by C. S Luis
Claudia firmly took my hand into hers, unlike our first meeting, and shook it. Her touch sent chills up my spine; she had small, soft delicate hands, smaller hands than my rough manly ones.
“And I’m Claudia Belle. It’s a pleasure to meet you Dr. John Black.”
We must have stood there for a few seconds shaking hands like silly kids goofing off. Claudia started laughing, which in turn made me laugh. Then Claudia pulled her hand back away from mine, and then when she offered it again, she pulled it back again. I put out my palm, and she slapped my hand.
Oh, we were playing that game, I thought. I put my hand out again, and she tried to slap it, and I pulled it away. She looked up at me and smiled. I did it again, and she tried to slap it, but again she missed. And I laughed as she tried again and again missing each time; again I did it, and this time she grabbed my hand, cheating and holding it still.
“No fair,” Claudia said. “You’re cheating, Dr. Black.” I started laughing while playing tug-a-war with her as she pulled out my hand forcefully from behind my back, and for a moment as she held my hand trying to repeat our little game.
“Me? Cheating?” I tried to say. I let her win and take my hand into hers, and she measured it with her own hand.
She held hands like that for a moment, playing with my hand. I hadn’t up until then; realized, I was falling for her, these strange feelings were so overwhelming and confusing that I immediately pulled away.
“You win,” I simply said.
This was no way for me to react I couldn’t get involved. I couldn’t.
She’s too innocent to get involved with someone like me.
Claudia laughed with a large grin on her face. “You let me win,” she said again.
A man appeared at the entrance of the office.
Claudia came from around me as I saw the stranger from earlier standing and looking into my office. He was dressed in the same blue suit with a blue tie to match. I had seen pictures of Christian, and though this man looked somewhat like Christian, I still had my doubts about him.
“Uncle?” Claudia simply said.
He seemed to nod his head at her. “Yes, I’m your uncle Christian.”
Claudia walked over. I moved forward, but before I could object, she continued over and hugged him. Christian embraced her, holding her tightly to him. I watched from my place with a burning jealousy. His eyes meet mine, but they said nothing; if he was in character, he was doing a good job.
Nevertheless, I walked up to them. As Claudia pulled away, he put his hand on her cheek and examined her. I wanted to pull him away from her and toss him out on his ass, but I had to restrain myself. Claudia turned to me, and her smile rewarded my jealous heart as she took my hand. I nearly melted but contained myself, not wanting to let this intruder see my weakness.
“This is Dr. John Black,” Claudia said to Christian. “A close friend,” she very politely and softly said, and I felt treasured that she thought we were friends.
“Yes,” he seemed to recall me. “Sorry about earlier---A pleasure to meet you, sir,” phony Christian said to me. I glared back at him as he extended his hand out to me. I didn’t want to shake it, but Claudia was there, and I felt compelled to do so.
But when I did shake it, I squeezed it tightly, noticing Christian pry his hand away from me. I nearly fell over laughing but contained my amusement. Mrs. Wallace came poking her head into the office, and she noticed the stranger.
She wanted an introduction, but I didn’t feel like giving her one. Claudia on the other hand said, “Mrs. Wallace, please meet my uncle Christian.”
“Uncle? Wow! It’s a pleasure!” Mrs. Wallace said with a gasp. I was bored with the whole display.
“Nice to meet you, madam,” Christian said in his phony politeness.
“Mrs. Wallace,” I nearly growled at her, wondering why she had poked her head into my office in the first place.
“Oh yes, sorry, sir. It’s started. The teachers want to talk to you.”
I didn’t want to leave Claudia alone, at least not with this creep. I didn’t trust him as far as I could throw him. And I didn’t want her wandering off with him anywhere else. I wanted her to stay near, mainly in my office. I didn’t want that creep getting any ideas. I wanted to do some more background checks on him. Jason owed me Intel; I figured I would get him to send me whatever he had on this guy without getting The Company involved. I didn’t want it to get back to Nicholson that I was doing something else, like checking on some guy that had nothing to do with my mission.
