by Sammie J
“I don’t like you Mr. Cassidy.”
He twists his body to turn the TV on and I say, “The feeling’s mutual Detective.”
I sit and watch as Jade wheels Noah out of the hospital. I hate seeing him look so fragile and know he would have been like that for the rest of his life if I hadn’t stepped in, but at least I know he is alive and well.
“I have to do my job even though I know your answer, but Mr. Cassidy is there anyone you recognize in the video? And do you know of anyone who would want to take Mr. Blaise?”
I give him two short answers, “Noah and no.”
He writes again in the file then peers over at me and says, “You’re free to go Mr. Cassidy.”
I smile and stand and just as I’m leaving the room he says, “Say hello to Ms. Thorne for me.” I let out a growl as I slam the door shut.
If I could box guilt up and sell it, I would make millions, as I sit and listen to Monica tell me what her and Peppa have been up to. We only had one night away from each other but fuck, I missed her. Holding her in my arms and hearing she begged people to get answers caused me to blame myself again for what she is going through. If I could go back to that Sunday morning and had made Noah stay with me none of this would be happening. I let her know Noah is still alive when she asks and I feel her relief at my answer. Somewhere in all this she thought I needed comfort and she let me in by asking me to take her to bed. That night I made love to her and with our bodies we loved, we found support and we hold on to one another until she falls asleep.
Chapter 9 (PEPPA)
Wake me up, before you go go… Still half asleep, I reach for my vibrating phone, which is bouncing around on my bedside table, to stop it yelling at me to wake up. Through half squinting eyes, I bring the damn thing closer and it stops singing to me. I notice it’s after 9:00 am and I close my eyes and tell myself, “Just five more minutes.” I’m just drifting back off to sleep when I jump out of my skin because my phone starts ringing. I answer it and bring it to my ear and in a sleepy voice I say, “Hello. No, you didn’t wake me up Detective Payne. Yes, that’s fine, I will be here. Ok, 3:00 pm it is, I will see you then. Goodbye.” Great that’s all I need. I roll on to my back and run my hand over my face and through my hair. I know the police are only doing their job, but I have no idea what they think they will find. I suppose I better get up.
I shower, get dressed and make myself a cup of tea and find myself, once again, sitting on the sofa waiting for god knows what. Noah walking through the door would be nice but that’s not going to happen.
I glance down to the list of numbers sitting on top of Monica’s laptop and think, sod it. I pick up the phone and dial a few numbers. I soon realize, yet again, I’m not going to get anywhere, but this time it’s for a different reason as I’m told I am the second person to ring using the same name asking for the same person. Oh shit.
I ring Lara to see if it was her and if she has found anything out but she didn’t answer her phone. I take a look around and decide maybe I should clean, the thing is it’s not even dirty. I know what I’m doing, I’m trying to distract myself, but nothing will work not when it comes to Noah. I JUST WANT HIM BACK!
I head to the kitchen to do the little washing up that there is. I nearly have a heart attack when a scraping noise comes from behind and I spin around to see a fuming Lara sitting at the counter. My hand moves to my heart trying to stop it from jumping out of my chest. “Lara, you scared the hell out of me, are you ok? It isn’t Noah is it?”
She shakes her head, “No, we haven’t heard anything more about Noah. Please tell me you haven’t been using my name to gain information?”
I open my mouth to tell her the truth, but I don’t get the chance when I hear Monica’s voice say, “No, she didn’t, but I have.”
Lara turns to face Monica, gets off the chair and walks right up to her and shouts into her face, “Have you any idea what you have done?!”
Monica brings her hand up and wipes something off her face, “Say it, not spray it love.”
What happens next leaves me shocked. Lara slaps Monica hard across the face. “Do you even care what my family is going through!?”
Monica stands there wide eyed with her hand cradling her cheek. I felt the slap from here, so it must sting. I notice the look that crosses Monica’s face, and it’s not good. I take a step forward to try and stop her from doing something stupid, but it’s too late.
