Page 103 of Rebound

“Well, I had a dream about a clown chasing me through an amusement park, thanks to you, but I don’t believe it’s going to happen.”

“Have you heard from Brandi?” she asks, and I shake my head.

“Not since last week.” We talked after her mother’s posts. After a call from an attorney, Barbara took the video down. According to Brandi, her dad was taking her to church to talk to their minister. I don’t know what the fuck that’s supposed to do, but as long as she stays away from my family, I don’t care. “But you have the driver and the bodyguard.”

“And I got a mean right hook,” Dorothy says. She puts her mug down and motions a punch. “Nobody’s gonna lay a hand on my pumpkin.” She smiles at Jasmine, who waves a Barbie at her.

“I have practice, but let’s ride together. I’ll take you to work first.” That’s something Coach would do. He’d make sure his wife was safe before going to his own job.

After kissing Jasmine goodbye and being reassured by Dorothy that she won’t let anything happen to her, we leave. We hold hands in the back seat, and when we arrive at her building, I escort her to her cubicle.

“I might meet June Bug for lunch today,” she says. “Don’t worry, I won’t go alone.” I kiss her goodbye, but I feel good about her going to lunch with her cousin. I know there’s no way he would ever let anything happen to her.

Practice goes off with no issues, and afterward, I workout with some of the guys and get a massage. I don’t check my phone until hours later, and that’s when I see the text from Layla saying that she’s going to work from home the rest of the day because Dorothy had to leave due to a family emergency. She also says something still doesn’t feel right so she’d rather be at home.

I call her, but the phone goes directly to voicemail. I call Dorothy to make sure everything’s okay with her and her family, and her phone goes directly to voicemail too.

“Chastain, have you heard from Vickie? Do you know if she’s at my place with Johnny for a playdate?” I ask. That same uneasy feeling Layla has had all week hits me but intensified.

“Nah. They’re not home. Evan’s at school, and Johnny has a physical scheduled for right about now,” he says while checking his watch. That makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up even more. Instead of showering, I call my driver to take me home.

On the way, I still can’t get in touch with my wife. I text Jeannie and she confirms that Layla’s driver picked her up. I call three more times on the way home, and I can’t get in touchwith anyone in the house, so I call her bodyguard, and he finally answers.

“Where’s my wife?” I ask, forgoing any pleasantries.

“I walked her to the apartment, and she said she was going to order lunch for her and Jasmine. She asked me to take Dorothy to the hospital to meet her husband, and I told Layla I’d pick up their food on the way back. I’m headed to the apartment now. About five minutes away with this traffic.” I feel a little relieved, but not completely. Layla always has her phone on her. She always answers. Even when we weren’t together, she took my calls. I hang up on the bodyguard and make one more call.

“Brandi,” I say when she picks up. “Where is your mother?” I ask, getting to the point.

There’s lots of noise and talk in the background, but Brandi goes deathly quiet.

“I don’t know,” she says after a long uncomfortable pause.

“What the fuck do you mean you don’t know?” I scream into the phone.

“Don’t yell at me,” she shouts back. “I don’t know where she is. I can’t reach her. She left her phone here.”

“And your father has no idea where she is?” When she remains quiet, I say, “Put him on the phone.”

“Seth—”

“Put him on the fucking phone.” I don’t yell this time, but I’m firm. I hear her voice in the background, but I can’t hear what she says. A few moments later, I hear a male voice. “Where is your wife?”

“The Lord hasn’t revealed that to me yet,” he says, sounding way too calm for the situation.

“The Lord?” I ask, aghast. “You can’t be serious.” He doesn’t answer, so I continue. “If she goes near my daughter, it’s on your head. I’m going to fuck her up, and then I’m coming after you,you fucking family of psychos.” I end the call because I know I won’t get any more information from him, and I believe Brandi doesn’t know anything.

“Hurry up,” I say to my driver. I can feel the blood pounding in my veins, and my heart starts to beat uncontrollably. If anything happens to my daughter, I’m going to prison because I’m going to choke the life out of that woman with my bare hands, and I will feel no regret about it. If she touches my wife, she’ll be met with the same fate.

My driver pulls to the front of my building, and I jump out of the car before it comes to a complete stop. He follows me to the elevator, and I curse how slow it is today. After what seems like an eternity, the doors open, and I sprint down the hall.

I punch in the code to the door, but it gives me an error message. Seconds later, I get a text from the security company, and I respond that they send the police. I use my key, but someone put the chain on the door, and I can’t open it.

“Bruce, you better take this fucking door off the hinges,” I say to my driver right before I kick it. I hear crying on the other side, and I feel both relief and trepidation. I don’t hear Layla though. There’s no way she would let Jasmine cry. I go to kick the door again, but Bruce pushes me out of the way and rams his shoulder into it. Nothing happens.

I call the front desk and demand someone come up hereimmediately with bolt cutters. Someone shows up less than five minutes later, and when they manage to get the door open, I run inside. Jasmine’s screams get louder, but my heart stops when I see Layla sprawled on the floor unconscious. I drop to my knees and put two fingers to her neck to check her pulse. I exhale when I find it. I pick her up and lay her on the couch.

“Layla,” I say as I pat her cheek. “Wake up. Let me see your eyes, baby. Come on.” I pat her cheek again, but Jasmine’s crying gets louder.

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