by Ann Marie
As they left the airport, people were calling for Josephine. Autograph seekers and trash mag reporters. Billy went to work right away, allowing the two women to walk by, with speed, untouched. No words were spoken again by the group until they had arrived back at the estate. Getting out of the car first was Josephine. During the drive home her emotions were in turmoil. Anger had taken over. By the time they had arrived, Josephine had grown so angry with Anthony that she needed to get away from her. Angry because of the way she made her feel. Angry with the way she looked. Angry at her assuming responsibility for the hiring of a bodyguard. Billy and Anthony followed behind.
“Is she always this moody?” Billy was ready to bale. Anthony wrapped her arm around his as she watched Josephine.
“She’s been through a lot Billy. Give her time, she’ll grow on you. It’s tough being Josephine Ferrero.”
Josephine had difficulty opening the front door. Her eyes once again were full and over flowing.
“It will be OK, Billy. Come on, I’ll protect you.” Anthony’s smile comforted Billy as the two entered behind Josephine. Josephine headed directly up the stairs to her room and closed the door.
“Ms. Dal Santo, how wonderful to finally meet you. I have read so much about you and your work. And…”
“Billy ma’am, the names Billy.”
“Well Billy, nice to meet you also. Please come in and make yourself comfortable.” Chloe motioned for the great room. Anthony had her hand on the stair rail, looking up towards Josephine’s door. “Leave her for now, Miss. It’s best to let her be when she is...come, how about something to eat? You are as thin as a shoe horn.”
Josephine closed the door behind her and let her back slide down its frame until she was sitting on her haunches. She cried like a baby until well after dark. By then her eyes were so swollen she could not bring herself to see Anthony until the next day. And then, afraid of her own feelings, Josephine all but avoided Anthony for a week more.
“Josephine? Josephine, you awake?” Billy was kneeling in front of her. “We found Chloe. She was in the guest bedroom, the closet.” Josephine dropped her face into her hands and wiped away the memory. Dragging her fingers through her hair as she pulled it away from her face, she gave Billy her full attention. “You can’t stay here Ms. Ferrero. It’s just no longer an option. I’m sorry. He must have been in the house the whole time. He must have seen the video and taken it with him. I don’t know how...”
Josephine put up her hand to stop him. “It doesn’t really matter does it Billy? How he got inside, why he got inside. He got inside, killed Chloe. He did, didn’t he? Chloe’s dead?” Billy dropped his eyes to his feet. Something about Josephine was different. Something in her eye’s had changed. Billy was sure it wasn’t just one of her many mood swings. Whatever it was it had strength. Leaving him feeling he wasn’t quite adequate. “And he took the tape with him.” She shook her head in amazement. “It’s done and over with. What matters now...” She let her gaze sweep over her property before returning it to Billy. “What matters now is what he is going to do next. Where is he going and...and getting there before he does.”
“Josephine, we...”
“Anthony is all that is real in my life. You know? Without her I am just an actress. Just role-playing. Can you understand?” This time she shook her head to answer her own question as she let her gaze look out beyond Billy. Beyond her property. “I need to see Anthony. Please take me to see Anthony, now Billy, can you take me, please? I don’t think I can drive.”
“Sure, I’ll take you. But first let’s get you some things and a place to stay for a few days.”
Chapter 23
A quick shower and a light dinner helped to clear his mind. By this time tomorrow, he had convinced himself, Antonia would be his and his alone. However he did not trust his lustful nature and feared that someone else may get in his way. He did not want another minute maid. He wanted Antonia. Before he dealt with Josephine, he would have to satisfy his desire for Antonia. And the only one who could do that would be Antonia herself. Checking his appearance in the diner’s lobby mirror, he smiled, as his anticipation grew. Although he had finished eating, he was hungrier now than he was when he had entered. There was quickness to his step as he headed back to Antonia. He was as excited as a school boy.
