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Amata’s gorgeous turquoise eyes widened, the whites around her irises showing. “Oh my God, Dwayne. Don’t you dare!” She rushed out and slammed the door behind her. “Is she at the office now? Why didn’t you tell me she was looking for me, Jermaine?” She addressed the young nerdy man in the bow tie Claude guessed was her assistant. “I told you over and over to let me know the minute that director goes off the rails.”
“That’s what we’re doing!” Jermaine whipped out his smart phone from a front pocket of his pants and grabbed the stylus from his ear. Tapping on the screen, his mouth dropped. “Oh no. She’s yelling at Cyndie to tell her where you’re at right now!”
Amata gasped, and her face hardened. “Follow me.” She led the group back the way they’d come, with her hands waving in the air as she spoke.
It looked like Claude’s reunion with Amata would have to wait. He turned back to the spot where the hoodie guy had been. The man was gone. His gaze dropped to the ground where a pile of cigarette butts was. He stooped to investigate, taking out a pen and sifting through the assortment. All of them were the same brand, smoked down to the filter. It seemed this wasn’t the first day this guy stood there. Claude walked around to the back side of the RV and found another group of butts, confirming they were all the same brand. What was so interesting here? Claude stepped closer until he noticed something next to the window. It looked like a piece of tape painted white, covering something. He pulled it off, revealing what was hidden underneath.
Holy shit! A perfect peephole. Big enough for someone to put an eye there, which he did. His stomach dropped before it hardened. It was a way to see into the entire bedroom. That asshole spied on Amata doing whatever people did in privacy. Well, he’d put a stop to it right now. Pushing back from the wall, he no sooner took a step back when something heavy hit him on the back of the head.
As he fell, he caught the sight of the jerk in the gray hoodie holding a bloodied pipe in his hand. He blacked out.
“Thanks, guys!”
The night was long and Amata was more than ready to head back to her trailer for some much-needed shut eye. The same group that scared the crap out of her, saying the director of the picture they’d just wrapped up was demanding last-minute changes, walked back with her to her RV.
When they reached her door, she turned to the small group with a huge smile. “I can’t believe you guys got away with surprising me like that.” Her eyes narrowed at her young assistant. “Especially you, you traitor, Jermaine.” Her tone was anything but threatening. “I thought I taught you better than to keep things from me.”
Jermaine’s dark eyes danced. “No, oh, my glorious leader. You expected me to look at things from every angle and then make the best decision. To deceive you on your last day was one of the most exciting things I’ve ever done!”
“Rat.” She gave him a playful nudge.
The skin across his rounded cheeks darkened as he lowered his eyes in an “aw shucks” manner like an embarrassed teenager.
She was proud of her assistant and didn’t regret taking a chance on the unknown man when she hired him for the movie project. “Thanks again, everyone. I’m going to crash now and head out in the morning.” The lure of her luxurious bed called to her.
“You sure driving across country alone is the safest thing to do?” The eldest writer on her team, Melvin, scowled at her. “Why don’t you fly like a normal person?”
Amata shuddered. She hated flying. Just the thought of getting crammed into a small metal box with hundreds of people breathing the same recycled air traveling thousands of feet in the sky in a machine full of flammable fuel made her mouth dry and hands shake as she broke out in a sweat. Not happening. Since there wasn’t a Transkip mirror in sight, she didn’t have any choice but to rely on normal human transportation.
“I promised my niece I’d come and visit her and the new baby.” She’d told everyone Jordyn was her niece and not her adoptive daughter. The supposed age difference would be hard to explain. “But I want some alone time before that. I’ll enjoy five days of doing nothing but seeing the sights across the country.” She gave Melvin and the others a winsome smile. “It’s not the first time I’ve done that, you know.” With a pat on his frail shoulder, she gave him a gentle squeeze for good measure before letting go. “I appreciate the concern, but I’ll be fine.”
“Well—“ He grimaced. ”—if you’re sure.” He shook an arthritis-ridden finger at her. “Be sure to take your phone wid you, missy. If you get stuck somewhere, you call me.”
“I will, Melvin. I promise.”
Not that she’d put the seventy-something man in any kind of position where he’d have to come and get her. But she didn’t doubt he had a ton of resources he could call in at a moment’s notice. Some legal… some, not so much.
A few more hugs and promises to keep in touch before she was free to go into her trailer. Once the door closed behind her, she let out a breath and leaned against the metal surface with a nervous laugh in the dark room. As an introvert, staying in a crowded room for any length of time wore her out.
“Have fun?”
She froze at the sound of a mechanized voice from someone sitting in a chair at the small kitchen table.
“Who are you? What do you want?” Her voice came out raspy. Part from fear and part from the sour smell of stale cigarette smoke coming from the person’s clothes. She coughed.
“What do I want? I’m so glad you asked.” The figure rose from the seat, and a glint from the outside lamp post bounced off the pistol the person pointed at her. “I want you to pay for what you’ve done.”
Everything in Amata froze. All she could see was the barrel of the gun held in a steady hand aimed at her heart. It took a second before what the person said registered.
“Huh?” Great. What a wordsmith she turned out to be.
“Turn around.” The computerized voice made her shake. “Put your hands behind your back and don’t make any sudden moves.”
Oh, Goddess. She was going to be shot in the back. At least she wouldn’t see it coming. Taking her time, she turned around and stared at the opposite wall. Seeing in the dark was never a problem for her. Coming from a planet in perpetual twilight did that to a person. Too bad the only thing in front of her was a digital frame with pictures of Jordyn and her small family. Tears gathered. She may have lived a long time, but she’d been without close ties for so long she looked forward to being a part of Jordyn’s new family.
Then there was Claude. It was the second time in one day she thought about him. With the end at hand, regrets were loud and clear.
Holding her breath, she hunched and waited for the sound of the gun going off. When it didn’t, she looked over her shoulder. The hooded figure breathed down her neck as the cold metal of a pair of handcuffs clicked tight around her wrists.
