When Two Becomes One

by E. L. Todd

  Ten minutes later, there was a knock on the door.

  I answered it and saw Cayson and Slade on the other side. Cayson wore a suit and Slade looked like he just left the ghetto with his old t-shirt, tattoos, and jeans with holes in them. He looked so similar to Dad it was creepy.

  Cayson spoke first. “It’s ironic that you invited us over to hang out because I just got called into work. But Slade is free.” He patted his shoulder.

  I picked up on Cayson’s unspoken words. He wanted Arsen and I to act like we invited Slade over, not offered to take him in as a charity case. “Sorry you won’t be joining us. But Slade is company enough.”

  Slade looked miserable.

  “I’ll swing by on my way home,” Cayson said.

  “Who works on a Sunday?” Slade mumbled.

  I did find that odd.

  Slade stepped inside. “Where’s Arsen?”

  “Uh, hi?” I said.

  He spotted Arsen in the living room then joined him.

  I turned back to Cayson and rolled my eyes.

  He smirked. “Thanks for watching him.”

  “Why are you working on a Sunday?” I asked.

  He shrugged.

  I eyed him suspiciously. “You aren’t really working, are you?”

  Guilt moved into his eyes. “Okay, I’m not. But Skye and I haven’t spent much time together because I’ve been babysitting. We just want a few hours of alone time.”

  I could understand that. “Well, have fun humping.”

  “Thank you.” He smiled then walked out.

  I joined Arsen and Slade in the living room.

  Slade stared at Abby like she wasn’t sure what she was or how to interact with her. I knew Slade didn’t have a lot of experience with kids.

  Abby looked away from her toys and stared at him. Then her eyes honed in on the tattoos covering his arms. “What’s that?” She pointed at the scorpion on his arm.

  “It’s a scorpion,” he said. “Like an insect.”

  “No,” she said with a laugh. “Why is it stuck on your arm?” She pinched his skin like she was trying to get it off.

  “Ouch,” he said as he pulled his arm away. “That hurt like a mother—”

  Arsen slammed him hard in the shoulder. “Like a mother’s tears.”

  Slade rubbed his shoulder next. “Man, you guys are both brutal.”

  “No cussing,” Arsen said firmly.

  “Gotcha.” Slade turned back to Abby. “They are called tattoos. They are permanently written on my skin.”

  “That’s so cool,” Abby said with wide eyes. Then she turned to Arsen. “Daddy, do you have any?”

  “No,” he said in an amused voice. “I prefer keeping my skin the same.”

  “Can I get one?” Abby asked.

  Now Arsen didn’t look amused. “We’ll discuss it when you become an adult.”

  “I’m going to get a giraffe,” Abby said excitedly. “Right here.” She pointed at her forearm.

  “That’d be sick,” Slade said.

  “What’s sick?” she asked.

  “Cool,” Slade explained. “Hip.”

  “Thank you so much for teaching my daughter about tattoos and slang,” Arsen said darkly.

  “She was going to learn anyway, right?” Slade asked. “May as well learn from her uncle.”

  Abby’s mouth formed a noticeable O. “You’re my uncle?”

  Slade looked at her and clearly didn’t know what to say. “Well, yeah.”

  “But…how?” Abby asked.

  “Well, I’m Silke’s brother,” he explained. ”Which makes me your uncle—unofficially.”

  “He’s your brother?” Abby pointed at Slade while she looked at me.

  “Actually, we’re twins,” I said.

  She looked back and forth between us. “But you don’t look alike.”

  “It’s a different kind of twins,” I said.

  “I’m older,” Slade said. “By half an hour.”

  Abby turned to Arsen. “Daddy, will I have a brother someday?”

  Arsen shot me an affectionate look before he turned back to Abby. “I don’t know if you’ll have a brother. You might have a sister. But you’ll have a sibling.”

  “I hope I have a twin,” she said.

  Slade chuckled, clearly amused by her. He hadn’t had much interaction with her before.

  Abby picked up her dinosaur toys then moved to his side. “Want to play with me?”

