Had he real y grown so soft over a girl? Would he real y let his sister down over this? What would his big sister think of him?
“Wel …um…you see, him… I um…met this girl,” he began.
He saw Caitlin’s expression turn from confusion to recognition.
“Sam,” she said, sounding like a parent, “there are more important things. This search…it’s our father we are talking about.”
But even as she said it, Caitlin knew she was being hypocritical. After al , she had been prepared to give up her search for Caleb’s sake.
“I know,” Sam said, stil avoiding her gaze. “It’s just that…
wel …this girl, she’s different, and we…kind of just met…
and I’m just not sure if I should go, like, this second…”
He saw her staring at him with disapproval. He didn’t know what else to say. He wanted to go with her. But at the same time, there was something about Kendra that just made him obsessed with her.
“You have to understand,” Sam implored. “You had someone in your life once, didn’t you? What was his name?
Caleb? What happened to him?”
Sam watched as Caitlin’s face suddenly morphed into one of sadness and disappointment. He immediately regretted inquiring about it. Caitlin looked off into the distance, and seemed crushed.
“Yes,” she said softly. “I did. Once.”
A heavy silence fel between them.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I real y want to help you. It’s just that his girl, um, wel , her name is—”
“Kendra,” suddenly came a voice.
Sam and Caitlin both wheeled to see Kendra standing there, in her royal blue gown, looking haughtily down on both of them.
CHAPTER TWENTY SIX
As Caitlin stood there, Kendra took a step forward, and haughtily stepped between her and her brother. She stared at Caitlin with a defiant, territorial look, one that was clearly meant to tel Caitlin to back off. That Sam was Kendra’s territory now.
Caitlin looked over at Sam, hoping that he would pick up on what was going on, that he would push her out of the way—
that he would be immune to such behavior.
But alas, he was not. Caitlin was shocked to see that Sam seemed to become completely subordinate in Kendra’s presence, as if she held some sort of invisible power over him. He even seemed to slump a bit, and Kendra seemed to stand tal er. It looked as if he were helpless around her.
Caitlin’s her heart fel at the site. She had seen this happen with other friends in the past. It was obvious that Sam was in her grip.
“Kendra,” Caitlin echoed slowly, in a cool voice, looking her right in the eye. “I don’t believe we have been introduced.”
“We haven’t,” Kendra stated, in a cold tone.
“Wel ,” Caitlin said slowly, feeling her anger begin to rise,
“you’re standing between me and my brother, and we were in the middle of a conversation.”
Kendra stared back at Caitlin, and she could see a flash of indignation cross over her eyes. But she didn’t move.
Sam stepped up from behind Kendra and stepped in between the two of them, as if sensing the confrontation that was about to happen.
“No, it’s not like that,” Sam said to Caitlin, in a conciliatory tone. “She just wanted to introduce herself. Caitlin, this is Kendra. Kendra, this is my sister, Caitlin.”
Caitlin noticed that Sam was sweating; he was nervous for them to like each other.
But Caitlin continued to stare Kendra down with a look of steel, and Kendra did the same. Sam looked back and forth between them, increasingly nervous.
“My brother and I were just discussing a trip we are going to take,” Caitlin said coldly. “In fact, we wil be leaving tomorrow, so you can say your goodbyes now.”
Caitlin felt that she had to take control, to take action to help break Sam from the grip of this clearly destructive woman that he seemed helpless around. It was bold and aggressive, but she felt that she had no other choice.
Kendra turned and looked at Sam. He avoided her gaze, and avoided Caitlin’s, too. Caitlin had never seen him so fidgety.
“I doubt that,” Kendra said back. “Sam’s not going anywhere. After al , he and I have plans for tomorrow.”
“We do?” Sam asked, and Caitlin could hear the hope in his voice. His tone of voice told her everything she needed to know, and she felt her heart sink. He wasn’t seriously going to let himself be run by this girl, was he?
“That’s right,” Kendra said. “We do.”
Caitlin stared back at Kendra, seething with hatred. She prayed that Sam would summon