Redemption (Enigma Black Trilogy Book #3) (2 page)

“Someone doesn’t understand the concept of sarcasm,” Makayla grumbled. She balled up the Kleenex in her hand and threw it into a nearby trashcan, shuddering again when she noticed her mother was still glaring at her.

“You need to stop, and you need to stop now,” Carrie admonished. “Seriously, MaKayla, we all know you’re not thrilled with the engagement, but Paige and your brother are getting married in less than two months, which means she’s going to be a permanent fixture in our family.”

“Nothing’s permanent, change happens every day. Besides, it’s not June yet. A lot can happen between now and then, like the apocalypse, for instance.”

“That’s enough out of you,” Carrie sighed, exasperated. “Look, she makes your brother happy, and that’s all that should matter to you. Actually, that fact alone should be enough to make you appreciate her being in his life. You saw how devastated he was after Celaine left, how his very soul seemed to shatter into pieces. Do you really want to see that again?”

“Of course not.” MaKayla’s eyes searched the floor, where she focused on the intricate gray fibers in the carpet, unable to look her mother in the eyes.

“Now is not the time for selfishness,” Carrie began again. “Besides, we need to think about Chase and what he wants, not about us and what we want.” MaKayla perked up, gaping at her mother, who cast a small smile in her direction.

“Well,” Paige re-entered the waiting room in her newest selection, “what do you think of this one?” The long-sleeved, alabaster gown clung to her body, perfectly fitting around all the appropriate curvatures of her form, as if designed for her and only her.

“My, oh my, I think we have a winner,” Carrie said with a gasp. “You aren’t going to get much more perfect than that.”

“Do you really think so?” Paige asked, trying to contain her excitement.

“Absolutely, honey.”

“So do I,” she said, jumping up and down. “This is it. This is my dress; the dress I’ll be wearing when I become Mrs. Chase Matthews.” Tears formed in her eyes, and she ran over to the coffee table to retrieve a Kleenex. “I’m going to go and change out of it before my makeup starts to run and stains the material. I’ll meet you two ladies up front.”

“Hey, Paige,” MaKayla’s unexpected call stopped her in her tracks.

“Yeah?” Paige asked hesitantly.

“I just wanted you to know that I think the long sleeves are a great choice. They’re very…classy, I guess.”

Paige stared at her fiancé’s sister in disbelief. “Why, MaKayla, I think that’s the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard you say.”

“What can I say? I’m turning over a new leaf. Who knows, pretty soon I may be taking a chainsaw to the whole damn tree.”

“I can’t tell you how happy it makes me to hear that. I’ve always wanted a little sister, and pretty soon my dream will come true. Just think, MaKayla, we can go shopping together, get our hair done, do makeovers, talk boys, all that fun girly stuff.”

“Sounds wonderful.” MaKayla contorted her face into a smile, her teeth gritting together.

“I know, right? First, I found this gorgeous dress, and now I have you on my side. Could this day get any better?” Paige asked, not entirely expecting an answer as she entered the dressing room and closed the door behind her.

“I’m holding you personally accountable for the years of therapy I’m going to need because of the asinine bullshit she’s going to drag me to over the years,” MaKayla sighed at Carrie.

“Already on it, dear. I’ve had a therapist lined up for you ever since your imaginary friend carried over into puberty.”

“Love you too, Mom.”

“I’ve just had the greatest idea,” Paige announced, running out of the fitting room half-dressed. “MaKayla, I would love it if you would be my maid of honor.”

“Gee, Paige, that sounds wonderful,” MaKayla stammered, “but don’t you already have one of those?”

“Yes, but I think it would be so much more meaningful to have my future sister-in-law standing right next to me as I say ‘I do’ to her brother, you know what I mean?”

MaKayla glanced back at her mother, who looked at her expectantly. “Yes, of course I will be your maid of honor. I would be thrilled.”

“Wonderful!” She clapped her hands. “Just let me get changed, and then we’ll start looking for a dress for you, too. Our wedding colors are rose and blush, which shouldn’t be too hard to find.”

“Pink and slightly more pink. Sounds swell.”

“With your complexion, it will be a great color on you. We’ll just get you a nice spray tan and it will really pop. Oh, I can’t wait; you’re going to look like such a lovely young lady. Your brother is going to flip.”

