“Oh my goodness, you are a piece of work.”
“You have no idea. Now, please accompany me to the ball, and I promise you no harm will come to you at the stroke of midnight. This dream life I’m creating for you doesn’t have time restrictions.”
“I sincerely hope not. I would rather never be spoiled than to be spoiled only to have it taken away.”
“Never going to happen, Princess Acaau.”
“Good, I’d hate to have to put a Haitian hex on your ass.”
Damon
I quickly ushered Skye into the building. Music floated down from the speakers, and guests stood in their various circles, conversing and drinking champagne. I watched her face as she took in her surroundings. I made certain my employees put an extreme amount of effort into every detail for this event. This was Skye’s cover reveal, and I wanted it to be special. Decorating the walls were various shots I picked out from her photo shoot and had framed. There was one wall, however, I had covered in a mural of her cover shot, and I had every intention of leaving it there long after tonight’s gathering. Per my instructions, it was currently covered with a piece of material large enough to drape over the entire wall. I couldn’t wait to see her face when the cover shot was finally revealed; it had turned out perfectly. As if she could read my thoughts, she asked, “What is that? Why is the whole wall covered?”
“Oh no, you’re not ruining my surprise.”
“Come on, Damon, tell me. I’m dying of curiosity.”
“This is coming from a woman who hates surprises? Oh, how quickly you change your tune.” I couldn’t hold back the laughter when her mouth took on an adorable fake pout. “I’m sorry, Skye. You’ll have to wait like everyone else,” I chided.
Skye
Damon ushered me around the room and introduced me to everybody. The people here were an eclectic mix of models, photographers, agents, and even some fans of the industry. It was a bit odd to think complete strangers might become attached to me just because my image would grace a few magazine covers. I knew enough to recognize you had the fans to thank if your career was successful. Still, with everything going on with my stalker, I had to admit that it kind of gave me the creeps.
Damon pulled me away from the crowd and ushered me around the perimeter of the room where the walls were covered with various pictures from my shoot. I turned to look into his eyes and said, “If I forget to thank you later, I’m doing it now. You make me feel so special, Damon.”
“That’s because you are special, love.”
His hand pressed at the back of my neck as he pulled me towards him. His lips locked down on mine as he kissed me greedily and without shame, not caring that we might have an audience. When he pulled away, my hand stroked over his face. “Thank you.”
“You’re more than welcome, my lady. It’s my pleasure to show off my beautiful woman.”
“You’re beautiful woman needs to go freshen up.”
“The powder room is right over there,” he answered with a tip of his head. “Go, and come right back.”
“You’re hilarious with that overprotectiveness of yours.”
“Desperate times call for desperate measures.”
“Who are you kidding, Damon D’Angelo? You would be possessive even without the threat of a stalker.”
His voice grew cold, “That son of a bitch crossed the line of being just a mere threat a long time ago, and he’s going to answer to me for it.”
“Vicious, aren’t you?”
“You have no idea. Now, go to the bathroom and hurry back.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I already told you what I was going to do with that yes sir shit.”
I walked away and made my way into a bathroom that looked more like a high dollar suite. It even had a make-up table and expensive perfumes laid out on the countertop. I had just finished and was going to wash my hands when I was surprised by the appearance of the model who had caused all that trouble the other day. This was going to be awkward. The last person I wanted to see was the woman whose boyfriend Damon just beat up.
“That’s quite the show of PDA out there.”
I looked at her in puzzlement, so she continued speaking.
“Oh, I forgot. You’re the naïve little princess from the Haitian hut. PDA is short for public display of affection.”
I finished drying my hands and slammed my clutch down on the counter before I addressed her.
“You know, regardless of where I come from, I’m proud of my heritage. Let’s just get to the bottom of things. I’m a brass tacks kind of woman. What is your problem with me?”
“How could I have a problem with you, Skye? We’re sisters.”
“Excuse me? What on earth are you talking about?”
“We both share the same father, dear.”
I was suddenly using the edge of the sink to support myself as my knees threatened to buckle beneath me. “How? What? I don’t even know you. The first time I ever saw you was outside the studio.”
Her chuckle sounded more like the cackle of an evil witch as she spoke. “Well, whether you like it or not, we are sisters. Well, we’re half sisters anyway.”
“There’s only one thing I hate more than a trouble maker and that’s a liar.”
“Oh please, if you need proof, sweetie, have that boyfriend of yours get his highly paid personal doctor to do a DNA test. Just because you don’t have the perfect body for modeling like I do, doesn’t mean we don’t have the same blood running through our veins.”
I pushed off the sink and made my last statement as I exited the bathroom. “Thank you. You just strengthened my determination to change that perception. By the time I’m finished, the beauty industry is going to open their doors to women of all sizes.” With my head held high and my gait oozing confidence, I made my way back over to the man who was going to help me turn that aspiration into a reality.
Damon
I looked up to finally see Skye headed in my direction and breathed a sigh of relief. I leaned in and whispered in her ear as she joined me at the front of the room where the big reveal was about to take place.
