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The attendant left the room. Silas always found it amusing when adults—in this case, the attendant seemed to be at least thirty years old—did what Kota said, since Kota appeared to be no more than sixteen. It might be his job, but he had every reason to believe they were just horsing around, especially without a parent or someone around who could afford the expense of the suits... as they’d all be put on the same bill.
And that was probably why Gabriel liked using this guy. He didn’t ask questions.
Silas patted at his hips, indicating his jeans. “Are these considered bulky?”
“Most likely,” Kota said. “Usually in the crotch area.”
Victor snorted a laugh.
Silas grinned but then remembered he hadn’t worn underwear that day. He’d forgotten with Theo lurking in the hallway. “I may just need to get measured instead of trying something on,” he said. “Whatever Gabriel picked out is fine.”
“If you want,” Victor said. He removed his white shirt and stuck it on a hook. “I trust Gabriel’s judgment, but I still want to see what he’s picked out. Sometimes it can be a little too over the top.”
Silas wasn’t sure what would be over the top about a suit. He glanced at Kota. “So, about Sang...”
“What about her?” Kota asked, although as he said it, his cheeks turned a little red. He also avoided looking at Silas.
Silas raised an eyebrow. “Are those bandages really from Max?”
“Yes.”
“... So was it an accident?”
Kota frowned and slightly lowered his head. “Not exactly, but she doesn’t know that. She thinks it was an accident. Don’t mention anything about Max.”
“I don’t get it,” Silas said. He ran his fingers along his jawline. “What’s going on?”
Victor walked toward the corner of the mirror, peering into the long line of Victors staring back. “Kota thinks she’s in trouble. We need to get her to trust us.”
“What kind of trouble?” Silas asked. Then he paused. “I just can’t picture what getting your dog to jump on her would do if she were in trouble.”
“You would have done it, too, if you had been there.” Kota was still looking away, but his hands turned into fists.
Silas hesitated, unsure if he was angry about the situation or just determined. “Why?” Silas asked. “I don’t understand.”
“She was going to run off. Not from me, but just run off... From home.” Kota turned to him. “It’s a long story. I don’t think we have enough time to explain it here. Just please go along with it for now. Be friendly with her. We’re trying to get her to trust us so she’ll tell us what’s going on, like why she wanted to run away.”
Sang tried to run away from home, had a dog jump on her, now she was at the mall with strangers, and she was left alone with one cell phone in a men’s clothing store. Silas scratched at his head just behind his ear. “How do you know she’s not going to run off now?”
“She won’t.”
“Are you sure?” Silas asked.
“It’s okay,” Victor said. “I gave her my cell phone. If she goes anywhere, we can track her.”
“If she takes it with her,” Silas said. “She was trying to run away from home before, right? We just gave her a ride and several miles of a head start. Are you sure she’s not going to just take off now?”
Victor and Kota exchanged glances. Before anybody could say anything else, the attendant returned. He carried three suits and hung them on the hooks next to the door. “This is a very fine set of suits,” he said.
“Yeah,” Kota said, and he blinked a few times. It wasn’t his usual elegant way of speaking.
Kota insisted on being the first one to get measured and then quickly put his suit on. His actually looked really good, and there was little the attendant suggested for tailoring.
The attendant stepped back a little to check it out on Kota’s body. “The black on black look. It doesn’t often look so nice. Depends on the body type and the suit maker. This is a good look for you, though.”
“Let me go check in with my girlfriend,” he said. “She’s waiting outside. She’ll have an opinion. I’ll be right back.”
Girlfriend? He was okay that Kota wanted to go check up on Sang, but what if the attendant went out there and repeated back something about her being Kota’s girlfriend? Would Sang be weirded out by that?
Kota didn’t seem to be thinking clearly today. Not calling off this appointment, not spending more time with Sang, and that seemed imperative.
Kota left. Victor was next in line to get measured. He held up his arms like a scarecrow and waited for the attendant to take all the measurements he needed.
