Savannah's Curse

by Shelia M. Goss

  “No. Sit. I’ll sit here,” she said, grabbing a chair at the other end of the table.

  She listened as Troy went over everything that had happened to them. She felt like she was living someone else’s life. Everything up until this point had been surreal. She wanted it all to be over with so she could go back to living a normal life. Who was she fooling? Her life hadn’t been normal since her dad died. She didn’t realize when she set out to find his killer that she would be fighting for her life, fighting for the safety of her sisters. She had to ask herself if it was all worth it. A part of her said no, but the part that wanted to avenge her dad’s death knew that she would do it all again, minus the part where Montana got hurt. If she could do it again, she would send her sisters far away, so whoever was guilty would only have her to target.

  After Troy finished talking to his team, they dispersed. He walked to the other end of the table and sat on the edge. He reached for her hands. He held them up and kissed them. “I’m a lucky man.”

  “Where is all of this coming from?”

  “I was watching you a while ago and it dawned on me how much you care,” Troy said.

  Savannah smiled. “You’ve done so much for me. For my sisters.”

  “I don’t deserve you,” Troy said.

  “Don’t ever say that.”

  “I thought I was going to lose you. I can do without a lot of things, but not you. Baby, I don’t know what I would do if I lost you.”

  Savannah stood up. She kissed him. They held each other like that, until they heard someone clear his throat.

  “Don’t mean to interrupt,” Mike said.

  Savannah moved from in between Troy’s legs. Troy stood up from the table. “Did you find our abductor?” Troy asked.

  “He was DOA.”

  “Dang it. He took the easy route.”

  “Troy, don’t worry. We’ll do a clean sweep. If he wasn’t the only one, I’ll find out soon enough.”

  Cheryl rushed in. “Irene’s dead too. Our guys got to the compound, and when the dust settled, most of their men were down.”

  Savannah watched them in motion.

  “Any of our men hurt?” Troy asked. Savannah could hear the concern in his voice.

  “A few got shot, but no casualties,” Cheryl responded.

  Savannah saw Troy’s chest fall and rise during the course of their conversation.

  “Do you need anything else, Ms. Savannah?” Cheryl asked.

  “Cheryl, when you say my name like that, it makes me seem so old.” She laughed. “No, I’m fine.”

  Troy said, “We’re about to head out. I’m taking her to her sisters, or else she’s going to kill me.”

  Thirty minutes later, Savannah was hugging Montana and Asia.

  “Girl, you look a hot mess,” Asia commented.

  “And I love you too,” Savannah responded.

  “Hi, Troy,” Montana said. “We didn’t mean to ignore you, but you know how we can be.”

  “I don’t mind at all. Seeing women hug like that is a man’s fantasy.”

  Savannah popped him on the arm. “You’re so nasty.”

  “You should know,” Troy said as he left the room.

  Asia said, “Ooh, you didn’t!”

  Savannah ignored her. “There’s more to life than sex, like the fact that I was kidnapped.”

  “What? When were you going to tell us?” Montana and Asia blurted out question after question.

  41

  Troy watched the exchange between the sisters. He loved Savannah’s sisters as if they were his sisters. After he was sure Montana’s place was secure, he sat on the sofa next to Savannah. He placed his arm around her as if it was always meant to be there.

  “I’m jealous. Where’s my knight in shining armor?” Asia joked.

  “I have a friend,” Troy said.

  Montana held her hand up to protest. “No. The last friend you introduced us to was a little on the crazy side.”

  “He definitely rode the short bus to school.” Asia used her hand to make a horn motion. “Toot. Toot.”

  “I did apologize,” Troy said.

  “We forgive you, but that’s okay. We’ll find our own men,” Montana stated.

  Asia said, “So, are you two officially a couple?”

  Savannah spoke before Troy could say anything. “You all have a bad habit of talking about me as if I’m not here.”

  “Well, are you?” Montana said while she crossed her arms.

  Savannah looked at Troy. Troy shrugged his shoulders. “I’m all hers, if she’ll have me.”

