by Kasey Krane
The only difference was with Spike, my heart was actually breaking. I wasn’t going to be able to forget about him or get over him as easily as I was able to with Brett. Just the thought of it made me sick to my stomach.
I had to do something. But every time I tried to talk to him, every time I tried to get his attention, Spike just clammed up. He barely even looked at me. He just continued doing his job as if he didn’t even notice I was there.
Two weeks went by like that. There was a cloud of sadness and darkness around us. Unlike the first few days when we first met, now, Spike didn’t take me to Fifth Gear for meals anymore. He didn’t even take me on his bike anywhere. In fact, I hardly left the house.
Nothing interested me. I didn’t want to go shopping. I had nobody I wanted to meet. Nothing I wanted to do. I got a few invitations to parties and a few events, but I didn’t feel like going to any of them.
I just stayed indoors, usually locked in my bedroom, reading or surfing the net while Spike waited outside, listening out for any sounds he thought could be potential threats.
Daddy was set to return at the end of the two weeks and even though initially, I couldn’t wait for him to leave and leave me alone, now there was a small part of me that wanted him to come back.
I wanted him here so I could confront him with all the questions I had for him. I also wanted him here so I could tell him to fire Spike. I was convinced that was what was holding him back from me. If Daddy fired Spike and he didn’t have this job anymore, then maybe there was a chance that we could be together.
On the morning that Daddy was supposed to return from his trip, I woke up feeling better than I had in the past two weeks. I felt as if I might finally be able to turn this around.
I jumped out of bed and before I even changed or freshened up, I went to the door and pulled it open. Spike was sitting on the floor by my door, looking at his phone. He looked up at me, his eyes floating all over my body. I was in small cotton shorts and a skimpy silk camisole. I hadn’t forgotten how good it felt for him to watch me like this. His eyes were all over me, taking me in. So, he still wanted me. That desire for me hadn’t gone anywhere. So what was holding him back?
Spike looked away from me and I sat down beside him, right there in the hallway. It didn’t matter; nobody was going to bother us here.
Spike drew in a deep breath, as if he wished I hadn’t sat down beside him.
“I don’t know what is going on with you, Spike, I wish you would just talk to me.”
“There is nothing to say. I’m just here to do my job.”
“Daddy is coming home today.”
“Yes, I know.”
“There are going to be some changes around here after tonight.”
“I hope so,” he replied and looked away from me.
I wanted to reach out and touch him, but I held back. Just tonight. I just had to make it to tonight and everything would be okay. After that, we could be together.
“Sweetheart!” Daddy greeted me with a big hug at the door.
I’d changed into a pretty pink cocktail dress, done myself up with makeup and fixed my hair. This was the first time in two weeks that I’d actually put an effort into my appearance and the sad part was that I had done it for my father. Just to please him. Just to reinforce his belief that his daughter was the perfect princess.
The irony and hypocrisy of it made my stomach churn, but I reminded myself that I just needed to do this for a few more hours and then I was free. After that, Spike could whisk me away somewhere far from here. Daddy just needed to release him of his duties.
“Hi, Daddy, how was your trip?” I hugged him and he slipped a narrow velvet box in my hands.
“This is just a little something to show how much I’ve missed you, my pumpkin.”
I forced myself to smile as I opened the box. There was a sparkling bracelet in there. Emerald and diamonds. It was beautiful and my eyelids fluttered a little with admiration but I snapped the box shut. I didn’t need this stuff anymore. I didn’t care about it.
From the corner of my eye, I could see Spike standing near me, watching us. I would trade all my jewelry and all my clothes just to be with him. To be able to wake up with him beside me. Nobody made me feel the way he did when I was with him.
“Thank you, Daddy, and I’ve arranged a welcome dinner for you to show how much I have missed you,” I said and offered him a big smile.
“My daughter, the perfect host!” he exclaimed and walked into the house followed by his usual entourage. Jim and the rest, none of whom actually ever looked at me.
Why was it only now that I was noticing how dismissive Daddy’s close staff had always been of me?
“Dinner sounds great, sweetheart. I’m going to freshen up and I’ll join you in the dining room at eight,” he said as he walked away.
“Okay, Daddy, I’ll see you then. We have a lot to talk about no doubt.”
He waved at me as he went up the stairs.
I looked across at Spike who looked away then. I wished I could tell him my plan, but I knew I had to keep it secret till dinner. If he knew, he would try and discourage me. He would try and ‘do the right thing’ according to him.
Now, I wasn’t going to let anything else stand in the way. Tonight, we were going to be together, and Daddy would just have to accept that.
I had an hour to go before dinner, and I decided to spend it in my bedroom by myself, because Spike would not come in. Just one more hour and this would all be over.
Cherie and the rest of the housekeeping staff organized the dinner according to my instructions. I wanted them to prepare some of Daddy’s favorite dishes. Spike was standing at the dining room door, trying not to make eye contact with me.
I knew he had noticed my plunging pink dress already. I knew he was thinking about me when he wasn’t looking. Why was he torturing himself? Us?
