"So helping me wipes your slate clean?"

The microwave dings. "See, it's selfish, but does that mean I don't take the path?"

"You're not making sense."

"Have you ever studied Wushu?" Or heard of Xia?" I shake my head. "Then it wouldn't. Honor is everything in the code of Xia. My skills should be used to fight injustice not for gain."

"Then why have you been using them for money? And why should I think you won't this time?"

He slams the microwave shut. "I could send Song back. I could throw Chang and Ping to the gangs. I could join a gang. They constantly pressure me to. All of these would bring me more money." He drops his plate on the table. His eyes meet mine with a dark intensity. "I'm trying to find my way to honor, but the path is difficult." I try to equate his desperate circumstance and need for honor with a half a million dollars. He sits and plucks a vegetable off the plate with chopsticks. "The wall's not going to hold you up much longer. You should go to bed."

I open my mouth.

He stares at his plate and chews.

I snap my mouth shut and spin around toward his room. None of this really matters because tomorrow I'm taking off without him. Hasta la vista, sayonara, and good riddance in less than twelve hours.

In his bedroom, I open the chest and the smell of clean clothes mixed with the wood lining of the chest wafts up to me. It's like Jai's here next to me. And I thought he wore some exotic cologne. Instead, it's the mix of Laundromat and the wood inside a chest. With a shake of my head, I change into the sweats and a t-shirt, turn off the light, and collapse into the bed. Since the tank's light is off, the room is pitch black.

The silent, dark room feels like a tomb. My fingers clench the blanket. Since my mother died, I've questioned my will to live. Nothing planned. Nothing serious. Just fleeting thoughts of what lies beyond sorrow and guilt. The dream of not having to go on. Burden less. Now with a possible end in sight, the darkness presses on me. Smoothers me and I long for light and color. In the gloom, desire for life pulsates through me.

Here in this dark moment I realize something.

I never truly wanted to give up.

Chapter 21*Snow.

The mirror wavers above me like a huge magnifying glass. Plotting dark eyes stalk me from the other side. I run. There is nowhere to hide. The glass swells until I crawl on the ground covered with slush and ice. Behind my reflection above, evil eyes search for me. They flash with emotion and the glass expands. Triumph, the eyes are filled with triumph, I realize as the glass melts into me.

I snap up with a gasp and fumble with the lamp next to the bed. Panting, I focus on the fish swimming before me. I'm in Jai's room. In Jai's bed. I've only been dreaming. However, the dream's implications are eerily real. I let go of the blankets, but the dream continues to hold me in its grip.

As I slowly crawl out of bed, the eyes from the dream haunt me. Suddenly, I lose my balance and fall backwards onto the mattress. I know those eyes. Though rough boards and cement are above me, all I see is those eyes. My stepmother's eyes.

Has my subconscious made a connection?

My hands cover my mouth. Could the she they referred to be my stepmother? Smith is her chauffeur. But why? Why would she hire a gang to kidnap me? Though not as wealthy as my father, she's rich. She wouldn't need ransom money. My father bragged more than once about her consulting firm and its worldwide success before they got married. And they got married in Fiji because she owns a house on the beach there. Maybe she just wants to get rid of me? Get the teenage daughter out of the way?

I groan. On one hand, it seems so farfetched. On the other, it neatly explains why she keeps pushing my father to think I'm nuts. I roll over and stare at the fish. I'd planned on just going to the bank and tapping into the insurance money from my mother, but maybe I need to go home and check things out. Especially Mali's things. With thoughts of my stepmother in my head, I crawl out of bed.

In the hall, I hear the sounds of video games coming from one end and silence from the other. The bathroom door, my desired destination, opens and Mali, the attack, even my predicament fade away at the sight before me.

Um, wow.

Jai stands in the doorway wearing only cotton pants loosely tied around his hips. Planes and angles of breathing muscle stand before me. Though thin, every inch of him is taut rippling muscle. His skin is smooth except for a thin scar across his ribs and another jagged mark along his collarbone. Unable to tear my gaze from his gorgeous body, I remember him fighting. The combination of strength and agility I'd witnessed are so believable now as I imagine drawing the solidness of his chest, the lines of his stomach, the curve of his hipbone then mixing a color to match his smooth skin. At the thought of touching that smooth skin, I grab the doorframe.

"A-hem, did you need to use the bathroom?"

My gaze snaps to his face. Though I'd expect my own face to be hot-it's not, I'm too amazed to be embarrassed-his is red. "Ah, yes," I mumble, realizing again that this guy turns me into a walking hormone. He nods then moves past me with a face of granite into his room.

A low hoot echoes through the corridor. Song's head peeks out from behind her door. "He never likes the ones who ogle him." She shuts her door with a snicker.

