by Burke, Dez
Sighing deeply, Kira left the bathroom feeling strengthened that finally, she was going to take full charge of her life and her responsibilities. No more regrets, no going back. She had a child to think about now and nothing would prevent her from doing her best by it.
***
It was over a customary dinner with his father that Blake was told of the upcoming wedding taking place in just three weeks. Kira was getting married.
He looked up from his plate, finding the mere act of swallowing had become a herculean task. “What did you say?”
“The wedding. Kira and Terrence. You must have heard of the engagement,” her father said mildly over the rim of his water glass. “I’m proud to say I’m an honored guest at the occasion.”
Blake’s lips tightened fractionally. “I see. How nice. And there I was thinking you didn’t approve of the chap. What did you call him again?”
“Terrence,” Bretton said and then shrugged. “Well he did strike me as someone not to be taken too seriously. But since he’s the only one I know willing to do the honorable thing and marry the young woman, I’m bound to give him my good wishes.”
Blake wasn’t insensitive to the hidden barb. Obviously he was the one not willing to do the honorable thing. It infuriated him how easily it was for others to think the worst of him. Even Kira had believed that all he wanted from her was her body and had never given him a chance. She would never know that sex hadn’t been the main thing that kept him thinking about her; day in and out even months after that one time together. No other woman seemed right for him and he’d since given up on dating or finding someone new. Perhaps deep down he’d hoped…
Furious with himself and too angry to even finish his meal, Blake left for his place immediately after dinner. In bed later that night he tossed and turned. Thinking about how this time next month, Kira would be some other man’s wife. The very notion ate at him so bad he couldn’t see straight. How could he have been so wrong about them? He called himself all kinds of fool for nursing any expectations where they were concerned.
He had kept up an icy wall each time they’d crossed in the past several weeks. He’d had his pride to think of and hadn’t been ready to face another rejection. Instead, he’d been so sure she’d come to her senses eventually. How could she even think of marrying someone else? He refused to believe he’d only imagined what had surged like wildfire between them. In a flash it had turned everything else around them to dust until no one or nothing even mattered but the force field of passion that had surrounded them. There’d been more than just a joining of bodies. She’d given herself to him like she’d done with no other man. And now she was going to throw it all away. The thought of her in bed with another man made him physically ill.
All these weeks he’d kept his true emotions hidden but each time he saw her it seemed to grow deeper and stronger. He’d tried to deny his own heart but it hadn’t worked. He’d only wanted her all the more.
And that was why he’d stayed on in that stupid job of his. He could’ve left any day he wanted but he’d stuck around just to be close to her, hoping to get his chance. He’d been so sure she was with Terrence just to spite him, but now he knew better.
Blake knew he’d fallen hard for Kira but it was obvious to him at this juncture that she didn’t give a damn about him. How could he have been so delusional thinking she might secretly feel the same way? She’d never want to stray from her comfort zone by being with a white guy, or so she’d made Blake believe. Especially when he’d so easily made her lose control the way she had with him. He’d tried to understand why she was coming from but by now it was getting damned hard to figure out.
He’d been with a number of women; all beautiful, glamorous, from around the world. But with Kira it had felt different; like he’d found his way home. As brief as the encounter was, it had been powerful enough to influence a major part of his life. He’d not only worked to patch things up with his dad, but he’d let go of a lot of bitterness and pain he’d felt over the loss of his mother. And now he’d lost Kira too – even before he’d even truly had her. The finality of that thought made him want to smash his fist through something.
You think you’ve won, Kira; Blake fumed as he turned over once again in his cold and lonely bed. But you still owe me one. And I intend to be paid in full…
Chapter Eleven
Kira breathed in deeply, covering her nerves with a bright smile for Terrence who sat across from her in her apartment. They were just back from one of their regular evenings out. She’d purposely invited him up with her, and not for what he was thinking which she knew was a long-awaited invitation into her bed. After all it had been almost seven months since they’d met and they’d been a serious couple for half that time so he’d been more than patient. It was just too bad that on this occasion she was about to break the news to him that she was no longer able to proceed with the planned wedding.
