Praying for Daylight (2 page)

He also made the best fudge I’d ever tasted.

“Maybe I was dreaming,” I said, staring at the ceiling. “I think I’m going to go back to bed.”

“You said Death was on the phone.” Marco’s rough voice cut in, drawing a gasp from my sister.

So I had to tell them everything.

And afterwards, I’d wished I’d kept it to myself.

“We should call the police.” Cheyenne ran her hands through her blonde curls, her eyes wide and frightened. Jake followed her around the room trying to calm her down. “Someone call the freaking police!” She kept repeating.

“We will,” Jake put his arm around her and wedding bells chimed in my head. Screw Death. I had a swanky celebration to plan. Dresses to pick out. A venue to find. “But first, where is your phone?”

Cheyenne stopped, “What?”

“He called from your phone,” I said.

Cheyenne grabbed her purse off of the entrance table by the door and turned it upside down. The contents scattered across the tabletop. “I don’t have it.”

Jake rubbed the back of his neck. “When was the last time you remember seeing it?”

“Well, at the afterparty. I left it on the bar to get my drink…I must have forgotten to pick it back up.”

“So someone stole your phone, called Kate, and threatened to kill her.” Jake looked about as sick as I felt.

No one slept that night, or the next one. Security was doubled. Cops, and men in suits, were all over me. I felt suffocated by all the extra security, but being safe was more important.

There were lots of questions, my house was outfitted with more cameras, and even more security. Whoever was on the phone didn’t have a chance at getting anywhere near me.

Days passed. Weeks passed. And two months later, still nothing had happened. There was never another call, or anything suspicious to warrant all the hype around me. I was in the clear. It was probably just a one-time deal, and I convinced my sister, and the rest of my security team, that is was probably a prank. Nothing happened. Nothing was going to happen. Jake wondered if it wasn’t just some jerk thinking he was being funny.

So my months of chaos were followed by a few weeks of respite. It was nice to get back to normal. I wasn’t being driven crazy by people thinking someone was trying to kill me. I even went to the store by myself to grab some carrots for a dinner Cheyenne wanted to make. I got the usual attention from people who recognized me, but it wasn’t dangerous. I checked out, got in my car, still alive and happy to know that the creepy call was a freak incident, and that I was back to normal.

“Pot roast?” Ben looked up at me with a grimace as I chopped carrots and dropped them in the pot on the stove. “Why?”

I shrugged, not exactly excited by dinner. “Can’t say. I just know that your mom really wants it.”

“I hate meat.” Yep, my nephew was a budding vegetarian before he even knew what being veg was all about. “I mean, I wouldn’t eat Pongo.” He looked at his black lab lounging near the fridge. Pongo was probably hoping someone would accidently drop a tasty treat on the floor. “So why would I eat…what kind of animal is a roast?”

I glanced into the pot on the stove. “Beef.”

“Beef is a cow. So why would I want to eat a cow? They make cheese and that’s fine with me.” He frowned, flinging himself on the floor next to Pongo for a staring contest. His little blond head bobbed around as he tried to make eye contact with the dog. “Pongo likes cheese too. A burger without the cow is a grilled cheese. So we can just eat cheese and no cow.”

“Cheese and no cow rant?” Cheyenne asked as she came into the kitchen.

“Yep,” I said, trying not to laugh at the giant rollers in her hair. “Getting all pretty for your date?”

She snorted, “I’m ready.”

I pointed to her head. “And those are a new accessory?”

“Ben, I made tofu pasta salad for you,” my sister said, as she started tugging rollers out of her hair and throwing them in one of the kitchen drawers.

“What does Jake think about Ben’s eating habits?” I’d never asked him this because it had never occurred to me.

“Thinks it’s a phase, just like I do. Remember last year? He ate more meatballs than I could count. Meatball-eating-machine, my kid.” Cheyenne ran her fingers through her hair while looking at her reflection in the silver pot on the stove.

“Yeah, until that school field trip to the farm for abused animals turned him, and half his class, into mini meat-protesters.” It was tragic- half the class was still put off by chicken nuggets.