Harold was escorted to a window seat. The waitress handed him a menu as he removed his coat. Sitting with his back to the entrance, Harold never saw the man walk out.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Antonia heard voices outside the door to her room. She could not understand what was being said but thought she recognized the tone of one voice. She could not be sure. It seemed to her a déjà-vu of sorts. Perhaps, she thought to herself, perhaps it was just an affect from the medication. The door to her room cracked open. Her body tensed with anticipation and dread. She could feel the hairs on her arms all come to attention. Her breath involuntarily refused to exit her lungs. When the door was closed, once again, Antonia knew she wasn’t alone. There was an odor in the room now. A stench from the past.
He came to the side of her bed and stood silent as he gazed down on her. His left hand carefully touched the inside of her right arm. His fingers slowly brushing the flesh until the back of his hand came into contact with her right breast. His hand froze in place. Antonia’s stomach was constricting. ‘Please, don’t let me vomit.’ she prayed to herself. He seemed to notice her tense. He slid his left hand up over her right breast and across her chest, down the inside of her left arm, where it came to rest on her wrist. He was gentle with the intravenous needle taped to her hand. He did not want to hurt her. He brought his face down to hers and inhaled. He let his face circle her head and shoulders. He was trying to fill his lungs with her scent. He looked at her face. He brought his ear in closer trying to listen to her breathing.
Antonia was still holding her breath. She could not help herself. She had lost all control. All the work she had put into becoming who she was, all lost. Everything she strived for her whole life had faded. Her confidence, her strength, herself, all gone. She was as a small child, a child the age of seven. Her life had reversed itself so fast she was dizzy. She was scared. He felt her fear. He felt it and it made him stronger, more confident. He took it from her and used it without hesitation.
He brought his mouth up close to hers and called her name, exhaling softly. “Antonia...my sweet Antonia...” He brought his mouth down her neck, letting his warm, wanting breath linger on her flesh. “Antonia, I know you can hear me.” He continued as his mouth reached the center of her chest. He could feel her pulse quicken as he tightened his grip on her wrist. He placed his mouth over her right nipple. He let his breath caress it and it responded. “Antonia, look at me.” He placed his mouth on her nipple and gently brought his teeth in to graze her. “Antonia, I said look at me.”
Silently she prayed to herself, ‘God, please take me before he does, please.’ He bit down on her and then returned his face to hers.
Again, “Antonia, I never meant to shoot you.” Antonia’s mind raced back to the party. The image at the fence. The man with the gun. “I know about you and that actress. I have kept track, you see. When you left the country, I thought my life had ended. I had almost given up hope of ever being with you again.” He was speaking softly, almost in a whisper. His stagnant breath was overpowering. Antonia needed to breathe, she wanted so much to turn her head and gasp for air. But she remembered a time in the past, when she turned her head. She was so very frightened.
‘Please God, take me now...please.’
“You see, I knew she would call you back. And I knew that when she did, you would drop everything and come running to her. What happened to you, Antonia? Was there no man out there who could compare to me?” He bent and licked her cheek. “Antonia,” he said, as he stood up straight and brought his left hand back across her stomach. He gently grabbed the top sheet which covered her. Slowly, walking to the
back of the bed, he pulled the sheet with him. Antonia felt the chill of the room touch her. He came to the head of her bed once again, now on the left side. “Antonia,” His voice had taken on a commanding tone, “Antonia, open your eyes and look at me.” He grabbed both of her shoulders with his two hands and squeezed. “Now.”
Antonia’s eyes opened obediently. What she saw she was all too familiar with. It was the face from her nightmares. The face from her past. The face of evil and pain. “Did you miss me?” He asked. “Why did you have to get in the way? It wasn’t supposed to be this way, you know.” His hands began to untie Antonia’s gown. First the shoulder came undone and he drew in his breath as he let the back of his fingers graze her skin. Next, the center tie. He folded down her gown so that her left breast was exposed. He brought his mouth down to taste it. “Oh, my,” the words just came from him as he tried to catch his breath. He helped himself to every whore he could find since being released three years ago, but nothing could have prepared him for this moment. This moment was thirty years in coming. He could not wait much longer. He forced himself to regain control, as he undid the final tie. He tossed open her gown completely and looked longingly at her body. Aside from the wound on the right side of her abdomen, she was flawless. He wanted her badly.