  “Uh…” Slade looked at the toys, clearly unsure what to do. “Yeah, sure.” He turned to me and silently asked what to do with her.

  Abby handed him a dinosaur then played with it on the ground.

  Slade awkwardly copied her.

  Arsen watched Slade, clearly trying not to laugh.

  “You aren’t doing it right,” Abby said.

  “How are you supposed to do it?” Slade asked.

  “Your dinosaur is supposed to chase mine.” Abby said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

  “Oh okay.” He moved his T-rex onto her long neck then pretended he pounced on her and was ripping into her flesh. “Yum yum.”

  Abby covered her face and tears emerged. “You killed Suzie!”

  “Wait…” Slade looked terrified. “I thought I was supposed to chase you.”

  Abby ran to her room, crying, and slammed the door.

  Slade covered his face and sighed.

  “Way to go, Slade,” I said.

  “Shut the hell up,” he mumbled.

  Arsen watched Slade. “It’s okay. I didn’t know how to play with her either.”

  Slade lowered his hands. “This is why I shouldn’t have kids.”

  “Whoa…don’t base your decision on that,” I said. “I didn’t know how to take care of Abby until Arsen taught me.”

  “I’d be a terrible father,” Slade said quietly. He tossed his dinosaur on the ground.

  “Being a parent is a learning process,” Arsen said. “I made a lot of mistakes before I finally got it right. And I still don’t have everything right.”

  Slade looked like he was in a worse mood then before.

  “Let’s go apologize to her,” I said as I stood up.

  “I doubt she wants to be around me,” Slade said darkly.

  “Come on,” I said firmly. “Now.”

  He sighed then came with me.

  We reached Abby’s door then I knocked. “Abby, it’s me.”

  Abby was sniffing. “Silke?”

  “Can I come in, sweetheart?”

  “I guess…”

  I opened the door and saw Abby sitting on her bed. Slade walked in behind me.

  When Abby saw Slade, she stiffened noticeably.

  Slade’s face fell in hurt.

  “Come on.” I took his hand and pulled him to the edge of the bed.

  Slade just watched Abby, not saying anything.

  “He didn’t mean to scare you,” I said. “He thought you were just playing.”

  “He hurt my dinosaur,” Abby whispered.

  “And he feels bad about that,” I said. I turned to Slade, silently telling him it was his turn to talk.

  Slade sighed before he spoke. “I’m sorry, Abby. I’m just not good with kids.”

  “Why not?” she asked.

  “I’ve never been around them before,” he whispered.

  “Aren’t kids like grown-ups?” she asked. “But taller?”

  “I don’t understand grownups either,” he said quietly.

  Abby just stared at him.

  Slade stared at his hands for a moment before he turned back to her. Then his eyes widened like he had an idea. “I know how to fix her.”

  “You do?” Abby asked. “How?”

  “With my tattoos,” he said. “We’ll give her some and then she’ll be better.”

  “Really?” Abby asked, excitement coming into her voice.

  “Yeah,” Slade said, clearly glad Abby was showing some enthusiasm.

  Abby jump
ed off the bed and grabbed his hand. “Then let’s go.” They left the bedroom and turned down the hallway.

  I smiled then followed, watching them grab a pen from a drawer before they sat down again and grabbed the dinosaur.

  “What are you going to do?” Abby asked.

  “Put a tattoo on her.” Slade drew a very small giraffe where her dinosaur had been injured. “There,” he said. “She’s all better now.” Slade handed the dinosaur over.

  Abby inspected it with a mesmerized voice. “Wow. She’s all better!”

  “Yeah, she is.” Slade smiled for the first time.

  “You saved her!” She jumped into his chest and wrapped her arms around his neck. It was like Slade hadn’t hurt her dinosaur to begin with. Now he was hailed as a hero.

  Slade flinched when she threw herself into his arms. His hands remained by his sides and he clearly didn’t know what to do. This was the most affection he ever shared with a child.

  I smiled, loving the sight of them together.

  Arsen watched them with an amused expression.