“I thought I was going to have to come get you. One day, you must divulge the mystery of why it takes women so long to freshen up as you so eloquently phrased it.
“Just a pesky little nuisance I wasn’t counting on,” she said with a surreptitious smile.
The distinctive clinking sound a knife makes when it’s tapped against a crystal champagne flute rang through the air, interrupting our conversation and turning our attention to the director of the art gallery.
“If everyone could please give me their undivided attention, it’s time to reveal our newest model’s cover.” I watched as he looked around the room, making certain he had all eyes on him. Satisfied, he raised a hand and gripped the large piece of material, ripping it from the wall with one quick yank. There was a moment of shocked silence before loud gasps of horror and murmurs of disbelief filled the room.
I caught Skye in my arms just before her body could crumple to the floor in an unconscious heap. I had been watching Skye’s face, not wanting to miss her reaction. It was not until after I caught her that I finally looked up to see what caused her and the rest of the guests so much distress. Her beautiful mural had been defaced with red spray paint. Dead Bitch! was written right across Skye’s face. This shit just got dangerous… If I thought this guy crossed a line before, he obliterated it now. This crossed a boundary into whole new territory. He went from sending me threatening photos at my home to publicly declaring his intent to kill Skye.
This had to be someone out to get me. I just couldn’t fathom Skye ever doing anything to incite this level of anger and hatred.
Whoever pulled this off had to have some serious connections. First, how had they gained access into my banquet hall? An even bigger mystery was how he even knew the mural existed. Very few people were privy to that knowledge. I was very tight-lipped about it, wanting to keep it a secret lest Skye
hear about it. In fact, I wasn’t in the habit of making any of my business dealings known. I had a very tight inner circle, and as much as it pained me to believe, I needed to face the possibility that circle had been breached. This stalker wasn’t just affecting Skye. He was making me do something I never did and that’s question myself. Had I been betrayed and unaware of it because I was too preoccupied with Skye?
Now I wasn’t just going to have the stalker’s ass on a platter; I was going to hunt down whoever betrayed me as well. I needed to send a message to the public that you don’t fuck with Damon D’Angelo. Otherwise, not only would Skye continue to be a target, I would as well. The culprits responsible were going to get a whole lot more than they bargained for. When they threatened my woman, they unknowingly signed their own death warrants.
Chapter Twenty Two
Damon
The next day, I sat in my office with Jerome and Marcus. They were the only two people I trusted right now other than my lawyer, Jamal, who was still tending to Skye’s family in Haiti. To say the mood was somber would be a gross understatement.
“It grieves me beyond words to say this, but I’m convinced there is a leak in my inner circle. As far as I’m concerned, this motherfucker signed his death warrant last night. If you come up against him, and he poses any type of threat, shoot to kill. Marcus, I want the names of everyone who had access to the banquet hall checked into. From the janitors to the security guards, I want to know who helped that psycho pull this off. When you find them, give them to Jerome. I don’t care if you have to tie them up in a warehouse and torture the Intel out of them, Jerome. I want to know who this son of a bitch is. He crossed a line when he publically issued a death threat against my woman.”
“Do you want to call in outside help? There’s always Antonio Wayne Ramirez.”
“Let me think on that; there may be a more effective way to deal with this problem. If I call him in, I’m going to owe him, and I don’t relish the idea of being indebted to a Colombian gangster. Also, there’s still the possibility this could be Skye’s father, and I don’t want her knowing if I have to order the hit. Right now, I need information and the stalker subdued.”
Jerome chuckled as he spoke under his breath, “Antonio is great at getting information. The sadistic son of a bitch will torture it right out of them.”
“How’s she doing?” Marcus questioned.
“She’s resting right now. She was so upset I had to call the doctor in to sedate her. She’s scared and confused. After last night, I don’t feel like I’m doing a very good job making her feel safe.”
“We’ll get to the bottom of this. Between Marcus and me, we’ll find out who’s responsible, and if we don’t, there’s always Antonio.”
I hated the thought of going to such extremes as to hire a hit man to kill this unknown assailant, but he was pushing me into a corner. It would be much easier to live with the guilt of killing him than it would be the agony I’d feel if something were to happen to Skye.
“Yeah… you’re right; there’s always the crazy Colombian gangster.”
Skye
I woke up feeling groggy and rubbed the sleep from my eyes, taking a moment to sort out the events of the night before. As embarrassing as it was to have the defaced mural revealed to the public, that was the least of my worries.
With everything that happened, I haven’t even had the time to talk to Damon about the bomb Kiara dropped on me. I had a sister? Great, a spawn of the devil demon sister from the bowels of hell was just what I needed. I wondered if she knew we were sisters when she came to the studio with her boyfriend/agent that day.
The click of the door opening spurred me to look up and I saw Damon as he walked in with a tray. “Mmm, the help is looking better by the day,” I teased.
“I see the threat of death hasn’t diminished your ability to engage in witty banter.”
“Why not go down with a fight?” I rolled my eyes in exasperation. “We need to talk.”
