60 Blacktop Obsession
"Shayde, you in here? What is up with this lock? Are you serious right now?" Kaidyn shook her head as she tried to open the door to Shayde's room. "This house is…" she started as Shayde opened the door and came out.
"Hey Lil One. Let's go tour the house and see what you want to add to it. I got my IPad ready to go." Shayde interrupted her and put an arm around her and steered her away from her room.
"What happened to your hand?" Kaidyn asked, looking suspiciously at the bandages on her knuckles.
"I had a bit of a temper tantrum. The decorator that did this place really let me down." Shayde said nonchalantly.
"I'll say. This house is creepy. They could have done all black and made it goth as hell and it would still have been less creepy than all this white, beige and gray old man looking stuff." Kaidyn shook her head.
"Moving on, let's go to the boy's room and you can add whatever you want to add." Shayde tried to quickly change the subject.
"Shouldn't they pick out their stuff? Do they get to order stuff?" Kaiydn asked, looking around.
"Yes, they are working with Hector on it. They can order anything they need or want." Shayde assured her.
"Good because they will need stuff too. I just don't want it to be only me." Kaidyn said, chewing on her lip, her cheeks flushed a bit.
"Oh trust me, we are all getting stuff. It's the least that can be done." Shayde purred with a smile as she looked into a camera, her eyes twinkling with mischief.
"Well, I have no suggestions other than to scratch it all and restart. This really is terrible. I get three ovens in the kitchen because you like to cook and two huge fridges but why three living rooms?" Kaidyn asked, looking confused.
"Well, one's to sit and one's to watch tv." Shayde reasoned.
"Isn't that for the theatre room though?" Kaidyn asked, looking very confused.
"Maybe we will turn that sitting room into your classroom. If you keep complaining, Missy." Shayde warned, worried Kaidyn's mouth was going to make Carter come unglued.
"I am not doing school. There's no point." Kaidyn said quietly, making Shayde stop and look at her.
"WHAT?" Shayde asked, raising an eyebrow. She sighed and folded her arms.
"I don't see the point in it. It's just busy work." Kaidyn shrugged.
"Ah, I get it. You are bored with the homework and need harder stuff. Don't worry, we can take it up a notch. I will talk to Han about this." Shayde promised.
"What? No! That wasn't how this was supposed to go." Kaidyn grumbled.
"Well, what did you really expect? Oh, you don't have to worry about finishing school? Yeah, no, not happening. You will finish if I have to chain you to a desk." Shayde promised.
"Oh, funny. Chain me to the desk. In this day and age? Funny. We do not live in the dark ages anymore." Kaidyn scoffed.
"Chains still very much exist." Shayde countered.
"No, they don't. Seriously." Kaidyn rolled her eyes at how ridiculous Shayde was being now.
"Let me put it this way, you don't finish, you don't drive." Shadye warned in a low tone. "We can worry about that once we get settled." She dismissed the subject.
"We are not settling here. It will be like all the other places, we will move after a bit and have to leave everything behind. I don't see why we need to order stuff for here because this is not really our home." Kaidyn sighed, sitting down on the stiff white couch.
"You feeling okay?" Shayde asked, feeling her forehead. She was starting to worry if Kaidyn was feeling okay because she wasn't acting like her normal self.
"Yes, I am fine. No worries." Kaidyn promised, shaking her head.
"I don't think you are but I will let it go for now. We gotta get our order in and get it started shipping and I know you love to shop so let's look around and see what we can find." Shayde suggested.
"I know one thing I wish we could order." Kaidyn said, looking lost in thought as Shayde ran her hand through her hair.
"What's that?" Shayde asked.
"Well, you know how I hate bathing suits? I was swimming last night and it was hard to not get weighed down with clothes. Do they make just swim things that are not like bathing suits like shorts and a shirt?" Kaidyn asked, not finding the words she wanted to use right away due to her headache.
"Yeah, they do. They even have long sleeve shirts if you want those." Shayde promised.
"Yeah, I need to figure out something. I can't swim in the pool in normal clothes." Kaidyn grinned.
"We can get you any color, what color do you want?" Shayde asked, looking online as Kaidyn looked over her shoulder.