  Finally, Slade closed his arms around her and returned the embrace. The smile left his lips and he just held her. “I’m glad I could help.” He swallowed the lump in his throat and clearly had emotion in his eyes that he tried to hide by blinking.

  Abby pulled away like her affection hadn’t move Slade. “You want to see my Barbie collection?”

  “Sure.”

  She grabbed his hand and pulled him to her room. “I just got Sea World Barbie!”

  “Cool,” he said.

  They disappeared down the hallway.

  I turned back to Arsen and gave him a sad look. “Sorry Slade is hogging Abby.”

  He didn’t seem disappointed. “It doesn’t bother me. I’m glad they’re spending time together. And I think it’s really good for Slade. I know having children scares him. Maybe it won’t scare him as much now.”

  “Maybe,” I agreed.

  He scooted closer to me then wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “Besides, Cayson will be back in a few hours, right?”

  “Yeah. He hooked up with Skye.”

  “I thought he had to work?”

  “I did too,” I said. “But then I caught him in his lie. I guess Slade has been hogging all his time and he hasn’t had any private time with his fiancé.”

  “Oh, I see.” He nodded with a chuckle. “Glad we could help out.”

  “It looks like we got our own babysitter too.” I rested my head on his shoulder.

  “I suppose.” He kissed my temple. “So, the wedding is just days away. He seems to be handling it well.”

  “I’m sure he’s fine,” I said. “Everyone knows how much he loves Trinity.”

  “Yeah, he’s probably eager to tie the knot and head on that honeymoon.”

  “Don’t blame him.”

  “Is there anything else you need before the wedding?” he asked. “New shoes or something?”

  “No,” I said. “But I need a date.” I turned his way.

  “Yeah?” There was a smoldering look in his eyes.

  “Yep.”

  “Well, what do you prefer? Old Arsen or new Arsen?”

  “New Arsen for the wedding. And old Arsen for the after party.”

  He smirked. “You liked being fucked in the bathroom, huh?”

  “I liked the I-don’t-give-a-shit Arsen when he fucked me in the bathroom.”

  “Really?” he asked. “I think he’s a bit of a jerk.”

  “And I think he’s hot.”

  He kissed my temple again. “I’ll incorporate him more often—when appropriate.”

  “Sounds good to me.”

  Chapter Six

  Sean

  My office would never be the same.

  Even though the floor had been replaced and the walls had a new coat of paint, the past still lingered. I remembered where Zack’s body lay after I shot him in the face five times. I remembered the blood that leaked across from the floor from the holes in his body.

  And I remembered Skye’s blood.

  Nothing would ever be the same again. I’d almost lost my wife once. And now I almost lost my daughter. Things like that changed a man. I was always protective, paranoid, and over analytical. But now I was a million times worse.

  As morbid as it sounded, I liked knowing Zack died in my office. I liked remembering where his body lay after the life left his corpse. I liked knowing he was really gone—no longer able to haunt me. I didn’t look over my shoulder anymore. When someone acted suspicious, I just assumed they were awkward and uncomfortable—not trying to kill me.

  My brother treated me like I was a fragile box of china that could break if you just moved it in the wrong way. He was sensitive to my feelings and didn’t make as many jokes. I didn’t like being treated like damaged goods but I appreciated it at the same time. I was strong and unbreakable, but I needed a little sentiment from time to time. Listening to your wife being shot over speakerphone would make anyone…a little off. Thankfully, that hadn’t happened.

  But there was something else going on in my life. Perhaps I was just being paranoid. Perhaps I was just thinking about it in too much detail. But there was something off.

  Every day at ten in the morning, the alarm at my house disarmed for exactly one minute then rearmed itself. An hour and a half later, the same thing happened. At first, I just assumed Scarlet left the house and ran errands. But at the same time every day? That didn’t sound right to me.

  So I investigated the unit to make sure it wasn’t flawed. That alarm saved my life a few times. I had to make sure it was working properly. Of course, Scarlet said I was looking too far into it. But when I asked if she left the house every day at ten she said she didn’t.

  So what was going on? I couldn’t figure it out. I told my brother my findings.

