by Ju Ephraime
She reacted instinctively, by dropping to the floor. She, not being able to see, hit the landing hard, but before she could try to right herself, someone was on her, hugging her, so tightly she thought her ribs would crack. She was still not able to see who was hugging her, but she knew it was Foxx because the chest she was being pressed against was all muscles.
“Foxx,” she said, trying to get him to ease up a bit. But it was as if he was not hearing her because, still holding her, and he kept murmuring something in his native creole under his breath.
“Foxx!” she shouted again, trying to get him to loosen his hold. He lifted his head, which he had buried into her neck, and only then did he remove the bag from her head.
Therèse was grateful to finally be able to gulp in a lungful of fresh air as she glanced up at him.
Foxx was looking at her, his eyes unfocused, breathing hard, as if he had just run a marathon.
He retrieved the gun, which had skittered a few yards away from where Earline was lying on the floor. He helped Therèse up from the floor away from Earline. Thank God she could breathe enough to talk with him.
“I thought I was going to die.”
He didn’t respond, but just kept staring at Earline lying on the floor. She’d still not moved, but he knew she wasn’t dead. He didn’t have to check to confirm it. He could see the movements of her breathing.
Turning to Therèse, he took the sack she hadn’t realized she was still clutching, away from her.
God, he is going to kill Earline.
“Foxx, I’m all right. I’m all right. Come, we have to call the police.”
She kept tugging on the bag and was relieved when he finally acknowledged her by looking directly at her. She saw the recognition in his face as he became aware of his surroundings.
But just as suddenly, his expression changed again. There was so much rage and anger radiating from him that she almost took a step back, thinking the anger was directed at her, until he reached over and touched the side of her face, which was throbbing like crazy.
He began speaking incoherently in rapid Creole as he rained kisses all over her face. She could feel the moisture of tears on her face, but she could not tell if it was from him or her because he would not slow down. It sounded as if he was reciting a prayer, so rapid and soft was his voice.
She had to bring him back to her. “I’m okay, Foxx. It’s just a bruise. It looks worse than it is.” Her face hurt like hell, but she did not want to tell him that. She didn’t want him going at Earline again.
“Mon Dieu, comment est-ce arrivé, ma chérie? That bitch did this to you?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Earline was still lying on the landing, still unconscious.
“Sacre bleu!” he yelled, standing over her.
“Foxx, please let’s get out of here. We need to call the police.”
“Yes, I have to. I want her on the next plane out of here.”
When he took out his cell phone, she was surprised to hear him call Wolfe before he called the police. He spoke with him for ten minutes, so rapidly it sounded like Greek to her. The next calls he made were to the police and then the hotel manager.
“I want to hear why this bitch put her hands on you, but we have to get out of here first.”
No sooner had he said this than the hotel manager was there, followed by the police. Things became surreal after that. After they’d handcuffed Earline and confiscated the gun, she was taken out of the hotel. The police escorted Therèse and Foxx down to the hotel’s office to take a statement, first from her and then from Foxx.
While this was going on, Wolfe arrived to inform them that he was able to get Earline booked on a flight leaving in a couple of hours.
Walking outside, she could see Earline sitting in the police cruiser still appearing to be out of it. Her heart was a bit sad that it had come to this and Earline would be sent back home to England. It was determined by the authorities that she had a temporary shift from reality. She sincerely hoped Earline would get on with her life.
Foxx would hear nothing else than that she was on the next flight off the island. This was the agreement he came to with the police, for not pressing charges against her. If she refused to leave, he would have her thrown in jail, and he knew she did not want to go there. And they all agreed, it was not good publicity for the island.
It was all happening so quickly. Foxx, Wolfe, and the policeman were speaking so rapidly Therèse was not able to follow the conversation. She picked up only a word here and there. As events unfolded, Therèse could not help feeling sorry for Earline. She believed her alumnae sister had become unhinged.
She and Foxx left Earline with the policeman and Wolfe, who was going to ride with her to the airport. The hotel staff had all Earline’s belongings packed and placed in the police vehicle with her.
She took the time to make certain Earline’s hotel bill was paid before they took her away.
“I’m not leaving you here. You are coming with me. Do you have anything you need in your room?”
“I need to get my bag and a change of clothes.”
They took the elevator up to her room. She tried to concentrate on the things she needed to take with her, but Foxx made her nervous. He would not stand still for one moment. He kept pacing back and forth as if he were going to explode any minute.
“Look at you, Therèse. Look at your face. Tell me what happened.”
She’d gone down to Earline’s room to inquire about her plans for returning back to England and also to clear up any bad feelings between them. She made her way down the stairs, not bothering to wait for the elevator. Arriving at Earline’s room, she’d knocked on the door.
“Who is it?”
“It’s me, Earline.”
“Therèse?”
“Yes,” she had responded.
“Come in, come in!”
Hearing the excitement in Earline’s voice, she had hesitated. But dragging in a steadying breath, she swung the door open and stepped inside.
