Momentum (22 page)

“True. But, on the other hand, it may be that we have Potomal’s whole group after us, so we need to be careful.”

The door eased open, and Harry cautiously peered in. “David! I thought I heard more than one male voice in here. Kellan, why didn’t you tell me? What’s up?” Harry walked over and thumped David on his back. “How did you get here?” He handed Kellan the first-aid kit. “What do you need this for?”

“Simla scratched up Arizona’s shoulders when she grabbed her. I’m going to wipe them down with alcohol and put some Neosporin on the cuts while David updates you.”

“Geez, Arizona! Why didn’t you say something? That looks pretty bad,” Harry complained. “We need to get you to a doctor.”

“It’ll be dangerous trying to do that with the Sigma-W-Pi looking for her.” David sat down on a chair. “But I can wander her to a different dimension, back to my dad, and take care of her–”

“No way, not without me,” Kellan interrupted.

“Hey!” I protested. “What am I? A piece of furniture? Don’t I get a say?”

“No!” they all yelled in unison.

Geez!

“David, tell me what’s going on, and then we’ll figure out what to do next. How did you get here?” Harry asked.

Once David had finished explaining it all again, Harry shared what he’d found out.

“I was looking for the cheapest way for us to get back home. That would be by bus. However, like the airport, the bus terminal may be dangerous, but it was the best we could hope for with the money we have. Now that David’s here and money’s not an issue anymore, I suggest we rent a car–much safer all around.”

We all agreed. That was the obvious thing to do. It was getting late, though. We were all exhausted and needed a good night’s sleep. I was ready to slump onto the pillow. “In the morning? I need to sleep.”

“There’s no way we can all stay here,” David observed. “Let’s take a cab to the Cosmopolitan. Mom booked me a room there. It’ll at least have two beds. They’ll also have a doctor on call.”

Honestly, I couldn’t care less where we stayed. I was too tired to be bothered, but I could see his point. One bed was far from ideal. “Can’t you just get another room at the motel?” I yawned.

“I think we should stay together,” David insisted. “Go to sleep if you want. I’ll carry you to the cab when it gets here.”

“Ugh, don’t be silly. I’ll force myself to stay awake for a bit longer.”

The cab arrived in no time, and we were at the Cosmopolitan half an hour later. I had never been inside it before. It was new and sat right beside the Bellagio. It was very modern and spectacular, though I was too tired to take it all in. Kellan had held my hand all the way there and was still holding on to it as we walked into the room. I walked over to one of the two queen-sized beds with crisp blue-trimmed white sheets and sat down. Harry came over and sat beside me.

David picked up the hotel phone. “I’m going to call down for a doctor.”

“No!” I said emphatically. I was tired of being babied. “I’m fine. Do. Not. Call. A. Doctor. Got it?”

The three of them gaped at me.

“Look, you really need–”

“Don’t you think I know what I need? I need to sleep. I promise to see a doctor tomorrow, if you just stop whining!” I glared at David.

He threw his hands in the air. “Let me at least give it another cleaning.”

“In a minute. I’m going to go to the bathroom and get ready for bed. Okay?” I got up and marched off. The bathroom was sheer heaven after that dump in the motel. I played with the scented soaps and moisturized my face with the cream. Then I went back into the room and threw myself down on the bed. David dabbed my back with whatever while I closed my eyes.

I had no idea what had happened while I had been in the bathroom, but the boys seemed to have come to a sleeping arrangement. Harry lay down next to me, his head by my feet and one hand around my ankle. David and Kellan shared the other bed. It was the best sleep I had had in a while. The bed was super-comfortable, and the temperature perfect.
 
And I was sure I could detect the sweet smell of lavender calming us all into a nice lull.

We slept in. Well, Harry, Kellan, and I did. David was nowhere to be seen when we got up. He’d left a note by the bedside table saying that he’d be back shortly, and he was–with breakfast!

“Mom rented a car for me, so we can be on our way as soon as you guys are ready. It’s about an eight-hour drive.” He looked unhappy, his lips drawn into a line. And he was fidgeting.

“David? What’s going on?” I asked.

“I’m not sure. I had an odd feeling when I was down in the lobby. Something doesn’t feel right.”

A
ll eyes were on David. We waited for him to explain, but he went quiet. He reached over, entwining his fingers through mine. I could feel Kellan tensing up next to me. He slipped his arm around my waist, pulling me back gently. I couldn’t understand his reaction. What did he think David was going to do? Did he think David was working for Raj? That was beyond ridiculous. I looked up, raising my eyebrows at him. He ignored me; his eyes fixed on David.

Harry thankfully broke the uncomfortable silence. “David? What’s going on?”

David shook his head. “Probably nothing. It was just a feeling. I don’t know how to explain it. I had a good look around. I didn’t spot anyone–not Simla or anyone else. Maybe I should take Arizona back to Dad’s though, just to be safe.” Harry nodded.

