Beautiful Elixir (Beautiful Oblivion #3) (20 page)

Caleb bounces through my mind. Need to get back to Caleb.

So cold.

So dark.

Mel’s face is the last thing I see as the world fades to nothing.

A
sharp biting
wind slices through the crowd as I struggle to keep an eye on Reese. I know Kennedy is somewhere in the vicinity playing coy, playing it up for Melanie the nut job that brought us to this circus in the first place. Every now and again Reese looks around unsettled, and then I see Kennedy’s dark hair bobbing nearby, and a swell of relief fills me.

“I don’t see her.” Gavin is the first to stoke the flames of this guilt that’s been coating me for the last half hour. I promised Kennedy I wouldn’t take my eyes off her, but she’s been dodgy, and, as soon as Melanie showed up, it was like I was afraid to jinx the show by watching too closely.

“She’s with Reese. She’s standing in the back, talking to some guy.”

Ace leans in. “You sure that’s not her sister?”

“Shit.” In truth, I had forgotten all about Kennedy’s lookalike wandering around the party. I thread through the crowd, and, sure enough, it’s not Kennedy I’ve been tracking. I race over to Reese just as Ace beats me to her.

“Where is she?” My eyes dart around the crowd trying desperately to find her, or, at the least, that psychotic bitch with an ax to grind.

“She’s right here with Brylee and her sorority sisters.” Reese spins with a look of horror. A scream curdles in her throat as if she’s lost a small child in the crowd. “Kennedy?” Her voice rises.

I push past the masses until I spot Brylee and speed over.

“Where is she?” I pant, my hands holding onto her shoulders as if to steady myself.

Something about this feels staged, dramatic, hellish as the music amps up, the lyrics move quicker, the crowd grows in girth and spins around us in a dizzying blur.

“Relax.” She flicks me off her shoulders. “She’s around. I just saw her with Mel.” Her lips curve with a devilish grin. “I would never have pegged you for the possessive type. I kind of like that.”

Gavin appears between us, out of breath, the perspiration running down the sides of his face. “Where’s Kennedy?” he barks at her. “Mel’s the one that’s been fucking with her.”

“Oh my, God.” The drink slips right out of her fingers. “Last I saw them they were headed toward the lake.” She points west, and we bullet through the crowd, the icy air spears through my lungs like a knife.

“Kennedy!” I roar into the night, hearing my own voice come back to me as an echo.

“Fuck.” Ace points to the shoreline in the distance.

At first, I don’t see anything then the last thing I expect takes form—Keith’s body lies over hers in the sand, his sturdy frame straddling her legs, his mouth fused over her lips.

Are they together again? My heart jolts right out of my throat. A rusted terror grips me. Maybe this is the fiery climax. Maybe Kennedy has been fucking with me the entire time.

Her knee rises lazily over his back, and I can feel the vomit in my throat as we come upon them.

“
Kennedy
,” my voice rips into the night, unsure of what its intention is. I only know she’s here, and he’s with her, their faces still very much intact.

Keith pulls back and wipes his mouth over his shoulder before he helps her into his lap.

Kennedy is weak. Her head bobs over his T-shirt leaving a heavy stain. I touch the back of her hair, my fingers coming away damp and glossy.

“She’s bleeding,” he says handing her off to me.

“Kennedy?” I take her into my arms and press my lips to hers.

“Caleb.” My name croaks from her in less than a whisper. Her fingers rise to touch my mouth. “Love you.”

My heart jackhammers back to life. Just seeing her with him—thinking the worst was enough to kill me.

“God, I love you.” I rock her slowly in my arms as I try to sift through what just happened, what’s still happening.

Gavin leans in and examines the back of her head. “I’m calling an ambulance.”

Ace offers Keith a hand and he groans as he rises as if he’s injured himself.

“She’s still out there. She did this.” He pinches his eyes with his fingers and relays how she doused him with pepper spray while knocking Kennedy down and splitting her head on a rock. “She tried to kill her. She held her under, but I was able to knock her off. I was trying to save Ken, breathing for her and shit.”

Kennedy gives the impression of a weak smile, but I can see she’s struggling to hold on.

A howling lake patrol vehicle makes its way over.

“That’s my dad,” Ace says, kneeling. “He’ll be able to give her first aid until we can get her down the mountain.” He winces at Kennedy. “You’re going to be just fine.”

