Chapter 25

16th September, Friday

10 am

After Nikita said goodbye to her husband she hurried to call Sam. He had left early that morning again. Nikita hadn't even had the chance to talk to him before he was out the door. If he was calling her repeatedly right now it wasn't for anything good.

"Hey, you okay?" She asked concerned.

"Yeah, yeah. I just have a bit of a situation. Michael's car is not starting and I'm kind of stranded" Sam explained.

"What?" That was weird. They hadn't had any problems with Michael's car so far. He took great care of both of their vehicles."Did you run out of gas?" She needed a bit more information to be able to help him.

"Of course not and before you ask no the battery is not dead"

"Did you open the hood? Does anything seem out of the ordinary?"

"Yeah. Everything seems fine to me but this is a newer model so maybe it's something I'm missing"

"Well, we'll have to call for a tow truck then. I probably won't be able to fix it either" Nikita did have some extensive car knowledge but so did Sam. If he couldn't figure out what was wrong with the car she wouldn't be much help.

"Yeah I actually already texted Michael about it. He said he could handle it. I guess I just need you to pick me up then"

Nikita paused. She had just talked to Michael and he didn't say anything about that. Sam said he texted him so maybe he didn't see it while they talked. That could be why he didn't mention it. But when did he manage to respond when he was already on his way to his meeting? Something didn't add up. Nikita had an off feeling. "When did you text him?"

"Just now before you called me. You didn't pick up so I tried him" There was nothing suspicious in the way Sam answered. Maybe she was overthinking it.

"What did he say?"

"He said he knew a guy who could take care of it and that was it. I sent him the address" It sounded like Michael. Short and practical. He definitely wouldn't trust Sam to handle his car properly. She was definitely overthinking it.

"Okay. I'll come pick you up. Send me your location" Nikita wasn't in the mood to drive around but if Sam called her it meant he didn't have other options.

"Thank you. We might be able to fix it together. Your car is a similar model. I'm at the security company. They're a bit out of the city just so you know. Don't worry when I send you the address"

Nikita groaned internally. She was not getting home soon that was for sure. "Okay. I'm on my way"

Shortly after they hung up Nikita received his location. She put the coordinates in the GPS and felt that off feeling again. It was a bit out of the city like he said. What got her curious was that it wasn't showing as anything on the map. He said it was where the security company was so why wasn't it showing up as an actual address?

She called Sam again.

"Yeah?"

"Are you sure your location is correct?"

"Yes. It's a bit weird I know. It won't show up as anything. Half the area is still a construction site" Sam was quick to elaborate so that relaxed Nikita a bit. Maybe Michael's worry rubbed off on her. She should just get going so she can get home faster. "Okay, got it"

It was about a 40-minute drive which Nikita regretted halfway into it. It was in the opposite direction of home, meaning the drive back would be about an hour. She didn't feel like she could do it. The exhaustion was creeping up on her. She should've just called the tow truck herself and handled it. The workers could have dropped off Sam in the city and he could have taken a cab home. Nikita was already halfway there so there was no point in turning around. She could just make Sam drive on the way back. She didn't think they would be able to do anything with Michael's car and honestly, she wasn't even going to try. It would most likely be a waste of time. She also definitely needed to cancel lunch with Sonya. She wouldn't make it for 12:30. She had to call her on her way back. The only thing she was going to be doing today was sleep.

She pulled up to the location and something wasn't right again. It was like Sam had described it - a construction site with a few already finished buildings at the back of the lot. It seemed an odd place to have office buildings. Most wanted to be close to the city. Nikita shrugged it off and continued driving. She soon found Sam. He was leaning on Michael's car, waiting. He spotted her and waved.

Nikita parked a few meters in front of him and waited for him to get in. Sam didn't make a move though "Come on" She didn't understand what he was waiting for. There was nothing they could do with Michael's car. He had already told Michael about it so they should leave it to him.