He’d poured himself a drink though Kira had declined having one. Now he smiled and then patted the spot right to him. “Hey, sweetcakes, you’re sitting too far away. C’mere.”
Kira rose but only to stand further away, turning her back to him as she hugged herself bracingly, praying inwardly for strength.
“Kira? What’s wrong, honey?”
His jovial voice was now laced with worry and she heard him place down his glass and rise. “Is everything okay?” he asked in concern.
Kira turned abruptly to face him. “I can’t marry you, Terrence,” she blurted out.
He stared at her, and then burst into a short, incredulous laugh. “Sure you can.”
“I’m not kidding, Terrence,” she said gently but with underlying firmness. “I mean it. The thing is; something has um…come up. And I don’t think it would be fair to…to keep things going as they are. I’m really sorry.”
“To hell with fair!” Terrence growled, jumping forward and grabbing her arm. “And fuck being sorry. What the hell are you playing at? For god’s sake tell me the truth!”
“I…I can’t,” Kira mumbled, her expression pained. It broke her to pieces seeing him so shocked and angry. The last thing she’d want would be to aggravate him by letting him in on the facts. He’d never forgive her. How could any man forgive what she’d done?
“Please, Terrence. Why can’t you just…let it go?” she begged, her eyes cloudy with tears. “The last thing I want to do is hurt you. I do care about you, I just can’t marry you.”
“No fucking way,” Terrence said on a snarl. “Damn it, Kira. You’ve been hiding something from me, and I demand to know what!”
Just then the doorbell rang shrilly and Kira almost slumped in relief when he abruptly let her go.
“Don’t move. I’ll get that,” he said with obvious control, and Kira was too distressed to argue. Once he was gone from the room she felt the pounding in her head reach unbearable proportions. She went into the kitchen for a cold glass of water which usually helped. She heard Terrence return to the living room as she gulped down some aspirin. Striving to stay calm, she delayed going back to face him again, until the strange silence in the adjoining room made her push the swing door open in curiosity.
She went rigid when Terrence turned and she saw his face.
It looked figuratively black with fury and for once Kira’s heart thudded in fear of him. A fear which deepened when he spoke and she heard the threatening tone in his voice.
“What the hell is this all about?” he all but roared.
Kira’s confused glance lowered to his outstretched hand which held a gift-wrapped rectangular box in black with white bows dotting it, which looked ripped open. Peeking out were a pair of lace trimmed white panties. A small red card lay half squashed in his other hand. Kira frowned and looked back up at him.
“What…what’s that?” she asked stupidly, feeling an impending cloud of doom.
“A piece of flimsy unmentionables dedicated to ‘a certain part of your anatomy’ that is still kept a mystery from me,” Ter
rence bit out sarcastically. “Just when did you start receiving gifts of lingerie?”
Kira suddenly broke out of her daze to snap angrily at him, “Well, ever since you started to open them, I guess! How dare you!”
“How dare I?” he repeated with soft menace. “I dare, Kira, because out of the blue you get cold feet and something told me this just-delivered little present might hold the answers I need. Now you better start talking about where these came from because they certainly weren’t from me! Who the hell are you fucking? Because it sure as hell isn’t me!”
Kira found herself unable to respond as he flung the small red card at her. Picking it up she fastened her eyes to the message scrawled in bold, black ink jumping right at her.
It read,
“This, my dear Kira, is to substitute for the pair I divested you of…
I know it will be a perfect fit, because I’ve got first-hand knowledge of
That certain part of your anatomy. Hope you like
Satin and Lace”
Kira was still gaping down at the note long after the words had registered, before Terrence’s voice reached her numb brain.
