The Kingdom Ch. 14

"I'm so, so sorry, Jodie," Katie said, her eyes curling up at me sympathetically. "That should have been me. Not you."

"It's over now," I said with a forced smile.

"I've been so worried," Katie ranted on. "When you didn't return to the suite, I feared the worse. I went back to the market but they said you'd been taken to the emergency clinic. They wouldn't tell me why or what happened, other than that you'd lost consciousness. But when I went to the clinic, the front desk refused to tell me anything. They wouldn't even confirm that you'd been admitted."

"Well, I ended up getting a clean bill of health," I lied, hoping to wrap up the discussion. "All good."

"What did the doctor say?" Katie pressed. "What was the reason you passed out?"

"Dehydration," I lied, saying the first thing that popped into my head. Almost instantly, however, I realized the 5-hour plot hole this explanation made in my story. Obviously, something as minimal as dehydration didn't need a long emergency visit...

"And you know how they are about keeping patients under observation," I added jokingly. "But apparently, I slept for a really long time as well."

Katie suddenly began shaking her head sternly and pursing her lips together. "Those jerks at the market shouldn't be allowed to get away with what they did," she ranted angrily. "Seriously, there has to be some sort of recourse we can get. It should easily earn them a few days in the kennel. Probably longer."

"I'm just glad it's over," I concluded, trying to convey a sense of finality to the conversation

Katie remained kneeling in front of me, not saying anything for a few seconds. "What can I do?" she asked softly.

Staring into Katie's concerned eyes, I couldn't help but feel guilty about how quiet and dismissive I was being towards her. If she truly was an innocent in all of this, she deserved a hell of a lot more reassurance than I was giving her. But I was emotionally wrecked over everything I'd experienced today. Between my episode at the market, Murphy's accusations and plans, and now Alpha's death, it seriously felt like bees were swarming around in my head.

I smiled and shook my head. "Nothing," I replied, taking her hands in mine. "It's just... it's been a really hard day."

Katie nodded before bending over and softly kissing my hand. It was at this moment that I remembered cuts around the edges of her wrists. The ones that came about from the zip-ties that Roger had restrained her with at the market.

Lifting her hands up, I winced as I took a closer look at the bright red cuts. Thanks to the precipitation outside, the cuts still looked fresh, and hadn't formed scabs yet. "Ouch," I said softly. "That looks painful."

"Oh, I'm fine," Katie said dismissively. "Tis but a flesh wound," she added jokingly in a terrible British accent.

"Actually," I said, standing to my feet with the towels still wrapped around me, "I picked something to help with that on my way back." As I walked over to where Katie had placed the tote bag, my heart began to race.

"Aw," Katie replied. "That was sweet of you."

I ignored her, suddenly feeling overcome with shame and second thoughts. Sitting at the top of the bag, I quickly located the Antihistamine tablets and stowed them in my pocket. Next item to be pulled from the bag was the small bottle of Antiseptic skin care that I'd replaced with peach juice.

In a full 180 decision, I was officially about to perform an induced allergy test on Katie without her knowledge or consent. As I walked back over to her, I began to unscrew the bottle's cap. This was easier said than done, given the fact that my hands were now trembling.

Sitting back down on the chair in front of Katie, I placed the cap on the end table beside me and pulled one of the towels off of my shoulders.

"Thanks for thinking of me," Katie said smiling. "You really are the best."

I said nothing as I carefully dipped the corner of the towel into the bottle. My heart was now pounding out of my chest. I couldn't believe I was doing this. I officially felt like the world's shittiest person. What had happened to me? I was effectively poisoning this girl while she thanked and complimented me for doing it...

"This may sting a little," I lied in a shaky whisper.

Holding Katie's left wrist, I lifted the towel with my other hand and inched the peach-juice soaked corner of the towel towards her exposed cut. I held my breath as I made contact, dabbing the wound lightly from left to right.

Katie remained silent as I finished and moved on to her other wrist. Dipping the towel back into the liquid, I repeated the process of lightly dabbing the fresh cut on her adjacent wrist. The only thing that made me feel slightly better about all of this was the reality that each cut couldn't have been longer than an inch wide. I silently prayed that this would only cause the tiniest of reactions.