I shook my head and pulled my hands away from David, squirming out of Kellan’s grip at the same time. I was angry. My fists were clenched and I was one breath away from throwing a tantrum Ella would be proud of. I closed my eyes, breathing in deeply. And then opened them. “I’m not going anywhere except home. David has a car; let’s get in it and go home!”

“I don’t blame you,” Kellan agreed. “We should all stick together. I’m staying with Arizona no matter what.”

“You know I can’t wander the two of you–”

“I know! Which is why we should all stick together. I think among the three of us, we’ll be able to keep Arizona safe from Simla.”

“If it’s just Simla we’re dealing with,” Harry muttered. “David might be right….”

 
“How do we know going back there isn’t as dangerous? David, any news about your dad?” In all our drama, I had totally forgotten about David’s dad.

“He’s back, Arizona. That dimension is secure now.”

 
“That’s really good to hear, David. Is he okay?” Kellan asked.

“I haven’t seen him, but yes, he seems to be okay. Look, right now we’ve got a car waiting for us. Let’s just walk straight to it, get in, and drive off.”

“They could probably get us from the car,” Harry pointed out. “Remember how Justin got taken right from the car when it was in motion?”

I shook my head, but got ignored. They were talking above me again, like I didn’t quite exist. Then they all looked down at me.

“Right, let’s go.” Harry grabbed my left hand while David took the other one. Kellan got behind me, and we stepped out into the hallway and walked to the elevator.

The elevator arrived empty and, thankfully, didn’t stop on the way down. We walked into the casino, looking to David for directions.

“The car’s parked outside the exit at the other end of the casino. Follow me.”

It was hard walking in a row of three; I got fed up and slipped away from David’s grip. He got slightly ahead of us so we could follow him easier. The casino was buzzing with people, at the machines, around the tables, and just walking about. It was hard not to crash into the little kids running around in front of their parents trying to get somewhere, goodness knew where. I kept my eyes to the ground, making sure not to bump into anything or anyone.

I suddenly walked right into David, who’d come to an abrupt halt. I leaned over to look beyond him.

I froze. For a few heartbeats, nobody moved. Simla stood a few feet away with a sinister smirk on her face.

“It’s okay,” I whispered, biting my lip. “We can outrun her.”

“It’s not just her. You don’t recognize them, but I can see two Sigma-W-Pi members. From your previous descriptions, I am guessing they’re Madison and Olivier. They’re to our left; there could be more,” Kellan said tightly.

I panicked. Left? I turned to my right, yanking my hand out of Harry’s grip, and made a run for it. No way was I letting any of those morons anywhere near my shoulders; they hurt like crazy. I zigzagged around the poker tables, knocking chairs down as I ran. I fled down the aisles, dashing between slot machines. I knew–I felt–I was being chased. I sprinted up the escalator. People were yelling at me. I could hear David and Kellan calling my name, but I kept running.

Then I saw Justin! He waved at me, so I ran toward him as fast as I could. I tripped, but got up and kept going. “Justin!” I sighed in relief, stopping right in front of him.

He smiled. “It’s okay, Arizona. Come with me.”

“Stop, stop!” David and Kellan yelled as they ran up. Justin’s demeanor changed as soon as he saw them. His eyes narrowed, and he growled under his breath. He lifted his arms and came toward me. I backed away–right into David’s arms. The last thing I saw was Kellan’s panicked face, and his hands trying to grab me.

I hung on to David, knowing I was safe. What was Justin doing there? We landed back in the same spot, at the casino in the Cosmopolitan. But Kellan was gone, as was Harry.

“Where did they go?” I looked around. Everything else looked the same. People transfixed by their betting surrounded the tables; the slot machines were busy with people mindlessly emptying their cash into them. We stood in the middle, worn out.

“They didn’t go anywhere; we did.”

I felt my stomach tighten. Kellan’s look of sheer desperation flooded my mind, and I struggled to breathe. “David, we have to go back! You shouldn’t have wandered me!”

David’s eyes narrowed, his brows almost touching each other as he frowned. “I had no choice!” he said, sounding aggravated. “What would you have me do? Just stand there while they took you?” He glared at me.

“I don’t know. We have to go back, though. Hurry!”

“We can’t!” David was positively fuming. His fists clenched by his side. “I’m worn out from that transport. I can’t possibly do it again so soon. Surely you get that? I was only trying to help you.”

I could see that he was totally frustrated. He’d only done what he thought was best to protect me. “I’m sorry, David. What do you think will happen to them? Will they get taken, like I did? Will they get hurt?” My eyes welled up, and my stomach tightened so much I thought I would be sick.

“Poppet, I don’t know. I slipped Harry my credit card. I’m hoping they made it to the car and got away. But I don’t know. I will get them help as soon as we get to Mountain View, I promise.”