After a few moments she returned with a bottle of room temperature water in her hand along with a cup of ice for her.
“I hope you don’t mind but the bottled water is warm. I hate cold bottles of water so none are chilled but I can get you a cup of ice if you?—
I cut her off. “No, this is perfect. I drink it the same way.” I accepted the water.
“Okay, well what did you have to talk to me about? You said you had some news?” McKay took a seat next to me, getting straight to business on her cup of ice. The crushing sound had me smirking for a second before I cleared my throat.
“Yeah. Well, I found him.” I presented her with the envelope. McKay wasted no time setting her cup down and opening it.
I watched her intensely while her face went through the process. Her mouth fell open as she tilted her head to the side, squinting before she pressed her lips together. I didn’t have to guess what she saw first. I knew it was the pictures.
“Who is this?” She asked lowly.
“Harlan’s wife.” She gasped and I could see the pain riddled on her face now as she clenched her chest. I waited for McKay to speak, but she didn’t, so I continued.
“This is my guess as to why he just disappeared. I attached a video for further evidence as well as his number and address.”
When I noticed tears had slowly begun to fall, I glanced around for a box of tissue or something. When I came up empty, I got up, going to the kitchen for a napkin. By the time I came back, all the pictures were now laid out on the coffee table.
“Married? How could I not have caught that? What about me and my baby?” McKay dropped her head into her hands and I watched her shoulders buck while her once silent cries turned into sobs.
I re-took my seat, doing my best to console her. I wasn’t used to this part of my job. Once I delivered the package, I left, unaware of the outcome of whatever part I played. This was breaking my heart. I could tell McKay was a good person who’d genuinely fallen for his ass.
“Hey, it’s not your fault. It’s easy to miss signs, especially when he lives with his family four hours away.”
“Family? Oh god!” she choked out, now giving me her red eyes and tear-stained cheeks.
“I think I’m going to be sick.” She shot up, heading to the back of her condo, leaving me sitting there for a minute, unsure of what I should do. I didn’t want anything to happen to her, but I wasn’t sure if I should stay either.
Once I heard her coughing, sounding like she was choking, I moved fast, trying to follow the direction of the noise. I finally made my way to the bathroom where McKay was on her knees, hovering over the toilet. I kneeled behind her, grabbing her hair and rubbing her back. I could tell my presence caught her off guard by the subtle jolt but she relaxed a bit once I started talking to her.
“Here, breathe. Fuck his bitch ass, if he’s the kind of boy to run from his responsibilities it’s best you know now, right? Ain’t no reason to let that nigga knock you off your square any more than he already did. You’re not alone nor will you be. Everything is going to be okay.” I didn’t have kids, but I could never imagine leaving them behind, especially not like this.
Once I was sure she was done, I helped her up. McKay did her best to avoid my eyes while she went to the sink. I headed out of the bathroom to give her privacy.
“Thank you, Burkeley. You can leave now. I’m okay.”
Now that I knew for sure that she was okay, I headed out. My job was done.
Chapter
Eight
McKay
I ran my tongue over my teeth while my leg bounced uncontrollably. This whole scene felt like a repeat of something I had already done, except I wasn’t in Crescent Falls. No, currently I was outside of the house where Harlan lived down in Austin Peaks. I had to be a glutton for pain because there was no need for me to be down here right now. Especially not after all the evidence Burkeley gave me on Harlan, yet here I was. My gut told me I had to see it for myself. Or maybe that was my dumb ass feelings still in the way of practical thinking. It took me two weeks to convince myself to even drive down here to do this.
The sound of my growling stomach sent another loud warning that it was time to feed peanut and I had been here far too long, seeking answers to questions I already had. I rubbed my belly, attempting to calm the baby down. Of course, my baby didn’t care about any of this.
“Baby, I swear Mama’s going to feed you good, just give me a few more minutes.” I snorted at myself, trying to bribe my baby, hating the reason for it even more.
When the rumbles grew louder, I considered giving up until Harlan came out, with the same woman from the video. She was all smiles, oblivious to the fact that her husband was a piece of shit. Once he backed out, I waited a few minutes before I pulled off, following him.
It took us fifteen minutes to get to his destination. He parked and so did I, right next to him. I contemplated whether to get out of the car or not, but before I could make the best decision, my hand was opening my door and my feet were moving toward him. He didn’t even notice me at first.
“Oh my gosh, Harlan, is that you?”
“Mickey?” His tone was cheerful, even, and so gotdamn fake. I was irritated all over again.
