A Debt Paid

by Black, Joslyn

  “Zio, please, I snapped and was blind in my rage. She brings out strong, raw emotions in me that I’ve never had. I do love her and need her. I saw that she feels nothing for her father. She would never have agreed if it weren’t her mother at risk. I’ve waited years for her. I did everything I could to try to erase that moment for us. I showed her affection, pleasure, and companionship. I thought we were fine, and that we had worked passed it. She was happy with me, Zio, I swear she was. I never did anything she didn’t want after that morning, and she enjoyed everything we did together. She was even

  disappointed when the pregnancy test was negative. I don’t understand what caused her to run.”

  “Calix, I did not help your mother to raise you this way. What you did to Anya is something that, to me, is unforgivable. How she managed to stay with you after that and not report you I do not know. Your mother is a smart woman. No doubt she was able to get everything out of Carol. So, she now must think that I have approved of your behavior. No wonder she left and wants nothing from me.”

  Calix was choking on his own words now. Vito could hear the roughness in his voice; the emotion Calix was trying to keep caged. He had always told Calix to show no emotion, that it was a weakness. Now, Calix had found a woman that lit a fire in him, and he didn’t know how to handle it.

  Calix was pleading with his uncle; something he had never done before. “Zio, please, I need help I have to find her.” Calix took a moment to clear his throat. “Zio, I couldn’t even sleep last night without her.”

  “I’m sorry, Calix, but I will not help you find her. Nipote (Nephew), you did this to yourself. If she wants you in any way, she will come back. If not, then you need to find a way to move on. I know that it might not be possible for you, and, if it isn’t, you need to lock up your heart enough to where you can move forward.”

  Calix’s guilt and hopelessness was turning into anger. For the first time in his life, he raised his voice to his uncle. “How would you know? You’ve never married. You have never felt a soul shattering love.”

  “Careful, Calix, I will not tell you again. Yes, I did love someone, and I still love her. But, I knew she could be put in harm’s way because of me and my

  business. I wasn’t willing to risk that. I have one sweet memory of our time together. She married someone else shortly after that. I know she was loved and safe, and I survived on that.”

  “Zio?” “Don’t ask because I won’t tell. Now, I need to know something; the

  arrangements we were making for her father, are we still going forward with them?”

  A very disheartened Calix answered, “Yes, it was my wedding gift to her, and even though the wedding is off, it’s the least I can do.”

  “Now that Maria and Carol have left early we can move up the time line.” “Yes, let’s get it done with. The sooner this is all over the sooner I can lock this away.”

  “If you are in need of company, Calix, I can send Natalia.”

  “No, thank you, Zio, I just want left alone.”

  As usual Calix hung up with no goodbye.

  Chapter 16 When Anya woke from her nap, it was a little after 4:30 pm. She remembered putting her clothes in the washer but didn’t remember putting them in the dryer. She got up and went to check, since she wouldn’t be able to shower until her clothes were dry.

  Nicole saw Anya rushing towards the washer. “Don’t worry, I put them in the dryer while you were asleep.” Nicole was sitting at the dining room table, reading and drinking coffee.

  “I thought you were going to nap, too,” Anya said while walking toward the table then pulled out a chair to sit down next to Nicole.

  “I tried, really I did. But my body is just so mixed up from long hours, night shifts, and working doubles; it doesn’t know what to do.”

  Anya chuckled. “Okay, well, I’m gonna take a shower then, unless you need in first?”

  Nicole shook her head. “Nope, I took one an hour ago. Extra towels are in the hallway closet. I have body wash, and there is a new puff under the sink. We’ll leave for the mall as soon as you’re ready.”

  *** Maria and Carol had taken off early in the morning. Carol guessed that they were half-way there, since they had been flying for just over six hours. Maria had gotten a call from Vito before they left. She’d been rather short with him. It was to be expected. After all, he was a part of the whole blackmailing fiasco.