“Tell them to meet me in the cafeteria,” I said to Mrs. Wallace in regards to the teachers, and then I turned back to Claudia.
“Claudia, I have to go meet with the faculty, but I want you to stay here. I will return promptly, okay?” I very firmly said, lifting a single finger at her.
Christian wanted to butt in. He smiled. “Don’t worry. Go handle your duties; she’s in good hands,” he sneered back at me from that mousy face of his.
I just wanted to rearrange his face when he said that. “She’ll be alright if she’s with her uncle. It’s okay,” he offered as I glared over at him.
Then I looked back over at Claudia and firmly said, “I don’t want you to wander off, okay? Stay here, and I’ll be right back.”
She nodded, and I stepped out the door looking for Mrs. Wallace. I wanted her to keep an eye on things while I was gone, but it looked like she had now disappeared when I needed her the most to watch over Claudia.
I glanced one last time at the entrance of my office seeing Claudia getting very chatty with phony Christian, and I just wanted to go back and land him a fist to the face.
Jealous John? You fucking got that right.
But as much as I wanted to do so, I couldn’t, and so I just darted out the door hoping to get this teacher and staff meeting done as quickly as possible. I wanted to scold myself for ever leaving her alone with this character, especially if he was giving me some bad vibes. What the fuck was wrong with me?
But then Bryce’s voice came into my head, “You’re here on a mission, not to babysit a foolish young girl.”
“Fuck you,” I’d say right back. “Fuck you.”
14
Claudia
Dr. Black hurried away. He looked upset, and I wasn’t sure why. I didn’t think he liked Christian very much, and I didn’t understand why. After all, it was him who had said it didn’t matter what he believed. Why was he so upset?
“Why does this Dr. Black think he can tell you what to do? He’s not your guardian, is he?” My new uncle asked.
“No,” I said to my uncle. God that sounded strange. I had an uncle. “He means well,” I said again as he shook his head.
“Well, if I didn’t know any better, I’d think he didn’t like me. Or something. He’s so overprotective of you.”
I hadn’t realized that, but I guess now thinking about it, it sure seemed so. “He’s a friend,” I simply said. “He knew my grandfather.”
“I see. So, Michael McClellan, he’s your guardian?” Christian asked as he curiously moved around the office; he looked at the pictures on the wall as I had before. He seemed to become an entirely different person so suddenly. And he seemed very comfortable with his surroundings.
“Yes,” I answered politely, standing by the office door with my hands behind my back, gazing over at him. He looked back over at me and flashed me a quick smile, but it was a strange, disinterested smile.
“So, he was the one that invited me to dinner, correct?”
I politely nodded.
“So, where is he?” He asked.
“Oh, he went shopping for our dinner this evening. He’s a great cook.”
He blinked, giving me a slight smile as he now walked near the back bookshelves of Dr. Black’s office. “Well, I don’t have a car,” he said, looking slightly troubled.
“Oh, Dr. Black offered to take us to my grandfather’s house afterwards,” I said while smiling back at him.
&
nbsp; “Oh, I see,” he said, examining a few of Dr. Black’s framed certificates as he turned to me again with his hands behind his back.
“Is this Dr. Black, the principal here?” I nodded, and then he again asked, “Is he going to be joining us for dinner too?”
“I don’t think so,” I softly said as I came closer. He was moving around just examining everything in the office, and then he came to stand by the desk. I turned to him, and he grinned casually.
“Did you know my mother?” I asked him.
“No, unfortunately I never did,” he said very plainly.
“Oh,” I answered, slightly disappointed. “So how did you know how to find us?”
“Your grandfather found me. He contacted me and asked me to meet with him. To be honest, I thought he was a crazy old man, and I didn’t trust him at first. So, I was a little hesitant to meet him. It was only after his death that I realized he was very serious,” he said, looking over at Dr. Black’s desk; he brushed a hand over it.
