Tethered Souls | Books 1, 2, and 3

40 | Face-off

━━─── • ───━━

• Amir •

There were moments in Amir's life when he expected certain events to happen, and there were certain events in his life that made him feel anxiety coursing through his body. His blood pressure went through the roof as he overheard Chase speaking somewhere in the distance. 

He couldn't pinpoint where his sound was coming from, and the only thing he could focus on was staring him down face-to-face. He wanted to mess his life up just as he had with Luna, and he'd been anticipating this face-off for months. 

While stepping around a large SUV in the pitch-black parking lot, Amir quietly came across a tall shadow in what appeared to be an alley. He then heard Chase speaking instinctively on the phone in hushed tones.

"How did that happen?" Chase screamed, stomping his foot. Amir stood in the back and peered over at him, silently listening to Chase's conversation. "Okay. But what are you going to do about it?" 

His voice was grave and deep, and he sounded like he was ready to fight somebody. Amir knew someone he could fight with. Him. 

"Okay. Okay. I don't care what needs to be done, just clean it up!" Chase yelled. "And what's happening with Ellis? I need the progress report. Now!" 

"Chase?" a soft female voice muttered from the other side. Chase snapped his phone closed and looked up to meet the woman's eyes. "Is everything okay?" 

"Yeah. Just work stuff. What are you doing out here?" 

He walked up to her and hugged her waist.

"My father wanted to know if you were staying here for the night. He can get you a room set up," the woman told him. 

"No." Chase loosened his hold on her and stepped around her side. Amir could tell he moved on from Luna, but he shouldn't be paying for her to stay inside the hospital. The ex-fiancé should let her go. "I'm heading back to Phil and Lacey's house later." 

When the woman stepped under the bright light, Amir could see her bright red hair and slim figure. She looked to be in her early twenties and was the same woman from Luna's memories, the woman she caught him in bed with. 

"Sure." 

"Thank you for everything," he told her. "When I go to St. Matthew's tomorrow, I will see Luna. She won't see me, but I'll see her, and then somehow I'll get her alone. Wait for my signal and shoot the fireworks from the rooftop. Luna can see them from her room window. I made sure she had a good room." 

Amir saw a smug smile on his face, and Chase was damned if he will try to see Luna alone. Not while he was there. 

"Whatever you want, Chase." The woman leaned close to him and softly kissed his lips. Then the two engaged in a hot lip-lock, and Amir gagged in his hiding spot. 

Accidentally touching a car with his hand, an alarm blared, exposing him. Crap. 

Chase and the woman separated as he paced quickly through the alley and yelled, "Who's there? I know somebody is out there."

Amir gradually slid out of his spot and made it look like he was tying his shoelaces. Chase walked right in front of him, his eyes staring down as his face was devoid of any emotion; just a blank stare. 

"Sorry," Amir said. "I was going to the coke machine." 

The alarm stopped beeping once the owner fiddled with their keys from a window.