Knowing that Lina guarded the door to the hall made Kaya feel much safer than if she had been alone. Lina, with her personality, would drop-kick someone before she let them get past her. It would at least give Kaya enough time to escape.
Or so Kaya hoped.
The apartment still felt odd, as though a presence had invaded it and never left. Kaya shivered.
She should get her things and get out as quickly as possible. In the past, moving out of town would have been a plausible option. Not now.
"Where is Kaya? Is she alright?" Jade's voice.
Kaya slammed her suitcase shut and peeked her head around the bedroom doorframe. "Hi."
Jade swept past Lina and straight to Kaya's side, where she wrapped her long arms around Kaya's shoulders. "Thank the heavens, you're okay."
"It was just an intruder. I'm fine." Kaya didn't shake out of Jade's hold, simply because it felt comforting.
Jade planted her hands on Kaya's shoulders as she pulled away. "Are your things packed?"
Kaya nodded.
"Should we leave right away?"
"Hey, I made you tea!" Lina interrupted. "At least have the decency to take a sip before you go."
Kaya shrugged away from Jade's touch. "It's okay, drink some tea. Then we can get going." She backtracked to retrieve her suitcase.
"Oh, don't bother. I've got a helper for that." Jade grinned wickedly. "Kestrel! Come carry Kaya's luggage."
Kestrel? The same Kestrel that Kaya had met at the entertainment agency? What in the world was he doing here, at this hour, with Jade? It couldn't possibly be the same man.
A lie that only survived until Kestrel rounded the corner.
"Oh, so this is the Kaya you were talking about." Kestrel smiled and winked.
"Of course this is the Kaya I was talking about. Stop flirting and get the bag." Jade rolled her eyes and walked away.
Kaya stepped aside and motioned to her suitcase. "That's what she's calling you for."
"Oh, I know. It's more fun to test her temper." Kestrel chuckled.
Kaya couldn't quite place her finger on it, but she definitely detected something going on between those two. Otherwise, would it really make sense for Kestrel to be here right now?
Kestrel snatched up the suitcase. "Do me a favor, will you? If you want to laugh, then laugh. If you want to cry, cry. I'll be a friendly shoulder to lean on, okay?"
"Why?"
It didn't make sense. Why did everyone around here want to help her? No one had ever helped her like this before. No one ever cared. So why these people and why now?
"The Lady Jade means something special to me. You already know that. You're a special friend to her. So, in helping you, I'm helping myself. Don't look into it too far. It's purely selfish."
Kaya nodded, but deep down she had a feeling that Kestrel wasn't quite as self-centered as he wanted the world to believe. Most of his persona was definitely an act.
Right...
"You didn't bring a crazy fan club with you, right?" Kaya had had enough of those to last a lifetime.
Kestrel shook his head. "I shook them off our tail. It's all fine. Let's go." He motioned Kaya to the door first. Something a gentleman would do.
As much as Jade didn't want to like Kestrel, because she swore he was a good-for-nothing moron, Kaya had a feeling there was something entirely different behind his mask.