Chapter 29

Shane:

I walk with Liam to the café where Theo, and occasionally, Lauren work at. There were not many people around this time of the day because, well, it's in the middle of the day and most students that usually frequent the place are in school right now. Liam and I decided to skip because, well, we can. Do we really need a reason to skip? We sit next to the window where we have better view of the immediate street. I didn't waste any time because I was dying to know the answer of what I was about to ask him. And I am praying to God that he doesn't give am answer that might automatically place him in my list of shitty people of which Reagan now occupies place number one. I ask Theo to bring me an iced tea while Liam just opted for a bottle of water.

"We haven't hung out in a while." He starts, "I was starting to think that Amy is more your friend than I am."

"Come on Liam, you know we've been buds since we were kids. Kind of like Amy and Karma."

"Hey, almost like Amy and Karma. We're not dating." He grins, "What's up?"

Yet… we're not dating yet, "Liam, how did you know where to look for Amy?"

He rolls his eyes, "Gosh! We're still on this?"

"Well yes…I need to know what happen." I say.

"Why do you need to know so badly? Can't you just drop it? It happened a long time ago."

I sense a little bit of uneasiness, "I'm not about to give up now that I know so many things that just doesn't add up. I need to put two and two together."

"Shane," he shakes his head, "Look, I understand what you are saying but what good would it do to know?"

I shrug, "I mean don't you want to know what happened? An injustice has happened here and I need to make this right."

"For Amy - You want to make things right for Amy." he asks.

I lean back in my chair, "She's been through a lot and I believe that it is time for her to be happy. You know how she was."

Liam grabs the bottle of water from Theo, "Thanks man!"

"No problem! And here you go Shane, your iced tea." He hands me the glass.

"Thanks!"

"What are you guys up to?" he asks, placing the tray on our table.

"We're discussing the case." Liam says.

"Still?"

I nod.

"OK then, I'll just leave you guys because I hear about that case too much from Lauren already." He picks up the tray and goes to take care of other customers.

"What do you want to know?" Liam sighs.

I grin, "OK, how did you find Amy?"

"I already told you naked, right next to Reagan." He rolls his eyes.

"But, did she sleep in a way that lets you see her face well enough for you to be so sure?"

He looks up to the ceiling in a pensive way, "Well…her face was turned on the side, facing Reagan so I could see her profile. And it looked like it was Amy."

I feel my phone buzzing on the table and I open it to read a message that Lauren just sent me. I widen my eyes; maybe that piece of information can help.

"Liam, you did say all you saw was her back, right?" I begin.

"Yes, why?"

"Do you remember seeing a scar?" I ask, studying his features that don't really give out anything.

He just looks like he's focusing on something, trying to remember the fading memory of the party. "Oh yeah, I remember a scar."

I wince, "Can you describe it?"

"It was like a long scratch going down the middle of her back, I think." He takes off the cap off the bottle of water and brings it up to his mouth.

I have to go to Karma and confirm that scar. "Are you sure? Were you even able to see clearly?"

"Well, the lights were on and I was sober that time because I remember that I was just getting to your party." He shrugs.

I quickly send Lauren a text asking her to meet me at Karma's house. I have a feeling that this might be just what we need.

Karma's house

"Hello! Mrs. Ashcroft, we're here to see Karma, is she in?" every time I see that woman she's always smiling.

She gestures for Lauren and I to come in, "Hello!" as soon as we are in, she pull us both in a hug. "How are you guys doing?"

"We are alright…" I say, "How are you?"

"Well I am fine thanks for asking." She smiles. "Karma is upstairs with Amy doing some homework."

Lauren and I looked at each other.

"Oh, is that what they're doing?" Lauren speaks up.

Molly nods, "Yes dear, I'll go get them for you."

"Please do… I beg of you, please do!" I say, holding back the laugh that exploded out of me as soon as she walked upstairs.

Lauren laughs even harder when we hear Karma's voice a few seconds later telling her mom to get out. And by the time Molly walks back down stairs, her face flush red and flustered, we were both holding our chest clenching so tight and our eyes were watery. She walks up to us unable to hide her uneasiness.

"I think Karma and Amy are going to be a while." She says, "Anybody wants some refreshments?"

Our laughter subsides and we both nod eagerly, "Yes, thank you!"