I give Ace a hard look and motion back to the party. “You think she went back?”

Ace shakes his head. “If she’s smart. She’s already long gone.”

Melanie is smart.

And I have a feeling she is long gone.

K
ennedy receives ten stitches
, didn’t lose a hair in the process for which she was forever grateful. I take her home and hold her in my arms, making lazy love to her all weekend.

Early Monday morning we get a knock on the door at seven thirty, and I open it wide to find Peter Slade’s smiling face staring back at us.

“Morning.” He touches the back of his neck sheepishly, most likely because we look like we’ve been fucking all night, and we have. “I have some great news, and I wanted to share it with you both firsthand.” His silver eyes gleam, and, for the first time, I can see Kennedy in him, his eyes, his shrewd smile, she’s all there. “Melanie turned up.”

“She did?” Kennedy lunges at her father and pulls him in tight. “It’s really over.” She sobs into his chest. “It’s done. This entire nightmare is behind us.”

“It’s done.” He presses a tender kiss to her ear. “She was hiding out and got tired of running. She finally showed up at the Morris Township County Correctional Facility.”

“That’s a men’s prison.” I should know. It was where they were housing Solomon and would happily still be doing so if Kennedy didn’t help set me straight.

“That’s where her father is.” He nods. “She wanted to speak with him one last time.”

Kennedy groans. “Okay, I know I shouldn’t feel sorry for her, but that breaks my heart.”

“I know.” Her father strokes her arm. “She asked for me personally to help find another defense team to look into her father’s case. She said she’d plead guilty to all the charges against her if I could find someone who would try to clear his name.”

“And there’s that,” Kennedy whispers. “Mel is smart. I bet that was her plan from the beginning. Are you going to do it?”

“That’s another thing I was coming here for. I thought Maxim McCarthy might want a crack at it.” His jaw tightens, and so does mine at the mention of my father. “I think there might be something to that whole plea of innocence he’s been singing since day one.”

“I’ll let my dad know.”

“I’m off.” He gives Kennedy another quick embrace and pulls me in on it. This feels good. This feels like family. “You take care of my little girl.” He wags his finger at me as he heads down the walk. “And you”—he points hard at Kennedy—“don’t be such a stranger. Your sister and I miss you.”

Kennedy blows him a kiss.

We step in and close the door as Kennedy coils in my arms with a hearty moan.

“I have a surprise for you, too. It’s not nearly as impressive as your father’s but I think it’s worth mentioning.”

“Is this the real deal or did you just mix innuendo with the same breath as my father?” Now it’s Kennedy who looks unimpressed.

“The real deal. I was able to remove just about all of the videos.”

“What!” Her voice shrieks to the ceiling as the room vibrates with joy. “Are you kidding?” Tears come to her eyes.

“No. I’ve had them removed from all the big sites, there are a few I’m still working on, and, believe me, I’m not letting this go. You are too precious to me to let this go. You are not for sale, and your body is for my viewing pleasure only. There’s no way I’m stopping until every last one of those is nothing but a memory.”

“A bad memory.” She winces. “Which, of course, is all my twisted fault to begin with. Thank you.” Her lashes lower as she sinks in my arms. “It’s really over.” She takes in a full, cleansing breath, her cool feet stepping softly over mine. “I guess we can start up the rest of our lives. No more worrying, no more hiding out and praying she’s not lurking outside the window. Our future children can breathe easy.” She gives me the side eye, her lips tugging seductively.

“I like the sound of that. You know what else I like the sound of?”

“Your name when I scream it in the dark?” Her head cocks as she tries to keep a straight face.

Truthfully, nothing sounds better.

“That in addition to McCarthy and McCarthy.”

“Oh?
Oh
.” Her features soften as she leans against me. “I absolutely love the sound of that.” She gives a single nod, her eyes never straying from mine. “I can’t wait for the proposal.”

“I wouldn’t let you miss it.”

I scoop her into my arms and carry her back to bed. Kennedy and I practice for our honeymoon with a renewed vigor. This is what we have to look forward to. Our time has come, and we have seized the day with both hands.

Dear God, I love this woman.

And thank God this woman loves me.

