Page 33 of Saved By A Small Town Country Boy

Reese Crosswell

R emedi was angry with me, and she had every right to be.

I lost her trust. She’d trusted me with information, and I called her mama.

Honestly, I thought that was the best thing to do at the time.

Too much was going on, and it didn’t seem as if she could handle it alone.

I know that she’s been dodging Kadence since she got here, and now I know why.

Kadence has been trying to get Remedi to go home.

I’on blame her for not wanting to after what she’d done.

Shit, if I were in her shoes, I would’ve done the same shit.

Ain’t no way a mufucka think they gon’ get away with killing someone close to me and think shit gon’ be cool.

Nah. I would’ve handled them just how Remedi did.

Only thing about her, she was a doctor, so she took a slick approach at killing him.

She left absolutely no mess. No one knew who killed him outside of us.

Taking someone’s life is heavy. It leaves trauma behind that’s hard to deal with. Remedi thought running away was gon’ solve her issues. It was only a temporary fix.

When the issues came up with Mitchell, I told her that she needed to let Khalif know what was going on.

She may didn’t know how, but if she wanted the issue to disappear, he was her best option.

After listening to me, she got her feelings hurt and had been locked up in her room ever since she came home.

Sure, Khalif was angry right now, but he damn sure was gon’ make all her problems go away.

“When’s the last time you mopped these floors?” Kadence asked from the kitchen, bringing me back to reality.

“Why are you in there worried about my floors? Don’t you have something better to do?” I squinted my eyes and whispered, “Like go home?”

“What did you say?” With a roll of the eyes, I got up from the sofa.

“It’s obvious that Remedi isn’t going home.”

“Oh, she’s coming back home with me one way or another.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Give me some Pine-Sol.”

“I don’t need you mopping my floors. I clean up just fine around here.”

“I can’t tell.”

“See, this is exactly why I left the city in the first place. All y’all ever do is smother people and try to control everything. I see why Remedi doesn’t want to go back home with you.”

“You do know that Remedi isn’t your child, right? That’s mine.” She poked herself in the chest. “I made her.”

“Okay!” I tossed my hands into the air. She’s really pissing me off right now. Stomping into the kitchen, I snatched my mop away from her. “Get out my kitchen.”

“Remedi!” She padded down the hallway toward Remedi’s bedroom. The girl was grieving a lot. She lost her dog, her normal life, and the guy she likes. She really needs to just let her be for the moment.

“When did Remedi leave here?” she asked when she came back into the kitchen.

“What are you talking about? She’s been in that room all night.”

“She’s gone and so are her things.”

“Are you serious?”

Her eyes expanded. “Does it look like I’m fucking joking?”

Dropping the mop to the floor, I raced past her, pushing her out my way to Remedi’s bedroom. I never would’ve thought that she’d leave here without saying bye to me. Just as Kadence said, all of her things were gone, and her bed was made just as it was before she started using the bedroom.

“You think she went home?” Kadence questioned me.

“I highly doubt it.”

Running back to the living room, I grabbed my phone and dialed Khalif’s number. I got nothing but the voicemail.

“Where do you think she went, then?”

“I don’t know.”

Grabbing my keys, I headed for the door with Kadence right on my heels. “I’m coming with you.”

“I don’t need you coming with me. I think you’ve caused enough damage.”

“You’re not leaving me here, wondering where my child is. I’m coming with you.”

We both left the house and jumped into my truck.

For the next hour or so, we rode around town, searching for Remedi’s truck, but couldn’t find it anywhere.

I stopped and asked people if they had seen her, and it seems as if no one has.

All I was trying to do was help her out and ended up running her off.

After my failed attempt to find Remedi, I ended up sitting at Front Porch Kitchen with a bowl of ice cream and a slice of apple pie.

Normally, when I had a bad day, this pie would’ve made everything so much better, but it wasn’t working this time.

My ice cream had turned to milk, and I’d toyed with the pie with my fork for what seemed like eternity.

Remedi was gone. Just when I was getting used to her being here, she up and left me. Remedi was the only person who truly got me. She didn’t judge me for how I lived my life nor did she force me to shrink myself to be comfortable. She’d turned into my best friend, and now I’d lost that.

“What’s the matter?” I looked up from my bowl and saw Creed standing there. He’s the last person I would’ve thought would be concerned with me.

“Remedi’s gone.”

“Damn.” He slipped into the booth in front of me. “Does he know?”

I shrugged. “I’m not sure. He’s not answering the phone.”

“Why did she leave?”

“She got upset and left. I kinda feel like it’s partly my fault.”

“Don’t blame yourself for her leaving. If Remedi left, it’s ’cause she wanted to leave. She might come back. Who knows.”

“I really hope she does. I miss her already.”

“You want me to get you another piece of pie to go? I think that one drowned.” I looked down at my bowl and erupted in laughter. “See, there’s that beautiful smile.”

“Man, gone.” I waved him off. All Creed and I ever did was bump heads. He’d never once complimented me before. I don’t want his sympathy compliment now.

“What? You don’t think you’re beautiful or something?”

“Creed…” I slightly tilted my head and glared at him.

“I’m for real. You’re one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen.” My face turned red as tomato paste.

“Thank you.”

“Now let me see ’bout getting you another piece of pie.

” He slid out the booth and continued, “You know I know the owner here. She likes to give me free stuff.” A smile tugged at my lips as he went up to the counter.

Not long after, he came back with a pie inside a to-go box and handed it over to me.

“Try calling Remedi and talking to her. Whatever it is that y’all got into it about, I’m sure it’s not more important than y’all relationship.

” With that being said, he left the building.

I grabbed my pie, placed a twenty on the table, and got up from my seat.

When I made it back to the house, Kadence’s car was still in the driveway. I thought she would’ve been gone by the time I made it home. She had no reason to stick around. Lord knows she overstayed her welcome.

Getting out the car, I went inside the house to find Kadence sitting at the kitchen table. Clorox and Pine-Sol slapped me in the face as soon as I opened the door.

“Didn’t I tell you that I didn’t need your help cleaning up?” My hand is itching to go across her face. Kadence is hard-headed and a control freak. She needs to know that she can’t control everyone’s lives.

“I was just leaving you with a parting gift. That’s all,” she said and got up from the chair. I noticed her bag resting next to her feet. Thank God.

“Have you talked to Remedi?”

“No, but I’m sure she’ll turn up at home. She just needs a little time to cool off. Call me if she comes back,” she said and picked her bag up from the floor. Kadence opened the front door to see Sheriff Sinclair and Daniel standing at the door.

“Can I help you, Maya?”

“We’re looking for Remedi. Is she around?”

“No, she isn’t here right now. What for?” I answered her.

“She’s wanted for murder,” she replied and lifted a piece of paper up in the air with Remedi’s face plastered on it.