Page 32 of Crashing Into Me
Plus, his profile was private. If he didn’t know you, you weren’t let in. The process would take about twelve hours, but that was fine by her. She needed to keep an eye on what he was up to in order to know if the plan she and Maureen cooked up had worked.
If she were being honest with herself, she knew it was a little intrusive. Still, her philosophy was that you never got anything you wanted in life by being passive about it, and she applied that as fiercely as she could in every situation. Kim downed the last of the Chardonnay in her glass and refilled it from the bottle that sat next to her computer. She reopened her web browser and clicked on another saved tab. It was a Florida state board of nursing page, and Kim smiled to herself as she scrolled the page and sipped her wine in silence.
AFTER FINISHINGA dinner of shrimp skewers and risotto, Kayden was back on the phone with Taylor and Associates discussing their course of action for the injunction. It was nearly nine o’clock, and Lana didn’t want to disturb him, so she went upstairs to grab some laundry to throw in the wash to keep herself busy. In her old room, she grabbed her jeans from the hamper and heard her cell phone vibrate. She hadn’t checked it since her last text conversation with Carmen, and she really didn’t feel like getting any updates about Sam. It could also be her mother, and she didn’t want to worry her as she hadn’t called to check in for a while either.
Digging the touchscreen device from her pants pocket, she saw three missed calls. One from the Nursing Agency she worked for, and two unknown numbers.Who would’ve been calling me from a two-one-two number, she thought?
She slid her finger across the screen and listened to the first voicemail. It was the charge nurse from the E.R. asking her to call about returning early, but she hit the number “7” and deleted it. They knew her better than that, and she would never leave an out-of-town vacation to return to work early.Who would do that anyway,she asked herself as she listened on.
The following message was from Maureen. She wanted Lana to call her about an urgent matter and would wait to hear from her. That was from yesterday.Keep waiting, lady,Lana thought as she pressed “seven” and deleted it. The third message was from Maureen again, and this time she said it was regarding the state pressing charges on Kayden.
“If you care for my son like you claim you do. Call me immediately,” her message said in its regular, demanding tones.
Now Lana was worried.Was Maureen really about to use her son’s freedom as leverage to get her own way?The message was from earlier that morning when they were out visiting Aunt Mae.
Lana was pissed, and she had some choice words for Maureen, but didn’t want Kayden to hear the conversation either. Easing the door of the room closed, she pressed “CALL BACK” on the phone; it rang once before she picked up, and Lana held her breath as she waited for Maureen to speak.
“I’ll be making one last stop at the house, Ms. McKenzie. I’ve decided what I have to say needs to be in person.”
Lana wasn’t sure what to say to her, and before she could reply, the phone went silent. She sank to the bed in the room, her mind spinning.What is this woman up to now,she thought as she sat there twirling the thin phone around in her hands?She knew when Maureen arrived, it would be with her mini entourage. This was a game to her, and it was apparent she wasn’t near ready to end it. Dropping the jeans and the rest of the clothing she had, she left the room, preparing to give Kayden the bad news.
When Lana got downstairs, Maureen was already in the living room, removing her white leather gloves. She was so conniving that she actually answered her from right inside the house. Keeping her head held high and her eyes on Kim, who was watching her like a hawk, Lana entered the living room ready to face the music. Kayden was now chopping wood outside, and she could see Heathcliff with him, the glass doors pulled closed.How long was I upstairs,she thought, since it wasn’t that long ago he was sitting at the table on the phone.
Maureen smiled un-genuinely and motioned for Lana to sit next to her. She thought about sitting as far away as possible, but opted not to give in to those thoughts and sat right next to her. Sitting this close to someone so cruel made her skin crawl, and she couldn’t believe Kayden was produced by this woman.
Kim sat across from them with a grin on her face, revealing she knew something Lana obviously did not.She thinks she’s won. It’s like Kayden is a trophy to her,Lana thought as she rolled her eyes, waiting for Maureen to speak. She watched Kayden swinging the ax outside as Heathcliff appeared to keep him distracted. It was all so calculated, and from the look of it, she doubted Kayden knew what was about to transpire.
“Lana,” Maureen said evenly and slowly. “There’s been some interesting developments lately regarding the accident on February twenty-first.”
Lana’s eyebrow raised, her physical manifestation of what stage her patience was at.
“And what would that be?” Lana asked, crossing her arms over her chest, waiting for a reply.
“Before I get into that, I want to clear up one thing first.” She stood from the couch and started her circling act again.
Kim kept her eyes on her, the smile on her face widening. It was like she was a hungry hyena waiting for prey to finally die so she could take a bite.
“I love my son. More than you could ever understand.”
Lana scoffed.
“I would do anything for him—anything. No matter how much he’s disappointed me.” She stopped and looked at him through the glass as he chopped wood, his back still facing the door, then she spun around and faced Lana again.
“But there is no one, and I mean no one, I would allow to take him from me,” she finished, her stare burning through Lana’s corneas.
“Do you have a point you’re trying to get to? What does this have to do with the state pressing charges against him?” Lana asked.
This time, Kim scoffed and crossed her legs, keeping her eyes on Lana, waiting and watching.
“I never said the state would press charges onhim,” Maureen replied, the big smile on her face revealing dimples that were quite pretty, but showed just how maleficent she was.
At first, Lana was confused and furrowed her brows, not quite getting it.
“Take your time, dear,” she said, stalking around the living room and finally sitting next to Kim.
“What, you mean me?”
“Yes, dear.”
