Poolside at the Bellagio

Rhi POV

We walk out the doors to the pool and there's no one there. It looks like the earlier you go to the pool for a swim the better it is because no one is in it until the afternoon. I like the quiet. It's relaxing and that's what I want right now. There's been so much that's happened the past 24 hours that I can't wrap my head around it yet. I've loved having Alex with me. He's so sweet and sexy but I'm also here on vacation and the girls and I came to be together and have fun and decompress. I need to have this time to recharge myself so I can move forward. That was the whole plan. I want Alex to be a part of that, but I don't know if I can let him that far into my bubble. It's taken me a long time to get to where I am right now and if I didn't have Kate and Ana I'd have to be locked up somewhere. I'm so glad that my life is pretty much sealed off and no one can access any information. There's a lot of stuff I need to get past, and my therapist and Ana and Kate are really doing a great job with helping me. I love them so much.

I'm lost in my thoughts when I hear Kate say, "Hey Rhi, let's find our cabana. It's big, with lots of seating, though we only need three places." Ana giggles when she says that because it's pretty silly with three people reserving a huge cabana.

We've reserved the chairman's cabana and I swear it's like being in our own little island paradise. Personally, I'm looking forward to the private jacuzzi. I need to relax as much as possible and that's been limited since we got here. The purpose of this trip is to relax completely and so far there's been more tension that I anticipated.

"If we go into a cabana I think we have waiters that come to us. You said you wanted to drink and swim first right?" Kate says, more of a statement than a question.

We make our way over to the cabana and as we are getting settled, a waiter comes over to us and takes our drink order. Kate and Ana order a Screwdriver and a Fuzzy Navel, their version of juice.

"I'm going to start with breakfast, a Bloody Mary. It's got all the nutrition I need and a little bit of booze as a bonus." I tell the waiter and laugh.

Getting up, I walk over to the water and dip my foot in. The water is bath warm and I think the pool is heated but I'm not positive. However, it is also 93 degrees outside and I'm waiting for Kate and Ana to complain but they haven't yet.

Stepping down into the water I slowly walk toward the deeper water when I hear my phone go off indicating I received a text. Sighing, I turn back and pick it up to see who it's from. It's from Alex.

A: Hey baby, I'm just thinking about you. I hope you're enjoying the pool and relaxing as much as you can. I miss you already.

Smiling, I take a 360-degree photo of the pool area and our cabana and send it to him with the caption "No one's here. It's perfect."

R: I'm getting in the water. I'll text you when we're done.

Ignoring his pet name, I decide to turn my phone off and put it down. I take a deep breath and sigh. How can I recharge if I'm distracted by outside forces? The answer is, I can't. I need to disconnect in order to do that.

Going back toward the water I step into the shallow end and it feels like I'm walking on the beach in the ocean; The water is aqua in color and is clear and refreshing. I'm not usually into swimming but for some reason it feels like the water is calling to me. I follow along the edge of the pool and eventually find the deep end. It's like a lagoon with lush greenery and flowers surrounding a rounded end. It's definitely private and a perfect place to relax in silence. There are steps on the side along with a ladder to get in and out. No diving signs are everywhere. I roll my eyes, I mean really? How dumb do you have to be to dive into water that's only 6 ft deep? Maybe for drunk people or kids I can see it. I shake my head and turn to sit on the stairs, lean back, close my eyes and lift my face into the sun.

Laying there listening to the water lap at the sides of the pool, my body is slowly releasing the tension that's lingered far too long. My mind is slowly presenting a welcoming muffled buzz in my head. The peaceful silence is interrupted by a deep voice. "Good morning. How's the water?"

It's pleasant enough but unwanted at this point in time. I mean, if someone is obviously hidden away from people and relaxing quietly, enjoying the sun and silence, why the fuck would someone feel it's ok to interrupt that?

Without opening my eyes, I respond "It's nice and refreshing. Perfect for this time of day, and it's nice and quiet, with no one to bother you while you're relaxing. That's what I'm doing. Relaxing, I'm not here to talk. Thank you, but please don't bother me."