“Nice finish,” he commented, giving me an eerie full smile. I lowered my head, and he came up slowly. As I examined him more closely, I noticed there was something strange about him. I wanted to leave right away; I no longer felt comfortable around him.
“But to be quite honest, I didn’t really ever think about it until I saw the story of your grandfather’s death in the newspaper and saw you.” He paused, gazing over at me.
I tried to smile, but I sensed something strange about his words, and yet I wasn’t sure.
“I think I’m going to find Dr. Black so we can go,” I tried to say, backing away towards the door, but he hurried over to my side and came to stand in front of the entrance to block me from leaving. I froze up suddenly as he was now looking right at me.
“I was surprised to find out that I had a niece,” he said again. “And such a lovely one at that.” The smile on his face spread, and he reached to touch my cheek. My lip quivered, and I trembled slightly, pulling back.
“I should find Dr. Black,” I said, trying to walk around him, but he wouldn’t allow me to pass.
“I don’t like this Dr. Black. I think he has bad intentions. And as your uncle and possibly guardian, I don’t want him around my beautiful niece.”
“But I already have a guardian,” I uttered; my lips were trembling.
“Not once I clear things with Mr. West and make the proper arrangements. I’m your uncle, and I want you to come live with me. Or actually I can move into your grandfather’s house. Yeah, I think that would be better,” he said again. “Michael no longer will have the authority; we’re blood, and once the courts hear of it, I will see to it that my niece is well taken care of. And my first order will be to keep people like Dr. Black and Mr. McClellan from taking advantage of such a pretty girl.”
“What are you talking about? You can’t do that. And they’re my friends; they would never hurt me,” I said as he grinned eerily back at me.
“I’m your uncle. I can do anything. You’ll have to learn that soon,” Christian said. “The sooner you learn that, the sooner we can become better acquainted.”
I shook my head.
“I can see the way he looks at you,” he said. “He’s not your guardian, and yet he’s so overprotective of you. I don’t like him looking at you like that.”
I moved back slowly as he came forward, making me stumble back hastily.
“But I can surely understand why. God, you’re too pretty and far too beautiful to be my niece. That’s the first thing I thought when I first saw you. Look at you.” He moved upon me, and I saw the thoughts in his mind and what he wanted to do to me. His hand came from around my head, and he pulled me forward, trying to kiss me.
I pulled away again. “Stop! You’re not my uncle!” I angrily yelled over at him.
“Why? Because I find my little niece very attractive? Come on, I saw how you looked at me. It’s all right. Is that how you smile at everyone? No wonder you have Dr. Black wrapped around your little finger.” He laughed.
I pulled away, darting for the door, but he grabbed my arm.
“Come on, you can’t deny you were flirting with me. You’re such a pretty little girl and such a little flirt, even with your uncle.”
I tried to fight his hold on my arm, but I couldn’t get away. “You’re not my uncle. Let me go!”
He smiled, twisting my arm, and he pulled me forward upon him. “Maybe you just like it and want me not to be your uncle. I thought this was gonna be easy when you looked at me in that manner with those pretty little eyes. I must say you made it almost impossible for me to contain myself.” He wickedly grinned. “Oh, I’m your uncle, and you’re sharing that large inheritance with me because I have papers from your grandfather that say I’m entitled to it. And that’s not all I’m entitled to.” He gleamed.
“I don’t believe it! Liar! Let me go!” I screamed, trying to free myself from him.
“Do you like older men?” He asked smiling, reaching for my chin. He leaned forward. “Even if we were related I would have a hard time saying no to such a sweet girl."
“Get away from me!” I kicked him, and he stumbled back, trying to grab me again. But I ran out of Dr. Black’s office and into the hall crying. I stumbled into Dr. Black who was coming back from the cafeteria.
“Claudia, what’s wrong sweetheart?”
I broke down and wrapped my arms around him, and he held me tightly to him.
