Per Verse Vengeance Read online

  “And I thank God you did come back. It saved me the trouble of tracking you down. Deep down I know that if anyone so much as hurt my mother or sister, I would seek my own revenge, and it wouldn’t be much different than your actions.”

  Nick reaches over and they kiss. “I would have liked to have met Elizabeth. I can only imagine how very special she was.” Nick stands up. “I’ll see you in the morning. If you like, we can go out and get you a new computer and phone.”

  He walks off toward the study and Nicole calls after him and he turns back around. “Just so you know, I would never implicate you. I would tell the authorities that you had nothing to do with any of it.”

  “I have never doubted that.” He smiles and walks into the study as Nicole taps her fingers on the table.

  Nine

  Nicole walks into her room, closes the door and lies on the bed, defenseless against the onslaught of thoughts, like the many arms of an octopus attacking her. She looks out the window at the lighted pool as shadows cross the surface of the water. The moon beams brightly and a canopy of stars blankets the nighttime sky. She is tempted to simply jump into the pool and hide deep below the water … forever invisible.

  Nick walks by the closed door and hears the unnerving sounds of terror coming from inside the room. He knocks on the door, but by this time Nicole is lost … a prisoner in a nightmarish trance. He enters and immediately walks over to Nicole, who is lying on the bed. As he looks down at her, she stares unseeing with wide eyes, her hands clawing the air as she fights off invisible monsters.

  “Nicole.” He takes her hands into his warm ones. “Nicole, everything’s okay.”

  Her sweat-drenched blouse and hair stick to her skin. Nick takes a washcloth and wipes the perspiration from her forehead and cheeks. He soothingly reminds her, “Everything’s okay. You’re safe.” She relaxes as Nick runs his hands through her hair.

  “You know, I loved the way you recited “Annabel Lee” by the ocean tonight. You just keep on amazing me. Is that your favorite poem?”

  “Sometimes … when I’m by the water. I love Byron.”

  “Me too. Do you have a favorite?”

  “I used to but … not anymore.”

  She closes her eyes as Nick gets into the bed and holds her. He whispers, “I will never let anyone harm you again … never.” He rests his head against her sweat-drenched blouse and does not let go. He lovingly recites,

  Our love is fix’d, I think we’ve proved it;

  Nor time, nor place, nor art have mov’d it.

  The following morning, Nicole wakes up in her outfit from the night before. She puts on her bathing suit and walks down to the pool. As she passes the kitchen, morning noises float through the air. Nick should be up by now, but she doesn’t bother to go see what’s going on. She needs to get into the pool, to start swimming … lap after lap like an Olympian, but never with the goal of winning a medal.

  Later, she slips a robe over her bathing suit, walks into the screening room and sits down beside Nick, who’s watching A Charlie Brown Christmas again.

  “How was the pool?” Nick asks.

  “It was great.” Nicole flips off her slippers, turns in her chair, and places her feet on Nick’s lap. “Let me guess, you’ve never been in it?”

  “I’ve been in it.”

  “A foot massage, please?”

  “If you insist.” Nick starts to massage Nicole’s manicured feet.

  “I can teach you how to swim if you like.”

  “I know how to swim. All part of basic training.”

  “Oh, I forgot. All in search of a higher purpose.”

  Nick laughs. Nicole wiggles down into her seat and closes her eyes. “A little more pressure, please. I’m a big girl.” Nick pushes harder. “Have you looked at the news this morning?” She asks.

  “Yes, it was the lead story and on the front pages of the newspapers. I called the sheriff’s office and spoke to the him.”

  “Why would you do that? Have a change of mind and decide to turn me in?” Nick pinches her butt really hard and she screams. “Hey, that really hurt.”

  “That’s what you get for suggesting such a stupid thing. I asked him if I needed to add protection and security around the house. He laughed and said he was quite sure it was an isolated crime.”

  “Any suspects?”

  “Yeah, he said anyone living in a mile radius of Evan’s home. He said over the past six months there have been thousands of complaints about the odor coming from the place. After the story blows over in a few days, it will not be a top priority for his department.”

  “He told you all this?”

  “My family is a big contributor to the police and sheriff departments throughout the city. He also told me that it was the feds’s problem. They were the ones really interested in the creep. Apparently, the FBI, Homeland Security, and the IRS were getting ready to arrest him. The FBI was convinced they could easily turn him and have him testify about a mob operation involved with the recruiting of underage girls into prostitution. Know anything about that?”

  “No! Someone high up in the organization had to snitch. If I hadn’t met you only a few days ago I would swear it was you.”

  “I’ll take that as a compliment. The sheriff reassured me that my family was in no danger. That is the truth, isn’t it?” Nicole shoots up and hits Nick really hard in the shoulder.

  “I hope that hurt a whole bunch. Insinuating that I could intentionally hurt innocent people.” She turns around and lays her head on Nick’s lap. “Now, I need a head massage. Gently, please.”

  “One could never be too sure.”

  “Keep it up and you are going to find out that I can hit a lot harder.”

  There was silence until Nicole blurted out the question that had been on her mind since coming downstairs.

  “So what went on in my room last night?”

