Of Love and Deception

by Melisa Hamling

  My words. My reactions. What I did. Tearing him apart.

  “Don’t… don’t come any closer. I have nothing more to say.” She choked back the tears threatening to reveal her true emotions. “How c-could you pin this on me? I thought you loved me.” The gates holding back the dam broke loose and she sobbed—great heart wrenching sobs. She was desperate to put up a fight, but as she pushed past him, he grabbed her arm, swung her around and shoved her against the wall. It didn’t hurt, physically, but emotionally it fractured her heart and soul into a million little pieces.

  He rested his palms on her cheeks and pressed his forehead against hers. She looked up and his red, swollen orbs locked with hers. Paralyzed by his aqua blue eyes, she wished he could see into her soul and know how wrong he was in believing she could ever do what she’d just been accused of. And then, without warning, he was kissing her with merciless and reckless abandon. She wrapped her arms around his neck, urging him on, and proceeded to slide them down to his chest, only to push him away.

  His mouth pressed into a hard line, and he clasped his fingers around her wrist. Leaning forward, “Why! I just want to know why!” he shouted, temporarily deafening her right ear.

  “Let. Go. Of. Me. Now,” she warned, but when he didn’t release her, she slipped a hand into her purse and pulled out her cell phone. “Get your hands off me or I’ll call the cops!” She punched in 9-1-1 and let her thumb hoover over the send button. He pounded his fists against the wall above her head and grudgingly moved back, allowing her to exit.

  By the time Daniella opened the overhead door and started the car, she glanced over at Cruz. He leaned against the doorframe, his chin to his chest. He didn’t look at her when she left, but only shook his head.

  There had never been a time when she’d wished she could end her life, end the misery, but right now, she couldn’t think of a better way to kill the pain.

  She was just about to exit the neighborhood when the constant ring, ring, ring of her cell phone ebbed Daniella to the brink of insanity. She slowed to a stop. She was in a state of shock over all that had transpired and hadn’t thought about checking the identity of the caller before taking the call. She didn’t bother with a greeting.

  “Well, Daniella, you did what you did, but hey, I made sure it was a two way street. You see, the baby I’m carrying is Cruz’s. Oh, and you do know by now that you are with Blake’s child, right? Don’t even think about calling anyone, like the authorities. You see, there’s no evidence. None. Nada. Because what looks like an affair, proves to be an affair. On your account and mine. Oh! But Cruz won’t admit that to you, so don’t bother him with it. He’ll deny all of it. You know… because he has a reputation to uphold.”

  He called her already! She’s having his baby. I-I can’t believe this. Daniella shook. She neared the point of hysteria. Words played in her head, but froze at the tip of her tongue. Meg kept coming at her, creating more shock with every line she threw out there.

  “And about Blake. He supplied the sperm I injected inside of you. Sorry about that. There was a bit of a, oh, say a mix up, but that’s taken care of too. Good thing Blake likes you. So much that he’s willing to play along. He was sure willing to saddle up with you. Blake’s rolling with the infidelity over the little semen mix up. Hope you liked the video footage. You and Blake at the hotel… Blake meeting you at the mall… Oh! And rumor has it—the hotel was the first night you met with him, and, well, slept together. Blake was kind enough to rent the room. Sorry, babe, but there was just no other way. It was the only way I could get Cruz to believe everything I told him. But hey! You got what you wanted. A baby. I never promised it would be Cruz’s.”

  “You… bitch!” Daniella whisper shouted.

  “Daniella, Daniella. That’s no way to act. It’s not my fault you’re too trusting. Seriously. All my flirting with Cruz. Naïve, naïve.”

  Meg’s evil laughter filled the earpiece. She continued her triumphant speech. “Hmm. Just imagine if the media caught wind of this. Dang! I would have to feel very badly for you. You should know, Daniella, I always win, so you should probably work on moving along before I destroy you. I’m sure Blake will make you very happy… as long as you obey.” The line filled with static and then the call ended.

