The Red to My Grey

by William Dudley Berridge Tuckey

  Don’t panic…if it wanted to kill us it would have already. I thought to myself, trying to stay calm. Johnson came off as if he was in the same boat and Angel stared at the monster’s eyes as it sniffed her. It then nudged us into the stairwell with its giant metallic head. We went to walk away and as I looked back over my shoulder, I saw the giant creature leap off the side of the roof; there was a loud thud a second later. Angel asked me what the sound was, I didn’t answer and shrugged my shoulders, keeping what I saw to myself. Johnson told us to head back to the car while he made a final round of the hospital. He was acting suspicious that night, but it was better than to ask him about his methods. He was only doing what he thought was best. We finally made it back to the car and packed our equipment in the trunk. We could see the giant yellow glowing eyes of the monster staring at us from within the trees that surrounded the hospital. We had no idea what it wanted or why it watched us from afar when we would have been helpless against it.

  We drove back home without looking back and we parked at the front of my house at around three in the morning. The door was unlocked for us and all the lights were off except for the bathroom light. Johnson used the shower so he wouldn’t come home to Sabrina covered in blood. He borrowed some of Dad’s clothes and stepped into the bathroom. Angel and I cleaned the kitchen, picking up empty rum cans and a layer or two of our parents’ clothes. I shuddered as sweat dripped onto the floor from them.

  “I guess they went all out once we left, then again it doesn’t surprise me. It’s not every day you get engaged. I would have probably wanted to have a bit of fun too if I were in their shoes,” I said to Angel as I brewed some coffee for us.

  “Wade…are you comfortable? With the way our parents are? I love my mother and Jason is a great guy, but don’t you feel sort of cheated?”

  “What do you mean exactly?” I had an idea of what she meant, but I asked anyway.

  “Like the thought that we’re part of this sick family, the step siblings are dating while their parents live a normal married life…I guess the future and that reality scares me deep down.”

  “Me too. All the time, even before he proposed,” I said as I poured a cup of coffee for us each and sat down at the table with her. The hot coffee helped us relax and the dreary atmosphere we were subjected to over the day got to us a little less. A moment later we heard a loud scream from down the hall. We dashed over to the bathroom and it came from Nami, who was completely naked, wrapped in the shower curtains as the water ran cold on her from the showerhead. Johnson was sitting on a plastic stool as he dried his long brown hair; he was in a pair of shorts and tank top. Angel covered my eyes with one hand as we walked into the room while she tried to figure out what happened.

  “Nami? What happened? Why are you up this late? Why are you naked?”

  “I-I’m sorry! Just turn off the water! It’s so cold!” she begged while hanging in the curtains. Angel gave Johnson a nasty glare and her head began to bleed again. Out of impulse she removed her hand from my face to stop the blood. My eyes met with Nami’s and past how flustered and awkward I felt. I couldn’t hide my disappointment. She tried her best to cover herself as she blushed, unsure what to say.

  “Really. This makes twice now. What the hell were you trying to do anyway? There’s no way he would have stripped you,” I said as I pointed to Johnson.

  “I-I kind of wish he did…” she said softly and we all looked to her with our eyes wide open.

  “You sure she’s ten years old? The way she acts and even how she looks…” I asked without thinking. Slap! Angel smacked me across the face.

  “Wade! She shouldn’t be acting like this, even if she does look a little older.”

  “She snuck into the shower with me while I was washing my hair; the curtains seemed like a fitting punishment. Equal reward, equal punishment. Isn’t that right little girl?”

  “Johnny why’d you have to be thorough? These are going to take forever to untie and what do you mean equal reward? Nami, explain,” Angel demanded sternly.

  “I-I don’t want to,” she said trying to hide a nervous grin.

  “Nami!” she yelled at her. I hushed her, so she wouldn’t wake up the house. Especially Celia, who would have been furious to be woken up to see us like this.

  “Fine, I’ll tell you. I managed to sneak in here after I saw him walk inside, I stripped down while he had his eyes closed from the shampoo. I couldn’t help myself and I ran my finger down his abs and that’s when he grabbed my wrist.”

  “What the hell is going through your head, girl?” I asked in utter disbelief.

  “Let her finish,” Johnson said with a serious gaze, trying to force away a faint smile on his face.

  “He asked me what I was planning to do next and I stepped away from him, not sure to act on that. He offered me a choice, that I do whatever I wanted and be punished for it or that I walk away. I had already gone too far to back down at that point.”

  Angel and I braced ourselves for the worst possible outcome imaginable. Johnson sat calmly on the stool with his eyes closed, waiting for her to go on.

  “So, I pressed myself against him, it was only for a minute, but I never felt so—” Johnson yanked the shower curtains tighter and she let out a muffled scream as Angel rushed her hand to the child’s mouth. We all then turned around to see Dad staring at all of us.

  “I don’t want to know,” he said bluntly and walked away. I followed him while Angel tried to free Nami. Johnson went home for the night. I worked on convincing Dad on what he saw wasn’t anything malicious as what he was thinking. He brushed me off and instead handed me another cup of coffee and told me to sit down as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

  “Son, it’s not you who needs to be explaining their actions, it’s me,” he said calmly.

