by M T Stone
“Well I hate to inform you, but we are all in this fucking shit storm together. The only difference is that you are the one who runs away every time things get a little tense. You are going to die alone, Trey, unless you start to man-up and handle things. You know Tyler has been having problems with his addictions.”
“I know. I talked to Mom about it.” I close my eyes and run my fingers through my hair.
“Silvia is drinking wine like it’s water and chain smoking again. She has a sixty four year old live-in boyfriend who she’s ashamed to take out in public. Do you think she’s the right one to talk to Tyler about getting his shit together?” She practically screams into the phone increasing the intensity of her rant.
“You’re right. I’m sorry. I noticed that Mom was drinking again, but I guess I didn’t realize the extent of it.” I glance over at Mandy who has moved to the other side of the room to give me some space.
“You need to get back here and clean some shit up, Trey. At least clear your own name instead of letting the media speculate on whether or not you hired a hit man to kill your father.” She pauses, waiting for a response from me.
“I’ll be back in New York late tomorrow night,” I tell her. “I wanted to see the Grand Prix, but I guess that’s not in the cards.”
“The Grand Prix, yeah that’s pretty fucking important,” she says with a heavy dose of sarcasm. “Have you ever thought of fighting for anything, Trey?” she asks in a much more subdued tone.
“Fighting? I don’t know? Why?” I ask, not understanding where she is going.
“Sometimes instead of walking away, you need to fight for what you want or for what is right. I thought you cared about me, but when Tommy asked me out you simply turned and walked away. Then when Tyler expressed an interest in me, you moved as far away as you could without actually leaving the country.” She pauses again leaving a deafening silence between us.
“You’re right. I thought I was doing the right thing by giving you space and I didn’t want to hurt Tyler when he was already hurting,” I rationalize.
“I have always loved you, Trey. I just wanted to see if you were willing to fight for me, but each time you just walked away.” She sobs softly as silence fills the air once again.
“I’m sorry Vanessa, you know how much I care about you. I guess I didn’t understand what you were doing. I didn’t want to fight with Tommy and I certainly didn’t want to add to Tyler’s problems.” I try to make sense of what she is saying, but this conversation is throwing me for a loop.
“Walking away without a word was the wrong thing to do. Tyler knows he won by default and that’s half of his addiction problem. That and the fucking doctor telling him those pills weren’t addictive. I’ve never heard of anything so stupid!” she adds sounding as if she’s about to have a breakdown.
“Do you know where he is?” I ask, turning the conversation back to the original reason for my call.
“No, I don’t! I haven’t seen him since he heard that Tommy was going to be the new CEO. He hates Tommy with a passion, ” she replies in tired frustration.
“You need to log into his iCloud account and see if he has Find My iPhone turned on,” I suggest, hoping she can find him without calling the police or even Mom for that matter.
“He has a sheet with all his usernames and passwords. I’ll have to go look it up,” she says perking up just a bit.
“Please let me know as soon as you find him,” I tell her, anxious to know if he is okay. “Tell him to call me back if he can.”
“Okay, and you promise to be back tomorrow night?” she counters with a hint of doubt creeping into her voice.
“I promise. I swear to you, I will be back in the city tomorrow night and I’ll get all of this shit figured out. I guess it’s up to me to figure out who killed Dad, too.”
There is silence on the other end following my final statement. Maybe she actually believes that it was Tyler. That would explain why Tyler seems to be going off the deep end. Part of me knows damn well that he wouldn’t be capable of doing such a thing, but it would also explain why he keeps pointing the finger at me. Guilty people always try to pass the blame off on others. “I’ll see you tomorrow night, Vanessa. Let me know if you find Tyler.” I click the hang-up button and toss the phone on the bed. “Fuck everything.”
Judging by the look on Mandy’s face, something in my conversation with Vanessa seems to have hurt her feelings. I quickly think back to what it might have been. “Are you okay?” I ask after not immediately pinpointing anything.
