Laura Kaye - Hard As You Can

“Can I see your phone, please?” he asked. She handed it over and, while she watched, he programmed his number in, then called himself so he’d have her number, too. A buzz sounded from his pocket. “Call me if you need me for anything.”

“I will. But if you need to go, go. Don’t worry about me.”

“Okay,” he said, cupping her face and kissing her again. “I won’t be long.” He smiled as he left, shutting the door behind him.

For a few minutes, Sara stood there, staring at the door. The silence and solitude of the room closed in on her. Maybe there was something she could do, some way she could help. Determined, she left the room in search of something or someone who might need her, so she could avoid going crazy.

Sara found Becca sitting alone at the breakfast bar, a pile of stuffing and fabric in front of her. “Did they leave already?” she asked.

Becca looked up and smiled. “Yeah.”

Sara’s stomach growled. After skipping dinner last night, the bagel she’d had for breakfast wasn’t holding her. “Do you mind if I find something for lunch?”

“Of course not. There’s stuff for sandwiches and salads. Cans of soup in the cabinet. Maybe some leftover Chinese.” Becca shifted to slide off the stool.

“No, please. I can get it. Do you want something?” she asked, opening the fridge. All the fixings for sandwiches were right in front, so Sara grabbed those and brought them to the island.

“Actually, yeah. I would, thanks.” Becca matched two pieces of plush fake brown fur together.

Sara tried to figure out what Becca was doing as she made the sandwiches, asking Becca her preferences as she built them. Finally, she settled a plate with a sandwich and some chips in front of the other woman, careful not to mess up her project. “Something to drink?” Sara asked, grabbing a Sprite.

“I’ll have the same, thanks,” she said distractedly.

Sara brought the drinks and slid on to the seat next to Becca. “What are you working on?”

“This used to be a teddy bear, but it got dissected.”

Sara chuckled. “I’ll say. Are you trying to reassemble it?” she asked, wondering if she should offer to help. This was actually something she could be useful for. Sara took a bite of her sandwich and savored the crusty roll, savory ham and cheese, and crunch of the lettuce.

“It was from my dad, so . . .” Becca shrugged and pushed the fabric away as she pulled her plate closer.

“Well, I really love to sew if you want me to take a shot at it,” Sara said. It’d be a great distraction, too. Something to do with her hands while the man she loved put himself in harm’s way to get ready for saving her sister tonight. Where he’d do it all over again.

Becca’s expression brightened. “Really? That would be awesome. What do you sew?”

“I make a lot of our clothes. And occasionally I quilt.”

“Wow. That’s amazing. I’m not very creative,” she said.

As the women ate, they chatted about Becca’s job, Charlie and Jenna, and everything that had happened in the past week from Becca’s perspective. Sara liked Becca’s openness and friendliness, and it made her feel less awkward about being here without Shane. Becca cleaned up their lunch mess and fixed bowls of ice cream, and Sara savored every sweet spoonful. When they were finally done with their leisurely lunch, Becca tidied up while Sara sorted through the parts of the bear.

She could totally put this thing back together. Having something to do made her happy, especially since it was for Becca. “Do you have a sewing kit?” Sara asked.

“A very sad one, yes,” Becca said, pointing to the small tin that included two needles, a thimble, and three colors of thread, white, black, and brown.

Sara chuckled. “I can make that work.” She reassembled the legs first, then attached them to the body. Turning the torso inside out, she sewed the back seam closed, then turned it right-side out again. “Look, I made you a headless bear,” she said.

“Thank you so much, Sara. The poor thing would’ve been deformed if I’d tried to put it together.”

“You’re welcome,” Sara said, smiling. “If you stuff the body, I’ll sew the head back together; and then I’ll just need to reattach it.” Becca dove into the task of stuffing as Sara looked at the fabric for the head. It hadn’t been opened cleanly along the seam, so she’d need to figure out how to hide the tear without puckering the back of the head. She flipped the material around to look at the bear’s face. “Oh, his eye’s loose.” Sara looked closer. “I think this was glued on rather than sewn.”

“I’m sure Nick has glue around here somewhere. Or else I’ll just run to the craft store when all this is over. The biggest thing is that it’s back together again. Thanks to you,” she said, wrist deep in the bear’s body.

A glint of light caught Sara’s eye. She looked at the bear’s face again, not certain what it could’ve been. Holding the material in her hands, she tilted it back and forth. A little flash from the loose eye. Sara held it up to the light. In the depths of the toy eye, there appeared to be a tiny brighter square that caught the light when you held it just right. The middle of the other eye was darker, flatter. “This is strange,” she said, comparing the eyes again.

“What’s that?” Becca said, glancing up from stuffing the arm.

“One of these eyes is different. Almost looks like there’s something in it.”

“What?” Becca said, almost alarmed. “Can I see?” Sara handed it to her, unsure about her reaction, and Becca held it up to the light just as she had moments before. “Oh, my God, Sara. I think you’re right. Come with me,” she said.

Sara followed Becca down the hall to a closed bedroom door. She knocked. A man’s voice welcomed them inside.

“Hey Charlie, up for a chat?” Becca asked.

“Sure,” he said, looking up from a laptop as Becca crossed to a chair. Sara hovered in the doorway. A black puppy lying next to Charlie on the bed raised its head, its tail lazily wagging.

“It’s okay, Sara,” Becca said, waving her into the mostly plain, windowless room.

“I’m really glad to see you doing better, Charlie,” Sara said.

“Thanks,” he said, peering up at her, almost like he was shy. Charlie’s glance shifted to Becca. “What do you need?” he asked, gently swinging his legs off the bed so he didn’t hit the dog, who jumped down anyway.

The dog had three legs, Sara noticed, doing a double take. “What happened to him?”

“Her,” Becca said with a smile. “Eileen. I’m not sure. I found her that way.”

Eileen came over and sniffed Sara’s legs, and Sara couldn’t resist squatting to give her a pet. The puppy apparently thought that was an invitation to play, though, because she whacked at Sara’s hand with her paws and tried to nibble on her fingers. With a last smile at the dog, she rose.

Becca held up the bear. “While you were unconscious, Marz noticed the ID tag on this bear had the number to Dad’s Singapore account on it.” Charlie’s eyes went wide. “So Marz cut it apart, thinking something was hidden inside, but it was empty. Just stuffing. But just now, Sara was putting it back together for me, and she noticed there’s something weird about the eye.” She handed the bear to Charlie.

Frowning, Charlie looked closely at the eyes. “I don’t see anything. But that lamp isn’t very bright. Either of you have a flashlight app?”

“I do,” Sara said, turning the app on and passing Charlie her phone.

“Thanks,” he said. He shined the light in the eyes. First one, then the other. Back and forth several times.

“There’s something in the loose eye,” Charlie said. “It almost looks like a microchip.” A chip for what , Sara wondered, stepping closer.