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Classical music blasted through Deja’s car speakers as she waited in the parking lot at Miles’s school. She’d alternated between packing and freaking out ever since Nina’s call. Her initial relief that Nina was okay had morphed into palpable fear after the call. She wasn’t sure if she should believe what Nina had said about being in the park with her therapist and Damien, but if it were true, Deja wouldn’t incriminate herself over the phone. Since she’d given Lanzo the money, nothing should have been left at the park, which also had her questioning if Nina had completely lost it. It pained Deja to try to figure out what the hell was going on, which had led to a pounding headache. So she’d eventually given up trying and headed out to pick up Miles.
She shut off her car then hurried into the school as the end-of-school bell rang. Outside Miles’s classroom, a group of parents were huddled together talking. Candace stood slightly apart, staring at her phone.
Deja approached her. “Hey, Candace. Are you heading straight to the Taylors’ after getting the girls?”
Candace tucked her long brown hair behind her ear. “Yeah. I usually do, and since it’s raining, the park is out of the question.”
“I’m worried about Nina, and I wanted to see if she’s doing okay. I’ll see you there. Have you heard from her this afternoon?”
“Actually, no. But she hasn’t been feeling well lately, so we don’t talk as much.”
“Yes, I know.” Hopefully Nina would be back home because Deja desperately needed to talk to her about what happened.
“Hey, Mom,” Miles said with a wide smile. “Did you get off work early?”
“Something like that.” Deja placed her hand on Miles’s shoulder and ushered him past the noisy crowds and to the car. Once inside, Deja glanced back at Miles. “Buddy, I got some news.”
“What’s up, Mom?” Miles’s eyebrows arched.
“We’re going to move. I’ve been packing our stuff, so when you get home, you’ll see the boxes.” Deja started the car and drove away. She’d dreaded saying it and was slightly relieved it was out now.
“But I don’t want to move. I like it here,” Miles whined. “Why we gotta—”
“Because I said so.” Deja used to hate when her mom said that to her, but she now understood sometimes it was the only answer that would suffice.
“Where we moving to?”
Deja let silence answer for her. She couldn’t possibly tell him that she had no idea. Her windshield wipers worked overtime, and Deja couldn’t imagine Nina or anyone else would venture into a park in this weather. Nina had to have been wrong or confused.
“What are we doing here?” Miles asked when Deja parked in front of the Taylors’ house.
“I need to talk to Auntie Nina. Let’s go in and see if she’s home.”
Miles got out of the car and slammed the door extra hard. Deja followed him and joined Bree and Laila, who were waiting impatiently for Candace to unlock the door and let them in and out of the rain. After she did, everyone piled into the house.
“Mommy.” Laila dashed through the house. “Mommy, we’re home.” She raced back to the entryway and tugged Candace’s shirt. “Where’s Mommy?”
Rodney came from inside the house and met them at the door. He glared at Deja. “Mommy’s not here.”
“Where is she?” Bree asked.
“She’s out,” Rodney said. “Bree and Laila, go start your homework in the kitchen. Miles, go get a snack or something.”
They all ran down the hall.
“I didn’t know you were going to be home, Mr. Taylor,” Candace said.
“Sorry. It slipped my mind to tell you. Would you start dinner? You can take off early tonight but get paid for the full time.”
“Okay, sure. Thanks,” Candace said.
She walked to the kitchen, and Deja attempted to join her, but Rodney grabbed her arm. “What the hell are you doing here?” he asked.
Deja yanked her arm free. She’d completely forgotten that Nina had mentioned Rodney had planned to be home with her earlier. “I wanted to tell you I talked to Nina.” Though untrue, Deja didn’t have another answer.
Rodney narrowed his eyes. “What happened? What did Nina say?”
Deja was unsure how much of the conversation she should relay since she certainly couldn’t tell it all. “She didn’t make any sense. She said Dr. Austin and Damien were with her at a park, and—”
Rodney stepped backward. His eyes widened. “She said Damien?”
“Yeah. I didn’t believe what she was saying, so I told her I’d take her to get help. I guess I shouldn’t have said that. She hung up on me.”
