Page 52 of Waiting to Lose
“We went to the same high school and played baseball together. We took different paths. I went to the Navy. He went to a recording studio. We never lost contact. He’s a good guy. Always has been.”
Madi smiled to herself. She liked knowing he’d known Jake for years. She also appreciated the confirmation that he was always amazing.”
“So, Navy, huh?”
“Yes.”
“Jake told me you were a SEAL.”
She almost thought for a moment he might smile, but he didn’t. A guy on a bike whizzed past them and Rob suddenly grabbed her out of the way, turning her.
“You okay, Ms. Ryan?”
“Whoa… I didn’t even see him.”
“I’m trained to see the things you might not. It’s what I do.”
Madi sighed as she shifted her stance, eyeing him inquisitively. “If we’re going to put on this charade that you’re another student, you’re going to have to make a few changes.”
He turned his head inquisitively. “Like what?”
“First, my name is Madi, not Ms. Ryan. Most college guys call me by my first name.”
He nodded.
“Second, unless you want people to think you’re dating me, you need to let me carry my own books.”
He pursed his lips in agreement and handed her the backpack.
“And finally, don’t stand so straight. You need to slouch more. The way you stand and walk and talk screams, ‘I don’t belong here.’ You need to loosen up.
Rob suddenly relaxed his posture as shook out his arms, loosening the grip on his own “pretend” school bag. “Done. It’s a habit. Good advice.”
Madi smiled as they continued to walk to class.
He stood outside when Madi brought Kendra her soup and explained the whole weekend, complete with details of Peter Markum. At one point, Kendra jumped up and threatened to fly out to L.A. and kick his ass herself. “What a piece of shit. Jake had better be doing right by you. I don’t like this at all, Mads. And I don’t like the idea that you actually need Mr. Tall-and-Mighty out there.”
After Madi calmed her down, she made her way back to her room. Rob sat in the hall as Nate had done before, but not before he asked if he could come in for a moment.
As Madi shut her door, he handed her a sleek black pen. “It’s a one-way radio. I know I’m not allowed in here after midnight, but I want you to always have a way to contact me. There’s a small latch on the side where you can turn it off, if you feel uncomfortable, but I wouldn’t recommend it. If it’s off for too long, I’ll be charging your door.”
As Madi observed him sliding the button to turn it off and then pointing to the string coming from his ear, she noticed that his hands were quite large and his fingers were very long.
“You don’t play the drums, by any chance, do you?”
His head turned in confusion. The question made no sense, considering the context of their conversation.
“I’m sorry. Kendra put this idea in my head that guys with hands such as yours,” she said while pointing, “usually play the drums.”
Rob glanced down at his hands, turning them before responding. “That’s fairly observant of her. I don’t play the drums, but I do play guitar. Not very well, unfortunately.”
Madi nodded. “Thanks for the pen.”
Rob opened her door and reminded her of the importance of always keeping it locked.
After he’d left, Madi sat at her laptop and checked her emails. There was another weird e-mail with a cryptic title: “He’s going to kill you, one way or another.” Madi jumped from her seat as she stared at the message. Now that she knew about Peter, she realized these e-mails might be linked. Madi called Rob’s name as she opened her door, and he jumped up immediately, rushing inside. She swallowed hard as she showed Rob every note she’d received.
“Please don’t worry him,” she begged.
“He needs to know.”
Before she knew it, copies of her emails were being forwarded to Dave, Jake, and the Los Angeles Police Department.