“Either way, Jake isn’t bothered by it. He’ll just eat what Ben doesn’t.” She sniffed the roast. “This beauty is going to get me a footrub.”

I left the kitchen laughing. “You’re evil.”

“I’m just giving Jake what he wants, to get what I want…I call that smart. Of course, he’d give me the footrub even if I didn’t make it,” she sniggered.

I went upstairs to the room I kept at Cheyenne’s house. It was kind of odd, living at home. I actually had enough money to set up house all by my lonesome. It felt kind of strange though, so I kept telling everyone it was just until I found the right place…even though I wasn’t actually looking.

I flopped onto my bed, staring at my guitar, thinking it was time to start working on my new songs. I’d taken a short break because of the death threat. It would be nice to get back into the studio.

I grabbed my guitar and settled against the headboard with a pad of paper and pen.

What the hell was I going to write about?

So I grabbed the remote and flipped on my tv, searching for a sappy romance, or a costume drama.

Starcrossed lovers were way overdone.

Girl next door and bad boy were equally exhausted.

Girl breaks cowboy’s heart and starts music career?

Now that could work…

Hah!

Anyone who knew me would know exactly who that song was about. And that was getting a little too personal.

So I settled for something about lovers who weren’t necessarily starcrossed, just in the wrong place at the wrong time, so they kept missing each other on the train…

God that sucked.

I put my guitar down and closed my eyes, telling myself that I was going to keep writing my own lyrics.

I cracked an eye open when I heard my phone ring. Jake was calling. Probably to ask me something about what Cheyenne would like him to bring. I’d established that she was more of a fruity cocktail girl than a wine lover. So this next question could be about flowers, or chocolates, or theater tickets.

“Hey, what’s up?”

A garbled sound of a horn honking in traffic filled my ear, and I waited for the sounds to pass so he could speak.

“How are you Kate?”

I closed my eyes, feeling like I was in a very bad dream. “How did you get Jake’s phone?”

“It’s the funniest thing…” the mechanical voice on my phone was none other than Death, “…he left it in his gym locker. And a lock is no match for me, so I relieved him of the burden of such a pricey device. Did you know your manager’s phone is valued at over one thousand dollars?”

“I got him that phone as a thank you for being an awesome manager, and you stole it?” I was angry, and scared. Really scared. He knew where Jake worked out? Not even I knew that! “What do you want? You’ve been gone for almost two months, and now all of a sudden you’re back?”

“I told you what I want Kate. I just wanted to see if you believed me.” He chuckled. “Clearly you didn’t, or you would have kept your security doubled.”

“Look, I don’t know what kind of game you’re playing, but I’m not in the mood for it. So just leave me alone.” I hung up.

Death called three times before I picked up again.

“Now let me explain something to you Kate. I make the rules. I tell you exactly what to do and you do it.” He sounded pissed. “You never hang up on me.”

I took a deep breath, “Fine, just tell me what you want. Maybe I can make up for what I’ve done?”

“What you have done cannot be undone. So now you must pay.”

I wanted to ask him more, but I got the feeling that keeping my mouth shut would be in my best interest for now.

“Kate, I want you to understand just how much control I have,” he said coolly. “I know where Jake works out. Big deal. But I also know other things. Like where your sister shops every Tuesday night for Ben’s favorite tofu. I also know that the boy plays soccer at the park three days a week. He’s a pretty good goalie. And I know that you love your family so much, that you would do anything to keep them safe.”

I wanted to vomit. He had me right where he wanted me. There was nothing I could do if he really had that much access to us.

“So here’s how it’s going to be Kate Kelly. I am the cat, you are the mouse. In this game, eventually you will get caught. If you tell anyone we have spoken, someone you love is going to get hurt.” He was silent for a beat. “Do you understand?”

I had to steady myself to speak. “Y-yes.”

“Good. As long as you don’t tell anyone about our conversation, everything will be fine. Have a good night. I’ll make sure Jake gets his phone back, and I’ll call you in a few days.”

The line went dead. I curled into a ball on my bed, helpless. Knowing that he had me by the throat, and there was nothing I could do. My family would know something was wrong. I was too transparent to hide anything from Cheynne or Jake. Even Ben. He was young, but also very smart.

