Guilty of Innocence (Chapter -12)

Nicky paced in front of the TV as Chad and Jared sat on the couch, trying to see the screen around her, but Chad gave up with a sigh when she stopped in front of the screen and glared at them.“We can’t just sit here, Chad,” she snapped, her hands on her hips. “It’s great that the cops are here to help us now, but what are we supposed to do? Sit and wait for Nemo to call again?!”

“Yeah,” Chad shrugged. “We don’t have any other leads, do we? Unless you’ve been holding out on us.”

“Of course not, but all this waiting…” Nicky trailed off as she sighed and stepped toward the couch to sit next to Chad. “What if he’s out there terrorizing somebody else?”

“I doubt it,” Chad muttered, making her look to him with wide eyes. He smirked and wrapped an arm around her shoulders to pull her close and mutter, “It seems like I’m the only one he wants to terrorize right now.”

“It’s not fair,” she murmured into his shirt, lifting a hand to wrap it around his neck. “Why does it have to be you?”

“I dunno, babe,” he murmured. “I wish I did.”

All three jumped when his phone on the table in front of them went off and all eyes stared at it for a moment before Nicky and Jared looked at Chad. He hadn’t taken his gaze off the phone since it started ringing, and though there was a possibility that it was Detective Villa, there was also a possibility that it was Nemo. He swallowed and moved his arm from around Nicky to reach for the phone, but she refused to let go of him, even when he leaned forward to pick up the cell and look at the screen.

“Restricted,” he breathed, making Nicky swallow as Chad answered it and held it to his ear. “Hello?”

“Well, Chad, that was a nice little jog through the gardens, wasn’t it?”

Chad swallowed and lightly patted Jared’s chest with the back of his hand, gesturing to the phone. Jared nodded and reached for his phone as Chad replied, “Yeah…invigorating.”

“What’s the matter, Chad?” Nemo replied, and he could hear the smirk in his tone. “Upset that I didn’t stick around for tea?”

“I’ll find you,” Chad ground out, making Nicky look at him with wide eyes as Jared only remained glued to his phone. “And when I find you, not even the cops can stop me from avenging my parents.”

“You won’t be able to find me this time, Chad. Fool me once, and all that.”

“Figured you’d cover your tracks a little better,” Chad replied. “So let’s cut to the chase. You can pick the time and place, and I’ll meet you there. You can tell me all about your lame reasons for doing this before I kill you or the cops take you in. Think of it as a confessing of sins before you end up in Hell.”

“Oh, Chad, you know I can’t do that. But, I’ll meet you halfway. Tomorrow morning I’ll text you an address. Head there as soon as you get it. No police, though. Bring Jared and Nicky along if you want, but your two detective friends stay out of it. Understood?”

“Yeah, I gotcha,” Chad replied, looking to Jared to see if, by chance the trace had worked. Jared only shook his head, making the older boy sigh and lean back as Nicky stared at him with wide eyes. “I look forward to finally throttling you to death with my bare hands, Nemo.”

“Trust me, what I have in store will be enlightening and surprising when you get there,” Nemo retorted. “See you later, Chad.”

A click from the earpiece signaled he’d hung up and Chad tossed the phone aside on the couch to rub his face with a trembling hand.

“What’d he say?” Nicky breathed, still staring wide eyes at him.

“He’s gonna send me an address tomorrow morning and I’m gonna head there without you guys or the cops,” Chad replied, sighing before he picked up his phone again. “I have to tell Villa.”

“Didn’t he say without the cops?” Jared recalled, pocketing his own phone as Nicky frowned at Chad.

“He said not to show up with them,” Chad replied, dialing Parker’s number. “He didn’t say I couldn’t tell them what’s happened. Besides, I promised Villa I wouldn’t make a move without telling him about it.”

“Hello?”

“It’s Chad,” he replied to Parker’s greeting. “Nemo just called. Said he’s gonna send me an address and I’m to go there tomorrow. No cops.

“Forward the address to me when you get it,” Parker instructed, making Chad frown and stand from the couch to march toward the bedroom.

“Maybe you didn’t hear me right or the sound on your phone isn’t turned up all the way,” Chad snapped, shutting the bedroom door for privacy. “He said no cops. I’m not gonna send you the address so you can show up and make your bust, go it? You said I had to tell you when he made contact and if I was gonna make a move. Well I’m making a move and that’s all you need to know. This guy is mine.”

“And what do you plan to do if he’s there, Chad?” Parker questioned. “No offense to them, but your friends aren’t exactly the best back-up.”