After closing my dropped jaw, I charge into the bathroom and reach for the toothpaste. While brushing my teeth with my index finger, Song's hoot resonates in my mind. So what if I find Jai attractive? Who wouldn't? Finding someone amazingly attractive is completely different than pursuing them. And I'm not pursuing Jai. Sure, I had a bit of a crush on him, but the guy was, maybe still is, supposed to kidnap me. I'm so not a candidate for Stockholm Syndrome. My finger pauses as I wonder if Jai thinks I'm after him, thinks I like him. My face flushes at the thought. I violently spit into the sink and wash my hand before marching to his door. My knock sounds loud in the empty hall.

One dark eye appears in an inch wide crack. "You need something?"

"No. I need to talk to you."

His eye crinkles in confusion at my visible anger. "Just a minute," he says before closing the door.

Fuming, I wait.

When the door finally opens, I rush in, shut it, and lean against the cool surface. Jai sits on the bed and lifts a boot off the floor. His attire makes me pause. He's wearing a dark pull over, jeans, and a ski cap. "Going somewhere?"

He pulls his bootlaces tight and glances up at me. "Yeah, I'm taking Song and Juan to Feng Lu. What do you want?"

The hat causes his hair to frame his features. The wisps soften the harsh lines of his face and accent his eyes. He looks boyishly cute. Geez, not this again. I shake the hormones out of my head. "I...well...here's the thing. Song made a lewd assumption. While I don't care what she thinks, I don't want you thinking I...I like you or something." His expression turns quizzical as my hands tangle together. "I mean...you're all right. I just don't like you the way she thinks I like you." Wow. I sound like an idiot.

"Nivi-"

"Sure you're good looking and you've got an awesome body." Am I out to make a complete moron of myself? "Ah...I'm not denying any of that. I just don't fall for guys just because they're hot." Now his brow lifts. "Or guys who have girlfriends. Or definitely not guys who are supposed to kidnap me. And besides, I've got more on my mind than crushing. Someone has put a ton of money on my head. And I'm not totally sure you won't turn me in." His brow rises even more, but I continue, "So yeah, your muscles caught me unawares out there. I don't want you getting the wrong idea. We're just acquaintances, not really even friends, just...whatever."

He stands puffing out his chest and gazes at me through his lashes. "So you think I'm hot?"

My mouth drops for more than one reason. "Are you serious? Is that all you heard?"

"No. You also said I've got an awesome body." Now my face warms as he smiles a slow, calculating smile.

Letting out an, "Ugh," I reach for the door handle. When my fingers find the knob, laughter erupts throughout the room. I glance over my shoulder. He's bent over in a full-blown fit.

"You think this is funny?" I shout over his chuckles. He straightens in one supple movement and puts a hand out to wait while he gasps for air. I pull open the door. "Why do I even try?"

His palm shuts the door. "Wait," he sputters. "I'm sorry. It's just," he lets out a stream of air while spinning me around, "you were so damn serious and cocky. I can't help it."

Cocky? I look up at his smug face. My fist clenches with the urge to punch him. His dark gaze turns serious. The stare makes my fists tighten even more and my stomach whirl at the same time. The sensation confuses me. He confuses me.

"I don't know what Song said to you, but to be honest, I wasn't getting that vibe from you."

"Oh." My fist unclenches. Anger gone, my face burns. I've made an ass of myself for no reason. "She...I...well... you know." My bare feet peeking out of the bottom of the too long sweat pants become interesting.

"In all fairness, I should admit I don't think you're all that bad looking either." My gaze snaps to him. His charming smirk is back. The smirk changes into a sideways grin. "Definitely adorable when you're mad."

My eyes narrow.

"Cute as hell when you turn red," he adds. I do punch him, right in the center of his rock hard chest. "Whoa." Faking, he staggers back. "Tough too."

I take a step forward.

"And I don't have a girlfriend."

My feet stop. "What? You told me that day you took me home you did."

He straightens his hat. "I couldn't explain why we shouldn't be seen together any other way at the time."

The door opens and Song pops her head into the room. "You ready?" she asks Jai as her eyes spit fire at me.

"Yeah," he says, lifting his coat from the chair.

"Hey, what am I supposed to do? Just wait here?" I ask, wanting a timeframe for how long he's going to be gone.

"Go back where you came from that's what," Song mumbles under her breath.

Jai tugs his coat on. "Have breakfast with the butthead brothers. I'll be back in a couple of hours." Behind him, Song's expression is sour. Behind her, Juan's expression is pure resentment.

I nod, ignoring both of the faces over his shoulder. In less than two hours, I'll never see them again anyway. I stare at the empty hall long after they've gone thinking about how to get back in my father's penthouse undetected.

"Hey," Ping says from the hallway as he passes the room. "We're done packing. You want some breakfast?"

"Yeah, and I need your help with something." He raises a brow. "I'll explain while we eat."

Chapter 22 *Snow.

