Saving Cassilia

by Liz Thomas

  “We could stay here, you know.” Cody whispered to her, holding Cassilia to him. She lay on his chest, enjoying the sensation of afterglow as she ran her fingers across his skin. “Or we could go, Cassie.” Cody continued, “We could go anywhere we wanted, do anything we wanted. We could take new identities.”

  Cassilia purred and looked up at him, smiling. “But I like this identity.”

  Cody smiled back and shook his head. “We are who we are. Changing our names won’t change that.”

  She sighed. “You know we can’t do that, Cody.”

  He sighed as well, looking out the window at the night sky. “Yeah, I know, but it’s a nice dream.”

  She grinned, not wanting to face reality again just yet. “It is.”

  Again, she turned to him. “But no matter where we go, they’d find us, you know that.”

  Cody nodded. “Yeah, I do.” He looked down to her and flashed a devil-may-care grin her way. “So why don’t we get them instead?”

  She chuckled. “What do you mean, ‘get them’? This isn’t a movie.”

  “No, this is very much real life, and these people mean to kill you.”

  Cassilia said nothing, knowing Cody spoke the truth.

  A moment later, her phone rang. She leaned over, pulling it from her pile of clothes. The caller ID didn’t reveal a name, and she answered the phone cautiously.

  A woman named Rose was on the other end, and she was overjoyed to talk to her.

  Annalise awoke on the pavement just outside the home. Pelted by rainfall and her body stinging from the beating her sisters had given her, she rose slowly and entered the darkened house, surprised that the lights were off. “Hello?” She called.

  No response.

  She stepped through the front room, which was cold and eerie when bathed in darkness. Keeping a wary eye on her surroundings, Annalise eventually reached the far wall and toggled the switch that should’ve activated the chandelier.

  The clicking of the light switch echoed, eventually fading out in the upper part of the house. The light did not come on. The chandelier hung on the ceiling, dark and swinging slowly as though caught in some unnatural breeze.

  “That’s odd…” She spoke aloud to calm her nerves. “Hello? Someone here?”

  No answer.

  She stepped into the kitchen, and something crinkled beneath her feet. As she glanced down, she realized that she was standing on a plastic sheet.

  “Hello, Annalise.”

  She thought she would be scared, but she wasn’t. Instead, as she turned to the left, acknowledging the voice concealed in darkness, she only felt at peace.

  “Hello, dadd…” she trailed off, reconsidering her choice of words. “Hello, Roger.”

  He was seated, obfuscated by the night and lack of electricity. He appeared to be slouching. “How have you been?” He asked.

  “Roger, please don’t patronize me.” Annalise shook her head, “If you’re going to kill me, please just do it. I’d rather not hear your voice again.”

  Roger chuckled darkly. Annalise turned slowly to face him head on. The crinkling sounds of the plastic beneath her heels, which she knew she’d be laying on shortly, seemed to echo throughout the house, and her head. She saw him shake his head and throw up his left hand. She imagined the gun—his weapon of choice when he was angry—was in his right hand. She wondered if he’d already toggled the safety. “I don’t get it, Annalise.” Roger spoke like the reaper himself. “We have a good thing going. A beautiful thing. This was the score of a lifetime. Did you think I would cut you out?”

  “I don’t care about the money.” Annalise replied, still smiling, “You wanna know why I did it, Roger? You wanna know why I helped Cassilia?”

  Roger said nothing, awaiting the answer.

  “Cassilia’s mom was a good lady. She was a good mom. She loved me. She loved you too, but you don’t even know what that means, do you?”

  Roger sat silently in the darkness, allowing Annalise to speak her peace. “I never knew my real mom, you know that? You never talk about her and you won’t let Trina or Mona tell me about her…”

  Emotions were bubbling up inside her, a final sadness as the truth dawned on her. “…but you killed her, didn’t you?”

  “Of course I did.” Roger replied matter-of-factly, “Just like I killed Cassilia’s mom. Just like I’m about to kill you. Although, I have to be honest, Annalise.” He leaned forward, “I may not love you, but I really, really didn’t want to have to kill you.”

  “Then don’t.”

