EVIL QUEEN - Rebel Hart Page 0,56
I wasn’t sure if I bought into that or not, but it sure sounded more promising than what I’d been living up to.
“Thank me by figuring it out,” he said. “Give Nikki some time to cool off. Then tell her how you feel. Put Cherri in your past where she belongs, and—”
He was cut off by the sound of my phone ringing in my pocket. I quickly fished it out, hoping it might be Nikita, but when I saw who it was, I was equally happy and frustrated. The call read as unknown, no numbers on the screen, and it rang no matter how long I stared at it. It was Deon, but I couldn’t answer it in front of Kyle. He thought Deon was dead, just like everyone else.
“What the heck?” Kyle said. “I’ve never heard a phone ring that long.”
In the few times I’d spoken with Deon during the past few months, the call never stopped ringing. Even if that was an option, I didn’t want to wait long enough to find out if it would stop. I needed to talk to Deon.
I tossed my options back and forth before finally grunting, “Fuck.” I hit the answer button and put the phone to my ear. “Hello?”
“Hey.” An odd sensation of relief flooded through me as I heard Deon’s voice speak back to me. “Sorry that it’s been so long since I called. I think I’m being tailed.”
“Us too,” I replied.
Kyle tilted his head. “Who is that?”
“Uh,” I said and then let out a sigh. “Shit.”
“What’s wrong? You guys are being tailed too?” Deon asked.
“Hang on a sec,” I said, and then I looked over at Kyle. “You should pull over.”
Kyle recoiled a bit, but he didn’t question it as he switched lanes so that he could take the next exit.
“What’s going on?” Deon asked. “You’re with someone?”
“Yeah, Kyle,” I replied.
Kyle’s interest was piqued by the mention of his name, but he pulled off the highway without asking any additional questions until he turned into a gas station and parked his car. He looked over at me. “Who is that?”
“Okay,” I said back to him. “I’ll explain everything later. Also, I’m sorry.”
Kyle looked confused. “Okay?”
I pulled the phone away from my ear and put it on speaker. “Dee?”
“Yeah?” Deon replied. “What the fuck is going on?”
“You’re on speaker. Kyle is here.”
Kyle’s eyes went wide. “Wait. Deon?”
Deon chuckled. “Yeah, hey. Long time. We never got to chat after I came back.”
Kyle touched a hand to his head. “Am I drunk or something?”
“No,” I said. “Deon’s alive.”
“Holy shit,” Kyle said. “Holy shit!”
“Yeah, your emotions are valid right now, and I am going to deal with that, but we don’t get many chances to talk. Hey, Deon. Are you okay?”
“Yeah. It doesn’t really matter where I go. I keep seeing the same couple of guys. They haven’t made any move. It just seems like they’re keeping their eyes on me. You think Connor sent ‘em?”
“That’s my inclination,” I replied. “We’ve got some on us too. Jaxon started seeing them last week.”
“Is Cherri okay?” he asked.
“Holy shit!” Kyle asked. “Cherri thinks he’s dead!”
“Yeah, and we’re keeping it that way,” Deon said. Kyle and I locked eyes, and I hoped he understood the position I was in. “Answer my question.”
“Yeah, she’s fine apart from getting her ass kicked by Nikita on Friday,” I replied.
“What?” Deon said. “Why did she do that?”
“Cherri started it with her,” Kyle said, and not even I knew that. “I spoke to Sicily, and he told me that Nikita was trying to ask him something, and Cherri got in her face.”
“That doesn’t sound like her,” Deon said.
I rolled my eyes. “It’s like I told you, she’s in a place right now. It’s because she thinks you’re still alive.”
“Wait. What?” Deon asked. “Why?”
“I’m not sure,” I lied. “She and Sicily are trying to track you down, but they’ve been coming up empty. With you so off the grid, I imagine they’ll keep coming up empty.”
“Why don’t you tell her?” Kyle asked. “That would fix everything!”
“No, it wouldn’t,” Deon and I said in unison.
“I don’t even know that I’m gonna survive,” Deon said. “Even if I do, I’m probably headed back to prison for the rest of my life. Trust me. It’s better if she believes I’m dead.”
Kyle looked at me and shook his head. “I’m sorry. I just don’t think that’s true.”
“Kyle, I swear to god, if you tell her—” Deon started.
“I won’t, but let the record show I do not