There's a brief silence when the owner of the deep voice responds, "Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to disturb you. Have a good day."

There's something strangely familiar with that voice but I can't place my finger on it. Turning my head slightly, I open my eyes and see a large figure standing on the edge of the pool looking at me. To say I'm startled is an understatement. My mind starts racing, my heartbeat increasing at a frantic rate, almost to a point of matching the speed of my thoughts. It's rhythm becoming erratic and booming so much that I fear it will burst out of my chest. My eyes widen as I recognize the shadow and it's a good thing that I have my sunglasses on because they mask my fear. I sit up quickly as panic sets in and rush to be in a more visible part of the pool. I start to swim toward shallow waters and the shadow figure slowly turns and follows me. Relief floods me as Kate and Ana come into view. They are in the cabana laying on chaise lounges drinking their beverages and enjoying the sun, oblivious to my panic. Finding my footing, I half swim and half run through the water toward the cabana. When I look back toward the lagoon, the figure is still standing there silently watching me. It's unnerving.

Rushing to the table where my drink is I grab it and as I'm downing it I wave for the waiter to come back. "Yes Miss? How may I help you?" He asks.

"Another Bloody Mary and five shots of Patron please, chilled if you have any. Thank you." The words tumble out of my mouth and I'm thankful they make sense.

As he turns and walks away I hear, "You ok Rhi?" Ana asks. "You came back awfully fast." There's a pause and she sits up suddenly and continues, "What's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Kate and Ana look at each other, then at me. "Hey, Rhi, what's wrong?" Kate whispers, her brows furrowed with concern.

I look toward the lagoon and the figure has disappeared. "Where'd he go?" I mumble to myself. I don't understand. Am I imagining things now? Am I losing touch with reality? What the fuck? I know what I just saw. I know WHO I just saw. My hands are shaking and I'm unable to speak. I look over to Kate and Ana and shake my head so fast that my sunglasses fall off revealing the terror in my eyes.

"What's wrong Rhi? What is it?" Kate gets up and rushes over to me. "Hey," she says gently, touching my shoulder lightly. "Come on let's get you dried off and have a drink or thirty." She winks at me and smiles. "Ana. Grab a towel for Rhi and let's get her dried off."

Ana comes over with a towel and I feel like a child as together they dry me off enough to sit down and not soak the chaise. The hotel has provided robes in the cabana, and they wrap one around me to warm me.

The waiter comes back with the order and sets the drinks on the table. Before he even leaves, I get up and hand a shot to Ana and one to Kate and the other three are for me. I down them quickly, one after the other and down my Bloody Mary. When I look at the waiter, his eyebrows raised in surprise, I request another round. "Rum and Coke please. This one I'll drink a little slower. I promise." I say and smile at him and watch as he nods and walks away.

Taking a deep breath, I walk back to the chaise and sit down, pulling my knees up to my chest and slowly rock back and forth. I'm not sure if I'm cold or in shock but I can feel my body shaking uncontrollably.

Kate and Ana sit next to me, "What's wrong Rhi? What happened? You seemed fine when you went for a swim. That lasted maybe 5 minutes. Come on, talk to us." Kate urges, her voice a little more demanding.

"He was here." I whisper, barely audible. "I saw him, and he spoke, and he was here." I whisper again and continue to ramble. "He was here. He was here. No, it can't be. No, no, no. I can't do this. Not again. Please make him go away. Please. He was supposed to be gone forever." I keep rocking back and forth, looking toward the lagoon where my fear manifested. After a while, my body stiffens and slowly becomes the familiar prison I've felt for the past few years. The prison I've been desperately fighting to escape.

Kate POV

"Whoa. Whoa. Whoa. What do you mean he was here? That's impossible. Are you sure?" I ask confused, trying to make sense of what she just said.

Rhi repeats herself, "He was here, I saw him, I heard him."

I look at Ana as I get up, walking toward the lagoon and look around and no one is there. I begin looking through the trees and bushes and start walking around the entire pool area. The only people I see are… Oh my God! You have got to be kidding me! Fucking Grey's goons!