"All done," I said, avoiding eye contact with her. Tossing the towel back over my shoulder, I quickly grabbed the bottle and lid off of the end table beside me and screwed it tight. "Once that dries, I've got some Band-Aids."

Just then, Katie craned her head upward and surprised me with a kiss on my lips. I had honestly never felt more conflicted in my entire life. Not wanting to hurt Katie's feelings, I returned her kiss. Not passionately, but enough to show my appreciation. Damn, I was a piece of shit, I thought to myself. Seriously, I thought to myself. This must be what a actual piece of shit feels like.

After a few more seconds, I broke off the kiss and stood up. "I'll be right back," I whispered, putting the bottle into my pocket. "Gotta use the bathroom."

"Okay," Katie replied obliviously with a smile.

I needed space. I needed time by myself. I had no idea how long it would take for Katie to have her allergic reaction, but I didn't trust my abilities to communicate casually until that happened. Even a stranger could have deduced that I wasn't behaving normally. Fortunately, Katie didn't show any signs of suspicion. But, then again, that could have just been because she was so nice...

Closing the bathroom door behind me, I leaned with my back against the door and slid to the floor. Please don't let Katie's reaction be severe, I prayed silently. Please don't let her be lying. Between the two possibilities, I was honestly not sure which outcome I preferred. If she was hurt, I could always rush her back to the clinic. But if she didn't react at all... that meant she was one of the bad guys. And then what?

As I sat on the floor, I pulled out my phone and googled how long this sort of test was supposed to take. After only a few seconds of research, I learned that its medical name was an "intradermal allergen test" and they could take anywhere up to 15 minutes. I sighed and let the back of my head thud into the door. Clearly, I had some time to kill.

I spent the next 10 minutes looking at various pictures of allergic reactions and researching the appropriate medical action. I could hear Katie futzing around in the kitchen, but every so often, there would be a period of silence, prompting me to press my ear against the door out of concern. To my relief, it was never long before I heard her humming to herself, opening and closing a cabinet door, or starting the drying machine.

Roughly 13 minutes into my hiatus, I decided I couldn't wait any longer and stood to my feet. The suspense of learning the truth about Katie was literally killing me. It felt similar what I imagined cancer patients must feel as they sit in the doctor's lobby awaiting their test results.

To maintain appearances, I flushed and then proceeded to run the water in the sink as if I were washing my hands. Then, I took a deep breath and exited the bathroom. My heart raced as I reentered the great room, unsure of how the next couple seconds would play out.

"Hey you," Katie said smiling from behind the kitchen counter. She held out a mug and asked. "How 'bout some coffee?"

I forced a smile and approached her. "Thanks," I replied softly. As I approached her, I tried to look at Katie's wrists, but they were hidden beneath the sleeves of the robe that she was now wearing. Taking the mug from her, I pretended to take a sip.

"Why don't you take your clothes off so I can toss them into the dryer with mine," Katie suggested. "I grabbed you another robe from the closet."

"Um... sure. Good idea," I replied, trying to respond how I normally would. Placing the mug onto the countertop, I began to remove my jacket and my waterlogged boots. It felt awkward undressing in front of Katie. Just the night prior, the two of us had made passionate love, but over the course of 15 hours, quite a lot had changed.

Eager to fill the silence, I asked, "So, how was the spa?"

Katie finished taking a gulp from her mug of coffee before replying, "It was amazing. I mean, I cried for probably the first hour and a half, but once I got settled down, it was really nice. Got my nails done." Katie suddenly held out her hands over the island counter showing off her freshly painted burgundy nails.

This was my moment to look at her wrists. To see her allergic reaction or lack thereof. Heart pounding, I stepped forward and took her hands in mine.

"Very pretty," I mused. After a few seconds, I turned her hands over palms up to reveal her wrists. What I saw next caused all the blood to instantly drain from my face. Nothing. There was no swelling, no irritation, no discoloring, no sign of anything abnormal. Absolutely nothing...

I dropped Katie's hands and lifted my gaze to her. Clearly sensing a problem, the smile on her face vanished and was immediately replaced by an expression of concern.

"What's wrong?" she asked. I continued staring at her, feeling my breathing grow faster. "Jodie?" she probed.