  “Huh? But I.”

  “Hear me out alright. I know you went to the hospital tonight, there’s no point in denying it, but that’s not what I wanted to talk to you about. It’s about my engagement to Sophy and how I want to marry her. I know you’re not comfortable with it, I know both you and Angel are serious about what you have with each other,” he went on to explain his relationship in the past with Sophia, before he met my mother and how they became separated for a variety of reasons. Sinclair, Angel’s father, stole Sophia’s heart and Dad was forced to move on. It was regret that led both my father and Sophia into an affair with one another. Hearing all of this was a sucker punch to the stomach for me. I could understand why he would have wanted to make good on the mistakes of the past and come together with the woman he had loved all those years now that there was no obligation to stop him. I cared about his happiness, but I was still furious with him.

  “Then what about me and Angel? What the hell are we meant to do? I don’t want her to be my sister. I want her to be my girlfriend.”

  “We haven’t stopped thinking about that since we saw the two of you together. Sinclair owes me a great deal even after I stole his wife from him. I can give you a means to find a place where the two of you can belong without feeling this awkward and confused.”

  I didn’t know what to say. I pondered inside my head if such a thing was even possible, that I was being offered a half-assed shoddy deal. I told him I had heard enough, that I would hear him out some other time. He went back to bed, respecting my decision. He staggered back down the hall; he must have been still a little drunk from earlier. On his way back through the hall I heard him talking to Nami.

  “Why are you still awake, Nami?” he asked her gently.

  “Sorry…” she replied softly. Angel walked inside the kitchen from the lounge room and she poked her head to peer down the hallway.

  “Don’t be, I’m lucky to have you even after all this time. I’m not going to yell at you,” he was soft on her. Angel and I knew we were going to have to be strict on her in his place; we sighed simultaneously after coming to that realisation.

  “Alright try to head to bed soon okay?” He walked
away to throw up in the laundry sink.

  I was wondering when the grog was going to hit him ha-ha-ha, I chuckled to myself. Nami walked into the kitchen with a towel around her neck, still damp from the cold water that drenched her from earlier. I made some hot chocolate for her and Angel sat beside her while stroking her head. “Are you feeling better from before?” I asked as I leant back against my chair with my feet on the table.

  “Thanks for helping me tonight…sorry I did all that earlier,” she said to me after nodding. She then wished us a good night and went to walk away when Angel pulled the young girl back to her lap.

  “Night Nami, sweet dreams,” she said and then kissed her on the forehead. Nami went silent and walked back to her room.

  “That was surprisingly nice of you, considering you were yelling at her earlier.”

  “She’s been through a lot. Of course, she’s going to act out here and there,” she was back to her innocent way of thinking and I was left shaking my head.

  “If you call that acting out, then okay. Come on, let’s call it a night.”

  We cleaned ourselves up and went to bed, so we could endure more of our exhausting life together. I don’t know how everything had turned out this way, but looking back on it from now, I was happy to be alive after our ordeal at the hospital and to come to somewhere where everyone cared about each other in their own way.

  Chapter Seven

  I woke up probably only a few hours later to go to work. Angel walked with me to the halfway mark and we said goodbye to each other for the day. When I arrived at work, parked in the reserved space of the parking lot, there was a jet-black car with a suspicious looking man in a black suit and sunglasses. The man opened the back door of the vehicle and an extremely intimidating woman with a thick black bun in her hair stepped out into the car park, wearing shining red high heels. I thought that now that Mr Smith was CEO of the company, it would make sense to see all sorts of new big shots coming to discuss business. The two of them checked themselves into the building at the receptionist desk and took the elevator up with me inside. When the woman stepped inside, she removed her sunglasses. I screamed on the inside as I saw her crimson red eyes. She looked around until her eyes met with mine.

  “Hmm what’s the matter kid? Scared the big bad businesswoman will shut this place down…or perhaps it’s my eyes that have you quaking in your boots? Here, want a closer look?” She then pressed her face against mine and our eyes felt like they were practically touching; her skin was cold despite the make-up I could feel rubbing against my face. By this point I was convinced she was connected to the Natsuki’s.

  “Aren’t they pretty? Don’t they just make you want to call me beautiful? All the other men always do,” she rambled while pressed against my face. I bit my lip slightly as I did feel a little overwhelmed and tempted by this beautiful woman that knew she could sway hearts.

  “That’s enough Anne,” I said softly, and she brought her face from mine.

  “Have we met before? I guess it doesn’t matter, while I wear this suit it’s Ms Frey. Understood?”

  I nodded while holding my tongue. I was amazed to see her in the flesh, to see the woman that allowed me to see into my father’s past as well as Angel’s.

  “Giggle. My, what an interesting kid you turned out to be, here I thought you looked so plain.” The elevator door opened and the two of them went to step out; she handed me a card adorned with red and slipped it into my pocket. “I wouldn’t mind having some more fun with you sometime, use that and I might just happen to find myself waking up next to you one morning. Have a nice day kid.” She walked away, and I went to my office to check out the card. It was extremely well made, and it seemed hard to believe she was just carrying them around on hand. It was the card of a call girl. It had a number and an alias under the name of Alice with fresh red lipstick on the back. I wanted to meet this woman, but she seemed more dangerous with everything that I discovered about her. Johnson poked his head around the wall to see me holding the card. He stepped into my office. I could see bandages around his arms beneath his sleeves. I gave him a look at the card; at first glance he was confused by it.

