“I didn’t expect to see you here.” Conner said with a grin. He liked Travis, it was Trevor he couldn’t stand.
“This is probably the only class I’ll ever have with someone as smart as you.” Travis teased before his expression changed. “I need to talk to you about something.”
“Sure. What’s up?”
“I think Trevor is going to try to break you and Karla up. He has this obsession with her that I just don’t understand. Yes, she’s beautiful and smart and a great person, but she’s also totally and completely devoted to you. He doesn’t stand a chance with her.”
“He’s been obsessed with her for a year now. What makes you think he’s going to try something now?”
“Last night I was in his room helping him finish boxing up some old things that we’re donating to the clothes drive next month and I came across this box in the top of his closet. It was full of stuff about Karla. There were pictures of her, mostly taken at school, but there were a few from various places around town. There were also clippings from all the newspaper articles that featured the academic team. He has the full article and pictures from when the school paper did a full spread on her and Rylee being named junior captains. I confronted him about it and he told me it was none of my business. I’m worried he’s going to try something and Karla’s going to get hurt.”
“Travis, I consider you a friend so I’m going to be straight with you. If Trevor does anything to hurt Karla I will kick his dramatic ass.”
“Conner, if that stupid brother of mine does something to hurt Karla I will help you kick his dramatic ass. I love my brother, but he needs to learn that he can’t always get what he wants. Also, if he hurts Karla that will hurt Rylee and I can’t let that happen.”
Conner relaxed a little at Travis’ words and grinned. “Speaking of Rylee, what’s the deal with you two? Everyone can see that you like each other.”
“I’m working up the courage to ask her out. Think she’d date a non-smart kid”
“Definitely.” Conner said just as the bell rang. “Now I have to go find my girls. I’ll see you at lunch.”
“See ya, man. I’ll keep an eye on Trevor for ya.”
“Thanks, man.” Conner said as he headed to meet his girls in Calculus.
Chapter Sixteen
“Hey, little brother, how is your first day of high school going so far?” Karla greeted Elliot when he joined them at lunch.
“It’s going okay so far. I only have one class with Mallie, which isn’t cool, but at least I get to see her at lunch.”
“Here she comes now.” Conner said with a grin. His grin instantly faded when he saw who was walking over with her.
“Hello.” Trevor greeted everyone, but his eyes never left Karla. “You are looking exceptionally lovely today, Karla.”
Karla looked down at the green tank-top and denim capris she wore and shrugged before she looked at Trevor. “If you say so.”
“Karla, my dear, you could be wearing a potato sack and still be the most stunning creature to grace the earth.”
“Trevor, you’re full of crap. Doesn’t the drama department have reserved tables or something?” Madison asked as she came up behind her brother. “Now move so I can sit down.”
Once Maddie was seated Trevor looked at Karla again. “Remember what I said last year.” He told her in a soft voice before he walked away from the table.
“What was that about?” Travis asked as he walked up and sat beside Rylee.
Karla just shook her head and looked at Conner. He nodded and explained it to everyone. “Last year at Elliot’s birthday cook-out Trevor cornered Karla in her bedroom. He told her that all he wanted was a chance to prove to her that he was better for her than I am. She told him then that he would never get that chance, but he told her he wouldn’t give up until she gave him a chance.”
“What an idiot.” Malinda said in a quiet voice. “Anybody can tell he doesn’t stand a chance with Karla.”
“I can’t believe my brother is that stupid.” Travis said in a disgusted voice. “Guys, I’m sorry about Trevor and his obvious obsession with Karla. If y’all don’t want to hang out with me anymore I will totally understand.”
When Travis stood to leave Karla reached around Rylee and grabbed his arm. “You aren’t responsible for his actions and none of us blame you for what he does or doesn’t do.”
“She’s right, Trav. What Trev does has nothing to do with you.” Madison told her brother. “Furthermore, if they stopped hanging out with you they would have to stop hanging out with Mallie and me too and I doubt Elliot would like that.”