He looked up to her face. She was staring up at the ceiling, causing him to become angry at her lack of attention. That anger was all he needed to regain his composure. She was beautiful, but no woman was so beautiful they could ignore him. “How does your girlfriend like it?” He asked her. He brought his mouth to hers. He tried to get inside her mouth, but she refused him access. “Oh, OK, I see how you want to play this. All these years, you would think you would be happy to see me. But no, not my woman, she thinks she’s got it better up there on the hill.” He started to unbuckle his pants.
“Well, I think she needs a little lesson on respect.” His pants fell to the floor. “I think she needs to be reminded, just how good her man can make her feel.” His jockeys followed. A single tear fell down Antonia’s face as he climbed onto the bed. He straddled her and stared for a moment. “Look at me you little cunt!” He dropped his hands down to either side of her shoulders and let his body hang above hers.
She looked into his eyes and felt every muscle in her body tense. Her back felt as if it was on fire. Her shoulder was flaring. “You belong to me little one. You’re all mine. Didja think I forgot you were so disrespectful? Forgot you made me look bad in your mama’s eyes? It was your fault, you know. I had to...” He looked at her face. “Antonia, my sweet Antonia.” He said gently as he caressed her right cheek, while balancing himself on one arm. Antonia still could not bring herself to open her mouth.
He looked at her, with both a mixture of hurt and anger. He raised his left hand, as if to hit her. He held it in the air and made a fist. Antonia remembered, she remembered a similar fist, smashing her mother’s face. ‘Oh, God, no, please.’ Antonia’s face could not hide her fear. He looked at her and became overwhelmed with desire. He looked at his fist, held in the air and started to cry. “Why? Why, Antonia? Why?” He brought his fist in, slowly towards himself. He looked at it as he chewed on his lower lip. “I can’t allow this, you know that don’t you Antonia?” He was almost whining. He brought his fist to his mouth and bit down on it.
Still balancing on his right hand, he used his left knee to force open Antonia’s legs. He then used the fisted hand to grab Antonia’s throat. Antonia tried to prepare herself for what she was certain was about to happen. He placed his right knee inside Antonia’s open thighs, securing their width. “Now you will kiss me.” He worked his hand up from her throat to her jaw and forcefully kissed her. Still she did not open her mouth. Unknowingly, she had been clenching her teeth since his arrival. She could not stop now, she had no control. She knew she would pay dearly this time as she saw his temper enter his eyes.
Without taking his eyes off hers, he brought his right hand down, between his legs. He grabbed hold of himself in an effort to stop his own release. His breath started to come in short bursts, as if he had been running. Sweat formed on his far head and rolled down his face, dripping onto Antonia’s bare chest. His face contorted at different angles. He stiffened his shoulders and spine. And then, still his eyes locked on hers, he forcefully and deliberately thrust the two center fingers of his right hand inside of her.
The pain was sharp and fast. But nothing compared to what she experienced as he forced the two fingers deeper inside of her and twisted his hand so the same two fingers rested below her backbone. And then he pressed down in anger. Antonia felt as if a spike was being driven up into her spine. The pain was so intense her body arched to escape it. He brought his body down on top of her, to hold her still. Antonia couldn’t breathe. Her mouth opened as she gasped for air.
He grabbed her face with his left hand and squeezed, holding her jaws open. As she was gasping for air, he felt her body moving against his. He couldn’t hold out much longer, he ached for her. He had her and he knew it now. He let his index finger enter her mouth. He let it roam around, feeling its warmth. Then he withdrew it and still holding her mouth open, kissed her. He gave her instructions to kiss him back as he painfully reminded her of the presence of his two fingers. She returned his kiss, as much as her instincts would allow. Feeling the warmth of her blood on his fingers and interpreting it incorrectly, he withdrew them. Bringing them to her face, he said, “Just like the first time.” and then he wiped his fingers on her cheek. Still claiming ownership of her jaw with his left hand, he said, “Now you’re not gonna make a sound are you. You’re gonna make this right. You know what happens if I hear anything, or do you need reminding.” He was looking in her eyes, as well as her whole face. She had grown into such a beauty he was almost in awe. He licked away a tear which had escaped her eye. “That’s right, not a sound.”