It didn’t matter anymore, I had to remind myself. All that mattered now was Daddy accepting what I had to tell him.
He came in with Jim, and they were both deep in conversation. He sat down at the head of the table without giving me a glance. Jim still had his ear, and they were talking to each other about something that sounded important.
“Daddy! Please! You’ve been away for two weeks. Can you please stop working?” I knew my voice sounded different. I didn’t usually plead like this. One of the reasons why my father thought I was perfect was because of the talent I had in making myself invisible. Just blending into the background.
He looked at me, and Jim did too, and then he drew in his breath and clenched his jaws tightly.
“Okay, Jim, go, leave us.”
Jim seemed to let out a grunt before he walked away. Spike was still at the door; he was the only other person in the room. Daddy threw him a look and then breathed in the delicious aroma of the dinner.
“Alright, sweetheart, I’m all yours. This looks great. You have outdone yourself!”
“I did nothing, Daddy. It was Cherie and the others.”
“Of course. Well, sweetheart, this is a great welcome home, but I don’t need to remind you that I am a busy man. I can’t keep having private dinners with you every night.”
I gulped, trying to pluck up the courage I needed, and then I nodded.
“I don’t expect you to, Daddy, because I have been thinking about changing our arrangement.”
I couldn’t help but glance in Spike’s direction. He had his brows furrowed. He could hear me clearly and didn’t know what I was talking about. I had piqued his curiosity.
Daddy was already serving himself the seafood linguine he loved. It didn’t look as if he was actually paying attention to what I was saying.
“Daddy? Did you hear me? I want to tell you something. It’s important.”
He dug his fork into his food and looked up at me only after he had taken his first bite.
“Alright, sweetheart, I’m listening. What is your big news?”
I had my hands clasped in my
lap. I hadn’t touched any of the food yet.
“It’s about Spike,” I said.
Daddy was surprised. He turned to look at Spike who was now standing straighter, his shoulders squarer. He had no idea where I was going with this either.
“You mean your bodyguard?” Daddy asked.
I nodded.
“He is not just my bodyguard. He is more than that. I am in love with him,” I said.
“Sabrina…” Spike spoke up and came toward me. Daddy was too shocked to say anything at the start, but then he held a hand up to stop Spike in his path, glaring at me the whole time.
“What the fuck did you just say?” Daddy snarled. I couldn’t remember him cursing before so this came as a shock to me too.
I stood up from my chair slowly.
“I know this is big news and I think we should all sit down together and discuss this rationally,” I said. I had never had a conversation like this before. Daddy and I never discussed ‘boys’. Maybe he thought I had never even been with a guy.
“You are out of your mind!” Daddy shouted and banged his fists on the table.
“Mr. Wyndham, I think we should all remain calm.” Spike spoke firmly, coming up close to the table. Daddy turned in his chair to glare at him now.
“What did you just say? Did you just tell me to calm the fuck down? In my home? At my dining table?”
Spike threw me a look and drew in a deep breath.
“I am not trying to disrespect you in your home, Mr. Wyndham, but I’m just trying to keep the peace.”
“Keep the fucking peace? After what you’ve done to my daughter? What have you done to her?”
“He hasn’t done anything!” I spoke up, but Daddy wasn’t looking at me.
“Did you seduce her? Did you touch her?” he thundered.
Spike had his jaws clenched. From the way he was staring back at my father, I knew he was going to confess. He wasn’t going to lie and stand by his actions. Oh my God! All of a sudden, this started looking like a very bad idea. Maybe I should have tackled it differently. I wasn’t expecting Daddy to react like this.
“Well? What happened between the two of you?” he snarled and looked at Spike and then at me.
“Daddy, I can explain,” I said.
“Sabrina, just sit down!” Spike growled.
“You were supposed to be her bodyguard!” Daddy shouted at Spike.
“And I have done my duty,” Spike replied.
“And what else did you do?”
“Daddy…please!” I cried. I wanted to say more. I didn’t know what but I wanted to give Daddy an explanation, but before I could continue, there was a loud bang from somewhere in the house.
It sounded like gunshots. We could hear screaming. It had to be Cherie or someone else from the kitchen staff. Two more gunshots and then the sound of a door crashing. The front door? I screamed and before I could react, I felt Spike pull me into his arms.
“Come on,” he groaned as he threw me over his shoulder. More gunshots and there was the sound of feet. Loud voices from somewhere in the house. I had no idea what was happening. I didn’t know where Spike was taking me, but he had me. I knew he would keep me safe.
Spike ran with me on his shoulder through the main corridor and then took me through a room into another room and very soon, I’d lost track. I had no idea where we were going. This was my house! I should have known, but I didn’t. The house was too big and I had always been very closely monitored, so I had never actually explored.
“Spike!” I shouted when we heard the dull thudding sounds of more guns. Finally, we were in a dark room with no windows or lights and he shut the door.
“Sabrina, you need to be here by yourself for some time,” he said.
When he put me down, I felt my knees buckle and I collapsed to the floor. It was as if all of a sudden, I had no energy, no strength to keep myself up. Everything was a mess. My life was in actual danger. There were gunmen in our house!