“Yeah, I’m just tired.” She turns and walks into the adjacent bedroom. I know I should follow her, but I’ve had about all the drama I can handle for one day. I kick off my shoes and crawl to the center of the bed, after ditching my empty glass on the side table.
Mandy
After hearing Trey’s side of the conversation with Vanessa, I can honestly say that the roller coaster finished the day at the absolute bottom. Maybe I’m being overly sensitive due to the lack of sleep, but suddenly tomorrow’s test results don’t seem all that important. I schlep over to the sink and begin washing my face with a clean washcloth. How could I have ever believed that it would be possible for me to have such a magical life? I have always been the type who had to work hard for everything that came my way. If it’s going to be, it’s up to me. That’s always been my mantra.
I stop in mid-stroke and stare into the mirror as a single tear runs down my cheek. Where do I even go from here? Despite what Trey has promised me, I know I can’t rely on him to hire me or make things right. Not to mention the fact that it was my dad’s fault, not his, so he doesn’t owe me jack shit! Dad, you deceptive son of a bitch! I lay my arms on the sink and drop my head to them, letting all my emotions go and crying like I haven’t done in years.
“Tell me what’s wrong,” Trey says in a soft, concerned tone. He places his hand on my back, slowly caressing me.
“I don’t know.” I keep my head down and can feel my shoulders shaking violently as another wave of emotions come pouring out of me. “I’m just tired… and confused.”
“Come here,” he replies, lifting me from the sink. “We are both in the same place, not knowing what the hell is coming at us next. Let’s try to get some sleep.” He hands me a towel to wipe my face and gestures toward the master bedroom. I glance in the mirror, not believing that I let him see me like this. I look like death warmed over right now.
“We’ll both feel better after some sleep.” He pulls back the covers and gestures for me to lie down. “Don’t worry, I’m only interested in sleep tonight,” he assures me with a gentle half-smile.
“Feel free to spoon me,” I counter. “I can use a little TLC after the day we’ve had.”
“All right, but I’m keeping my clothes on.” He laughs before going around to the other side of the bed. After a few seconds he snuggles up behind me so that I can feel his body heat mingling with mine. “Don’t worry about Vanessa,” he whispers. “She belongs with Tyler, not me.”
Instead of replying I simply push back into him. His reassurance is probably the most comforting thing he could have said right now. I just hope he is being honest about it. I giggle to myself as I feel his hardness rising against me.
“I really hope those test results come back negative tomorrow,” I whisper, turning my head just slightly to let him know that his bulge isn’t going unnoticed.
“They will,” he whispers back, squeezing me even tighter. “Get some rest.”
CHAPTER 5
T rey
As the sunlight begins to filter into the room, I glance at the clock and cringe at how tired I am going to be today. After sleeping hard until three am, I have been lying here awake ever since with a million thoughts coursing through my mind. There is nothing like having complete uncertainty in every aspect of your life to fuel one’s anxiety. My chest is so tight that it feels like I have to struggle to breathe. I glance over at Mandy and she is out cold. She has such a beau
tifully serene look on her face. I’m going to let her sleep for a couple more hours. I slowly roll out of bed, trying not to wake her.
I grab my phone on the way out and turn it on to check for messages. There are several texts from Vanessa and a voice mail from Mom. I can feel my heart pounding as I click the first message, fearing the worst.
Vanessa: Tyler was at the Hotel W again. WTF is up with that place?
About 40 minutes later she had sent a second message:
Vanessa: Call me whenever you get this! He was unconscious when they found him. It looks like an OD. Paramedics stabilized him and brought him to Bellevue. I’m going there now.
Two hours later she had sent the third message:
Vanessa: They have him on a ventilator and he remains unresponsive. Your mom is beside herself.
Me: I’m sorry Vanessa. I’ll be home asap. Give mom a hug from me.
