her.
"I didn't realize this was a group activity." The guy hadn't mentioned coming to get her from class.
"Of course I wouldn't let you go alone," Daniel muttered.
"How did you know where my class was, anyway?" Now that she thought about it, she didn't recall ever telling him that her first lesson of the day was a flute class either.
Daniel pulled a copy of her schedule out of his pocket and showed it to her.
"Who gave you this?" Her brows furrowed.
"Mrs. Carmichael was easily persuaded to print me a copy," Daniel said. "I wanted to make sure I could watch out for you at all times."
I wonder if his family knows just how much he abuses the rich daddy card.
"You're a stalker." She scowled and handed back the schedule.
"I'm not a stalker," Daniel said. "I'm going to be your boyfriend once this mess is over. It's only proper I should know where your classes are."
She sputtered. Why did Daniel always have to act like the world was under his control? She didn't know what she'd do about him once the attacker was found. She could still hear Jaiden's upset words from last night ringing in her ears. "Since I'm already being honest, I might as well tell you now…The idea of the two of you being together kills me. I don't think I could hang around him anymore, knowing that he has you." No way was she going to break up Daniel and Jaiden's friendship, even if…
Even if I have to push Daniel away.
"See." Daniel wrapped an arm around her waist. "You aren't even trying to deny your feelings for me anymore. We're making progress."
"You're incorrigible." She let out an exaggerated sigh. "Why don't you focus on what we're about to hear from Owen instead of hassling me? We're going to have a lot to think about. I still don't know what to do with this stalker guy once we catch him."
"What's there to think about?" Daniel asked. "I'm going to kick his butt and send him to Russia, just like I said."
"Daniel!" She hit her face with her palm.
"Boris, you can help beat him up too," Daniel said.
"It would be my pleasure, sir," Boris said.
"Way to suck up to the boss," she muttered.
It could have been her imagination, but she swore she saw the man crack a smile.
They were almost to the stairwell by the gym when she heard the sound of girls screaming. And it wasn't oh-my-gosh-sexy-Daniel-is-coming screaming. It was something-awful-has-happened screaming. Her first thought was zombies, which made her angry at herself. Too much freaking TV.
When somebody yelled again, she and Daniel exchanged glances.
"What's going on?" she asked.
"You stay here," he said. "I'm going to find out."
Telling her not to follow was practically an invitation to do so.
Daniel ran down the hall and she trailed behind him with Boris. For such a large man, he moved with surprising grace and speed.
"I told you to stay behind," Daniel said.
"When have I ever listened to you?" she asked.
She went around the corner and saw a large crowd of people surrounding the bottom of the stairs. Several girls were weeping. Somewhere in the middle of the crowd, she heard Mrs. Carmichael talking. Daniel's lips thinned and he waded through the herd of people. She moved to follow but was almost immediately rammed by Bridget. The two of them locked eyes and time slowed down. Bridget's face was paler than she'd ever seen it and tears streamed down her face, smearing her makeup. The moment was broken when Boris placed a hand on her shoulder and Bridget left the crowd, weeping. Weird, Annamarie thought, then shook it off and headed forward.
Since she was so short, she could only see between the legs of the other students. A lone black leather shoe lay on the floor, drenched in red liquid. Blood, she realized. Somebody had been badly hurt. Her heart was thundering now and her palms were slicked with sweat. She saw Daniel at the front of the crowd and pushed her way toward him. His face was paler than even Bridget's.
"Daniel, who is—"
She looked down and saw Owen lying on the carpet with his eyes closed, a stream of blood trickling down his temple. His phone was in his hand.
"Owen!" She stumbled toward him and fell to her knees at his side.
His chest rose and fell. He was alive! Thank heavens, she thought. Mrs. Carmichael started talking to her, but she could barely hear what the woman was saying because of all of the angry wasps buzzing in her ears. She didn't know how long she'd sat by Owen, but eventually a pair of arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her away from the body. The person forced her to bury her face in his chest. Because of the rich cologne, she didn't even need to look up to know the person holding her was Daniel. With a whimper, she dug her fingers into his shirt.
"Owen," she said. "It's Owen."
"It's going to be okay." Daniel smoothed his hand over her hair.
She didn't feel like it was going to be okay. The angry wasps must have crawled through her ears and traveled to her heart because she felt stinging in her chest.
"I heard some guy pushed him," one of the girls behind her whispered. "Alexander saw it."
Daniel must have heard the girls too because he cursed violently.
"This is my fault," she said.
"Don't say that." Daniel tightened his grip on her.
"If somebody pushed Owen, it was only because he was helping me." Her eyes were thick with tears. She was an awful friend.
