Let Me Go (24 page)

“Damn it, Benny! Because someone hurt him
and that someone wasn’t me. And yeah, sure I want to thank them,
sort of, because it brought us together. But it doesn’t mean they
should be out in the world all happy and shit while Mason is still
viewed as a rapist. And it sure as hell isn’t working for me to
know the man I love believes I did that to him. Frankly, I don’t
care whether you, or even Mason, believes me, because I’m going to
get the truth.”

“And what if you don’t or can’t?”

“I will.” She gritted her teeth.
That
wasn’t an option.

“Well, then, it seems to me like you’re
wasting time sitting here crying over something that’s not going to
change. So the sooner you get to work, the sooner you guys can get
back together and stop giving me a headache.” He smiled at her and
she couldn’t help but smile back.

“You’re right.”

“Always,” he smirked.

That was a few hours ago, but Kat hadn’t
done anything yet. She was actually pretty stuck. She didn’t know
how the hell to even begin to figure things out. She wondered where
she should start looking. Her mind was still a little fried from
everything that had happened in the past few days, and she couldn’t
think clearly. But now, after a few hours of just sitting and
staring at the ceiling, she finally realized that the first step to
figuring things out was research.

She found the complimentary computers in the
hotel lobby and started searching for information on Mason.
Wow!
She hadn’t expected everything she saw. He had been a
prominent doctor, one of the best in his field. He had been a key
part of the medical world and very well respected. He had also
participated in numerous charities and the pictures of him and tons
of women sent a jolt of jealousy through her. She had to remind
herself that he loved her and this was his past. As she scrolled
through all his work and published articles and accomplishments,
she felt a pang of sadness for Mason.

She knew from what he had told her and what
Benny had let on that Mason had a privileged life before his
downfall, but it never registered until now. She finally saw just
how much he had lost with the accusation of rape against him. No
wonder he was so broken and hurt. She also had a momentary thought
of how she could never fit into that world and how they would have
never met if things hadn’t worked out the way they had. It was
suddenly so clear just how thankful she was that Mason had mistook
her for his accuser. It was a fucked up and long journey, but it
was worth it.

She got to all the articles about him being
accused of rape and the trial and his conviction and sentencing.
But the major details were kept a secret. Of course they were.

She needed to get her hands on the police
report, or the trial transcripts, or something. She needed
someplace to start. All she had to do was figure out how to get her
hands on that information.

*****

Kat knew her plan most likely wasn’t going
to work, but she had to try. So after she checked out of the hotel,
she went shopping for some pretty seductive clothing and then made
her way to the local police station. She was going to try to flirt
her way into getting the files.

But when she got to the police station and a
very not-impressed looking woman asked, “Can I help you?” she knew
her plan was doomed.

An hour later, she was all talked out and
extremely frustrated and unnervingly disappointed. She knew Mason’s
accuser was someone with her same name – Kat Gingham, he had made
that pretty darn clear. And apparently, she had to have looked a
heck of a lot like Kat, since Mason insisted it was her. Kat was a
horrible person, a druggie who figured out how to manipulate quite
a few people into thinking Mason had raped her. That wasn’t much to
start with and that’s why she had wanted those police reports, even
though she knew they probably wouldn’t help her much either. But
that’s all she had.

With no other ideas in mind, she took
the opportunity to reapply for her identification. 
It would be a few weeks before she had it in-hand and the process
took a few hours, but she needed it. Her identification was the
only piece of her that was still solid, still whole. A few hours
later, she found the apartment Mason had gotten for her. It was in
a nice part of town, clean building, and fresh cut grass in the
front. And of course, when she stepped in it was fully furnished,
and everything looked brand new. Only Mason could figure out a way
to get her everything she needed in the span of a day. Just
thinking of him pulled at her heart.

She plopped down on the new couch, too
stunned by everything around her to cry at her failure. She
wondered if maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe Benny and Mason were
right, she should just give it up. Go back to Mason and to hell
with the past. She didn’t care if he thought she was a monster
years ago. He didn’t think so now. That’s all that should
matter.

