They all stared at us warily, not really buying my excuse.
“Look, maybe you could just calm down?—”
“Oh, shit,” Cap murmured.
“Calm down? Did you really just tell me to calm down?” Krista snapped.
“Yeah, I did, because frankly, you’re making a scene.”
A humorless laugh slipped off her lips. “Oh, you haven’t even seen me make a scene.”
She tossed down her napkin and strode away.
“Where are you going?” I shouted after her.
“Home! If you think the psycho at the gates will allow me entry!”
“Not without me!” I called out. “You’re not in the system yet!”
She held her middle finger over her head and kept walking.
Maggie leaned back in her seat, taking a sip of wine. “Well, I think that went well.”
38
KRISTA
“Krista!”
I ignored him and kept walking. I didn’t care right now if I had to walk to the next town. I’d find someplace other than his house to stay.
“Krista, wait!”
He grabbed my arm and spun me around, but I was ready and slammed my fist into his jaw, sending him back a step.
Staring at me in shock, he slid his hand over his face. “What the hell was that?”
“That?” I chuckled, flinging my arms wide. “That was me showing my displeasure for all the bullshit I just sat through.”
“You didn’t give me a chance.”
“You didn’t tell me I’d be moving out here to basically be held hostage!”
“The property is huge!”
“How the hell am I supposed to work if I’m stuck on that property?”
“You work on your family ranch! You don’t go anywhere now!”
“But I could if I wanted,” I argued. “When I want to go into town, I just get in my truck and drive off the property. Here, I might get struck by a stray bullet from a machine gun that’s mounted on top of a building for my protection!”
He shifted uncomfortably. “They’re drones. They need to be activated.”
I let out a barking laugh, then spun on my heel and marched away. How could I have been so stupid? I had a life. I had family around, and the crazy was something I knew and could adjust easily to. This…
This was crazy unlike anything I knew.
“Would you stop walking away!” he shouted.