Broken (Endurance)

by Thomas, April

  All the cabinet doors were open and broken glass covered the floor. Makayla stepped carefully through the house, slowly taking in the devastation of the disaster. She kept her hand over her mouth in an attempt to reduce the foul odors that sought her nostrils.

  She couldn't believe her cousin had stood up to a demon and had fought to protect the children in her care. She was amazed that Tia was still alive and grateful that Tamarius had come with her to support her cousin. She arrived at the stairs that led to the second story. The banister shook under her touch and a few steps were broken through. She would get to the second floor later. She wanted to check everything downstairs first.

  Makayla paused when she heard a shuffle behind her. She turned around quickly, hoping to catch sight of whatever was following her. No one was there and she slowly turned back and continued walking. Her guard was up and her ears were ready to pick up the slightest sound. She walked into each bedroom on the first floor. Every one of the children's rooms displayed a heart wrenching picture. It revealed how they were swept away in the middle of the night, not having time to even take their shoes or a bag of clothes.

  The orphanage housed about forty children from all age groups. Space was limited and many of the orphans shared a room with sometimes four or five other children. Tia had designed the orphanage for only a small number of children, thinking it would be easier to manage. However, she could never turn an orphaned child away and had quickly exceeded her limit.

  Makayla looked at the toys and stuffed animals, quickly discarded as the children were hurried away. She thought of the children now staying at neighboring children’s home in St. James. No doubt the children were all eager to return home to their own beds.

  A hush of a breath came over Makayla’s shoulder and she stopped, frozen in place as the cold breath glided down her neck. Spinning around again, she saw nothing. It was becoming very clear that she was not alone.

  She returned down the hallway, past the kitchen area and went up the stairs to the second floor. Without forewarning, a vicious vice grabbed her by the neck and violently slammed her against the wall. Struggling for breath, Makayla’s feet dangled above the ground as she faced the eight foot demon that held her by the neck.

  His skin was thick and black like that of an alligator. His eyes glowed bright red and he had large black horns on either side of his forehead. He whipped his tail from side to side while licking his lips. He stared at Makayla lasciviously. He wanted to consume her in many ways.

  Makayla struggled to hide her fear. She knew this demon personally. He had destroyed her relationship with her ex-husband.

  The demon laughed. It was a hideous and evil laugh that echoed throughout the house. He stepped closer to her, rubbing his horns across her chest. Makayla shuddered at the thought of him touching her again.

  "I have found you, again." He chuckled, an eerie sound that rumbled from deep in his throat.

  Makayla fought to get his hand from around her neck and succeeded in getting him to loosen his grip. He did not want to kill her just yet. "I have missed you,” he growled. “Don't you miss our passionate nights?" His cackling laughter echoed through the hall.

  "Screw you."

  "I wish you would. One taste of you and I was hooked." He grinned. "Now, you stink!" he yelled suddenly.

  Makayla jumped.

  "You smell of angel, blah nasty, disgusting angel."

  Makayla was stunned by what he was saying. She was with Tamarius and while he was a great guy, he was no angel. Makayla couldn't understand what the demon meant. She kicked at the demon, trying to get away from him. He tightened his grip causing her to gasp for air as she tried to escape.

  He laughed as he absorbed her blows. Although he wanted to hurt her, he couldn't. He had to obey his commands. She was not to be killed or injured. Remembering his last commands before entering this realm, he let her body slide to the floor.

  "How did you figure me out those years ago?" he questioned.

  "I could see you, stupid. Who could miss those horns?" Makayla said, breathless as she stood up.

  The demon leaned over her, placing both hands on either side of her. He peered into her eyes. "It must be nice to finally be with the one you are supposed to be with... a man that I can't possess. I will find another way to get what I want," he said, dragging his claw down her shirt. It sliced through the cotton shirt with ease and tore through her bra, exposing her. A thin line of red appeared where his claw had grazed her skin. The demon laughed as Makayla slapped and punched him in a futile display of anger.

  At the end of her strength, Makayla was about to surrender, to give in. She could already see the triumph in his eyes. But the triumph was short-lived as his eyes suddenly dulled. The demon yelled in pain as he doubled over. Black blood spilled everywhere, as he grabbed the side of his head. He straightened up and stared in shock at the horn in his hand.

  Tamarius stood before him holding a sword. The demon looked up at him then disappeared into thin air, returning to his demonic dimension. Tamarius ran around the room to make sure there were no others. Satisfied, he returned to Makayla who was now sitting on the floor with her arms wrapped around her legs and her head buried in her hands.

  He knelt down in front of her, conflicted with his emotions of worry and anger. "Baby, are you all right?" Anger was set aside as concern took over.

