Page 40 of Justified Fear
“We’ll let you rest,” Seth said, but Ryan had a question.
“Ray, did the guys say they were looking for the chef or for Keely?”he asked.
Ray opened his eyes.“Keely is the chef.”
That was heartening at least.Using the present tense meant that he at least hoped she was okay.
“Did they use her name?”
“Oh…no.They just kept talking about the chef.C-can you tell me if she’s okay?”
“She’s fine, Ray,” his captain said.“You don’t need to worry about her.”
His whole body seemed to relax at that point.“Good.”
His eyes closed, and he knew the man was asleep before they even made it to the door.They stepped out into the hall.
“What do you think?”Seth asked as they walked out of the hospital.
“Not sure.He seems genuinely worried about Keely, and he definitely had a concussion.”
“True.”
“But there is still something off.Why take him, then just leave him somewhere?It makes no sense at all.And we still don’t have a motive.”
“I agree.Unless they questioned him, but maybe they walloped him, he doesn’t remember.”
“Let’s hope because otherwise, we have diddly squat.”And that made Keely even more vulnerable.
Keely had finishedher presentation and answered questions before her father appeared in the classroom.She was very thankful for that because every Hawaiian kid knew who Riki Templeton was.She was happy to step aside and let him talk to the kids.It had been a long ninety minutes, but she had enjoyed every minute of it.
As she headed to the door, her father stopped her.
“Where are you going, KeeKee?”
She smiled at him.“I need to use the restroom.Do I need a hall pass?”
There was a smattering of laughter.
“It’s just down the hall.Don’t worry.”
He nodded, although she knew from his look that if she didn’t return within five minutes, he would show up in the bathroom.With a sigh, she headed down the hallway.Keely had just reached the bathroom door when she felt a tingle on the nape of her neck.She glanced behind her but didn’t see anyone.Shaking her head, she went into the bathroom.The last few days had her feeling out of sorts, so it made sense that she would freak herself out.The high school campus was locked down.The only people in the school were the principal and a few teachers.
After she was finished, she was washing her hands when she thought she heard someone stop by the restroom door.Frowning, she dried her hands, then decided it was time to leave.She knew her parents were leaving the island soon, so while their reasons for being here were horrible, she wanted to soak in all the good vibes she could get.
She opened up the door and frowned.The hallway was dark.It was an overcast day and there had been a slight drizzle, but she hadn’t realized just how much the overhead lights were helping.
Telling herself a teacher or one of the janitorial staff turned them off, she walked down the hallway.Of course, the restroom had to be at the other end, and it was one long ass hallway.
“Keely,” someone whispered.She frowned and glanced behind her.There was no one there.Now her imagination was really freaking her out.With a roll of her eyes, she started back on her way.She couldn’t fight the feeling that someone was watching her, which was insane.It was just all those questions from TFH that had brought back all her worries from that time.
At fourteen, she had been somewhat sheltered from the world.Because of her father’s fame and her mother’s family money, they had both been strict about her social media.It was one reason that even today, she was somewhat standoffish online.So, having someone seemingly try to hurt her…it had freaked her out.For weeks, she had thought someone was following her.Her father hired the best security he could buy, but in the end, they saw nothing.
Knowing if she was worrying about all of that, her father would read the expression on her face.She didn’t need him to worry over nothing.With that thought in mind, she straightened her spine and opened the door to the classroom.
Most of the kids had gone, but there were three boys left.She waited patiently until her father finished answering their questions.Soon it was the two of them.
“Is anything bothering you, KeeKee?”
