The Chase by Amber Riel (story reading txt) 📖

the bed.  “Night, kiddo.”  He kissed her forehead and then turned to face us.  “You don’t have to go to bed yet, I just figured that she needs to sleep.  I’m going to be down stairs in the kitchen.”  He left me and Carmen alone.

          Carmen smiled and shook her head.  “My brother….” She turned her attention to me.  “Are you going to go to bed too?  Because like Louis said, ‘You don’t have,’” she told me.  “You could actually stay up with us if you’d like.”

          “I’m not going to bed,” I replied.

          “Oh good.”  Her smile kind of grew as we walked out of the room and she slightly closed the door just in case Lainie was afraid of the dark.

          I followed Carmen down stairs and into the kitchen which I had been right about being the room at the end of the hall.  Louis sat at the small round glass table, drinking some water.  “Hello, there girls,” he said.

          “So tell me is there anything that I need to worry about as far as those masked men finding us?” Carmen asked as she walked over and sat down at the table and offered me a chair as well.

          “I’m pretty sure that you’re fine.  I had to leave my car at the hotel last night because of this guy who Sam had informed me about seeming off to her.  He had followed us and when I was out of the girls room he snuck in….”

          “Oh my,” Carmen’s voice filled with concern as she spoke.  She turned her attention to me with worried eyes.  “That must have been scary.”

          I nodded with the ‘tell me about it’ look.

          “Before he could actually get away with doing anything I rushed into the room and wound up fighting him while I had Sam and Lainie leave the room to go into the main office.  It was a long night, Carmen.”

          “I’ll bet…. Did you have a chance to grab your things?”

          “Nope…. We hurried out of there just in case.”

          I watched Carmen move her shoulders as if a chill had crept up her spine.  “Why don’t you guys stay here for a couple of more days?”

          Louis made a face which meant that he had rather not.  “I don’t know.”

          “Why not?”

          “Because I promised Ron that I was going to bring Sam and Lainie---”

          “Look I’m sure Ron will understand…. He knows me well enough that unless he wants me to find him and kick his butt I will…. He would want to know that Lainie’s safe right?”

          Louis nodded.

          “Okay well stay here for a couple of days and if I have to I’ll call Eric to come home early to help you keep an eye on Lainie…. Besides you three can go and get new clothes to bring for the trip wherever you’re heading and besides I’m bored without anyone to talk to seeing that Eric’s out of the house…. It’s just me, the dog, and the cat…. Although the cat’s pregnant….”

          “Again?”

          “Yea,” Carmen answered.  “We need to bring her to get fixed and I keep telling Eric that he needs to do it but he won’t because he feels that a cat is a woman’s pet and needs to be taken care of by a woman….”

          “He kind of has a point,” Louis spoke without thinking.

          “You agree with him?”

          Louis’s eyes grew wide.  They looked as if they were about to pop right out of his head.  “I mean…. You’re right…. A cat’s a cat…. It can belong…. I’ll be right back.”  He stood up and left the room as quickly as possible.

          I couldn’t help but laugh at the sight.

          “Oh my gosh…. Men…. And they say that us women all stick together.”  She buried her face in her hand, kind of laughing as well.  “So you’re Annastia’s sister?”

          “Yep and I’m visiting from America,” I answered, nodding.

          “What’s America like?  I haven’t been there…. I wanted to go to Ron and Annastia’s wedding and it was in America…. That was the year I had met my husband but anyways we were invited to the wedding but wasn’t able to make it because of money trouble…. So what’s it like?”

          “It’s really no different from here except the money is really all that I could think of…. The buildings here seem a lot nicer than the ones where I’m from though and older like maybe from the 18th century or something like that…. It actually looks a million times better than where I live.”

          Carmen nodded.  “So how’s my brother been treating you?”

          I rolled my eyes.  “He’s been like a jerk the entire time…. I mean he does have his moments but I swear he ruins them.”

          “Sounds like Louis.”

          “Can you tell me about his wife?  He’s mentioned her but won’t just tell me.”

          Carmen sighed.  “I would but if he hasn’t told you himself then I don’t feel right going behind his back…. I’m sure that he will eventually he just needs time…. Besides I think he kind of likes you.”

          I felt myself blush at her words but tried not to let her see as I turned my attention toward her.  “He’s a jerk to me…. How can he like me?”

          Carmen smiled.  “He’s going through a tough time…. The last couple of years have been hard for him and he--- I’m sorry I shouldn’t say anything.”

          “Can I ask you something about him?”

          “What?”

          “Is he afraid to love?”

          Carmen took a deep breath and sighed.  “He’s not afraid to love…. That’s not his problem…. He’s afraid of what he could lose if he loves…. It’s not---”

          Louis cleared his throat to let us know that he was in the room.  He eyed Carmen with an angry glare.

