Damage Control

by M. S. Parker

  Those few simple words soured my mood even further.

  Sam did not wait for my response.

  “Piety signed them also. At the time, I believe she thought it was what you wanted. The annulment got finalized today.”

  “I understand.” She was under the impression I’d gone and blackmailed her parents, so of course, she thought it was what I wanted. But it wasn’t. I was tempted to shout that into the receiver, to yell at him, convince him, somebody, anybody…Piety…that I didn’t want the fucking annulment.

  But, how could I?

  Too late anyway now.

  Besides, the whole thing had been a joke and a jab at her parents and a job for me. There was no way anybody, especially us, could take it seriously.

  So what if it felt serious?

  So what if it felt more real than anything I’ve ever felt?

  It didn’t matter…did it?

  Yes…

  A small, sly voice in the back of my mind whispered to me.

  It felt very real, and it mattered very much.

  But I kept all of that trapped inside me, locked away.

  Sam must have picked up on some of my tension, and an awkward silence stretched out over the next few seconds.

  He cleared his throat. “I do have other news. I think we might have a solution for the situation with your sister and her abuse problem. It would entail you both moving to Philadelphia so we can do what we need to in order to help her. Would that present much of a problem for you?”

  “Move to Philadelphia,” I murmured. Walking to the window, I looked out at the city. Even now, with evening approaching, the unrelenting heat was pounding down, and I could see little heat mirages off in the distance. Beyond the buildings, the earth was scorched, dried and brown. Leave Vegas? “No. No, sir. Nothing here would present a problem.”

  Then I pondered about my sister.

  She might present one, but if I had to, I’d just knock her out and drag her ass into the back of my car if I had one.

  Thirty-Five

  Piety

  “Well, here’s an interesting fact…”

  Liushi Testado leaned forward, her long hair pulled into a knot that left her elegant face unframed. She had high cheekbones and dark eyes, and she was, in a word, beautiful. She smiled at me, clearly enjoying something about whatever interesting fact she was holding back.

  “This Stefano character has been under investigation for a while.”

  It was a sign of how tired I was that my brain took a few seconds to process just who Stefano was, but once I had, I leaned back in my chair. “Really.”

  “Yes. They’ve tried to bring him in more than once, but nothing ever sticks.” She shrugged. “Now, this isn’t my area of law, but I know people. I could make some calls. If your friend Camry was willing to testify against Stefano, if would make it an easy case to get her approved for a Green Card.”

  I laughed, shaking my head. “First, she’s not my friend. Second…right now, I think Kaleb is having a hard time even getting his sister away from Stefano.”

  “But that’s the plan, right? Get her away from him?” Liushi cocked her head. “If not…well, maybe it would be best for her if she were deported back to Australia. It would take having somebody tip off Immigration, and it’s not like she’s abiding by the agreement set forth when she came here to study. If she was removed from this man’s influence…”

  My stomach knotted at the very thought of it. If Camry left, then so would Kaleb.

  “There are other ways to get her away from his influence. Once we do that, maybe she’ll straighten up and see how damaging all of this is.”

  “True.” Liushi lifted a shoulder, the elegant cut of her red suit highlighting her every subtle curve. “Of course, you have to get her away from him, convince her how damaging all of this is, and then we’ll still try to find the right way to keep her in the country. Like I said, testifying against him would be an almost sure win.”

  I made a face, because while it made sense to me in theory, I knew too much about how girls like Camry behaved. Stefano was probably as much a drug to her as the chemicals he was feeding her. He gave her…something. Made her feel something. Wanted, maybe? I couldn’t know.

  I checked my phone, wondering if Kaleb had texted. If he’d gotten through to her, that would be…something.

  But there was no message from him, and I was left with nothing to do but nod at Liushi and thank her.

  She gave me a card and told me to stay in touch.

  Once the card was tucked away, I left her office and headed back out in the late afternoon sun.

  My stomach was upset, so I found a place that served mostly soup. Over a bowl of chicken noodle, I tried to tell myself that it could be any number of things making me feel sick.

  I don’t know why I was so determined to convince myself that it was anything other than what I suspected it was.

  Part of me was even excited. Almost giddy about it.

  But everything in my life was in complete upheaval.

  Did I really need a change like…this?

  And what about Kaleb?

  I’d signed the annulment papers. It would be finalized any day now.

  This wasn’t the time for any of this.

  When is it ever the time? a small voice in the back of my head spoke up. You act like life is supposed to be something you’ve figured out, and nobody ever has it all figured out. Not even your parents. Not even you.

  Slowing to a halt on the sidewalk, I let that roll through my head as I considered it.

  Because it was true.

  When did anybody ever have it all figured out?

  I needed to talk to him.

  About everything.

  Changing directions, I headed back to the hotel. Another quick look at my watch had me thinking he might already be there. The meeting had been over an hour ago. He could be done. He could already be back, waiting for me.

  We needed to talk. And we should talk.

  The sight of a drugstore sign caught my eye, and I slowed my steps, studying it.

  We should talk, I thought again. And I should know for sure before we do. Kaleb should know. He deserved to know.