  Makayla couldn't look up at him, she felt so ashamed and damaged. She bled from the scratch left behind by the demon.

  She slowly rose to her feet and Tamarius could see the blood rolling down her stomach. He tore open her shirt and sought the source of the bleeding.

  "You’re hurt," he whispered.

  Tamarius looked at his sword and willed it to vanish. He then turned his attention to Makayla. "Let's get out of here." He lifted her chin and tried to make eye contact, but she stubbornly kept her eyes down. “Baby, I can't help you if you don't tell me what's going on."

  She looked at him. "I… I'm scared."

  "Ah, anyone would be. That thing was big and ugly."

  "Of you."

  "Me? I won't hurt you."

  "I can't get you involved in this battle." Makayla said looking into his grey eyes. They made her melt inside. Every time she gazed at him they looked back at her with pure untainted love and support.

  "Your battle is my battle." Tamarius pulled her into his arms.

  "Tamarius, I don't want you getting hurt," Makayla said as she pulled out of his embrace.

  "Makayla, don't do this. I know what you’re doing."

  "Why haven't you given up on me? I'm damaged, scorned, useless..."

  "Stop,” Tamarius cut in. ‘You are beautiful, strong and intelligent. And with all that you’ve been through… I’m fascinated by the way you held onto your sense of humor." He smiled, trying to lighten the mood. "I'm no angel. I'm not perfect. My heart tells me, actually it screams at me, letting me know you’re the one for me and I'm the one for you. So don't give me this crap about not wanting me to get involved. I love you. You're my other half. Whatever you’re going through, I'm going through, also."

  "Who are you?" Makayla smiled.

  "Your soul mate," he replied with a kiss. He took off his shirt and drew it over her head.

  Makayla winced from the pain as she lifted her arm to slide it into the sleeve.

  "Let me see that cut." Tamarius lifted up her shirt.

  "You just want to see my goodies," Makayla joked.

  "They are my goodies, for your information." He laid his hand on the long cut between her breasts.

  Makayla felt the relief of his warm energy healing her wound. Feeling better after only a brief touch, she touched his hand. "Let's get out of here. This place gives me the creeps."

  "Yeah." Tamarius held her hand as they walked out, forgetting to lock the door behind them. They walked back to her parents’ home, talking and laughing with each other.

  Makayla was curious about Tamarius. He was very different from the men she’d
dated in the past. She was curious about why the demon had said she smelled like an angel. "Okay, how did you know I would be there? When I left you were sound asleep."

  "Yeah, I faked it. I knew eventually you would be making your move. That’s why the door was cracked. So I could hear you."

  Makayla laughed to herself. "I'm sorry for putting you through all this. I need to know why this happened to my cousin."

  "I don't think your cousin is the one in danger," Tamarius said as they walked up the front porch of her parents’ home.

  "Well, she was trying to protect the children..."

  "Makayla, I overheard your cousin’s warning. And despite that, you still went to that place. There is more to this story and, until we find out what’s really going on, I need you to stay away from there."

  "Tamarius, you can't ask me to do that. How are we going to get to the bottom of it if we always play it safe? Those children want their home back. They’re not happy being shoved into an already overcrowded home."

  "All right, but don't go there without me," Tamarius commanded.

  "Are you bossing me around now?" Makayla snapped back, suddenly irritated.

  "I don't care if you get mad at me, as long as you’re still alive. Makayla, promise me you will not go there without me," Tamarius growled.

  While Makayla had no intention of returning there alone, she refused to let Tamarius feel he could control her. She’d already had enough of that with her controlling and abusive first husband. "You’re not my father or my husband and even if you were, you can't control me."

  "I don't want to control you. I just want to know you will be safe and out of danger. Why is loving you a challenge," he snapped back.

  "A challenge? Well, I wouldn't want to stress you," Makayla said, walking past him and into the house.

  Tamarius put his hands on his hips and bit his lip to keep from swearing. He hadn’t meant what he’d said, but had lost his temper. Loving Makayla was not a challenge. Keeping her was the challenge.

  DNA

  Two days had passed since Cressida’s meeting with her client when she finally received the news that the DNA results were in. With nervous tension she wiped her sweaty palms on her black pencil skirt, grabbed her office phone and pushed the button to take the call.

  "Cressida Dash speaking."

  "Ms. Dash, after our last conversation I don't even know how to approach you,” Prosecuting Attorney Jason Reyes said.

  They’d met for the first time the day before and while Jason had heard of Cressida's amazing résumé, he was taken aback when he heard she had agreed to take the case.

  Everyone knew she only took cases defending the victim, never defending the offender.

