by A. G. Khaliq
124
“This cop is taking the fucking piss with turning up,” Arturo sighed agitatedly.
“We're not dickheads,” I agreed, exasperated. We'd been waiting for hours. “I'm tired, tell him to come back tomorrow and we’ll see him then.”
“You wanna go home after coming all this way?” Iglesias shot back, repulsed.
“If you were spending time making half the money that I do, maybe you'd understand, Iglesias,” I retorted condescendingly, rolling my eyes.
Arturo turned around from facing me, and began staring at the club, rubbing his chin in thought.
“No need to be such a show off,” Iglesias said sarcastically. “Daddy's boy.”
“Is that jealousy I hear?” I smirked.
“You wish!” Iglesias remarked, and I cracked up into a fit of laughter.
“Hey Donte?” Arturo said, still immersed in thought as he stared at the club.
“Yeah, Arturo?”
“Isn't that the girl from work that you fancy?”
Iglesias’s eyes lit up, as he turned around to stare in the same direction that Arturo was.
I furrowed my eyebrows. “Which girl?” I 125
asked, rolling my eyes.
I shoved Iglesias out of the way, trying to figure out what Arturo was staring at so intently.
And then I saw her…
Sapphire.
She was bending out of a cab, and two of her friends followed suite. They were making their way inside the club. I felt my heart doing flip-flops as I watched her. I couldn’t believe that she was here, and that she was at my club, out of all the clubs she could have picked…
“It is, isn't it?” Iglesias grinned.
“It's the girl in the red dress,” Arturo simpered.
“I can't lie, you've got good choice bro,”
Iglesias commented coyly, scratching his neck as he bit his finger.
“Fuck going home, we might as well go clubbing while we're here,” I declared, and without wasting any time, I began striding towards the club entrance.
I wasn't going to miss this opportunity to speak to her, or maybe even watch her dance. I never had Sapphire down as a girl who went clubbing. She seemed so closed off and reserved.
Arturo cracked up with laughter, and Iglesias did the same.
“It's gonna be entertaining watching him 126
make a fucking fool of himself,” said Iglesias, as they ran after me.
127
17
maya
Me, Maisie and Millie were at the bar area inside of the club. I bought myself a Vodka Cranberry, Millie had a Whisky, and Maisie had a Gin and Tonic. We sipped on our cups as we allowed the alcohol to coarse through our body, and the loudness of the music to roar in our ears. The song that was playing was In Da Club by 50 Cent, so it was safe to say, I was definitely in rave mode.
“I've got my eyes on a hottie on the dance floor,” Maisie giggled. “I'm gonna go and ask 128
him to dance. Don't wait up for me.”
Millie let out a chuckle.
“Okay babe!” I exclaimed, as Maisie began strutting away from us.
It had been so long since I'd come to a party, just to drink and enjoy myself.
It felt good…
To spend time with friends, and not always have to be on job.
And this alcohol was giving me the confidence that I needed…
I felt all of my insecurities wash away.
All of the doubts that I had,
All the worries about my bruise being visible…
And to forget about life in Washington.
I actually felt normal.
Like a normal citizen.
And this was a feeling that I didn't know I'd been craving for so long.
Millie dusted herself off, as she sipped the last sips of her drink, and then tossed the cup to the side.
“I think I've had enough to drink,”
beamed Millie. “I'm gonna go over to the bathroom to freshen myself up, babe.”
I rubbed my chin in thought, putting my own drink to the side.
129
“Do you wanna come with me, or will you be alright waiting here?” Millie shrugged.
“I'll be fine babe,” I reassured her, smiling.
“Don't worry about me.”
Millie nodded in response, and began walking away from me. I leaned over to get my cup again.
“I'd go easy on the drink,” came a coy, deep, raspy voice, “or you're gonna have one hell of a hangover tomorrow.”
I scratched my arm nervously, biting my lip as I looked up to see who it was.
Out of nowhere, Donte had approached me.
I was not expecting him to be here…
“Mr Abruzzi!” I said sheepishly, flushing bright pink. “What are you doing here?”
“I was just passing by,” Donte said coyly,
“and thought I'd grab a drink with my brothers.
Believe it or not, I do enjoy having a social life every now and then.”
I let out an appreciative giggle. “You work so hard, I would've never guessed it.”
Donte chuckled, taking steps closer to me so that there was hardly any space between us, causing my heart to hammer against my chest into a frenzy. “I told you I'm not such a big bad wolf.”
130
I let out a nervous giggle. I turned around to see his brothers standing behind us, Iglesias and Arturo.
“Did he really just say big bad wolf?”
Iglesias said, repulsed, and Arturo roared with laughter. “What the fuck's wrong with him?”
“I'm out of here,” Arturo shrugged.
“Same,” Iglesias smirked. “Let’s leave these love-birds to it.”
They turned on their heel, and I found myself blushing even redder than I was already.
Love-birds?!
“If you don't mind me saying,” Donte began, with a seductive tone in his voice, “you look gorgeous tonight, Sapphire.”