  “I don’t have a choice. You know, I was honestly considering it before you let loose with that childish spiel.”

  In a slow, deliberate, and menacing way, Roger shook his head. “There’s no such thing as love, Anna. I’ve tried to get that into your head from day one. Trina got it, Ramona got it…but you never, ever seemed to pick up on it. I chalked it up to childish rebellion, and hoped you would outgrow it. Regrettably, I am wrong.”

  “I know Trina gets it.” Annalise hissed, stomping forward.

  Roger paused and said, “Better from me than from anyone else.”

  “That’s what you think.” Annalise chuckled, “She gets it from everyone else. You know wanna know why? Cause she’s hoping to forget about you.”

  Roger said nothing.

  “Cassilia knows everything.” Annalise chose her last words carefully, “She won’t be coming back here. If she does, she’ll bring the police.”

  “Anna, you naïve little girl…do you really think Black Eagle PD will make am move against me? A citizen?”

  “Who said anything” Annalise said triumphantly, “About Black Eagle PD?”

  She felt Roger’s nonchalant façade fade, and shook her head. “It’s over, you bastard. It’s all over. I helped Cassilia because her mom loved me…you’re a murdering, child-molesting opportunistic bastard who’ll burn in hell—”

  She could barely gasp, barely raise her hands as Roger sprung towards her, raising his right arm. Annalise saw the flash in his hand but never heard the shot that ended her life.

  The storm poured. Cassilia was drenched, her clothes hopelessly soaked, and she still sat and waited. She had called Cody twenty minutes ago and demanded that he go to the place where they first met. He had agreed to meet; apparently, there was something he needed to tell her too. Now, outside the gates, she waited, not caring whether or not she got sick.

  He came running from around the corner, seemingly unaffected by the storm. As he approached, a myriad of emotions raced through her. Anger, sadness…love? Whatever it was, she couldn’t stop herself from walking up to him. “What is it?” He asked as she collapsed into his chest and began beating him feebly with her fists. “You bastard…” She cursed, barely audible over the heavy rainstorm. Cody, surprised, pushed her away. “Cassie, what is it?” He asked.

  “Tell me the truth!” She commanded, her voice booming. “Tell me the truth! Do you still want Alyssa?”

  Cody scowled at her and shook his head. “What? No!”

  “Then where were you tonight? Tell me where you were!”

  “Cassie, Cassie…” Cody began, trying to look her in the eye, “I swear, baby, I don’t know what any of this is about, but I was with my coach. You can call him and ask him.”

  Cassilia was studying him, analyzing his words for any falsehoods. “Baby, I swear, I just want you! Only you!”

  Somewhere in the back of her mind was the soft, reassuring voice of her mother. He is telling the truth.

  Cassilia fell into his arms and sobbed. He held her.

  After a moment, he pulled away. “Listen, come home with me.” He said, “I spoke to a woman named Rose, and she’s eager to talk to you.”

  The next morning, Cassilia and Cody entered the establishment. An older woman’s eyes lit up as she grinned fully. She almost hopped over her desk in her eagerness to get to Cassilia, beaming as she approached. Cassilia, unused to such attention, averted her eyes to the floor.r />
  As the woman drew close, she extended her hand, “Oh, little baby Cassie…” She greeted warmly, happily, “I’m so happy to finally see you.”

  Cassilia shook the woman’s hand. The woman held Cassilia’s hand with both of hers, and then reached up and touched her face. She looked as though she was about to cry.

  The woman looked at Cody, beaming and nodding. “Thank you.” She mouthed.

  Cody nodded, smiling.

  “Um, ma’am, I don’t mean any disrespect, but have we met before?” Cassilia said hesitantly, not wanting to appear ungrateful of such affection.

  The woman cocked her head smiled, “Of course we have, honey, although I wouldn’t expect you to remember me. We met at a hard time in your life. Your mother was a good friend of mine. A very good friend. When she died, I handled all of her affairs for you. She wanted me to make sure you were taken care of.”

  “Oh.” Cassilia replied, slowly raising her head, “Is it true you’ve been looking for me?”

