“Really? You’re serious?”
“Definitely.”
I sighed. “I’ll toss it after I text you to come pick me up.” I grinned, not as worried about the predicament as she was. There would be no way for anyone from back home to track this phone. I got it the weekend before I left, under my new last name. No one saw it and I never used it, but I respected her opinion and would toss it this afternoon.
“Good call,” Rikki laughed.
I closed the door and she drove off. I glanced at the coffeehouse and felt immensely better. Like I was part of a functioning society, rather than someone who was living on the fringe of it. I walked inside and smelled the familiar aromas as I stood in line. When I reached the counter, I was shocked.
“This time, I’m using a gift card,” I said victoriously, pulling it out of my wallet.
The barista narrowed his eyes on me and then started laughing. “Oh, yeah. Hope you got everything settled.”
“I did. Some sort of fraud alert,” I lied. “So you work at this one too?”
“Yeah sometimes. Someone called in sick at this location so I volunteered. I’m trying to get as many hours as I can before school starts up again. So what can I get you?”
“I’d like a caramel macchiato and a ham breakfast sandwich.” As I placed my order, I realized that I actually had no idea how much money was on the card. I could be in the same predicament all over again. I also couldn’t stop thinking about what was in the envelope that was dropped off.
The cashier took the card and slid it through, handing it back to me without hesitation. “Would you like a receipt for the balance?”
“Yeah, that would be great.” I took the receipt and my eyes landed on how much remained on my gift card.
$193.76
My stomach tightened as Nancy’s words ran through my head. “There’s always strings attached.” But that wasn’t true. It couldn’t be. Not all of life was about getting what you could from people, was it? I folded the receipt and shoved it in my purse, unsure of what the kindness of this stranger actually meant.
Luke
Driving into the small town, I got the distinct feeling that visitors weren’t welcome. There was one main street that housed a pharmacy, a gift store, a Laundromat, a bowling alley, police station, and a grocery store. There was a gas station at the end of town but that was about it. As I drove through the town, the people walking along the sidewalk kept their heads down and attention turned away from me. The women were dressed in grey dresses that went to their ankles, and the men were in black pants and boxy shirts. I felt like I had landed in another century, except that cars dotted Main Street. A woman in the gift store watched me as I drove by, but once my eyes landed on hers, she pulled back into the shadows. What struck me as more bizarre than her disappearing act was her outfit. It matched the others on the street.
The GPS instructed me to take the first right off of Main Street. I drove another ten minutes or so in the country until the GPS wanted me to turn down a private drive. No Trespassing signs were posted along a stone wall, but that had never stopped me before. If they really wanted privacy, they’d have a gate up, not just a fence. The private road turned to gravel and led deeper into the country. I glanced at the address again and wondered if this was just one large estate, but then I spotted more of the friendly people from earlier. Two women were walking in the snow. One held a shovel and the other had a baby on her hip. They stopped walking as I drove past them. It struck me as odd that they weren’t in coats. It wasn’t that cold out, but there was still snow on the ground. I wondered where they were coming from or where they were going.
As I slowly followed down the road, several buildings came into view. They were all similar in design, typical saltbox structures, very plain in appearance. One was painted brown, another grey, and another almost black. There were several cars parked in front of each one. I couldn’t tell if these were dwellings or used for something else. I continued driving down the tiny lane and more of the same buildings came into view, but these were much smaller. There was a group of men, dressed just like the others, congregated in front of one of them. A man from the group spotted me and held his hand up as he began walking toward me.
I slowed my car as he approached and rolled down the passenger window.
“This is private property,” the man’s voice was gruff. He had a scruffy beard and his hazel eyes were unforgiving.
“Oh. My mistake. I thought it was part of the—”
“I ask kindly that you turn around and leave us to our meditation,” he interrupted.
“Absolutely,” I nodded and glanced at the other men who were approaching my car. “I apologize for intruding. I’ll just turn around up ahead.”
I rolled up the passenger window and stepped on the gas with no intention of turning around. The men, arms crossed, were standing in the middle of the road behind me, disdain plastered on their faces. I had no plans to turn around until I saw as much as I could. The deeper into the community I drove, more clusters of buildings came into view. There were obvious living quarters, stables, barns, and other large structures that matched the bigger ones on the edge of the property. As I drove past the houses, the doors opened and men and women stepped out of their homes, walking toward the road. They obviously weren’t adverse to technology, whoever they were. Someone must have made the call that an unwelcome visitor was in town. I watched as the people lined the street, their expressions grim as I made my way to the end of the road where an old-fashioned church, complete with a steeple, sat.
I couldn’t picture Hannah in this community with her shocking light blond hair, and sexy as hell…
I stopped myself from going there. I was here to find answers, not fantasize about the impossible. I stopped my car and put it in reverse. It was time to make my exit before the group in front of me decided to confront the unwanted visitor. As I turned the car around, I was shocked at the number of people that had now congregated to either confront or intimidate me. Neither option worried me, especially as I watched their expressions. It was almost like they’d been drugged. Their eyes didn’t hold the same spark that Hannah’s did. There was no way she could have come from this place.