  They were flying in first class, which was absolutely indulgent. Their plane had Wi-Fi, each seat had its own T.V screen, and up to two hundred and fifty movies to choose from. They even had a walk-up refreshment bar and fully reclining seats that were cocooned for privacy. Each seat also had a vanity cupboard with a mirror, and the upgraded bathrooms featured maple details and Dermalogica products for passengers to use, so they arrived fresh and feeling like a star. The plane even had mood lighting; Carol wasn’t too sure about it, but they said the different lights helped. The stages on the flight turned the cabin pink on embarkation, blue to ease

  passengers into sleep, and yellow to energize on arrival at the destination.

  The only thing that bothered Carol, although she loved the privacy of the cocoon, was it made it hard to talk to each other. She didn’t want to raise her voice and be heard by everyone surrounding them, so she decided, since she couldn’t nap like a lot of the other passengers, she would go over her emails and check the account to make sure Anya didn’t have any problems getting money.

  Opening her email, she saw that she already had an email from her attorney. She hadn’t even told him she was leaving early. Calling him would be a priority when they landed. She started to read through the email.

  To: Mrs. C. Richards

  Cc/Bcc:

  From:

  J.King@KingAttorneyAtLaw.com

  Dear Mrs. Richards, Per your request, I have filed your divorce papers. They were sent next day express mail and should arrive via courier. Please sign and mail them back as soon as possible. Senator Richards will be served as soon as we have your signature on the papers. I have already started the

  paperwork to remove your name from any accounts you have joint with your husband. If you have any further needs or questions, please feel free to contact me at any time.

  J. King That was odd; she hadn’t asked him to file yet or to remove her name from their joint accounts. She would definitely have to call him as soon as possible. She needed to find out who contacted him to start everything without saying anything to her.

  *** Anya and Nicole left Radio Shack after purchasing Anya’s new pay as you go phone. She was so glad you could get an iPhone without a contract, because she did everything on her phone. She only used her computer for work. Work—she wondered if her mom had been able to get a hold of her boss. No doubt he would be mad. But she’d worked for him for years. He knew her well, so he had to know that she wasn’t just flaking out on him, and that there was a serious reason for her hasty departure. She had tried calling her mother to let her know that she had arrived safe and sound and to ask about what her boss had said, but her mom’s phone kept going straight to her voice mail, which meant it was turned off. Her mother’s phone was never off, so it made Anya a little nervous about what was going on back home. She didn’t want to call her parents’ house and risk her father answering the phone. So, she would just have to try again later.

  “Still having trouble getting a hold of your mom, huh?” Nicole asked as they walked toward Cherry Couture, which was where Nicole liked to shop. They had the cutest clothes and were decently price.

  Walking while programming her information into the phone, Anya

  distractedly answered Nicole, “Yeah, I think I’m gonna try texting and maybe sending an e-mail. I don’t want to call the house; my father might answer, and I don’t know if he knows what’s going on yet.”

  Nicole reached out and pulled Anya to the side as she almost walked into a display. “Anya, pay attention, mess with your phone when we get back home. It’s time
to shop!” Nicole excitedly cried out.

  “Okay, okay.” Anya relented. She shoved the phone in her purse and started to look at the different racks. “Wow, look at these tops.”

  “I know, right. I love this store. I come to this mall all the time. I go and look at all the stores but always come back here.”

  Anya was looking through each top on the rack, pulling out different tops and holding them up in front of her. “I can see why. These are so cute. What do you think of these?”

  Nicole oohed and awed. “That color is great on you. It makes your eyes pop. A little advice, though, buy clothes in layers. The weather changes all the time, if you buy layers, you can add and subtract depending on the weather.”

  The girls shopped for over two hours. Anya tried on outfit after outfit. She ended up buying a little bit of everything. Nicole couldn’t help herself and bought some cute tops and a skirt that were on sale.

  “I worked up an appetite. What about you, Anya, you hungry?”