Monica flies at Lara and shouts, “Of course I do! Does your family care about how Peppa feels!? What is she supposed to do? Sit back and wait until you decide to let her know what is happening?”
All hell is let loose as I watch my two friends go at it like fighting cats. “Monica! Lara! Stop it for Christ sake.” That didn’t work, so I fill up a cup of water and throw it over them. They both stop pulling at each other’s hair and turn to face me. “Right. Now that I have your attention. Lara, we both used your name and I’m sorry for that. I needed to know what has happened to Noah and no one would give me answers, which I’m guessing is what you have found out too. I know how you are feeling because I’m lost too Lara and you two fighting isn’t helping matters.” I twirl away from them both so I can catch my breath.
“Peppa, daddy gave me that job to do, to phone the hospitals, and of course, I had to tell him what I found out. He put two and two together and after the police phoned to say they will be searching Noah’s house today, he phoned them back and asked them to find some legal document that entitles you to stay here.”
My hands grip the sides of the counter as my legs buckle underneath me. Monica shouts out, “Your father is an asshole! Oh my god! This is Peppa’s home he can’t make her leave!”
I spin around quickly to stop them both from going at each other again but I’m hit with a head rush and I collapse to the floor. Once my heads stops spinning, I try and get up but they are both there telling me to stay still, “I’m phoning for an ambulance.”
I shake my head, "Monica don’t be silly, I’m fine I turned too quickly that’s all.”
“Let me at least call the doctor then, you aren’t sleeping, you’re hardly eating anything. Please, I’m worried about you.”
Lara hasn’t said a word yet, but when I take a peek at her she says, “I’m sorry. I‘ve tried talking him around, to let him know I don’t agree with what he is doing but he blames you.”
“What did I do to make him hate me? I fell in love with two men, that’s what I did. I can’t change, no I won’t change that fact for him or anyone.” I try to stand and Monica grabs me by the elbow and helps me up and I say, “I’m going to lie down.”
I turn to Monica, “If I promise to eat more will you get off my back?”
She nods yes.
Before I walk away Lara asks, “Do you want me to be here when the police arrive?”
Monica huffs, “What? So you can report back to daddy and tell him what the police find. I don’t think so. I will be here so you won’t be needed.”
I close my eyes count to ten and then say, “I don’t need any of you to be here. Monica, you can go back to work. And I’m sorry if this sounds bitchy Lara, but do I really have any say if you are here or not? I’m sure daddy can arrange that for you, after all this isn’t my house.”
I leave them both standing there speechless. I break down when I make it to the bedroom. Losing my home is the last thing I need. It feels like Mr. Blaise is trying to wipe me out of Noah’s life.
Animosity is rising from deep within me. If he thinks I’m going to lie down and take his shit, then he doesn’t know Peppa Thorne, because I will fight him all the way. He is not cutting me out of Noah’s life, I love him too much to just walk away.
I doze for a bit but soon become restless. I drag myself off the bed and head for the bathroom. I splash my face with cold water and brush my hair. I make myself presentable and stroll to the kitchen to try and eat something and wait for the police to arrive. Monica and Lara are nowhere to be seen which I’m t
hankful for. At exactly 3:00 pm a knock comes to the front door and I open it to Detective Payne and four other uniformed policemen.
“Ms. Thorne, it’s good to see you again. Can we come in?”
I felt like saying, “No, sod off, you’re not welcome here,” but instead I say, “Yes, of course, please do.”
He smiles at me and stands back to let the other officers in, he then walks in himself and I close the door behind him. He has a quick word with his team then turns back to me, “Ms. Thorne, we have been told Noah has an office, can you please show us the way?”
“Of course please follow me.” I walk ahead of them all and when I reach Noah’s office I open the door and they all walk in.
Detective Payne turns to me and asks, “Has anyone been in here? Touched anything?”
I stand silently and think for a minute and then realize that I had been in there, “Yes, I have, to get a pen and some paper from the desk.”