He entered her with the force of thirty years. The pain seemed to shoot directly to her brain. She gasped for air, only to be cut off by his next thrust. Again she gasped, again he thrust. Her head turned to the left in search of air. She gasped, he thrust. Again and again, as she felt herself ripping, tearing with each thrust. He grabbed her face with his right hand and brought it back to face him. His thrusts gained speed as he brought his mouth down to hers and cut off her air supply with his mouth. He kissed her hungrily. He lost himself with one final thrust, which he took deeper than all the others. Antonia was crying silently. He dropped his head to her chest to recover his own breath. “Oh my God, that was worth the wait.” he said. “And to think of how it will be when you are stronger, yes?” Finally he rolled off the bed. He replaced his clothes without noticing Antonia’s blood upon him.
He retied her gown, not taking his eyes off her face. She watched him, watching her. Her crying had stopped. She felt nothing. He brought her sheet back up to her chest. He bent and kissed her forehead. “I have to go take care of some loose ends now. You get some rest now, and I will be back to take you home in a little while.” Again he kissed her forehead, before he turned and exited the room. He did not look at the officer stationed outside her door. Did not notice the way the officer looked at him.
Officer Daniels was new in town and was all too happy to stand guard for a celebrity of sorts. He noticed briefly, the disheveled appearance of the gentlemen’s clothes. He started to follow Antonia’s visitor to the elevator, when the doors to the second elevator opened. The Chief of Staff exited the elevator, followed by an older gentleman, sporting a badge of some sort. He forgot the gentleman he was after and cleared his head.
“Anything wrong officer?” Dr. Luke questioned.
“No sir, not at all.”
“Good, this here is Inspector Davis. He has come up from New York to see Ms. Dal Santo. If she is up for visitors that is.” He glanced over his shoulder at the Inspector, who nodded his understanding.
“She had a visitor a moment ago, but he just left as you came up.” The officer informed him.
“A vi
sitor? Did you happen to get a name? You are aware that she is not to have unauthorized visits, aren’t you? After all that is the purpose of your being here.”
“Yes sir, I am aware of the situation. The visitor was the lady’s father. Being family, I assumed...”
“I was under the impression Ms. Dal Santo had no living relatives. Did you see some I.D. on this gentleman?” Dr. Luke questioned concerned.
“Yes sir, he gave me his driver’s license. It was a photo I.D. I wrote down the information on the clipboard. Let me get it.” Officer Daniels rushed back over to his assigned seat to retrieve the clipboard.
The Inspector came quickly to the side of the Chief of Staff. “Her father is dead. Killed in a jail house fight years ago.” The doctor looked at the officer and the back to the Inspector and then quickly entered Antonia’s room. He immediately noticed the blood stain under the woman right hand. He quickly went to her side and noticed that she had clenched both fists so tightly she had punctured both palms, causing the bleeding.
Antonia’s eyes were opened but the doctor could not get her to respond to him. He could see that she had been crying. He walked around her bed to check on her monitors. Antonia’s eyes fell upon the Inspector. She recognized him immediately. His hair was thinner, lighter. His face was older, heavier. But his eyes were still caring.
He came closer to her bed. “Jose...” The Inspector looked up to the doctor, who shook his head.
“He went after...” Antonia could not seem to speak. She was so very tired. The doctor turned to come back around the bed and was forced to catch himself as he slipped in a puddle of blood. He pulled back the sheets and inhaled, realizing where the blood came from. He raced for the door of the room and exited down the hall to request help. Antonia looked at the Inspector. “He went after Josephine...”
“Josephine?” the Inspector questioned, “Who, who has gone after Josephine?” Antonia did not need to respond. The Inspector looked to the door as the doctor re-entered. “You’re going to have to leave Inspector.” The Inspector looked back to Antonia reassuringly before he left. Once in the hallway he grabbed the officer’s arm and motioned for him to follow. “This Josephine person, you know where she lives?”