She wipes her forehead, "What would have?"

"Water, for me." I say.

"Me too, thank you." Lauren smiles.

Molly walks quickly to the kitchen so that she can grab our drinks. Lauren and I went back to laughing but we tried to keep it low, not really wanting to make Molly feels uncomfortable. I mean, it is not every day you walk in on your child doing the dirty doo now do you? Our laughter ended up sounding as soft giggles instead but it became worse when Amy walks down the stairs followed by Karma. Now, we really couldn't keep our laugh down, nope. We went crazy mode, holding our stomach in our hands, rolling off the couch onto the floor were we stay for a good while teasing the both of them who were so red with embarrassment.

"Are you guys done? Gosh! One would think that you guys were ten." Amy kicks me on the floor and sits on one of the couch. Karma takes a sit next to her. She couldn't look at either one of us.

"Wh…wh…" I can't speak, "What were you guys doing?" asking when I already know.

"Are you doing this on purpose?" Amy asks, "Stop you jerk!" she throws a pillow at me.

Lauren rises off the floor as she wipes her eyes of the tears, "OK…I'm…I'm sorry but we came here to tell you something."

"What is it?" Karma finally speaks.

I stay on the floor by Lauren's legs, "Well, I ask Liam about the scar."

"And…?"

"He says he did see a scar. But I want to confirm because he says that the scar is long scratch down the middle of your back." I inform, "Is that true?"

I see Amy's face falling and Karma just looks down at her fingers trying so hard to mask the disappointment on her face. I wait for one of them to answer but no one speaks.

So I ask again, "Well…?"

Amy sighs, "Yes that's it."

Molly comes back with our drinks, "Here you go guys!" she places them on the table in the middle of the living room.

"Thank you Mrs. Ashcroft." I take the glass off the table and so does Lauren.

"No problem…" She smiles then leave us in the living room.

"I really didn't see the scratch that night on the back that I saw." Karma speaks up with a tone that is close to cracking itself in two. It's as if she wants to believe in what she is saying, denying what might be the truth that she doesn't want to accept or just won't accept.

"What do you remember seeing?" Lauren asks her.

She looks up at us then at Amy. She takes her hand and Amy gently squeezes it, nodding her head reassuring that it is alright. She softly smiles, and then looks back to us, "After I was done talking to you Shane, I walked up the stairs. Like you said, I knew that I probably would have found her in a position that I didn't want to. But, I just wanted to confirm my doubts even though I knew that it would mean betraying Amy's honesty and break my trust. Nonetheless, I reached the first room that I found when I went up the stairs. I really didn't want it to be, because it was the room that I first confessed my love to Amy."

"For real? My bedroom? The magic took place in my bedroom?" I couldn't hide my excitement. Lauren nudges my arm with her legs telling me to shut up. I do.

"And then, I open the door. It was not even locked, anybody could have walked in. I open and I saw…" she closes her eyes, holding back tears that threatened to fall down her face, "…Reagan was lying on her back, her legs spread open. And there she was, in the middle of her legs, hands grip around her thigh while her face was buried in between. My entire world crashed down then when my eyes were fixated on her blond locks waving down her back, which, I am sure, didn't have any scar. But I didn't think of that then."

"And then you walked back down where you fainted and I had to take you home." I say.

"Wait? You're the one who took me home?" she asks.

"Yeah, I left the party and I took you home." I drink from my glass.

Lauren takes out her notepad from her purse, "So, if what Karma says is true and what Liam says is factual as well, then, wouldn't that mean that one of the people that they saw, might not have been Amy?"

"Either that or one of them is lying and it might actually be Liam." I seethe, feeling an anger rising up inside of me. I really didn't want Liam to be involved in that mess but looks like he's in deep. Is it safe to say that we have now found our Liar number 2?

"I just have one more question though…"

"What is it?" Amy raises an eyebrow.

Lauren smirks at Amy and Karma. I think I know what she wants to ask.

"…how did you get this scar Amy? It is a piece of information that is partial for investigation purposes, of course."

I laugh.

Amy scoffs while Karma's face reddens even more, "That is none of your fucking beeswax."

Then the front door opens with Karma's mom beaming at us while someone else follows, "Karma, guess who I ran into while I was out taking the mails?"