There was a knock at the door, pulling her
from her thoughts. She secretly hoped it was either Benny or Mason.
But when she opened the door, a tall, blonde, brown-eyed guy was
smiling down at her.

“Hi neighbor, I’m Trent. Hope I’m not
interrupting, but I saw all the moving going on earlier and then I
saw you come in, so I thought I’d pop over and welcome you.”

Kat wasn’t sure if it was the stress that
finally got to her, the impact of everything Mason was doing for
her now, the fact that the guy standing before her wasn’t Mason, or
her complete lack of a good plan to clear this mess, but whatever
it was, she couldn’t hold back any longer. And instead of
responding to Trent, she started sobbing.

“Oh my. Honey, I can’t tell if those are
happy tears or not. I’m hoping you are just so overwhelmed by my
beauty that it caused you to cry tears of joy. But I’m guessing
that’s not it. And although I think I was meant to be a woman
sometimes, I still can’t see a girl cry. So how about we go over to
your table and you can tell me all about it?”

He didn’t wait for Kat to reply, just
grabbed her hand and led her over to her own dining table.

“Now, girl, why don’t we start with your
name?”

“Kat,” she barely whispered through
tears.

“Well, hello Kat, nice to meet you. Now, why
don’t you tell me what’s wrong?”

“I tried to get a police report and
couldn’t,” she said, but because of her sobbing, it was
distorted.

“I’m sorry, what?” Trent asked.

She repeated her words, but they were still
stuck in her throat.

“Still not getting it.”

She tried again, but the words were still
jumbled.

“Okay, how about we take a few deep breaths
and then you can try again.”

She took a couple deep breaths until her
tears subsided a little and said, “I tried to get a police report,
but they wouldn’t give it to me.”

“Aw, girl, I think you are about to be very
happy that I happen to be your neighbor.”

“Oh?” she asked.

“Honey, I’m a PI,” he said with a giant
smile.

Kat couldn’t hide the shocked look on her
face, and the next thing she knew she was spilling her guts to
Trent about everything. Well, almost everything. She left out the
kidnapping part and made it sound like she and Mason ran into each
other and he was put off right away, but kept in touch through a
mutual friend, Benny, until they fell in love. And now she had to
prove her innocence and Mason’s innocence so they could live
happily ever after.

“Oh, honey, that is such a romantic story!”
Trent exclaimed at the end.

“Romantic?”

“Yes! Girl and guy fall in love because of a
case of mistaken identity and now the girl is trying to prove her
innocence and free her man. How is that not romantic? And you’re in
luck! Not only am I an excellent PI, but I’m a sucker for this
shit. Hire me and we’ll get to the bottom of this in no time.”

And that’s just what she did. She spent the
next two hours getting to know her neighbor, partner in crime, and
new friend.

Chapter 36

The next week
flew by quickly. Kat spent her time divided between trying to find
out more about Mason and his accuser, trying to settle in, and
becoming fast friends with Trent. Trent had gotten on the case
quickly, but he also saw just how upset and distant Kat was, so he
had taken it upon himself to make sure Kat was distracted at all
times. At least until he could get his hands on the police reports
or trial transcripts or something. Trent confessed that he may have
sort of pissed off the person that would get him everything they
needed, so it was taking a little longer than they hoped. They
spent that time getting to know each other and Kat was increasingly
grateful for how quickly Trent stepped into the role of friend. She
had never really had many friends, so not only was it great to
finally have one, but it was especially needed at a time like this.
She wondered if they would ever get close enough where she could
spill all the details of her sordid love affair to him.
Maybe
one day.
For now, she had stuff to focus on.

Trent also spent plenty of time trying to
find a “Kat Gingham” that fit the bill. There were plenty of Kat’s
and even Kaitlyn’s. There were a ton of people with a last name of
Gingham, and there were even a few Kat Gingham’s across the nation,
but finding the right one was like trying to find a needle in a
haystack.