  “Yeah, I could eat.” They walked to the second floor, where the food court was located. Nicole was babbling on about what they should do next and later tonight. Anya wasn’t really paying attention, she was thinking of Calix. Then she was lost in thought about why she was thinking of Calix. She had freaked last night when she left. She was so lost and confused. Maybe she should talk it out with Nicole. Nicole was always good at sorting out feelings as long as they weren’t her own.

  “Anya, are you listening to me?”

  “Hmm, oh sorry, Nicole, I’m just trying to work through all my thoughts.” Nicole stopped walking, and her hand reached out to hold Anya’s hand. She tilted her head to the side, and that sympathy look that everyone gives crossed her face.

  “Honey, would you rather go back to the apartment, order in, and talk?” “Sorry, Nicole, I’m just so mixed up. I told my mom the bare bones of what happened, but I haven’t had anyone I could really to talk to about my feelings I don’t understand what I’m feeling, and I feel like what I’m feeling is wrong. Oh God, do you see what I mean?”

  Anya was trying not to cry, but Nicole could see the shimmering of tears in her eyes.

  “It’s okay, I was just talking, trying to take your mind off things.”

  “I know, thank you.” “Let’s just make a quick stop at Bargain Basket, and we’ll get you one of those plastic dressers, because I got nowhere for you to put your clothes away,” Nicole finished with a light laugh.

  Nicole linked her arm with Anya’s, and they left.

  Chapter 17 The girls barged through the apartment door loaded down with their goodies. They practically fell over each other as they crashed through the door, dropping bags everywhere.

  “Oh my God, maybe we should have made two trips,” Nicole laughingly said as she avoided stepping on the bags Anya had dropped in the entryway.

  “I know, but I thought we could handle it.” Anya giggled. “Okay, let’s just throw this stuff in my room. We’ll sort it out later. I say we open this bottle of wine, eat the pizza we picked up, and you tell me the whole story.”

  “Ah yes, wine and deep-dish pizza, what a perfect match,” Anya sarcastically retorted.

  “Oh shut up, grab a slice and glass, and let’s head to the couch.” Nicole swatted at Anya as she walked by her.

  “I’m barely twenty-two I don’t drink alot.” “Wellyou’re wih me no so you’re gonna learn real quick. See simple.” Nicole smiled at her flawed logic.

  After some friendly banter, the girls settled down on the couch. Anya sat and took a tentative bite of her meat lover’s deep-dish pizza. She wasn’t sure she wanted to eat, since her stomach wasn’t sitting right.

  Nicole, with her mouth full, settled in the corner of the couch Indian style. “Okay, out with it. Start from the beginning, but give me the Cliff’s notes not the Gone with the Wind version.”

  Anya took a nice long sip of her wine before she started. “Okay, so this is the short version. We met when I was eighteen. I paid no attention to him. He was convinced I was the one for him. He waited till I was not a teen to make his move. I wasn’t interested and blew him off. My dad borrowed a lot of money from his not so nice associates and couldn’t pay it back. Threats were made against my mother. Calix made a deal with my father that he would pay his debt if I married him. I agreed. I made a pre-nup where, even though I married him, he would have no physical relationship with me. This pissed him off, and he took me on his desk.”

  Nicole started waving and crossing her arms back in forth in a stop motion. “Wait, wait, wait, took you? You mean like sex? Against your will?”

  Anya just nodded. Nicole was enraged. “That mother fucker raped you, and you didn’t have him arrested?”

  “Yes, but this is where I’m confused, so let me finish.”