Then someone appears soon enough behind Molly, "Hey little sis!"

Karma's eyes grew wide in shock masking her expression of annoyance and dread, "Zen?"

Karma:

What the hell is he even doing here? Isn't he supposed to be somewhere in Africa saving extinct animals or something? I know, I sound harsh but when it comes to Zen I can't be nothing but harsh. It's not like I hate him but I don't really like him that much. He sucks up all of our parents' affection and I get mostly nothing. Until I started dating Amy, of course, they were proud of me because they think that I was a lesbian. Even I am still not sure about that. Well, since he's been gone, I have been used to my parents loving only me and with him away; I really am enjoying it a lot. Now, why is even back here? We did not expect him to come back until later this year.

"Zen, what are you doing here?" I ask him not really caring to deny my annoyance.

He beams towards me and pulls me up on the couch to hold me, "Come on, I came to visit my sister."

"Why?"

"What do you mean why? Do I need a reason to see my little favorite sis?" he puts me down and cups my chin.

First Zen, yes, you kind of do and second, its adoptive sister, for the record, in case you have forgotten. "I guess no…" I force a smile.

He turns to me, "Hey Amy…"

Amy just sends a small wave, "Hey Zen, I see that you're back."

"Yes, I am." He smiles, "I missed you guys so much while I was in Africa."

Amy squint her eyes, "In Africa?"

"Well, yes. It was exhausting and there were so many things to do and people and animals to save. You should have seen how beautiful the motherland is guys."

My mom comes up to him and gives him a hug …so it begins. "Oh Zen, my son, you have no idea how proud I am of you to be halfway risking your life for people that are in need."

"Well mom, they need me and here I come. I can't bear to ignore those children that just need to feel loved and belonged." He sighs.

"Why don't you come upstairs with us? I am sure your father will be surprised to see you."

I look at them walking away from us as they make their way upstairs. I hate this.

"Karms, can I talk to you?" Amy pulls me to the kitchen.

"What is it?"

"Your brother has been in Africa all this while?" she asks me. I give her a confused look.

"Well yeah and you knew that."

"But then…" she scratches her chin.

"What?"

"Karma, I forgot to tell you this but I once saw your brother Zen in Houston months ago." She says.

"What do you mean you saw him in Houston? And what were you doing in Houston?"

She looks up towards the stairs, "Well, remember when I told you that I had something to do and I asked you to not worry?"

I nod. It was when she tied my hands up against my headboard.

"Well, I went to Houston to find Reagan so that I could get the pills that I needed because of…you know…"

I nod.

"When I was leaving her place, I came face to face with Zen. Apparently he lived or he's living in the apartment right in front of Reagan's. I didn't ask him what he was doing because it didn't look like he was going to tell me anything."

"So, you are saying that he has been in this country all this time?"

She nods, "Or, he might have returned back from Africa a long time ago and didn't come back home for a reason."

If what Amy is saying is true which I completely believe because I trust the woman I love and I dislike the brother I have, then, there's something that Zen is hiding. I just shrug and tell her that maybe Zen will eventually tell us what it is that he's hiding. We walk back to the living room with Shane and Lauren looking at us expectantly.

"What's going on?" I ask Shane.

"Shane says that he thinks he might have seen Zen somewhere." Lauren speaks up.

I look at Amy who stares at the both of them, "Where exactly?"

"In Houston…"

I sit down on the couch, "Amy was just telling me that she saw him too."

Shane's eyes look for Amy's, "When was that?"

"Months ago, I used to go to Reagan's to get the hormones replacement pills. I met him once there. He saw me and I saw him but none of us wanted to question the other's presence in Houston so we went our way." She explains.

"That's weird, does that mean he's been in Houston for a while now or he just never went to Africa?" Lauren points out.

"Who knows? I don't really care." I say, placing Amy's arms around me as I snuggle up to her, "Whatever his reasons are, I'm sure he'll find a way to make our parents patronize him as always."

Shane shrugs, "We're going to Houston tomorrow so that we can stake out in front of Reagan's building."

"You guys are going to stalk Reagan?" Amy asks.

"Well yeah!"

"Don't you guys have any other plan that's not illegal?"

"Compare to the first one that Lauren came up with, this is nothing." Shane says.

