Page 26 of Oblivion

Pulling the small jewelry box from my pocket, I open it and glance down at the earrings that are nestled against the black velvet. The emerald studs are simple, elegant, and engraved with my initials. The two letters are small enough that unless you’re searching for them, you’d struggle to notice them, but I know they’re there.

Silently and carefully, I remove the small hoops she has in her ears and replace them with the studs, grateful that she’s lying on her back, and I don’t have to drug her again in order to get them in.

Once her ears are adorned with my gift, I open her jewelry box and remove every single pair of earrings in there, slipping them into the identical box I purchased just for this reason, then putting the box into my backpack.

Sammy hates not wearing earrings. She told Starling once that she feels naked without them in, and now, unless she takes a pair from her mother, her only option is the ones I’ve put in her ears.

It’s another small way of binding her to me and another invisible loop of chain that she won’t notice until it’s pulled tight.

When sunlight starts to filter through her window, I press a barely there kiss to her lips and leave the same way I came in, taking the same path back through the gardens until I slip back into the house I’ve borrowed and finally allow myself to sleep.

After a few hours, I force myself awake just in time to see a brand-new car being delivered to Sammy’s house. The navy-blue Tesla is sleek, environmentally friendly, and boring.

In Cali, Sammy drives a sporty Mercedes convertible that she drives too fast with the roof down and designer sunglasses covering her eyes. My wild one is free and uninhibited and…wild. She’s most definitely not a sensible, mid-sized-car kind of a girl, which can only mean one thing. She didn’t buy this car for herself.

It takes one call to find out that Drew purchased this as an engagement present for her. Apparently, as well as being boring, he also doesn’t know her at all, and I’m a little disappointed that he’s not here to see the less than enthusiastic reaction I’m confident his gift will get.

Sammy, perfectly put together in a pair of tailored wide-leg pants, a button-down with a fitted vest over the top and a pair of nude pumps, forces a fake smile to her lips as she follows her mother down the driveway to look at the car.

When her cell rings, I wish for the first time that I had access to her cell phone, and decide that as much as I didn’t plan to cross that line, knowing how she interacts with Drew will ultimately help me separate them.

Grabbing my own cell, I type out a quick text to Clay.

Me

I need a program so I can clone Sammy’s cell and be able to listen to her calls and read her messages.

His reply is immediate.

Clay

You sure about this? It’s definitely crossing a line.

Me

Carte blanche, you were there.

Clay

Starling may have approved all of this, but Sammy might not be as open to the invasion of her privacy.

Me

I’ll handle Sammy. Do you have a program?

Clay

Of course, I’ll send you a link. Download the app, then you’ll need access to Sammy’s phone to be able to sync it.

Me

Thanks.

Dropping my cell, I concentrate on watching as Sammy’s dad slowly exits the house and joins his wife and daughter as they all look around the car. I’ve never met Sammy’s family. She knows all of our parents, but anytime any of us mentioned coming to DC or meeting her family, she immediately rejected the idea.

She’s openly spoken about how her life here in DC is very different from the one she’s created for herself at school. But it still doesn’t explain why she’s trying to keep her friends and her parents away from each other.

Her dad looks tired and old. He’s not exactly a spring chicken at sixty-five, and it’s clear to see that although he might be out of the hospital, the heart attack he suffered a few months back has definitely taken its toll on his health. Her mom is five yearsyounger than her husband at sixty, and despite having lived in Washington, DC, for nearly thirty-six years, she still dresses like a classic Southern belle.

---