  I went inside, but nerves overtook me, and instead of going straight to the section I needed, I swung by the pantry area and picked up a box of crackers. It wasn’t like I wouldn’t need them. Then I forced my feet to walk in the direction of the right aisle, and I stopped.

  Heart pounding, I studied the boxes.

  So many different ones.

  They all blurred in front of me, and I finally grabbed one at random, reading it.

  Digital readout.

  Two weeks sooner.

  Ninety-eight percent accurate.

  Good enough.

  My hands shook as I paid for the purchases, and I wondered if the cashier noticed, but she seemed completely oblivious. Nervous twenty-somethings coming in to buy pregnancy tests were probably run of the mill around here.

  I headed for the door, feeling more settled somehow.

  I was going to stop wondering.

  I was going to get an answer.

  But then I swung left and saw her.

  She was leaning against the light post, arms wrapped around her middle, looking scared and nervous and cold, even in the burning heat.

  As I slowed to a stop, she lifted one hand to her mouth and started to bite at her nails. She swung a look down the block away from me, then pushed off the light post and started to pace. When she turned in my direction, she faltered.

  The tears in her eyes had my heart aching.

  “Camry,” I whispered.

  “Um.” She looked behind me, then behind her, so jumpy, it was like she expected the shadows to come to life and steal her away. “Hi. It’s Piety, right?”

  “Yes. Is…where’s Kaleb?” Compassion welled inside me, and I took a step forward. “Honey, are you okay?”

  “I…shit. Fuck. I can’t talk about this…” She went
left, ducking into the narrow alley between two buildings. “I shouldn’t have come here.”

  “Camry, wait. What’s wrong?”

  But she shook her head and continued to walk.

  Feeling helpless, I went after her, my little plastic bag slapping against my leg.

  “Talk to me, Camry. Where is Kaleb?”

  She stopped when I put my hand on her shoulder and turned slowly, facing me.

  Her eyes were still open too wide, and now that I was closer, I could see the oversized ring of her pupil. She was high, but she seemed steady enough. Probably so used to being strung out, it was her normal. Shaking her head, she said, “You shouldn’t be here, lady.”

  “Don’t be silly.”

  Camry just shook her head. Then, slowly, her gaze flicked past me, her tongue snaking out to wet cracked, dry lips.

  I heard it then.

  It was quiet, so quiet, I couldn’t have heard it over the sound of my voice a moment ago.

  But I heard it now and spun around, ready to face whoever it was.

  I had a good idea who it was too.

  But I never made the full circle.

  I saw something swinging down at me, and I lifted my arm.

  Then everything went dark.

  Thirty-Six

  Kaleb

  Night had fallen over the strip.

  The only time Vegas was even remotely appealing was when the sun had set, and the lights were all ablaze.

  Or maybe if I was out past the city, in the desert.

  I didn’t mind the desert.

  Standing in the elegant suite of the Bellagio, I stared outside and brooded.

  I hadn’t heard from Piety all day.

  Not so much as a phone call.

  It was past nine now, and I’d been here for a few hours by myself. I’d given in and called down to room service for a pizza, although it sat like a stone in my belly and every passing minute made it worse.

  “Where are you?” I whispered.

  I pulled out my phone to call her again, only to stop and put it away.

  She hadn’t responded when I called five minutes ago. I’d sent any number of texts and messages, so she knew I was waiting to hear from her. Calling every few minutes wasn’t going to help.

  I figured I could hold off for five more minutes.

  I paced and ended up by the bar, pulling out a bottle of whiskey, studying it before putting it away.

  A few more circuits around the room had me back by the window and staring outside.

  “This is getting ridiculous.”

  I didn’t know what I should do.

  Call Sam?

  The police?

  Would they even do anything? It hadn’t even been ten hours, and they wouldn’t do shit the first 24 hours.

  Although maybe if they knew who she was…

  I eyed the phone again and wondered if I should have Sam get in touch with her father.

  That would suck for me, but if it would get people moving…

  “Fine,” I muttered. I’d do it. I could deal with the devil for Piety.

  But just as I went to punch the number, the phone lit up, signaling a message. Relief punched through me.

  It faded fast though, followed on the heels by confusion, fear, then anger.

  Hello, Kaleb! Sorry I wasn’t at the house to meet you, brother. I ran into a friend of yours…Piety! Wow. You really did get married, huh? I’m truly happy for you. Now…if you’ll just do me a favor, you can have your wife and be on your way. You know the money I needed previously? I now need ten times that. In cash. Be a good brother and get them for me – today.

  I read it through once, twice, three more times, trying to make it make sense.

  There was a date and time at the bottom.

  Hours away – just hours.

  I swore, and my hands started to shake.

  Then, another text came through, and I dropped the damn thing, and the screen went blank.

  But not before I realized what I was staring at.

  A picture of Piety. But not just a picture of Piety.

  There was a pregnancy test in it too.

  And the test was…positive.

  Another message came through.

  Looks like you’re gonna be a daddy! Let’s get all this tediousness out of the way so you can get started with your new little family, hmm?

