Rumor Has It: A Bad Boy Romantic Comedy

by Lila Moore

  “Don’t worry about it. There is an exit through the back, behind the bar. Get out of here.”

  I jumped up. “Thank you.”

  I wanted to hug him or kiss him. This was the nicest thing someone had done for me in a long time.

  “Take care of yourself, Genevieve.”

  “I will.”

  I stayed low as I moved through the crowd to the back exit.

  Luke

  I was about to board the company jet when my phone rang. Thinking it was Val, I answered rudely.

  “I thought I told you I wasn’t going to make a deal?”

  “Um, hello?” a heavily accented voice responded. “I am trying to reach Luke.”

  “This is Luke.”

  “Genevieve asked me to call you.”

  I put down my bag and stopped. “Who is this?”

  “I just work at a bar. She came in looking frightened. She wanted me to call you.”

  “Is she hurt?”

  “Not that I know of.”

  A small amount of the fear I carried lifted.

  “She said to tell you not to trust her mother. She is a liar.”

  Genevieve didn’t have to worry about that. I would never believe anything Val said ever again.

  “She also said to tell you she is in Ibiza and not to give anyone any money.”

  I’d been right about Ibiza at least. I was headed in the right direction.

  “What’s your name?” I asked.

  “I’m not comfortable saying. I don’t know what this girl is mixed up in, but I don’t want to be a part of it.”

  “I understand. Can you tell me where you last saw Genevieve?”

  He gave me the name of a street, but refused to say anything more.

  “Excellent. If you see her again, tell her to wait there. I’m on my way.”

  I started to hang up.

  “One more thing,” he said. “She wanted you to know she loves you.”

  The line went dead. I stared down at my phone. What was the last thing I’d said to Genevieve? I couldn’t remember, but it wasn’t, ‘I love you.’ It should have been.

  I noticed I had a missed call and a voice message on my phone. It was from Genevieve. My heart started to pound in my chest. Then I saw the time stamp. It was from earlier this morning, before she’d met with Trent. I played the message.

  “Hey, it’s me… Genevieve. Just wondering where you are. Give me a call or a text when you get this. Bye.”

  I listened to the message a second time, then a third. Hearing her voice made my blood rush to my head. I felt as I was going to pass out. I had to find her. If it was the last thing I ever did, I would make sure her life and our baby’s life was free of danger. Even if it meant killing Val.

  Genevieve

  I couldn’t trust the server in the tapas bar to come through for me. I hoped he would, but I wasn’t going to put my future in his hands. I needed to find a place that sold international calling cards.

  After I got in touch with Luke, it would take a while for him to get here. Unless, he wired money to me. Then I could leave. Except that I’d never be allowed on a plane without a passport. I had no ID. I could go to the American embassy. Surely, they’d help me. I just had to figure out where it was.

  I walked to the end of the street and looked left, then right. I didn’t see Carmine or his men. The street was full of traffic, but empty of taxies. Just my luck.

  My leg cramped painfully. I wouldn’t make it far walking. A bus hissed to a stop in front of me. Maybe my luck was changing. I took a painful step and climbed inside. I showed the driver my money. He looked annoyed. He spoke to me angrily in Spanish. I wasn’t sure what his problem was. Did he not have the change?

  I shoved the ten dollar Euro at him. He could keep the change for all I cared. I just wanted off the street. I needed him to take me far away from this place. He took the money and rolled his eyes.

  “Sientate,” he said.

  ‘Sit down.’ I understood that much. I wasn’t going to argue. I took a seat a couple rows back from the front. I took a deep breath and rested my head against the seat. It would probably take a few hours for Luke to arrive once I got into contact with him.

  My eyes shot open. How could I have been so stupid? It suddenly occurred to me that I’d failed to come up with a meeting place. If the server in the bar managed to get ahold of Luke, he wouldn’t know where to find me.

  I’d have to talk to Luke first. But I didn’t know where I was; arranging a meeting spot would be difficult. A girl my age sat down next to me.

