No Pain: Book 1

Chapter 38: Najee

          Star knows what she's doing, she's the leader here, she always has good plans but there's something nagging at me. Something doesn't feel right, something hasn't felt right since we left Star.

It didn't make sense to leave her to begin with. She was the one that had the information, like she always does. She always knows how to get what she's looking for and she's never backed herself into a corner before.

Why did I leave her?

I can't come up with a good answer other than that I was ordered to. It just doesn't make sense. I know Star, I know she'd never get herself stuck. She's better than any of us.

"This is your office Mr. Sikh." The man stumbles over the name. Kader goes out of his way to do this stuff giving me a Punjabi name. I'm not even Punjabi.

"Thank you." I say distractedly. Star is at the forefront of my mind. The boss was really strange about it too. That's why we had to push her away. Something's wrong. She was set up or something. The boss was getting annoyed of her disobeying him but she's always gotten the job done.

If anything, she got it done better. She saved more people, she was one hundred percent dedicated to the job. For the boss to order us to leave her just doesn't make sense.

"Mr. Sikh, the staff is gathered to meet you." The man is older, a well-groomed lapdog. I nod and follow him out but I can't shake the feeling, something here is wrong. I trained Star to rely on her instincts above all else, I'm not about to ignore my own advice.

***

Cooking is easy, soothing even. I always loved cooking. John and I used to do it all the time. I can't help but feel a little annoyed with John. He and Star got much closer than I thought they would but John is good like that. Honest in ways that I can't be with her, innocent in ways I don't think I ever was. Star is mine, the same way that I'm hers. We've always just fit, always understood each other, confide in each other. But the way she was so reluctant to say goodbye to John is messing with me too.

"Be careful," John says smiling at Star before pulling her into a hug. Star doesn't hesitate, like she normally does, when other people give her attention. Instead she embraces him and squeezes him. I can just barely hear her.

"Guess I'll see you soon." She sighs. I can hear the nerves in her voice, she doesn't want him to leave. He's still smiling, completely oblivious to me. Star has the effect though. Her trust is hard to earn, but she's loyal and she's worth the effort.

I look away, I can't stand watching her be so comfortable with someone else, least of all my brother. Someone I can't even be mad at, someone I can't hurt.

"I'll meet you at the airport when this is all over." John promises her.

"If we succeed." Star says, ever the optimist. I roll my eyes at her.

I open my mouth to assure her but John takes her chin in his hand and looks into her eyes.

"I know you will."

"You can read me, not see the future." Star rolls her eyes at him but she's still smiling.

"Hopefully the future is lucky enough to be what I see in your eyes," John says. To anyone else it might look like John is flirting with her but he's just being himself, an honest soul reader. Star finally steps away from her, she's looking at the ground, behind him, anywhere but his eyes and there's a flush of red tinting her cheeks. She looks even younger when she's blushing.