“So, I guess this must be the ‘something’ which according to you has just come up,” he noted with an acid tone. “Some lover you’ve been seeing behind my back? Damn, Kira. You sure had me fooled. I mean someone needs to give you an Oscar. Putting on that virgin-bride-to-be act show with me all this time. Ever since we met you gave me the impression you were the type who’d like to wait for the wedding night but looks like I was not only insane but stupid too. Because from the look of things you haven’t been doing much waiting except with me. So who’s the lucky guy who’s been getting it, huh? Someone I know? Your boss maybe? How does it feel to fuck it old guy?”
Kira could barely even hear him now, her senses in a whirl of shock and disbelief at the man who would sink so low as to do this. There was no doubt in her mind Blake was responsible even though the note was left unsigned. Only one man would have the audacity to pull this type of stunt. But why?
She was made aware of her surroundings when Terrence suddenly grabbed her by the arms and shook her hard. “I asked you a question, Kira. Answer me, damn you,” he snarled. His eyes were burning coals that made her feel guiltier than ever. “Or don’t you think you owe me that much? Who’s the mystery man you’ve been screwing under my nose?”
Kira’s teeth chattered as she tried to speak. His reaction scared and shocked her. She’d never known he could reach such a level of rage that his teeth were bared and each word was forced out through clenched jaws. “Let me go!” she stammered with each shake from his cruel hands. “You don’t know what’s going on!”
“Oh?” Terrence murmured softly, eyebrows raised high. His dark expression had taken on a fearsome cast and Kira stared at him in horror. She cringed as he drew his face even closer.
“At least one thing I do know,” he said chillingly, “Is that you’re a fake, lying, cheating slut who’s been leading me on for months. Well I promise you, you won’t get away with it.”
Kira felt stung by his harshly voiced insults and she couldn’t stop herself from sneering thoughtlessly, “What are you going to do? Sue me?”
“No,” he said with icy rage. “Just something that will teach you not to fuck with me. A little something to remember me by.” And with equal precision, he drew his fist back and hit her in the face.
Chapter Twelve
Blake strode out of the elevator on his father’s floor. He’d been summoned and he wondered why. As far as he knew he’d been on his best behavior and hadn’t slipped up on the job lately, so what now?
He walked into the elegantly furnished outer office, stopping short at the sight of Kira’s empty desk. This was the third time this week he didn’t see her seated there during work hours. His cool mask melted into a frown of worry, and he quickly went to his father’s door, knocked and went in.
“Where’s Kira?” he asked without preamble, standing in front of his father’s desk.
Bretton Carter, seated behind it, had an equally worried look on his face. “That’s exactly why I asked you up here. She hasn’t reported in for work since Monday. It’s nearing the end of the week and she hasn’t even phoned. It’s not like her at all. Something’s wrong.”
Blake shrugged, faking his casual tone as he said, “So? Maybe her fiancé couldn’t wait until the wedding day and they decided to elope. They might be at some exotic honeymoon location, having the time of their lives.”
“Cut it out, Blake. You know her better than that.”
Blake cocked an ironic brow at his father. “Really? And how is that possible? When you’ve effectively shut her safely away from my evil clutches?”
His father didn’t seem ready to rise to the bait. “Well, this once I’m letting up. I’ve tried reaching Terrence but I was told he’s off on assignment somewhere each time I’ve called his office. So I have no choice but to send you down to her place and find out what could be wrong. I’m worried. This isn’t like her at all.”
Blake hid his surprise, reaching for the piece of paper his father had written on.
“That’s her address. I need you to go over there and see if everything’s okay,” Bretton said.
Staring down at the sheet, Blake’s forehead creased with unease. “Do you really think something’s wrong?”
“I know it,” his father stated. “I should’ve checked on her sooner. Now go out there and prove me wrong.”
***
Kira’s apartment was in a nice area barely a half hour’s ride from work. Blake glanced up at the building as he pulled to a stop beside it. He’d known exactly where to drive to because he’d already found out months earlier where she lived but hadn’t wanted to turn into a stalker by showing up before now.