I brought my speed up and drove back down the drive and out of the makeshift community. I passed the first group of men, who were now holding batons as their eyes followed my car out of sight. How friendly. That wasn’t exactly something everyone just happened to carry around.
I didn’t know what this place was, but I knew enough to know that they were hiding something, and my guess was that Hannah knew exactly what that was, which was why she was in danger. Whatever the case, it had to be big to flee across the country. Now I just had to convince her that I could help. That I could be trusted. And I already knew that was going to be the hardest thing of all.
Hannah
Finding a table near the window, I opened my netbook and fished out the envelope from my purse. I quickly slid my fingers underneath the flap of the envelope, ripping it in the process. Well, at least I knew Nancy didn’t open it before me. I slid the papers out and saw a map of the region with large red circles and x’s marking it and a note. My heart rate raced as I tried to make sense of everything. Shaking the envelope, a cell phone plopped on the table, which scared me even more. Was it going to ring? I glanced at the handwritten note and couldn’t help but laugh.
I’ll be out of town for a few days. My sister’s number is on the back of the map if anything comes up. I thought since I gave you my information, it was kind of unfair that I didn’t have yours. I’m a problem-solver by nature and this seemed the most logical, albeit over the top. Kindly do me the favor of returning whatever feeble attempt at flirting I may toss your way via text. I don’t want the minutes and texts purchased to go to waste.
Kind Regards,
Luke Fletcher
A charge ran through me as I reread his words. There was something that was beyond appealing about this man. On one hand,
he had the ability to swoop in and save the day, but on the other, he belittled his entire existence with one tiny phrase. I was positive that Luke Fletcher would never give a feeble attempt at anything, which only made me dream about him more.
Somehow this man I barely knew continually managed to bring a smile to my lips when I needed it most. I couldn’t keep the smile from my lips as I saw the arrows drawn on the map pointing in all directions away from the neighborhood I currently called home. I looked at the map and couldn’t agree more. I needed to find a place where I could at least walk down the street without thinking I was going to get mugged or worse. There was no getting around I was in one of the scariest places to live in a twenty-mile radius. Now if only leaving were so easy. First thing was to get a job, get money, save money, and then get the heck out.
I folded the papers and slid them back into the envelope. I glanced toward the ocean and thought a walk on the beach later might be exactly what I needed. A nice reminder that there was more to my life than a crappy place to sleep at night, a truck that didn’t run, and an empty bank account. There were good people in the world, and once I found them, I could expose the bad ones. The very bad ones living back home.
But in the meantime, I needed to concentrate on the fact that I happened to be living in a beautiful, warm area that had more opportunities to blend in and create a new life than anywhere else I could imagine. I grabbed the cell from Luke and turned it on. It was fully charged, and my fingers were literally tingling with the idea of texting him. It seemed kind of presumptuous. What was I going to say? I can’t stop thinking about you? You’re hot as hell? Run now! I sucked at flirting and blamed it fully on how we were raised, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to. I just had a feeling I sucked at it and never before did I have a reason to flirt with anyone. There really wasn’t room for it where I came from, but wasn’t I trying to leave that behind me? My other life? I needed to get brave.
I fished out Luke’s business card and saved it into the phone. I took a deep breath and thought about my text to Luke. Maybe, I just wasn’t a flirter. There was nothing wrong with that, right? So it began. My feeble attempt to communicate with a man who took my breath away.
Got the phone. Too much. Again. But thank you.
Taking a sip of my latte, I logged onto the internet to search for employment, but somehow my curiosity got the best of me, and I entered my hometown into the search bar, scrolling for the local newspaper. There was no mention of a woman gone missing, which was what I expected to see. Absolutely nothing. They always made us disappear, seem inconsequential, almost like we never existed. Just like my sister. Just like my best friend. They would convince my family not to take my disappearance to the authorities, and my family would agree, not wanting to go against the leaders. I scanned through the typical small town stories about the local high school theater production, the grocery store changing its hours, and the cemetery offering up new plots. A shiver ran through me as I thought about the people buried there who were far too young and held far too many secrets.
My heart started beating rapidly as I clicked away from the site. I wasn’t ready to think about it, not yet. I needed to get settled before I attempted to investigate anything, if I attempted to investigate anything. Maybe all I really wanted was to start a new life and never look back. I forced a lump down as I thought about my best friend, the horror in her eyes. No. I couldn’t just run. I had to get justice for her, for everyone.
My phone buzzed and I glanced down, my pulse quickening as I realized Luke already texted back.
There is no such thing as having too much kindness in the world. But besides that, I’m happy to see I didn’t scare you off.
I texted back quickly.
I doubt there would be much of anything you could do to scare me off. I’ve got nerves of steel.
Luke replied.
I don’t doubt that. Plus, you are gorgeous and I haven’t been able to get you out of my mind.
My breathing hitched, and my cheeks felt like they were on fire as I read his text. And then another one came over.
See! I bet that scared you off. Knew I could do it. Seriously, though. I’d love to see you again under normal circumstances. Say, like a date?
My hands got clammy as I read the text. I had never been on a date. No. That wasn’t true. I had been on many dates with the man I was told I would have to marry. Besides the fact that I tried to act like I was in another place and time whenever I spent a moment with him, I literally dreaded everything about our encounters. I wouldn’t qualify those as dates, which only put more pressure on me and the fact that I was truly screwed up. I put the cell down and Googled Luke Fletcher. His security firm popped right up, along with several links about him and his company. I clicked on a Los Angeles Times article that detailed his professional involvement with several actors and actresses. My mind wandered to his personal life and whether those encounters involved any of the actresses. Not that it was any of my business. I glanced at one of the pictures and saw the driver who took me to the home yesterday. He was listed as one of Luke’s employees. I picked the cell back up again and texted.
Wait a second. That guy who drove me yesterday was your employee and his name’s Charlie.
He replied back.
I told you. I’m a problem solver. You needed a ride. I had one to offer. Problem solved. Are you planning on avoiding my question?
Smart ass. I put the phone back down. This wasn’t what I needed to be doing right now. I let out a deep breath as I heard the scrape of a chair behind me. I scooted my chair closer to the table and knew the first thing I needed to do was find a job. Scanning the papers online, I began taking notes on different positions that sounded like a good match. Truth be told, I’d take just about anything to get out of where I was living. Secretarial, receptionist, and clerical positions were plentiful and probably the best place for me to start. Unfortunately, the hourly wage wasn’t exactly what I hoped, but it was better than nothing, which was exactly what I had right now.
“Sorry,” a woman muttered behind me, bumping into my chair.
“Oh, sorry. It’s me,” I replied, pulling my chair closer to the table. “I can be a space hog.” I turned in my chair to look at the female as she attempted to plug in her laptop.
“No. You’re not. I had to plug in my laptop before it totally died. They never put these outlets in a great place.”
The woman’s brunette hair was pulled back in a loose braid, and she was in a pair of sandals, a floral skirt, and camisole. She appeared to be a couple years older than me, at the most. Her arm looked like it was about to fall off as she continued stretching it to its limits. “Got it,” she exclaimed, pulling herself back up.
“Victory,” I laughed, turning back to face my screen. I heard her push the chair back in and glanced behind me.
“I haven’t seen you here before,” the woman said, grinning. “Not that I’m the Starbucks police or anything. I happen to live around the corner.”
I laughed and turned back around. “I’m new to the area. Just looking for work, actually.”
“Really? Where are you from?” she asked.
“Ohio,” I lied, hoping she didn’t grow up there. At this rate that would be my luck, and her father would be the Governor..
Her brows furrowed and she smiled. “Never been.”
“Not many people have,” I laughed. “I’m Hannah.”
“Liv. So anything in particular you’re looking for?” she inquired.
I shrugged. “Anything really.”
“You bartend?” she asked.
I shook my head.
“Waitress?”
“I haven’t, but I’m a fast learner.”
She narrowed her eyes as she studied me.
“What?” I asked.
“I work at a place that I think you’d love.”
“Where’s that?” I asked.
“Buttons,” she replied. “Heard of it?”
“Uh,
no. Is it a bar?”
“Of sorts. The money’s great, like really great. They usually only like brunettes, but for you, I’m sure they’d make an exception. You’re gorgeous. You’re a natural blonde, aren’t you?” She twisted her lips as she contemplated something.
I nodded. “Wait. Is it a—”
“Strip joint?” she laughed. “No. It’s a different type of bar. You need a membership.”
“For what? To drink?” I asked.
“No matter how I say it…it’s going to come out weird,” Liv said.
“No offense, but that doesn’t sound promising,” I laughed. The last thing I needed was to jump out of one group of psychos and into another underground world.
“The pay’s amazing…” She smiled, watching my reaction.
“How amazing?” I asked.
“Amazing enough that I’ll be leaving school without any loans and plenty in my savings come spring.”
“Is it legal?” I almost whispered.
Her laughter made me feel foolish, but so did taking a sip of her serum.
“Yes. It’s legal.” She raised her brow. “We’re in the land of Hollywood stars. And nothing makes people feel more special than thinking they have the same privileges as those who grace the covers of every magazine. This state has enough wannabes who are willing to pay to feel special. People will pay a high price for exclusivity. I’m sure it sounds ridiculous coming from where you do…” her voice trailed off.
If only she knew. The world I left behind was based on exclusivity and misuse of power in the highest form. The right to belong had a price, but it wasn’t money. A shiver ran through my body.
Hidden Sins Page 5
