He chuckled. “I never said they were good. They’re fucking brilliant. And I think you should record them… don’t sell ‘em off. This time you take the driver’s seat. This time, you’re the artist performing them. You said you want to branch out into something new. Although not entirely foreign to you, it is something new.”
Her eyes widened and she stared at him speechless, feeling the butterflies in her stomach go crazy. She hadn’t expected him to respond that way. Paired with what she had experienced before losing consciousness, she now felt overwhelmed at the thought.
He grinned. “Hey there, deer in the headlights.” He chuckled. “Kid, relax. Keep refining them. Work with it. The muse is alive and well in you. Maybe you touched the Divine through this whole situation. Draw it in. Use it. Work it through, but don’t sell out. Maybe it’s time for you to be the star? Think about it.” He offered a reassuring grin as he patted her knee.
She stared at him in amazement. This was an unprecedented recommendation from him and a pie-in-the-sky consideration for her. She wasn’t sure what to do with it.
* * *
Emily knocked hastily and walked into Kyle’s apartment without waiting for his cue. She looked down and frowned seeing two tattered, packed suitcases waiting. “Ky?” She yelled out.
He appeared moments later. “Hi Em, thanks for coming.” He glanced at his wristwatch. “Can you take care of my place for a bit? Y’know, water the plants, bring in the mail? Lance isn’t the most reliable roommate.”
Emily met Kyle’s eyes and nodded. “Of course. Is the spare key in the usual place?”
He shook his head and handed her the key. “Here you go. The place is stocked up with everything—food, beer, you name it, if you wanna hang out here.”
Emily stared at him. “Kyle, talk to me, would you? Where are you going?”
He shook his head and avoided giving her too much information. “I’m not sure how long I’ll be gone. At least a week. I have to get some things figured out, and I need to leave in order to do it.”
Before he could continue, a formidable looking man in dark sunglasses and a black suit approached. When Emily did a double-take, she noticed a gun in a holster discreetly hanging from his hip.
The man nodded to Kyle. “We’re ready for you. The car is outside. Are these your bags?”
He nodded and Emily’s eyes widened as the man retrieved the bags and headed out. Kyle forced a grin. “Thanks for taking care of my place. Bye, Em.”
He headed out, and she couldn’t stand by passively. Emily chased after him out of the apartment building to notice a black Lincoln Town Car with its windows blacked out for privacy. She noticed another man in a black suit sitting in the passenger seat. The driver stowed Kyle’s suitcases and returned to his charge behind the wheel.
Oblivious to Emily trailing behind him, Kyle opened the back door of the car and was about to get in when he noticed her. He frowned and shook his head disapprovingly.
She stared at him with wide eyes. “Ky, what is going on? Who are these people?” She lowered her voice. “They look like creepy. Are you in some kind of trouble?”
His sage green eyes bore into her as he chose to avoid her inquiry. “I have to go, Em. Take good care and thank you.” He got into the car and shut the door, watching her through the tinted windows as the car pulled away from the curb.
The man in the passenger seat turned to look at Kyle. “We’re on schedule. The jet is waiting. We’ll be in San Francisco in a hour. You’re booked into a suite at the Fairmont. Meetings will commence with dinner tonight. A car will be waiting to take you to the location. Plan for a late night.”
Kyle stared straight ahead, angered, as he responded flatly, “Fine.”
* * *
Alexa got comfortable in the chair next to Kit’s bed. A week has passed since the shooting. Kit was healing well and was scheduled to go home the following day. She had specifically requested Alexa visit that afternoon.
She thought nothing of it until Kit mentioned over the phone that she was finally feeling lucid and wanted Alexa’s help at putting the pieces together of one of her discoveries.
She wasn’t sure what that meant. Alexa had noticed Sully’s behavior was distant and he was more jittery and distracted than he had been in years. She had her concerns but played them close to the vest. The last thing she wanted to do was bring that up while Kit was in the midst of her recovery.
Kit looked at Alexa and noticed her looking around the room. “Looks like a fucking florist doesn’t it?”
Alexa giggled and met Kit’s eyes. “It totally does. How are you feeling today?”
She nodded. “As good as I suppose I’ll be. Ready to get out of here.”
Alexa pointed at her with a look of warning on her face. “Just because they’re going to release you tomorrow doesn’t mean you’re going to go back to work.”
She sighed and cast her eyes down. “Ah… that.”
Alexa frowned. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard you say anything remotely like that about work.”
She finally looked up and met Alexa’s eyes. “Sometimes things change. Now is one of those times. That’s not what I want to talk about right now, though. We’ll leave that topic for later.”
Alexa nodded. “Ok. So what do you want to talk about?”
Kit sighed. “Lex, I know you don’t like me talking about Kirby’s death being suspicious, but I think there may be some validity to it.”
Before she could continue, Alexa butted in, meeting her eyes. “I think there is too.”
Her eyes widened. “What did you just say to me?”
