Page 45 of Truth Forever
For a moment, she just stared at me. “Do you at least have somewhere to stay when you get there?”
That made me smile. Layla had always been more adventurous than me. She didn’t even try and talk me out of going. It just wasn’t her style.
“Yeah, I think so.” Quickly I typed out a message.
Can I crash on your sofa for a few days?
The reply came almost instantly. No questions, no drama. Just a simple yes. I smiled. “Yeah, I have somewhere to stay. I have been blessed with the best roommates in the world.”
Layla side-eyed me as she pulled the car from the curb. “Just as long as she realises, I’m number one.”
***
Gemma was stood by the same bench I had sat on when Truth had come and asked me to stay when the bus finally pulled in. It had been a hell of a trip, with several changes and several hours at the side of the motorway when one of the buses had broken down. So it was late when it finally pulled in.
I saw her straight away, even though her hood was up shadowing her face. But I knew it was her.
“Cali?” The hooded figure lifted her head against the wind and the rain, and I rushed to her. I really had the best luck when it came to roommates. But it was more than that with Gemma. She had been such a good friend from the very beginning. We had gone from strangers to besties in what seemed like a split second.
Plus I had missed her.
“Gem.” I hugged her quickly, grimacing back as her wet coat soaked the front of my hoody. “How long have you been waiting?”
She gave a small shrug. “A while.” Slinging her arm around my shoulders, she turned me towards the direction where she lived. And I raised my eyebrows. “We’re walking?”
Another shrug. “Car up and died on me. Come on, Cali. It’s not far…” the whites of her eyes glinted in the street lights. “What’s going on Cali?”
I barely heard her, my concentration was aimed at the deserted street.
It was quiet. Which was strange all by itself. Somehow the rain-drenched streets illuminated by the orange glow of streetlamps felt oddly haunted. It made me feel uncomfortable. Like I was the lead in a horror movie. Like I was being watched.
“Cali?”
Reluctantly I turned to her. “Who knows I am here, Gem?” I struggled to find the words.
“No one?” She seemed genuinely confused by my question. “Cali, what’s going on?”
“What is my welcome going to be when they find out I am here?” I was starting to think this was a mistake. I had been so focused on having it out with Truth that I hadn’t given much thought to what the other Black Aces would do to me if they found me here.
“Cali.” Her hands closed around my arms. So she could stare in my face. “You are safe here. Nothing is going to happen to you. I promise.”
I wanted to believe her. I did. But it didn’t change the apprehension niggling in my gut.
Tomorrow I would find Truth and tell him, well the truth and then once I had closure, I would start my new life. Far away from hot bikers and all the heartache they caused me.
Chapter NINETEEN
Truth
Ishot a glance towards my brother as we both rested on our bikes outside the apartment, Cali shared with her roommate.
Ruin had run some checks. She lived with a woman called Layla. A friend from university. No criminal record. Not that really mattered to me. I wasn’t that much of a hypocrite. But I had wanted some checks done on her. Boyfriends and such.
Mainly I just wanted to know what kind of men were about Cali.
Jealousy?
Most definitely.