"It's not your fault. You didn't push him," Daniel said.
"Who would have done something so horrible?" she asked.
"Trust me, I'm going to find out and he's going to pay." Daniel gritted his teeth.
She didn't speak. She couldn't. The crowd around them parted like the Red Sea before Moses. EMTs waded through the crowd holding a white stretcher.
"Clear out, everybody," Mrs. Carmichael said. "Classes are cancelled for the day. Please go to your dorms."
Annamarie didn't
want to leave. She looked over her shoulder at her pale, fallen friend and couldn't stomach the thought of not remaining at his side.
"Come on." Daniel pulled her toward the door. "You can stay at my dorm."
"I don't want to leave," she whispered.
"Let the EMTs do their job," he said.
"But I…" She didn't have any other excuses. There wasn't even anything she could do for Owen.
She looked one last time at her fallen friend. Finally, she allowed herself to be led away as Boris followed behind her. The image of Owen sprawled out at the bottom of the stairs would haunt her forever. It had been seared into her memory, a permanent part of her being. She'd been a lot more innocent when she arrived at this school, she realized. Even after all of her karate classes, the worst injury she'd ever seen was a broken nose. This was different. Owen's skull was cracked like an egg. There was a chance he could even die. If he did, she'd never forgive herself.
Or the person who'd done this.
She thought she'd been angry before when somebody had pushed her in the pool. The blind rage she endured now was ten times more powerful than anything she'd experienced then. It was one thing for the stalker to hurt her. It was another entirely for him to hurt her friends. She wasn't going to let him get away with this. The moment he'd pushed Owen, it had been a declaration of war. The tears of sadness she wept turned to tears of bitter rage.
As Daniel led her through the front door of the school, he glanced at her, his eyes wide with concern.
"You okay?" he asked.
"No." She sniffled defiantly because she knew there was snot running down her face. She was not a pretty crier. "I'm never going to forgive the person who did this. I'm so angry I could spit poison."
"I'm surprised anyone would go this far," Daniel said. "I thought they'd try to hurt you, not Owen."
A horrifying thought struck her at that moment. If Owen had been hurt, Daniel could be next. She realized she was being selfish allowing the guy to risk his life for her like this.
"You don't have to stay with me, you know," she said. "There's a chance you could be next."
To her surprise, Daniel stopped in his tracks. He seized her shoulders and stared into her eyes with his lips thin.
"Don't you ever say that," Daniel said. "I told you I'd take care of you and I will."
She was so shocked by the amount of passion in his voice she was momentarily speechless. All she could do was nod.
"Good." Daniel stared down at her shoes. "I think the only thing I have to worry about right now is losing you. Jay and I were helping you long before Owen. Did you notice that?"
"No," she said. "Not until now."
"The person who pushed Owen down the stairs must have some reason not to go after Jay and me," he said. "If he didn't have a reason, the two of us would have been taken down a long time ago."
That made a lot of sense. She nodded, biting her bottom lip. Boris cleared his throat beside her.
"But wouldn't it make more sense if a girl had done all this?" she whispered. "Why is a boy out to get me?"
"Right now, not a heck of a lot makes sense." Daniel groaned and squeezed his eyes shut. "Why didn't Owen text you the name while he had the chance?"
That was also a fair point. Why hadn't he? Texting a name was a lot simpler than having a full scale conversation. Still that didn't matter. She was going to figure out who'd hurt Owen if it killed her. She shivered even though she wasn't cold. Probably it was the stress.
"Let's go." Daniel started to pull her along again. Boris followed.
Daniel led her down the steps and by the oak tree.
"Annamarie," somebody said.
It took her a moment to realize the person who'd called her was Jaiden. The guy stood by the oak tree, his hands in his pockets. Since he hadn't gone to the dining hall for lunch like the other students, that meant he didn't know about Owen. She waved him over and realized too late the guy would instantly notice she'd been crying. About now, her eyes were probably the size of fat clams.
"What happened?" Jaiden asked, his eyes lingering on hers.
She opened her mouth to explain, but nothing came out but air.
"Owen was pushed down a flight of stairs and was badly hurt." Daniel came to her rescue yet again.
"What?" Jaiden gasped, his face going milky white. "Who'd shove Owen down the stairs?"
"It's the same guy who hurt Annamarie," Daniel said.
"He's hurting other people now too?" Jaiden asked.
"Only because Owen helped her." Daniel gritted his teeth. "Jay, do me a favor and take her to my room. I'm going to do some sniffing around."
"I'm coming with you," Annamarie cried. "No way I'm going to let you investigate alone."
"You're not coming." Daniel locked eyes with her.