"Black and white. I'll be like an orca whale." Kaidyn smiled.
"Kaidyn, why would you say that?" Shayde asked, not sure what she meant by that.
"I would be a dolphin but they are gray and we all know I hate wearing gray." Kaidyn explained.
"Yes, this is true. You can get other colors. What do you think this room needs in here?" Shayde asked as she put things in the online cart.
"A huge rainbow rug or something with a splash of color." Kaidyn said, looking at the walls. "This house is so ...I can't explain it, Shay. I think we are not safe here." She looked at Shayde in the eyes, her eyes sparkling from tears ready to fall.
"Look at this big aquatic rug I just found. Wouldn't it go good in here? I bet once we put some personal touches on things in each room it will start to feel more like home and a safe place. I know it's hard for you to adjust to new places, especially ones this big." Shayde said, giving her a hug.
"It's not just that. There's something, I can't explain it." Kaidyn said, starting to get frustrated because she couldn't put things into words, which was common for her after that night.
"It's going to be okay. We are all here and we will be safe." Shayde wrapped her arms around Kaidyn and held her. "Oh, my sweet girl, I wish I could make you feel more at ease." She sighed, feeling bad that Kaidyn was so on edge.
"I am sorry, I can't get the words out. I can't explain it." Kaidyn admitted.
"Its okay. Let's walk around and you tell me anything we need. What do you like about this house?" Shayde asked, trying to change her tactics now.
"I love the skee ball in the game room." Kaidyn smiled. "We need some slot machines in there, but can you get those for a house?" She asked, looking hopeful.
"We can order anything we want. Possibilities are limitless. So let's have some fun. Lets pick out some slot machines." Shayde grinned, happy to see her interest in something.
"We can get more than one?" Kaidyn asked, looking excited.
"Yes, we can. I bet we can find some with fish and animals. What made you want a slot machine?" She asked out of curiosity.
"I watched it on youtube. It looks fun. I want to go to Vegas one day. Attend a wedding and party all night in a limo. You know that sort of thing. Do it real big in Vegas in a limo and see all the pretty lights." Kaidyn said, looking like she was daydreaming.
"Wow. I would have never thought that would be your thing. A wedding huh?" Shayde asked, wondering where this was coming from.
"Yes, I would be a great wedding planner. I had to do an assignment for Han for home economics, I think it was and had to pick out things and it was the coolest assignment. I'd do more work if it was stuff like that." Kaidyn admitted.
"Sounds fun. Han probably has more assignments that are fun I am sure." Shayde said, playing with Kaidyn's hair. "You sure you feel okay?" She asked, looking at how distant Kaidyn seemed to be and how red her cheeks were.
"Yes, I am fine." Kaidyn promised.
"If you say so." Shayde said, looking around at what else she could order. She knew they were going to have to switch things up here to get her to like the place and feel more comfortable. It was quite stuffy.
"I miss Dom and Cali." Kaidyn said quietly as they walked down another hallway.
"Yeah, I bet you do. We will see him one day once we get this place looking right. Let's go up to your room and try to see what you want in there." Shayde suggested.
"Can we not? I'd rather not." Kaidyn said, looking unsure at the stairs. "We can just order from down here." Kaidyn nodded, suddenly taking an interest in the IPad and ordering stuff again.
"It's all empty. We are having a bonfire tonight. Very soon. We are redecorating that room so it's a blank slate and you can do as you wish with it." Shayde promised.
"A bonfire sounds fun. What time?" Kaidyn asked, watching Shayde take off the bandages on her knuckles.
"Right about now, Silly girl. Let's go get the marshmallows and things for the s'mores and stuff." Shayde smiled, putting an arm around Kaidyn. They walked into the kitchen.
"You know we can't have a bonfire with clothes and furniture and use it to roast food. It isn't safe." Kaidyn said matter of factly.
"You are so smart. I love ya, Kaidyn." Shayde kissed the top of her head and gathered up the things she was going to take outside.
"Hey Ladies! We were wondering when you'd show up to the party." Hector grinned.
"We're here. Let's get this party started." Shayde grinned, ready to see this all go up in flames.
"Are you sure we should be burning this? This is a lot of money." Kaidyn shook her head as she looked at the pile of stuff.