I felt my body burn up as he said these words. It felt like I was on fire, and I couldn’t control this feeling. I couldn’t control how fucking good Donte made me feel about myself.
“It feels a little weird not seeing you in your normal modest attire,” he teased. “I like this new look.”
I tittered in response. I didn't know if it was the alcohol talking, or just my burning attraction to him, but I was feeling so confident tonight.
“You always look good, Mr Abruzzi,” I replied sheepishly.
131
And he did. He was wearing the tightest black muscle shirt, that left little to the imagination, paired with black jeans.
Donte stared at me mischievously, his eyes smouldering with lust. “Please, call me Donte. We're not at work.”
“Donte.”
When I said this, it almost came out as a purr. I loved the way his name sounded on my lips. He really did look so good tonight. His lips formed into a devilish little smirk, and he didn't break eye contact with me once. That was enough to get me all undone. I could tell that I’d got him feeling just as undone. He had his arms folded, and it was taking all the self-restraint in me to not push myself to say other things that would have him just as worked up for me.
“So, have you had much of a look around Manhattan yet?” Donte coughed loudly, breaking the silence and doing his best to rectify the situation.
“Please, I've barely left my front door,” I giggled, trying my best to ease the tension in the air. “This is my first night out in ages.”
Donte gave me a cheeky smile in response. “You moved here from Washington, right?” he asked sheepishly. “You don't party very often?”
132
“I mean, I enjoy partying, but I don't really get the chance to go out very often,” I shrugged. “I'm a workaholic, just like you.”
Donte chuckled.
“Plus, my ex-boyfriend hated going out,”
I admitted exhaustedly.
“What happened w
ith your ex, if you don't mind me asking?” Donte asked curiously, rubbing his chin.
I drew out a deep breath. “It just didn't work out.”
“I'm sorry to hear that,” Donte reassured.
“I'm assuming that he was a bit of a stubborn prick?”
“You can say that again,” I giggled.
I was expecting him to push the subject further, but he actually respected my wishes and didn’t ask any more questions when he could see that I was visibly uncomfortable talking about my past. He really did have so much respect for my personal space and boundaries, and I didn’t know what to make of that. This was the bare minimum quality that a guy should possess, but I was enjoying his company so much. I’d genuinely never met a man like him before.
“Look, I know you said you don't want to move on so fast,” Donte began, biting his lip,
“but we get along so well.”
133
He took steps closer to me, wrapping his big strong arms around my waist, forcing me to look him in his eyes. He was so close that I couldn’t help but to put my hand on his chest for support as he towered over me. This man was built like a Greek god. He was so fucking sexy…
So damn fucking sexy.
“One date…” Donte whispered. “That's all I'm asking for. If you decide you still just want to be friends after that, it's fine…” He let out a sigh as he stared at me. “You can feel it too, can't you?”
And the truth was,
I could feel it…
I wanted him just as badly as he wanted me.
My whole body set on fire with his hand just holding my waist.
I couldn't even get any words out as I felt my breath hitch in my throat.
“I've wanted you ever since you walked in my office, Sapphire…” Donte breathed. “I haven't been able to think about anybody else…
Let alone look at another woman the way I look at you.”
I felt heat roar in my ears, and my heart was hammering so hardly against my chest that I thought my chest was about to explode.
134
“I want to do this properly…” Donte murmured in a low, deep voice. “Take you on dates. Not just sleep with you, if that's what you're thinking… If that's what's worrying you or stopping you…”
“How can you want me?” I asked, biting my lip timidly. “You barely even know me…”
I felt a pang of guilt as I realized he didn't really know me,
Or who I was, for that matter,
At all…
“But I want to know you…” he drawled.
“Just one date, baby… Or let me take you out properly at least.”
I let out a sigh that I didn’t know I was holding. There was so much sexual tension in the air, that you could cut it with a knife. His lips were just inches away from mine.
My eyes burned into his…
And the dark eyes that I saw when I walked into his office that day, Were no longer dark.
I could see them shining with hope, Like I was his light at the end of the tunnel,
And I wanted so badly in this moment to say yes…
135
ALFONZE MICHAEL.
19 years old.
Shot outside of Hunters Lane.
Known to have a crack addiction.
Deceased.
LILY GRAHAM.
30 years old.
Shot outside of Woodwick Central.
Known to have a cannabis addiction.
Raped and murdered.
RAYMOND RUIZ.
32 years old.
Whole family beaten to death and murdered in their own home.
Known to be involved in a turf war.
Known street dealer.
But then rage overcame me, as I remembered how many deaths that the Russian Mafia were responsible for…
And I snapped back into reality.
This man was a stone-cold murderer, 136
along with his brothers and the rest of his family.
Why was I behaving kindly and softly towards him? Kindly and softly towards a man who’d destroyed so many families?
I was losing focus from the task that I'd been given by my boss…
I wasn't going to fall for his pathetic, sorry act to get me in bed or hurt me.
