Page 81 of Hot Mess

“I know. I know. She was here? Well, I’m glad that I missed her. That could have been awkward. Considering she’s also wanted for questioning, along with Gabe.”

“I don’t understand, why would they do something like that. They’re good children,” Mom continued to defend them.

“They aren’t good people, Mom. Why won’t you listen to me?”

“Your Uncle Dave would never tolerate that.”

“Uncle Dave doesn’t care.” I sighed and rested my forehead against Nick’s chest. He was so sturdy and strong. He felt like a pillar of support when I needed him most.

“Your niece and nephew have been in trouble like this before. They’ve been involved in credit card fraud and trying to rip people off with phone scams. It seems Gabe has quite the reputation for underground gambling. He owes some frightening people a lot of money.”

“What’s going to happen?” Mom asked.

Nick shrugged. “Jail time? I don’t know. But I will be prosecuting. I’m not dropping this. They crossed the line when they tried to go through Kayla to get at me.”

He smiled down at me. “They had no idea what they were going up against with you, did they? They thought you were some scared meek little girl.” He laughed. “They never saw the fierce woman you really are.”

“I’m not fierce. I’m not strong. Nick, I ran away,” I was nothing but a coward.

He shook his head. “There is nothing wrong with retreating to regroup, to assess your situation. Your cousins can’t see that, they aren’t looking. They don’t know you. You never once caved and asked me for money. You stood your ground to protect people. That’s nothing to be ashamed of, Kayla.”

I glanced over at Mom. I needed to be able to talk to Nick without her right there. I looked down at what I was wearing. I was still in my pajamas, with house slippers on.

“I need to change. Give me a minute, and then we need to go out and talk.”

“You can continue your conversation in the kitchen,” Mom said. She looked like she wasn’t going to budge.

“No, Mom, there are some things I need to speak with Nick about in private. I’ll be right back, and we can go.”

34

NICK

“Where are we going?” I asked as I followed Kayla out of the house. It was cold and dark outside. She walked like she was on a mission.

She stopped and looked back at the house.

“I’m running away. It’s what I seem to do best.” She stood there for a moment; profound sadness washed over her.

I pulled her against my chest. I didn’t want her to be so sad. This entire situation was overwhelming. She had done the best with what she had. Only she wasn’t working with a big arsenal, her mother had over protected her. While the sentiment was in the right place, the results had left Kayla struggling to cope with everything.

“You aren’t running away,” I said. “Walking to clear your head is what a lot of people do. You seemed to have a purposeful stride, like we were going somewhere specific.”

She shook her head against my chest. “Nowhere specific. There are just things I want to be able to say to you without my mom around.”

“Wanting privacy is not running away.”

I know what she meant. There had been things I needed to say to her mother without her around.

When she eased out of my arms and started walking, I followed next to her. She wrapped her arms around herself, seeming to not want me touching her.

I shoved my hands in my pockets and thought about tropical islands. I needed to do something to keep me warm until I could have Kayla back in my arms. I toyed with the thing in my pocket.

We walked in silence. Kayla stuck in her head with her fears and worries. Me stuck in mine with big plans.

Kayla’s mother’s entire demeanor toward me changed when she learned I was the next Captain Wonder. People loved the character. It was a big responsibility to take over the role of Captain Tony Peale. I felt we had a lot in common. I had always done my best to be that kind of forthright person. There were times it had been a challenge, especially with my family. After all, it was easy to be right all the time when you could buy your way into or out of any situation.

The kinds of moral decisions I had to make in my life weren’t the same as the ones someone struggling to feed their family, or pay their electric bill had. But I tried. And when the studio tapped me to be on their short list of potential actors, and then in those weeks prior to filming, I really had stepped up my do-good game. I liked it. I liked being the guy who helped out, and not just by throwing money at problems. I had done that too, anonymously of course.

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