  I grabbed the phone, spun, ready to hurl it into the wall.

  But I stopped myself.

  Think, I said silently. Going to my knees, I braced my hands on the floor and flexed them.

  Think…

  Thirty-Seven

  Piety

  Even without an introduction, I knew who the big bastard watching me was – Stefano. It couldn’t be anybody else.

  I’d feigned sleep for as long as I could, trying to get a grasp on what was going on, and now that I’d opened my eyes, I’d managed to get a decent handle on the situation – I hoped.

  Camry was too strung out and nervous to be quiet or subtle.

  Stefano was too arrogant.

  They’d sat around talking about their plans with no regard to me, so I’d taken it all in. Now that I was awake, my biggest challenge was trying not to let on that I’d heard them talking.

  “Come on, Piety,” Stefano said, waving the pregnancy test in front of my face. “It’s been almost an hour since you woke up. It’s time to go and take a tinkle.”

  The hair stood up on my arms, and I wracked my brain for an excuse to delay doing what he wanted.

  “You’re going to be suffering from blood loss – extreme blood loss – if you keep this shit up and don’t take this test.” Stefano tossed the box from one hand to the other.

  “Camry, why don’t you get her a soda or something?” Stefano suggested. “It might make things a little easier.”

  “I’m not thirsty.” Shit, if they made me drink something, I’d pee my pants. And if the test was positive they would have something else to threaten Kaleb with.

  “Sure you are. You took a nice long nap. Gotta be feeling a little dry.” Stefano sat straddling a chair, facing me. I was in a twin of the same chair, but I wasn’t quite so casual – hard to be when I was tied to the damn thing.

  “No, I’m not feeling dry. I’m feeling nauseated. If I drink anything, I’ll throw it up.” There.

  “Oh…maybe she is pregnant.” Stefano giggled and edged closer. “Come on, honey. Let’s just get the test done so we can get in touch with your hubby and get this whole mess behind us.”

  “I’ve got a better idea…let me go, and I’ll get a hold of Kaleb.” I smiled sweetly at him. “He can come pick me up, and we’ll just forget this whole thing ever happened.”

  “Not going to happen that way, sweetheart. See, that Kaleb asshole gave me a lot of trouble. I figure he owes me something extra for it.” Stefano winked at me. “This way, I don’t have to worry about him trying to jerk me around again.”

  “He doesn’t owe you shit.” Maybe I shouldn’t have said that.

  Stefano just laughed at me and shoved off the chair. “You wouldn’t understand, angel. Come on. You’re getting out of that chair and going with Camry here into the bathroom. You’re going to be a good little girl and piss on that damn test.”

  He knelt in front of me and started untying the ropes. I glared at him.

  “And if I don’t?”

  Something ugly lit his eyes. “You don’t want to know the answer to that, Piety. See, I’ve been nice so far. Don’t make me change that. Or maybe you’d rather have me follow you in there. I always get a kick out of watching a pretty girl like you take a piss.”

  His entire persona changed, and it sent a shiver down my spine.

  He reached up and stroked a hand down my hair. “Now…are you ready to go with Camry and use the fucking toilet?”

  “Sure.” I bared my teeth at him, refusing to show how afraid I was. “But only if you say please.”

  “Oh…I like you. You’ve got balls.” He l
eaned in, pressed his lips to my ear. I didn’t let myself cringe away as he murmured, “Pretty please, Piety. Go piss on that damn stick. I want to get the show on the road.”

  A few hours ago, I’d been giddy, almost eagerly awaiting this moment, but now, I was hoping and praying the test would be negative.

  If it was negative, that was one less thing they could use against him.

  One less thing I had to worry about.

  They hadn’t tied me back up, but I wasn’t fooled into believing it meant anything. After Camry watched me pee on the damn stick, she’d grabbed it from my hand. Now, Stefano was pacing back and forth, holding onto the test as he watched it reveal my future.

  I wanted to vomit. That he was there, watching something so personal taking place, made me sick – and furious. I wanted to hurl the chair at him, but he had something else in his other hand.

  A gun.

  I didn’t doubt his ability to use it either.

  “Well, well, well…”

  I had no doubt what the smile on his face meant.

  I’d been counting down the seconds in my head, and when he looked up at me, I already knew.

  “Yes?” I said, feigning boredom.

  “Congratulations. You’re going to have a bouncing bundle of joy in a few more months, precious.” Stefano came closer and showed me the test before gesturing to the chair with his gun hand. “Sit back down. Camry, tie her up.”

  Numb inside, I sat down.

  I didn’t even move as she strapped my wrists down, jerking the rope tight. Her mouth was pressed, eyes jumping all around. I recognized the signs. She was coming off whatever drugs she’d been on.

  It wasn’t until Stefano came forward and tucked the pregnancy test in the vee of my shirt that the numbness cracked, then disappeared entirely. “Get off me,” I shouted.

  But he continued to fuss with it, twisting it around until he was satisfied.

  Then he took the box and placed it in my lap, facing out. “That way, he knows what we’re telling him. He’s pretty enough to look at, but he’s kind of…well…dumb.” Stefano tsked under his breath.