Final Curtain

Mel's POV

I stared at my Samsung like it was an evil killing machine.

Since last night my insides hadn't stopped squirming. So many questions but no answers.

I tapped my pencil on a blank page, destroying the sharpened edge.

"I'm here, what's going on?" I lifted my eyes as Anna sat down, bag on her lap. She was disgruntled like she'd just run ten blocks.

"Did you run here?"

Anna gave me a 'are you stupid' look.

"No. I didn't run. I can't, I'm reduced to jogging. Very slowly." I clamped my mouth, eying her leg. It hurt when she pushed herself. "You said it was urgent. Sounded like you'd stumbled upon a government conspiracy." My eyebrow arched. "Too much to read…" She shook her head.

A part of me wanted to keep this from her. I didn't want to drag Anna into another whirlwind of worry and danger, especially when she'd taken on a normal life. But keeping Nate in the dark was risky, I needed someone's help. Aric was out of question, he'd vanished soon after we settled in New York.

Couldn't say that one didn't sting.

"It is urgent," without further explanations I slid my cell phone across to her. "Read the text message to yourself." I warned when she tapped the screen.

Anna's lively forest eyes had seemed sleepy, now they were wide. She took an intake breath before looking up at me.

"What the hell's this?" She whispered leaning over the table.

"A hell I can't escape from?" I sighed, pinning my hair back. "I don't know, I have no idea where it came from. It arrived yesterday night. I was expecting a SWAT team to invade my apartment."

"A SWAT team is a little too much." I gave her a pointed glare. "You're right that's not what matters right now… Who else did you show this to?" Was she serious?

"Huh, let's see…" I opened my palm counting my fingers. "The old couple living in the ninth floor, the guy at the hot dog stand—oh, Marcie our waitress—who do you think I showed it to?" I deadpanned with an upset hiss.

Anna blew out a sigh.

"Mel, calm down, I didn't mean it like that. I wanted to know if you showed it to Nate?"

I leaned back on my coffee shop chair.

"Do I have a stamp on my forehead saying I didn't?"

"You didn't?" She hissed. "Why wouldn't you? He needs to know this. He's not the only one…" She muttered and I knew she was thinking about Aric.

"I know that, I know…" I'm sure I was looking as desperate as I felt. "But… I was hoping if I didn't tell him it would go away. Maybe if I ignored it, it wouldn't be a big deal. I'm sick of danger in my life, Anna. I honestly thought everything was over when you turned in the flash drive, but coming back here and seeing Pacey everyday waiting for the moment when he asks me about the last time I saw Parker… it's a lot to handle. I keep praying that he doesn't ask... 'cause if he does… I'm not sure what will happen—" Her hand landed on mine. She patted it a few times until I heaved a breath.

"I get it, Mel. You're right, you never asked for this. You deserve your life back—"

"You all do." I interjected, she smiled softly.

"Tell you what," Anna began. "If no other text message comes you never have to share this with Nathaniel. It might not be anything." She didn't really believe her words. "For now, we'll focus on Pacey. I'll help you with what you should tell him, okay?" I nodded faintly. "Good." She smiled a bit more brightly. "I'm here for you, girlfriend. You can always count on me, 'kay?"

"I know." I breathed honestly. "What about Aric, should I tell him? I'm not sure he wants anything to do with us since he up and left without saying anything…"

Anna blinked, her shoulders flexed a little with palpable tension—it happened every time Aric was mentioned—then she shrugged adopting a much more uncaring expression.

"Yeah, I don't know. He hasn't said anything." She shrugged, gazing around quickly.

"He called last night." She jumped in her seat. I couldn't be sure if what I saw was surprise or relief. "It was three in the morning and he called Nate. Nathaniel said he wanted to say 'hi' and check if everything was alright—he didn't say a word about where he was." I finished and something hardened in her eyes.

My guess was that Anna was as sad as I was with him, maybe even a little furious. I felt used to be honest, Aric got what he wanted and the minute he did, he was gone. But I missed him, too.

