Kit: Hello, all my faithful readers! I hope you enjoy the newest installment to this story!
Tala: And, don't forget to send in more guesses for the initials!
And, moving on...
Answers to Reviewers:
xoOBlackDragonOox: You were the only one who thought outside the box with my question. I was actually surprised with your guess. Well, I'm sorry to inform you that it in fact is not Carmen, nor Catwoman and Wolf, but I congratulate you on the fact that you thought outside the box and didn't think that those stood for Cat & Woman. Keep up the good work and work those brain cells!
Odango Forever: No, I'm sorry but it isn't Cat Woman. Thanks for the compliments on the song and the chapter. I hope you like this one, too! Don't worry, I'll offer up more hints for the initials and you can try to guess them again.
Heartless Pheniox: No, it wasn't standing for Cat & Woman. Don't feel bad, most people thought that was what it stood for, so you aren't alone in your way of thinking. Thanks for the compliment on the song. I hope you like this chapter!
Ok, here's some stuff for the initials you are going to want to read:
Why would Rayne have written it herself and signed it Cat & Woman when she knew Kai knew who Catwoman was? Also, why would she refer to herself in third person? (Go back to the letter in Chapter 11 and take a look.)
Hint: Think about the basic genre of music that Rayne sticks to playing. Once you think you know that, think about real people in that genre. And, the initials are last names, just to let you know. (Think singers that may not be alive any more. I'm not saying they aren't alive or that they are, just take your chances.)
Helpful Reminder: Remember, I could throw in hints anywhere in the next few chapters until someone finally guesses it! From what genre of song I choose for Rayne to play, to what I let my characters say...YOU MUST PAY ATTENTION! I'm kind enough to throw in a little helpful hint here and there in the story...But, I'm also mean enough to do so without telling you.
Disclaimer: I do NOT own the characters in this story, except for the ones I created. Nor do I own Pickin' Wildflowers by Keith Anderson.
Rayne sighed as she looked up at the ceiling of her room. Her new house was built in California, a huge mansion that she and her band had paid for. Her room was huge; the walls painted black and her bed had red silk sheets on it. The drapes on the windows were also red. Her bed had a black mesh canopy hanging over it, and the canopy draped itself around the bed and could be closed for some amount of privacy. Her room was decorated with different posters; posters of all of her favorite bands, not to mention posters of her own band.
"Hey, Rayne, can I come in?" came Cal's voice from the other side of her closed door.
Rayne shook her head, knowing he couldn't see her, " Cal, can't you read the sign on the door? I don't feel like talking…"she yelled her answer. The sign she was talking about was always on the door when she was feeling either ill or lonely. It was one of her favorite, and it read: 'Trespassers will be shot on sight…Survivors will be shot again…'
The knob of the door jiggled and Cal gave up when he realized she had locked it. She heard his footsteps going down the hall and then two pairs of feet coming back. The knob jiggled once more and then the door was gently pushed open. Rayne sat up, looking at Cal and Darien as they entered the room, "How'd you get the door open?" she asked.
Cal smiled sheepishly and held up a misshapen hair pin, "We kinda used one of Taryn's hairpins…I hope she doesn't mind…"
Rayne smirked, "Knowing your luck, that was her favorite hairpin and you both just signed your death certificates…"
Darien sighed, "I know…But it was all his idea, I swear!" he pointed an accusing finger at Cal, who feigned horror.
"You're a disloyal friend! You swore you wouldn't sell me out!" he declared melodramatically, placing the back of his hand on his forehead and mock-fainting.
Rayne rolled her eyes, "Really, you two…Why are you in here? I locked the door for a reason."
Darien grinned at her, "Girl, it's bad for you to be locked up in here all the time. You got that, 'I'm-dead-and-haven't-been-in-contact-with-the-sun-in-forever' tan going on. You need to get out more!"
She rolled her eyes, "I've got that Insta-tan stuff. I don't need to go outside." She complained.
Cal rolled his eyes, "That's not what we mean. What we're saying is that you should quit moping and enjoy life as much as possible. Life's too short to just sit there and stare at the ceiling."
She sighed, pushing herself into a sitting position, "What you're saying is that you want to practice for the next concert in Texas outside? Am I right?" she inquired with a grin.
Darien sighed, "Darnit, we were hoping you wouldn't figure it out…"
"And, if I say no, you're both going to pick me up and drag me out there, even if I'm kicking and screaming, right?" she asked again, a smirk coming to her face.
Cal grinned at her, "Yeah, pretty much…" and they were all thrown into fits of laughter.
Meanwhile...
When Chris and Kai finally reached their destination, a pretty young girl, with long red hair and bright green eyes, stood outside. She wore a white t-shirt under faded overalls. Her rather large stomach, proof enough that she was pregnant, showed through the overalls.
As soon as they got into the driveway and got the pickup turned off, Chris practically galloped out of the cab and raced to his wife. He enveloped her in a huge bear hug, and would've swung her around had it not been for her current condition.
Kai greeted her with a mild grin, "Sherri you're looking...big," he said with a laugh as they hugged, "correction, huge!"
She forced a grin, "So you said...Moving on." she stated through gritted teeth.
