A Debt Paid

by Black, Joslyn

  “Oh, Mom.” “Now listen, park your car at the mall or a grocery store and take a cab to the airport. If you leave it at the airport, he’ll know you flew somewhere. Has he tried to call you?”

  “Yes, my other line has been beeping since we started talking.” “When you get to the airport, turn off your phone and put it away, don’t use it. You can get a prepaid when you get to Nicole’s.”

  “I know I need to get away for a while, but do you really think I have to change my phone? Isn’t that a bit much?”

  “Anya, you know who his uncle is. You said he knew about this arrangement. Do you think he won’t help Calix try and find you?”

  “You’re right.”

  “Where are you now?” “I don’t really know. I’ve just been driving. I haven’t really been paying attention.”

  “Okay, I’m going to go to Maria’s now. I’ll tell your father I’m having a late dinner with her. Go to the airport. I’ll get you on the next flight out. Southwest always has seats open.”

  “Ok, okay.” Anya sniffled and wiped her runny nose with the back of her hand. “Honey, I love you. It’s going to be okay.”

  “I love you, too, Mom.” “I’ll text you the flight information as soon as I book the flight. Stay calm, baby.”

  “I’ll try. Bye, Mom.”

  “Bye, honey.” Anya hung up. She looked around to see where she had driven to. She used Seri to find the closest shopping mall. As soon as she knew where she was and where she was going, she called Nicole. She couldn’t remember what the time difference was. She didn’t want to disturb her if it was too late, but then again this was an urgent matter. The phone rang five times before she picked up.

  A tired sounding Nicole answered, “Hello.”

  “Nicole?”

  “Yes, hey, Anya, is that you?”

  “Yes, I’m sorry if I’m calling too late or woke you.” “No, no, it’s fine. I haven’t gone to bed yet. Actually, I just got home. My shift at the hospital ran over. Girl, are you crying?”

  “Yes. God, where do I start?”

  Chapter 14 Calix was going nuts. He’d been so shocked by Anya running out that he didn’t think to grab hold of her and not let her leave. By the time his brain kicked in, she was out the door, and he was bare assed naked and couldn’t chase after her. When he finally threw clothes on and got down to the lobby, she was gone. He’d been calling her over and over again, but she wouldn’t pick up. He called her parents’ house, but she wasn’t there. Richards had answered the phone. Carol was at Calix’s mom’s house. If anyone knew where she was, it was Carol, but she wasn’t answering her cell either. He couldn’t wait for her to answer his message. He was going over to his mother’s.

  He got to his mother’s within minutes and knocked on her door non-stop till she opened it.

  “Okay, okay, I’m coming. Calix, eli bambino (my son), where’s the fire?” His was rushed in his answer. “Sorry, Mom, I need to talk to Carol. Is she still here?”

  “Yes, she’s in the living room. What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing, Mom. I just need to talk to Carol.” “Calix Vincenzo Anastas, you tell me what’s wrong, right now.” She hit him on his chest as she spoke.

  Calix huffed. “Uh Anya and I had a misunderstanding, and she left. She ran out, and she’s not answering her cell. I don’t know where she is. I need to talk to Carol.”

  “I’m right here, Calix.” Carol’s voice was cold, nearly void of all emotion but anger.

  Calix turned to see Carol walking into the foyer. “Oh, Carol, have you heard from Anya tonight?”

  Carol crossed her arms over her chest and glowered at him and was very clipped in her answer. “Yes.”

  Calix walked further into the house toward Carol. “Thank God, where is she?”

  “Maria, can I have a moment alone with Calix, please?” Maria looked back and forth between Carol and Calix. She was unsure if she should leave them alone at all. She could tell something was very wrong, but they intended to keep her out of the loop. “Oh, okay, I’ll just be in the dining room, clearing the table.”

  She looked one more time in Calix’s direction and pointed a finger at his chest. “If you’ve done something stupid, you better make it right, do you hear me? Mi hai sentito (Do you hear me)?” she finished harshly.

  “Yes, Mom.” Then she left them alone. Carol waited till she was sure Maria was not within hearing distance.

  “Carol, please—”

  “Shut up!” she hissed. “You are a lying bastard.” Calix didn’t believe he heard her correctly. “Wh–What?” he stammered. Confused by her sudden fierceness.