  The woman laughed. “Relentlessly, honey. But I know your stepdad doesn’t make it easy—”

  Cassilia rapidly shook her head. “Please don’t call him that.”

  The woman’s face went ashen. “Oh.” Her demeanor changed entirely. She was now clearly resisting the urge to say something negative. “Do you call him…daddy?”

  “No.” Cassilia said flatly, her eyes ablaze. “He isn’t any kind of father, none at all. I call him Roger.”

  The woman laughed, touching her hand to her chest and exhaling. “Oh, thank goodness.” She sighed as Cody put an arm around Cassilia and drew her close. “For a moment, I was worried.”

  Cassilia smiled and shook her head. “Please, don’t.”

  The two paused and Cassilia shrugged. “So, ma’am, what did you want to see me about?”

  “Oh, don’t you ‘ma’am’ me.” The woman scoffed, waving. She led to the two over to her desk, seating the both of them before taking her seat. “My name is Rose, Cassilia, and I have a lot of good news to give you.”

  Cassilia was still swooning as Cody escorted her from Rose’s office. She’d nearly fainted when she heard the news.

  Cody had guided her as she signed all of the paperwork that made her a billionaire. It was overwhelming, but very soon, she was about to own everything her mother had ever possessed; the house, the furniture, all of it. Plus a trust fund to ensure that she, nor any of her descendants, would ever have to work again.

  “Oh my God.” Cassilia finally sighed when she reached the curb. She placed her hands on her knees and took in deep breaths to keep from hyperventilating. Cody rubbed her back, bending down to look at her. “Hey, are you okay?”

  She shook her head and rose quickly, collapsing into his arms. He caught her and held her. “Oh my God, Cody…” She breathed, “What am I gonna do?”

  He chuckled. “Are you kidding? You’re gonna be rich! And you’re gonna kick that bastard and his kids out of your house!”

  “No, that’s not what I mean.” Cassilia stayed close to Cody, looking up into his eyes, “I mean what am I gonna do now? Roger has to know that I know. That’s why he was trying to kill me…or get me to kill myself.”

  The realization slowly dawned on Cody, and he nodded, pulling Cassilia back to his chest. The wind suddenly seemed a lot colder, and the sky turned overcast. “We can run, you know.” Cody suggested, “We can leave this place right now and come back when the law will protect you.”

  Cassilia shook her head and sniffed after a moment. “No.” She declared, “I can’t leave Trina like that.”

  “So what do you want to do?”

  Cassilia looked up at Cody and said, “I want to go there. Tonight. And I want to end this.”

  Cody was about to say something, but Cassilia shook her head. “Yes, I’m sure. That bastard ruins everything he touches. He killed my mom, Annalise is missing and who knows what he’s done to Trina. I want him to answer for what he’s done.”

  “How?” Cody asked, “He owns the police.”

  Cassilia stepped away. “Not all of them.” As they began walking, she pulled out her cell phone and punched eight numbers. After a moment, she began talking. “Hello, Rose? This is…Cassie.” She smiled as she acknowledged her own nickname, “Yes, I’m fine. I wonder if I can ask you a favor, please?”

  They had gone back to his place and made love, passionately, one last time. She was sweaty and sore at the end of it, as he was. They both knew, although they never said it aloud, that it may have been the last time they were ever intimate.

  Cody had never asked if she was certain of what she was about to do. Cassilia needed to do this, needed to bring closure and seal the gaping hole that had been in her heart for too long.

  Night had fallen by the time the two arrived at her house. Of course, the gate was open to allow Cassilia back in, so she could do her chores. The lights were off in the mansion. It was too early for that.

  “Maybe he’s not home.”

  Cassilia surveyed the house and nodded. “He’s home.” She whispered, “He knows I know. He’s waiting for me.”

  She exhaled. “This is really it.”

  Cody put an arm around her. “You can do this.” He said encouragingly, “I’ll be right there with you.”

  Cassilia shook her head. “No, you won’t.”

  Cody frowned at her. “I want you to go around to the back of the house, quickly, please. The laundry room is always unlocked. Come in quietly through there.”

  Cody shook his head. “Why?”

