For His Honor by Kelly Favor

roommate and she seems to have disappeared.

    Have---wait—what?” He strained to listen. “Kane, what the fuck is going on?” Again, straining to listen. Red seemed totally baffled by whatever Kane Wright was telling him.
    “Yeah. Fine. Fine.”

    He hung up, shaking his head in dismay.

    “What happened? Is something wrong? What did he do to her?”

    “I have no idea, Nicole. I’ve never heard him in such a great mood, I could hardly get a word in. He must have really done something shitty. That’s what seems to make him happiest—when he does something really nasty and underhanded.”

    “Does he know where Danielle is?”

    “Yeah, apparently so. He said they’re together right now and she’s going to be home in the next couple of hours.”

    “Oh, no,” Nicole said. “He did something terrible to her, didn’t he?”

    Red looked at his phone as if it might speak up and tell him more. “I really don’t know. I can’t imagine what he could have done, but I have a pretty bad feeling right now.”

    “I can’t sit still. Should we call the police?”

    “No. Let’s hang tight and wait and see if and when she comes back, how she’s doing. We can talk to her and find out exactly what happened. Okay?”

    “Okay. But if he hurt her in any way—“

    “Then we’ll make sure he doesn’t get away with it.”

    “Promise me, Red.”

    “Nicole, of course I promise you. I’d never let him hurt one of your friends.
    Your friends are my friends now.”

    “Good.” She tried to smile but her face couldn’t make the expression right now.
    She was just too worried.

    They spent the next couple of hours trying to distract themselves; watching bad sitcoms on TV, ordering food from a nearby Chinese restaurant, talking about the baby.
    As much as Nicole wanted to try and be happy and think positive thoughts, she was way too anxious. She’d been starving and yet when the food arrived, she found she couldn’t even eat any.

    And then it happened.

    There were footsteps on the stairs—clomping, loud stomps.

    “I think she’s coming home,” Nicole said, and both she and Red stood up, anxiously awaiting her arrival.

    Nicole tried to psych herself up. Just remember, if she’s hurt in some way—or even just threatened—she’s going to need you to be calm and rational, Nicole reminded herself.

    The keys rattled in the lock and then the door opened.

    Danielle stood before them, and they were both stunned into utter silence.

    “What’s going on, guys?” she said, grinning from ear to ear.

    It didn’t even look like Danielle, Nicole thought. First of all, she was tan—really, really tan. She was wearing a low-cut sundress, Prada sunglasses (the label was evident on the frame), and her hair was newly styled into a combination of braids that made her look like she’d come there from another country.

    Hustling in with her bags (she had lots and lots of bags somehow), Danielle was as cheerful as Nicole could remember ever seeing her.

    Red and Nicole exchanged looks. Had she somehow been brain washed and returned home a Stepford Girl?

    “I just got so tired climbing all those steps with these bags. Sorry I didn’t hug you both,” she said, putting her stuff down right in the middle of the living room and then hugging Red like he was her long lost brother.

    “Last time we met you weren’t nearly this friendly,” he said, eyebrows raised as he met Nicole’s confused gaze.

    Nicole just shook her head. “Uh—Danielle—where the heck have you been? I called you like a dozen times.”

    Danielle broke off her hug and came towards Nicole with open arms. “Oh my god, sweetie. I’m sorry. Were you worried about me?”

    “Yeah, I was.” But Danielle was already crushing Nicole in the tightest hug she’d ever received. She could smell a strong scent of perfume and hair product as her friend embraced her.

    “Like I said—sorry. I meant to try and call you but the whole thing’s just