Double Obsessions

by Charlotte Sloan

  “Well, I’m saying it now!” Dylan exploded. “I’ve said it about five times, and I don’t know why you insist on making me say it again. I. . .am. . .done. . .with. . . you. Done. Got it? You want to hear it again? Will you get it this time?”

  Grace glanced up at Dylan, trying to pretend this wasn’t happening. “Don’t you love me?”

  Dylan shrugged. “Nah, plus a waitress? Really? You know I’m actually going to do something with my life. I can’t have a poor waitress hanging on me, trying to spend all my money.” Dylan shook his head. “You’re not good enough, and you’ll never be able to be a politician’s wife. Got it?”

  “You know I want to help you become a politician. I’m going to support you in every way I can.” Grace’s words were pitiful as she grasped at straws.

  “By what?” Dylan mocked. “Serving tables and talking about me?” Dylan shook his head. “Look, I’m really done with this conversation, and I’m really done with you. Bye.” Dylan turned and walked to his car. This time, Grace couldn’t bring herself to move. She watched Dylan climb in his car and speed away. Tears streaming down her face, Grace ran back into the restaurant, ripped off her nameplate, and gathered her belongings. She couldn’t stand there one more second.

  Chapter 2

  Antonio rolled his eyes as his parents, King Jose and Queen Antonia, instructed him on the same subject once again. “No voy a casarme con cualquier mujer!”

  The king and queen insisted that the law of Aruba could not be broken. Antonio turned and left the court. His parents could think he should get married before he turned twenty-six. The law could even demand it if it wished, but Antonio would let nothing and no one rule him. He was shaking his head as he made his way back to his chambers.

  Antonio called one of his servants and commanded them to say nothing and begin packing his wardrobe for a trip to the United States. “I want to do a little early birthday celebrating,” Antonio smiled to himself. Once he had disappeared into the United States, his parents would never be able to find him. His English was much more developed than theirs, and he would do well.

  “Can you get that ready any faster?” Antonio asked. “I’m leaving tonight.”

  His servant knew better than to question him, and he didn’t say anything as he tried to prepare Antonio’s belongings as quickly as possible. Antonio selected a flight that would be overnight and land in Chicago. “Chicago sounds like a good city,” Antonio said, shaking his head as he thought back on his parents. “The law states that you must be married by the age of twenty-six or forfeit your right to become King. Any perpetrators are subject to death,” Antonio mocked. “Yeah, right. What kind of parents would threaten and even look forward to their own son’s death? Obviously, they don’t really care about me. Besides, I’d like to do a little exploring. I can go under a false name. I’ll be Antwan to all who meet me.” Antonio smiled at the name.

  When his servant finally finished packing, Antonio gave him strict instructions to go to the fruit and vegetable fair and buy certain foods. Antonio slipped away while his servant was out. The chore should keep his servant occupied for at least an hour. By that time. Antonio would be boarding the plane.

  “I should be riding on my own plane,” Antonio shook his head. “But, I shall have fun soon enough. Right now, I just need to get out of Aruba’s intelligence reach. It’ll be more difficult to find me if I take a commercial flight under a different name.” Antonio had a few extra credit cards that were linked to a secret account with only a few thousand dollars.

  Antonio entered the airport and found it fun blending into the crowd of people. He wore his hat down low. The airport was not large, and it was likely that some people would recognize him. Even if they did, they wouldn’t know anything other than that he was going to Venezuela. He would catch a plane from there to Chicago.

  The woman who took his ticket certainly recognized him, besides the fact that she had a ticket with his name on it. As a look of surprise passed over her features, he made a shushing motion. She nodded solemnly and broke eye contact. Antonio could feel her eyes on him as he left her behind. He hoped she wouldn’t say anything. While his ID said Antwan, his face might still say Prince of Aruba. It would always be easy to recognize him, but he had needed to leave as soon as possible. His birthday was in exactly one week.

  Once Antonio was in Venezuela and he caught the plane he would be on all night, he felt a little freer to come out from hiding. Not as many people would recognize him. While he was the prince of Aruba, not many people kept up on the small island or would recognize him on sight.

  “Hello,” he said to his pretty little seat mate in first class.

  She turned and scanned him up and down. “Hello,” her voice was cool and elegant.

  Antonio was instantly intrigued. “I am Antwan, and you?”

  “Barbara,” she answered, eyes making contact with his.

  “What is your purpose for traveling to Chicago?”

  “I’m going home,” she replied. “It’s been a long trip, and I’m tired. So if you don’t mind, I’m going to sleep now.” She turned her face away from him.

  “Perhaps if Chicago is your home, you could show me around. I have never been before, and I am interested in seeing the sights.”

  The girl rolled over to face him, leaning her seat back and appearing quite drowsy. “What do you want to see in Chicago?”

  Antonio shrugged. “The truth is that I have only visited Washington D.C. and New York before. I wanted to visit another big city, so I can get to know more about the beautiful country.”

  “Where are you from?”

  “Uh-“ Antonio stalled. “Venezuela.”

  “Really? You don’t have the same accent as most Venezuelans have.”