“Sabrina!” Spike hissed and bent to put his hands on my arms. Slowly, he shook me and I was forced to look up at him.
“Do you understand what I’m saying?” He searched my eyes. My vision was finally clearing and adjusting to the dark. I could see him now, his brown eyes intensely studying mine.
“I can’t be here by myself, Spike, I can’t be alone. Where are we?”
“We’re still in the house. I found this place accidentally a few days ago. I don’t think even the staff know about this room. You’ll be safe here.”
I shook my head. Nothing felt safe. I didn’t think I would ever be safe again, not without him.
I lunged at him, wrapping my arms around his neck. Despite the danger and fear, there was a part of me that was relieved to see that he still cared. I’d forgotten what it felt like to look directly into his eyes.
“Spike, I’m sorry, I messed up. I shouldn’t have forced you into that dinner situation with Daddy. Not without warning.”
He started pulling away from me.
“We can’t talk about this now.”
“But what if I never get a chance to say this to you?”
“Nothing is going to happen to you, Sabrina,” he said in a lower and firmer voice. He was looking into my eyes, and then reached for my face, brushed his thumb on my cheek. I closed my eyes so I could cherish the moment.
“But right now I have to go out there and rescue your father. I have no idea what’s going on but I have to find out,” he said and straightened up.
He didn’t give me a chance to stop him. He was already out of the door.
I sat alone in the small empty room in the dark, listening to the sounds of chaos outside. I didn’t have the first idea of what could be happening. Who were these people? Where was our home security?
17
Spike
I didn’t know what was going on and my first priority was to keep Sabrina safe, but I felt responsible for Wyndham’s safety too. Seconds before the attackers shot the front door down; he was accusing me of manipulating his daughter—but that conversation could wait. We had more important shit to deal with right now.
More importantly, where were his own bodyguards?
I snuck back down the corridors. Things were quiet now, but I could hear voices. There were no more gunshots. My best guess was that Wyndham had been taken hostage and the attackers were holding him at gunpoint. Were they robbers?
The voices were coming from the dining room, which meant that Wyndham was still in there, trapped.
I had my weapon out and stealthily crept toward the dining room, but I stopped in my tracks when I heard a laugh. A small chuckle. But it seemed so out of place. Who was laughing? It almost sounded like Jim’s voice.
What the actual fuck?
I stood near the dining room door, as trying to peep around could be too risky, so I stayed there.
“So, where do you think she is?” someone asked. A male voice I didn’t recognize. It had to be one of the attackers.
“He took her somewhere.” This was definitely Jim. “You shouldn’t have hired that guy. He’s taking his job too seriously.”
Another small chuckle. Who the fuck found it funny?
“Yeah, well, I didn’t think he would bolt with her. They have to be on the estate somewhere. One of you should have fuckin’ followed him.” This was Wyndham. He did not sound distressed. He most definitely did not sound like he was being held at gunpoint either.
For a few moments, I just stood there, completely confused. What was going on? Why had a couple of attackers shot down the house and broken in, and were now standing around having a chat and a chuckle with Wyndham and Jim?
The conversation was continuing but I knew I couldn’t stand around and listen to more. I needed to get back to Sabrina. I needed to get her out of the house. Whatever was happening, it sounded to me as if her father was associated with it in some way. She wasn’t safe under his roof anymore.
I started running back down the corridor, headed fo
r the safe room. I shouldn’t have left her alone there. I shouldn’t have tried to go back for Wyndham. I should have listened to my instincts from the start—the man was unreliable. He did not have his daughter’s best interests at heart. I shouldn’t ever have brought her back to this house.
I swung the safe room’s door open and found Sabrina still sitting on the floor, rocking herself gently, holding her knees up to her chin. She looked up at me, alarmed, as if she was expecting it to be one of the attackers.
“Spike!”
“We’re leaving. Now!”
Sabrina tried to get me to talk and explain what was going on, but I forced her to get on the bike and we rode straight out through the back gates of the estate. Whoever the men were, they were going to go looking for us soon and I didn’t want to wait to be found.
Sabrina clung to me while we rode, shouting over the sound of the engine. She was demanding answers, an explanation, but the truth was that I had none.
I took her straight to Fifth Gear and she jumped off the bike. Her hair was tousled, her dress looked creased, and she was shaking her head.
“You have to tell me what is going on, Spike!” she said. I jumped off the bike too and grabbed her by the elbow and started leading her toward the clubhouse.
“You need to be indoors first.”
She yanked her arm away. I wasn’t holding her tight enough. At the bar’s doors, she stopped stock still.
“I am sick and tired of being pushed and pulled around by you and everyone else in my life. I need to know what is going on. I can handle it, don’t you think?” She was screaming now and the truthful answer to that question was that I didn’t think she could.
“We will talk inside,” I tried, and Sabrina crossed her arms over her chest.
“I’m not going anywhere until you tell me exactly why you snuck me out of my own home while we were under attack. Why you didn’t rescue my father like you said you would? What’s happened to him? Where is he? Is he alive?”