Listening to Mom’s message was even more painful. Why is she implying that this is my fault? I talked to her about Tyler before leaving town, but now it’s my fault that he did something stupid? I think they both need some serious counseling.
“Is everything okay?” Mandy asks sleepily as she shuffles into the room.
“No. Tyler apparently tried to OD and now he’s on a ventilator at Bellevue. Best of all, now it’s my fault for not taking care of him.” I tell her finally prying my eyes from my phone.
“Really?” she raises her eyebrows in disbelief. “They both know that he practically accused you of murdering your dad last week. If my sister did something like that, I would never speak to her again… ever!”
“Oh, everyone has already moved past that, even Vanessa.” I rub my eyes and run my hands down the length of my face. “I’m starting to hate everyone.”
“You could use a nice breakfast. Let’s get ready and go to Nice,” she suggests.
“I’m sorry, I can’t. I have to call and see if we can get out this morning.” I reach out and take her hand. “I wouldn’t feel right wasting any time.”
“You won’t be, besides, we have to fly out of Nice anyway. We’ll stop by Café Marché on the way to the airport. I really want to try their dulce de leche crepes. I hear they’re amazing!”
“You heard? From who?”
“I Googled the best breakfast in Nice and they came up at the top. They even have a five star rating on Yelp, which I’ve never seen before, so it has to be amazing,” she adds persuasively. “Come on, let’s go!”
“Okay. I need a quick shower. You get ready and I’ll call the concierge to set up our ride.” It will be easier to go by car instead of helicopter since Café Marché is downtown.
Mandy
The route our driver chose is a bit slower, but the scenery is gorgeous. The hills, ancient homes and stunning ocean views combine to create a very enjoyable forty-minute drive. As the freeway transitions into a narrow cobblestone street and the buildings become completely interlocked with one another, it becomes obvious that we are nearing our destination.
“Do you want to walk the last two blocks or should I go around to the back?” the driver asks as traffic comes to a stop.
“We’ll walk,” Trey says immediately. “Then you can loop around back and park. Just drop a pin to my phone and we’ll find you when we are done eating.” The driver pulls over to the side of the road and we both bail from the car.
“What a gorgeous day,” I express, reaching out to take Trey’s hand. The morning sun feels wonderful as we begin walking down a narrow alley.
“Isn’t it amazing how narrow these old streets are?” he asks as we make our way down the cobblestone path. We are greeted by two delivery vans that force us right up against one of the buildings in order to keep out of their way. “And you thought San Fran was a tough place to drive.” He laughs.
“No kidding. This makes those streets look like freeways.” We turn and see the yellow awning that I recognize from Google. “There it is.”
“Seriously? This place is tiny. Also, it doesn’t open for another forty minutes,” Trey huffs, giving me a disconcerting look.
“Do you like coffee?” an older gentleman asks upon hearing Trey’s dismay.
“Yes, please,” I answer before Trey has a chance to respond.
“Sit,” the old man, insists, gesturing to a small table in the outdoor courtyard.
Within minutes he returns with a fresh pot of coffee, two cups as well as cream and sugar. “My daughter usually opens early, so it should only be a short wait,” he tells us with a strong Italian accent. “Her almond croissants are worth the wait.” He smiles, leaving us to enjoy the coffee and sunshine.
“Good coffee,” Trey says after taking a sip. “I just want to get in the air as soon as possible.”
“Well, you have been bragging up Nice, so I at least wanted to see a little bit of it,” I reply as two drop dead gorgeous guys come through the alley way and go in through a side door.
“Does this place have male dancers or what?” Trey raises an eyebrow and locks eyes with me.
“Someone did mention the waiters were pretty hot.” I giggle and pat him on the knee. “You can’t blame a girl for wanting a little eye candy.”
“You don’t need eye candy when you’ve got beefcake like this. Do you?” Trey replies, flexing his bicep for me.
“I agree, you are definitely hotter than both of those guys. But there still is a chance that we’re related,” I cross my eyes and cringe.