  “You heard me. Anya told me everything; how you used her fear for my safety to force her in this relationship, how you raped her on your desk.”

  Calix was struck dumb. He had no words, but in his head he was cursing at himself.

  Oh shit, oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck.

  “Carol, please, let me explain.” “No, you listen, you are going leave my daughter alone. This wedding is cancelled, and if you don’t leave her alone, if you try to find her, I will tell your mother everything. I know your underhanded uncle knows about this, and if he asks you why things ended, you’re going to tell him you changed your mind.”

  Calix was pulling at his hair. He couldn’t believe this was happening. He tried to plead with her, “Carol, please, you don’t understand; I didn’t mean to hurt her, and I haven’t done anything that she hasn’t wanted since that morning. Carol, please, I love her.”

  Carol actually shook her head and laughed sardonically. “You love her? Please, you don’t rape the woman you love.”

  “You weren’t there. I know I was wrong. I snapped when she, when she…”Calix quit speaking as his mother started walking towards them.

  “Everything okay?”

  Calix face was somber. He had the look of a broken man.

  “Calix, honey?” He turned to Carol one last time before he answered. Carol was serious; she wasn’t going to tell him where Anya was.

  “No, Mom, the wedding is, it’s off.” Her eyes grew big, and she reached for his arm. “What? What do you mean it’s off?”

  She looked to Carol for an answer. But Carol was silent and turned her head to look in another direction.

  “I–I messed up big, and Anya left. She’s not going to come back to me. I need to leave. I’ll talk to you later, Mom.” He turned and left without saying goodbye or shutting the door behind him.

  Maria walked behind Calix and stood at the open door, watching him get in his car and leave. As he pulled out of her driveway, she closed the door. Standing with her back to Carol for a minute, she gathered her words.

  “Carol, we’ve become good friends, haven’t we?”

  Carol dropped her arms and relaxed her stance. “Yes.” “And you’ve told me about Tomas, and I’ve told you about Vito, so we trust each other, right?”

  “Yes, of course.”

  Maria looked Carol square in the eye. “Then, don’t lie to me, or keep things from me. What is going on with Anya and Calix?”

  Carol couldn’t look Maria in the eye. She dropped her head and looked at the floor. Her voice was quiet and strained. “I can’t, Maria, it’s for Anya’s safety.”

  “Safety? I don’t understand. Calix would never hurt Anya.”

  “He already has,” Carol mumbled.

  “Carol, please.”

  “Oh, Maria, fine, but we need to sit down for this.” Carol lead Maria to the couch, sat down, held her friend’s hand, and told her everything Anya had told her.

  Maria was bewildered. She started to cry. Her son couldn’t have done this, and Vito would never approve of her son hurting a woman. Vito did a lot of things, but he and everyone in his ‘Family’ would never hurt a woman. That was just not done. She began shaking her head in denial. “No, Calix couldn’t have hurt her that way. He loves her. I know he does. If you only knew the way he was before Anya. She’s lightened his heart.”

  “Any
a didn’t tell me all the details, she just told me he had forced himself on her. She was a virgin, Maria, and he wasn’t gentle; it wasn’t a misunderstanding that he took her by force.”

  “But, she has been happy with him. I saw she was happy.” “She said she just blocked out that first day and that this evening when she took a home pregnancy test that’s when it all came crashing back, so she got dressed and ran out of the penthouse.”

  Maria’s gasped. “She’s pregnant?” “No, it was negative. She left, and she’s not coming back, not for a long while because she’s scared of Vito. I gave her access to my account. Even I don’t know exactly where she is.”

  “Oh God, Carol, I just can’t believe this. How do I apologize to you, to Anya? I just can’t believe he would hurt her. I know my son…at least, I thought I knew him.”

  “Look, I know all this is a shock. It was a shock to me, and I’m sorry, this is why I didn’t want to tell you.”

  “You threatened him, didn’t you? Threatened to tell me if he didn’t leave her alone and cancel the wedding.”

  “Yes.”