"Oh, I am very sure." Shayde nodded, folding her arms as Han lit a match to throw on it.
"Glad the sun finally set and it's cooling off." Hector nodded, setting up some chairs.
"I'll be right back." Brian jumped up so suddenly it made Kaidyn jump. He saw a scope pointed at Hector and then watched it move.
"Kaidyn, want to come over here and help me start the fire on the one we are using for food?" Shayde asked, giving Brian a look. He nodded.
"I'm gonna take care of it." He promised and walked out towards the woods, grabbing his phone to make a phone call.
"Where's Brian going? Kaidyn asked, looking at Tej and Roman.
"Kaidyn, will you go with me to get hotdogs and help me carry some stuff out?" Roman asked.
"Sure, whatcha getting?" Kaidyn asked, following him inside.
"Hot dogs. Roasted hot dogs sound so good right now." Roman said as he scoured the kitchen. "I'll race you to see who finds them first. This fridge or that one you're in front of." Roman challenged.
"You're on." Kaidyn nodded, bending over to look for hotdogs.
"Found them. I gotta taste them." Roman opened up the package and started to eat one.
"Eww." Kaidyn wrinkled her nose.
"What? You don't like cold hot dogs?" Roman asked, stopping chewing to look at her.
"The name is literally HOT dog, Roman. They need to be burnt to a crisp over the fire then they are delicious." Kaidyn shook her head.
"You playing. You just wasting food when you get them burnt." Roman shook his head.
"Noooo." Kaidyn disagreed as Brian walked in, his breathing a bit faster than normal from running.
"Everything copacetic, Homie?" Roman asked.
"Yup, all good." Brian nodded.
"Rome, you can take these out there. I was supposed to grab something for Shay." Kaidyn opened the fridge back up.
"Alright. See ya out there." Roman nodded, gathering the three packages of hot dogs in his hands and a cup of ice. Brian took a long gulp of water from his water bottle and watched Kaidyn, who was staring blankly at the fridge.
"You need help finding something?" Brian asked after watching her just pause for a minute. "That fridge is huge, you can get lost in there." He added with a grin.
"Yeah, I'm okay. I can't remember what I was looking for." Kaidyn stood up, holding her head, blood trickling from her nose.
"Let me help you." Brian grabbed a paper towel and dabbed her nose. "Are you feeling okay?" He asked, a look of concern on his face.
"Yes, I'm fine, why does everyone keep asking me that?" Kaidyn asked, looking at the bloody paper towel. She grabbed Brian's arm. "It's hot in here." She admitted, feeling a bit dizzy.
"It's okay, it's just a slight nosebleed. Nothing to worry about if you feel fine otherwise." Brian promised.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Kaidyn said, lying to him, not wanting to draw attention to anything or ruin the plans for the night.
"You know you can talk to me, right?" Brian asked, looking her in the eyes.
"I know, I'm good, it's okay. It's stopped right?" She asked, sounding hopeful.
"Yeah, it has. You know I have to tell Shayde, right?" He asked, knowing it could upset her.
"No, you don't. We're cool if you just ignore it. It's nothing like you said. You would only need to tell her if it was something." Kaidyn folded her arms and looked at her.
"Kaidyn, that's twisting my words." Brian looked shocked.
"Just go with it, it's fine." Kaidyn patted him in the back and walked out. Brian tried to figure out how he was going to talk to Shayde without making Kaidyn upset at him.
"You good?" Tej asked when Kaidyn got outside.
"Yes, I'm fine. Thanks." Kaidyn nodded. She didn't understand why they keep asking if she was okay. Shayde looked at her phone, then at Kaidyn. She saw a drop of blood on her shirt and texted Brian back.
"Rome, I'm sorry you gotta take one for the team." Shayde patted him on the shoulder.
"What?" Roman asked, still chewing a mouthful of food.
"I can't have her not trust Brian, she'll get over it with you quicker. I'm going to say you told me she's not acting right and you were worried and talked to me, k?" Shayde asked quietly.
"So I'm your scapegoat? I'm gonna get the blame?" He asked, looking mortified at Shayde.
"Yes, I'm tossing you under the bus. If you like to eat, you'll just go with it." Shayde warned, her eyes narrowed.