"I'm not going with Jaiden," she snapped. "I'm going with you."
"Boris, grab her and drag her to my room," he said. "Don't let her leave."
"Yes, sir," Boris said.
"I'm a black belt." She sunk into a fighting stance as Boris took a step toward her.
"So is he," Daniel said.
"Dan, isn't this too much?" Jaiden asked.
"Nothing is too much to maintain Annamarie's safety."
When Boris reached for her arm, she dodged. Unfortunately, since the man was trying to protect her as well as capture her, she hesitated before throwing a punch. The beefy man seized her around the waist and threw her over his shoulder. She yelled and kicked, but her knees met a body as strong as steel. Stupid Daniel. This was his entire fault.
"I'll be back soon." Daniel patted her cheek as she flailed in rage. "Don't worry about me."
"Daniel, you rat," she said. "Tell Boris to put me down right now."
"See you later." Daniel waved at her.
"I hate you!" she yelled as Boris walked with her over his shoulder.
"No you don't," he called back.
Jaiden shook his head and then followed behind them.
****
Boris stood by the door of Daniel's apartment, a mountain of bulging muscles. She and Jaiden sat on the couch. She wasn't sure what made her angrier—the fact that she'd been dragged here like a rag doll or that Daniel had ordered Boris to imprison her. Frustrated, she gnawed at her nails. It was a habit she'd broken after her mom had threatened to take away her karate lessons if she didn't stop. Now with all the pressure she was under she couldn't help herself.
"I've never seen Dan like this before," Jaiden said, his eyes dark.
"Really?" she asked. "He seems to be his egotistical self to me."
"He isn't doing this for himself, though," Jaiden said. "That's why it's surprising. He's doing all of this for you to keep you safe."
It was hard for her to be mad at Daniel after Jaiden said something like that.
"He's going about it in the wrong way." She attempted to fume, but it was futile.
Jaiden chuckled.
"Maybe, but you know how he is." Jaiden shrugged. "His heart is in the right place, even if he's overbearing."
"He's a confusing guy." She blew out a sigh and leaned back. "How did my life get so complicated?"
Jaiden shrugged.
She groaned. "If I didn't have enough to think about in regards to Daniel, now I have to worry about Owen too…"
For a horrifying moment, she remembered her friend sprawled out on the carpet, his breathing shallow. She shivered. It was easier for her to be angry at Daniel. She stood up and looked around for something to distract herself from her emotions. Packets of ramen sat on top of the microwave. Even though she wasn't hungry, preparing food would give her something to do other than recall what she'd seen. She refused to cry again, especially not in front of Jaiden.
"Are you okay?" Jaiden asked.
She picked up a cup of ramen, tore open the top, and poured water from a bottle inside.
"Sure." She made an effort to keep her back to him in case he saw the lie in her eyes. Her throat was thick with tears a
gain, but she was building a dam and refused to shed a tear. "Do you want something to eat? These cups of ramen are really good."
Jaiden didn't say anything. He just stood up.
"I'll make you one," she said because he didn't say anything. "Boy, are you in for a—"
Two warm arms wrapped around her middle. She could feel Jaiden's hot breath in her ear and could smell sweet cologne.
"Don't try to hide your emotions from me," he whispered. "Your shoulders are shaking because you're so overwhelmed."
She hadn't realized that trying not to weep was causing a physical effect on her body.
"I've showed my weaknesses enough," she said.
"Maybe, maybe not." Jaiden hugged her tighter. "If you want to cry, you can."
"I'm not going to cry." It was as much a vow to herself as it was a promise to him.
"Fine," Jaiden said. "Then just stand here and let me hold you."
She didn't move until long after the microwaved beeped, announcing her food was done.
Chapter Twenty
Annamarie paced, her fists clenching at her sides. Jaiden was sleeping on the couch and even Boris's head drooped. It was late, so she shouldn't have been surprised it was hard for everyone to stay awake. Unfortunately, she was so worried she couldn't have slept even if she'd been given a horse tranquilizer and was laid to rest on a cloud. She checked her phone for the time. Surprisingly, she had three missed calls from her dad, but she was in too much trouble to care about that now. She'd return his calls later. Daniel, where the heck are you? Now instead of being mad he'd forced her to come to the dorm, she was mad because he was taking so long. Who was he to make her worry?
After five minutes, the lock turned, announcing someone's arrival. Daniel stumbled into the room and Boris stepped to the side.
"You!" she said, rushing up to him. "What took you so long?"
Even though there were bags under his eyes, Daniel managed a cocky grin.
"Worried about me, darling?" he asked.
"No way." She turned her face away, if only because she was blushing due to truth of his words.
Sweet Harmony Page 19