Sweat rolls off my forehead. My cramped body is drenched. Time and space are lost in the void of darkness. Breathing has become difficult and the lack of air leaves me light headed while the swaying motion threatens to make me lose my Lucky Charms. I now know what the sensation of being buried alive feels like, and it isn't pretty. If the butthead brothers screw up the plan, making this all for nothing, I'm going to kill them. And I'd better get some info on Mali out of this because fresh clothes and money are so not worth the ordeal of being smashed in a trunk for over twenty minutes. At last, my stomach drops with the sensation of rising.

Gasping for breath, I knock on the lid.

My entire body juggles up and down before a crack of light enters. "We're not to the top floor yet," Ping whispers through the crevice. "Just in the elevator."

"Alone?" I ask not caring anymore. My lungs contract in need. If I don't get air soon, Mali won't need to get rid of me.

"Yeah, alone," he replies.

I slam my head against the lid. "I need air." He opens the lid a bit more and I fill my lungs. "We've got to make another hole for the way down."

"What if someone comes on the elevator?" Chang asks from somewhere outside.

"Then shut it," I snap. Using these two to get into the penthouse doesn't seem like such a good idea right now. In fact, my plan seems like a rash act of stupidity. Ping thought I was going to ride in the chest inside of the cab on the way over. Moron.

Ding. The sweet sound of deliverance echoes in the elevator.

"We're here," Ping whispers before shutting the lid again.

Why does he keep whispering? Hello? He said we're alone.

Jostled again, my head hits the end of the chest and my teeth clench in pain. My body cries to be free, yet there's a camera in my father's entrance. I hear the muffled buzz of the doorbell, Chilly barking, and then Rosa acting like she's surprised by the delivery. Ugh, from inside the chest, her acting sounds atrocious. Chang's reply, something with ma'am in it, doesn't sound much better. Shut up people and get me in.

A dizzying lift then one, two, three, four steps and I can't take it anymore. I slap the lid open and breathe. The brothers drop the chest right next to my father's favorite sculpture. "Whoa," I hiss, catching a marble ass before it makes contact with a lamp.

Rosa rushes to move the priceless art. "Hello Nivi."

Chilly jumps into the chest.

"Hey Rosa," I say with a smile, chugging in air and hugging my dog. Since she's busy with the sculpture and the butthead brothers are busy gaping at the huge, expensively decorated living room, I crawl out of Jai's chest on my own. "Please, get a knife for them so they can make a bigger hole," I say to Rosa. I have half an hour-the time we agreed on-to get my stuff and find something. Any longer could be asking for trouble. One because someone could show up here and two I want to have ditched the buttheads long before Jai's two hour estimation.

In my room-after petting my squirmy, happy dog-I go to the closest and find my old Garfield school bag-my father refused to let me use it here. Then I open drawers. Five t-shirts, two pair of jeans, some sweats, and a week's worth of underwear fill the bag. Back in the closet, I find my old winter coat and wrap it around my waist. I also grab several snowcaps. I go to the desk and dig out my father's form of love, a generous allowance. Since I never spend any of it, the accumulation of green is astounding. I also add my keys in case I need to get back into the apartment. After adding a few bathroom necessities, I speed off to my father's room. Time is limited.

Chilly, of course, is at my heels.

Sunlight pours through the floor to ceiling windows across from the huge bed. The nightstand on Mali's side of the bed offers no information. Lotions, a few books, and tissues fill the small cubby. The spotless desk is a waste of time also. Rosa comes in as I'm going through the closet.

"Most of her stuff is still in the guest room," she says from the doorway. Obviously, she'd figured out I'm spying on Mali.

Shutting a drawer of creepy silky things, I say, "Thanks Rosa and thanks for agreeing to this." Calling her from Jai's phone-he'd left it on his desk-I'd expected reluctance, but she had conceded immediately.

She shrugs. "It's your house. I'm also worried about Senor Harrison."

I pause before leaving the room. "Harrison?"

"Si," she says with a shake of her head. "Him fishing just doesn't make sense, especially since he never said anything."

I recall the two of them drinking coffee half the morning and watching game shows during Christmas break. They're good friends. Harrison would have told her about a vacation. "You're right, I can't imagine him fishing. It worries me too."

Rosa's face is bleak. "You think it's dangerous for me to stay here?"

"I don't know," I say. "I never expected Smith to attack me..."

Frowning, Rosa says, "Maybe it's time for me to go on a vacation."

"Actually, I think that's a good idea."

She catches hold of my arm. "You should come with me."

I imagine sitting on the beach with Chilly in my lap and Rosa next to me shoving celebrity magazines under my nose, but when we returned, Mali and Smith would still be here. "I wish. I just don't think that will help."

"Fifteen minutes," Chang yells from the living room.

Wrinkling her nose, she lets go of my arm. "Well hurry up then."