  Maria was so upset; she just covered her face and continued to cry. Carol wasn’t sure whom she felt sorrier for, Anya for the pain she suffered, herself for not protecting her daughter, or Maria whose son had done all this. “Maria, the wedding is off. Why don’t we leave for Italy early? I know the earlier we leave the better. You’re going to need time to process this. I’m going to need time, and I really want to leave Tomas. Anya only told me about this a couple of hours ago. Anya was crying so much I only got half of what she said. I need to talk to her and get the whole story and to get her counseling if she needs it. You know, I blame myself; she did this for me, trying to protect me. If I had been honest with her and told her my plans, it never would have happened.”

  Maria sat up and pulled Carol in for a hug. “I’m sorry, Carol. It’s not your fault. I didn’t raise my son to do things like this, you know. You’re right, we should leave early. I don’t think I could face Calix or Vito for a while.”

  Chapter 15 Calix drove away from his mother’s house unbelievably upset and depressed. Anya had told her mother everything. He’d felt bad and guilty about how he handled things that first day, but he had done everything he could to make up for it. He thought they had worked passed it. She seemed happy with him. They enjoyed each other’s company even without sex. He went over and over what had happened to them today; unable to understand what had set her off. He knew he had screwed up; he’d really, really fucked up. God, he didn’t know what he was going to do, these last couple of weeks changed him. He’d seen what he’d been missing all these years. He was in love with her, and he had no idea how he was going to live without her.

  He felt a tear run down his face before wiping it away with his fingertips then looked down at the moisture on them. Calix couldn’t believe it; he hadn’t cried or shed a tear since his father passed away. He had no one to go to. He couldn’t go to his mother, and he didn’t have any truly close friends, merely business associates and the like. That only left his uncle; he didn’t want to go to him just yet. Despite Carol’s threat, he had to try and find Anya. He had to; he couldn’t live without her.

  *** Carol was able to book Anya a red eye to the coast, but, because of the timing, she had to catch a few connections. When Anya finally arrived, she was dead on her feet. As she walked down from the escalator away from the gates, she saw Nicole waiting for her. The sight of Nicole’s bright smile perked Anya up. They practically ran to each other.

  “Oh my God, Anya! I can’t believe you’re here.” Anya broke into tears when Nicole swept her into a tight hug. “No, no, honey, don’t cry, don’t cry. I know the

  circumstances are crappy, but I’m so glad you’ve came. It’s been over eighteen months since our last visit.”

  Anya sniffled and tried to wipe her tears without letting go of Nicole. “Now, let’s get you back to my place. You’ll take a hot shower then a nap. You look exhausted. When you wake up, we’ll veg with every sugary, fattening, and tooth rotting, sweet comfort food we can get our hands on. I traded shifts and have the next couple of days off.”

  “Oh, you didn’t need to do that. I don’t want to mess with your work.” Nicole started to walk them toward the baggage claim. Trying to keep her voice upbeat, she said, “Oh no, honey, I needed these days off. A couple of our RNs were sick, and I’ve worked more doubles than I would have liked. So, no worries, okay? Now which suitcase is yours?”

  Anya stood there and shook her head. “I don’t have any.” Nicole turned to face Anya. One of her eyebrows was raised up. Her voice was a bit skeptical. “What do you mean you don’t have any?"

  Anya stuttered a bit, “I–I– I didn’t have time. I just ran out, and I wasn’t going to go back for clothes. Mom set me up with money. I’m just going to buy clothes,” She finished with a sheepish shrug, trying to downplay what had happened.

  Nicole just reached out and hugged her again. “Okay, I’ve got something you can sleep in. I’m a couple inches taller, so my stuff won’t really fit. We’ll wash your clothes and then,” her voice started to sound sing songish, “we’re gonna go shopppiiinngg.”

  In spite of the situation, Anya chuckled and agreed. They walked out of the airport with arms wrapped each other’s waist and made their way to the short term parking area. Nicole started to chatter about her recent life events, men, work, and her family. She talked all the way from the airport to her apartment. Anya was sure Nicole was trying to distract her from her thoughts. She was a good friend. In high school, Nicole always knew how to cheer her up. Nicole was one of a handful of people who really knew her and her family and what a bastard her father was. Anya had cried on her shoulder plenty of times. Anya had been there for Nicole, as well. They were kinda in the same boat. Her father was a big corporate CFO and a closet nasty drunk. Her whole family played ‘happy family’ just like Anya’s did.

