“Mimi?” I say. I go to the bathroom, and it’s empty. “Mimi,” I shout, getting louder, but our trailer only has two bedrooms, and I’ve searched them both in seconds. I call my brother, but he doesn’t pick up. I text him.
Where are you? Where is Mimi? Do you have her?
No response. I text again.
Did you guys go to the store or something?
It’s wishful thinking, but I’m desperate. I run outside, looking all around. “Mimi?” I call out. I start banging on doors. I go to Mr. Cotton’s door first. “Mr. Cotton? Have you seen my grandmother?”
“No,” he shouts from inside and then says something about me needing to keep a better eye on her.
I bang on another door. “George, have you seen my grandmother?”
His wife comes to the door. “Did you lose her again?”
“I’m not sure. Matthew’s not answering his phone.” I pull out my phone and call him again. “Have you seen him?” I ask, listening to the phone ring on the other end.
“Honey, I don’t pay attention to what’s going on outside this door. I’ve got my show on.”
I walk away, scouring the place, but she’s nowhere to be found.
I remember where she went last time and head that way, toward the street. Two people huddle over something on the side of the road, and I run toward them. My heart thunders the closer I get, and I hope against all hope that it’s not my grandma.
“What’s happening?” I shout.
“She was hit by a car.”
My hand flies to my mouth as the pasta I just ate threatens to make its way back up. I move in closer, but I don’t need to look at her face, because those are her house shoes.
The man is saying something about the police, as the woman shouts about CPR.
I spring into action. “Move,” I yell.
They scatter out of my way, and I start the steps. They come back to me like riding a bike. I look at the man. “Call 911.”
I start compressions.
29
Kylie
It’s really strange that I haven’t heard from Brett all day. I texted him last night when I got home with a funny note about our quickie and a flame emoji, but he never responded. I keep checking my phone, but there’s been nothing from him.
It’s hard for me to imagine he’s mad at me. We didn’t have any kind of fight or anything—much the opposite. We had the hottest sex of my life. Of course, the bar was low thanks to Joshua. But still.
“You should just go over there,” Jack says from his spot on the couch.
I sit at the dining room table, tapping my foot. “That seems kind of desperate.”
“Weren’t you supposed to have plans with him tonight?”
“Yeah. You don’t think I should be worried about him, do you?”
He shrugs. “I don’t know, to be honest with you. Like I’ve mentioned, he’s broken a lot of hearts around here. But as possessive as he has been of you, it’s kind of hard for me to believe he would blow you off. Do you want me to text him?”
“No. But thank you.”
“I could text him something about Robert—a work question, just to see if he responds. That way you know his phone isn’t in the Gulf of Mexico or anything.”
I consider this. “You could text him and ask him if he’s going to be using the boat tonight.” He gets his phone, and I clench my eyes shut. “No, don’t do that. I don’t wanna play that game.” Jack sets his phone down and picks up his tablet.
“I’m going over there,” I say.
“Good decision. If he’s blowing you off, then fuck him. Come back here and we’ll watch some depressing movie and you can drown your sorrows in a bottle of wine.”
I force a smile. “Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.”
I drive over to Brett’s street and park in front of his unit. As I walk up the steps, my heart gains a few pounds. The door is cracked open, and there’re voices inside.
I push it open and find Bailey, Simone, Cohen, Logan, Isaac, and Val standing around the living room, talking in hushed tones. “What’s going on?” I ask as the blood drains out of my face.
“Hey,” Bailey says. “I was just getting ready to text you.”
“What is it?” I say, my voice becoming shrill.
She puts a finger over her lips and ushers me outside. “Brett’s grandmother was killed last night in a hit-and-run.”
I have to steady myself. “Oh, my God. When? What happened?”
“I’m piecing things together from what Tori has told Logan, but it sounds like nobody was home when he got there last night. I think his little brother was supposed to be watching her. I’m not really sure.”
I swallow hard. “So when you say hit by a car, do you mean while she was in another car, or was she...” I can’t even bring myself to say the words.
“No, she wandered out to the street, apparently.”
I bite on my thumbnail, thinking about what Brett and I were doing right before he left, and it hits me like a ton of bricks falling from the sky that I held him up from getting there on time.
“You don’t look good,” Bailey says. “I think you should sit down.”
“I need to go see him. Where is he?”
“Tori is with him in his room. He doesn’t want to see anyone.”
“Yeah, but this is me. I need to see him.”
Bailey looks pained. She pulls out her phone and shows me a text. It’s from Tori.
If Kylie shows up, please don’t send her back here. Brett says he doesn’t want to see her right now.
I feel like someone just stuck a sword in my gut.
Bailey rubs my shoulder. “I’m so sorry, sweetie. I really am.”
I meet