I wasn't sure how Anna and Aric had left things between them but I could only guess it wasn't good.

"Figures… that idiot…" She gritted in a moment's weakness.

To spare her further curses at him, I changed the subject.

"So, what am I going to tell Pacey?"

A little grin took over her face.

"The truth." I swear I nearly fell from my chair. "Relax, not that truth. You're going to talk about the last time you saw Parker. You can tell Pacey, Parker seemed frustrated with a girl—because let's face it, he loved working. He made the school's honor board more than once. So, you can't tell Pacey he was sick of College." Anna was right about that one. "You said you went there to get a few CD's?" I nodded.

"But I didn't bring them…" I bit my lip. "It was the first time I saw—" I stopped myself since we were back at Aric. I rolled my eyes a little. "It was when I met Aric and he scared the crap out of me." I explained, recalling how secretive my half-brother had been.

"Not a problem. Parker was a little of a slob, say you went in and couldn't find anything in the mess." I felt guilty for agreeing with her.

"What if I give myself away? We both know I'm not a great liar."

"But you won't be lying per se. You'll just be mixing true facts with some fiction." Her arm stretched to the side.

"Yeah… I guess…" I still felt nervous on the inside.

"Great !" She cheered. "Now, we should be going. Campus is fifteen minutes away and I have Marketing in five minutes." Anna sighed dismayed.

I chuckled.

"Believe me, it can't be worse than art history with an the reincarnation of Julius Cesar." I wrapped an arm over her shoulders as we exited the café. "Thanks," she glanced at me out of an eye corner. "For putting up with me."

"It's a tough job, but someone has to do it."

***

By the time Ms. Halden got the portrait I'd drawn of Nate, I'd perfected it to the max. I hadn't been able to tell if she liked it. I was still wondering about it when I walked down Dodge Hall's steps.

I rubbed my arms in order to get warmer. September had been nice and cozy so far, today cold came out to play.

"Wanna borrow my jacket?" At first I thought it was Pacey sneaking up on me, but when I lifted my eyes I didn't see dark irises.

Daniel Grayson's caramel eyes glinted naturally and while he smiled with that million dollar smile, I stared him over, from the golden curls to the designed muscles pulsing beneath the expansive shirt.

"Cat caught your tongue?"

"Huh," I blinked shaking my head. "No," I answered feeling stupid. "And no I don't want your jacket, why would I?" Half of me was afraid Nate showed up. I didn't need a jealousy scene, especially when it was totally uncalled for. Daniel wasn't interested in me and I certainly wasn't into him.

"You look cold." He shrugged glancing around. "It's Melissa, right?" I nodded, he smiled. "Have you seen Anna?"

I shook my head.

"I just got out from class—I think she was having Marketing." I gathered my wits and tried to walk past him to get to my car—the car Nate hated because it was a Ford—so I could get home and eat.

Hopefully, Nate had fixed his banking problem and bought food. I should buy a muffin or something on my way home, just to be safe.

"I've looked there and she'd already bailed."

Did I look like a Anna GPS?

"Why don't you call her?" I was trying to be polite, but between my hunger and the stress from wondering when Pacey was going to pop up was making me cranky.

Daniel whirled around standing in front of me. Did he think that smile bought him everything? Because he was still wearing it, I was darn close to wipe it off. It was… fake. At least that's what it felt like. Of course it could be the famished wolf in me talking, looking for a reason to get him off my tail.

"I tried that. She didn't answer."

"Okay, Grayson—" I exhaled sharply when he cut me off.

"Daniel."

"Daniel," I dragged. "I'm going to give you a piece of advice: Anna is too much for you, you can't handle her. She hates clingy, for one. So give up while you're ahead."

"I just wanted to ask for my notes. My Banking teacher wants to make a global quiz and since I gave her my notes from last year, a few days ago, I have to get them back." I swallowed thickly wanting a big hat to hide my head. "But thanks for the advice. I'll take it into consideration." The smile flattered, shifting into a common grin.

Boy, did I feel rude.