  “Do you speak English?” I asked.

  “Si,” she replied.

  “Do you know where I can make a phone call? I need to call home to America.”

  She pointed ahead. I didn’t know what she was gesturing at, then I saw it.

  I smiled and said, “Gracias.”

  The bus came to a stop in front of what looked like a huge tourist center. I jumped out and started to run inside when a hand grabbed my arm and spun me around violently. I turned to find the bus driver leering at me. His face was twisted with annoyance. He threw loose change and a few Euros at me.

  The money fell to the ground. I bent down to pick it up and watched as he got back in the bus and drove away. I assumed it was the change he owed me. I shook my head. As if I didn’t have enough to worry about. I had to deal with a bus driver’s bad attitude.

  I was gathering the change when a shadow fell over the sidewalk. Afraid to look up, I kept my eyes on the ground. Out of the corner of my eye I could see the pants leg of a crisp white uniform.

  I was so close. My salvation was within sight. I jumped up to run. The man grabbed me. I kicked and twisted my body, but it was no use. He was much stronger than I was. I was doomed, but that didn’t mean I was going to make it easy for him. I drove my heel into his foot and shoved my elbow into his chest. It was like punching a brick wall. I’d never hurt him. He didn’t even react to my kicking and punching.

  He wrapped an arm around my chest, pinning my arms down. He lifted me off the ground as if I weighed nothing at all and started to carry me away. Several people were staring.

  “Help!” I cried, only to have my words silenced by the man’s hand.

  People watched with confused looks on their faces.

  I was led to a car where Carmine stood.

  “We’ve been looking all over for you,” he said sweetly.

  He combed my hair back out of my eyes. I bit the hand of the man holding me, then spit in Carmine’s face. He flinched, but somehow managed to force a smile on his face.

  “You are a spirited girl just like your mother.”

  He wiped the spit off his face then ordered the deckhand to put me in the waiting car. I stared pleadingly at an older couple near the entrance to the building. They whispered to one another then turned away.

  It was infuriating, but not surprising. In the neighborhood I grew up in people behaved the same way. They didn’t want to get involved in other people’s business. The unspoken rule was that if a situation didn’t directly involve or affect you, then mind your own business.

  No one wants to get involved in other people’s drama. I don’t blame them, but I was in desperate need of help.

  The deckhand shoved me into the backseat of the car. Carmine slid in beside me while his two accomplices sat down in the front. The car started; we quickly peeled away from the scene, burning rubber.

  Carmine pulled out a needle and a vial of liquid.

  “Until you learn to cooperate, we’re going to have to keep you quiet.”

  I backed up into the corner of the car. I pulled on the door handle. It opened. Even though we were driving fast, I was determined to jump out. I was too slow. Carmine stabbed the needle into my thigh and depressed the plunger.

  He grabbed my arm, stopping me from jumping from the car. I wavered nearly collapsing on top of him.

  The drugs had a curious effect on me. They didn’t knock me out; they left
me feeling detached and strangely euphoric. My problems didn’t feel like problems at all, only small amusements.

  I turned to Carmine and started to laugh. He returned my smile and shook his head. I had no idea what I was laughing at. The situation suddenly struck me as funny. Carmine petted the top of my head in a weirdly paternal gesture.

  “You’ll be fine,” he said.

  “Yes…”

  I didn’t recognize my voice as my own. It sounded hollow and far away.

  “Your mother and I will take care of you and the baby.”

  I found myself smiling. It would be nice to be taken care of, I thought dreamily.

  “Do you trust me?” he asked.

  “Of course,” I replied.

  “Good girl. Now, let’s go back to your new home.”

  Luke

  The plane had barely come to a stop; I was already at the door pushing it open. A flight attendant was yelling at me to sit down and stay away from the door until we’d come to a complete stop, but I didn’t care. The flight had taken hours. That was precious time wasted. They could have fled the country by now. I may have just missed them. I’d have no way of finding them again.