Rodney retrieved his phone and dialed. “Her phone’s still going straight to voicemail every time I call. I’m going to call Dr. Austin. But I seriously doubt she’d be at the park with Nina or him.”
Deja sent a quick text and tried to collect herself while Rodney left a message for Dr. Austin. It didn’t make sense that she’d be at the park with her therapist and ex-fiancé. Nina had to be making it up, delusional, or hallucinating. But if she was going off mentally, she didn’t know where she could be now. As long as she hadn’t gone to the police station, Deja would be okay, but she couldn’t say the same about Nina.
Rodney’s phone rang. Deja’s heart stalled. If it was Nina, she feared what Nina would say to him.
He answered it quickly. “Stan, thanks for calling me back. Deja said Nina called her earlier. Yes, she’s here right now.” He glared at Deja like he wished she weren’t.
Lucky for Deja, it wasn’t Nina. Her phone beeped with a text. “There were complications.”
“Shit.” She covered her mouth.
“Should we call the police?” Rodney asked Nina’s dad.
“Not a good idea,” Deja said.
“Excuse me?” Rodney glared at Deja.
“It’s just... Nina would hate that, especially if she’s going off. She might need to go to the hospital, not jail. Sometimes, the police don’t know the difference.”
Rodney turned his back to Deja. “Maybe hold off on the police. Let’s wait for a response from Dr. Austin. Any news, I’ll call you back.” He stuffed his phone into his pocket.
Deja couldn’t stand being in the dark. The potential of everything blowing up in her face was enormous, and she certainly didn’t plan on sitting around waiting for that to happen. “I’m going to head home in case Nina stops by my place or something. I’ll call you.”
Rodney grunted a response but didn’t seem to care what she did.
She headed to the kitchen. “Miles, we’re going to go now, buddy.”
Miles flailed his arms. “Aww, Mom can I—”
“No,” Deja barked.
Miles clambered to his feet without another word. “Bye, guys.” He waved to Bree and Laila.
Deja hurried Miles. Unrelenting rain drenched everything. He climbed into the backseat, and Deja blasted the heat.
Miles tapped Deja’s shoulder. “What’s wrong, Mom? Why’d we leave so fast?”
Deja turned on her windshield wipers and sped down the street. “We have to pack.”
“What’s going on with Auntie Nina? Is something wrong with her?”
Deja glimpsed at Miles through the rearview mirror. “Don’t get in grown folks’ business,” she snapped.
“Sorry,” Miles said.
Deja softened her tone. “I know you don’t want to leave, but you’ll like our new place. I’m gonna try to get a house with a yard and basketball hoop. Does that sound good?”
When Miles didn’t answer, Deja glanced at him again. His chin hung low. “Miles?”
“I don’t wanna leave. I like Uncle Rod’s basketball hoop. I don’t want another one.”
“You’ll like our new house better. We’ll get a dog.” Deja hated dogs, but she’d say anything right now.
“I don’t wanna move. I like going to school with Bree and Laila.” Miles’s voice quivered.
“We’ll make new friends.” The words soured on her tongue. She’d never known people like the Taylors before. And even though Deja hadn’t returned it, Nina had shown her friendship she’d never thought possible. She’d even miss Raquel, who once had tremendous faith and invested her time and knowledge in her. But regardless of how she felt, she simply no longer had the option to stay.
Deja drove into her apartment complex and parked. She opened Miles’s door. Tears leaked from his eyes. She hugged him tight. “Let’s get out of this rain.”
Inside their apartment, Deja assembled a few boxes then carried two to Miles’s room. He lay on his bed, his blankets covering his body and head. She sat next to him. “You get five minutes to be sad. Then get to packing. We don’t have much time. And Miles?”
“Huh?”
“This is our secret plan. Just between you and me. Don’t mention it to anyone. ’Kay?”
“Whatever.”
Deja got up and lingered in Miles’s doorway. She needed to find out Nina’s whereabouts and what she’d been up to. There’d already been complications, and she couldn’t afford anything else going wrong. She remained focused on getting the money from Nina somehow, but the possibility of that happening grew smaller every moment Nina remained gone. Deja didn’t want to imagine what would happen to her if she didn’t pay what she owed.