"Okay, Momma Shay, I got you." Roman promised, taking another bite of food. Shayde walked over to Kaidyn and looked at her.
"Remember, you're supposed to tell me when you're not feeling good. Rome told me you're acting a bit off." Shayde said, lifting up Kaidyn's face to look her in the eyes.
"I'm fine. It's nothing." Kaidyn said.
"Nothing? Why are you holding your head and why is there blood on your shirt?" Shayde asked.
"I had a slight nosebleed. I knew he'd tell you." Kaidyn growled, her face becoming red.
"Who told me what? Roman didn't tell me that." Shayde pretended to look confused.
"Brian flipping O'Connor. He freaking told you, I know he did!" Kaidyn accused.
"No, he didn't but he's on my shit list now because he didn't tell me. Thank you for telling on him." Shayde folded her arms.
"He didn't tell you?" Kaidyn asked, looking surprised.
"No. Brian, I need to talk to you inside." Shayde looked sternly at Brian.
"Sure thing." He nodded with a grin. He headed inside.
"Shay, it's my fault. I asked him not to say anything. Please don't yell at him." Kaidyn said quietly.
"Why would you do that, Kaidyn?" Shayde asked, looking not so happy.
"I didn't want to ruin our party. I want to be out here." Kaidyn admitted.
"You still could be put here but you gotta be truthful and upfront with us." Shayde warned.
"I will, I'm sorry." Kaidyn nodded.
"Here, I got some Tylenol." Hector walked over, handing her a pill.
"Thanks." Kaidyn took it and looked at it. "Just Tylenol, right?" She sighed.
"Yes, just Tylenol " he promised. "Why?" He asked.
"I don't want to go to sleep." She shook her head.
"Come sit on my lap and help me finish shopping. I have a deadline of midnight to get everything shipped to be here." Hector requested as Han and Tej worked on the fire.
"I don't want to shop, it's no fun when I can't hold the screen and look at stuff." Kaidyn complained.
"That's why if you sit on my lap, I'll let you click around and shop. Shay, you good with that?" Hector asked, knowing she would be okay as long as he supervised her on the iPad.
"As long as she promises to tell us if her head gets worse or better and picks out stuff she likes, I'm fine with it." Shayde replied, looking at Kaidyn.
"I will. Sheesh." Kaidyn rolled her eyes.
"Kaidyn, don't move but look." Hector nudged her, looking at a white bunny that had popped up by the house.
"Oh, I gotta see if it'll let me pet it." Kaidyn cooed, excited. She loved animals more than anything. She hopped off of Hector's lap and slowly inched towards it. "Come here, lil bunny. I won't hurt you." She promised softly.
The white bunny froze as Kaidyn inched closer to it, her palm extended to it as she moved very slowly.
"Look at our little Cinderella." Hector laughed as they all watched her inch closer.
"Hey, as long as it's not a damn poisonous snake, I'm good." Shayde smiled.
"Sounds like there's a story there." Brian laughed.
"Oh, she's good at bringing animals home. I had a jar of fireflies I had to replace nightly when she was little because she forgot air holes." Han laughed.
"How'd she get a poisonous snake and not get bit?" Brian asked.
"Beats me. She brought it to me one day while I was sleeping. She thought the little rattle was cute. Wasn't fun to wake up to." Shayde sighed, the memory still haunting her. "I don't know how she didn't get bit. But she had 'rescued' it from drowning in a rainstorm." Shayde explained.
"Snakes are scary. Rattlers are usually mean." Brian grinned.
"She's like the Dom of the race scene with any animals. She can keep them calm. Look at how she picked up those crabs." Han grinned.
"I don't mind snakes but a poisonous one in the bed, just waking up was not fun. The spiders, they escaped and that was fun." Shayde laughed.
"Look guys! He's letting me hold it!" Kaidyn looked up, surprised and excited.
"I'll go get some strawberries and carrots for it. Brian, come help me please?" Shayde requested.
"Sure." He nodded.
"Hey Homie, can you grab some slices of cheese?" Roman asked Brian. He gave a nod and a shake of his head as he walked inside, his hands in his hoodie.
"Guess you are used to her feeding animals." Brian tired to make small talk as Shayde sliced the strawberries.
