Disillusioned

by J. S. Cooper

  “Fuck! It shouldn’t have been in the paper. It was meant to be private until it all went through. He lied.”

  “Who lied?”

  “Bianca, listen to me. Do not trust David. Please do not do anything. I’m coming back. I’m coming to see you. You’re not safe.”

  “That’s what David said as well.” I opened the door to my apartment and walked in slowly, my head thudding.

  “Bianca, listen to me.”

  “No,” I said weakly. “I don’t trust you.”

  “Bianca, I miss you. You have to trust me. I let you go as you asked. I made a—”

  “Good-bye, Mattias.” I hung up quickly and closed the door behind me and leaned back. My eyes felt heavy with unshed tears and I took a deep breath. Why had Jakob called me? And if he hadn’t texted me, who had? I walked into my apartment and looked around. Everything looked just as I’d left it. I sank down into the couch and held a cushion to me. What was I going to do?

  I had no idea. Tears fell from my eyes and dropped onto the cushion as I sat there. Then I remembered the envelope in my bag. I ripped it open and pulled out a letter—it was from Jakob. I stared at it for a few seconds and then sat back before reading it.

  What we had was beautiful. I’m sorry I broke your trust. We were both there for a reason. I never went to take advantage of you. The feelings I had for you were real. The reasons I took you there were valid. You’re right to be afraid. I don’t control everything. You do not know everything. I will fight for the truth. My whole life has been building up to this moment. I cannot let you change that.

  Jakob.

  I dropped the letter on my couch and stood up in disgust. His letter meant nothing to me. He meant nothing to me. I didn’t want to remember the way he’d gone out of his way to find coconuts for me, so I could drink the water and eat the pulp. Or the hours he’d spent in the ocean trying to catch fish. Or the nights I’d spent in his arms, cuddled up next to his chest as he’d run his fingers across my hair and back, kissing me softly as his eyes told me all the other things he wanted to do to me.

  He’d been playing me from the start. He’d taken me to that island with the sole purpose of making me fall for him. And he wanted to make sure that I didn’t see any money from Bradley Inc. Jakob didn’t care about me. He never had and I needed to remember that. I needed to sleep. I needed to forget him. I needed to bring him and his family down. I knew that I had to be stronger, better, wiser, more fearless. The Bradley family had fooled my parents and now me. I wasn’t going to let them get away with it again. I crawled into bed and fell into a deep sleep within seconds of my head hitting the pillow.

  I awoke the next morning feeling tense and uneasy, despite the sound of birds chirping outside my window. I climbed out of bed and walked into the living room, feeling disoriented. I frowned as I saw the letter on the coffee table. I could have sworn that I’d left it on the couch. My heart started thudding as I heard a loud creak behind me. I turned around quickly, but nobody was there.

  Taking a deep breath, I read the letter again. All color fell from my face as I saw a note scrawled on the bottom of the paper: This is not over, Bianca. Mattias. I was positive I had not seen that part of the note the night before. That meant someone had been in my apartment when I was sleeping. I hurried to the door—it was still locked, and it didn’t look as if anyone had broken in. I heard another creak and turned around slowly, my fingers shaking as I heard a buzzing in my ears. Was someone in the apartment with me? I stood next to the door, frozen in fear. Then my phone rang. I ran over to the couch and picked the phone up, my heart racing.

  “Hello?”

  “Bianca?” It was Rosie. “Where have you been? Who is the guy you left the bar with? Why haven’t you called me?”

  “Rosie?” I sank onto the couch. “Oh, Rosie.” My voice trembled.

  “Oh my God, Bianca, what’s wrong?” She sounded worried. “Did he rape you?”

  “Did who rape me?” I asked in confusion.

  “The guy you left the bar with.”

  “Rosie, I didn’t leave the bar with anyone. I was kidnapped.”

  “What?” she screamed. “What?”

  “Rosie”—I started crying—“I’m scared. I think someone is after me.”

  “What’s going on, Bianca?”

