50 Shades of Drake 5 and 6

More Life: Chapter Fifty-Five

    The Richards were given time to pack the most important belongings they'd need for a three-week period. As they packed, fretted, and argued upstairs, everyone else remained downstairs. One agent stood post at the bottom of the stairs while a second agent remained in the family room. They were soon joined by Darius, who'd finally finished his phone calls. An agent briskly updated him on the most recent events.

    Without pause, Darius called to have Destiny's parents added to the flight manifest for the trip from Phoenix, Arizona, to LAX. The agent posted in the family joked that Darius should get the phone permanently attached to his ear. 

    Carlos sat tucked in the corner of the room speaking on the phone with his family. His voice was uncharacteristically quiet as he spoke in Spanish and tried to comfort his family. 

    Aubrey and Destiny sat together, alternating between Aubrey holding her hand to holding her altogether. "Your parents are going to be fine," he'd occasionally assure her. "My security team will coordinate with the FBI and they'll be very protected. I'm just praying that my mom will consider staying with me. I don't know what I'll do if she insists on staying in Toronto."

    "I keep trying to tell myself this is the home stretch," Destiny confessed, "but every time we turn around, Palmer is there with some devious plan. He almost got us this time, both of us. We're only breathing now because of Carlos."

    "We are breathing right now because of Carlos and because of God," Aubrey told her. "You are the purest soul I've ever known. Your soul is so pure, I was concerned about corrupting it. Baby, your light is too bright to go dim now. That is why you're still here. It wasn't your time. It's not your parents' time. It's not my parents' time."

    "It's not your time," she added. 

    "And it's not my time, bitches," Carlos called over to them, covering the speaker of the cordless phone with one hand. Then he resumed his telephone call.

    Destiny shook her head and laughed. 

    "It is the home stretch," Aubrey affirmed. "A month from now, this will all be behind us."

    "Why is that so hard to believe?" she asked, wrapping her arms around his waist and holding onto him. 

    Her parents hauled their luggage down the stairs with Mrs. Richards worrying about the items they forgot to pack.

    "Anything you've forgotten, you'll be given an allowance to have it delivered to my house," Aubrey told her. 

    "I want to ride to the airport with then," Destiny said, peering up at him.

    He stared down at her, his brow creasing. It would've been uncouth to ask her if she was sure. After all, this was her parents she was talking about. She'd gone months without hearing their voices or seeing their faces. Wasn't he the one to express that fact to Darius? Wasn't that how they were even seated in this house in the first place? Yet...the thought of separating from her, even for the short drive to the airport, was unbearable. When his eyes slid over to Darius, he found Darius was already looking at him.

    With an arched brow, Darius prompted, "Yes?"

    "We're going to need another car," Aubrey stated.

    "The second car is on its way."

    "Once it's here, I want to ride with Destiny and her parents," Aubrey requested.

    "Mama," Carlos said into the telephone. "Como se dice 'chopped liver'? Because that's what Aubrey thinks I am, apparently. Chopped liver. No se, es muy estupido."

    Aubrey ignored him, but he could feel Destiny shaking with laughter beside him.

    "With the amount of agents that need to be in each car, riding with Destiny and her parents won't be possible," Darius informed him. "The drive is literally twenty-five minutes."

    "I'm not riding in a separate car," Aubrey said firmly.

    Destiny stilled beside him, and a moment later he felt her eyes on him. "Aubrey."

    "This isn't negotiable," Aubrey said. 

    Mr. and Mrs. Richards exchanged glances. "Well...we can ride with...what was your name, honey?"

    "Chopped Liver," Carlos replied.

    "No, I want you guys in the car with me," Destiny whined.

    Darius pinched the bridge of his nose. 

    Aubrey maintained eye contact with him. "You can drive one of the cars," he said. "I'd ride front passenger. Destiny and her parents in the back seat."

    "Me curled up in the trunk like some piece of discarded luggage," Carlos called over.

    "Carlos and the other agents in the second car," Aubrey finished. "They can tail our car. Keep an eye out for trouble. Stay on a call with you until we reach the airport."

    Darius turned to face his agents. "How many rows does the second car have?"

    "Three, but it's bench seating instead of of the captain seating in the car we drove here in," one of the agents answered readily. 

    "That does give us a bit more room to work with," Darius muttered under his breath. "Alright. One agent and Mr. Graham up front. Destiny and her parents in the middle row. Carlos and another agent at the very back. Everyone else rides in the car we used to get here, which will follow us to the airport. Contact the driver and I'll update the field office."

    The agent did as he was told and called out to everyone, "The second car will be here in twenty. If anyone needs to use the bathroom or grab a snack, now is the time. If you think you may be forgetting something you'll need, now is the time to check for it. In twenty minutes, we're out of here."

    "You really weren't willing to ride in a second car?" Destiny asked Aubrey.

    "I spent months regretting allowing you to go shopping by yourself that day," he said. "That was months of regret, months of wishing I'd taken the time to go with you, months of kicking myself in the ass for leaving you on your own, months of promising that if I ever got another chance with you, I'd never leave you on your own again."

    "That is so romantic and sweet," she said, her voice filled with awe. "But...you run a multimedia corporation and you've returned to music. At some point, I'm going to have to learn how to take care of myself."

    "That's my job," he insisted stubbornly.

    She smiled up at him, her heart filling with even more love for him. "Thank you, Sir."

    Her father cocked an eyebrow, but otherwise no one commented on the formal term of endearment.