They all filed into the large farm house, Sherri leading Kai up to his room while Chris tried to haul his luggage up the stairs. Kai's room was a simple and drab guest room. The bed was in the far end of the room, with plain white blankets covering it. The pillows were an off-white color, set elegantly leaning against the head board. A TV, small but large enough for the picture to be seen clearly from the bed on the other side of the room, sat on a small stand.
Sherri smiled at it appreciatively, "It may not be much, but you can fix it to fit your liking after you get settled."
Kai smiled at them thankfully, "Thanks, you guys. I'm really gonna owe you one after this."
Chris grinned at him, "You bet yer bonnet you will. Well, we'll leave ya to yer unpackin', then." Chris and Sherri disappeared down the stairs.
Once Kai had finished his unpacking, he turned on the television. Not to his surprise, it was on the Country Music channel. Evidently, said channel was having a few hours worth of music videos playing and the first one on just as he turned it on caught his attention. At the bottom of the screen was the artist and other such things in this order:
Rayne Frost
Pickin' Wildflowers
Broken Hearts Don't Dance
Calypso Records
((Ok, to explain that points to the previously read section Ok, it goes like this: Name of artist, name of song, name of album, name of record label. Just thought I'd clear that up for all of you in case you go confused.))
He watched the video with mild fascination, enjoying the song as well as the video. It wasn't a story video, just a video.
It started out with someone playing something along the lines of a banjo, and then it cut into the real music of the song. Then, there was Rayne, standing at the microphone like it was the only thing there, a huge grin on her face and her guitar in hand. She strummed it for the beginning of the song, and then the rest of the band joined in. It then switched to the people dancing, and he saw Rayne again. It must have been for the video, because Rayne was dancing with someone. He was twirling her around and they were performing some rather hard-looking dance steps…Then it skipped back to her playing the guitar.
"Hey baby, what you doin' this evenin'?
Can ya meet me down at the railroad tracks?
I got Tom Petty playin' in my Silverado
And I iced-down a six pack, uh-huh…"
(It switched back to her dancing, with the same boy. He looked like one of the ones in her band, but he couldn't remember which one he was…They sure were dancing awful close together…)
"Hey baby, don't you worry 'bout your momma
Like 007, we can keep it covert
Undercover, on the ground by the water
Gonna get a little peace on earth…
I say, baby, what'cha say we go pickin' wildflowers
Got a spot way back in the woods
We'll sneak away for a couple of hours
You and me baby, pickin' wildflowers
Hey baby, Mother Nature is waitin'
And loves blooming like a cherry tree
Let's buzz around, maybe do some pollinatin'…
Yeah, dive in like honey bees!
Baby, what'cha say we go pickin' wildflowers
Got a spot way back in the woods
We'll sneak away for a couple of hours
You and me baby...
Pickin' wildflowers!
Take a trail ride, if you know what I mean…
Hey baby, won't you come with me
What'cha say we go pickin' wild flowers
Got a spot way back in the woods
We'll sneak away for a couple of hours
Spend a little time, pickin' wildflowers
What'cha say we go pickin' wildflowers
Got a spot way back in the woods
Sneak away for a couple of hours
You and me baby, you and me baby
Hey ya, pickin' wildflowers!
What'cha say we go, what'cha say we go
What'cha say we go, what'cha say we go
Pickin' wildflowers ...pickin' wild flowers!"
After the song ended, Kai realized he had felt jealous. Of what, he wasn't sure, but whenever he saw that guy in the music video holding her like that, it just kicked at something in him…It was like running over hot coals; your feet cooled off and then you were stupid enough to go back for more pain.
He looked down at the small piece of paper that had somehow made its way into his luggage. He didn't remember packing a piece of paper of any kind, but when he'd began to unpack, it was right there on the top of his clothes inside his suitcase…Strange thing was, he'd packed the night before the flight and no one but him had opened his suitcase except for him, of that he was sure….
Dear Mr. Hiwatari:
We weren't the least bit surprised when you took the chance to see Rayne again. In fact, we expected you to. It was just a surprise that you found a place to stay so fast…We had no clue that you had a friend here, but that makes our job easier. We know you'll end up trying to figure out who we are, but we've gone through a lot of trouble to make it exceedingly difficult for even the smartest human you can find to trace our 'footprints', if you will…Anyway, we must be on our way…And, I would look at the television now if I were you…
Signed,
C & W.
Kai looked up from the letter in time to see the television flash and something ran across the screen: Rayne Frost Concert, Friday, 13th of October. His eyes widened…'How did they know that was going to be coming across the television at the time that I finished reading the letter!' he thought to himself…
Ok, that was an interesting ending. Oh, as for the kind of dancing they were doing that was making Kai so jealous, I know you're all going to want to see it, so here's a way to see the video:
1. Go to cmt (dot) com.
2. Look just above the navigation bar of the site at the little white box-thingy.
3. Type in these exact words: KEITH ANDERSON
4. When it loads his page, scroll down until you see a section labeled 'Videos'.
5. Click on the one that reads 'Pickin' Wildflowers (full length)'.
6. Let it load, and viola!
Kit: Okies, tell me what you thought about this chapter. I know there wasn't much in it, but there was a major clue in there to the riddle I fixed all of you with! I won't tell you what it is; you'll just have to figure it out for yourself...
Tala: Reminder: READ AND REVIEW!