“Tell me,” he softly demanded.
15
Dr. John Black
I wasn’t comfortable at all with the idea of leaving Claudia alone with a man she hardly knew. A beautiful girl like that, I didn’t want anything to happen to her. I raced into the cafeteria. The teachers were all already there, including my assistant principals, Mr. Claypool and Mr. Vasquez. The questions began even before I could walk in.
“Dr. Black what are we supposed to do? Are we getting paid for being out of school?”
“Is it safe even if we decide to come in? What are we supposed to do if there aren’t any students?”
I took a moment to hear all of the questions and the concerns, slowly taking a seat on the edge of one of the cafeteria tables. The teachers, some sitting and some standing with their arms crossed were all glaring at me, holding the letters I had placed in their pigeonholes. Mr. Peterson, the mousy looking fellow I had met before, stared doubtfully at me from where he sat upon one of the cafeteria seats. He was holding the same letter most were.
“To answer your questions. Yes, you’re going to get paid for your time, but only those of you that come into work, I’m afraid. The district will not pay if you decide to stay home. Now, you have the option to use vacation time for those days. That’s optional. As for work, since the school will be closed, you can catch up on grading papers, creating further assignments, or doing whatever else. Get creative, people. Now, if there’s nothing else, I have to go.”
“But Dr. Black, what about the hole? What’s happening with that? When can we expect to get back to the norm?” A teacher in the back asked. He was a tall, bald man with a thick mustache. I could see Mr. Claypool and Mr. Vasquez standing by the side of the entrance of the cafeteria. Mr. Claypool had his arms crossed and was listening very carefully. He seemed very devoted to his job, as was Mr. Vasquez, and they seemed like they wanted to please me.
“Well, your guess is as good as mine. Until the district informs me, I won’t know the answer to that question. But rest-assured that as soon as I do, all of you will know as well,” I said and then got up to leave. I spotted Karen at the entrance; I really didn’t have any time for her now. I wanted to get back to Claudia. Mr. Claypool and Mr. Vasquez walked the remainder of teachers out of the cafeteria, waving as they strolled out with the rest of crowd.
The teachers scattered, heading for the exit by the cafeteria as I stopped by Karen; she was standing, blocking the exit. I suppose I could have gone around her, but I didn’t want to be rude in case I wanted to get laid again.
I gently pushed her back. “Not now Karen,” I firmly said while looking around.
“Are you afraid someone’s gonna see and get jealous I’m sleeping with the principal?”
Lady, you don’t know the half of it.
“Let them get jealous,” she said, again kissing me hard. God, I liked that. But she was stepping on John’s toes; he liked to call the shots. He was the assertive one.
“Karen, please. I mean it. This is really not a good time,” I said, shaking a firm finger at her, and then I moved into the hall, hurrying towards my office. I just hoped I hadn’t burned off my relationship with Karen. But for some reason I seriously doubted I had as I heard her say flirtingly from behind me, “Call me!”
The hallway seemed endless, and as I neared the main office entrance, the door swung open, and Claudia’s figure poured from the door and into the hallway towards me. Claudia hadn’t seen me until she crashed right into me. She was trembling and crying and not making any sense.
“Christian,” she uttered. “He—”
But she couldn't say any more; only I knew what she meant. That bastard had tried something. She began to cry as I held her tightly in my arms.
I looked back, but the hallway was empty; the teachers, and even Karen had vanished, and I was all alone with Claudia in the hallway. I angrily gazed towards the main office door. The rage was pouring out of me. I could’ve killed him, and it wouldn’t have mattered to me. John Slater was aching for a fight, and murder was on his mind.
He’d kill that bastard to protect her and be gone before anyone knew what had happened.
Calm down, John. Remember where you are. You owe it to Claudia.
I gently pulled her away and gazed into her innocent eyes, wiping at her tears. “It's okay,” I whispered and pulled her with me. Claudia didn’t want to go. She was trembling. I stopped and held her face in my hands.