“So...” Silas said. “Did he get any sleep last night?” He couldn’t continue to ask about Sang right now, but he wanted to know.
“Not sure,” Victor said quietly.
“Kota... just seems off.”
Victor looked over his shoulder. “He was up late. And when I got to his house, he was already up and dressed. I’ve got a feeling he was up before Erica.”
Kota’s mother worked strange shifts, so she could be up fairly early.
It wasn’t often that they were up late and then up early again. It didn’t seem to bother Kota with his thinking. Today, something just didn’t feel right.
And from Victor’s concerned expression, Silas was pretty sure he felt the same.
4
Silas and Victor were almost finished by the time Kota returned. Silas had gotten measured, but he insisted he didn’t need to try on the suit. He wasn’t in the mood anyway. He did hold it up against his body and absently approved of the look.
The attendant wasn’t happy with that, but he took down notes and didn’t pursue it any further.
Silas became quiet as Victor spoke with the attendant and finished up his requests for changes to the suit. Silas cross his arms over his chest, a move that Kota often criticized him over. He said it made him look intimidating. At the moment, he just wanted the appointment to be over.
The only injury Silas could see was the bandaged wrist. Bruises weren’t necessary to prove abuse. Not with them, and not with the Academy. However, while physical was obvious, the non-physical... more complicated to determine.
There was always the hope that Kota was wrong and she wasn’t in trouble, but he knew from the Academy that runaways, especially girls, were rare. Most, even while abused, stayed home. Not knowing where to get help, or not having someone to trust was usually the issue.
That alone made Sang unusual. If it was bad at home, she had her head on right to know to get away as a defensive measure.
Victor eventually was done and took off the suit, and Silas lingered behind with him. Kota left with the attendant, going over the checklist and figuring out the timeline when the suits would be delivered and to where.
“So,” Silas said. Something else was bugging him. Like why Kota didn’t call in the Academy for Sang? There had to be a reason he hadn’t immediately called in for help. “Does Kota like Sang?”
Victor sputtered. His eyes widened. “Did he tell you that?”
Silas rai
sed an eyebrow. “I wasn’t sure. I just got the feeling.”
“He just met her last night. Although, I get the feeling they aren’t a match.”
Silas chuckled. “If you just met her, how do you know?”
Victor shrugged. “Just a feeling.” He looked down as he dressed, avoiding looking at Silas.
This might get a little complicated. Kota was often blasé about girls. But if he met her first, there was a lingering guy code to at least give him a chance to figure it out.
But Victor’s weird phrasing and avoiding looking at Silas made him think Victor didn’t want to follow the guy code. “Do you think she is your type?” Silas asked.
Victor absently touched the back of his neck. “I don’t know what to think about her yet.”
This was different. Where Kota never talked about girls, Victor was always quick to dismiss them. He never got flustered about a girl. There had been many times, right in front of Silas, when a girl approached him. It was usually because they knew Victor. They knew he was rich, or they knew he was a famous piano player.
Victor often said it was because they knew of him, and not about him. The moment they talked about his family or his music without prompting, he knew. And with most girls, he was super careful. Victor rarely took compliments well. He never seemed to care about the attention. He’d say no when asked for his phone number. He knew several ways to shut a girl down if she asked for anything.
Sang didn’t give Victor doe eyes like other girls. Maybe she had enough of her own problems. She treated him no differently than Kota, distant, but with a shy curiosity.
Silas wasn’t sure what he thought about her either. “If you’re going to help her, we should all try to get to know her. We should let her connect with anyone, whoever she seems to trust faster.”
Victor reached for his own clothes, putting on his pants first. “That might be Kota. She met him first. Spent the night at his house.”
“That doesn’t mean anything. You can’t help feelings. She may have met Kota first, but she may feel connected to somebody else. Could be you or me, or maybe... I don’t know. Could be another girl. If you don’t want a runaway to run off, then she needs a strong reason to stay, a strong emotional connection to someone, right?”