“That’s a nice look on you.” He smirks before looking down at his watch. “I’m going to check in with Jürgen to make sure he got our DNA samples.”
Trey
I can feel the pulse in my neck as I click on Jürgen’s number. I’m a little shocked by how much anxiety I’ve been feeling lately. I close my eyes and take a deep breathe while waiting for him to answer my call.
“Nervously awaiting the results?” Jürgen chuckles. “Almost as nerve racking as a pregnancy test I’d imagine.”
“Yeah, we’ve both been pretty stressed since her dad broke the news to us,” I admit. “I just wanted to make sure you’ve got everything you need.”
“They were already here when I got in at eight o’clock. If you hang on for a minute I can go see if the test results are back.” He pauses, waiting for my response.
“Yes! Please do,” I reply, hoping to get at least one issue resolved this morning.
“What’s going on?” Mandy inquires, her eyes widening with anticipation.
“They’re already running the tests. He’s going to check on them.” She shakes her head back and forth just slightly while reaching for my hand. I know exactly what she is thinking by the look on her face. I am having the same exact thoughts. We have connected on a level that is so rare to find, that losing it would be devastating.
“We’re not related.” I try to convince myself as well as her. “There is no way.” I pray that I wouldn’t be this sexually attracted to a woman who was my half sister. My basic instincts have to be better than that. At least, I hope they are.
I click the speakerphone button after waiting a couple of minutes and lay the phone on the table between us. “I’m so frickin’ nervous right now,” she squeals. “I don’t think I’ve ever been this nervous in my whole life.”
“Yeah, no shit. I felt like I was going to have an anxiety attack when I woke up this morning. I can’t take too much more of this. It’s getting to the point where I dread phone calls and text messages.” We both stare at the phone waiting for a break in the hold music, but it continues to play for what seems like forever.
“Hey, Trey. I’ve got them.” Jürgen’s voice finally interrupts the Swedish folk tune that we had been forced to endure. “Let’s see if there’s a summary page.” We both lean into the phone, listening with the utmost intensity. “Oh… wow… you two haven’t had sex have you?”
Both of our hearts drop and we look at one another in horror. Please don’t tell me that Mandy is my fucking sister. Please…
“Let’s see, if the way I’m reading this is correct… there is a 99.98% probability that you two…” He pauses and clears his throat adding to the drama. “Are not related.”
“Oh… you fucker! The way you kept pausing, I thought you had bad news!” I blurt out in a sigh of relief. “You had us both on the verge of a heart attack.”
“I’m sorry, but this is the first time I’ve read one of these reports. I’m pretty sure that minus ninety nine point nine eight means that you are not related,” he adds once again lowering our confidence in his assessment.
“Are we related or not, Jürgen?” I shout into the phone as other customers begin to filter into the outdoor patio area.
“Just a second, I’m reading the summary and… no. You two are definitely not related to one another.” He clears his throat, sounding a bit flustered. “I’m sorry, like I said I’ve never read one of these before. We don’t normally do this type of testing.”
“That’s okay,” Mandy interjects, obviously feeling sorry for him.
“I am, however, selling the stock that I own in your company,” I tease. “If you can’t read a simple report, I think I better cash out before things go south.”
“Hey! Now you’re just being cruel,” he retaliates. “I was just making sure that I didn’t give you the wrong answer. That could have lead to a really bad outcome.”
“Yeah, as if dating your half-sister isn’t bad enough.” I laugh.
“I’m glad you said it… because I was trying my best to avoid the topic,” he says, clearing his throat once again. “I was just praying that I didn’t have to break any bad news this morning.”
“On that note, we are hanging up,” I reply. “Thanks for running the test for us.”
“Anytime, Trey. You two have a good day.”
I let out another sigh of relief after hearing the click on the other end of the line. “I knew we weren’t related. If things would have turned out the other way, it would have been so messed up.” I squeeze Mandy’s hands and give her a big grin of relief.