          “I’m sorry I said too much,” she whispered to me.  Carmen stood up and started to head out of the door.  “I’m going to go ahead and get ready for bed.  You’re extra change of clothes you left here, Louis?”

          I looked at Louis.  He was in a new tank top and a pair of old shorts.  He seemed to like wearing old torn up clothes.  I couldn’t blame him though because I felt comfortable wearing old clothes as well.  “Yep,” he replied.

          “Oh, Samantha, I don’t know if you could fit in any of my clothes but I might have some clothes you could wear including night clothes so that way you don’t have to be stuck in the same outfit.  I’ll bring some do when I get back.”

          “Oh thank you…. That sounds great,” I replied.

          With nothing else to add Carmen left the room.

          Louis walked back over to the table and picked up the glass of water he had been drinking.  “Want anything to drink?  Carmen won’t care.”

          “Water please.”

          “Okay.”  He took a sip finishing the little bit of water he had and turned on the facet and filled it up.  When his glass was full, he turned off the facet and opened a cabinet door, pulled out another glass and repeated what he had done with his glass.  Once the cup was filled, he turned off the facet, closed the cabinet door, picked up his glass and walked back to the table.  As he sat down he handed the new glass to me and took a sip out of his glass.

          “Thank you.”

          “Sure.”

          “Your sister seems nice.”

          “Yea, she’s a people person…. If it were up to her, this place would most likely be filled with homeless people or orphans or possibly both.”

          “Wow.”

          “Yep.  Her husband don’t want that to happen…. Not that he hates people just this isn’t a big place…. It’d be different if they lived in like a mansion like what Ron and Annie live in but they don’t…. Not only that but she’s pregnant…. Don’t tell her I said anything though…. They’re not trying to be too excited about it….”

          “Why not?  A pregnancy that’s great---”

          “Not when they had two miscarriages already…. They’re happy about it but at the same time weary because they know that they could lose it again and they don’t want to have to go through that.”

          “Oh…. That makes since.”

          Louis nodded as he took another sip from his glass.  I liked that side of him when we could just talk and not argue.  It frustrated me knowing that at any moment he was going to say something that was going to tick me off again but at the same time just talking to him felt good.  I liked being around him when he just let go of all of that unknown anger he had for me.  It was the side of him that I wished he would let me see more of rather than yelling at me or being rude for no reason when I didn’t do anything to him.  And looking at him, he was so attractive and I just wanted to be there with him and no one else but then…. “What?” he asked, snapping me back to reality.

          I shook my head a little to wake up from the day dream I was having.  “Nothing,” I lied.

          He raised an eyebrow as he locked eyes with me, confused.  “Look I’m not the talkative type so if you have questions then keep them to your damn self,” the rude tone was back in his voice out of nowhere when he spoke.

          I dropped my mouth in anger and threw my water on him as Carmen walked into the room.  “Just when I thought that you were a good guy you go and say that with that rude tone of yours again,” I retorted as I stood up and slammed my hands into the table.

          “Well it looks like you two are getting a long,” Carmen said, kind of smiling, knowing that she didn’t really mean it.

          I took a deep breath and looked over at Carmen.  “I’m sorry but your brother was just being a jerk.”

          “Don’t worry about it…. He deserved it.”

          “Hey?” Louis replied throwing his arms up to let us know that he was there.

          “Don’t look at me…. I heard what you said…. That was very rude…. I agree with Samantha.”

          “Thank you,” I replied.

          “No problem.”  She walked over to me and handed me a change of clothes.  Neither of us paid any attention to Louis as he stood up.  “I went ahead and just grabbed a t-shirt and sweat pants for you for tonight and then tomorrow you can help me go through my old clothes that don’t fit me anymore and see if you can wear them.”

          I nodded in agreement.

          “Why does Eric have to be gone this weekend?  I don’t want to be stuck in a house full of girls.”  I glanced over at Louis just as he was removing his wet shirt and couldn’t help but noticed that he had a six pack which told me that he must have worked out a lot.

          Before I could say anything stupid, I turned my attention back to the t-shirt and sweat pants which Carmen had handed to me.  I felt myself blush from the sight and was hoping that no one else noticed.

          “Sorry, it just didn’t work out that way but if you guys are still here Sunday then you won’t be the only guy here…. Unless you count Imhotep….” Carmen shook her head.  “Eric loves that American movie the Mummy and had to name our dog after the mummy….” She kind of laughed but tried to hold it in.  “I thought it was stupid name for a dog especially because we’re not from Egypt but he wouldn’t give up so now we have Imhotep.”

          “I’m not counting the dog,” Louis replied also shaking his head.  I kind of watched him with the part of my eye as he used his shirt to dry off his