Page 20 of Caged
“Let it go, Gabi,” he says as he shrugs his sleeve from my grip.
“No,” I say through gritted teeth, stepping in front of him to block his path. Our bodies are inches from each other, and with his height and size advantage, I’m very aware he could plow through me and knock me to the ground with zero exertion on his part whatsoever.
“I need to know what happened to her. I need to understand why my best friend vanished like a ghost, why her phone number is disconnected, and no one can reach her. Please Jace, you mustknow something,” I plead. “Please, if you ever cared about me, tell me what happened.”
He gives me another mocking laugh. “You assume your friend is so fucking innocent. Maybe there’s a reason she doesn’t want to be found.”
He takes a step to the side, but again, I block his path.
“What does that mean?” I ask, pressing my hands to his chest. I know I’m not strong enough to block him, but I’m hoping he isn’t reckless enough to cause a scene similar to last night’s. Jace holds my stare. His soft, dark brown eyes are somber and heavy, as if he knows exactly what happened to Monroe, but somethingor someoneis forcing him to remain silent.
“Stay away from Sigma, Gabriella,” he rasps with a scowl. I falter at the use of my full name, gazing up at his boyish face, because the only time he would call me Gabriella was when we were…
I swallow the burgeoning lump in my throat.
He quickly sidesteps around me, and I make no move to stop him.
8
GABI
Present Day
Istuff the thick course packets and textbook into my backpack. It’s heavy but manageable. Delta Gamma is a solid mile walk from the campus store, but after my unnerving interaction with Jace, I need answers. I’ve got to find Kasey.
I have no idea how to track down a person who doesn’t want to be found. And what did Jace mean by Monroe isn’t innocent? Innocent in what? In allowing Kieren back into her life? In being unable to let him go? Like that wasn’t obvious. Monroe thinks I don’t know about the ongoing relationship she had with Kieren during our sophomore year. She’s a terrible liar. I knew she was still sleeping with him. The all-nighters she claimed she had to pull in the library were a ruse to see him. He had a hold over her in a way I can’t explain or understand.
When I first met Monroe at Dornell, she was naïve and inexperienced, which was not her fault, given her tumultuous childhood. It’s one thing to have a deadbeat dad. It’s another thing to have an unstable mom with dubious morals who fell fora mob-affiliated con man and landed herself in prison. Spending her teenage years in Ohio, living with her grandmother, certainly didn’t help. It’s like Kieren could smell her insecurities from miles away and hunted her down with his money and dominance like she was prey. He was so controlling of her during our freshman year, always present, always around, always listening, and ready to whisk her away to his childhood home in Connecticut to do God knows what the moment she exhibited a semblance of confidence.
Monroe would say Kieren set her free. I would say he exploited her for his own sexual sadism. Jace told me Kieren was known to have a fondness for BDSM, going so far as to chain past girlfriends to the bed. And while I absolutely am not kink-shaming my best friend, a large part of me does wonder how much of their sex life was dictated by Kieren’s desires. But, I guess Monroe liked Kieren’s brand of bedroom play enough to keep crawling back. Honestly, I think she became addicted. I recall spending hours freshman year researching Stockholm syndrome.
All I know is that things must have gotten unspeakably bad for Monroe to leave in the manner she did. I wonder if there is a way I can check her student status. Maybe she arranged a formal leave of absence with the University, like Kieren had when he was gone the first semester of our junior year. I would feel hopeful if that’s the case, because it would mean she intends to come back.
The front door of Delta Gamma is surprisingly open when I arrive, but I’m grateful for the ease of entrance. I shed my backpack as soon as I’m through the door, and it hits the ground with a loud thud. My long, dark brown hair sticks to my sweat-drenched back as I fan out my tank top.
The bottom floor of the sorority is empty, so I assume everyone is either upstairs or out running errands in preparationfor classes on Monday. I probably should have waited until our chapter meeting tomorrow to find Kasey – who knows if she’s even here right now. Someone must be home, however, and if Kasey’s not here, at least I can get her number from one of the girls in her pledge class.
I make my way up to the second floor, peeking my head inside each room I pass. Unfortunately, so far, no one is home. Footsteps creak above my head from the third floor, and I’m relieved that my poorly timed visit won’t be entirely in vain.
“Hello?” I ask as I ascend the stairs. “Hello, is anyone here?”
A girl with dark, curly hair emerges from a room at the end of the hall.
“Hey,” I say with a smile. I’m sure I’m a stranger to her, and I don’t want her to panic. “I’m Gabi, I’m a senior in DG. I’m actually looking for Kasey. Do you know if she’s here?”
“Are you Gabi Pimentel?” the girl asks eagerly. I must look at her like I’m surprised she knows my name, because she explains, “We were required to memorize all the members of DG when we joined, and your headshot is so pretty. You kind of stand out.”
Her face flushes when I brush off the compliment with a teasing scoff.
“You're too kind. But hey, are you friends with Kasey?” I ask, redirecting the conversation back to my initial question.
“She’s my roommate, actually,” she offers hesitantly. Her bubbly expression deflates like a balloon at this admission, but I pretend not to notice.
“Oh!” I exclaim, excited by my luck. “Is she here?”
The girl shakes her head. “The last time I saw her was yesterday afternoon.”
“So, she didn’t come home last night?” I ask.
