Kristina opened her eyes, trying to focus in on Sarah’s face. "Sarah?"

"I’m right here."

"I didn’t mean to hurt you" she whispered.

Sarah’s mouth formed a small but sincere smile as she said, "I know."

Howie returned with the glass of water and stood beside Sarah, not sure of where his place was in this whole mess. He was worried about Kristina but he knew by the look she had given him earlier that she was angry with him. He had messed up by not being honest with her and he knew that later on he would have to answer for it.

Sarah stood and touched his arm gently. "I’m sorry. It was just such a shock to see her walk around that corner and I had so many emotions swirling inside my head at once. I know that you love her. It’s obvious. You were only doing what you thought was right and I’m sorry for snapping on you like that."

"It’s okay, Sarah. I can understand the shock and the anger too. I went through something similar when I found out she was alive. It’s funny how your heart reacts to news like that, too many emotions hitting you all at once and you suddenly spin out of control."

"I need a drink," Kristina said as Howie sat down beside her and held the glass to her lips. After a few minutes her color returned and she sat up on the couch, looking back at the three faces staring at her.

Each of them were silent, glancing from one another to the floor, not sure what to say or how to move forward. Finally, Kris spoke, surprising all of them. "Well, isn’t this a fine mess?" she smirked.

"I’ll say" AJ laughed as he looked at her and winked.

"Age, you and Sarah showed up over here wanting to tell me something important. What has you two so spooked?" Howie asked anxiously.

"Stephen called me tonight," Sarah said as she looked directly at Kristina. "He was watching me."

Howie felt Kristina tense as Sarah spoke. "How do you know that he was watching you?" she asked.

"When Alex pulled up to get me, he made a comment about ‘my tattooed boyfriend’. I looked around, but I didn’t see him anywhere."

The need to protect Kristina kicked into high gear as Howie scooted closer to the edge of the sofa. "And so you two drive right on over here so that he’ll know where I live? That’s just great! Why don’t you just give him a loaded gun and ask Kris to stand in front of him?"

"Wait a minute, ‘D’" AJ said defensively. "Do you think I’m that stupid? I love Kris too and I wouldn’t put her in danger. After we left, we drove around for a LONG time making sure that we weren’t being followed. And if you would have had your cell phone on, I could have called you instead of showing up over here, unannounced!"

"Look, we are ALL upset for several reasons, and I know that I snapped first, but can we just get to the point at hand without killing each other? Stephen is here. Stephen knows that I warned Howie and he’s pissed at me. He still wants revenge and on top of everything else, he knows that Howie’s girlfriend is blonde. What he doesn’t know is that Kristina IS that girl and that she is alive. If he finds that out, we will ALL have hell to pay!"

Kristina stood up quietly and walked to the kitchen and poured a glass of wine. Quickly she gulped it down and poured another. Sarah watched her quietly, having never seen her like this before. Of course, her best friend was different now. Not only did she look different but she acted different too. How could she not? Stephen had damn near killed her and she had been on her own for the last year and a half.

Howie followed her, taking the glass from her hand. "You aren’t feeling well and this wine is NOT going to help. Come sit and let me hold you. I promise, it’s going to be fine."

Kristina wanted to argue with him. She was angry. Angry with him for not telling her about Sarah’s visit and angry with him for not telling her that Stephen was in town, but she loved him and despite that, she knew that he was trying to protect her. And much to her dismay, he was right about the wine too. She definitely didn’t feel well and she knew that the wine probably wasn’t a good idea. Reluctantly, she joined him on the sofa.

"How does he know that you warned Howie and how does he know about me?" Kris asked.

"Obviously he’s been watching me since I got into town. The fact that he knows Howie has a girlfriend and that she’s blonde, I couldn’t tell you. I DO know this much - If he had known that it was really YOU, he would have had PLENTY to say to me. He made it clear that he has ways of knowing who I’m with and that I’ve been disloyal. He threatened to do the same thing to me that he did to you for that very reason" Sarah said as she shuddered.

"Do you have a picture of him that I can have, Sarah?" Howie asked.

Sarah reached for her purse and began to dig through it. "I think so. Why?"

"Yeah, why do you want a picture of him ‘D’?" AJ asked.

"I am hiring extra security for the club and to hang out here at the house. If he knows where the club is, then sooner or later he’s going to find this place. I want to make sure EVERYONE is aware of what he looks like."

"But, you don’t know for sure that he knows where the club is. Just because Sarah showed up there, doesn’t mean he will."

"He already has" Howie said as he glanced at Kristina, hoping against all odds that she wouldn’t be pissed. He was wrong.

"What? When?" Kristina asked as she glared at him in disbelief.

"Last night. That’s why John called me. He wanted to warn me."

"And the police? What was that REALLY all about?" she asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"The private investigator that I hired was found murdered a few days ago. His throat had been cut and he had been severely beaten. They found my file in his car and they came here to find out what I knew. I think it was Stephen."

"Oh my God" Kristina, Sarah and AJ all said simultaneously.

Kristina was livid. She quickly moved away from him and went to the bedroom to change her clothes, slamming the door behind her. A few minutes later, while they all discussed the murder of Mr. Mercado, she returned dressed in a pair of blue jean shorts and a white T-shirt.

"Are you okay?" Sarah asked as the three of them glanced up at her.

"NO, I’m not!" she said as she shot Howie an angry look. "I’ve got to get out of here."

"Kris..." he started, but it was too late. She had walked out the door and slammed it behind her.

"Aren’t you going to go after her?" Sarah asked.

"No. She’s angry with me and if I follow her it will only make things worse. When she needs to think, she heads to the beach. The only way to salvage ANY of this night is to let her cool down for a while."

Sarah looked at AJ who shrugged his shoulders and then back to Howie. "Well, you two can sit here, but I’m going after her."

"Sarah, Howie’s right. Let her go" AJ said as he reached out and took her by the wrist.

"Alex, unless you want me going back to the hotel for the remainder of my stay, you better let go of me right NOW. Kris and I need to talk and I’m going whether you like it or not."

With that, she was out the door and headed to the beach in search of Kristina.

Chapter 67       Index