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That had me frowning even more. “Like what?”
A quick clip of his head. “Mr. Colello was briefed on Matthew’s situation. I’m also supposed to relay the message he won’t be able to drop by today for lunch.”
That was disappointing.
Melissa was coming back. Erik stood to help her with the food, putting our orders down, and Liam was coming back. He and Dax did a fist pound before separating for their own tables. Erik returned to his position, conversing with Fitz before moving apart, and both stood as if they were Secret Service.
When we went back for our second class that day, Hoda wasn’t there.
She wasn’t in the hallways, the lab, even the bathrooms.
Wherever she was, she couldn’t hide for long. I would find her.
When we got to the doors, Erik stopped me.
There was a crowd out there, but I expected it. Word was out about me. Now that I understood that, I was expecting things to be more crazy than normal. It would die down. Eventually.
Erik didn’t move from the door.
I started to go around him.
He took my arm, holding me back. “Wait.”
He had a finger to his ear, listening to something.
His eyes narrowed. He was watching outside.
I only saw the crowd. They were different students this time. I knew I had to deal with it and adjust and get on with my life, because that’s just how it was going to be. With that intent, I tried to go forward again, and because of that, I wasn’t fully paying attention to what Erik was paying attention to.
I missed the train of SUVs pulling up.
And what was more important, I missed how Fitz was standing outside, and how he wasn’t going toward the SUVs.
I didn’t see how both Fitz and Erik had set expressions on their faces. Their jaws were clenched and their eyes weren’t happy.
But what I didn’t miss was how I recognized that black sports car sliding into the very last spot in front of the building. I was happy and thinking Kash was a liar. He did have time for a drop-by. But then he was out of his car and he wasn’t coming to me. He was veering to head off whoever had gotten out of the back of the middle SUV and was heading for the building.
Calhoun Bastian.
My stomach fell once again, and ice pierced my chest.
I was having a bad case of the déjà vus.
SEVENTEEN
This day couldn’t get worse.
Or at least that’s what I thought, until I saw Kash’s scary grandfather exit his vehicle, making a beeline for my building. He looked so dignified, too, almost like a diplomat, and he was getting the attention to warrant that impression. Like this morning, I saw Goa and Busich, but unlike this morning, Wells wasn’t there. She was replaced by a bunch of other official-looking older people. That’s when I clued in on the students. The sorority and jock groups weren’t there. They were replaced by more serious-looking students, ones wearing pin-striped suits and dress shirts, or dress skirts and high heels in a nude coloring, so you’re still edgy but it’s not really edgy.
Calhoun never saw Kash.
It was one of those surreal moments, where you can’t believe you’re watching it but you are, because it’s happening in front of you. It’s one of those moments I’d always remember, and not because of my memory but just because it was that awesome.
Maybe this déjà vu case wasn’t so bad.
Calhoun was looking toward the Hawking staff.
He had this pompous look on his face, straightening his suit jacket as he started for them. He got only a step, but they took the signal and approached. He stopped, his head up, his nostrils going wide as he was breathing this in, and an arrogant smirk was on his face. He was expecting them to come to him, and so he was going to wait and watch them, as if they were beneath him.
Seriously. So narcissistic.
He never took in the crowd. Not once. The way he was at ease with them there, this clearly was something else he was expecting.
He thought they were there for him. To his credit, maybe they were. Maybe the staff rounded them up because the groups were different than the ones congregating earlier this morning, but Kash was cutting right through the crowd, the staff, and going straight to his grandfather.
His face was granite. His eyes hard. His jaw clenched.
He was seething, but he didn’t give his grandfather attention.
I thought that’s what he was going to do. He didn’t. That made it even more awesome, because he cut in. His grandfather’s security never stopped him. I didn’t know why that was, but only one saw him coming, and his face twitched. His hand dropped to his side, but after a second’s hesitation he moved it back in front. He shifted, his face going forward so he, too, wasn’t seeing Kash coming.