  “I don’t know. What went on in your room last night?”

  “You should know. You were in it … or am I mistaken?”

  “No, you’re right. I heard you screaming. You were having a nightmare. I woke you up and you went right back to sleep.”

  “But you didn’t leave right after?”

  “Nope.”

  Nicole looks up at him. “And?”

  “And nothing. I held you. I rested my head against your body. I stayed until the sun started coming up.”

  She reaches up and kisses him on the mouth. “I don’t remember the nightmare but I did wake up feeling very refreshed … even if my clothes had a terrible stench about them.”

  “You slept like a kitten.”

  “Can you still help me get my sister?”

  “I thought you had that all planned out.”

  “I did, then I met you.”

  “Fate!”

  “Yes, exactly.”

  “Of course, I’ll help you. And if you behave, I might put that proposal back on the table … with a few added amendments.”

  “Such as?”

  “We’ll discuss that at a later date.”

  Nicole looks at the screen as Linus gives his famous speech about the meaning of Christmas. “Do you ever get tired of looking at Chuck?”

  “Why would you even ask such a question? It’s like reading The Sun Also Rises over and over again. You can never get tired of such a wonderful piece of art.”

  Nicole sits up and wiggles herself comfortably onto Nick’s lap. “How do you feel? I can’t imagine all that hammering last night did you any good.”

  “You’d be surprised at the medicinal effects of sleeping beside such a beautiful woman.”

  Nicole places her hand on his face.

  “You have a real chance to make a wonderful future for you and your sister.”

  “Assuming I don’t get arrested?”

  “I wouldn’t worry about that, unless you’re planning on some more reckless adventures.”

  “And what would make you think such a thing?”

  “Don�
�t act cute with me. It’s insulting. It’s time to put your daughter first.”

  “You mean my sister?”

  “The child you’re hoping to save from a life that you were forced to live.”

  Nick gently untangles himself from her and stands up. “Why don’t you go get dressed and we can go shopping for a computer and phone?”

  “In a minute,” Nicole replies.

  Nick walks out of the screening room as Nicole watches the credits roll by on A Charlie Brown Christmas. Surely she was thinking like a teenager. Of course he would leave her. A girl with her background never got a guy like Nick unless it was in a movie.

  Ten

  Nicole gets behind the wheel of the Ferrari and starts it up like a kid playing with a new toy. She pulls out of the garage, drives past the electronic gate and turns onto Sunset. “I’ll let your mother keep the arsenal in a swap for this car.”

  “How sweet of you,” Nick replies with a smile.

  “I think so. So what would your mother think if she knew you were hanging around with a deranged, ex-high-class hooker?”

  “And what makes you think she doesn’t know?”

  “You’re joking, right?”

  Nick doesn’t reply as he looks across at her. She is undeniably stunning.

  “I imagine she would go crazy?” Nicole asks.

  “No, I don’t think so. Some people might argue that she’s the last person who should be attacking another person’s choices and behavior.”

  “Why would you say that? Everything I’ve read about her is simply wonderful.”

  Nick looks at Nicole’s hands gripping the steering wheel like a professional race car driver. Like the car, Nicole is powerful, sleek and stylish, with a commanding presence. But this car has a tendency to break down; it requires continual and expensive maintenance and service. It might be the dream car for many, but it’s truly a rich person’s car. The car and Nicole might seem like a perfect fit, until one unmasked the very different and irreparable flaws in both of them.

  “So, she’s not as wonderful as all that?”

  “She’s more wonderful than anything you’ve read about her,” Nick remarks. “But she has her flaws and when you put her on a pedestal like I have, even the smallest flaws are magnified.”

  Nick looks out the side window as they drive over Coldwater Canyon. “My mother has never been one to rush to judgment about anyone, and she’s perceptive in a way that would have impressed Sherlock Holmes. If you think you can outsmart her, think again. Behind that mask of transcendent beauty is the most intelligent and creative person I’ve ever met.”

  “It must have been amazing to be raised by such a person.”

  “It was. She’s infectious and mesmerizing … a force so powerful that it’s nearly impossible to break away from her. Despite my sister’s amazing achievements, I seriously doubt she will ever leave my mother’s side. Natalie and I used to take her on movie dates with us, which didn’t help us much if we were hoping for a long-term relationship with someone. In Natalie’s case, a number of her dates fell in love with our mother. I used to feel terrible for my sister.”

  “I don’t understand, why didn’t your mother just stay at home?”

  “We preferred going to the movies with her than with our dates. My mother’s insights and analysis of a movie were fascinating. The discussions we had afterwards were priceless. It was wonderful and yes our dates might not have been too thrilled, but what we learned from our mom are many of the things that made my sister and I so successful.

  “You broke away from her,” Nicole hesitantly remarks.

  “Its not like she ever held us prisoners. She’s always preached to us the importance of independence, but she is so much more than just a mom. She has always been our best friend. My sister and I are the two luckiest people in the whole world.” He looks across at Nicole and the contrast between their families is so overwhelming that Nick lowers his head, embarrassed. “I’m sorry for going on like that, Nicole. I still can’t get a handle on the fact that there are parents in the world who could actually sell their children like heads of cattle.”

