Requiem (6 page)

“
What are you getting paid
now?” I asked.

“
Beans,” Beth
said.

“
Well…I
am
the CEO of Titan Mercantile. I
need an assistant.”

Beth immediately perked up. “What are the
hours? My classes are at quirky times, ya know.”

“
I know,” I nodded. “If you
can swing at least an hour a day, whenever you can get in, I’ll
match the pay you were making this summer. You had a little
breathing room then, right?”

“
That’s robbery!” Beth
squeaked.

“
Oh, shut up,” Kim snapped.
“Nina has money to burn. She doesn’t even get paid to work
there,”

“
Yet,” I
interceded.

Kim continued,“She’s your rich friend,
Oklahoma, take advantage.”

“
You have interns for that
stuff….” Beth said, shaking her head dismissively.

“
They’re busy.”

After a short moment of thought, Beth’s
mouth spread into a wide smile. “Really?”

“
Really.”

She threw herself across the table, wrapping
her arms around my neck. “I can’t wait to tell Chad! I’m sorry…I
have to go!” she picked up her things and took a few steps, turning
on her heels. “When do I start?”

I smiled patiently. “When can you
start?”

“
Next week?”

“
See you
Monday.”

Beth’s already broad smile stretched to its
limit. She pulled the door open, walking with renewed energy in her
step.

“
Public displays of
generosity make me a little queasy,” Kim deadpanned.

“
Why do you think I did
it?” I asked.

“
You’re sick,” she said,
winking. “So, what do you think about Ryan’s note?”

“
He wrote Josh and didn’t
write me, that’s what I think,” I sniffed.

“
Nigh….”

“
I know,” I said, looking
out the window.

“
You don’t know. You
thought he’d stick around, pine for you for years until he’d
finally moved to the mountains, vowing to be a hermit until he died
of a broken heart. He was in love with you; he did something
drastic. Let it go.”

“
I do
not
want him to pine for me. I don’t
want him dying because I hurt him, either!”

Kim watched me for a moment, unaffected by
my anger. “You don’t look as tired today. Did the dreams go
away?”

“
No,” I snapped.

“
But you slept last
night?”

“
Yes. Jared left town, and
it’s like I fell into a coma or something.”

“
Interesting,” Kim said. I
turned to look at her, but she was staring out the window as if she
were searching for something.

“
What is it?” I
asked.

“
Nothing,” she said,
turning to face me.

“
You’re acting
weird.”

“
So?” Kim said in her
unapologetic way.

“
You’re right. It’s no
different than any other day.”

We gathered our things, and then Kim offered
to drive me to campus. I nodded in Bex’s direction as subtly as I
could, and then yanked on the passenger door of the Sentra. It
opened just a crack, and then it was stuck.

“
Really?” I
complained.

Kim patiently walked around the front of the
car, shooing me out of the way. With a light tug, she opened the
door without effort, and then returned to her side. We both fell
into our seats, and I waited for Kim to go through her routine of a
fake Catholic prayer before she started the engine.

“
How this car still runs is
beyond me. How did it survive your summer road trip?”

Kim shrugged. “She stayed behind. I rented a
car.”

“
Oh yeah? That far? Pretty
expensive. How’d you afford it?” I asked.

Kim slowed at a red light, and waited before
answering. “I told you, I robbed a few liquor stores on the
way.”

“
The truth this
time.”

“
I just told you,” Kim
said, stoic.

“
You robbed a liquor store.
Like with a gun,” I said, dubious.

“
And pantyhose.”

The light turned green, and we rode in
silence until we reached campus. Kim helped me with the door, and
then we walked together, our first class being in the same
building. As we walked, I felt a burning question bubble up inside
of me. The answer was potentially something I would forever regret
knowing. Regardless, I had to know.

“
You didn’t really rob a
liquor store, did you, Kim?” I said, feeling ridiculous for
asking.

“
No,” she said, turning in
the direction of her class.

I waited in the hall, watching her walk
away. I had been so preoccupied with my dreams, I failed to realize
Kim’s stories hadn’t added up, and I didn’t catch that she was
using her sarcasm to hide something. But hide what? That was all I
needed: Something new to obsess about.

Bex was waiting for me when I walked out to
the parking lot, in the same spot the Escalade usually sat. I was
still twenty feet away when Bex relieved me of my backpack, and
escorted me the remainder of the way to the BMW. He watched me for
a moment, with his big, blue eyes.

“
Yes,” I said, opening the
passenger door.

A large, boyish grin radiated from one side
of his mouth to the other, and he enthusiastically commandeered the
driver’s seat once more. “Jared called, but you were in class.”

“
Convenient.”

“
He wanted you to be
updated the second you were finished. He hasn’t had much luck. A
few leads, he’s carrying them out today, and he’ll be home tomorrow
night as promised.”

“
Why didn’t he call me
himself?” I asked, unable to clear the venom from my voice. The
anger stemmed from the pain of missing him. Ironically, letting an
emotion slip now and then made it easier to control
them.

Bex sighed. “He misses you. He was afraid
hearing your voice would make it worse. He didn’t want you to talk
him into coming home.”

One corner of my mouth turned up, but I
quickly subdued it. “I’ve got to stop by the office for a sec.”

“
Yep,” Bex nodded, turning
in the direction of Titan.

The evening consisted of homework and
dinner. Bex proved to be an accomplished cook, no doubt learning
from Lillian as Jared did. He whipped up an amazing Pasta Chick Pea
Salad, followed by Peppered Shrimp Alfredo. I was so full by the
time he served dessert that I didn’t have enough room to fully
appreciate the small slice of cheesecake he placed in front of
me.

“
You’re spoiling me,” I
said, leaning back in my chair.

