02 // Montana

On a different day, Cameron Parker would have jumped at the opportunity to throw a party, especially since his brother permitted him. However, given the circumstances that led up to that decision, he was doing the complete opposite. He spent the next few days cooped up in the house alone, Logan had not shown up since the night he displayed that footage, he seemed hi and MJ.

He was completely fine without the two of them on his case, however, his peace and quiet did not last long, the devil chose this exact time to invite his favourite assistant back into his life.

Montana Parker.

He could not believe his eyes when she rocked up at the mansion with her son in tow.

He had not seen her in years, and the last time he saw her, she was admitted in a psychiatric hospital, and according to his calculations, she was not supposed to be out.

She looked just as crazy as he remembered, if not crazier. Montana was the definition of a wolf in sheep's clothing; she had this cool and calm energy to her that seemed to win her out of every situation she got herself into. She had a sense of innocence to her, but her eyes spoke volumes.

She reminded him so much of MJ, and for a second he felt bad for not checking in on her, but he reminded himself that she would never learn if he let her get away with everything.

Montana had toned skin and jet-black shoulder-length hair, and she had eyes as wild and dark as a starless night. 

"Montana, what are you doing here?" He asked as soon as she made herself at home.

She laid back on the couch and placed her feet on the table. "Is that how you welcome your sister after so many years?" She asked dramatically.

Cameron rolled his eyes and grinned. Montana, always so modest. "The last time I checked, you were in a mental hospital."

"Ha! And the last time I heard you were in prison."

Ha! Guess trouble runs in the family then.

"And Chad? Isn't he supposed to be at school?" He turned to the little boy that was busy playing with the TV remote. He looked just like his mother, the male version of Montana Parker, and he was street-smart as both his parents.

Cameron found the boy's presence here suspicious, he was supposed to be in boarding school, and they only closed twice a year, once in June and in December. It made no sense for him to be here right now, and it was very suspicious because he was with Montana, and she was in no way a saint. Montana was always up to something, and in most cases, she used her son to get what she wanted.

She looked up from her phone and stared at the boy. "Boy, let me show you to your room, it's already late." She got up and grabbed their luggage. Chad followed suit and ran up the stairs. "Careful!"

"Montana," Cameron called, and she stopped at the bottom of the stairs. "Does Logan know you are here?" 

She turned to him with a wide grin on her face and a mischievous glint in her eyes, and Cameron knew immediately that something had happened. "Yes," she gushed. "He knows. I saw him earlier, and you won't believe who was with him. Our dear MJ, and she did not look happy at all." She laughed and winked at him, and then turned around and dragged her luggage up the stairs.

Cameron grimaced at the noise caused by the action as it made his teeth painful. "Lift up the bag, maniac!" He shouted and laughed, anticipating her comeback.

"Shut up, bandit!" Montana's voice descended from the top of the stairs.

But as soon as she disappeared, all the playfulness dissipated, and in its place settled uneasiness.

Why is Montana here? He wondered. Just then, his phone rang, and he rushed to the couch to answer it. 

He wondered who could be calling him, it was an international number, and not many people had it, all except for one. "Cameron Parker speaking," he answered.

"Hi, Cameron, this is Blair. We met a few days ago in England. I'm MJ Billings' therapist."

"Yeah, I know who you are. What can I do for you?"

"Uhm... I was just wondering, have you seen or heard from MJ?"

"Why do you ask?" 

"I just have a feeling that something happened."

"Doctor, do you have all these feelings for all your patients?"

He hated how seemingly unprofessional she was where MJ was concerned, she was forcing herself on her, acting like the mother MJ never had. She was imposing herself on MJ, and it would not end well.

"Mr Parker, need I remind you that Miss Billings is my only patient?" Cameron sucked his teeth but did not say anything. "Listen, before MJ left, she was talking about telling your brother about the incident."

A cold sweat ran down his spine, his legs wobbly like jelly, and he plopped down on the couch. "Having your licence revoked must have jiggled with your memories, does doctor-patient confidentiality ring a bell to you?" He asked, hardhearted.

He was trying to avoid the reality of the truth being in the open. It couldn't be, the truth would only cause more chaos, a confrontation between Logan and MJ was bound to bring them both an immense amount of pain.

"Mr Parker, I'm only concerned about her and I'm telling you this because you are the only person other than myself she would confide in. I just want to make sure that she is okay. I've been trying to call her, but her phone is off."

He inhaled through his mouth and ran a hand through his hair. "Fine." He hung up. 

All he had to do was check up on her, what's the worst that could happen? "Montana, I'm just going out for a second, don't burn the house down while I'm away!" He yelled as he rushed towards the entrance. 

He got outside and asked one of the guards to drive him to the city even though he did not know exactly where to look for her, and for a second he felt guilty for not caring enough to find out. But there had to be someone who knew. He took out his phone and called Jackson, he had to know since he was in the city. The phone rang four times before someone answered, he understood because it was late.

"This better be important, what do you want?" Jackson's sleepy voice came from the phone.

Cameron grimaced. Jackson was one scary dude, it was difficult to have a conversation with him but he had no other choice. "Jackson, you are the one who gave me your numbers and said I should call you if there's anything I need," he paused and swallowed. "Well, now is the time. Blair called me earlier and she's worried about MJ." So am I, he thought. "I need to check up on her, but I don't know where to find her. I was hoping you could tell me."

A deep sigh came from the other end. "The boss met up with Logan Parker earlier and she didn't look well when she came out. I thought she might need some space, so I followed her to the house just to see that she got there safely and then I left. I'm not sure if she's still there."

Cameron frowned. "What house are you talking about?"

There was a pregnant pause before the guard responded. "She... she went to the beach house."

Cameron shut his eyes tightly. "And you let her stay there alone? Aren't you supposed to be her bodyguard? You know that place is dangerous, you know everything that's been going down and you still left her alone, what exactly is she paying you for?" He yelled.

"Cameron, Cameron, Cameron," Jackson mused in a chilly voice. "I'll let you know this once, MJ Billings is not my responsibility and she does not pay me. I don't owe my life to her. Next time, watch how you speak to me or I might just cut your tongue off. Do you understand?" There was a warning in his voice, and Cameron knew he could not avoid it.

He grounded his teeth. "Yes, I understand."

"Good. Now go on and take good care of her or else there will be hell to pay." The line died, and Cameron sighed deeply. 

He sat in the car in silence, wondering why he had to go through all this. Why did he bother? Anything that had to do with MJ had trouble and danger associated with it, and mingling with her was putting himself in danger. He wished he could stop caring but MJ was the most important person in his life and no matter how much she messed up, he just could never abandon her.

"To Jorge's beach house, please!" He said to the driver.

This was the price he had to pay for loyalty.