  I pulled on the door, but I couldn’t open it. I had to wait for the plane to taxi to a stop. Once the door was open, I jumped out with my bag in hand. I hadn’t brought anything except a change of clothes and a lot of cash. Half of it was in Euros, the other half in American currency. I had no idea who I was going to have to bribe to get the information I wanted, or how much it would cost. Hopefully, I had enough money.

  A car was waiting for me at the private landing field. There are definitely advantages to having wealth. This was one of them.

  The driver greeted me and opened the back door to the car. No questions asked.

  I hopped in. Trent had managed to trace the call from the man who’d last seen Genevieve. The number was a cell phone belonging to a man named Antonio. Trent quickly figured out that the bar where he worked was on the same street he’d claimed to have seen Genevieve. It was a good bet she’d wandered into his workplace.

  I gave the driver the address and told him to go as fast as he could. He took my instructions to heart. I thought he was going to kill us as he swerved through traffic and ran through stop lights. He pulled to a stop in front of the bar and I jumped out.

  “Wait here,” I said.

  The street was crawling with people. I was careful to guard my bag as I pushed my way through. The last thing I needed was to have it stolen. I made my way into the tapas bar. A man told me to have a seat. I asked him in Spanish if he’d seen Antonio. He narrowed his eyes suspiciously and shook his head no. I pulled out my wallet and slid a hundred dollar bill across the bar to him.

  “Antonio’s in the back,” he said.

  “Get him for me.”

  It didn’t take long before they emerged together. Antonio did not look happy to see me.

  “Can I help you?” he asked.

  “I’m looking for Genevieve.”

  Antonio considered me closely. “You must be Luke?” He didn’t wait for me to respond. “She came in here early this morning. She sat in the back.”

  He pointed to a table in the corner of the room. I looked, half-expecting to see her sitting there now. It was occupied by an older couple sipping wine.

  “She didn’t have money, so I paid for her meal, gave her a glass of wine. She was a pretty girl, y’know? So I took care of her.”

  “Go on,” I said, gritting my teeth.

  “She wanted to use the phone. I said no. This is a place of business. I can’t have her using the phone here for personal calls. After she ate, she begged me to call you and give you a message. I agreed. And that’s that.”

  “That’s all? There’s nothing else you can tell me?”

  He thought for a moment. “She wanted to know if there was a back exit. I think someone was after her. Also, she was soaking wet.”

  “Wet?”

  “She was wearing a white dress that was too big for her. It was wet and it clung to her body nicely. Anyway, I showed her out the back way and she disappeared. That was the last I saw of her.”

  I thought for a moment, then reached into my pocket. I handed Antonio five hundred Euros.

  “Thanks for helping her,” I said.

  “De nada. When you find your girl, bring her back here? I’ll treat the both of you.”

  “I will,” I said.

  I left the bar and stood out on the street. I looked to my left. The street forked in two different directions. It was full of touristy shops and restaurants. To my right was the beach.

  Why had Genevieve been wet? I found myself walking towards the water. Getting to the beach was harder than I thought. It was private and surrounded my homes. I opened someone’s gate and walked through their backyard. A dog barked, but no one came out to chase me off or call the cops.

  I followed a winding path down a cliff before making my way to the beach. Several children ran and played. I looked out to sea. Fishing boats and yachts were anchored near the shore. I stared at them and wondered. Could Genevieve have jumped overboard and made the swim to shore? It seemed impossible. The distance was too great. But if they were holding her on a yacht, it made sense. The only escape would have been to jump overboard.

  My cell phone started to ring. The caller ID said Unavailable. I frowned and answered it.

  “Yeah?”

  “I’ve been trying to reach you,” Val said. “Is there some reason you turned your phone off?”

  I’d had to turn off my phone on the plane. I didn’t want her to know I was in Spain though.

  “Just giving you something to think about,” I said.

  “What am I supposed to be considering?”