“They’re not coming with me,” Chad replied. “I’m going alone. You hear me, Villa? Alone. I’m not risking losing him again. I’m gonna get my answers without your interference.”

Chad hung up the phone before Parker could respond and sighed as he stepped toward his bag next to the bed and tossed his phone into it before sitting on the mattress and looking to the closed door.

“You can come in now, Nicky,” he called and the door swung open as Nicky marched in before slamming it shut behind her. “Please, shut the door on your way in.”

“I’m going with you,” she snapped. “I’m not gonna sit here to be picked up by the cops so that we can follow you and hopefully find you alive.”

“Nicky, I’m not taking Jared with me, either,” he replied. “Neither one of you is coming with me.”

“Why?” she demanded, marching toward him to stand in front of him as he stood as well. “I know you don’t want us to get hurt, but we’re past that now, don’t you think? Even if you take off tomorrow morning without us, we’ll just follow you like we did when you went to the airport.”

“Without the address, you can’t follow me,” Chad smirked.

Nicky pursed her lips and shoved him back, making him laugh as he fell back onto the mattress and she glared down at him.

“I’m serious, Chad,” she replied. “I don’t care if Jared goes with you or not, but I’m going with you whether you like it or not.”

“And I’m serious, Liza,” he retorted, quickly standing again to loom over her as she stared at him with wide eyes at his tone. “You follow me, I’ll lose you. It’s for your own protection.”

“What exactly are you supposed to be protecting me from, Chad?” she murmured, making him frown in wonder.

“What’re you talkin’ about, Nicky?”

“I’m talking about you pushing me away every chance you get,” she replied, making his frown deepen. “It’s like…you’re protecting me from you, not Nemo.”

Chad’s frown slowly disappeared and he sighed as he sat back down on the edge of the bed. She sat next to him to lean her head on his shoulder as he didn’t move.

“I’m gettin’ dark, Nicky,” he murmured. “And I’m getting way too comfortable with it, too. You saw how I was talking to him out there. It was like I’d been talking like that all my life. I’m afraid…I’m gonna be the one to hurt you, not Nemo.”

He felt the weight of her head leave his shoulder as he stared at the floor, but he was soon looking at the wall at the head of the bed when his head suddenly whipped to the side, pain stinging his cheek. He slowly turned a burning glare to Nicky as she only stared back at him.

“What…the hell, Nicky?” he ground out.

“Hit me back, Chad, I dare you,” she shot back.

“You know I’m not gonna do that. Why the hell did you slap me?”

She suddenly gave a small smile, making him frown in utter confusion as her tone softened when she explained, “To prove a point. You and Nemo are two different people. You’re decent. You would never hurt anyone even if you were provoked. Nemo is a cold hearted killer. You’re not. You would never hurt me and I know it. I just wish you’d realize it.”

Nicky lifted a hand to run it through his hair, soothingly as their eyes met and she smiled, lifting her other hand to smooth it down his cheek.

“I’m sorry I slapped you,” she murmured. “Telling you over and over wasn’t getting to you. I had to get literal.”

“Yeah, well, that literally hurt,” he retorted, lifting a hand to rub his cheek as it still stung. She pouted in guilt before moving his hand and pressing a lingering kiss to his cheek and when she pulled away he gave her a sideways look. “Thanks. That even works for big kids, too.”

Nicky couldn’t help but giggle before leaning her head on his shoulder with a sigh and murmured, “I’m going with you. You know how stubborn I am. Middle-name me all you want, you’re not gonna change my mind.”

“Yeah,” Chad sighed, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “Just wish you’d listen to me once in a while, ya know?”

“Maybe after we’re married,” she yawned, snuggling against him and he scoffed, nervously.

“Right,” he smirked. “Married. Like you’d want my ugly mug for the rest of your life.”

“Well, you make up for your looks with charm,” she smiled and he smirked before spinning around and shoving her back onto the mattress, making her giggle as she looked up at him and he grinned down at her.

“You want some charm now?” he smirked, leaning toward her to press his mouth to her neck, leaving sloppy kisses over her skin and making her wrinkle her nose slightly as she laughed, softly.

“Not at the risk of being too tired to head out in the morning with you tomorrow,” she laughed, pushing him away. “And you’re drowning my skin! Control your spit!”

“I can’t help it,” he chuckled, keeping her pinned as he tried nibbling at her ear. “You make my mouth water.”

“Ew! I’ll admit, that’s a good line, but stop drooling all over me, ya dog!”

They both gave soft chuckles as he pulled away and he smiled down at her as she wiped her neck and ear with her sleeve and he sighed, “Don’t tell Jared you’re coming with me, ok?”

