Page 90 of Kings Fear No One
The more people arrive, the more I’m reminded how I’m still adjusting. Being around strangers still makes me uneasy.
Logan seems to sense I’m overwhelmed. He grabs my hand to lead us farther away from the crowd.
“You sure you don’t want any?” he asks. “You skipped breakfast too.”
“I’m not hungry. But I am thirsty.”
“C’mon, we’ll grab some water bottles.”
Relief comes over me. The way Logan holds my hand and guides me alongside him feels so natural. It chases away the outside noise and calms the anxiety gnawing at me.
My husband understands me better than anyone, even if he doesn’t realize he does.
We approach the stall where people are gathered ordering their beverages. So many people from town have shown up that they’ve started blending together. All of them except a dirty blonde with scarlet, horn-rimmed glasses.
Rita Lewis-Castillo turns around as though sensing our presence nearby. Her eyes flash in recognition, her mouth forming a smile. “Well, look who it is! I didn’t expect to run into you.”
I freeze, my insides turning into ice. “Oh… hello. Nice to see you. Logan, it’s too crowded here. Maybe we should go?—”
“I’m glad you two have decided to work things out.”
“We’ve been waiting for you to return our call,” Logan says, his mood instantly souring. “Did you even elevate our case to your supervisor like you said you would?”
“I’m sorry? I was told that was no longer necessary,” she says, then she glances at me. “I was told you two had changed your minds.”
“Logan, we have to get going,” I say, every word rushed. I tug on his arm, but he’s immovable. He’s not going anywhere ’til he gets answers.
His expression hardens as he looks at me. “You gonna tell me what she’s talking about?”
21
TEYSHA
An eternity might as well pass us by. That’s how long the moment feels as Logan and Rita turn their attention onto me. I let go of Logan’s arm and stitch together the best response I can. It’s full of ums and uhs and I settle on coming clean.
Sort of.
“I… I told her we were, um, working things out,” I say. “But that’s because… I thought… weren’t we?”
“We were waiting to hear back from the clerk’s office. You said you’d keep reaching out to them for an update.”
Rita prods the scarlet frames of her glasses higher up her nose. “That’s not what happened. I have called you both several times over the past few weeks. Your voice mailbox needs to be emptied out, Mr. Cutler. Your wife did eventually answer her phone, but it was to tell me the annulment case no longer needed to move forward.”
The sticky summer air shifts from uncomfortable to outright unbearable. I wipe my brow, grateful I haven’t eaten today as the sick feeling in my stomach intensifies. I’m being put on the spot when I wasn’t prepared; it wasn’t part of my plan to run into Mrs. Lewis-Castillo.
“I didn’t mean to… I was just…” I trail off, unsure of what else to say.
The muscle in Logan’s jaw tics. He nods at the clerk and says, “I’ll be reaching out on Monday.”
Then he’s off. He strides away, cutting a forceful path through the bike show crowd. My heart explodes in panicked beats as I rush to go after him. Rita catches me first, stepping in my way. Her lips have thinned, her eyes sharp.
“So you’re aware, this will be documented. The court does not look favorably on liars.”
I inhale a breath to find panic quickly spreading. “Please… just… move out of my way.”
I scurry my way around her, accidentally stepping into another man who happens to be passing by. Murmuring a quick apology to him, I scan the area for the direction Logan went in. The bike show becomes a maze of strangers that block every conceivable path I choose to go down. I squeeze myself between a family of four, finally reaching the parking lot.
Logan’s headed for his pickup truck.