"Yeah." Shayde nodded, her lips pursed.
"Kaidyn's kinda worrying me. She's acting a bit off." Brian said, shifting uncomfortably.
"Yes, I appreciate you letting me know about the nosebleed. I suspect her nose needs to be looked at. Those headaches are getting more frequent." Shayde acknowledged.
"Yeah, she was looking for something and forgot what it was and then she almost started panicking. But she seemed calm after I got her focus off of the blood." Brian noted.
"That's good. I guess you being here isn't all that bad." Shayde said in a rather annoyed voice.
"Gee thanks." Brian said dryly.
"I guess I can forgive you since Carter says we have to work together." Shayde sighed.
"Forgive me? For what?" Brian asked, looking up at her after reading his phone.
"Shooting my husband. He has forgiven you, I, on the other hand, was going to hunt you down and kill you." Shayde shrugged nonchalantly as though it was no big deal.
"Wow. I don't want to die, Shayde. I am sorry, my back was against a wall." Brian looked her in the eyes.
"If you screw our family over, I will gut you. But I guess I can trust you since he trusts you." Shayde said, shaking the knife at him.
"You can trust me." He grinned and held up his hands.
"We shall see, Brian, We shall see. I need to get this food out to her, I guess." Shayde said, putting the strawberries in a baggie.
"Look, he's letting me hold him." Kaidyn smiled at Shayde as she walked back to her to give her the food for the bunny.
"Of course he is. I am not surprised. At least it doesn't have a rattler for a tail." Shadye smiled, handing the food to Kaidyn.
"You're still not over that?" Kaidyn giggled. "I now know what snakes are bad and what snakes are good, I promise." She swore.
"Well, that is good. But this bunny has to stay outside. He's wild." Shayde reminded her as Kaidyn fed the strawberries to it.
"He's still hungry." Kaidyn sounded a bit disappointed, her concern for the bunny evident.
"You can go inside and get the carrots I put on your shelf in the fridge and get him more." Shayde suggested.
"Here, you hold him. He will like you." Kaidyn gently handed the bunny to Shayde. She ran inside.
"Brian, let me see your walkie talkie." Shayde requested, holding her hand out for it expectantly.
"Shayde, I don't think that is wise." Brian shook his head.
"Brian, it is not wise to not listen." Hector warned with a shake of his head. Shayde reached over and grabbed the walkie talkie much to Brian's surprise.
"Listen here, all little guards outside. This bunny is now Bunny Verone. If you think of killing it, I am randomly going to choose a number and come after you all. Do not mess with the family. IF I see any scopes or find a bunny goes missing, we will have some big problems." She warned as she spoke into the walkie talkie. Brian cleared his throat and took the walkie she was now holding out to him to give it back.
"You guys heard the lady of the house. No more fuck ups. Or I will make sure you leave this property." Brian warned, sitting down and opening a Corona.
"Thank you. But please know I will offer my services if you need anyone exiled." Shayde smiled with satisfaction. Her phone rang and she walked away from the group after handing the bunny to Han then headed towards the woods. She heard rustling like footsteps running. "Relax you paranoid wusses." She called out as she answered her phone. "What, Carter?" She asked, not wasting time.
"Don't what me, My Shayde. What is going on with Kaidyn? Why is she acting like she's on medication?" He asked.
"In case you weren't watching, she had a nosebleed and some memory issues earlier. We are just letting her try to relax right now. And yes, I gave her tylenol." Shayde nodded.
"Tylenol?" Carter asked, not sounding like he was impressed.
"Tylenol to her. Tylenol 3, Carter. Are you going to judge everything I do?" She asked, looking into the trees as she talked.
"No, I was just wondering. Her eyes look glossy and she's a bit slower than she was." Carter explained.
"Yes, that is what meds do. IN case you didn't notice, she has a brain injury and her being so light weight, meds affect her quicker than the normal person." Shayde chided in a sarcastic tone.
"I guess." Carter sighed. "I don't want her to rely on so much medication." Carter noted.
"Carter, take it up with the people who shot her, Carter." Shayde said with an annoyed tone.
"Can she complain anymore about the house?" Carter asked, changing the subject.
