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CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Kassandra

"It's been almost a month. There's been no threats and Bree has yet to find anything. I think it's safe to assume we're no longer in danger."

I loved David. I loved spending time with him.

But I needed to do something besides go to work and come home every night of the week. This was my time to live life to the fullest and I’ll be damned if Michael ruined that from beyond the grave.

"Just give me a few more days," David begged.

"No, David. The last few months of Mikey's senior year are being stripped away from him by this mess. His prom is tonight. I promised him months ago he could go and I'm not going back on my word. He even agreed to let me chaperone so that one of us would be there."

I saw the moment he caved. "Fine, but one of the guys from Cobra is going with you. He can stay outside for all I care, but I refuse to send you out alone."

Cobra was such a silly name for the team of guys who I had come to care about. But David said he let them pick it themselves, so who was I to disagree?

"I accept your terms."

I would not cry.

I would not cry.

I would not cry.

I was absolutely going to cry as I watched Mikey hand over a small bouquet of flowers to Brittany that matched her prom dress. The two of them looked stunning. Brittany in her gown and Mikey in his tuxedo. Brittany chose a pale green that matched her complexion flawlessly.

"Just one more picture." I hadn't stopped snapping them since Mikey brought Brittany back to the house. Her parents had taken pictures when he picked her up, but David was insistent that they left from here.

"Mom, you've snapped a hundred already."

"I don't care. I'll snap a hundred more if I want to. My firstborn only gets one senior prom and I plan to document the hell out of it after we lost everything else."

I was guilt-tripping him and I knew it, but the pictures on my phone were the only thing I had left from their time growing up, so I was going to document every second.

"Okay. One more," he sighed, but plastered a smile on his face.

"Perfect. Brittany, you look beautiful," I sniffled. "I can't tell you how much I love seeing the two of you together."

"Okay, time to go. I love you, Mom, but you're starting to get emotional."

There was no malice in his tone. Mikey could handle anything except my tears.

"Fine. Go have fun. I'll see you soon. I love you both."

Mikey practically dragged Brittany out the door. It didn't matter how much time she spent with us over the last month, she was still painfully shy. I wondered if that was how I looked to others when I was her age.

"Are you going to be okay?"

David wrapped his arm around my middle and yanked me to him so that I was flush against his side.

"I didn't think it would be this hard watching my baby grow up."

"Mom, Mikey hasn't been a baby in a very long time," Nate interjected.

"I don't care how big you both get, you'll always be my babies."

I smoothed my hand down the long form-fitting dress I chose for the evening. Parents were encouraged to chaperone the prom, and I was excited to be one of the chosen. Michael had insisted the boys attend a private school, so getting picked to help with anything was a surprise. Normally, only those who donated butt loads of money were ever asked.

"There's no need to fidget. You look beautiful," David whispered in my ear.

It was hard to get used to the constant compliments he showered me with on a daily basis. A day didn't go by that he wasn't telling me how beautiful I was or how good I looked. My kids were also slowly getting used to his hands on me all the time. They were seeing how a woman who was cherished should be treated, and I was forever thankful for it.

"I don't want to embarrass Mikey when I get there."

I was spun so fast I crashed into his chest with a squeal. "There's nothing you could do that would embarrass Mikey. He loves you unconditionally."

Damn, he always knew the right thing to say. It was refreshing to feel confident.

"I love you." I rubbed my hand across his chest.

"I love you too. Now you better get going before you're late."

He knew me so well. David walked me out to my new vehicle and opened the door for me. My house, and all the stuff in it, wasn't the only thing we lost when it blew up. Both Mikey and I lost our vehicles. David was quick to help replace them, despite the argument I tried to put up. He assured me once the insurance money came in, we could use it to put money down on the loan I made him take out for it. I don’t care how many times he told me the money was ours, I wasn’t at that point in our relationship yet to take it freely.

The drive to the hotel, where the prom was being held, wasn't nearly as bad as I expected. Traffic was exceptionally light. I parked the SUV in the parking garage across from the venue and headed inside where I walked through a dark blue tunnel with clear balloons floating around me. The theme was “Under the Sea.” Starfish, jellyfish, and every other kind of sea creature was represented throughout the place, from table decorations to the ceiling and every inch in between. There wasn’t a single part of the large ballroom that wasn’t decorated. The prom committee did an excellent job with the theme, and it almost looked like you were actually walking underwater.

I took one lap around the small ballroom but didn't see Mikey. He should've arrived before me; maybe he was outside in the courtyard? I looked out there next but couldn't find him among the crowd of teenagers, dressed to the nines. The next fifteen minutes were spent frantically trying to find him. It wasn't like Mikey was a small guy; he stood over six feet tall and could be easily found in a crowded room. I asked friends if they saw him, I asked teachers, but no one had yet seen him or Brittany.

I tried calling his phone but it went straight to voicemail, twice. At that point I wasn't just frantic, I was downright panicking.

My next phone call was to David.

"Hey, beautiful. Miss me already?"

"I can't find Mikey or Brittany. I've looked everywhere but they aren't here. No one has seen them and Mikey's phone is going straight to voicemail."

"Stay where you are. I'll send Rhett inside to get you." Tears were pouring down my cheeks but I didn't care how bad I looked. My baby was missing. "And, Kassandra?"

"Yeah?"

"I'll find him. I promise."