"Huh... she must be in her dorm room." I doubted Anna wanted him to know where it was since she hadn't told him, and I did feel awful now... "I'll go there and bring you your notes, how's that?"

"That would be fantastic." He shifted his weight onto his right leg posing slightly. "I'll wait here." He reassured when I glanced over my shoulder.

Just what I needed. What was the point of rushing out of class if I couldn't get to the car? Sighing avidly, I made a short run to the cement stairs leading up to the dorm halls. I had only been in Anna's room once, when I'd helped her move in, but the door number was printed in the back of my mind. I searched for it, going down a hallway.

My stomach throbbed when a guy exited his room eating the last of a hot-dog. Aw man...

I fumbled for the key-copy Anna had given me in case of an emergency. She didn't share her room thanks to a very generous donation her Aunt made.

I pushed open getting in, driven by speed—then stopped dead in my tracks.

"Anna—" I screeched, whirling around facing the door, face painted red.

I heard rushing behind me, a hiss and a few mumbled words I chose not to make out.

"What are you doing here?" Anna came up behind me, tapping a shoulder. "Don't you know how to knock?" She hissed softly, with a hint of annoyance.

"It's the middle of the day, I didn't think you'd be doing it!" I shot, meeting her eyes with a steady blush. "I thought you were into Dan—"

"Shh!" She cut me off. "Don't talk about... you know." She looked over her shoulder to her bed where the guy was probably hiding between the sheets due her orders. "What do you want?"

"Daniel's notes from Banking he needs them for—" She disappeared and reappeared just as fast, shoving a thick notebook into my hands. "Thanks..." I muttered rushing out the door heaving a breath when I stood out in the brown decorated hallway.

Somewhere in my schedule I was going to make room for an intervention, this was getting out of hand. I thought she was feeling brokenhearted because of Aric. Guess I was wrong, or this was her way of getting over him. But what was Daniel? Maybe they were only friends.

I found Daniel where I'd left him, near the Dodge Hall building, I handed over the notes and began pulling away—

"I'll see you around, Melissa." I blinked at the dazzling pearly smile when he trudged away, leaving with the last word.

Yeah... Nathaniel wouldn't like this guy. Then again, who did Nate like besides me?

The drive home was bearable after I stopped to get a muffin from the café where me and Anna had talked earlier. I was able to munch it all while driving to my building.

Leaving the elevator, I stopped fiddling with my house keys.

The muffled voice coming from behind my door belonged, unmistakably, to Nathaniel. He sounded pissed off, really, really pissed off.

I burst in quickly and saw a man near his forties standing on one side of the living room and Nate on the other end, I blinked. I knew this person. Angular features, hair styled short, white hairs peeking out occasionally.

"Reed?" My voice went unheard as Nate continued his angry satire, I couldn't understand what he was going on about simply because I wasn't tuning in. I stared at Reed, who had his eyes locked on Nate. They were looking slightly worn, and…skittish.

"…how can it vanish?" I caught the last words.

Vanish? What was going on…?

I slammed the door making my presence well known. Their eyes dove to me immediately.

"I don't think they heard you over in China, yell a little louder." Dropping my messenger's bag on the couch, I crossed my arms. "What are you doing here?" I directed at Reed.

The poor guy didn't get a chance to word an answer.

"He's here as my parents' messenger." Nate's voice was marked with scorn. His words made me draw a blank.

"Messenger for what?" Reed was an Informant—he created a bridge between assassins from the Hive and the clients, delivering the job and money information—I hoped he wasn't here for that reason.

Nate was out of the game.

"I'm not here for—"

"To explain why my bank account got emptied of nearly one million dollars." My eyes bulged a little. Nate had never actually told me how much he had, not that it mattered. "In case you're wondering, that's all of it. Meaning my account is clean." He bitterly put in.

At first, the situation was overshadowed by how Nate looked. Cold eyes, hard face, the only thing missing was a certain sadistic glee and he'd be the picture perfect of the day we'd met.

My throat felt dry. All I could say was...