The room was in shambles, as if Earline had been throwing her personal effects with no regard as to where they landed. Therèse began to regret not being more cautious. Perhaps this was not such a good idea after all.
Then Earline spoke without looking directly at her.
“Close the door, Therèse.” She’d not realized that she was still holding the door open. “What brings you here?”
“I came to see how you were doing and to find out when you were returning home.”
“Why? It’s not as if you care, Therèse.”
“Contrary to what you might believe, I do care about your welfare, Earline. You are my alumnae sister and my friend.”
“You evidently don’t care enough to return home with me.”
“I can’t return home with you, Earline. I plan on remaining here until I’ve accomplished what I came for.”
“So you have your mind all made up, is that it, Therèse?”
Her temper flared. She’d come here intending to offer her help, but Earline’s arrogance in trying to dictate her life was annoying her to no end.
“Yes, there is really nothing more to say on the matter.”
“Okay, okay, Therèse, you made your point. Take a load off while I finish sorting through this.”
She walked over to the sofa and sat down to observe Earline, who was moving about the room listlessly. Therèse was happy to see that Earline seemed to have accepted the fact that she would be remaining in Martinique.
She’d relaxed and settled more comfortably on the sofa as she listened to Earline chattering about insignificant things. Therèse got the impression that all was well, as the two of them reminisced about one event after another—shooting the breeze.
She was doubled over laughing at a silly joke when Earline went to the coffee machine and began to pour bottled water into it. There was no coffee in the pot, so only hot water came out.
All of a sudden, the atmosphe
re in the room changed. Earline was no longer laughing and joking.
“Can I offer you a cup of tea, Therèse?” she asked politely.
“No, thank you, Earline. I’m waiting for Foxx to pick me up.”
Earline dropped the coffee pot and grabbed her with both hands, screaming, “You’re waiting for whom?”
“I’m waiting for Foxx,” she repeated, twisting her hand in an effort to get her to release her.
Flinging herself at her, Earline caught her on the nose with her hand. Therèse whirled and ran for the door, but Earline was there before her, slamming it closed. She faced Earline, bracing herself against the door.
They were so close only a hairsbreadth separated them. As Therèse stared down at Earline, her anger at the woman for treating her this way threatened to overcome her.
“Let me out!” she demanded, rattling the knob.
“Not until we’ve had our discussion and you come to your senses.”
Earline planted her hand against the door before Therèse could open it, and she continued to pull Therèse away from it. Reaching for a bottle of water, Earline splashed the cold water into Therèse’s face.
As Therèse was wiping the water from her face to clear her vision, she glanced furtively at Earline. Therèse was searching Earline’s face to see if this was really happening.
“I have nothing to discuss with you now, Earline.”
Earline kicked her in the shin with the sharp toe of her shoe.
It was so painful she bent down to massage it to relieve the pain. Earline seized the moment and brought her hands to Therèse’s back and shoved her down, hard. She landed on the floor with Earline on top of her. Therèse found herself struggling to breathe, and that was when she realized Earline was dead serious and meant to cause her harm.
Therèse tried lifting herself off the floor, but Earline had pinned her down so good, it was impossible. Seeing the carafe lying on the floor where it had landed, she tried reaching for it and was thankful when her fingers closed around the handle. Taking a deep breath, she slammed it with all her might onto the back of Earline’s head. She was rewarded for her efforts when Earline slumped backward onto her legs, effectively trapping her.
Earline’s eyes had a peculiar look about them. “I’ve got you at last. I tried telling you, but you wouldn’t listen,” she was murmuring underneath her breath.
Therèse was incensed. “How dare you? How dare you?” Her breath coming in great tearful gasps, she was barely able to think, let alone get herself out of this predicament.
Summoning a burst of strength, she shoved Earline hard. The sight of her tears had taken Earline off guard, giving Therèse the advantage over her, but Earline quickly recovered. With an alarming frenzy, she began struggling with Therèse again, in earnest. Therèse feared she’d not win this fight if her luck didn’t change.
A calculating look came into Earline’s eyes. She must have realized Foxx might arrive any minute, so she redoubled her efforts in trying to take Therèse down.
Therèse tried throwing her weight at her, but she wasn’t strong enough to take Earline to the floor, which was what she had been trying to do all along.
Earline held on to Therèse’s shirt and tried to rip it off her. Therèse kept trying to evade her hands while fighting to gain the upper hand. They were so bent on besting each other they fell to the floor, with Earline again on top of her. Therèse was furious with herself. She couldn’t believe she’d allowed Earline to once again place her in this vulnerable position.
She could feel the heat of Earline’s body through the fabric of her clothes. She began struggling more furiously. Grabbing a handful of Earline’s hair, she gave it a good yank, thinking to dislodge her from her body. That was when Earline produced a gun, which she apparently had been carrying all along.
When she felt the barrel pressed against the side of her head, Therèse froze and lost all her ability to fight Earline. She realized her situation had gone from annoying to life threatening. Earline’s next words pretty much confirmed her suspicion.