  It was just past noon when they finally arrived at Nicole's apartment. “The mall doesn’t close till nine o’clock, so we have enough time to shower, nap, and head out with plenty of time to shop and not be rushed. We can even have dinner at the mall.”

  Anya was so tired. She really hadn’t gotten to sleep on the plane. She couldn’t relax enough, and then when she finally started to, it was time to switch planes again.

  “I think I’ll nap then shower. I’m so beat.” “Whichever way you want is fine. Now, sleeping arrangements; I only have the one bedroom. But my sofa is actually a futon, so you can have it, or you can share my queen.”

  “Why do you only have one bedroom? Is housing here that expensive?” “No, but it helps to keep family visits short, and if it’s an overnight visit, they’re usually staying at a hotel.” Nicole laughed at her own cleverness, and Anya joined her in her laughter.

  “Smart, very smart.” Anya smiled.

  *** Calix’s cell was ringing, and he was tempted not to get up and get it, but the thought that maybe it was Anya forced him up. He looked at the caller ID. No, not Anya, but it was his uncle, so he couldn’t ignore it. “Hello.”

  “Calix, why aren’t you in the office? I called, and your assistant said you’d be out for the next few days. What the fuck is going on?”

  Calix was not ready to have this conversation with his uncle. With his free hand, he slowly started to try and rub some of the tension out of his temple.

  “It’s a long story, one I don’t feel up to talking about, Zio (Uncle).”

  “Don’t give me that crap. What have you done to your mother?” Calix sat up straighter. Was there something wrong with his mother? He had just seen her last night, and she’d been fine.

  “What’s wrong with my mom? Is she sick?” “No, she’s pissed. I called her to ask if there was anything she needed before her trip or anything she needed done at her house while she was gone, so I could plan for it. She told me she couldn’t handle talking to me yet and to not call her till she was. Maria has never spoken to
me in such a way.”

  “I saw her last night when I told her the wedding was cancelled. Maybe that’s why she’s mad. I’ll call her and talk to her.”

  “You can’t.”

  “Why not?”

  “She left for Italy this morning.”

  “What? She isn’t scheduled to leave for two more weeks,” Calix screeched. “Watch your tone. You cancelling your wedding would have made her mad at you, not me, and why is your wedding cancelled?”

  Fuck! Calix thought. What if Carol caved and told his mother everything? His mother knew something serious was going on, and, when she wanted to know something, she was like a dog with a bone. She wouldn’t drop it till she was satisfied.

  “Zio Vito. God. It’s possible Mom knows about the deal I made with Anya and her father.”

  “How would she? You better tell me what the fuck is going on, and if you keep something from me, I’ll beat the shit out of you myself.”

  “Okay, but, please, Zio, just hear me out. Anya and her father came in Monday two weeks ago to discuss my proposition. Like I said, he either needed to pay you your money, or I’d pay it if Anya married me.”

  Vito cut in, “I know this; she agreed, you paid, so why is it cancelled?”

  “You didn’t let me finish, Zio.” Though it was very shameful and uncomfortable admitting everything that had happened that morning and everything else up to last night, Calix knew better than to try and hide details from his uncle, so he confessed everything.

  “And she just ran out. I was naked, so I couldn’t go after her right away. I tracked Carol to Mom’s house, so I drove there to talk to her. We spoke in private. Mom had left the room. Carol told me everything that Anya had told her, and she threatened to tell Mom if I didn’t leave Anya alone.”

  His uncle was silent. That was not a good sign. You would think if he was yelling or cursing that would mean he was mad. With his uncle, he was at his most serious and deadliest when he was calm and quiet.

  “Zio?” “Let me get this straight. She came Monday morning to agree to marry you, because you not only threatened harm on her father but also her mother. You got angry with her because of her less than thrilled response, and you forced yourself on her, knowing she was a virgin. What the fuck is wrong with you? Sdraiato bastardo! (Lying bastard!) You know very well we have never harmed a woman who was not in a blood debt by her own doing. Suino vergognoso ti vergogna mi e la nostra famiglia! (Disgraceful pig you shame our family and me!) I only agreed to that arrangement because you said you needed her. I thought that meant you loved her but were too proud to say it because she did not feel the same way. I thought you would marry her then you would woo her and show her love. Instead you forced yourself on her, a virgin!”