"I think we should have a look together and try to start it. It's not really safe to leave it here. Michael will kill me probably if something happens" Sam called out.

"I'm really not up for this right now. If you told him then he's got it. Let's go home" Nikita's head was starting to pound more and more with each minute. She had to get some sleep soon otherwise even her medication won't save her from the nausea.

"Well I didn't want to tell him but I didn't know if you would answer me. He's at work so it will be ages until he can get his car back. Help me out. Your husband hates me enough already" Sam was weirdly persistent about this. Who cared? It was a car. There was nobody around so it was going to be fine to leave it there for a few hours. Michael wasn't going to be that bothered.

"He doesn't hate you and it could have happened to him as well. You just happened to be the one driving the car today. You've tried everything I would try so I don't see what more there is to do" Nikita was too exhausted to be arguing this any longer.

"I just want to try something. Open the hood of your car. I won't take too long I promise" Nikita sighed but complied. "I give you 5 minutes" She pulled the lever next to her seat to open the hood for him. She didn't trust herself to get out with how lightheaded she was feeling because of this damn headache.

Sam spent a few moments there looking at something then moved back to Michael's car. "What happened?" Nikita asked.

"I think my assumption is correct" That was all he answered before getting into Michael's car.

Nikita closed her eyes, desperately trying to ease this throbbing pain. It was eerily quiet. She definitely welcomed the peacefulness but something started to feel off again. Why was it so quiet? Wasn't it a construction site? There was absolutely no one around besides them. No construction workers and it was the middle of the day. The building they were parked next to was finished yet there was nobody there. It seemed vacant. She didn't know what to make of that.

"Sam?"

"Yeah, I just need a minute"

"Not about that. Why is there no one here?"

Sam poked his head out the driver's side of the car across from her. The look on his face. She couldn't read it but she knew she didn't like it. His smile had fallen and he just looked…empty…exhausted? He quickly masked it and forced a smile.

"It's lunchtime. There is a fast food place nearby and everybody goes there" He was quick to answer.

Nikita nodded and decided that she was not going to ask anything about this place anymore. She might not be able to read him but she could see right through that lie. For a week he had told her that he was going to this supposed security firm, trying to see if he liked it. He was gone almost all day. What was he doing during all that time? He was sure as hell not spending it here. She knew that for certain. Was her family right? Had he gotten himself into something?

"I need your help" Sam asked as he got out of Michael's car. "I can't open the hood for some reason. I did it earlier but I can't remember what I did exactly. I tried all sorts of levers and buttons to open it"

"Let's leave it and go home. I'm not feeling well" She tried to keep her voice as collected as possible. A part of her wanted to demand the truth from him. She had always supported him and tried to help him in any way she could. She deserved honesty from him. She wasn't going to ignore this. As soon as they got home and she had more control over her body, Sam would be forced to sit down and answer all her questions.

"I'm sorry to hear that. I know how to fix the car. I just need you to show me how to open the hood. That way we can take Michael's car and he won't have to deal with it. He wouldn't want to especially if you're not feeling well." He moved closer and closer to her car which was only indicating that he wouldn't drop this.

Nikita didn't like it and her gut feeling was telling her to get out of there. Without even realising it she was reaching down with her hand to get her knife and tucked it into the pocket of her leggings. She had thrown on a big oversized sweater so that would conceal it. Nikita didn't know exactly what she was planning on doing with it. She was acting on pure instinct.

In just a few moments Sam was opening her car door and gesturing her to get out. "Please. It will take a minute or two. No more."

Nikita nodded and got out of the car. They walked over to Michael's car and Nikita got into the passenger seat. "This one should be for the hood" She pointed to a button near the pedals.

"Press it and we'll see"

Nikita reached down and pushed the button. She heard the click of the hood unlocking which meant she was right. "Go see-" Before she could finish her sentence or fully straighten up she felt an all too familiar sting of a needle piercing her skin and everything went black.

Thank you so much for reading! x