The Pearls (6 page)

He wanted to locate all the names in this letter and see if this Zoe was indeed safe and where this letter indicates she should be
. He had a bad feeling she was not. The death of Mr. Johnson was right after the date on the birth certificate and the letter.

Kaiden awakes with
a start the song still in his head. Today it has given him motivation and not the usual heartache and confusion. He takes a quick shower and gets dressed, it is nine in the morning and he has some calls to make.

He sits at his table and pulls the laptop over
he opens up a search engine to search the number for California’s Social Services. He calls several numbers all getting transferred to a voicemail of someone who isn’t at their desk. He spends 3 hours making calls all going to voicemails. He is getting hungry and frustrated, so he decides to run out for a quick meal and come right back. Maybe someone will answer the phone after lunch.

An hour
later he is full and on his way back to his apartment when his cell phone rings. He takes his phone out of his pocket and sees that it is Charles calling.

“Hey man what’s up?” he answers

“You won’t believe what I have to tell you” Charles tells Kaiden a hint of Joy and dread in his voice. This makes Kaiden stop in his tracks and his heart starts to race, calls that start like this are never good.

“Who has disappeared now?” he asks

“Oh, NO NO nothing like that, I just got a call on your mother’s private line. It was a Lawyer in the town that Zoe was born in, he looking for Zoe”

“WHAT
?” Kaiden yells into the phone

“Yep, seems this lawyer recently bought an old Law Office up there and he found a safe in the floor during a remodel” Kaiden is practically running home at this point, but doesn’t say anything and is just listening to Charles give him all the details of this conversation. “He took the safe home and forgot about it for almost a year, last night he did a little research on the old owners and well no one is alive so he popped it open”

“What was in it? Did he tell you?” Kaiden asks in a rush. He opens his apartment door and runs to his bedroom grabbing his duffle bag out of the closet and sloppily throwing clothes inside.

“Kaiden, what are you doing? Sit down and pay attention please?”

“Sorry, I am listening, just packing at the same time, I know where I am headed now, I need to know what was in that safe about Zoe.”

“Yes I know and I am about to tell you
.”

“OK sorry I am sitting now” Kaiden plops on the bed and listens
.

“Well
there is a package for Zoe’s eyes only, a letter from Elizabeth, a bank statement of an account in Zoe’s name, and her birth certificate.”

“Whoa”

“That’s what I said at first, and then I asked why he was calling this number.”

“Oh,
right he called mom’s private line, nobody has that number, I didn’t even think it was still in service.” Kaiden says frustration creeping into his voice.

“I left it on just in case, anyway this letter he read to me apparently Elizabeth knew she was going to die or disappear and made arrangements for
the lawyer to bring Zoe to your mom here in Ireland.”

“WHAT? How could she know she wasn’t going to come back, who just leaves their baby, I know we Dragons don’t!” Kaiden is excited now voice raised and he is pacing the floor now.

“I know, I know Kaiden, it doesn’t make sense. I told the Lawyer that 7 years ago Makayla and Ethan were killed in that town and that they were there to find Zoe. And I told him you are still there.”

“I am headed
there as soon as I know what to do.”

“Good boy, Mr. Steinman is expecting you
. Since you are Makayla’s heir and she is no longer alive he can talk to you about all the details. He just gave me the rundown of what he thought was safe to tell. Apparently there is a warning in the letter.”

“Thanks Charles I am on my way there
. I can make it in two hours and I will call you when I know more.”

“Hey Kaiden, since this man is a lawyer and has access to stuff you don’t
, I gave him the gist of what we found and the name she graduated under, he said he should have a location for her by the time you get there.”

“HOLY SHIT make that an hour, I will be in his office in an hour!”

Kaiden packs up more than just a duffle bag if this lawyer can find out where she is Kaiden won’t be coming back to this apartment. He will be taking his soul mate home. He has three large bags stuffed in the trunk of his car. He looked up Mr. Steinman’s office location and set it into his GPS. He drives as fast as he can go, his eyesight helps him see the road and hidden cops from miles off so he doesn’t get pulled over. He is walking into Mr. Steinman’s office an hour and fifteen minutes later, at 2:00 p.m.

Chapter
8

Zoe

Its free hour at school this morning and Zoe has been lost in her song just playing it over and over for 45 minutes. Her eyes are closed, her fingers are doing their own thing, they know what to do and she accedes to them. They have a mind of their own when she puts a guitar in her hands. She feels like something is going to change today.

The song
is stronger than normal and she has never played it this long. Her fingers are almost bloody when the teacher finally starts the class. Zoe feels somewhat lost today in class. She doesn’t hear the teachers talking or what the assignment was, she is just sort of in zombie mode.

At noon she is he
aded home for a much needed nap, she didn’t sleep well last night. She felt like someone was watching her all night at the diner and made a quick escape out the back as soon as her shift was over. She didn’t notice anything unusual last night, but she still got the creeps and ran all the way home. She pretty much walked or ran everywhere. She could not afford a car right now not to mention she hated driving. She had some money saved, but she was more worried about finishing school at this point in time than getting out of dodge.

Still in zombie mode she was slowly walking through the park when the little hairs on the back o
f her neck told her something was off. She listened for one second before just saying “fuck it” and took off at full speed to her apartment.

“Justine!” Zoe yelled into the apartment. Today was her day off at
shipping station, but she was working the late shift at the diner tonight. Right now however she did not want to be alone and Justine was not home.