  How dare the prig insult his accent? “Excuse you? I can’t help that many Venezuelans have the schooling of backwards civilians.”

  “Insulting your fellow countrymen? There’s something fishy about you.”

  Antonio tried to decide if she meant that he smelled like a fish or looked like one. Either way, Barbara was not the type of girl he was looking to meet in the United States. Antonio settled into his seat and began reading the magazine he had picked up in the airport. This was going to be the most exciting trip of his life. He had enough money to do whatever he wanted, see whoever he wanted, and have fun however he wanted.

  Barbara surprised him by getting his attention near the end of the flight. “I feel like we have met before,” she said, her tone quite different from how it was before. She was still aloof, but she was also curious.

  Antonio shrugged nonchalantly as though her accusation didn’t bother him in the least. “I think I would remember meeting you.”

  “Maybe you just look like a movie star or something,” Barbara said, giving an off-handed smile.

  “How about we figure out what movie star I look like as you show me around town?” Antonio asked, a teasing tone in his voice.

  Barbara laughed. “You are desperate for a tour guide, aren’t you? You know, I’m pretty sure there are touring agencies in Chicago if you are that interested.”

  “I doubt it would be as much fun as touring with you would be,” Antonio said, giving a look he knew made hearts beat. “Where are you staying tonight?”

  “Oh, no,” Barbara shook her head. “You take me for the wrong kind of girl if you think I would sleep with a man I just met on an airplane.”

  “I never assumed that,” Antonio said, backpedaling. “I was wondering where I could meet up with you so you could show me around. I wouldn’t want to inconvenience you.”

  “Of course,” Barbara said, a smile still dancing across her features. “Find your way to the Navy Pier about ten tomorrow morning. If you can do that, then I’ll see about showing you around the city.”

  Antonio smiled. “You are most gracious. I shall see if I can do that.”

  ******

  Antonio never made it to his meeting with Barbara. He was still to
o hung over at ten the next morning to even realize what day it was let alone that he had an appointment with a blonde beauty. His next few nights were filled with the full “American” experience, and when security from the island of Aruba showed up on day three, Antonio was more than a little disappointed.

  He yelled at them and commanded they go back and report that he was well but not give away his location. “I cannot go back. I will not, and you cannot force me,” Antonio insisted. “I am having too much fun here.”

  “We have been sent to keep you safe,” one member of his security detail explained. “We will do our job.”

  Antonio rolled his eyes. “Do whatever you want, but I am not going back, and I am not going to get married.”

  The man shook his head. “You may be the prince, but we take our orders from King Jose.”

  “I am done with this!” Antonio said, leaving his penthouse suite. He wouldn’t let anyone else rule him. He was going to have fun his way.

  Chapter 3

  With her bag over her arm and her keys in her hand, Grace hustled through the restaurant, eyes down. She didn’t even want to think about what she was going to do. She only had this job for two more days. She was supposed to be going with Dylan, but obviously, that plan had changed. As his name crossed her mind, Grace felt the tears rise again.

  Just as she pushed through the restaurant’s front door, a large limo pulled into the parking lot. The word spread quickly throughout the restaurant. Those near the windows pressed on the glass to see the men more clearly. Grace looked behind her, seeing all the faces staring out, then she realized the faces weren’t staring at her.

  Grace’s immediate worries were forgotten as she watched curiously to see who would get out of the limo. Two men dressed in nice suits stepped out. They were bulky with short hair, and the serious looks on their faces let Grace know that they had business to take care of. They began talking, but they were either too far away or too quiet for Grace to hear them well. However, she couldn’t mistake the looks they sent her way several times.

  Fearful, Grace dropped her eyes and began walking toward her car. Who were these men that they came to such a small restaurant in a small town and didn’t go directly into the restaurant? Why were they standing here discussing her? What were they even doing here? The questions flooded Grace’s mind, and she continued walking quickly with her head turned away. Suddenly, she felt a hand grab her arm. Its grip was strong, as Grace tried to wrench herself away from the hand unsuccessfully. She turned and kicked the man in his stomach. She had been aiming a little lower, but she hadn’t quite had time to aim well.

  The other man laughed as the first doubled over in pain, and he spoke quickly. It sounded as though he was speaking Spanish. Grace had taken Spanish, but she didn’t recognize any of the words. Then, the second man as he continued laughing, grabbed her other arm. Grace struggled, pulling back and forth from them. They started pulling her forward to the limousine.

  Grace realized she wouldn’t be able to shake them, so she just gave up. She started walking with them as they led her toward the limousine. What did it matter? Dylan didn’t care about her. She was almost out of a job. She hadn’t been able to go to college, and she had no idea what she was even going to do with her life. What did it matter? She had given everything to Dylan, and he had left her.

  She was pushed into the limo, though not in an extremely rough way. She took a seat on the plush leather cushions, and the two men climbed in after her. One of them tapped on the glass and gave an order, and the limo started moving.

  Grace looked out the window as the restaurant faded from view. It didn’t matter anyway. Grace just hoped that whatever they were planning would not be painful.

  “Who the hell are you and where are you fucking taking me?” Grace finally asked. The two men looked right at her, but they didn’t seem to understand her. “Don’t you speak English?”