If he was Mafia, he was probably a worse man than my ex Fibonacci.
And there was no way in hell that I was putting myself through that heartache again.
“Please keep your hands off me, Mr Abruzzi,” I snapped harshly, shoving him off of me. “For your sake and mine, I think we should keep our interaction strictly professional.”
Donte stared back at me, with a hurt and wounded expression on his face. I guessed that he wasn’t expecting me to react like this…
“I've already told you that I'm not interested, so please leave me alone,” I said bitterly. “I don't know what your deal is, but I've met men like you before. I can see darkness in you, and I won't fall victim to your pathetic sweet act.”
I turned on my heel and began bolting away from him, before I had the chance to feel regret for what I said or take it back. Angry tears 137
streamed down my face as I left him there, dithering. I was angry at myself for allowing Donte to play tricks with my mind, for allowing Donte to get close to me, when I’d come here to put him behind bars. It was just myself that I was fucking hurting in the process, nobody else.
I’d warned myself that this would happen if I got close to the enemy…
138
18
donte
As I watched Sapphire walk away, I could feel my heart twist into knots. It felt like somebody had shot a huge dagger to my chest, and was twisting it. Her words replayed themselves to me, over and over and over, like a form of torture.
Men like me…?
Did she think that I was going to hurt her?
She really had no idea about the kind of man that I was at all. I would never dare hit or hurt a woman, it wasn’t in my nature, even 139
though I’d grown up around so many vile men that did.
I think that there's more to her than she's letting on…
And it was making my doubts about her ex-boyfriend crawl to the surface. She was accusing me of doing unimaginable things I would never think of…
So her ex must have done the things that she accused me of being.
I couldn’t make sense of any of this. I couldn’t make sense of why she was so provocative and flirtatious one minute, and then put up her stone-cold exterior the next. Had I said something wrong? Had I done something to upset her?
I could see how much she was enjoying my company. In fact, I could feel it. I knew that she wanted me just as much as I wanted her.
What was holding her back?
I’d been nothing but kind to her. I couldn’t quite put my finger on what I was doing that was so wrong.
But I was going to find out.
Sapphire wasn’t just a girl that I could ignore or forget.
She was so much more than that.
But I couldn’t forget the way that she just 140
spoke to me. As if I was some sort of rabid animal, a dog, not worthy of her attention.
Like I was a piece of shit on the ground.
Needless to say, I knew my worth. I would find out what I needed to, but if she didn’t want me…
I wasn’t going to stick around where I wasn’t fucking wanted.
141
19
maya
A FEW DAYS LATER
I rattled in bed, tossing and turning as I sobbed and screamed. I was in yet another nightmare, and I couldn’t wake up, no matter how much I pleaded my body to do so…
“No…”
“No, no, no!”
“…”
142
I was standing on the soccer field with my friends, Harry and Elizabeth. We were all panting and sweating. We’d put our all into the match, and we’d done so well.
“You killed it out on the
soccer field today, babe!” Harry grinned. “We'll be up against Brixton High in no time.”
“I hope so,” I giggled.
“Well done babe,” said Elizabeth, with her hands on her hips.
“Do you girls wanna come over to mine for a drink to celebrate?” Harry offered.
“I'd love to,” Elizabeth smiled.
I opened my mouth to speak, but then I felt somebody shove me out of the way from behind, and I jolted up in shock, hurt and confused.
I felt my heart almost leap out of my throat, to see that it was Fibonacci. What the fuck was he doing here?
“She'll be doing no such thing,” Fibonacci spat bitterly, folding his arms angrily.
Harry rolled his eyes, exasperated. “Look at what the cat dragged in,” he muttered sarcastically. “Seriously Maya, why haven't you dumped this loser yet?”
143
I folded my arms uneasily, knowing that this wasn’t going to end well. Nobody dared to speak to Fibonacci like that. Nobody…
“Don't you have anything better to do than follow Maya around every second of the damn day?” Elizabeth shrieked.
“She's my fucking girlfriend,” Fibonacci roared in defence. “And if I wanted your opinion, I'd fucking ask for it!”
“Maya, why don't you defend yourself, for God's sake?” Elizabeth scolded at me.
My
chest
heaved
upwards
and
downwards. I pleaded internally for Fibonacci to leave. It always felt like I was suffocating and struggling for air whenever he was around me…
“Maya, come with us babe, you don't have to listen to him,” said Harry. “You just won a massive soccer match, you should be proud.”
“Excuse me?” Fibonacci responded, his voice dropping to barely below a whisper. “Did you just call my girlfriend "babe"?”
I clutched my chest, terrified. I knew this look on Fibonacci’s face all-too-well. He was so angry… So angry, that if looks could kill, he would murder.
“WHAT ELSE HAVE YOU TWO GOT
GOING ON THAT I DON’T KNOW
ABOUT?!” Fibonacci screamed.
144
“Nothing's going on!” I pleaded, tears welling in my eyes. “Stop jumping to conclusions, Fibonacci.”