O
n Tuesday
, Kennedy has us drive down to South Lux to ambush my mother for a lunch date. Kennedy is up to something, and I’m not entirely sure what. That’s the best thing about Kennedy—she’s a surprise waiting to happen. A lifetime of loving her will never be enough. She’ll keep me on the edge of my seat, and I hope to keep her right there with me. There is nothing better than being with someone who has the genuine capability to challenge you.

“So I’ve been thinking.” She leans over her salad as if she has no intention of taking a bite.

We’ve come right back to the same dive we took my mother to the first time. I think Kennedy appreciates the fact my mother needs a certain amount of consistency in her life.

“I think it’s time we help you clean up a little.” She dips her chin. Her entire demeanor tries to lure my mother out of the clutter-filled cave she’s trapped in.

Perhaps Kennedy doesn’t quite appreciate the fact my mother demands a certain level of consistency in her life after all. I give a warm smile at the woman I couldn’t live without. Kennedy has a heart the size of this entire damn state.

“I don’t know about this.” My mother raises both hands in protest as if she’s about to get combative.

“Hear me out,” Kennedy pleads. “Your son did a very wonderful thing for me. He helped me clean up
my
life, and I want to return the favor by helping you clean up yours. It’s the least I can do. He won’t let me pay him. He’s stubborn that way.”

Kennedy makes it a point to let me know she’s paying me with her body, each and every night, but I’m too much of a gentleman to call her on it. Instead, I offer a tiny wink, my silent thank you for her grand gesture.

“I have an army of friends who are willing to help out. And all of the things you’re ready to part with, we’ll simply sell.”

“No way, no how!” Mom’s face ignites like a bulb, and I’m half afraid a major meltdown is on the way. “Nobody is touching my stuff!”

“All of the proceeds can go to your favorite charity,” Kennedy offers.

A few stunted moments of silence drift by. Easily this can go south very quickly.

“The veterinary hospital!” Mom beams. “They’ve helped Boonsborough more than I can tell you. If I didn’t have the money for all of those expensive surgeries, I would have been forced to put him down ages ago.”

Kennedy points with her fork. “You can allocate funds for people who can’t afford lifesaving surgeries.”

My mother claps at the brilliance—but, best of all, my mother smiles. It’s the first ear-to-ear grin she’s shed in almost eleven years.

She and Kennedy talk for hours as if they were old friends. My mother has gone from fastidious hoarder to willing to part with her entire clutter collection just to help the unfortunate mutts of the universe. I do believe Kennedy has a gift for negotiations.

And the next day, Kennedy makes good on her word. An army of her sorority sisters show up in South Lux and help haul and organize, trash and stash a mountain of sundries, clothes, overall general crap until you cannot only walk freely into the living room, but you can spin in circles with your arms set wide. That’s exactly what I do with Kennedy. I spin her, twirl her in the air like a ballerina with her arms spread wide.

At the end of the day, two dumpsters and eighty exhausted sorority girls later, it’s done, and my mother collapses in my arms and sobs.

“You found a keeper.”

“Don’t I know it. Are you going to be okay here tonight?” I’m not exactly sure what happens to a person when you shovel out a lifetime worth of chaos.

“Are you kidding? I’m going to be great. I’m heading into town tomorrow to pick up a couple of new things. I’ve been wearing the same three outfits for years because I couldn’t get to the closet—and I gave most of it away.” She holds her hand up like a Girl Scout. “And I promise to put everything in its place. Heck—now that this house has been spit-shined, I think it might be time to spit-shine myself! I might even find me a man.”

“Whoa.” I pull Kennedy into our huddle. “Now look what we’ve done.”

“We’ve done a good thing.” Kennedy tugs at my chin, her doe eyes looking lovingly up at me. “Love is the best gift you can give someone.

K
ennedy
and I hit my father’s office before we head back to Loveless.

My father comes at us like a brick wall, tall, on the heavier side, with a jaw and heart set in granite.

“Come here, boy.” He’s all southern charm and harm. He pulls me in. “You ever get tired of working on that mountain, come right back. I’ve got a desk opening up in about five minutes.” He walks us over to Abel’s office to find my brother staring numbly at the stapler in his hand.

“What the hell?” I step in and try to figure out what that box on his desk means.

My father is a rough ride of a man, a hardline bastard from another era, but I can’t imagine him canning my brother. Especially not after all the pomp and circumstance that went into making him partner. A ten thousand dollar gala was held in his honor. It was dripping with crass sensibilities, the very thing my father’s new wife, Cookie, specializes in.