Seduced in the Dark (40 page)

One more night – it was all we could have. I
was determined to make the most of it. I pulled back from Caleb. I
wanted to see his face. I wanted to memorize every curve, every
eyelash. I looked into his Caribbean-blue eyes and the things I
saw, stirred my soul, but broke my heart.

“Tell me you love me, Caleb,” I
whispered.

He kissed me, refusing. “I wish I could,
Kitten.”

***

I heard pounding, loud and frantic pounding.
My eyes flashed open and the dark surrounding me only helped to
exacerbate my panic. Caleb was already out of bed.

“Get down on the ground and don’t move,” he
said in an urgent whisper. He went to the closet and flung it
open.

I reached for the bedside lamp and turned it
on. “What’s happening?” I asked. I threw the covers back and
scrambled to the ground. Caleb threw something at me and it
collided with my chest. He’d given me clothes.

“Put those on, now!” Caleb said. He was
climbing into a pair of pants, buttoning them urgently. He fumbled
with a box before he got it open. He removed his gun and cocked
it.

Adrenaline pounded in my veins. Something
bad was about to happen.

“
Abra la
puerta!
”
Celia shouted from the other side of the
door. She was in a panic of her own and I didn’t know what to make
of it.

Caleb rushed toward me and slid onto the
floor, I wrapped my arms around him, pulling him close. His hands
dug into my wrists as he pulled me away. Something cold and hard
made its way into my hand. I looked down and saw Caleb’s gun.

“Get dressed, stay here. I’ll knock two
times before I come in. If anyone else comes into this room, you
fucking shoot to kill. Do you understand?” he said.

My panic made me deaf and blind. I didn’t
understand. I had no idea what Caleb was trying to tell me. He
stood and tried to walk away. I grabbed on to his leg, “Caleb!
Don’t go, don’t leave.”

“Do what I tell you!” he shouted and pulled
free with so much force I was afraid my arm had come out of its
socket again. Caleb was at the door before I could catch him again.
He held a big knife at his side and stood to one side of the door.
He unlocked it slowly.

Celia burst into the room, but she didn’t
have a chance to say anything before Caleb grabbed her around the
neck with his arm and put the knife to her throat. She struggled,
but Caleb subdued her quickly and held her still.

“What’s going on?” he snarled.

“I came to warn you,” she said, “Rafiq and
his men are here. They’re downstairs with Felipe. They want to see
you.” Celia’s hands held tightly to Caleb’s forearm around her
throat. “
Por favor
,” she sobbed.

“Caleb, let her go,” I sobbed. “She came to
warn us.”

Caleb squeezed Celia’s throat until even her
sobs couldn’t escape, “We don’t know, Kitten. She could be here to
separate us.”

“You’re going to kill her!” I urged. I
didn’t believe Celia would sell me out, but I had no reason to
believe she wouldn’t. I raised the gun in my hands, “Let her go,
Caleb. I’ll keep her here.”

Caleb stared at me. His eyes weren’t his own
and reminded me more of an animal than a man.

“Please, Caleb. Let her go,” I begged.

Slowly, Caleb’s arm around Celia’s throat
loosened and she collapsed on the floor, sobbing as she held her
throat. I looked up at Caleb and saw the horror in his eyes as he
looked down at Celia.

“What’s the plan, Caleb?” I said to refocus
his attention. As much as I liked Celia, I liked living even
more.

Caleb nodded as he fisted a handful of hair
at his nape, “I need to go meet them.”

“You can’t! What if they’re just waiting to
kill you?!”

“If everything is as Celia says, then
there’s no reason I shouldn’t go downstairs?” Caleb went down on
one knee and held the knife to Celia’s throat.

“No,” Celia pleaded, “Felipe sent me to warn
you.”

“Why would he warn me?!” Caleb insisted.

“Felipe knows what’s been happening between
the two of you and hasn’t said a word to Rafiq. He doesn’t want to
deal with the fallout. You’ve been here for months, instead of the
few days, Rafiq, originally promised. The last thing he needs is
bloodshed in the house,” Celia cried. She rubbed at her throat; it
was red, but the damage seemed relatively benign. She could speak
clearly and there weren’t any bruises.

Caleb stood, “You stay here with her until I
get back.”

This was my worst nightmare come to life.
Caleb was going to walk out the door and never come back. I just
knew it. “Caleb, please don’t go. Let’s leave. Right now.”