  “What’s this? A card for some kind of prostitute?”

  “Shoosh. Not so loud, she might hear us. It’s from Anne Frey; she’s the executive here at the company building today.”

  “Hmm even if it is really her, why does she want to sleep with you? Did you do something?” he asked even more confused than before.

  “Look, it doesn’t matter. I’m going to use it to talk to her since she looks busy today. I doubt I will get much of a chance here.”

  “Best consult Angel about it when you get home. I’ve dealt with my fair share of bad women,” he scolded me with a serious stare. I agreed with him and panned out my day as normal. Well at least I attempted to, Mr Smith and Ashlyn were guiding Ms Frey and the quiet stern businessman in glasses around the offices and facilities. I’m not sure what was going on entirely, but it seemed like they were trying to strike a deal or a partnership between Storm CO and another company operating within the city. When they came around to our offices. We were all vaguely introduced to them as if out of courtesy for the meeting’s sake. Dan was rowdy as ever and the seriousness of the workplace didn’t get to him. Sabrina was quiet and hardworking as they passed her office until she saw Ms Frey.

  “Excuse me, but are you the fashion director, Violet Black???” she asked nervously while half hidden behind a monitor.

  “Didn’t think anyone would recognise me for that line of work here. Yes, is that all you wanted?” she replied bitterly, different from her behaviour from early. Sabrina struggled to find words and her face showed that she was embarrassed as she looked to the floor with her eyes watering. Johnson stuck his head over her office wall and stood in front of the serious woman.

  “Is there a problem?” he asked coldly in a serious tone that made even my skin crawl.

  “No…I mean not at all,” Ms Frey replied trying to stay as bitter as before although he had gotten to her. Mr Smith steered the guest towards the elevator to try to avoid diminishing the company’s chances of landing the deal any further. Johnson at this point was already eyeing down our guest like a hawk. As they passed my office, Ms Frey took one glance and smiled as she sat down on top of my desk, her legs folded over one another. She leant back and after a deep breath, looked to her partner who nodded as if he already knew what was going on.

  “Ms Frey? The presentation isn’t over yet, unless you’ve come to a decision of course.”

  “Smith, was it? I’m sure you noticed the ‘disagreement’ I had with some of your employees. My associate will handle rest of the presentation. I’m going to attempt to relieve myself of any emotional damages caused by our dispute…after all, any instances where we don’t see eye to eye, well it could prove unnerving in forming any sort of deals with a lack of trust,” she spouted a long, elaborate lie that was complete bullshit. Mr Smith and Ashlyn looked at each other in confusion, aware that the businesswoman was trying to shirk her responsibilities.

  “You there, make me coffee. You were listening, weren’t you?” she then yelled and pointed at me.

  “Huh? Um okay I guess.” I didn’t like the idea of being put on the spot so suddenly as part of her scheme, but I really didn’t have any other choice. I looked to Rex and Ashlyn who were at a loss for words. They just compliantly nodded and guided the man in the suit through the building. The moment they left, she let her hair out of the thick bun; it was so long that it reached the bottom of my desk as it fell over her shoulders. She undid the buttons over her chest on her business suit. Once I made the coffee and I sat down in my office chair she sat on my lap while sipping at her coffee.

  “Hey you can’t just.”

  “Relax, whatever happens in here I won’t tell anyone. Giggle. Now what did they say your name was again? Wade? That was it, wasn’t it?”

  “Yeah that’s it Anne, why are you in my office?”


  “I told you not call me that…Sigh. Who cares? Call me whatever you want.” Her face was a bright red and she seemed kind of upset, but only for a moment until she kissed me from out of the blue. It was only short, and it wasn’t like I could enjoy it even if I wanted to with how off guard it caught me. I peered to my window to see my co-workers staring through the blinds, which only made me more nervous and unsure of what to say. I closed the blinds and I looked to my work on the monitor screen, but spoke anyway. I went to open my mouth, but no words came out, only a breath of air. I tried several times over the moment looking away and then looking back but again to no avail. She seemed happy with herself, like she finally had the chance to relax.

  “So, about that card…I’m not a call girl, it’s true I really like sex, but I would never degrade myself like that. It belongs to a friend of mine and no she isn’t one either, so don’t get any ideas. The number on the card is mine; the card is for when I’m feeling shy. A girl my age, well she shouldn’t be having trouble with this kind of stuff.”

  “For someone so shy, you’re very bold. I’m still not sure what’s going on though. Why give that card to me…? I’m only twenty years old and well, you’re thirty-five, right? Why are you so interested in me? There are so many other guys in the office, so why me?” She went quiet and I stared at her, expecting an answer. Although I knew how old she really was, she looked probably only five years older than me and her pale skin was flawless. She bit at her lip as she tried to think, and she rubbed against me as she tried to make herself more comfortable.