  “I think you’re paranoid,” he said bluntly.

  “It happens every single day at the same time.” I didn’t leave anything to chance anymore. I never left any question unanswered.

  “Even on the weekends?”

  “No.”

  He cocked an eyebrow. “Why not on the weekends?”

  “I don’t know,” I said honestly.

  “Did you contact the alarm company?” Mike asked.

  “I did,” I said. “They say it’s a mandatory override.”

  “Which would mean Scarlet is the one doing it,” Mike said. “And there’s your explanation. It’s nothing to be worried about.”

  “But it’s at the same time every day. And an hour and a half later, it happens again. I asked Scarlet if she’s leaving the house at that time and she said no.”

  Mike leaned back in his chair and thought to himself. “It has to be Scarlet. There is no other explanation.”

  I gave him a cold look. “Are you calling my wife a liar?”

  He challenged my look with his own. “No, asshole. But what other explanation is there?”

  “I don’t know,” I admitted.

  Mike rubbed the side of his face while he stared into the distance. “Okay, here me out without exploding. It’s just an idea…”

  I knew I wasn’t going to like this.

  “Maybe Scarlet is the one doing it but she’s going somewhere she doesn’t want you to know about. So she lied and said it wasn’t her.”

  I tried to keep my cool. “Again, Scarlet wouldn’t lie to me.”

  “Unless she was hiding something from you…”

  “My wife hides nothing from me.”

  Mike didn’t look convinced. “Unless she thinks it’ll hurt you. And we both know that’s something she’d do.”

  I turned back to him, my heart racing. “But what could she possibly be protecting me from?”

  He shrugged. “I don’t know about that.”

  Now my mind was kicked into overdrive with ideas.

  “Don’t you have cameras outside the house?” Mike asked. “Check those. Then you’ll have your answer. If Scarlet leaves
the house at ten, you know it’s her.”

  My immediate impulse was to check. But then I steadied myself. “I can’t do that.”

  “Why not?” Mike asked in confusion.

  “If I check those cameras, it means I don’t trust my wife. If she said it wasn’t her, then it wasn’t her. End of story.”

  Mike leaned back in his chair and stared at his hands. “Unless she was having an affair or something…” He rubbed the back of his neck like he was uncomfortable saying that out loud.

  I wouldn’t even entertain the idea. “She would never do that.” I knew my wife better than anyone. I trusted her above everyone else. And she trusted me in the same way.

  “I don’t think she’d do that either,” he said gently. “But I’m bouncing ideas around.”

  “Well, that’s a stupid idea,” I said coldly.

  “I think you should ask Scarlet again.”

  “She said it wasn’t her.” My voice was dangerously low.

  Mike treaded lightly. “Then I don’t know what else it could be. Perhaps it’s just a glitch.”

  “No, I checked with the company.”

  My brother stood up and headed to the door. “I’ve given you the most logical explanation. Its your choice to explore it further.” He walked out and shut the door, leaving me to my thoughts.

  Clementine came in a moment later. “The mail just arrived.” She placed it on my desk, putting it in neat piles that separated work letters, my personal bills, and junk I didn’t need to bother looking at.

  “Thank you.”

  Clementine knew I was in a sour mood judging the look she gave me. “Let me know if you need anything.” She quietly left my office, being as silent as a mouse.

  I kept going through the situation in my head. If it wasn’t Scarlet leaving the house every day then who was it? And if it were Scarlet why would she lie? I’d been married to that woman for a long time. Lying wasn’t in her nature.

  I went through the mail then noticed a bill from my health insurance company. I paid for all of Skye’s expenses already, including the private helicopter I used to get her to the hospital in record time. What could they possibly bill me for now? Breathing their oxygen?

  I opened the letter and skimmed through it. My eyebrows shot up when I realized it had nothing to do with Skye’s hospital bill. I hit the intercom on my desk. “Clementine, get Mike immediately.” I never used the intercom so she was probably jolted from her seat in surprise. When I needed anything, I got off my ass and did it myself. I hated sitting in a chair all day.