“Or drop dead from shock,” Carrie muttered, stifling a laugh.

“It all sounds wonderful,” MaKayla said. “In fact, it sounds so wonderful that I couldn’t bear the thought of leaving your future mother-in-law out of all the fun. How about we shop for a dress for her, too?”

“You’re absolutely right,” Paige exclaimed, throwing her hands up animatedly. “Mrs. Matthews, I’m so sorry to have left you out of our girls’ day. Tell you what, as soon as I get dressed, we’ll forget all about me and I’ll concentrate on being your own personal fashion consultant.”

Carrie nodded, her lips pursed. “Marvelous, absolutely marvelous,” MaKayla said, making dramatic gestures of her own with her hands.

“Okay, I’ll be right back,” Paige called as she ran back to change.

“Oh, do hurry,” MaKayla answered her.

“The next time you need money to go to the movies, the answer is no,” Carrie said when Paige was out of sight. “In fact, just don’t ask at all.”

“But, Mother, we need to be supportive of Chase and his decisions, remember?”

“That was before I knew that statement was going to come back to bite me in the ass.”

“Don’t worry, Mom, it will all be over in a few weeks.”

“Pink. Man, why do your colors have to be pink?” Trey lamented. “Seriously, are you getting any say at all in this wedding, or is Paige steering the entire ship?”

“Life is all about picking your battles,” Chase said. He opened the door to the Cedar Hill Mall and entered its unusually dark interior. “In the grand scheme of things, arguing over two different shades of pink seemed silly. Besides, Paige has been planning this day since she was four, so I’m letting her run with it.”

“It seems like she’s been running with everything since the relationship began.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I don’t know.” The pair walked into the mall, the inside of which seemed all but deserted, save for those who worked there and a few cautious shoppers who’d ventured into the few shops that remained open. Bars covered entryways to shops long forgotten, like prison cells. They outnumbered the viable businesses that still existed in the heart of the dying building. “Man, I remember when businesses were put on a waiting list to rent retail space here,” Trey said, trying to change the subject. “Now you’d have to pay people to bring their business here.”

“Fear is the most powerful form of control that exists. And the world we live in now is rife with it. No one wants to take the chance of becoming the next casualty reported on the evening news,” Chase said.

“So instead of living their lives and taking the chance that they may die in some horrific manner, they’d rather board themselves up in their homes and end their existence that way instead? It makes no sense to me either way.”

“Me neither, man,” Chase sighed. “At least the tuxedo rental shop is still in business. The next closest one is two hours away.”

“Must be no one is in the mood to celebrate these days,” Trey laughed. “I can’t imagine why not.”

They entered the shop, which was barren except for a lone employee passing the time on her cell phone, her fingers texting furiously. She looked up as Chase and Trey entered, seemingly shocked that she had customers, and tossed her cell phone aside. “Hello,” she greeted them. “Can I help you with something?”

“Yeah, I’m getting married in June,” Chase answered her. “And I’m told by my future wife that a tuxedo is the only form of acceptable attire for the event.”

“And not just any tuxedo,” Trey added. “Their colors are pink and pinker, so we’re going to have all kinds of fun here today.”

“Congratulations,” the cheery brunette said. “Pink is certainly a popular color choice for weddings. I’ll grab one of our catalogs to show you the different shades we have for our vests. I believe we may even have some samples in the back I can show you.” The woman raced to the back of the store excitedly and disappeared through a doorway. “Oh, I forgot to ask,” she said, reappearing. “How many groomsmen are there going to be?”

“Two,” Chase said. “The other one is going to come for measurements later.”

“Perfect,” she said, disappearing again.

“What are we, like the first customers you’ve had all week?” Trey called after her.

“No, actually,” she said, reappearing from the back room, vests in hand. “You’re the fourth wedding party I’ve had in the last five days. Business has really picked up.”

Chase and Trey glanced at each other, eyebrows raised. “Well, I guess that’s progress,” Trey muttered.

“Okay, let’s decide on the color, and then I’ll begin to take your measurements, and—” As she spoke, the lights in the store and the rest of the mall flickered, causing her to pause mid-sentence, her eyes widening in fear. “Not again,” her voice cracked.