“I don’t want to do this, but if you push me by continuing to resist, I will be forced to use this gun,” she said.
Therèse immediately stopped resisting and went into freeze mode. That was when Earline threw the burlap bag over her head. Pulling Therèse to her feet, Earline began pushing her toward the door. Therèse couldn’t see, although she was able to breathe under the bag.
But not being able to see had her too scared to make a sound. When Earline got to the door to the stairway, she had a difficult time opening it while holding the gun on her captive. Struggling with the door, Earline lost her balance and stumbled into Therèse, but she was able to maintain her balance while screaming at Therèse in anger.
“Remain steady; otherwise you’ll cause this gun to go off.”
Therèse began pleading with Earline in earnest. “Don’t do this, Earline. How are you going to get me out of the hotel with me wearing a bag over my head?”
“I’ve got it all planned. You’ll see,” was Earline’s response.
Therèse tried to resist going out of the room to slow Earline down, in the hopes of buying some time until Foxx got there. Without any warning, Earline hit her with the butt of the gun on the side of her face, and she saw stars. It finally dawned on her that Earline had lost her mind, and there was no reasoning with her.
Earline kept repeating over and over, “I’ve got to take you back home. I’ve got to take you away from that corrupted son of a bitch.”
It was difficult for Therèse to comprehend what Earline intended to do with her when, and if, she got her back to England.
“What do you hope to do with me when you take me back to England, Earline?’
“I’ll keep you all to myself. I’ll keep you safe. I thought, after your experience here, you would’ve forgotten this man and gotten him out of your system, but he has you brainwashed. You were warned to stay away from this man, Therèse. But you are such a gullible fool you allowed him to talk you into coming back here to him.”
“No one talked me into coming here, Earline. I came here of my own free will. Foxx didn’t even know I was back on the island.”
“Then this makes you even more of a ninny, running after a man who obviously doesn’t want you. A man who allowed his woman to run you off.”
Therèse was livid because it occurred to her that Earline must have been behind the scares she’d received when she was here before. When she thought back on the incidents and the way they occurred, she had to conclude Earline had the motive and the time.
She didn’t know how, but if there was even a grain of truth in it, she would make her pay for putting her through those two years of not knowing and questioning Foxx’s commitment to her.
“Enough of this talking. We have to get out of here,” Earline said as she once again tried to pull the door open with one hand.
This time, Earline shifted her feet as she braced herself against the wall and succeeded in getting the door partially open while maintaining her grip on Therèse.
Therèse fought her, resisting going through the door, trying desperately to stall for time. At the back of her mind, she had to remind herself that she didn’t want to push Earline over the edge, so she kept trying to talk calmly to her.
“What are you going to do with me, Earline? I’d like to know,” she said.
“Enough of this talking. I said stop moving or you’ll get hurt. We have to get out of here,” Earline said, as she once again, tried to open the door wider, using one hand.
Therèse kept fighting her, while Earline struggled with the heavy fire door leading to the stairway. Finally, she heard the door hinges creaked and was hit with a blast of hot air from the stairwell. There was no more stalling. She would have to follow Earline through the door. She braced herself and prayed that they would run into someone who would stop Earline before she made it outside the hotel.
She took a deep breath and allowed Earline to pu
sh her through the door. And the moment Earline pushed the door all the way open, she knew Foxx was somewhere in the stairwell; she couldn’t see him, but she sensed his presence and recognized his unique scent. So she stayed back, forcing Earline to go ahead of her, this time pulling her instead of pushing her.
“I believe you already know the rest.”
Foxx was shaking like a leaf. He was not certain if it was rage or the fear of almost losing Therèse.
“Jesus, Therèse, the bitch could’ve killed you.”
Turning to her, his breathing still slightly ragged, he rested his head on her head. “Let’s go home. Tomorrow we‘ll decide what to do about you remaining in this hotel,” he said.
Exhausted and emotionally drained, she didn’t protest when Foxx carried her to the vehicle, all the while showering her face with kisses as if to take away the pain. Now that her adrenaline levels were returning to normal, the throbbing in her face was getting stronger instead of lessening.
chapter
TWENTY-SEVEN
The drive to Foxx’s home took less than half the time it would ordinarily take. This same drive on a good day took almost an hour, but with Foxx driving like someone possessed, they made good time.
They exited the vehicle and entered the home with Foxx’s arm snaked around her waist, as he pulled her body into his. He released her to collect his mail, which was spilling out of his mail box. She quickly sat down in the first available seat she came to.
Leaning back into her seat, she kept going over the entire incident with Earline. The thought kept nagging at her that her suspicion about Earline being behind the previous attempts to scare her off the island could have some merit.
“Foxx, a thought just occurred to me. Do you believe Earline was behind the things that happened to me when I was here two years ago? She’d been convinced I should leave the island, and she was successful in persuading me, along with Marcie and Tia.”
“You know, you might be on to something there. Was she ever around when any of the incidents took place?”