  “I think someone might be in the apartment with me right now,” I whispered into the phone, my body frozen on the couch. I was still listening to Rosie’s voice over the phone, but all my other senses were on high alert to what was going on in my apartment.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I think someone broke into my apartment.” I took a deep breath and stood up. “I’m going to check.”

  “Are you crazy?” Rosie sounded shocked. “Leave the apartment now and call the police.”

  “Stay on the phone with me,” I said softly as I walked to the kitchen quickly. I grabbed a knife from my butcher block and took a deep breath. “I’m going to check now.”

  “Bianca, this doesn’t sound like a good idea.” Rosie spoke quickly. “Please just leave your apartment and call the police!”

  “It’s fine.” As I crept past the couch, I heard the loud creak in front of me again and nearly jumped out of my skin. My face was burning and my stomach was a bundle of nerves, but then I stepped back and forward again and I heard the same creak. “It’s the floorboards.” I breathed a sigh of relief. “It’s just the floorboards. Stupid old apartment.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Let me check.” I walked into my bedroom and looked inside the closets quickly, the knife held in front of me as I surveyed all the small spaces. “I’m going into the bathroom now.” I pushed the door open and jumped back before moving forward and checking. “It’s all clear.”

  “You’re scaring me, Bianca. What’s going on?”

  “Can you come over so we can talk in person?” I asked softly. “Please.”

  “I’ll come over now,” she said passionately. “Oh my God, what happened to you, Bianca?”

  “Just come over,” I sobbed, my composure breaking again now that I knew I was alone.

  “I’m on my way.”

  She hung up and I sat back and closed my eyes, letting the tears flow freely.

  Then my phone beeped again—a new text. Be careful, Bianca. You can’t trust anyone.

  The text was from the number Jakob had called me from the night before. I deleted the text and closed my eyes. Why was he tormenting me? What more did he want from me? Then another text came through. I grabbed my phone angrily, ready to give Jakob a piece of my mind, but this time it wasn’t from him.

  You looked so peaceful last night as you tossed and turned in bed. Maybe next time I’ll stay and keep you warm.

  I stared at the text message and frowned. Why was Jakob sending me text messages from two different numbers? Why was he calling me and threatening me at the same time? It didn’t make any sense. Unless Jakob hadn’t been lying when he said he hadn’t sent that text. My body felt cold as I remembered something he’d said about Steve—Jakob had been confused about Steve’s going crazy as well. That hadn’t been a part of his plan. And if that hadn’t been a part of his plan, then someone else had a role in everything. And I needed to find out who that was.

  Maybe Mattias wasn’t the mastermind after all. Maybe it was David. After all, what did I really know about him?

  four

  “Bianca!” I could hear Rosie banging on the door. “Open up.”

  I walked to the door and opened it slowly, staring at her for a few seconds before she pulled me into her arms.

  “Oh, Bianca,” she said in a soft tone.

  “Why didn’t you just let yourself in?” I mumbled against her shoulder, happy to finally be with someone I trusted.

  “I let myself into the building but didn’t want to just come into the apartment in case I scared you. Oh my God, Bianca, what happened to you?”

  “I don’t even know where to start
.” I sighed and closed the door. “Let’s sit down.”

  “What were you talking about when you said someone kidnapped you? What’s going on, Bianca?” Rosie’s voice was frantic as she gazed at me. “You’re freaking me out.”

  “I don’t really know what’s going on.” I bit my lower lip. “Do you still have my handbag from the night in the bar?”

  “Yeah, I brought it with me. I thought it was weird you left it.” She looked thoughtful. “I’m so sorry, I don’t know why I just believed the bartender. I didn’t think you would do something like that, but I figured maybe you had a few drinks and got carried away and you know . . .”

  “You thought I just needed to get laid?”

  “Yeah.” She closed her eyes. “I know that’s not you, though. I know you wouldn’t hook up with a guy you just met. Well, not unless he’s absolutely gorgeous.”

  “Do you remember I told you I thought the Bradleys had something to do with my mother’s death?”

  “Yeah.” She frowned. “Why?”

  “Mattias Bradley kidnapped me.”

  “No way!” Her eyes widened in shock.

