Obsession

Chapter 29

Dad pulls up to the shopping center next to Hankie's and takes his phone out.

"Who are you calling?" I ask.

"Hi, Daryl? This is Mara's father, Adam Thaxton. We have a little situation here and I was wondering if you could help me out."

"Dad..." I really hope he's not planning on doing anything stupid. Leo's life may be in danger here. Doesn't he understand that?

He explains to Daryl what's going on; the threatening text messages, asking me to meet him and even Kai's little scuffle with Leo earlier today. I have no idea what Daryl is saying or what kind of plan they're putting into motion, but I have a feeling it's going to only make things worse.

After dad ends his call with Daryl, he looks at me and smiles mischievously. "Call your boyfriend and get him to meet you here. We're about to teach ole Kai a lesson."

"What?! No! He threatened to hurt Leo, I can't put him in danger like that!" I protest.

"Trust me on this, baby girl. Leo will want to be a part of it," he says, still grinning like a maniac. "Don't tell him what's going on. Not yet. Just get him to meet you here."

I reluctantly pull out my phone and call Leo like my dad asked me to. I don't want to do this, but I trust my dad knows what he's doing. He's carried out multiple black-ops over the years and has taken down terrorists, drug cartels and countless other criminals during his time with the SEALS.

"Hey, babe," Leo answers. "I was starting to worry about you. What happened earlier?"

"Nothing, it's fine. I was just being paranoid. Hey, I was wondering if you could meet me at Hankie's for dinner."

"Uh, okay? Why Hankie's? That place is kinda gross."

"I don't know, I just had a craving for it."

"Well, okay then. Hankie's it is. What time?" he asks.

"Right now."

"Now, as in right this second?"

"Um-hm," I hum in response.

"Okay. I'll be there in a few minutes."

Dad is watching me when I end the call and put the phone back into my purse. I look up at him and sigh. "Please don't let anything happen to him," I beg.

His evil smirk softens a bit and he palms the top of my head, messing up my hair. "Don't worry, your boyfriend will be perfectly safe. Now here's the plan. You're gonna go in and meet him like you agreed to. After a few minutes, Daryl is gonna send in a couple of patrolman pretending to get coffee. They are just there to ensure nothing stupid happens. Daryl and I will be outside, where we'll hoping this whole thing will end up."

"This whole thing?" I ask, raising a brow.

"That's where your boyfriend comes in. We're gonna fill him in when he gets here, then send him into the restaurant to pretend like he's caught you two together. He goes into a jealous rage and lures Kai into the parking lot where Daryl's waiting to arrest him. He's already in contempt for violating the restraining order. If we can get him to react violently towards Leo, Daryl can have him booked for at least thirty days, maybe even longer."

I sigh in relief. Thirty whole days without Kai sounds too good to be true. I could finally go back to worrying about my mom instead of worrying about what crazy Kai will do next.

"Okay," I say, blowing out a shaky breath. "Wish me luck."

I get out of the truck and start walking towards Hankie's. There's a squad car already pulling into the parking lot, much to my relief. Through the window, I see Kai sitting at the same booth we sat at the night we were here together.