"Ana, come here please. Hurry." I urgently call to Ana, keeping my eyes on the guys. Fuck. How am I going to explain this to Ana without pissing her off?

"What is it? What's wrong?" Ana asks, rushing up to stand by my side.

Taking a deep breath I start to explain as much as I can. "Do you remember yesterday, after lunch when we almost fell into the street? The guys that grabbed us? They're here. Sitting over there. Watching us." I point across the pool to where the three guys are sitting. "I don't think you recognized them at the time. Ana, it's Sawyer, Ryan and Reynolds. Christian sent them to watch over us to make sure nothing happened to us." I pause, waiting for realization to set in. She looks confused then her face goes blank and quickly morphs into anger, bordering rage.

"What in the mother fuck? What the fuck is wrong with him? How could he do this? If he thinks this is ok he's in for a big shock. This is unbelievable!" She hisses and I'm surprised venom doesn't fly out.

"Ana, one scared the shit out of Rhi and I think she thought it was Jace. My guess is it was Sawyer because he has the same body build. That's him, in the blue shorts and sunglasses. Remember when he grabbed her she lost it? He's freaked the hell out of her. We need to calm her down, then we'll deal with them later. Come on, let's close the cabana curtains and tell the waiter no one is to enter unless it's him. We can still enjoy the pool area because it's secured, and we have a private jacuzzi and everything we need. Let me grab her phone really quick." I turn and walk over to the table where Rhi's phone is and pick it up. I hear Ana grumbling and when I turn back to her she's getting ready to go confront the guys. Fuck.

"Oh my God! What the fuck? If they caused her to set back again I'm going to be fucking pissed and probably have them killed. This is fucking ridiculous!" Ana is livid. "I'll be right back." She starts to walk over to where they are sitting.

"Ana, wait!" I yell and get up and run to catch up with her. "Girl, you can't just go alone to confront them. It's not safe. We'll go together. Hang on." Walking over to Rhi I tell her we'll be right back and to stay there. Turning back to Ana, we start walking around the pool again and reach the men who are sitting there watching us approach, their faces impassive.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing? How dare you approach our friend unannounced and scare the fuck out of her! Why are you here anyway?" Ana pauses then realization sets in. "Wait! You're the reason she's been feeling like she's being watched aren't you? This is Christian's doing isn't it?" Ana demands.

We're standing there waiting for a response and, surprisingly enough, we don't have to wait long. Sawyer responds, "I didn't mean to scare your friend. I was just asking how the water was and she freaked. Yes, Grey sent us and we've been watching you three to make sure you are safe. Yes, we were also the ones who grabbed you, but it was only because your safety was in danger. You could have been hit by a car because you were drinking unsafely. We just happened to be there at the right time. Sorry." The tone of his voice sounds like he's brushing the situation off like it was no big deal.

Ryan speaks up, "Look, were sorry about your friend. We'll leave. We just happened to be at the pool and were trying to get the courage to come say hello and explain yesterday. Obviously, that backfired. Please, let your friend know we didn't mean to scare her." He stands up and gets the other guys to stand up and leave with him.

Ana is still fuming and spits the next words like venom from a snake, "She's more than scared, she's terrified. You fucked up. You caused this! You may have just undone everything we've accomplished. I hope you're fucking happy." The tone of her voice drops and she hisses, "We may not be able to fix things this time. You may have just destroyed her."

Panic sets in briefly and I've got to stop Ana from saying too much so I grab her arm and whisper, "Ana, stop. Don't say any more. They don't need to know anything. We've made our point and they're leaving."

We watch as the three of them leave and Sawyer looks back but not at us, he is looking where Rhi is sitting.

"Come on, we need to head back to the cabana" I say, ready to walk away.

Ana turns around and threatens them, "If you ever come near us again, especially her, we'll call the police. Got it?"

Tugging on Ana's arm I say to her, "Ana, I'm going to call Elliot. He'll know what to do. You go check on her and see how she's doing and if she needs anything. I won't be long." I say and walk away, already dialing Elliot. Fuck, this has turned into a nightmare.