It took me all of five minutes to realize what I had to do.

I had to go.

I had to get as far away from my family as humanly possible.

And I had to do it without Death realizing I’d left, and without anyone finding out where I’d gone.

I was afraid that if I didn’t put as much distance as possible, between me and the people I loved, something terrible would happen. It would all be my fault. And I’d never forgive myself.

This was for the best. It really was.

I quickly packed. I threw everything I thought I’d need in my suitcase, and added a few items I normally used to disguise myself in public. The red wig from an old Halloween costume would probably come in handy. After my suitcase was hidden behind the mirror by my closet, I pretended to stay up in my room and work, while everyone else had a nice dinner downstairs. Once Jake was gone, and my sister and Ben were asleep, I took Cheyenne’s car. I knew no one would think to look for me in it, since everyone recognized my blue SUV, and began the long drive to my old home.

The note I left on my bed would tell them everything I wanted them to know; that I was safe, and was just looking to get away for a while. It was for the best. They would never suspect that I had gone to Montana. And no matter how much anyone begged, I would not break down and tell them where I went.

My phone rang six hours later just as I was letting myself into a cheap motel for a nap. Since I’d been driving all night, my feet were dragging, and my eyelids were drooping. It wouldn’t have been smart to keep driving. The house number flashed across the screen and I hit answer, knowing that my sister would be freaking out.

“Hey,” I said, trying to sound upbeat.

“Don’t hey me, Katie. Why the hell did you sneak out?” My sister was hoarse by the time she was done yelling at me about how I shouldn’t have left. And how it was so dangerous. “I’ve been worried sick!”

“I couldn’t tell you. I’m sorry for leaving without saying goodbye, but I knew you wouldn’t let me go. I had to do it.”

“Katie, is this about what happened last month? The voice on the phone? If it is, we can fix this. We can protect you.” She sounded so earnest. She believed that I would be safe. I wanted to share in her conviction. I knew it was wrong though. Not only would I be in danger, so would they.

I sighed, falling back onto the cheap, squeaky mattress. “I can’t tell you what’s going on. I’m sorry, Cheyenne.”

She heaved a sigh. “I can’t lose you, Katie. We’re it.”

“I know, and you’re not going to… I won’t tell you where I’m going, but trust me. I’ll be safe.” I hope I sounded halfway convincing.

“I am still not okay with this. You better call me every damn day.” My sister was furious, but she knew that she couldn’t make me do anything. We were both cut from the same stubborn cloth. Just like our mother. “How will going into hiding fix anything? Because I know you well enough to know that’s exactly what you are doing.”

“I don’t know.” I really didn’t think about that. If I went into hiding, how would we ever catch this person? Find out who they were and what they wanted? I wasn’t sure, but I knew I was just going to have to figure the rest out as I went along.

“I’ve gotta go, Cheyenne. I’ll call you once I get where I need to be.” I told her I loved her several times before finally hanging up the phone.

Of all my smart plans and ideas, I probably should have rethought this one.

Was I doing the right thing by leaving? I had no idea what would happen to me. It wasn’t the brightest idea to go it alone, but I did not want to put my family in jeopardy. The only solution I could find, was to get as far away from Cheyenne and Ben as possible.

The person on the phone could be anyone. One thing I knew for sure was that it was someone close. This person knew too much, it was clear they were in my inner circle.

I had to hide somewhere where no one would ever think to look for me.

There was only one place that came to mind.

Montana.

Middle of freaking nowhere.

I spent half the day sleeping in the dismal motel room. It had been years since I’d been in a magnificent dive like this, and once I’d turned in my key, I headed to the diner next door. I couldn’t wait to dig in to fatty bacon and pancakes.

I didn’t venture into the diner looking like myself though.

With a hat low on my head, and my signature blond hair pinned under the red wig, I went unnoticed. Nothing about me said famous singer. I dressed like some grungy teen, looking like I hadn’t showered in ages. Baggy clothes hid my body and no one could tell if I was male or female unless they looked directly at my face. I even changed my makeup, rimming my eyes with thick black liner, and coating my lashes with heavy mascara. Then I added tons of cakey makeup, just for good measure.