He nods his head at me then turns back to the officers and starts barking instructions at them and I leave them to it. I don’t know what to do with myself. I can’t sit still, I hate the thought of them going through Noah’s personal belongings and I start pacing from the lounge to the kitchen. I turn the kettle on and stand there and watch it boil. That’s when I think, I wonder if they would like a cup of tea.
I make my way to ask them, but when I enter the lounge I find Detective Payne standing there admiring the TV. “Nice place, no expense has been spared. I thought you should know, I have two of my officers checking the bedrooms. I hope you don’t have a problem with your personal items being searched.”
I shake my head, “I have already told you Detective, I have nothing to hide.”
He gives me a nod of the head then silence fills the room, I decide to break it when I ask, “Would you like a drink, a cup of tea or coffee?”
He smiles over at me, “A cup of coffee would be great. Milk and two sugars please.”
I turn to walk back into the kitchen then I remember the other officers and quickly turn back to ask a question. But Detective Payne is right there and I walk into him. One of his hands goes around my waist to steady me and I stare into his brown eyes that are the same colour as Noah’s and for a split second I get lost in them. I mentally shake myself and when I glance down to see he is still holding onto me, I step back out of his hold. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was going.
I make his coffee and when I turn around, he is sitting at the counter waiting and I place it in front of him. He smiles and takes a sip and says thanks. I take a good look at him, there’s not much else I can do as we both stare at each other. He’s an older man, I would place him around forty something. His hair has started to grey as well as his beard. He’s wide shouldered with a stocky build. He’s a good looking man, but it’s his eyes that fascinate me, as they remind me so much of Noah’s. So much so that I lower my head as I can’t bear to look at him anymore.
“Can I give you a bit of advice Ms. Thorne?” My head snaps back up to look at him. “Impersonating someone else can get you arrested. Mr. Blaise has it in for you. I suggest you do nothing else to upset him and you’re lucky Ms. Blaise didn’t want to press charges.”
I know he is right but that didn’t stop my temper from flaring, “I have done nothing untoward, yet I’m treated as if I'm in the wrong, like I’m another of Noah’s whores. Donald bloody Blaise can do his worst, he can try to rid me from Noah’s life, but he can’t stop me from loving him. I will fight for him and I will win because what I have with Noah is unbreakable.”
I walk away before I say anything else and I leave the Detective sitting there drinking his coffee. I end up in the basement, it’s the only place where there is no police for the moment. I stretch myself out on the sofa and my mind floats back to the good times I have had in this room. I don’t know how long I am away with the fairies for, but a loud cough jerks me back to focus on the officer standing in the room. “Sorry to disturb you, I need to do a search of the room.”
I sit up then, stand and make my way back upstairs not saying a word to him.
When I walk into the lounge Detective Payne is talking with the other officers. It appears they have found something as the Detective now has a file in his hands.
I clear my throat and say, “Are you nearly done?”
All eyes turn to me. Detective Payne ignores me and talks quietly with his officers and they all suddenly leave and walk away heading for the front door.
“Yes, we are nearly done. I’m waiting for the officer to finish downstairs then we will be out of your way.”
I walk over to the sofa and sit, “Did you find what you are looking for?”
He glances down at the file in his hand and then back at me, “I’m sorry, I can’t tell you that.”
With a haunted look on my face I ask, “Did you find what Mr. Blaise asked you to find?”
The look he gives me is one of surprise, “You are well informed Ms. Thorne. Yes, I have the information he asked for.”
Tears gather but I hold them back as I don’t want to show any weakness. The officer from downstairs enters the room and shakes his head at the Detective and is quickly dismissed. Detective Payne turns back to me, “We have everything we need. I will be in contact.”
He starts to walk away and I jump to my feet shouting after him, “Please! Detective Payne, does Mr. Blaise have a leg to stand on? Can he force me out?” The tears come then and I hold my breath waiting for an answer.