"Why have you been lying to me?" I asked in a low voice.

Katie's eyes grew twice her normal size and mouth dropped. "What?" she asked

"Your allergy," I clarified. "Why'd you lie about it?"

"Why did I lie about what?" Katie asked, looking completely bewildered. "Jodie, what are you talking about?"

"You're not allergic to peaches." I said forcefully. "Tell me why you lied."

Katie's mouth hung open, clearly lost for words.

"Why?!" I yelled, making her flinch.

"I- I didn't make it up," Katie stammered. "I am allergic to peaches. I swear."

"Bullshit," I replied, stepping around the counter towards her.

"Jodie, I- I don't understand," she said looking frazzled. "You saw me in the clinic. You were there when the doctor came. How- how could make something like that up?"

"Let's pretend you are actually allergic to peaches," I placated her loudly. "How allergic are you, exactly?"

Katie looked distraught. "Jodie, where is this coming from?!" she asked.

"Is it only you eat them?" I pressed forward condescendingly. "Or is it one of those severe allergies that restricts the entire plane from eating peaches?

"It's extremely severe," Katie contended. "Even the smell could send me into anaphylactic shock."

I stuffed my hand into my pocket and pulled out the bottle filled with peach juice. Slamming it on the counter, I countered, "Then why the hell aren't you horizontal right now?!" Katie blinked in confusion, staring at the bottle. "This is peach juice, Katie!"

With a horrified expression, Katie looked back up at me. Grabbing her wrists, she reacted aggressively for the first time. "You... you poisoned me?!" She asked.

"Clearly not!" I shouted back. "Because, look at you! Healthy as a horse! Not even a hint of a reaction!"

"That- that could have killed me!" Katie responded, her face turning rapidly from hurt to outraged.

"Yeah, well, I guess it's a good thing you're not allergic to peaches, huh?!!" I screamed at her. I was fuming. My heart was pounding out of my chest and my ears felt as if they were on fire.

"I can't believe you did that," Katie whispered, her eyes filling with tears.

"Oh, save the theatrics!" I said spinning and storming away from her. "I see through it all now! I know everything!"

"What- what does that mean?!" Katie challenged.

"Everything! I know that your profile listed no allergies at the time of the auction! I know that it was altered to include peaches only after you were taken into Murphy's custody! I know that you and Annabelle met with Murphy in her office before the auction and advised Murphy to outbid me!" I spoke quickly, listing off the items one after the other. Spinning back to face her, I concluded, "And I know that the three of you accurately predicted that I would do whatever it took to get you back!"

Katie shook her head from side to side, tears rolling down her cheek. "That's not how it happened," she pleaded in a broken voice.

"I don't believe you!!!" I shrieked, using my hands as props. "You said it yourself! If you were so allergic, then the juice in this bottle should've killed you!!" Katie was breathing heavily now. "So, why are you still standing?!!"

Katie opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

"Why?!!" I screamed again, making her flinch.

"Maybe- it wasn't really pea-" she suggested quietly before I interrupted her.

"Oh come off it!!" I countered. "I got it straight out of a can of peaches!! It's been over 15 minutes and nothing's changed! How do you explain that?!!"

Katie blinked, shaking her head. "I-I," she stammered in almost a whisper.

"Of course you can't explain it!" I shot back. "Because you've been lying to me from the get go!!" Katie's face was now red and covered in streak marks from her tears. As angry and hurt as I was, seeing her cry only caused my eyes to well up with tears as well. "Annabelle needed someone to spy on me and you were her in!!"

"No," Katie whispered, still shaking her head.

"Every word, every syllable I uttered in front of you was transmitted directly to Annabelle's laptop!" I yelled.

"Jodie-" Katie tried to interject.

"And you were ordered to keep me talking! Is that how worked?!" I asked.

"I swear to you- I didn't plan any of this," Katie said softly.

"So, Annabelle was the brains and you just went along with it?!" I asked, persistently.

Katie buried her face in her hands and began to sob.

"Is that what you're saying, Katie?!" I pressed her. "Does that sound about right, Annabelle?!!" I directed towards her collar, leaning towards her.