  “Fine, fine.” “It hurt, you know I was a virgin, but then he told me he was going to make me like it, and I did I had an orgasm. When we were finished, he cleaned me and

  apologized. He came over so we could go to my parents, for dinner, and we had sex over and over again. I enjoyed everything. I had an orgasm every time, and he gave me the option to stop, but I didn’t want to. After that first day, it was like we were an honest couple. We made love every night; he wanted me to sleep in his arms every night. I started missing him when we were apart. We ate dinner together, read, played chess, everything; we were a couple. Then my period was late, I told him, but then I took a test and it was negative. I was actually upset. We made love, and then it hit me. You know, like, what was I

  thinking? How did I forget how we got started? Then I panicked, got dressed, and ran out while he was still naked.” When Anya finished, she took another swig of her wine, then a bite of her pizza.

  “So, you liked being with him even after that first day?” “Yes. Now, do you see why I’m so confused? What he did was wrong. I know it was wrong. I shouldn’t have enjoyed it or wanted every time after that. But I did, and I know it was wrong, so why did I like it? Why do I miss him? It’s only been a day, and I miss him. How sick am I?” Anya had started crying as she spoke, and her voice grew shaky and thick.

  Nicole finished chewing on her bite of pizza before she spoke. “So, you’re confused because you have feelings for him, even though you think you shouldn’t.”

  Anya nodded as she chewed on her bite of pizza. “Let me lay it out how I see it, okay? You can’t help who you fall in love with. What he did to you was wrong, but was that the first and only time he has hurt you?”

  “Yes.”

  “Do you think he would ever hurt you again?” “No, I even understand why he snapped; he’d wanted me and waited for me for years, he saw the only way he could have me, and he took it. Then I told him I wanted IUI and separate rooms, basically wanted no part of him. He had even stopped messing with me when I told him I was a virgin. But then it hit him that I would rather lose my virginity in childbirth than have him touch me, and he snapped. I’m not saying that it’s right, but I

  understand why.”

  “Hold up he stopped?” Shock shone on Nicole’s face. “Yes, he pulled me to him, and he had his hand in my pants with one finger about to go in me. I asked him to stop. I told him I was a virgin, and he stopped.”

  “So, then that behavior is not normal for him? Everything after that day was his normal behavior?”

  “I don’t really know him, but what I do know of him I don’t think that first day was his norm.”

  “Okay, so the big question is, can you forgive him? Because, if you can, then there’s nothing wrong with you having feelings for him. I think it’s not that you feel guilty for liking him, it’s that you’re scared to like him, and you’re using guilt as a cover. We’re both gun shy around men because of the bastards we were raised around.”

  “So, it’s not wrong to have feelings for him?” “I can’t tell you if it’s wrong or right. I can just tell you to go with your heart and to not be afraid to feel for him. If you can forgive him, then I think you
can make it work. You’ve been apart from him for a day, and he’s all you can think about. What does that tell you?”

  “You’re right, I am scared. I’ve ignored men all my life. You know neither of us dated in high school, and we went to prom together.” Anya laughed. “Calix won’t let me ignore him. I yelled at him, called him names, showed my temperament and attitude, and he was turned on by it. He likes that I’m a strong woman.”

  Nicole finished her glass of wine and got up to get another, talking as she went. “Okay, so enough of the drama for now. I want sex details.” She wiggled her

  eyebrows as she spoke.

  Anya laughed. “Don’t you have enough details from your own love life?” “Love life bah! Don’t you mean sex life? There’s no love in any of it.” Nicole waved Anya away.

  “Okay, fine, I have nothing to compare him to, but I have enjoyed every time. He’s so big my hand can’t wrap around him. That first day, we were late for dinner because we had sex for over two hours. I couldn’t even count how many orgasms I had. He was gentle with me, too; he knew I was sore, so he held back till I said I was okay. Then he bathed me, massaged my neck and shoulders, and then he washed my hair, body, everything. He was hard the whole time, but I was sore, so he didn’t touch me other than to dry me off and to carry me to bed to cuddle and sleep.”

  “Oh my God, Anya, you know I have my issues with men abusing power or woman, but, from what you said, it really sounds like that first day was an out of character thing for him to do, and he sounds freaking hot.”