He slowly turns and makes his way back over to me, “Honestly, he would be a stupid man to pursue it, but nothing surprises me about him. He strikes me as a man who didn’t like to be defeated. But I will advise him against it.”
I don’t know how I ended up in his arms sobbing. It could have been from the sheer relief at what he said or the grief of everything catching up with me. We stand that way for a while, but it soon turns to awkwardness on my part at the feeling of another man embracing me when it should be Noah and Juan. I quickly loosen my hold and move out of his arms, I don’t look at him when I mutter a sorry.
“Take care Ms. Thorne. I have a feeling we will be seeing each other again.”
A minute later I hear the front door shut and I’m left alone again. The numbness starts to take over again as the full force of everything that has happened settles deep inside of me. I’m trying to be strong, but right now I’m losing that battle. I don’t intend to be down for long. I walk to the bar and pour myself a drink. I down it in one, not even feeling the burn when it hits the back of my throat and I pour myself another.
Monica comes home and I explain everything to her. Lara phones and I hold back certain information but tell her they found something. I carry on drinking while Monica forces me to eat a sandwich, threatening to call a doctor if I don’t. I fall asleep at some point and wake to the feeling of being lifted in someone’s arms. I open my eyes to find a concerned looking Juan staring back at me. I burst into tears at the sight of him and he places me on the bed and holds me as I try and tell him what happened today, but my eyes feel heavy and start to droop and blackness greets me.
The next few days blur. Monica is there, force feeding me. Juan holds me in his arms at night telling me everything will be ok. I think about the Café and talk Monica into putting a sign up saying, “Closed until further notice.”
Thursday night Juan turns up early. The venue they were supposed to play at said someone had phoned and cancelled it. Cruz had managed to get hold of Mr. Blaise and was told he will look into it and that’s when I find out Donald has taken over Noah’s role at Devil Records. I phoned the police station a few times as desperation seeped in, only to be told there is no new information.
Saturday comes around and Monica dragged me out of the house, we did a bit of shopping and visited with her sister. She is trying to take my mind off what has happened and it worked for all of five minutes.
As we enter the house, my phone goes, it’s Lara. She starts speaking, but
another beep comes through and it’s Juan phoning me, so I tell Lara I will phone her back and press the button to speak to Juan. He tells me he won’t be coming over tonight because another venue has been cancelled and the press was there this time, so the band needs to find out what the hell is going on. I'm disappointed but I also understand and tell him it is fine and I hope they sort out the problem. I'm just about to ring Lara back when my phone rings again. I’m popular tonight.
Detective Payne's voice comes through the line, “Ms. Thorne, I’m sorry to say, it appears as if someone has broken into your workplace. The alarm has been ringing for an hour now. You need to come down and turn it off and check to see if anything is missing.”
I remain silent for a moment, trying to figure out if this is actually happening to me and I am not dreaming. “Ms. Thorne?” Confusion crosses my features and my name comes again louder this time. “Sorry, I’m shocked. Of course, I will come now.” I hang up the phone not even sure if the conversation is finished between us. I stand there shaking my head and say, “Why is this happening to me?”
Monica is right there looking perplexed, so I quickly explain and she drives me to Café Net to see what the hell is going on. When we arrive the first thing I’m asked to do is to turn off the alarm but to be careful as there is glass everywhere. Once it’s turned off, I take in the scene to check out the damage. I spy a brick on the floor and quickly work out what has happened.
Detective Payne makes his way over to me, “Can you check to see if anything else is damaged or has been taken?”
I walk around checking out the computers, the cash register, nothing is out of place and I let the Detective know.
“It appears like it might be a random act of violence, no doubt kids. You really aren’t having much luck lately are you?” I gape at him not knowing how to answer. He carries on talking, “I don’t usually bother with cases like this, but when your name came up, I thought I could kill two birds with one stone. I was on my way to see you. We have found the van used to kidnap Noah. It’s being examined as we speak. We also received a phone call saying there has been a sighting of Noah.”