"What was the first plan?" I ask, enjoying Amy's hand running alongside of my arm.

"She wanted to abduct Reagan, hide her in a basement, and starve her until she spills everything she's hiding."

I roll my eyes while Amy just shake her head in disbelief, "You have some serious issues Shorty."

"What? It seems a lot more effective to find out truths than doing a simple stake-out." Lauren defends.

"Whatever," Amy rolls her eyes, "but this got to be one of the weirdest coincidence though."

"Why do you say that princess?"

"Because, Lady Belle, I saw your friend Sam going to the apartment building too." She says.

I jump up from her embrace, "What? When?"

"Back when Shane and Lauren went to talk with Reagan."

Shane finishes drinking his water, "Well, it is a bit weird that all three of them are somehow tenants in the same apartment building. I wonder if they know each other."

We all look at each other, and then we shake our heads, "Nah! That'd be too weird."

Stake out

Shane:

So yeah! I am with Lauren right in the parking lot of the apartment building where we hope we catch something that may give us a lead. I am not really good with this whole investigation thing; I'm better at playing matchmaker. Proof one; I'm kind of the reason why Amy and Karma recognized their feelings for each other and they are a match made in Heaven. Proof two, if Amy had actually gone through with hooking up with Shay, then they would have been a match made in Heaven too. I don't know; I don't even try. It's a gift, what can I say?

So we've been here for hours (since dawn actually) and still we see nothing incriminating. Well, we haven't seen anything at all because Regan is either not in her apartment and hasn't come back from wherever she was last night or she is just in her apartment sleeping until two in the afternoon. I'm starting to lose serious hope and because I am hungry as fuck. Although we packed some lunch, I just don't eat greasy food – I simply refuse. Oh I hate this! My stomach is growling so much for half an hour now. Are they ever going to come out or what? I am waiting over here. I look over at Shorty who is long passed out and snoring loudly. How could she? This is supposed to be a stake-out and she has the nerve to let me suffer through this alone. Hell no! That's not happening. I take one of the bottles of water from the igloo, ice cold, and then I throw it all over her head.

"Wake up buttercup!" I grin, "Wake up buttercup!"

"Shane you motherfucking bastard!" she yells and takes the bottle of water away from me then knocks it over my head.

I couldn't keep myself from laughing, "Hey! I am sorry." She keeps on hitting me, "I'm sorry."

"What the fuck did you do that for?" she barks at me, "Gosh! I fucking hate you sometimes."

"Hey, you're the one who decided to let me suffer here alone." I scoff.

She rolls her eyes, "Shane, really? You couldn't have just waked me up like a normal person?"

"Now where's the fun in that?" I shrug, "Beside I am bored and I am hungry." I whine.

"There's food in the back." She says.

"You know I can't eat greasy food. I hate greasy food. Why would you even ask me to eat greasy food?" I nudge her.

"Stop pushing me! I get it! Do you want to go get something in the nearby restaurant?"

"We can't leave stake-out, what if we miss something?"

"Shane, I'll go and buy you something and you can stay here and continue on spying." She leans forwards to grab her purse.

I grin, "Thank you Shorty! Alright I'll do that."

Before she gets out of the car, she pulls on her hoodie over her head. I look at her walking away before making a left to turn around the corner and I lose sight of her. I focus my attention back to the front building of the apartment and there were still no signs of life at all. Does that girl forever live inside her house? Doesn't she go out ever? It's a fucking Saturday. I don't know but if I was nineteen year old college student, there's no way I'd be home on Saturday morning.

Half an hour later, there is no sign of Lauren anywhere. I am thinking that maybe there is a long line at the restaurant and that's why she is taking so long. Then, two hours go by and that's when I know that it is weird for a line at a restaurant to be that long. A few more half hours later, I got worried to the point that I dialed her number for about fifty times and she didn't answer any of my calls or replied to any of my texts. I have to go look for Lauren, so I get out of the car. And as soon as I stepped out, I felt a massive hit in the back of my head and then everything just went black.

Two days later

I take one last look at her because who knows, I may never see her again. I am glad that I had the chance to tell her how I feel before I go through my impending doom. I love her and that's what I whisper to her before I turn on the engine and drive off to the possible end of my days on earth.