  “It’s okay. I like hearing you talk about your mom and sister. It makes me happy to know that for all the evil that exists, there is also a lot of good.”

  “I have no doubt that when you meet them, the three of you will get along wonderfully. They’re like you: generous to a fault, loving, caring…”

  “Have you already forgotten some of my recent exploits?”

  “No, but that behavior is in the past and I don’t expect it to be repeated.”

  “And if your mother and sister don’t think I’m so wonderful?”

  Nicole parks in the lot behind the electronics store, then freezes at the wheel when she notices a well-dressed, middle-aged man walking toward the entrance.

  “We need to go back. I don’t need a computer or a phone. You’ve already spent way too much on me.” She starts the car again, but Nick reaches over and turns it off.

  “What’s is it?” he asks.

  “We simply need to go, please.”

  “No, not without an explanation. You look like you have seen a ghost. Was it the guy who just walked into the store?”

  “Yes!” She looks straight ahead, without blinking. “I should have known I couldn’t come to a town like this and not be recognized. I should have just done what I had to do and left.”

  She sighs and shakes her head. “The guy who just walked into the store is a former client … a repeat client and a real piece of work.”

  Nick reaches under his seat and pulls out a Maxim 9, similar to the one she used to kill Evan Thomas, and hands it to her. “I think you know how to use this … If anyone comes toward you and you think they’re a threat, you know what to do. In the meantime, I’m going into the store and buying you a computer and phone.”

  After he leaves, Nicole puts her head down on the steering wheel and starts to cry. She could not see any way this was going to end happily.

  Less than half an hour later, Nick taps on the window and she unlocks the door. He gets in, opens a shopping bag and shows her a new computer, software and a cell phone.

  “Can you help me set everything up?”

  “It’s completely loaded and ready to go. I called them up earlier and had them do everything.” Nick replies. He reaches over and places the bag behind his seat. As he turns toward the front, Nicole reaches over and kisses him. They kiss for a long time. “Thank you.”

  She starts the car up and drives out of the parking lot.

  “We’re going to have to get you a disguise. A big floppy hat, larger sunglasses, and some baggy clothes, then you might not look so damn stunning all the time.”

  Eleven

  Nicole places the computer and software on the table, then turns toward the front door. Someone is knocking. She calls out to Nick and reaches into her handbag and takes out Nick’s Maxim 9. In a moment, he’s by her side. He grabs the gun out of her hand and hides it in a drawer inside the banquet table.

  “It’s family,” he says.

  He walks to the front door and is greeted by Ava, a precocious nine-year-old who leaps into his arms, and her parents Gina and Frank. Nick takes their suitcases and puts them off to the side, then swings Ava back and forth in his arms. “Oh, I have missed you so much.”

  Nicole looks at Ava and frowns. Such a beautiful little girl with wavy dark hair, large brown eyes and a perfectly oval face. She looks more like a doll than an actual child; and like a doll, she has probably known nothing but unconditional love and adoration her whole life. The very things Nicole never had.

  Nick introduces the family and Nicole greets them with a smile and handshakes. Frank, the family’s lawyer, and Nick excuse themselves and walk into the study. Gina takes Ava by the hand and walks into the kitchen. It’s apparent that the family has been here many times before and clearly knows the house better than Nick. They come back into the dining room with a glass of orange juice.r />
  “She’s been pestering me for orange juice ever since we got off the plane.” Gina drops into a chair at the table and Ava snuggles on her lap and hugs her, then sips her juice. Nicole sits across from them with her new computer in front of her.

  “How was the flight?” she asks.

  “It was great. Flying first class makes such a big difference. I swear, I don’t know how people fly coach. So, have you known Nick for long?”

  “Not long.”

  “So, you haven’t met Angie and Natalie, yet?”

  “No, but I’ve heard a bit about them.”

  “Well, you’re in for a real treat. As great and wonderful as Nick is, he only makes up one third of this amazing family. Angie and Natalie are heavenly, and we owe them all so much … so very much.” Gina holds Ava tightly as tears well in her eyes. “Of course, they don’t want to hear about it.”

  “I have the most beautiful mommy in the whole world,” Ava exclaims as she kisses her mother. Then she climbs up onto the table and crawls toward Nicole. Gina grabs her by her little leg. “You know better than to crawl on a table with your shoes on.”

  “Nick doesn’t care,” Ava replies, but she sits and unties her shoes, and hands them to her mother.

  “And do you think it’s any better to be on a table where people eat with your smelly feet all over it?”

  “My feet don’t smell.”

  “Everybody’s feet smell, especially after they’ve been on an airplane all day. You should take a bath before we go to the doctor.”

  “Why? He’s not going to check my feet.” She pulls her hair away from her ear and shows Nicole a large scar across the lower half of her head. “That’s where they cut the stupid cancer out of my head.”

  Nicole looks at the scar as pangs of remorse and guilt overtake her like a tidal wave. This child has had a hard life too.

  “You’re so pretty, Nicole. Do you want to marry Nick?”

  Nicole blushes and Gina turns red too. “You know better than to ask someone a question like that!”