“
I happened to know Jared
cooks for you all the time. I’m just trying to continue the
lifestyle in which you’ve become accustomed.”

“
If you say so….” I
teased.

“
And I like to cook,” he
smiled.

“
It’s a wonder I haven’t
gained fifty pounds living with Jared,” I said, taking my plate to
the sink.

“
I got these. Go rest,” Bex
said, pulling the plate from my hands.

“
Quit it. It’s fifty-fifty
around here.”

“
Yeah, but I can do them
faster,” he smirked.

“
True,” I said,
yawning.

I trudged up the stairs. Gluttony, in
addition to weeks without a proper night’s sleep, left me nearly
debilitated. My sluggish arms struggled with the pink striped
pajamas I’d managed to pull from the drawer, and once my body
collapsed to the mattress, I was unable to open my eyes.

And then it was morning.

No Jack, no Gabe, no Shax. I had slept an
entire night without a single dream, much less a nightmare. I
remembered nothing. A full night of sleep was less than a memory,
and it was strange to feel rested.

The smell of bacon grease filled the air. I
bounced out of bed, and trotted to the railing.

“
Did you sleep?” I asked
Bex, who was bouncing to a tune in his head.

“
Yeah,” he called. “I was
all prepared to tend to your early morning psychotic episodes Jared
keeps talkin’ about. I’m disappointed.”

“
Well, I’m not,” I said,
retreating to the shower.

A night without the dream didn’t make sense.
We had been by the office; I had even spoken briefly to Kim about
the dreams, and…nothing. Whatever it was, I had to believe the
nightmares were over. Sleeping all night in Jared’s arms without
waking up screaming and soaking the sheets with my own sweat was
definitely something to look forward to. I was even more excited
for him to come home.

“
Did he call?” I asked,
tightening my belt as I descended the stairs.

“
No, but Cynthia
did.”

“
Oh? Did she say
why?”

“
I don’t know, Nina. Maybe
because you haven’t spoken to her in three weeks? She starts
noticing when she runs out of charity events to keep her
busy.”

“
Okay, okay,” I said,
picking up my phone.

“
Good morning, Darling,”
Cynthia said before the first ring finished.

“
How are you?”

“
Busy, busy. Why don’t you
come over for dinner tonight? I haven’t seen you in…you know I
don’t remember? How ridiculous. Come to dinner. Six
o’clock.”

“
Yes, Mother.”

“
See you then,
Dear.”

“
That was quick,” Bex said,
sliding two eggs from the spatula onto my plate.

“
Thank you. And it always
is. She’s not one for lengthy phone conversations.”

Bex replied with a nod. He was becoming so
much like Jared—not one for many words, but it was obvious what he
was thinking just by the slightest change in his eyes. Not that a
child of Lillian’s would be any different, but I was so proud of
the man Bex was quickly turning into. He made me feel just as safe
as Jared or Claire, and he was one of the kindest people I
knew.

Bex was a constant reminder
of the night Shax’s henchmen tried to capture me in Lillian's home,
and the subsequent months I spent without Jared. Every time Bex was
around, each time someone mentioned his name, the sound of Harry
Crenshaw's vertebrae snapping resonated in my mind. Bex killing
anyone seemed so impossible, but I knew better than anyone
that
impossible
didn’t exist.

The ride to Brown was long. Each passing
minute of each class was an eternity. Even lunch seemed to drag on.
The clock demanded my attention within minutes of the last time I
had looked at it. Normally the irritation surrounding me would be
unbearable, but catching up on lost sleep seemed to help.

“
Is that a no?” Beth asked,
nudging me.

“
Huh? I said, realizing I
had missed a large chunk of the table conversation. We sat in our
usual spot at the Ratty, with one chair remaining empty in honor of
Ryan’s absence. It was then I noticed a second chair was also
empty.

“
I said have you heard from
Kim? She wasn’t in American Public’s class. She’s not here. I tried
her cell, but got her voice mail.”

“
No, I haven’t,” I said,
glancing around the Ratty. “Not since this morning.”

Beth frowned, leaning against Chad, as she
always did when she was unsettled. “She never misses class.”

Our lunch table was relatively quiet after
that, making the minutes pass even more slowly, if that were
possible.

The afternoon seemed like an eternity, and
by the time Bex dropped me off at the front entrance of Titan, I
was crawling out of my skin.

Sasha seemed the likely target to vent my
frustration, but she wasn’t in. Annoyed, I rode the elevator to the
third floor, settling on Grant as a second choice.

“
Afternoon, Peanut,” Grant
called from his office.

“
Piss off.”

Instantly, I felt better.

“
If you didn’t own the
company, I would fire you for insubordination,” he said with an
amused grin.

“
Insubordination requires
disregard of a command. I simply responded to your greeting,” I
said, stopping abruptly at my office door.

“
Is that what you had in
mind?” Grant asked, shoving his hands in his pockets, oozing with
pride.

“
I….” I stumbled over the
words, reading the letters once more.

Nina Grey

Acting CEO

Jack Grey

CEO

“
It’s barely dry,” Grant
said, teetering back and forth.

I looked out the closest window, and
anywhere else in the room other than the door to hide my
expression.

“
It’s fine,” I said,
pushing past him, and shutting the door before he could speak
again.

Taking a deep breath, I let my body melt
into the door. The office still smelled of mahogany, wood polish
and the slightest hint of tobacco. It was as if the room had frozen
in time the second he died. I could almost hear him talking loud
and authoritative on the telephone.

I walked across the room slowly, noting the
pictures of him with members of Congress, plaques, a coat of arms,
and degrees adorned the walls. To my disgust, the large painting of
my mother and me still hung between the two large windows
over-looking Fleet Rink.