No Strings Attached

Chapter Nine

“That’s it babe,” Tori soothed, stroking the back of Shannon’s hand with her fingertips, knowing any more contact than that would probably throw her right back into alarm, “Just breathe, nice and deep... There you go ...”

The room coming back into focus, she saw Jayden approach them from the corner of her eye, and as he reached out a strong hand to bring her to her feet, Tori’s voice whipped out at him softly, “No, babe, let me do it.” And he pulled his arm back, reclining against the wall, feeling helpless, as Tori’s tiny frame shouldered the much taller, willowy figure of Shannon as they came up to sit on the plush satin bedspread.

Shannon never took the bag from her lips, she just kept the steady breathing, and Jayden rushed out to get her a cup of tea, leaving the girls alone.

“What happened Shan?”

Shannon started, her breathing finally normal as she screwed up the paper in her fist and threw it aside, “Sebastienne.”

“What?” Tori blanched, her pale skin falling to a ghostly pallor in just the memory of his name.

“He has my number, he knew where I was last weekend. He’s also trying to track at me like fucking prey.”

She dropped her head into the palm of her hands, still confused as to why exactly he would be calling her now.

But, then again, rational people would call an 0800 number if they were planning to wank down the phone at someone, rather than a stranger they met once and quite obviously scared the shit out of.

“I don’t get it,” Tori muttered, “Why now? It’s been months!”

Shannon shrugged, “Maybe there was just a gap in their diary.”

“No,” Jayden said softly, coming into the room with two mugs of tea, resting them on the coffee table before putting his hands in his back pockets and staring at the floor intensely – his dark hair falling menacingly over his empty stare, “It’s a message. I need to speak to Nate.”

“A fucking message?” Tori stood up to face Jayden, her long fingertip poking into his muscular chest, “You promised me that this wouldn’t affect our lives! You fucking promised Jay!” Tears choked her slender throat as she fisted her hair in her hands.

“Babe,” Jayden implored, his hands reaching out to take her elbows, forcing her to face him, “I ... shit, babe. He won’t get to you here, I promise.”

Bringing her tiny body into the shelter of his own, he stroked the long platinum waves down her slight frame as she trembled in his arms.

“No, Tor, he won’t,” Shannon murmured, her eyes raising up to the two of them, as a sudden thought dawned on her, “He doesn’t know you’re here.”

Tori pulled back from Jayden’s strong arms as much as he’d let her, her face a mask of shock, while Jayden’s shrewd eyes narrowed in realisation.

“She’s right,” he gritted out.

“What are you talking about?” Tori was looking between the two of them frantically, confusion evident on her face.

“Think about it Tor,” Shannon spoke out in a rush, “He’s been in contact after I went to Asylum, and probably pulled the number from the records there. You’ve not been back to Manchester since we moved out of the flat, and when I have, I’ve been on the other side of the city. He thought we’d disappeared.”

Tori gasped in realisation, “Oh my God, you’re right!”

Jayden growled angrily as he punched his fist into the plasterboard wall with a lightning fast strike, “They’ve got someone on the inside,” he roared angrily, “How the fuck did we miss that?”