  “English?” one said with an accent. “No. No English.”

  Grace shook her head. They seemed willing to communicate. They just didn’t have the tools. “Donde?” Grace asked, pulling from the few words she remembered having learned in Spanish class.

  The man smiled at her question and began chattering off a long string of Spanish. Grace shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

  “No understand,” the man said, shaking his head again. He gave a smile and pat Grace on the knee. “Is okay.” He finally said.

  “Yeah, maybe for you,” Grace muttered under her breath. “But if you knew how my heart just had been ripped into a thousand pieces today, then I don’t think you would say that.” As tears fell down her face.

  The men didn’t try to communicate with her anymore, and the ride was long. Grace felt as though she should be awed to be riding inside a limousine, but she was too exhausted emotionally. She rested her head back on the seat and eventually fell asleep.

  When the man woke her by gently shaking her shoulder, Grace couldn’t make out anything other than that it was dark outside. She didn’t recognize any of her surroundings, and she had a feeling these men did not plan on returning her. Surprisingly, they hadn’t been rude to her or tried to do anything inappropriate. Grace wondered why they were being so kind to her, considering they had just kidnapped her.

  “Food,” the men said, leading her into a fast food restaurant. It seemed strange that men who could afford to rent a limousine would choose to eat in a fast food restaurant, but then again, no behavior should surprise her after she had been “kidnapped” if she could even call it that. Grace wondered if their behavior counted as illegal since she hadn’t put up much of a struggle. Did that count as her consent? The thought of being with these strange men who seemed on a mission to reach who knew where, giving her no way to go back, frightened her.

  One of the men pointed to a picture on the menu of a hamburger. He pointed at the other man, himself, then Grace and held up three fingers. Grace approached the register carefully and eyed the woman behind it. Perhaps this woman could help her. Then men wouldn’t know what she was saying if she did say something. Did she want to try to explain what had happened? “Three hamburgers and drinks please.”

  “What size would you like those drinks?”

  “Uh, medium.”

  “Can I get you any fries with that?”

  “Yes, sure,” Grace agreed. Why shouldn’t she engage in a little fat in her food. She had been working ever since Dylan had started going out with her so that she would have the type of body that she knew Dylan wanted her to have. That didn’t matter anymore. “Can we change those three drinks to three milkshakes?” Grace said. “Sorry about that.”

  “No problem,” the woman said, changing the order. “What kind of shake?”

  “Peanut butter.” Grace knew that these men would have enough money to pay for whatever she wanted if they had enough to be driving this limousine all around the country.

  “Alright, your total is $18.62.”

  Grace stepped back and motioned for the men to go forward and pay. They handed the woman a $100 bill. The woman took the bill, giving them a strange look. She examined the bill under a light and began counting out their change.

  Grace sat with the two men and enjoyed her milkshake. It had been over a year since she had had one of these. The men were smiling and joking around, and Grace was really starting to wish that she had paid more attention in Spanish class.

  When they finished the meal, they got in the taxi again. This time, Grace was awake as she studied her surroundings. They started driving through a big city. Grace looked at signs and finally realized where they were: Chicago. What were they doing in Chicago? That meant they had been going north. For some reason, Grace had had some weird thought that these men were going to take her south and smuggle her over the border to Mexico. Still, Grace wondered what they were doing.

  The limo stopped in front of a tall hotel. One man grabbed a bag from the back of the limo, and the other took Grace by the arm. Grace realized
that if she was going to make a run for it, this would be the opportunity. There were still plenty of people walking on the city streets despite the dark. But something inside Grace wanted to find out what they were going to do. While she felt scared, she was also intrigued. Besides what did she have to lose?

  With one step into the lobby, Grace knew that this hotel must be one of the richest in the area. She literally sank into the carpet that was covering the lobby. There was a fireplace rising tall on one side. The carpet gave way to a hardwood floor that ran down a hallway with dark paneling. The men waited for the elevator and chose the top floor.

  The doors opened, and Grace realized they were in the penthouse suite. She couldn’t help it. She was from a small town, and she was completely oblivious to the world of the rich and famous. She entered the penthouse and went directly for the floor-to-ceiling glass windows. She could see the whole city lit up in the night. Grace couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face. This city was beautiful!

  Chapter 4

  One of the men went deeper into the penthouse, but Grace had stopped tracking their movements. She was too amazed by the view and grandeur. She heard yelling and turned around, wondering what was going on. The other man stopped her from going anywhere. Grace suddenly felt scared. Were they going to hurt her?

  Suddenly, two women barely dressed appeared in the doorway where one of the men had just been. She could smell the alcohol from 10 feet away. Grace watched them in shock as they walked around the penthouse picking up pieces of clothing and dressing themselves again. What was going on in there?

  The women were stoned, and Grace could tell they didn’t really know what was going on or else she would have asked them. The man who had been standing by Grace’s side, almost guarding her, she felt like, suddenly began helping the women leave. They seemed unsure as to where the door was or unmotivated to go through it, but the man sent them on their way. He suddenly seemed a lot less relaxed and a lot more serious. Grace watched the women disappear as a sense of foreboding took over.