“What?” Chase asked, looking around. “What’s going on?”

“President Brooks’ new administrative order. They can disable a city, a neighborhood, a business, or really anywhere they suspect rebel activity. The power went out here three days ago and the place was crawling with soldiers. Apparently, they found a guy in the parking lot coordinating some sort of demonstration. They detained him and hauled him away on the spot. About an hour later, our power and cellular phone service was restored again, like nothing ever happened.”

“There are parts of the Capitol that have been without power since the night of the address,” Chase said, feeling uneasy. “They’re trying to flush out the rebels, but all they’re doing is making the innocent suffer.”

“I wouldn’t say that out loud if I were you. Not with the way people are being imprisoned left and right. It’s best just to keep those thoughts to yourself and go about your life the best you can,” the woman said, her nametag catching Chase’s eye.

“Well, Kate, it’s that kind of thinking that landed us in the spot we’re in right now. If more people spoke up instead of hiding what they truly felt, things would be a lot different now.”

Kate smiled at Chase, stealing a glance at the rest of the mall outside her shop. “It looks like the coast is clear,” she said, relaxing a bit. “Let’s start with your measurements first.” She nodded at Trey.

Trey followed her to the back of the store while Chase browsed the racks near the entrance, keeping an eye on the activity going on outside. He thumbed through the different suit coats absentmindedly. In his head, he ran through all the preparations they still needed to make: the food, the cake, the venue, the flowers, the guest list, the invitations. Everything streamed through his consciousness in a blur, and he was happy that Paige had volunteered to handle the majority of it, even if that meant having the frilliest, most emasculating wedding in the history of mankind.

Chase looked up from the racks at Trey, who seemed to be enjoying Kate taking measurements of his inseam a little more than he should be. Trey noticed Chase watching him and flashed him a thumbs up, prompting Chase to shake his head at him out of both warning and disgust. Turning away from the racks, Chase sighed as he began to make his way to the back of the store to spare Trey inevitable embarrassment and Kate an awkward situation. But just as he was about to turn toward the back of the store, a passerby caught his eye. A woman, tall, with a slender frame and long brunette hair, walked by. Though he couldn’t see her face, he could feel his heart rate pick up as though it had locked in on the woman’s identity.

No, it can’t be
, he thought. He glanced back at Trey and then back at the mall outside the store, noticing that the woman was already steadily disappearing from sight. Against his better judgment, Chase hurriedly walked out of the tuxedo shop, turning in the direction the woman had gone.
I can’t let her get away again, not without getting answers
, he thought, his mind racing. To his relief, he quickly spotted her and picked up his pace to catch up to her, all while his heart pounded furiously inside his chest. The right build, a near perfect match in the color and style of her hair. It had to be her. It had to be.

Chase reached out and grabbed the woman’s shoulder. Surprised, she quickly spun around to face him, wearing an expression that was both confused and annoyed. “I’m sorry, Ma’am,” Chase apologized. “I thought you were someone else.”

“Perhaps you should be sure of someone’s identity in the future before you just reach out and grab them like that,” she said in a huff as she turned around and strode away.

Defeated, Chase turned to head back to the tuxedo shop when the lights around him flickered again. Only this time, the flickering didn’t stop until the mall was fully engulfed in darkness. In the distance, screams echoed through the halls, matched by the sound of boots tramping on the linoleum floor. Frantically, Chase tried to find his way in the darkened hallway away from the approaching threat, but before he could get far, something struck him on the back of the head and knocked him to the ground.

“Everybody to the ground,” an authoritative voice ordered anyone within earshot. “This is a raid.”

“I’ve never told you this before,” Chase said as we lay on the rooftop of my old apartment building, “but when I first saw you, time itself seemed to stop, except for you and I. It was as though the whole room was placed on pause, everyone frozen in their last moments, and I knew I had to get to you. I had to get you to notice me because that was the only way to make the world turn again.”

I looked at him and smiled. This was yet again another dream—a hallucination, some may say. I’d had many of them over the past few hours. Or maybe it had been days? Weeks? Though I wasn’t sure of the amount of time that had passed since I’d last had a lucid thought, I knew, nonetheless, that I was dreaming. And this was turning out to be my favorite one so far.