“I’ll get her out if there’s trouble,” Celia
suddenly offered. Caleb and I stared at her incredulously. “There
are passages in the walls. Felipe had them built in case we needed
to escape. I’ll get her out, I promise.”

“Why would you?” Caleb asked. He seemed to
be coming around toward Celia.

“Not for you,” she spat. “I don’t want her
to suffer.”

Caleb nodded, “Thank you, Celia. I’m in your
debt.”

“If anything happens to Felipe, I’ll be sure
to collect,” she said.

“Understood,” Caleb whispered. He grabbed a
shirt from the closet and put it on. “The library?” he asked. Celia
nodded and with that, Caleb left the room.

I wanted to scream. Caleb was gone and he’d
left me to fend for myself. He’d panicked and perhaps threatened
Celia when he didn’t have to.

“Why would you bang on the door?” I asked
Celia. She sat on the floor, rubbing her throat and wiping tears
from her eyes.

“I didn’t want them to come looking for you.
Felipe barely stopped Rafiq from coming up here himself,” Celia
said calmly.

I felt the gun, warm from my hand, and wet
with sweat. “Caleb says Felipe’s been watching us. He said
you’ve
been watching us. Why would either of you help?”

“Felipe trusts no one, Kitten. I’m sorry I
didn’t tell you, but Felipe means more to me than you. I love him,
but he’s an opportunist,” she said.

My head was spinning, “Did you really come
to warn us, Celia? Is Caleb walking into a trap right now?” I tried
to sound contrite. I tried to appear like a friend, asking for
another friend’s advice, but truthfully, I wondered if I had it in
me to shoot Celia if I had to. The answer terrified me.

“I swear I came to warn you. As far as I
know, Caleb is meeting his friends and nothing more. The worst
thing you could do right now is panic,” she said.

I saw the pleading in her eyes and my
instincts told me I could trust her. I wasn’t sure my instincts
were worth a damn, but the alternative left me cold. Celia was
right, I was panicking. If Rafiq had wanted us dead and nothing
more, he could have gunned us down in our sleep.

“I believe you,” I whispered and set the gun
down on the bed. Celia’s eyes cut to it, but she remained in place.
I started to put on the clothes Caleb had left for me.

“What are you doing? Get undressed. If they
come up here and find you wearing Caleb’s clothes they’ll know you
were planning to escape,” Celia said.

“What if something happens and I need
clothes?”

“You won’t need them, Kitten. I promise. The
danger was in Rafiq finding you both together in a compromising
situation.”

Again, I believed her. Perhaps, I would
believe anyone who told me I had no reason to kill, and no reason
to suspect the worst. Perhaps, Celia was telling the truth. I chose
to believe the less horrific of the two. I quickly removed the
shirt I had just put on.

Abruptly, there was a knock at the door.
“Celia?” asked a male voice.

I reached for the gun.

***

Caleb struggled for calm as he approached
the door to the library. Tucked into the back of his pants and
sheathed was his large hunting knife. He wondered for a moment if
he was doing the right thing by meeting with Rafiq. He had hoped he
could convince him their plans for revenge could still prove
fruitful without sacrificing Livvie. He still hoped for that
particular outcome, but having Livvie in the house, was less than
ideal.

Upstairs, Livvie was vulnerable. If anything
were to happen to him he knew she stood little to no chance of
escape. Caleb had fucked up, plain and simple. He had let his
emotions get the better of him and he’d acted rashly with Celia,
who perhaps would sell him and Livvie out the moment the
opportunity presented itself. For all he knew, she already had.

There was only one way to find out though,
and Caleb was determined to see things to their conclusion, one way
or the other. He opened the door and stepped into the library. Four
sets of eyes turned to greet him and they belonged to Felipe,
Rafiq, Jair, and Nancy. Each of the men had a drink in hand and sat
near Felipe’s desk chatting about benign things. Nancy knelt at
Rafiq’s side, her eyes on the floor. She trembled slightly, and
Caleb wondered if it was fear or cold causing it, but didn’t care
either way. Caleb breathed a sigh of relief, but still felt worried
about the situation upstairs. He hoped Livvie could keep her head
and not do anything drastic in his absence.

“
Khoya!
Were you sleeping? You look
exhausted,” Rafiq said with a smile.

“I was,” he said cautiously. “I wasn’t
expecting you so soon.”