  "Give it to me," Cressida replied. Her nerves were on edge and she couldn't take the wait anymore. Good or bad, she had to deal with it.

  "The tests showed that his DNA did not match." Jason sighed.

  "This can't be... He has to… I…"

  "I know that any other attorney would be doing back flips on learning that their client’s DNA did not match the DNA found at the crime scene, but..."

  "I don't understand. This doesn't make any sense. This whole case doesn't make sense. I shouldn't be talking to you like this, but something in my heart tells me this man is guilty." Cressida was on the verge of tears as she spoke.

  "Well, what's your next move?" Jason asked, already knowing what had to be done.

  "Oh, he can't be let out. He’s going to run and it kills me that I have to be on the wrong side."

  "Well, Ms. Dash..."

  "Please, call me Cressida"

  "Cressida, we still have to find out who the DNA evidence belongs to. I truly respect your integrity. I don't know many attorneys who would have the integrity that you are displaying right now. You’re putting your reputation on the line. When we heard you were taking the case everyone became nervous. You always side with the victim and in this case you didn't or so we thought. You’re an amazing woman."

  "You don't have to be so nice. I’m just doing what I feel is right. I need to get the sleep I was getting before this case."

  "Okay, well, I didn't know for sure how you would respond to this, but the detective working on the cold cases and I would like to meet with you. It wasn't clear what he wanted to talk to you about."

  "I would be happy to meet with him."

  "Come down to my office, let’s say around noon."

  "Noon is good. I will just have to clear my schedule, but that would be fine."

  Cressida hung up and looked at her watch. It was already ten past ten and she had planned to meet Maxwell for lunch. This was quickly becoming a regular outing for them.

  Cressida pulled out her cell phone as she walked out of her office. With her free hand she indicated to her secretary that she would be away for some time then quickly walked towards the elevator just as Maxwell answered his phone.

  "Good morning, beautiful," he answered.

  Not wanting to have her call dropped, Cressida turning away from the elevator.

  "Hey, handsome. Something came up. I’ll have to take a rain check on lunch."

  "No. Why?" Maxwell groaned.

  "The DNA came back and it didn't match."

  "What?"

  "I can't go into details right now. I have to meet with someone. I promise I will make it up to you."

  "If you spend the night here then I’ll forgive you."

  "I have spent every night there for the past week. I don't even know what my condo looks like anymore."

  "What do I have to do to make you stay. Your condo isn't going anywhere?" Maxwell laughed.

  "Honey, come on. You’re going to get tired of me and most likely kick me to the curb at any moment now." Cressida laughed and caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror beside the elevator. It amazed her how lighthearted and happy just talking to Maxwell made her look and feel.

  "The only thing I’m kicking to the curb is your condo."

  "I don't know, Maxwell." Cressida sighed.

  "Okay, go to your condo, but when you miss me I don't even want to hear about it."

  "I gotta go. I will call you tonight," Cressida said smiling then hung up the phone.

  She stepped into the elevator, leaned back against the wall and sighed. Things were really heating up with Maxwell and it confused the hell out of her. If it wasn't for that stranger standing her up, she would never have known she could feel this way for Maxwell.

  It was eleven forty-five when Cressida walked into Jason Reyes's office. Jason was an average height and build Hispanic man who had been a lawyer for the past twenty years. He dedicated himself to keeping criminals behind bars.

  Jason stood and walked around his desk to shake Cressida's hand. He was immediately captivated by her beauty.

  "Please, have a seat," he said as he gently placed his hand on her back, guiding her to the empty seat next to where detective Ryan Harris stood, politely waiting for her to take her seat.

  Cressida smiled at Ryan and shook his hand.

  Ryan Harris had moved to Central Florida from England ten years earlier. He was a tall charismatic character with an alluring British accent.

  "Very nice to meet you," Ryan greeted. "Jason has spoken highly of you."

  "You’re too kind," Cressida said, smiling at Jason.

  "Let’s get right down to business," said Ryan. "We got the DNA results back and although the test excludes him as the main suspect, further testing showed that he is related to whoever actually committed the crimes."

  "Okay, so maybe he knows..." Cressida began.

  "There's a problem," Jason interrupted. "The test showed that the DNA belongs to Blake's brother."

  "Brother?" Cressida repeated.

  “But, there is no record of him having a brother. What I mean is… Blake must have a twin.” Jason tried to explain

  “A twin?” Cressida repeated again, searching her mind for any information she may have come across that would confirm this.
<
br />   "We’re thinking that maybe he is trying to protect his brother."

  "What do you mean? He doesn't seem like the type of guy who’d care about his brother," Cressida replied.

  "Is it true he requested you to represent him?" Ryan questioned.