Nicky gave a frown, asking, “You don’t want him to come with us?”

“He’s been quiet,” Chad replied. “I think it’s starting to get to him. I’m gonna tell Villa to try sending him back home. Hopefully Jared’ll just leave and not put up a fight…like you do every time I ask you to do something.”

“Want me to talk to him?” she asked. “He might respond better to a woman’s touch.”

“Whoa, wait a second,” Chad retorted. “You’re not touching him anywhere.”

“I mean, he might find me less intimidating,” Nicky corrected and Chad gave a smirk before nodding.

“Fine,” he smiled. “Maybe he’ll listen to you, too. ‘Cause no one seems to listen to me.”

“Oh, quite complaining,” she muttered, pushing him off of her as they both sat up. “I’ll go talk to him now, then.”

“Fine,” Chad sighed, watching her stand and head toward the door. “Then come back so we can have some fun before bed tonight.”

“You’re a dog,” she sang, heading out the door and he smirked, leaning back on the bed.

Nicky shut the door behind her and sauntered toward Jared as he typed at his laptop. She sat next to him as he quickly closed it, making her frown in wonder as he sat back to watch the TV.

“Whatcha workin’ on?” she smiled and he shrugged glancing at his laptop before turning back to the TV.

“Nothing,” he replied, hesitantly. “Just an…email to my parents.”

“Oh,” she replied, nodding her head hugely. “Cool.”

“Yeah,” Jared muttered, glancing to the bedroom door. “Happy couple?”

“Yup,” Nicky grinned with a huge nod before shifting to face him a little better. “We were talking and…we think it’d be better if you stay here when he heads out tomorrow.”

Jared turned a frown to her in wonder, asking, “Chad doesn’t want me to go?”

“He can tell it’s starting to get to you,” Nicky replied, setting a hand on his shoulder. “To be honest, I can kinda tell, too. You’ve been really quiet lately.”

“Oh,” Jared murmured. “Well…I’ve been taking it all in, I guess. But I don’t think I’m…letting it get to me.”

“Chad just wants to make sure,” she smiled. “Why don’t you sit this one out? You helped him out at the Gardens today, and that was pretty tiring.”

“I was running after Chad,” Jared smirked. “Of course it was tiring.”

Nicky smiled and the two looked to the bedroom door when Chad stepped out and sighed, heading toward the phone for the room.

“I am ordering room service,” he announced as he lifted the phone from the receiver and waving it between them to ask, “What do you guys want?”

“I think I’m going to bed,” Nicky replied. “Nothing for me, thanks.”

“Alright, fine,” Chad sighed, dialing room service. “I’m gettin’ a big, fat, juicy steak. What do you want, Jare?”

“Uh…just a burger, I guess,” Jared shrugged. “I’m actually not that hungry either.”

“I tell you what,” Chad smirked, holding the phone to his ear. “We’ll split the steak. How ‘bout it?”

Jared only nodded before looking to his laptop and opening it to start typing at it again as Chad ordered their food. He glanced at Chad a few times when he thought he was looking at him and only when Chad hung up the phone after the order and headed toward the bedroom, telling the younger boy to help himself when room service came did Jared finally relax and type freely.

He doesn’t want me to go with him.

That’s fine. Just follow the detectives. Stall them. They’ll follow Chad no matter what he told them to do.

Yes, Sir

Meanwhile at the Holiday...

“The kid’s heading for trouble, you know that, right?” Kat questioned as she sat at the dining table in the hotel room, cleaning her standard issue nine millimeter handgun.

“I know,” Parker nodded, as he sat on the couch, doing the same with his own gun on the low main room table. “That’s why we’re gonna follow him tomorrow and make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid.”

“Like try to kill somebody else?” she shot back before blowing sharply down the barrel of her disemboweled pistol.

“He didn’t kill his parents,” he voiced, making Kat shoot a wide-eyed stare at him in disbelief, but he didn’t look away from cleaning a piece of his gun with a small brush.

“What makes you say that?” she wondered, setting her things down on the table, unmoving.

“There were a couple of restricted calls made to the Stiles home a few days before the murders,” Parker reported. “The calls were traced back to Seattle. It’s not much, but it’s something for Chad.”

“They could’ve been wrong numbers,” Kat pointed out, her shock subsided.

“Like I said, it’s not much. But I don’t believe in coincidence.”

“You really like this kid, don’t you?”

“He’s a kid, Kat. A kid who loves his parents so much he wants to avenge their deaths and clear his name. Personally, I want answers, and he’s too young to be part of this game. It’s life or death here, and I think he knows that better than any of us right now…and that’s the sad part.”