“We aren’t going to stop hanging out with any of you because of what Trevor did or didn’t do.” Karla told them all. “Travis, you aren’t responsible for his actions and I would never blame you for something he did. I’ve been on the receiving end of that kind of blame and I would never do that to anyone else. Please don’t leave.”
Travis sat back down and smiled at Karla. “Personally I don’t see what Trev sees in you. I prefer redheads.” He said and playfully flicked the ends of Rylee’s hair. Rylee blushed and everyone at the table burst out laughing.
The rest of the day passed quickly. After they got in the car Elliot turned to Karla. “I need to tell you something I overheard in the bathroom, but I need you to call Conner so he can hear it too.”
“Okay, you’re scaring me a little.” Karla told him as she pulled her cell phone from her purse and called Conner.
“Hey, Karla.” Conner answered immediately. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m not quite sure what’s wrong. Elliot asked me to call you because he overheard something in the restroom and said we both needed to hear it. Have you left the school yet?”
“Nope. I’ll meet you at the parking lot gate in just a minute. We can talk there. I love you.”
“See you in a minute. I love you too.” She hung up and tossed her phone back in her purse before she started the car and backed out of her space at the end of the lot.
When they reached the gate she pulled through and stopped her car beside Conner’s. As soon as she stopped the car Elliot unbuckled his seat belt and jumped out. “I overheard Trevor talking on his cell phone in the bathroom right after the final bell rang.” He told them as soon as Karla was out of the car.
“What did you hear?” Karla asked. He was clearly upset by it and that made her nervous.
“Trevor was in the stall and he was talking pretty loudly. I would have never listened if I hadn’t heard your names. His exact words were, ‘Sharlet, I need you to get Conner Newberry to help you in Biology. Then I need you to make people believe you are sleeping with him.’ He paused for a minute then he said, ‘No you don’t have to actually sleep with him, but you can if you want. I just want him out of the way so I can have Karla.’ There was another pause before he added, ‘I don’t care what you have to do. I promise I will pay you well for it.’ It sounded like the conversation was coming to an end so I left the bathroom before he knew I was there.”
Karla and Conner looked at each other in stunned silence for a minute before Karla spoke. “Why do I attract the crazies?”
“Hey now.” Conner said with a grin as he pulled her into his arms. “We are not going to let Trevor and his obsession come between us. I love you, Karla and nothing anyone says or does is going to change that.”
“I love you too, Conner. I’m scared though. I’m scared of what he may try when this plan fails.”
“Elliot, do you know who this Sharlet person is?” Conner asked and Elliot shook his head. “It looks like I need to call Travis, but before I do I need to tell you something that Travis told me this morning. I was going to tell you after we got to your house, but you need to know now. Trevor has a box in his room full of pictures, printouts and news articles of you. Travis found it and told me about it.”
Karla started shaking and Conner pulled her tighter against his chest. “Why me?” She asked as tears soaked into Conner’s
shirt.
“I don’t know, baby, but I promise you that he will not hurt you.” Conner said into her hair before he kissed the top of her head. “Why don’t you leave your car here for now and I’ll drive you and Elliot home? I’ll come back with Andrew or Manuel later and get it for you.”
When Karla nodded Conner nodded to Elliot who grabbed his and Karla’s things from the car, grabbed the keys from the ignition and locked the doors. Once Karla was in the car Conner pulled out his phone and called Travis. “Is there any way you can come to Karla’s alone? We need to talk about your brother.”
“I’ll meet you there in a few minutes.” Travis answered and ended the call. Conner slipped his phone back in his pocket, got in the car and headed to Karla’s.
Chapter Seventeen
As soon as they walked through the front door Karla called Rylee and Callie and asked them to come over. Then she went into the kitchen and told Leslie what was going on. “Mom, I have a problem.”
“Correction, we have a problem.” Conner said as he walked up behind her.
“What’s going on?” Leslie asked, concern lasing her voice.
“It has to do with Trevor Carpenter.” Elliot said as he walked into the kitchen.
“Dr. Carpenter’s son?” Andrew asked as he entered the kitchen behind Elliot.
Karla groaned before she turned to look at Andrew. “Yes, Dad.”
“What’s going on, sweetheart?”
“I’ll explain everything once everyone else gets here.” Karla told them just as the doorbell rang.
“I’ll get it.” Elliot said and walked out of the kitchen. A moment later Callie, Rylee and Travis walked in followed by Elliot, Malinda and Madison.
“What’s going on?” Callie asked as she walked to the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of apple juice. “Does anyone want anything?” She asked before she closed the door.
“I’m not hungry.” Conner answered and everyone in the room looked at him in shock.
“This must be bad if Conner isn’t hungry.” Rylee said as she sat at the table. “Tell us what’s going on.”
“Travis, can you tell everyone what you told me this morning?” Conner asked his friend.
“Sure can.” Travis answered and told everyone about the box he found in Trevor’s room.
When he was finished Andrew stood from his place at the bar and started to walk toward his office. “Dad, wait. There’s more.” Karla stopped him. When he sat back down he was shaking with anger.
“Elliot, ready to tell them the rest” Conner asked and Elliot told them what he overheard on the restroom.
“Sharlet is our cousin. Her dad lost his job over the summer and they moved here in hopes that dad would help him find a job. Dad got him a job in the business offices of the hospital a couple of weeks ago so they’re staying. Sharlet is a sophomore and her sister, Sabrina, is a senior.” Travis told them.
“So Trevor is asking your cousin to try to seduce my boyfriend and she’s actually willing to do it?” Karla asked in disgust.
“Yep. Sharlet is a bit of a loose cannon and will do anything Trevor asks her to do.” Travis told them.
“Great, another psycho to deal with.” Rylee said with a roll of her eyes then she flinched and looked at Travis sheepishly. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”
Travis reached over and ran his hand down her hair. “It’s okay. Trev is a bit off sometimes. He really isn’t a bad guy when he isn’t being creepy.”
“I need to go call Ron.” Andrew said as he stood again. “This needs to stop now.”
“Dad, can you let me try to handle this first?” Karla asked Andrew before he walked out of the room.
“Karla, I know how much you want to handle things on your own, but this is bordering on criminal stalking.”
“I know, Dad, but he hasn’t done anything yet. Go talk to Dr. Carpenter, but please let me try to figure this out. I need to know that I won’t cower in the face of adversity.”
Andrew looked at her for a minute before he nodded and sat back down again. “Okay, Karla. I will let you handle this for now, but if he does anything, and I mean anything, to hurt you he will have to answer to me.”
“With all due respect, sir, he will have to answer to me too and I won’t go to jail for beating the crap out of him.” Conner told Andrew.
“True enough.” Andrew said in response.
“You will both have to get in line because if that idiot brother does something to hurt Karla I’ll beat the crap out of him myself. I love Trevor, he’s like the other half of me, but I will not stand idly by while he hurts someone.”
“So we agree that if he hurts Karla you will all kick his butt. My question is what can we do to prevent that from happening?” Rylee spoke up. “I don’t want Karla hurt at all so we have to devise a plan to keep that from happening.”
“I agree with Rylee.” Karla said to them all. “As much as I appreciate you all wanting to kick his butt for hurting me, I’d rather it not get to that point.”
“We all would.” Leslie agreed. “What did you have in mind, Karla?”
“We beat him at his own game.” Karla said with a devious grin.
Chapter Eighteen
The next few weeks passed quickly. Trevor didn’t try anything, but they all just waited and watched for him to make his move. As the first competition of the year approached Karla started getting the feeling she was being watched, but could never see anyone. The Saturday night before the competition she was driving home from a regular babysitting job she had taken when a car pulled out in front of her and slowed down. She immediately pulled her cell phone from her purse and laid it in her lap. She wasn’t a paranoid person, but a teenage girl alone on a dark road could never be too cautious.
The car slowed down a little more and Karla tapped her breaks. When the road shifted into four lanes she switched lanes and started passing the car. She glanced over as she passed and she almost ran off the road. The driver of the car was someone she never thought she would see again. Karla pressed the gas and sped past the car, her only thought was of getting home where she knew she would be safe.
“It cannot be him.” She said out loud to the empty car. “I’m wrong.” She kept repeating these things to herself the rest of the way home. When she pulled into the driveway she hit the garage opener and pulled her Nissan into its usual spot as the car she passed stopped at the end of the driveway. She immediately hit the button to close the garage door, but before it closed she saw his face again and knew she’d been right.
Once the door was completely closed she turned the car off, snatched her keys out of the ignition and ran to the back door. Leslie looked up from her place at the bar when Karla slammed the door shut behind her and locked it quickly.
“Karla, what happened? What’s wrong?”
“Can you look out the front window and see if there is a black car sitting out there?”
“If I do will you tell me what’s wrong?” Leslie asked and when Karla nodded she walked into the family room and looked out the front door. She saw a black sedan sitting across from the house and looked back at Karla. “There’s a black car right across from the house. Now what’s going on?”
“I was hoping I was imagining things.” Karla said and sank to the floor where she stood. “I can’t believe he’s here. I don’t know how he found me.” She mumbled to herself as she pulled her knees to her chest and laid her head on them.
“Sweetheart, please tell me what happened.” Leslie said as she sank to the floor beside Karla.
Karla looked up and Leslie saw the fear in her eyes. “I was driving home from the Anderson’s and a car pulled out in front of me and slowed down. I wasn’t really worried at first, but I pulled my phone from my purse just in case. When the car slowed down a little more I started to get worried. When we reached the place where the road changes to four lanes I went to pass the car, but I glanced over to see if the driver was alright. Mom, the driver of the car was Tony
. He smiled at me as I passed him and he followed me the rest of the way home. He’s sitting outside right now.”
“Are you sure it’s him? It’s hard to see into a car at night and you haven’t seen him in over two years.”
“I thought the same thing, but after I pulled into the garage he stopped the car at the end of the driveway and I saw his face clearly as the door closed. He smiled the same way he did that night. I thought I had moved past that, but seeing him brings it all back to the surface.”
“Can I use your phone? Mine is in the kitchen still and I need to call Andrew and Trent.”
Karla handed her phone to Leslie and dropped her head back to her knees. “Where’s Elliot?”
“He’s with Andrew and Manuel. They went to help Kiara rearrange her dorm room.” Leslie answered as she put the phone to her ear.
“Karla?” Trent asked when he answered the phone.
“Trent, its Leslie. I’m sorry to bother you, but can you come by the house? Karla was followed home tonight and the man who followed her is parked across from the house.”
“Does she know who it is?” Trent asked as he grabbed his keys off the counter.
“She says it’s Tony.” Leslie said in a quiet voice.
“On my way. Call me back if he leaves or tries anything.” Trent said as he jumped in his car and pealed out of his driveway. “I’ll be there in under ten minutes.”
“Thank you, Trent.” Leslie said and ended the call as she peeked out the window again. The car was still out there, but she didn’t see the man sitting behind the wheel any longer.
“Mom, can you come upstairs with me? I want to grab my tablet and email Conner, but I don’t want to go alone.”
“Sure, honey.” Leslie answered and pulled Karla to her feet. They had just made it to Karla’s room when the security alarm started going off. Leslie pushed Karla though her bedroom door and locked it behind them. “Let’s get in your closet. Trent is on his way.”
Karla nodded and hurried to her closet. Once inside Leslie locked that door too and they crouched down in the corner. She still had Karla’s phone in her hand so she called Trent again. When he answered she immediately started talking. “Trent, I think he’s messing around the house. The alarm is going off and Karla and I have locked ourselves in her closet.”
A New Journey (Second Chance #3) Page 6