  “UHHHHHH!” Daniella threw the phone against the dashboard. “I wanna die. I wanna die! I want all of it to end… all of it. Oh, god! This is horrible, sso huh-horrible! It hurts—so bad. My heart. Oh! I can’t do it. I can’t! And Blake! PAIN! Ohhh ggg—” She was racked with heaving, choking sobs that wouldn’t stop.

  Unable to think clearly, Daniella sat with her head pressed against the steering wheel and as she tried to catch her breath, it hit her. Meg’s words. The sperm. Blake. ‘I’m sure Blake will make you very happy… as long as you obey.’

  You’ll be sorry!

  You’ll regret this, Daniella.

  Mark my fucking words!

  “No!” Her stomach twisted and knotted. The urge to throw up caused her to open the door and lean over. She heaved and regurgitated everything in her stomach. She stayed hunched over for a few minutes before sitting back up and closing the door.

  The sound of a vehicle approaching sent her heart into a flurry of fluttering beats. Part of her wished it would be Cruz coming to track her down and drag her back home. He’d apologize and say how wrong he was, how he knew it was all a lie and that he loved her. Maybe he could even tell her he hated Meg and there was no way in hell he’d ever sleep with the bloody whore. He’d cut her out of their lives forever—the no-good, lousy goddam home wrecker, and life would be beautiful again. And Blake would fall off a cliff.

  The car and its owner passed by without the slightest glance her way. There was nothing left of her marriage. Time to move on, or give up. Daniella wiped her eyes with her sleeve and blew her nose into a napkin before driving away from the life she’d known and once loved.

  20 - Turmoil

  The apartment was cold and lonely, and so was the bed. Sleep never came, but the next morning did. Daniella pushed herself to get up and get ready for work. She stood in the shower, the warm water soothing her skin, gliding over the little intrusion now protruding in her lower abdomen. She ran both hands down the center and cupped them slightly below her navel.