Once inside the building he took the flight of stairs to the third floor where she’d rented her apartment.
He got to the door marked ‘22’ and knocked. When there was no response he knocked harder. Still, no response. His hand was already on the handle to check if he could let himself in, when the door at the far end of the corridor opened and a homely, robust woman leaned out.
“Hello,” Blake said politely, turning to face her. “I’m here looking for Kira Taylor. Do you know if she’s home?”
The woman scowled, iron-grey curls peeking from her scarf. “And what’s it to you? Are you her boyfriend?”
At the woman’s sharp question he knew better than to say yes. “No, ma’am. She’s an employee of my father’s. He asked me to swing by and check on her. She hasn’t showed up for work for a few days.” Blake replied. “She always calls in if she’s sick so we were getting a little worried.”
“Employee, huh?” the woman said, eyeing Blake speculatively. “Well I guess that’s different. I hope you’ll excuse my rudeness just now,” she said, stepping into the corridor and making her way down to where Blake waited by Kira’s door. “It’s just that after what happened to the poor girl we neighbors have to be careful with male visitors posing as friends.”
Blake’s eyes narrowed. “After what happened?”
“You couldn’t possibly have heard, hmm, being her employer and all,” the woman put in wryly. “Well, what happened was that she was found unconscious in her apartment three days ago. She’d been severely beaten.”
Blake felt like he’d swayed on his feet but it was just the earth shifting beneath him. That’s what it felt like hearing something had happened to Kira.
He could tell his face had blanched from the way the old woman was staring at him. Shoving his hands through his hair and praying for calm, he asked, “Where is she now? Where have they taken her? Is she okay?”
The old woman gave him the address of the hospital. “It was just pure luck that one of her next door neighbors normally goes out with her for a run on Thursdays or we’d hardly have found her in time,” she said. “Such a sad thing to happen to such a nice young lady…”
Her
last words were lost on Blake because he was already moving fast down the stairs, out of the building and into his car. In moments he’d sped off.
***
Ten minutes was all it took to get him there. It had felt like hours. He was out of breath when he stalked into the hospital reception and he could tell he worried the nurse with his wild expression.
“Can…can I help you sir?” she asked hesitantly.
“I hope so. I was told you have a patient here, who was brought in a few days ago.” Blake hoped he was making sense because he wasn’t even hearing himself right now. His head was buzzing with fury, fear, worry and utter panic that Kira was hurt and alone.
Taking a calming breath, he added, “Her name is Kira Taylor. I need to see her.”
“And she happens to be my patient.”
The nurse turned thankfully to the white-coated doctor who’d appeared from round the corner. “Dr. Samuel, this…gentleman wants to see your patient,” she said unnecessarily.
“You’re her doctor. My name’s Blake Carter,” Blake said, also swiveling to face the man who was medium height, with blonde, receding hair and a calm handsomeness. “Where is she? I’d like to see her.”
Dr. Samuel’s eyebrows lifted at Blake’s authoritative tone, then glanced at his watch. “It’s hardly visiting hours. And she’s resting. May I ask who you are?”
“I’m a family member,” Blake lied smoothly. “She’s adopted.” He got that same look from the doctor that the neighbor at Kira’s apartment had given him. Blake swore beneath his breath. “Look, I need to know she’s okay. Please.”
When the doctor finally let Blake in to see Kira, it felt like the rug had been swept out from under him.
“She was beaten up pretty bad,” the doctor said as he watched Blake rush to the sleeping Kira’s bedside. At least Blake hoped she was sleeping. Her beautiful face was swollen with bruises and her eyes almost sealed shut by the swelling. She looked frail and paler than usual lying there in the plain blue gown with the equally plain sheets covering her up to her chest. Her arms showed signs of large purple bruises and Blake gently took her hand in his, finding it limp yet warm. He stared down at her devastated face and felt his head start to want to explode.