  “That you need me more than I need you.”

  “Are you sure about that?”

  “If you want child support, get a lawyer and sue me. I’m hanging up now.”

  It was a bluff. I hoped she’d fall for it.

  “Wait!” she said. “Don’t hang up.”

  I smiled. She was losing control of the situation. It was a small win in my favor. For the time being, anyway. When Val loses control she becomes more dangerous than ever.

  “Let me talk to Genevieve,” I said.

  “Fine.”

  There was a pause.

  “Hello?” Genevieve said.

  “Genevieve! Sweetheart, are you okay?”

  “Swell,” she said.

  She sounded strange. Her voice was high-pitched and had a singsong quality to it that reminded me of Val when she’s drunk.

  “Where are you?” I asked.

  “Around.”

  “Did they give you something, Gen? Are they drugging you?”

  She started to laugh. There was a lot of background noise. For a second, I thought she’d dropped the phone.

  “Everything’s fine,” Genevieve said. “Just relax and give us the money.”

  I didn’t know what to say. I never thought I’d hear Genevieve parroting the words of her mother. Something was wrong.

  “Where are you?” I demanded.

  “I’m in the water,” she said strangely.

  “What? I need to know exactly where you are. Do you understand?”

  She giggled. “I miss you, Luke. When the baby comes I think we should name him after Carmine.”

  I squeezed my phone so tightly I nearly broke it. That bastard had done something to Genevieve. I knew it.

  “Listen to me. Don’t drink or eat anything they give you. It’s drugged. Do you understand?”

  “The drugs aren’t in the food,” she said. “They come in-”

  Her voice cut off. Suddenly, Val was back on the line.

  “There,” she said. “From the horse’s mouth. Give us the money. Genevieve wants to have her baby far away from you. You need to do the right thing and pay up, or you’ll never see your baby. Do you understand? You have an obligation as a father to take care of us.”
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  “Us? I don’t owe you anything. You’ve made my life a living hell. I don’t know what you and that doctor have done to her, but I’m going to make you pay for this.”

  Val laughed incredulously. “The money, Luke. I expect it to be wired into my account by the end of the day.”

  “No,” I said.

  I tried to keep my voice even, but it was hard. Anger slipped through, giving my words a pointed edge.

  “Are you seriously going to deny your child a future, Luke? What about Genevieve? Her life was quite difficult in that mental institution. It would be a shame if she was forced to go back.”

  “You can’t-”

  “I’m her mother. Don’t tell me what I can and can’t do.”

  A loud roar and a splash sounded in the background of the call.

  “Hey!” a man’s voice yelled. There was too much static for me to decipher what he said next.

  Two boys sitting on the beach to my right started laughing and pointing out to sea. They were making fun of a man in a jet ski who had crashed into the side of an anchored yacht. I could see a man in a white uniform leaning over the railing yelling at the man in the water. I squinted and tried to make out more, but the yacht was too far away.

  It had to be the yacht Val and Genevieve were on. The sound I heard over the phone matched with what I could see unfolding before me.

  “Luke, are you listening?” Val asked.

  “Yeah. You’ll have your money.”

  “I knew you’d come around. You always end up seeing things my way. That’s my favorite thing about you.”

  The line went dead. I watched a speed boat carrying teenagers shoot across the water. A man in a fishing boat was pulling up to a dock at the far end of the beach.

  I smiled. A plan started to come together piece by piece. I had to get to the yacht and rescue Genevieve. And for once, I knew exactly what I had to do.

  Genevieve

  I watched as my mother spoke to Luke on the phone. She looked happy as she spoke to him. It made me smile. It would be nice if everyone got along.

  I turned and looked out to sea. I spun around quickly and lost my balance. I giggled as I stumbled and fell to the deck. My mother frowned and rolled her eyes as I tried to stand up.

  She covered the phone with her hand and said: “Really, Gigi? You’re acting like a toddler. Get a hold of yourself.”