He turned and eyed me as he poured coffee in a cup. “Ya think?” I knew his answer was facetious. He was trying to lighten the mood, and I was grateful he wasn’t letting whoever was threatening me affect our relationship.
“Oh, you have no idea.” I nodded towards the chair off to the side of the bed. “You might want to sit down for this one.” He sat his large frame in the chair and interlocked his fingers behind his head. He looked prepared for bad news, even more than what we’ve already dealt with over the last twenty-four hours.
“I had a run-in with our girl, Kiara, in the bathroom last night, and she informed me we’re half-sisters.”
“You have got to be kidding me. There’s no way I’m believing that shit without a DNA test. You two don’t even look anything alike.”
“Oh, well, she got into that too when she informed me I was too fat to be modeling.” I watched him lick his lips as he spoke.
He ignored me and continued, “So the bitch is not only a troublemaker, but she’s a liar too.”
“That’s what I said! I told her I was going to change people’s perception of beauty. Voluptuous was going to be embraced by the time I was done.”
“You go, girl,” he chuckled as he snapped his fingers.
“You are hilarious.”
“Yeah, that’s me… Mr. Comedy himself. No, love, you get to see a side of me no one else does.”
“Well, I’m honored. Now, how am I going to find out if the daughter of the devil himself is really my sister?”
“Oh, you let me deal with that shit. If she doesn’t give me what I want, she’ll never work in this town again.”
“Ooh, how sexy, a man with power who’s willing to use it for little ole me.”
“That’s not all I’m doing for little ole you. That bastard crossed a line last night. He’s going to mess around and get killed.”
“Please don’t kill anyone, Damon. If you end up in prison, I’ll be here all alone.”
He leaned forward, placed his elbows on the chair arms, and steepled his fingers beneath his chin. “I can assure you that if I have him killed, I won’t be going anywhere. He’ll simply disappear without a trace.”
His words chilled me to the bone because I knew they were true. I was dealing with a man who was not only powerful in the modeling industry, but also dangerous on a personal level.
Chapter Twenty Three
The Stalker
I sat and flipped the photo of the defaced mural I had taken between my fingers. It was the first time I felt a sexual charge since I started following her. It wasn’t her beauty that made my cock hard; it was how close I had been without anyone being aware. The omnipotent Damon D’Angelo had been caught completely off guard. I knew I needed to be careful because I was dealing with a man of means. He had money, connections, and a motive to discover my identity. I was treading on dangerous ground dealing with him, and it only made the hunt that much more exciting. Skye’s little knight in shining armor wasn’t dealing with just any man. I had connections of my own, though my associates might be more questionable in nature. They were men with no scruples. More than that, they were men who owed me, and I was about to call in on some pretty heavy-duty favors.
I wished I’d been able to get a picture of the look on her face when she saw the death threat. Oh, and the fainting, that was just delicious icing on the cake. I was standing right there, witnessing everything first hand, and no one even knew. Getting in was easy enough. People had been coming and going all day, so the security system was turned off, and the janitorial uniform was the only pass I needed. I learned a long time ago that when you want to convince someone your lie is a truth, you must first convince yourself. I played at being a janitor for the whole day. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary to any of the many people milling around, doing their jobs and preparing for the event. It was an adrenaline high, and I was a junkie. Every incident that I got away with mind-fucking Damon D’Angelo only increased my desire to continue. The professionals call it escalati
ng, and that is exactly what I was doing. I was escalating to the final climax where I would have Skye in my possession and watch the almighty Damon squirm in fear.
The thing about karma is she really is a bitch. I found it humorous that Damon had no clue who I was, and therefore, had no clue as to why I wanted revenge. I waited patiently for years before acting, and did so purposely so he would never see it coming. Profound sayings are just that—profound—and they’re considered that for a reason. The old adage that revenge was a dish best served cold was certainly proving true. When you waited, you had the element of surprise. It gave you the upper hand because your opponent was caught off guard. When dealing with a man of Damon’s caliber, you had to use every advantage at your disposal, and that’s exactly what I was doing.
Chapter Twenty Four
Damon
I set up a luncheon with Kiara, and I was honest with Skye about going to meet with her. I had no intention of Skye finding out that I met with her nemesis behind her back. Being honest and upfront would ensure there wasn’t any distrust on her part concerning my motives. I was also honest about my belief that it was smarter for me to go alone. It was an unusual feeling because I couldn’t remember a time I even cared about what one woman thought if I met with another. Skye changed everything. We both agreed it was less likely Kiara would be contentious if I went alone. Already, it was a known fact how jealous she was of Skye’s career, and it really hadn’t even taken off yet. If this whole thing turned out to be true, and they really were half-sisters, then they’d be adding sibling rivalry to an already strained and competitive relationship full of jealousy. Though I highly doubted Skye would be vying for her father’s attention after he abandoned her and her family, I was still going to protect her from the vicious woman seated across the table from me.
Slow Release (Ebony and Ivory Book 1) Page 8
