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“I need your help. Now.”
Chapter 17
Claire
It took all the restraint I had to keep calm and cool as I pulled into the parking lot of the Dunkin Donuts in Jefferies Point. I couldn’t believe that she was there, that I was only minutes away from seeing Kat again.
It was still dreary and rainy out, the pitter-patter of droplets onto my car the only sound as I turned off the engine. When I was ready, I grabbed my umbrella and stepped out. Seconds later I was in the Dunkin’, eagerly scanning the area for any sign of Kat.
When I finally saw her, I wanted to cry, both out of relief and horror. She was seated in a booth at the very back of the store, her hair and face dirty, her lip swollen and her cheek bruised. She sat in a way that made her appear small and hard to notice, as if she wanted to hide from the world.
I hurried over.
“Kat!”
Her eyes flashed and she slowly got up as I approached. I threw my arms around her, pulling her close and tight, fighting back the tears.
“I can’t believe it’s you,” I said softly. “I can’t believe you’re here.”
She stepped back from me, and as I looked her over it was hard to realize that the dirty, wounded woman in front of me was my glamorous friend. She looked like she’d seen a ghost.
I took a quick glance at the table, seeing that she didn’t have anything there.
“Let me get you something to eat or drink, whatever you want.”
She shook her head no, her eyes wide with fear.
“No. We can’t stay. We have to goright now.”
“Ok, I’ll take you to my place.”
I took her hand and led Kat out of the Dunkin’, helping her into the car and shutting the door, looking around to make sure that no one suspicious was lurking ready to follow us. Kat was so scared that it had put me on edge. I wanted to know what had happened, who’d kidnapped and hurt her. But more than that, I needed to get her somewhere safe.
We drove in silence, Kat spending the entire drive back into the city looking out of the window at the world around her, as if she couldn’t quite wrap her head around the fact that she was out of wherever she’d been kept. During the drive I reached over to take her hand, but she quickly pulled it back.
“Sorry,” she quickly said, her voice still small. “Just antsy is all.”
I pursed my lips and nodded, trying to empathize. But how was that even possible? I had no idea what she’d been through, how badly she’d suffered.
It wasn’t long before we were back at my condo building. Kat picked up her pace the moment we were in the lobby, hurrying toward the elevators at almost a run. In her dirty clothes and ratty hair, she looked totally out of place among the well put together professional men and women in the lobby. One of the staff at the front desk looked up, watching Kat with concern. I gave a thumbs-up, letting her know that Kat was with me.
We stepped into the elevator, her eyes flashing as the doors shut.
“I don’t like this,” she said as we began moving up. “Don’t like being trapped. We should’ve taken the stairs.”
Kat had a stench about her that let me know she hadn’t washed up since she’d been kidnapped. Two feelings rushed through me as I stood there with her—sadness at what my best friend had been through, and rage at those who had done it to her.
“The ride up isn’t long, it’s only a minute.”
Kat nodded, then tightly wrapped her arms around herself. The doors opened and I hurried down the hall with my keycard, Kat close behind. Once we were at my condo, I swiped the card and opened the door for Kat.
She dropped to her knees the moment the door was shut and we were alone, rain still coming down hard.
Then she cried.
* * *
An hour later, Kat was doing a hell of a lot better. Her first item on the agenda had been to take a nice, long shower, the heat from the bathroom steaming up most of the condo. While she was in the shower, I pulled up DoorDash on my laptop and picked something to eat, settling on noodles from a nearby Japanese place.
