Trajectory

“Why would this person care what we were doing?”

“I told Chloe I would help her find who killed Layla when I was at the bar that day. Someone was there listening, obviously, and now they have us under surveillance.”

“You know this sounds bat shit, right, Z?” he said as he moved about his room getting ready. He was happy his roommate hadn’t returned from his summer abroad. He would wonder why the hell a woman with blue feathers in her hair and what could only be described as genie pants was coming into their apartment early in the morning.

“Everything sounds bat shit, son, it doesn’t mean it’s not true.”

“We’re going to check on Chloe first.”

Zazie didn’t argue, but he could tell that wasn’t something she had counted in their schedule. She tapped an impatient foot and waited as he went and washed his face. He brushed his teeth and put on some aftershave. At least he’d taken a shower before he went to bed, so he could get close to Chloe without worrying.

* * *

It was eight-thirty and Chloe hadn’t moved from the table. Her coffee had gotten cold and she hadn’t touched it. The sound of a truck in her driveway snapped her out of it. Her first thought was the killer was there and ready to take her out too. She wished she’d gotten a gun to keep in her home. She didn’t live with anyone, being happy until now to have a house all to herself. A gun would make her feel a lot safer. She’d have to talk to her dad about it.

Slowly, she stood up and saw it was Brent. Why was he there? He was certainly the last person she wanted to see at that moment. Not only did she look horrible, but he’d really hurt her feelings by pulling away from her.

He ran from the truck up the front steps and she met him on the porch, her face fixed in a frown, arms across her chest.

“Babe, I was worried about you.”

“I thought you wanted to take a step back?” she said, not showing any emotion and being very proud of herself for it.

“What? But...when we talked last night, I thought I made my feelings clear. You did hear what I said last night, didn’t you?” She felt sure she had to have, but she couldn’t remember. It was all a blur. She couldn’t remember him coming to talk to her or getting home.

“No, Brent, I didn’t. I don’t remember anything from last night, it’s all a haze. The last thing I remember that happened between us was you said you needed time and I slammed the door in your face because I thought it was bullshit. I still think it’s bullshit. How do you spend your whole life with someone and go through so much to stop caring about them because they’re different than you thought?”

He stepped in and shut her up by pressing his lips to hers. She was taken by surprise but not completely resistant to it. He pulled her close to him and put one hand in her hair, sending tingles through her scalp. She gave into the kiss and deepened it, wrapping her arms around his neck. Whatever he’d said last night must have been the opposite of his taking a step back speech.

“I love you, Chloe. I have for a very long time. You’re just going to have to believe me that what I said last night was really romantic and sweet.”

“I love you too, Brent,” she said, her heart swelling.

“Whooooo,” Zazie yelled from the car, “it’s about time.”

“Hey, Aunt Z, what are you doing in the car?”

“She was supposed to be reading a book and giving us privacy,” Brent said.

“Get ready and come with us, we’re going to meet my grandma!”

“Your grandma?”

“It’s a long story, but she’s a wizard pretending to be a fortune-teller and she’s going to tell us who killed Layla so we can get to the bottom of it.”

Chloe gasped. Could it really be that easy?

“I can’t go. I have to go with Layla’s mother to the funeral home. She doesn’t want to go alone, and it’s time to prepare her for the funeral.”

“Oh okay, well, I’ll come over after your shift tonight and tell you what we find out okay. I’m sorry you have to deal with this.” He kissed her softly and moved down the stairs back to the truck. “We’re going to figure this out, okay?”

Her phone was ringing again when she went inside and she cringed as she saw it was her mother. She hadn’t called her every night like her mom had demanded. She was worried sick that she was going to go crazy. First, she’d offered to come stay with her, then she’d said she should just come stay with them. It was crazy, but Chloe felt like if she went and stayed with her parents she’d be putting them in danger.

“Hi, Mom,” she said as she watched Brent’s truck pull out of the driveway.

“Baby, are you okay? You didn’t call me last night. I was really worried. Your dad is already getting ready to come over there. He wanted to bring you some strange soup he made, but I wouldn’t let him.”

“Debra, it’s not strange, it’s just a strange color.” She heard her father in the background. There was no way she wanted to know what kind of concoction he’d come up with.