Chapter 81

Back in Las Vegas, it the other penthouse…

Stand By

Ryan POV

It's quiet in the room and the only sound is the tv. Reynolds went to bed an hour or so ago and Luke is still asleep. It's been a lot quieter with Luke subdued by medications as well as his injuries.

I'm relaxing with a beer, not really watching anything, just kind of flipping channels. As I'm scanning the channels I come across one of my favorite movies, JAWS. I know it sounds corny but it's a pioneer in psychological horror movies. I know the special effects are terrible but you have to remember, it came out in 1975 and all this CGI shit didn't exist. Not to mention there aren't many times you actually see the shark. That's because 'Bruce' the mechanical shark didn't want to work most of the time. I think it added to the tension because if you think about it, you don't know where a shark is underneath the waves of the ocean. It's not like you get a warning when a shark is coming. Like when someone changes personalities or moods without warning.

Kind of like Luke. I'm still shocked by his actions. The Luke I know, who is always protective of females and making sure they don't get hurt, totally lost it and turned almost into a stalker while freaking Rhiann out in the process. He was out of control and nothing we said or did got through to him. It's like he was a completely different person, sort of like Jekyll and Hyde.

Not to mention how quickly Rhiann's mood changed right before she punched Luke. The moment she saw Luke her mood changed from happy and carefree to rage in almost an instant. Then she quickly transferred that rage onto Reynolds and me for not doing anything. To be honest, and I'm pretty sure I can speak for Reynolds, it happened so fast that we were stunned by the whole situation. The tension from Luke stalking her, her hitting him and snapping at us was almost too much to comprehend at that moment.

I've been mulling it around in my mind ever since the whole thing took place and the more I think about it, I'm positive there is something about Rhiann that's not right. I don't know what exactly but no normal person should be able to do that. Using my education and everything I've learned on the job I've been able to read people really well. While she may appear happy and fun and all that there's something lurking underneath that's being hidden. I don't know what but it's just a feeling I have. If I had the chance to talk to her personally and see her up close I'd have a better chance of confirming my suspicions.

I can guarantee, between the two of them, they would battle like cats and dogs. I can tell just by the way she acts that she would do things just to antagonize him. While he, on the other hand, would try to control her under the guise of keeping her safe. Kind of like what Kate does to Grey.

I really hope the two of them can avoid each other because I have a sinking feeling that there's going to be another altercation between the two at some point. I only hope that it's not as bad as this one was.

Ping

"Fuck, what now?" I say out loud to myself.

Picking up my phone I see there's a notification from Instagram. I sigh and open it to see new photos of Rhiann and her guy friend. They actually look happy and totally oblivious to the fact that they are having their picture taken by complete strangers. If it were me I'd be pissed. I enjoy my anonymity. They seem to handle it well, though. Maybe it's because they seem to live in the moment. It's pretty obvious there's something special happening between the two of them.

Seeing her with the cast and sling really bothers me. She never should have gotten hurt and definitely not caused by Luke. We should have done more to protect her but, in our defense, we had no idea he would snap the way he has.

He's a good guy and is normally on top of things when it comes to his job, which makes this whole situation so troublesome. I don't understand where it went wrong and what caused him to snap. His jealousy of the guy she's been seen with tipped him over the edge and he started sounding like one of those guys in a Lifetime movie. 'If I can't have her, no one can.' Which is crazy in itself because he's never wanted a relationship. He's always been the 'fuck 'em and leave 'em' kind of guy.

There's too many questions and so far no answers to go along with them. Hopefully, when T gets here, he can find out some of those answers. I really hope he makes Luke meet with Flynn because he needs some serious help.

In the meantime, Reynolds and I are taking turns babysitting his dumb ass to make sure he doesn't sneak out and cause more harm. I will say this though, Luke has been pretty good about taking his meds on schedule. Another bonus is they knock him out because he's caused enough problems. After seeing the newest images of Rhiann on the internet there's no telling what he'll do.

Right now it's a waiting game. Waiting for T to get here. Waiting to see what Luke is going to do. Waiting to see what happens with Rhiann. Waiting to see what happens when the girls return to Seattle. Waiting to see what is in store for Grey when Ana sees him.

I hope I get a good tip after all this waiting.