  “Did you bring your Balenciaga bag with you?” Yes, it was still slung over her shoulder. “Did you take out my papers?”

  “What papers?” She frowned as I pulled the bag off her arm and opened it eagerly, my heart racing. I dug my way through her makeup and let out a sigh of relief as my fingers felt the slickness of the plastic bag. She hadn’t taken it out. I pulled out the bag and rifled through the copied documents I’d hidden, feeling as if I’d just won the lottery. “You still have them.”

  “What are they?” She sat down next to me and frowned as I held the pages next to my heart.

  “Documents that prove that the Bradleys were involved in my mother’s death and that I’m a rightful owner of Bradley Inc.”

  “No way!” Her jaw dropped. “Really?” She looked annoyed at herself. “I really need to start cleaning out my purse more regularly.”

  “Well, I don’t know exactly. . . . I mean, I need to speak to my father’s attorney to see what legal rights I have, but I’m pretty sure these documents make pretty damning evidence.”

  “Wow. And I had them all this time and didn’t even know.” She shook her head and gazed at me in shock. “These are the originals?”

  “Oh, no.” I bit my lower lip. “The originals are in a safe place, my security-deposit box. But I’m not going there to retrieve them now; someone is still trying to scare me off.”

  “You’re scaring me, Bianca.” Rosie’s face was white. “Why were you kidnapped and how? And what do you mean someone is trying to scare you off?”

  “When we were at the bar, someone drugged me or something. I woke up after I passed out in the back of a car with a man. And then we were taken to a deserted island and left there. I thought he’d been kidnapped as well, but he hadn’t—he was the one who planned it. Rosie, Mattias Bradley kidnapped me! I read in the newspapers yesterday that Bradley Inc. is merging with some other company, and I think I was kidnapped so I couldn’t stop the merger from going through. I think they were scared I’d stake my claim on the company, and as a major shareholder, they couldn’t do anything without me.”

  “Are you saying you’re rich?” Rosie’s eyes lit up.

  “What?” I frowned, too caught up in my own story to follow her train of thought.

  “If you’re a part owner of Bradley Inc., that would mean you’re rich rich rich!” she gushed.

  I gave her a weak smile. Was that really her response to everything I’d just said? Then I remembered something she’d told me before I’d been kidnapped. “Didn’t you tell me you were working on some deal for Bradley, or trying to land some big deal?”

  “Yeah, we were.” She nodded. “We had a few meetings, but we didn’t get the contract.”

  “Did you meet Mattias Bradley, then?” I stared at her face thoughtfully.

  “No.” She shook her head and stared right into my eyes. “I wish I had, though. I would have slapped him hard for you.” She grabbed my hands and squeezed them. “So what are you going to do now? Call the police?”

  “I don’t think I can call the police.” I shook my head. “My story sounds fantastical. What would I even say? No, I need to think of something else.” I closed my eyes for a few seconds and tried to ignore the image of Jakob’s face in my mind. “Something doesn’t seem right.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I don’t know.” I opened my eyes slowly and bit my lower lip. “Everything doesn’t add up.”

  “What was Mattias like? Did he hurt you?”

  “No, he didn’t hurt me.” A dagger of pain ran through me. “I don’t know what to say about him. I don’t know how to feel. He was nice—different, but nice. And he was handsome—oh, boy, was he handsome. He had piercing blue eyes that seemed to see into my soul. His arms were sinewy and strong, and his chest was hard as rock, but so soft to the touch.” My voice trailed off as Rosie’s eyes narrowed.

  “What do you mean, ‘soft to the touch’?”

  “Nothing.” My face turned bright red.

  “Bianca London!” she screeched. “You hooked up with him?”

  “I . . .”

  “You hooked up with the man who kidnapped you?”

  “I didn’t know then that he was the one who kidnapped me.” I bit my lower lip. “I thought he was an innocent bystander like me.” Rosie was already looking confused, so I told her everything from the beginning—from waking up with Jakob on the beach, to Steve’s arrival, all the way to our rescue and the phone call I’d heard in Jakob’s hotel room.