Rafiq eyed him curiously. “Why would you? I
told you I wasn’t sure how long it would take to resolve the
situation.”

Caleb often neglected to take into account
Rafiq’s political ties to the Pakistani government. From time to
time, his job as a military officer took precedent over his more
illicit activities. In those circumstances, not even Caleb knew
what Rafiq was involved in and he’d never really cared. If Rafiq
wanted to maintain separate lives, it wasn’t Caleb’s place to
meddle.

“I thought you’d contact me, is all. If I’d
known to expect you, I would have greeted you at the door,” Caleb
said without bite. Rafiq let Caleb speak candidly in private, but
in public, there was a protocol to be followed. Rafiq was older and
as Caleb’s mentor and former guardian, in a position commanding
respect. To publicly disrespect Rafiq would be folly of the worst
kind.

Rafiq smiled, “No worries,
Khoya
.
You’re here now and so am I. Come,” he gestured toward another
chair, “have a drink with us.”

Caleb managed a smile, “Of course, but let
me go upstairs and put on some shoes first. I wasn’t sure what to
expect and I rushed.” What he really wanted to do was go upstairs
and give Livvie some relief.

“Where is Celia?” Felipe interjected. His
tone was light and jovial, but Caleb saw the way his eyes narrowed
and his mouth twisted.

“Upstairs with Kitten, I didn’t want to
leave her alone,” Caleb offered, with a warning glance of his
own.

“Does she still require constant
supervision?” Rafiq asked disapprovingly.

“No, but I thought it best not to leave her
alone, just the same,” Caleb said, before Felipe could offer his
own thoughts.

“Hmm,” Rafiq replied and took a sip from his
drink. It looked like scotch. “Well, have a seat, Caleb. Don’t put
on shoes on my account. We’ll all be retiring soon. I’m tired from
so much traveling.”

“Of course,” Caleb said and took the drink
Jair offered him before he sat next to him. Jair smirked, but said
nothing and Caleb decided it was best not to make a scene.

“So, Felipe tells me the girl has been
making excellent progress. He says she’s even participated in one
of his sordid parties,” Rafiq said with a smile. “He assures me the
girl’s involvement did not compromise her virginity.”

Caleb swallowed all the liquid in his glass
and winced as the amber liquid burned down his throat, “Yes, that’s
right.” Inside his chest, his heart took up a rapid beat.

“Glad to hear it,
Khoya
,” Rafiq said.
“Jair had his doubts, but I told him you would never betray me. Not
for the sake of one girl.”

Caleb turned to scowl at Jair in open
disgust, “Of course not, Rafiq. I’ll never understand why you
listen to anything this pig has to say.”

Jair stood and flung his chair back, but
Caleb was prepared to meet him. As Jair lunged, Caleb used his
upward momentum to push the other man into the air and slam him to
the ground. Caleb took advantage of Jair’s stunned state and landed
a satisfying punch across his face.

“Caleb!” Rafiq admonished, “Get off of him,
now!”

Caleb landed another punch and Jair lost
consciousness. Caleb couldn’t stand the son of a bitch and
regardless of how things turned out, he wouldn’t suffer Jair a
moment longer. He reached back for the knife in his pants,
determined to plant it in Jair’s chest, but then felt two sets of
hands pulling him backward.

“Caleb, no!” shouted Felipe, “Control
yourself in my home.”

A flat hand collided with the side of
Caleb’s face and he knew instantly it had been Rafiq who slapped
him. As Caleb struggled to regain his bearing, he heard a gun being
cocked just before Rafiq’s foot landed on his chest, winding
him.

“Jair does what I ask him to do. If you have
a problem with it, you can take it up with me, Caleb. I won’t
tolerate your disrespect. Apologize to Felipe, or so help me, you
will walk with a limp from this night forward,” Rafiq shouted.

Behind Rafiq, Nancy was weeping. Caleb held
up his hands in surrender. “I’m sorry! I lost control.” Rafiq’s
eyes burned with anger and Caleb knew he wouldn’t hesitate to
follow through on his threat.

“What the hell would possess you, Caleb?”
Rafiq spat, literally.

“He’s been begging me to put a knife in him
since we met, Rafiq. Do you honestly expect me to let him
disrespect me? In front of you? You’ve never doubted me before.
Never! And suddenly, his word means more to you than mine?” Caleb’s
chest heaved beneath Rafiq’s foot.