  “Oh. OH!” A warm tingly sensation passed through her from head to toe as she felt the first real movement of the tiny life within nudging against her palms. It gave Daniella some semblance of hope. She caressed it and anxiously waited for another movement, but it didn’t come. She knew she would focus on this new occurrence and it was enough to perk her spirit, even if only for a short while.

  ~~~

  Work proved difficult. It was hard to concentrate, but Daniella managed, sort of. The delivery of red roses mixed with black ones came daily, tormenting Daniella.

  A month had passed since their split, and Daniella had managed to avoid Cruz the entire time, not that he tried very hard to reach her.

  The phone buzzed. “You have a call on line three,” the secretary announced.

  “Who is—damn her! What kind of secretary doesn’t screen the calls first and has the nerve to hang up?” Daniella grunted.

  The light blinked. She watched it for several seconds before clicking on the line. “This is Danie—”

  “We need to talk.”

  I can’t do this. Why can’t he leave me alone?

  “Daniella, are you hearing—”

  “NO. NO TALKING. WE’RE—”

  “GODDAMIT. WE WILL—”

  She ended the call and put her phone on ‘Do Not Disturb’.

  The following week nothing had changed. Cruz would call—Daniella would hang up. And then, out of the blue, Cruz showed up at the office at the same time a black and red rose bouquet was delivered.

  “I see nothing has changed,” Cruz said as he stepped in and twisted the vase in circles. “Who are they from? Blake… or another boyfriend?”

  “Get. OUT. Get out, get out,
get out!” Daniella screamed and then covered her ears, not wanting to hear any more of his insults and accusations, but he kept on going.

  “You know…” he tried to speak, but she hummed. He continued. She hummed louder. He went up several octaves. “… I’ll get to the bottom of this!”

  Overwhelmed and furious, Daniella shoved the bouquet off her desk, where the glass vase shattered at Cruz’s feet.

  It was Parker who’d ended her torment by forcing Cruz to leave.

  “This isn’t over! If there’s any chance that baby’s mine, I promise you won’t get custody.” Security pushed Cruz out the door.

  In a messy fit of sobs, Daniella managed to explain the deliveries and her current and previous situation to her boss, including her ex, Blake, whom she knew was back to torment her, as if she needed any more torment.

  Parker attempted to trace back all the deliveries, which floral shop the flowers were coming from, but had no success. Finally, he put a stop to any further deliveries.

  Then, about a week later, Cruz had the audacity to show up again, but Parker refused to let him get past the main entrance. Security escorted him out of the building. Daniella felt a morsel of satisfaction, like she’d dug a small claw and ripped him of some of his pride.

  The satisfaction didn’t last long. It only tugged at her heart and dropped her into the bottomless pit of depression. She could barely contain her emotions at work.

  Parker stood with his head arched into Daniella’s office. “May I?”

  “Come in,” she said, her voice crackled.

  Parker took a seat next to her. He cleared his throat. “I know you didn’t tell me every detail about you and Cruz, but I have a pretty good idea. You’re heartbroken. Cruz. He’s done the unthinkable?”

  “Yeah. He—” Her throat clogged. “Is it... is it that obvious?” she chuckled lightly.

  “All the blinds are turned down, your door is always closed, you come and go without a word or a smile to your fellow employees, one of which is your best friend. Cruz calls and you’re on the attack. He shows up and a war breaks out in your office. Your home address has changed. Yes. I think it’s fair to say it’s obvious. You’re depressed. I’ve come to offer my support, a shoulder, and an ear anytime you need to talk, Daniella. I’ve also come to offer you a temporary leave of absence.” Parker reached for her hand and held it between his own.

  She whimpered, and then sobbed. “Are… are you letting—”

  “No. No, no. I’d never let you go, Daniella. You’re a huge asset to the company. Clients love you, and they love your talents. Employees love you because you’re a great manager. How could I possibly afford to give you up? I’m offering a leave of absence, with pay. You can still have paid leave when the little one comes along.” He squeezed her hand.

  “Really?” She swiped at the tears tickling her cheeks. She wanted to tell him she didn’t want to keep the baby, but shied away.

  “Take six weeks. If you find you need more time, just give me a holler. You can always work from home if you’d like, but take the leave. I’ve been there, Daniella. I know my words will mean nothing right now, but the pain does decrease and you’ll find happiness once again. You have so much going for you and you’re remarkably beautiful. Why, the man is a fool to let you go.” He shook his head.

  “I can’t believe any of this. What they’ve all done to me. Forget about what he did, it’s what they’ve all done. And the lies they came up with… why, it’s too grand to forget about… or believe. I. I hate him. I hate THEM.” She pulled her hands away from Parker’s grip and dropped her head into her palms. Deep burns of raw emotion crowded the back of her throat. “BB-but I love him,” she whispered.

  Parker patted her shoulder and drew her into a hug. “You’re strong, Daniella. You’ll pull through this. Now go on, get out of here.”

  She whispered, “Thank you, Parker. You’re… you’re—” she started, but broke into a fit of sobs.

  “Call when you’re ready. Right now, just take care of yourself and that baby.” He kissed her on the cheek and went on his way.

  As Daniella walked out of Designers, Inc. with Lori, filling her in on all that had happened, her eyes shifted toward her car and she halted. Her breath hitched and her chest tightened. Dozens of black roses were dumped on her car. She couldn’t breathe.

  “Daniella? Daniella… Daniella!” Lori screamed and shook her. “Breathe! Come on, dammit! Breathe!”

  Breathe in… Breathe out. The tightness in her chest eased and she could finally breathe again. Fear quickly replaced with rage, Daniella stormed toward her car and shoved the black roses off. She’d barely felt the sting of the thorns scratching her skin because she was too angry to care.

  As she drove home, she had an eerie feeling someone was following her. She’d sensed it all week when she spotted a black SUV with heavy tinted windows following too closely—for the last five days. Daring to glance in the rearview mirror, her eyes froze on the SUV tailing right behind her. She slammed on the brakes, practically rear-ending the car in front of her. It took a few seconds to control her breathing and calm her pounding heart down. When she craned her neck to look over her shoulder, the SUV was no longer there. Other than some blaring horns and dirty looks, the rest of her drive went without a hitch.

  ~~~

  Maybe working from home wasn’t the best idea. Daniella spent the first three weeks in a deep depression, barely getting out of bed to eat or shower, not answering her cell phone, and finally letting the battery die. She’d gathered that her mother would probably be frantic, but she’d sent a few emails explaining she’d be okay, eventually.