Zoe walked to the kitchen to see if there was a note or anything and she found one on the fridge. “Great she is working a double and we will be working at the diner together for a couple hours” she breathed out in defeat.
“Well guess its nap time after all then.” She checked the windows made sure they were all locked and bolted the door shut. Justine won’t be coming home at all so she shoved the dresser they had in the hall up against the door, just in case. She was just a bit on edge.

Zoe walked down the hall to her room and opened her door. She closed the door and looked around. Her room was done in ivory and pine. She had a Pine dresser and a Pine bed with a lace curtains over the windows. Her bed had a huge down comforter on it with a cream and lace duvet cover.

Her bedroom was where she took the most care, it was the first items she bought herself, her own special something she got, something she took pride in. She loved soft colors and her room was her sanctuary. When she first moved in with Justine and they moved to an apartment with two bedrooms she got one of those door jambs that goes on the floor and then wedges under the door handle. She hasn’t used it since moving out here to a smaller town, but right now she was grabbing it out of her closet and jamming it under the door handle. After she felt secure she walked to her bed and took off her shoes and pants and crawled into bed. As soon as her head hit the pillow she was fast asleep.

Zoe w
akes about three hours later and still has about two hours until she has to be at the diner. She decides to take a long hot shower maybe that will work her nerves down. She still feels sort of sluggish, but the feeling of unease has passed, and she feels extremely relaxed now. Zoe hears a thump on the wall and freezes. She looks around the bathroom but doesn’t see anything. She starts to undress and looks around the bathroom one more time, not noticing anything she shrugs it off and starts the shower.

Once the water is hot
, she strips off the rest of her clothing and steps in the shower. She takes her time shaving her legs and washing her long hair. Zoe wishes sometimes she could have another color hair she is only Twenty two and has almost white hair. She has tried to dye it in the past but the colors never stick.

All done with bathing herself she stands there letting the hot water pour over her head and back. After another fifteen minutes the water starts to run cold so she turns the shower off and gets out.
Wrapping a large cream towel around herself she steps back into her room and gets dressed.

After making herself some dinner before her shift she walks to the door and puts the dresser back in its place in the hall. Paying extra attention
while on her way to the diner, she doesn’t feel or see anything strange. She makes it all the way to the diner with no incident.

Walking into the diner she stops frozen in her tracks
, she looks around and makes eye contact with Violet colored eyes with flecks of pearl, just likes hers. She is slammed with familiarity, the need to run as fast as she can away from here pumping through her veins, there is also a pull to him that is so strong, and she doesn’t know what to do. These eyes belong to a man with chestnut brown hair, the most beautiful face she has ever seen on a man, and from what she can see, since he is sitting at a booth, a muscular built chest. This man smiles at her and that smile almost makes her knees give out. She has never felt this way, this instant need to talk to someone, the pull is confusing her the more she stares into those eyes. Suddenly her view is cut off and someone was in front of her, she wants to shove them away, so she could stare at those violet eyes.

“
Hello? Earth to Zoe, you ok?” Justine was standing there with a confused look on her face.

“Uh
yes, who is that?” She asked nodding, but not looking at the stranger with the eyes.

“I
don’t know he has been here for the last couple hours though, I haven’t talked to him or nothing but I take over the section he is sitting in about thirty minutes.” Justine stares at her, curiosity burning bright “Why you ask you want the section?”

Zoe grabs Justine’s arm and pulls her to the back. She looks around makes sure no one is around and whispers to Justine. “D
o you feel anything weird? And did you notice his eyes Justine? They have flecks like mine, like yours, nobody else has those but us, and his are the same pearl flecks as mine.”

“
Yes I feel the same thing toward him as I do towards you, but the eyes no”

“No shit, Justine
?” Zoe said with irritation

“Well
yes and now I really don’t want that section, can’t you take it?” Justine asked trying to evade any kind of conversation with the man.

“No Justine, you don’t understand, I have never felt this way before
, all I want to do is go over to him, and get lost in those eyes, but everything that has happened in my life tells me to say fuck work and run as fast as I can as far as I can.”

“Shit Zo
e, ok I will serve him take your time coming out but don’t run ok? I can bear if you do and I don’t want to run anymore I like it here.” Justine pleaded with Zoe.

“OK fine, I will be out in thirty when my shift starts I came in early
because I wanted a milk shake, I have had a weird day and now it’s getting weirder.” Zoe let out a long breath and slid down the wall to her butt.

“I’ll get you a shake Zo
e, don’t go anywhere though.” She knew Justine was afraid of being alone, She decided she would face her fears this time.

“I won’t
Hun. I am honestly tired of running I need to face this.” Looking at Justine with all the truth in her eyes of her intentions, Justine walked back to the front to make her a shake. A couple minutes later she had the shake in hand and its creamy coldness woke her up and giving her all the courage she needed to face this challenge.

This was something new for Zoe. She was so used to running at every little moment of defenselessness. There was something about this man that had her confused. She wanted him, wanted to run to his arms, get lost in his eyes, and forget all her worries. The thoughts and feelings scared her to death
. The feelings were so new and unexpected. She has never really been attracted to anyone before, she has never let anyone get close enough. The man sitting in the other room had her heart racing and her mind going wild. She was not going to run, she was going to face this man, and figure out what is so special about him.

Zoe finishes her shake, puts her apron on, and walks out to the dining room. She is going to be strong and fight this feeling inside, she hoped.