"Like father, like daughter. I see where she gets it from." Shayde muttered.
"Funny, My Shayde, funny." Carter quipped. "I am serious, she has not stopped complaining about this house." Carter grumbled.
"Honey, have you slept? You sound so tired." Shayde pointed out to him.
"I am fine. I have not slept well at all." He admitted. "Why would she say this house is scary and why does she feel so put off by it?" He asked.
"Do you enjoy watching all day?" Shayde asked, feeling angered he was watching them all day. She was so bothered by it but had to remind herself to focus on the endgame.
"Yes, actually I do. Why are you avoiding my question, My Shayde?" Carter asked, taking a drink of his whiskey his flight attendant had just poured for him.
"I am not avoiding you. You need some sleep, Carter." Shayde advised.
"I am fine. I am just not sure how she sees this house as being so terrible. She sounds like a bit of a spoiled…" He started.
"GO ahead and finish that and see what happens." Shayde warned, her teeth gritted.
"I won't but you get my point." He said. "Not saying she is but she sounds like it." He corrected.
"Fine, here's your fucking answer. She does that because we have been on the run, never having a place to call home or have stuff takes its toll on you. She can't let herself like this place or any place because we have to leave it and our stuff behind. She's at the point, she does not want to like stuff. If she hates it, it's easier to leave it." Shayde explained. "We live like freaking fugitives, Carter. We can't take anything and always have a bag packed and ready to run. Not a fun way to grow up for her." Shayde growled protectively.
"Well, you won't have to run anymore. But did she really need thirty thousand dollars worth of stuff being ordered?" He asked in an annoyed tone.
"That was stuff for the house, to replace her room, clothes for the guys, they brought nothing and furniture for her room. I let her pick out stuff she liked for the house so she can get comfortable here and try to like it." She explained, wondering why he had a problem with 30 thousand but not 750 thousand on weapons alone.
"I guess that makes sense. I guess I do need sleep. That damn bunny better not go in the house." Carter warned.
"Carter, Bunny Verone better not die." Shayde countered, making Carter laugh.
"Yes, I agree with you on that." Carter nodded. "I am glad you are going to give Brian a chance and be nicer to him. I would prefer to keep him, as he knows how to do the job." Carter warned.
"Yeah, yeah. I will try to be nice to him even though he shot you." Shayde rolled her eyes.
"If I can get past it, you can too. He had no choice." Carter reminded her.
"You sound just like him." Shayde pouted.
"Shayde, whatcha doing?" Kaidyn asked, coming up to her and grabbing her hand.
"I am on the phone with the shipping company. They are going to make sure the stuff we ordered will be here as quickly as possible." Shayde smiled at her, making Carter groan in irritation.
"I can't wait to decorate. I think I will enjoy things more once we get some color in there." Kaidyn nodded, looking a bit drowsy.
"You should go pick out some more stuff. I think we need to order some more things." Shayde encouraged.
"Really? I am ready to look some more now that the bunny left." Kaidyn promised.
"Okay, good. Go see Hector and he will help you and I'll be right over." Shayde promised. Kaidyn skipped over to Hector.
"Really, Shayde? More money on stuff?" Carter asked, sounding very annoyed now with a sigh.
"How about next time instead of staring at me sleeping, you can hold me and sleep. Because you are very cranky without sleep, Mr. Verone." Shayde shot back, making him do a double take.
"You are right. I do need some sleep. I am on a flight out of the country. I am glad she seems excited to try to get some things for this house. Maybe that is progress?" He asked as he yawned.
"Yes, it is for her." Shayde nodded.
"I would consider it more progress if she wasn't drugged but I guess I will take it." Carter admitted.
"It's Tylenol 3, a medication, it's not drugs. It's barely a step above Tylenol, Carter." Shayde reprimanded him.
"Order whatever she wants and send me the orders by midnight. Tonight, I need you to take both Brian and Han with you and only one truck down to the beach." He requested.
"There's no way to load all I ordered on one truck, Carter." Shayde shook her head.
"Just trust me?" He asked with a grin.
"Okay, but if I waste gas and have to order more for many trips back and forth, don't blame me." She sighed.
"That's my girl. I will never blame you for anything, My Shayde." He promised.