  I shook my head angrily. “I should have known better. I should have known it didn’t make sense.”

  “So . . . was Jakob good?”

  “Rosie!” I exclaimed loudly as I blushed. “He was the best.”

  “Oh.”

  “I know.” I shrugged. “Isn’t that life?”

  “I can’t believe he slept with you, knowing he’d kidnapped you.”

  “Do you think he cared?” I shook my head. “He had me fooled, especially when Steve came.”

  “Did Steve try and harm you then?” Rosie asked softly. “You must have felt so betrayed to learn that Mattias knew Steve before he came to the island.”

  “I was. I couldn’t believe that he could have lied to me so thoroughly. I couldn’t believe that he could have held me in his arms and made me think that . . .” My voice caught and I took a deep breath. “I’ve never felt so disillusioned in my whole life, Rosie. I’ve never trusted someone so much, only to have them turn on me like that.”

  “Did you really trust him, though?” she asked skeptically. “I mean, you didn’t really know him.”

  “When I gave myself to him, it was with complete trust. Yes, I had some fears, yes, I wasn’t sure who he was, but deep inside I was positive he was a good guy. I was positive he would never hurt me.”

  “Men lie all the time,” she sneered. “They say they love you, that they want to take care of you, but it’s funny how quickly they forget about you.”

  “Or it’s just one big lie.” I nodded. “My heart is broken. I feel like Liesl in The Sound of Music when she realizes her beau is a Nazi.”

  “Huh?” Rosie frowned. “Who?”

  “What was his name again? Was it Friedrich?” I thought carefully. “No, Friedrich was her brother. You know who I mean, they sang the ‘I am sixteen’ song.”

  “Bianca, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “Do you remember when Maria and the von Trapp family perform that song, toward the end of the movie, and they’re hiding out? And Liesl’s boyfriend or crush or whatever finds them and she says, ‘Please don’t say anything,’ but he betrays her and calls the rest of the Nazis over to take them in. Rolf! That was it, his name was Rolf.”

  “Okay.” Rosie stared at me as if wondering if I’d lost it.

  “My point being”—I sighed—“that I was betr
ayed and you can’t trust anyone. Not even someone you think has your back. Not even someone you think you love.” I jumped up then, not wanting to talk about it anymore.

  “You should call your dad’s attorney,” Rosie said softly. “If he gave you all of these papers, then maybe he knows more than he’s letting on.”

  “Yeah, perhaps.” I nodded. I was about to tell her that someone had added a line to the letter Jakob had given me while I’d been sleeping, but I didn’t want her to know about the letter. I didn’t want her to think that Mattias was still threatening me. I didn’t want her to tell me that I had to come and stay with her. I knew that would be the smartest thing to do, but I wasn’t going to let someone drive me out of my home. “Yeah, let me call him.” I grabbed my phone from the table and made a call.

  “Hello,” a teary-sounding voice answered.

  “Is Larry there, please?”

  “Who is this?” She sounded panicked.

  “It’s Bianca London.”

  “Bianca?” The voice froze. “Bianca London, did you say?”

  “Yes, I need to speak to Larry, please, it’s urgent.”

  “Larry’s gone missing.” Her voice dropped. “This is his wife.”

  “What do you mean, he’s gone missing?” My heart stopped and my body grew cold at her words. How could he have gone missing? He was the only one who could help me. And then I realized that of course he’d gone missing. Mattias didn’t want me to find out the truth. First Steve was missing and now Larry? How convenient that both the men who could give me answers had disappeared.

  “I was out shopping.” She gasped. “I just went to get some new clothes. We were going to go on a cruise. Larry wanted us to take a vacation. But while I was out, he called me, said that he thinks someone is in the house. He said that his old friend’s daughter is in trouble. That he shouldn’t have kept quiet.”

  “What old friend?” I whispered frantically. I could feel Rosie’s eyes staring at my back.

  “I can’t remember, but he said he owed his daughter, Bianca, the truth. I remember the name because it’s Mick Jagger’s ex wife’s name and I love the Rolling Stones.”