  Listening to depressing music didn’t help. When ‘Lost Without Your Love’ by Bread played, Daniella was certain she couldn’t take it any longer. Thoughts of suicide were suddenly becoming an option. Death welcomed her. It offered mercy, an end to the pain she couldn’t shake.

  She stood at the window watching the rain trickle down. She was lost and alone. How could she do this on her own? To be a single mother to a baby who was created out of some sick woman’s revenge? It was so unfair. She never asked for this, not in this way. And what would she tell the baby when it was old enough to ask questions about its daddy?

  Daniella had stared out of the window for hours before she finally broke down and collapsed on the floor in a heap of tears. Come morning, she woke, still lying on the floor.

  She pushed herself up, grabbed her purse and keys, and headed out the front door.

  Driving along a stretch of road, Daniella decided to pull over at a secluded area in the rocky regions surrounding the ocean, and parked the car. She stepped out into the crisp air with a slight bite and wrapped her white shawl over her bare shoulders. The breeze carried the tang of salt water and assaulted her nostrils. Walking along the jagged edge, she stopped to watch the whitecaps of rumbling waves crash against the rocky wall below. If she took a few steps forward, she’d fall to her death. It was an idea, but she quickly retreated and took a seat on a flatter surface. She watched the seagulls float along the breeze far above the ocean with an occasional gust of wind swooping in and sending them tumbling backward, but they quickly recovered. The sight of that would have caused her to chuckle, but not today.

  “Why oh why?” she screamed. “What did I do to deserve any of this? Why, God, do I have to lose Cruz? And why Blake? Is this some test of faith? Because I have no faith right now. None. NONE! Do you hear me up there? Do you!” She crumbled to the ground, laying on her side and sobbed.

  Turmoil. Complete and utter turmoil. Daniella had never known such pain. Sure, she went through relationships with one horrible break-up, this one made two, but never knew heartache and pain at this level. The loneliness of heart, abandonment of soul—her life was a wasteland of hopes and dreams, and if it were not for the child within her, she might just roll forward and fall to her death.

  ~~~

  The drive did nothing to boost her mood. When Daniella arrived home,
she fell into the chair, but slid off and slumped to the floor. Would the pain ever end? She shriveled into her tucked-up legs.

  Her struggles seemed endless. She had to force herself to eat. The baby demanded nutrition, otherwise she’d go without.

  The baby. “Poor, poor, baby. How could he? How could she!” Daniella lashed out. She grabbed the box of pictures from the floor, stood and then dumped them on the table. “You cunning little whore.” She cut up pictures of Meg. “Disgusting, piece of...” She cut up Cruz’s pictures. “Why... you don’t deserve him, Meg.” Daniella hesitated as she observed Falcon’s face staring back at her on the picture she was about to shred. “He’s a beautiful man. How could you do this to him? How, Meg? And Cruz. This man was your best friend. Some friend, eh Falcon?” It dawned on her, at that very moment, the words she just spoke of Falcon. In her heart, she couldn’t be certain he played a part in any of this. Maybe he, too, was a victim of Meg’s sickness.

  Daniella cut up all the pictures of Meg and Cruz. She kept the halves with Falcon in them. She didn’t have the heart to cut him up too. She grasped a photo of him between two fingers. “You poor man. How awful it must be to have a wife like Meg. Bettcha didn’t know how evil she was when you said, ‘I do.’” Thoughts of Falcon toyed with her emotions. She had always liked the man. He was simply too nice, too kind, pleasant to the eyes, and too damn good for Meg. She envisioned herself with...

  “Shit!” She dropped the photo. “No. Never.”

  Daniella’s cell phone rang. All she saw was Meg’s aka Blake’s number attached to the call. “What a fucking coincidence.” She hesitated before she decided to answer. “What do you want... you... you bloody fucking whore! Don’t call me, don’t ever call me again. You got that, Meg? You... you lying crazy—” She threw the cell phone at the wall. It bounced off and the backlight still lit, a muffled voice streamed through, though barely audible. Daniella sniffled a few times before she broke out in another round of sobs.