Katie wailed into her hands and sat onto the stool next to the kitchen island. I looked away, desperate to chase away my empathetic tendencies. I couldn't afford to be suckered any more than I already had. No matter what feelings I may have had for her, this girl was my enemy. Someone not to be trusted under any circumstances.

"I promise you," Katie said breathily between sobs, "What you're saying isn't true. I would never do those things."

I shook my head and replied. "I wish I could believe that." Katie continued to ball and I continued to embrace my inner heart of stone.

"I trusted you," I added, hearing my voice crack. Katie lifted her face from her hands to look at me but said nothing. For a moment, we both just stared at the other, each searching for words left unsaid. Eventually, I broke the silence.

"I'd like for you to leave," I said softly.

Katie's eyebrows raised.

"This is over, Katie," I reiterated, shaking my head. "It's time we all stopped pretending and went back where we belong."

Still crying, Katie tilted her head, clearly unsure of what I meant.

"Once you're back in the custody of the kennel, I'll be leaving the Kingdom," I said, looking down at the floor. Even as I said it, I had difficulty believing it. It was almost as if I was listening to someone else say the words.

Katie's buried her face once more into her hands and resumed sobbing. I bit my lower lip to prevent myself from joining her. I couldn't believe this was happening. After the connection I'd felt with her, after our history of having each other's backs and bailing each other out of trouble, and now after the intimate night we'd shared together... I just... never imagined it would all end like this...

After another minute of crying, Katie mopped her face with her hands and stood to her feet. Quietly, she walked over to the laundry machine, dropped her robe to the floor, and began dressing herself back into her damp clothing and shoes.

Stepping back over to me, she said, "I wish you the very best, Jodie." Her voice was horse and sounded barely louder than a whisper. "I really do."

I forced myself to look away as tear rolled down my cheek. Once it became clear to Katie that I was not responding, she walked past me toward the front door. Every fiber of my being wanted to call after her. To stop her. To sit her down and talk things through from the beginning. To find a hole in my accusations and fill it with misplaced trust. But I knew I couldn't allow myself to do it. I recognized how irresponsible it would be to choose heart over head. This break was simply unfixable.

The moment I heard the door click shut, I felt my heart of stone shatter into a million pieces. I couldn't ever recall such a devastating goodbye. No breakup from my past had ever felt quite as horrible. Collapsing onto the stool next to the one Katie had occupied, I began to cry. Not as hysterically as she had, but still plenty distraught.

I continued crying for some time thereafter until I was finally able to reel in my emotions and pull myself together. Standing up, I walked over to the sink and blew my nose loudly into a paper towel. Time to blow this joint.

Just then, I felt my phone buzz. Pulling it out, I saw a new notification at the top of my screen. It read:

Message from The Kennel:

PROBATIONARY STATUS FOR KATIE HUFF HAS BEEN REVOKED. REMANDED TO KENNEL AT 5:01PM.

Not wanting to risk restarting the waterworks, I quickly moved to turn the screen off. But just before my finger touched the power button, my eye caught two more notifications beneath the Kennel's that I'd obviously missed from earlier. Both were from Eric. Tapping on the top notification, it expanded to read:

Message from Eric Chei:

Finished the sweep and the suite's clean as a whistle. No bugs discovered. Oh- a woman came by and dropped off...

Swipe down to read more

...a delivery for you. I left everything in the entry hall closet.

P.S. I ran out of time to swim. Just know that I WILL be taking a rain-check ;)

Delivery? I wondered. My eyes glanced down the entry hall toward the closet. I'd honestly forgotten the closet was even there. But more importantly, why was I getting deliveries and who was it from? Stowing my phone in my pocket, I walked over and pulled the door open.

What I saw next nearly caused my jaw to drop to the floor and my skin to turn ice-cold. Propped against the side of the closet were my bags of purchased clothing as well as the infamous, hard-shelled suitcase. The one that Alpha had lost his life trying to apprehend from the Trading Post.

Feeling my anxiety rapidly returning to me, I slammed the closet door shut, staring wide-eyed straight ahead.

"Holy fuck!" I said out loud. Taking a deep breath, I slowly reopened the door and studied the large suitcase for several seconds. You have GOT to be kidding me, I thought.

On top of the suitcase was a manila envelope with a pink post-it note. I picked up the envelope and began reading the neat cursive handwriting: