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Taking my seat next to Katia, I realize the plane is unusually quiet. Everyone is exhausted over what transpired in Vegas, and we know we have a lot of work to do when we get back. There is also that lingering fear because Ivan and Andrei escaped. Conrad said that he found a private plane that left Las Vegas about twenty minutes after Andrei disappeared from Cooter’s Clubhouse. Unfortunately, the plane was off the radar, and Conrad is still working to figure out where it went.Perfect, Umbra really is a shadow again.
“Getting a little stress relief before getting on the plane?” Alexie asks, breaking the tension.
“Was it that obvious?”
“You know there was an echo in the hangar, right? I think the entire airport heard you,” Katia snickers next to me. The smiles on both of their faces let me know that it’s true.Well, I hope I put on a good show.
Some time passes, and everyone goes back to being quiet. Conrad is typing vigorously on his computer while Stryker sits across from him on his phone. Athen is on the couch, sleeping with his head on his mom’s lap as she strokes his hair. She isn’t taking her eyes off of him, and I see her wiping away a tear every now and then. King is also sleeping, so saying everything was quiet might have been premature because he is snoring like a bear. Poor Marcela is stuck next to him and keeps jabbing him in the arm when his snores get too loud. BJ is sitting across from them, looking over some paperwork.My team. The perfect team.
I look at Katia next to me, who is staring out the window. Not sure why, but it feels like something is off. “Penny for your thoughts,” I say to her.
She lets out a large sigh and turns her body to face the table but doesn’t look at me. Her hands are resting on her lap, and her fingers are wildly fidgeting. I place my hand over hers to calm her down, and her eyes finally meet mine. “What’s wrong?” I ask.
“Everything that’s happened,” she begins. “It’s made me realize that you can’t wait for things to happen. You can’t hide or run from things, and you can’t keep secrets from those you care about the most.”
“What are you hiding or running from? Whatever it is, we’ll,” I gesture to myself and Alexie, “take care of it.”
Alexie sits up straighter in his seat, excitedly asking, “Who are we killing?”
“Calm down, no one is getting killed,” Katia tells him. “There is something I need to tell you,” she looks at me but then looks at Alexie. “Or should I say tell both of you? I don’t know why I let it go on for so long, but I kept looking for the right time to tell you.” Katia looks down before continuing, “That was foolish because there is never a ‘right time’ to tell your best friend that you’re bisexual and in love with them.” Her words came out so fast, and she smacks her hand on her forehead, letting us know she might not have wanted to say it like that.
“You’re in love with me?” Alexie asks. “I mean, I love you too, but if we are talking aboutin love, then…” I look at him with an intense stare signaling for him to stop. “What?” he asks, clueless.
He looks at Katia and then back to me. “Oh,” is his only response.Typical.
I know Katia is trying to process what she wants to say, but I’m trying to process how I feel about this.How did I never pick up on the fact that Katia has feelings for me?We have been best friends since we were eight years old, and it never dawned on me.I really am a shitty friend.But, I mean, she’s had boyfriends, and the way she dances for men at the club, it just never occurred to me that she was into women, let aloneme.
“Katia? Is that true?” I question her, never moving my hand that is still in her lap,
She removes the hand from her forehead and looks at me to say, “Yes. I thought I would be more afraid to say it, but I’m not. We don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow or when Ivan will show up, but with everything I went through, I refuse to go another day with any secrets between us.” She places her hand over mine. “I don’t expect you to feel the same way about me, and I’m sorry for putting it on you like this, but…damn, does it feel good to get it out there.” She sighs as though a tremendous weight has been lifted off her shoulders.
The silence between us grows when neither Alexie nor I, says something in response.Say something. Anything.
“What is not to love?” Alexie says, breaking the silence. I’m still looking at Katia, and we both start laughing.
“Thank you for telling us, I need some time to process. I just got you back, and I want to make sure that what I’m feeling is true instead of being overshadowed by your return. I don’t want to act when our emotions are all over the place. The last thing I would ever want to do is hurt you.”
“Of course. No matter what, we’re best friends till the end,” she replies, smiling back at me with reassurance.
Katia leans her head back on the seat and eventually drifts off to sleep. Alexie is taking us both in with a serious stare while rotating a knife in his hands. He’s probably imagining different ways of using it on people because a sly grin appears, letting me know he thought of a very creative way.
The rest of the plane ride was much the same, but we landed safely. Stryker talked for a while to Athen and his mom about their new home and had a car waiting to take them. He also set up some extra security for them until we can finally close this case.And by closing this case, I mean killing Andrei and Ivan.
The ride to our safe house is just like the plane ride. Everyone’s a little quieter than usual, and I notice that everyone’s eyes are scanning our surroundings out the car window. We will all be on high alert for a while.
Alexie and Stryker are in the front, while I sit in the back with just Katia. My eyes keep darting to her, which she doesn’t notice as she takes in the new views, and I can’t stop thinking about how I missed her affection for me. I know it won’t do me any good thinking about these things, but telling myself to stop thinking about something only makes me think about it more. I’m trying to understand how I feel about Katia while keeping an open mind. My feelings are heightened with the excitement of having her back.Is that clouding my judgment, or is it an indication of how I really feel?All I know is that I can’t act differently toward her until I know how I truly feel.
We pull up to the house, and I can’t wait to show Katia my room.Wait. I’ve been sharing a room with King.“Um, Stryker…where am I sleeping this time?” I ask.
“King agreed to let you have his room since he said you like the view or something along those lines. There is an extra room on the main floor that he is taking so you and Katia can share his room,” Stryker tells me.Well fuck, I wish I would have gotten on that dirty floor and sucked his dick now.
Katia and I exit the vehicle, and I grab her hand, pulling her into the house. “Come on, you are going to love this view,” I tell her. “We’ll also find a way to live here forever.”
Stryker: Dining room in 5.
I dramatically groan. “The boss is ordering us to be downstairs in five minutes. Stryker likes to have meetings where we discuss information, and he gives out orders. It’s so cute that he thinks he’s in charge,” I say sarcastically.
“Do you think he wants me there?” Katia asks.
