discovery? He must not have trusted her from the get-go. Holly had pushed before,
asked questions that could have gotten her in trouble, and I had done a shit job at
convincing her that my life with Darren was normal, that I was happy. And now,
she was going to suffer for that. Because of me. Again.
“Jaden,” Holly urged. I had yet to answer her. I didn’t know what to say because
the only thing I wanted to tell her was to run, but that was hopeless.
I finally turned back to her, knowing my eyes were nothing but wells filling with
more despair than they could handle.
“I’m so sorry, Holly,” I whispered, unable to raise my voice. “I’m sorry that you
got dragged into this.”
“Dragged into what?” she asked angrily.
“The shit storm that is my life,” I replied, my voice defeated yet sarcastic.
“Jaden, what’s going on? Are you in some kind of trouble?”
I took a deep breath, hoping I might still be able to defuse the situation.
“No, Holly. Everything is going to be fine. You just need to trust me.”
“Trust you?”
“Yes, just trust me. Don’t worry about the records or what Darren said. Just
know that I’m alive and okay and that there’s no reason for you to worry. Okay?”
Holly’s brows furrowed as she regarded me like I was crazy. “You expect me to
pretend like there’s nothing wrong here? Like everything’s okay?”
I nodded with a soft smile. I knew it wouldn’t be enough, but I hoped. Good God,
I hoped.
“Have you made your arrangements to return to your residency?” I asked,
hoping someone was aware of her future plans.
Holly scowled. “I’m not scheduled to return for another month. Why?”
Fuck.
It’d be better if someone were expecting her like … tomorrow.
“What about your living arraignments? Where are you supposed to stay when we
leave?”
“I’m still paying the rent on my apartment. It hasn’t gone anywhere.”
“So no one knows that you’re supposed to come back in the next few days?”
“No, Jaden. There’s no one to tell,” she said, her tone becoming annoyed with
my questions.
I sighed, more annoyed than she was. “Do you at least have a cell phone?”
“Yes, but the signal out here isn’t very good,” she quipped.
If that were the case, there was no way Darren would be able to conduct business
on the island very well. He’d have to have a good connection to get a hold of
anyone, not to mention I’d never seen him have trouble on a call before. He must
have been transmitting something to jam up her phone’s signal. Clever,
motherfucker.
“Why are you asking me all these things?” Holly asked, her voice suddenly
shaking.
“Because I want you off the island. Tonight. You should go back to your room
and pack your things. Now.”
“Why? Do you think I’m in some kind of trouble now?”
No point in hiding it now. Maybe there was still time.
“Yes,” I answered sadly. “He baited you, Holly, and you fell right into his trap.
Darren’s not who you think he is. He’s dangerous, and he won’t hesitate to
neutralize a threat when he sees one.”
Holly scoffed. “A threat? He thinks I’m a threat!” she shrieked.
“Shhh! Keep your voice down!” I hushed her.
Suddenly, the seriousness of the situation finally dawned on Holly, and she
began to shake while her eyes lit up with fear.
“Oh, my God, Jaden. Is he … is he going to kill me?”
Probably.
Her face washed with horror as she cringed into herself. I had to do something.
“I don’t know,” I said, trying to sound reassuring, though I totally sucked at it.
“I don’t even know if he knows what you’ve discovered. Maybe we can play it off
like you’re still clueless. You can be a little ditzy sometimes,” I said apologetically.
“Gee, thanks,” she said sarcastically.
“Just lay low, don’t do anything irrational—”
“Miss Jaden,” Hank suddenly said, halting me midsentence. I looked over at
him, suddenly worried he’d overheard us. “Mr. Davis would like to see you in his
office. Now.”
My heart suddenly stopped beating. Oh, fuck.
“D-did he say why?” I asked, trying to keep my voice calm.
“No, ma’am.” He shook his head, walking toward me and giving me a nudge
toward the house. “Now, let’s go.”
In an odd manner, Hank and Blondie flanked us while we were escorted back
into the house. I could feel my heart pounding out of my chest while I rubbed my
sweating palms against my thighs. This wasn’t good. Darren never called me into
his office.
He knew. He had to fucking know. There was no further explanation for why he
wanted me in his office, right at this very moment. Fuck.
After putting our shoes back on that we left on the grass, I felt Holly
continuously glance at me as if she needed confirmation for what I was thinking.
She was scared. She should be.
“Ms. Ketter, if you’ll follow me, please?” Blondie suddenly said once we got back
into the house, waving his hand in the opposite direction of the hallway.
All four of us stopped in the middle of the hallway, and Holly stared at me like
she wasn’t sure what to do. So I stepped in for a quick hug and whispered into her
ear.
“It’s going to be okay,” I lied. “Don’t