"What?" I stared between my enraged boyfriend and the Informant. "What…?" I repeated feeling dumb.

Reed sighed when I kept eyes locked on his trying to make sense of everything. Why would Nate's account be empty?

"I didn't come here to talk about your missing money, I came here to talk to her. I've been trying to tell you that for five minutes."

"Funny, when I talked to my Mother on the phone she said, and I quote: Reed's in New York, he can fill you in." Bristling anger chipped off Nathaniel's soul. "So, fill me in." He growled.

I inched to his side fearing he'd jump Reed if the answer didn't bare the explanation he wanted. My hand wrapped discretely around his wrist.

"Do I have to spell it out for you?" Reed set his hands on his hips. "Your parents transferred your money to the Hive's funds."

"Yeah, I got that. I just don't understand why. It's my money, I earned it—maybe not in the most ethical way—but I earned it."

"Yes, while you were working for the Hive. Now you're out and that's compensation for losing an asset."

"What? That's… that's..." I whispered slowly. "How is that fair?"

"Life usually isn't." Reed shrugged lightly. "I can't do anything." He swept a hand through his hair when I clenched my jaw. "But… I'd say Susan and John are trying to lure you back."

Nate snapped from his enraged state for a while, seeing things with clarity.

"You're saying if I go back to work for them they'll give my money back?" Reed cocked his head in a silent 'yes'. "So, they're making me an ultimatum, is that what it is? Either I work as a hit man for their Company or I can kiss my money goodbye?" Under my fingers his pulse intensified. "Fantastic." He muttered.

It really wasn't a fair deal. Just because Nathaniel didn't work at the Hive anymore they robbed everything from him? Wait…

"Their Company?" I deadpanned.

Nate's brandy eyes glared down, I coiled my shoulders feeling small. I couldn't help feeling a little outbalanced when he stared at me with bulldozing fury.

"They're the CEO's of the cover up—the Land Development—and the Hive. They win the voting every four years." I had no idea.

Catching movement from the corner of my eye, I looked at Reed who was advancing towards the door. When he saw me looking he stopped.

"I think you two need to talk, right now. Our conversation can wait." Reed set his hand around the knob spinning it.

What could Reed have to talk about with me? I'd been curious about him since the day we'd met. I wanted to know his connection to my parents, especially to my Mom. I knew Nate needed me now, for the rest of the day, even. But…

"Can you come back tomorrow?" I was fast to ask before the door closed.

"Sure." The word flew safely into my ears before me and Nate stood alone.

Carefully, I turned to glance at him. I couldn't tell what Nathaniel was thinking. My hands settled on his forearms. Half the heaviness on my chest came from guilt, the other half from worry. This was my fault, I'd made him quit so we could be together and now Nate had lost all his savings. 'Sorry' wasn't going to make things right.

I was jostled from my thoughts when my hands grasped at air. Nate had backed away from me.

I felt like I couldn't breathe right.

"I need… I need to be alone." He ruffled his hair and I bit a tiny bit of my lip. It had been a while since I saw him doing that.

"Where are you going?" I asked softly, thinking it was a good sign he hadn't stormed out already.

He was taking his time, numbly walking to get his jacket and set of keys. Nathaniel stopped at the door, leaning a little heavily on it.

"I couldn't go far even if I wanted to." He mumbled with tight sorrow before slipping out.

I collapsed into the couch beside my bag, looking outside the window at the skyline. I didn't like how things were turning out, not in the least. On the bright side, my phone hadn't buzzed with any texts. Maybe Anna was right about that.

I walked into my bedroom after ordering pizza, our kitchen was still empty of food.

I tried to not to think how things were going to be from now on. The money my parents used to transfer to my account was enough to maintain me for about two months, take a few days. But now they were gone. Once this last transfer ended it wouldn't be replaced.

As much as I hated, the scenario wasn't looking peachy.

I staggered a step after the bathroom mirror stared back at me menacingly. Horror shook me; fear rippled a chill down my spine as I saw one word written across it in capital letters.

MURDERER.