She kept in touch with Benny because she
missed him and Mason, and she wanted to keep tabs on both of them.
But she didn’t want to tell Benny anything about what she was
doing.
What was there to tell anyways?
She was at a
dead-end. The only thing she had going for her now was that she had
a PI friend and she didn’t have that before. No, she wouldn’t say
anything to Benny or Mason until she had everything figured out.
She just hoped that wouldn’t be too long.

Kat was out to dinner with Trent. She loved
hanging out with him because she felt normal. She hadn’t been out
in almost a year and although that was still a bitter note because
that was Mason’s doing, she thought it was worth it in the end.

That didn’t mean she wasn’t enjoying the
freedom she had, even though she felt guilty she was out and about
instead of tracking down every last Kat Gingham she could find.

Trent’s phone rang just as they sat down. He
looked down at the phone. “My brother,” he said as he started to
answer. Kat knew he had a brother and a sister and was close to
both, but his sister lived a few hours away, so he barely saw her.
His brother, on the other hand, lived close by, but he also barely
saw him because he was some hot shot at a marketing firm and worked
crazy hours.

“Hey Ty,” Trent spoke into the phone.

She couldn’t hear Ty’s end of the
conversation, but she heard Trent’s.

“What? Really?” Pause. “I feel so honored
you’re making time for me.” Pause and a chuckle. “I’m at dinner
with a friend though, so let me ask.”

He looked at Kat, “Honey, that’s my brother
and he finished up some work early and said he actually has time to
hang out. Who knew! Would you mind if he joined us?”

“No, not at all,” Kat answered. She just
felt pretty honored that Trent didn’t think she was a loon and
could actually introduce her to family.

He turned back to the phone, gave Ty the
okay, and hung up. They ordered a few drinks while they waited for
Ty to join them.

Twenty minutes later, Ty called Trent to let
him know he was there but couldn’t find them, so Trent went to the
front to find him.

“Look what the cat dragged in,” Trent joked
as he approached the table with his brother and that’s when Kat’s
draw dropped.

“Oh my God! You’re twins! Identical!”

Ty and Trent laughed before Trent spoke. “Oh
my, did I forget to mention that? Yep, although I must say I am
still better looking, must be the taste. You know, gay men have
much better style than their straight counterparts. But, hey, where
are my manners, Kat, this is my younger, by a whole 5 minutes,
brother Tyler. And Ty, this is Kat.”

Ty held his hand out. “Nice to meet you,
Kat.”

She nodded and muttered it was nice to meet
him too. Trent was good looking, which by default meant Ty was too,
but that wasn’t why she was staring. They were identical, exact
replicas of each other, except maybe their demeanor. There was
something, something that was on the tip of her tongue about them.
She couldn’t think of what it was, why she was so damn fascinated
by this.

Her mind was suddenly in another place. She
was back at Mason’s house. It was a regular day, a day way before
her and Mason had gotten intimately involved. It was when he and
Benny were still trying to figure out if she was playing with them
when she said she had nothing to do with getting him locked up. She
had been cleaning up Mason’s office with her headphones on while
Benny and Mason were out in the living room. They hung out a lot,
so that was nothing new. But, when the song finished and she heard
Mason say something like, “Really?” in a disbelieving tone, she
paused the next song and listened while she worked.

“You really think she doesn’t remember
anything?” Mason asked Benny. She knew they assumed she couldn’t
hear anything and they would have been right. When she was
listening to music, she was in her own little world; this just
happened to be a fluke, but hey, she wasn’t opposed to
eavesdropping.

“There is just something off. I can’t get a
good read on her,” Benny responded.

“So, like what? She lost her memories?
Amnesia of some sort? And she just conveniently forgot all about
me?”

“No, it’s almost like she’s a different
person. Like the Kat over there isn’t the same Kat you
described.”

“You’re saying you don’t believe me?”