  “Because he might do something the moment I walk through the door. If that happens, you can get the drop on him and make sure he pays for me and my mom.”

  “I don’t like that. If I’m with you I may be able to get to him before he gets to you.”

  “If he sees the two of us together, that might shake his confidence and I need him to think he has the upper hand.”

  Cody began to speak, and Cassilia placed a hand on his chest. “Honey, this is it. Please; trust me. Let me do this my way.”

  Cody nodded. Before Cassilia could say thank-you, Cody yanked her off of her feet and kissed her. “You be safe.” He whispered once he pulled away.

  Before she could reply, he raced off and disappeared into the blackness.

  She was on her own now.

  Mom, please watch over me now.

  She strode up to the house without incident. She wasn’t all that surprised when the front door opened, unlocked.

  The house was black inside; only the dim light of the night beyond provided any illumination. Cassilia tried to see through to the kitchen and beyond, but the path wouldn’t allow her. He could’ve been sitting on the couch and she wouldn’t have seen him.

  She entered the house, the floor creaking much too loudly beneath her footsteps. She left the door open and looked around cautiously. “ROGER!!” She bellowed, surprising even herself as her voice shook the house.

  She felt something zip past her ear, like a fly a supersonic speed a moment before she heard the earth-shattering BLAM that accompanied it. She yelped, leapt, clasped her hands to her ears and fell to the floor. Don’t lay here move move move!

  Two more gunshots rang out as Cassilia fought to keep her composure and scrambled across the marble floor to the couch. One of the bullets struck the floor where her leg had been, kicking up marble dust. Cassilia raced for her life, ducking behind the arm of the couch.

  The shots ceased.

  “You always were so damned lucky.” Roger’s voice growled. It was ubiquitous. He could’ve been anywhere in the house.

  “And you’re a rotten, horrible human being!” Cassilia fired back, shaking as she cowered behind the couch, “Why’re you trying to kill me?”

  “Cassilia, I figured you’d know by now.” Roger said, his voice still omnipresent, “I want your money, that’s all.”

  “If you had asked me for it, I might have given it to you!”

  Roger laughed. “Don’t take me for
a fool, Cassilia.”

  “I don’t take you for a fool, Roger.” Cassilia said, peering her head over the arm of the couch, “I take you for a sick, demented, child-molesting pervert.”

  A dark shadow like death itself entered the front room from the kitchen, and Cassilia gasped as she ducked back behind the couch.

  Movement stopped. Cassilia held her mouth with both hands as she quivered violently.

  She closed her eyes.

  He was standing over her now; she could feel that ominous, foreboding presence of his. He was smiling, but it was hardly friendly.

  “Is that why you killed my mother?” Cassilia finally said, opening her eyes as a certain, final peace came over her, “For the money?”

  “Of course.” Roger replied easily, his voice no longer omnipresent, “I didn’t love or hate your mother. It’s just the money. All I want is the money.”

  “Then take what you came for.” Cassilia said, rising slowly and doing her best to stare him down, “Take the money.”

  He shifted in the blackness, and Cassilia closed her eyes, knowing that the gun was coming up—

  Roger grunted and the gun went off. The bullet went wide, to Cassilia’s right, impacting the wall as something threw Roger into the wall. “Cassilia, get down!” Cody called as he wrestled with the older man, “Get out of here!”

  Cassilia scrambled over the couch as Cody continued to struggle with Roger. She’d gotten what she came for. All she had to do now was stay alive.

  There was the unmistakable, resounding crack of a fist in someone’s face. Cody grunted aggressively, and Cassilia reasoned that Cody was now beating the hell out of Roger. As she cleared the couch, she turned and tried to make out the conflict—

  The gun went off again. Cody screamed.

  “To hell with this.” Roger cussed. The gun went off twice more. Cody didn’t scream, but footsteps were heard shuffling across the floor. Cassilia yelped again and cowered, covering her head.

  A moment later the lights came on.

  Cassilia looked up slowly. Roger’s face was a bloody mess. He held a gun in one hand while trying to keep his nose intact with the other. A few feet away on the floor lay Cody, who struggled to breathe as a bullet wound bled from his shoulder.