  “I’ll think about it,” Savannah responded. Troy looked at her with a boyish grin. He batted his eyes. “Okay. Yes, we’re a couple.”

  Troy kissed her and didn’t care that she would probably slap him for doing so, because her sisters were around. To his surprise she didn’t. In fact, she got all into it.

  Asia cleared her throat. “My virgin eyes.”

  Savannah stopped kissing Troy. She threw a pillow at Asia. “Please. You haven’t been a virgin since—”

  “Vanna!” Asia screamed.

  “Okay. I wouldn’t want my new boyfriend to think one of my sisters is a slush puppy.”

  Troy’s new cell phone vibrated. “I need to get this,” he said.

  He walked to another room and talked to Mike. He went over his plan to trap Raymond. Raymond had tried to kill him too many times. He could not go without being punished. The local police were not going to be able to detain Raymond. His security clearance was too high up on the chain. In order to stop Raymond Steel, Troy would have to beat him at his own game. It was time for Raymond to be the hunted. He watched the Blake sisters’ easy banter with one another. He needed them to trap Raymond. Would they go for the plan? He hoped so. He hoped Savannah would forgive him this one last time.

  “Ladies, I don’t mean to interrupt, but I needed to talk to you about something,” he said. Instead of sitting by Savannah, Troy stood up so he could see each of their facial expressions when he went over his plan.

  “Irene confirmed verbally that Raymond is behind my attacks. But what I didn’t tell Savannah, because I needed her to concentrate on getting to safety, is Irene also confirmed that Raymond killed your dad.”

  “That bastard. A part of me believed Vanna was making it all up,” Montana said.

  Savannah’s face turned red. “I’ll kill him. I’ll kill him with my bare hands.”

  Troy tried to calm them down. “No. We’re going to get him, but this is where you three come in. I need you to lure him over to Savannah’s place.”

  “I don’t know about that. I won’t be held accountable for what I’ll do if I lay eyes on him again,” Asia stated. The pillow in her hands was twisted. She threw it on the floor.

  “This is the plan,” Troy said as he told them what each one of their roles would be. He already had a team of people setting things up at Savannah’s.

  Savannah crossed her legs. “So I’m supposed to act like I hate you now.”

  “Exactly. You have to say some things to make it believable.”

  “Like how ever since we met, my life has been in danger.”

  “Ouch,” Troy responded.

  “I think it’s a stupid idea, and I don’t want to have anything to do with it. If it puts Montana and Asia in the line of fire, my response is no. Find another way.” Savannah stormed out of the room.

  Montana said, “I think it’s a good idea.”

  “Me too,” Asia added. “But it’s Savannah you need to convince.”

  Troy left Asia and Montana in the living room. Savannah was out on the patio; she was gazing up at the stars. He watched her before approaching her. He attempted to touch her shoulder but was thrown off when her first reaction was to jerk back.

  She turned around and faced him. “How dare you? After all I’ve gone through. I told you I didn’t want my sisters in danger.”

  “They won’t be. My men are situated there. If he tries anything,
he’s as good as dead.”

  “You don’t get it, do you? Those two practically idolized him, especially Montana. She’s not going to admit it, but this ordeal with Raymond is hurting her more than she’s letting on. Yes, I’m hurt and disappointed, but I’m older. For some reason Montana was his favorite,” Savannah blurted out.

  “Have I ever led you wrong?”

  Savannah glared at him.

  “Okay, let me rephrase that. If we don’t do this now, if we don’t try to get him to confess, he’s not going to stop. He’s not going to rest until he’s sure that no one—you and I, your sisters—can tell the authorities of his crooked way of doing things. Believe me, there are some people who are going to agree with him. However, there are those people, like you and your sisters, and, yes, even me, who know that killing people—just for the sake of killing them—isn’t right . . . even when those people are known murderers.”

  Savannah reached out to him. Troy pulled her into his arms. He ran his hand over her thick ponytail. She said, “I’m scared. I’m scared of what I might do. I don’t know if I can control myself. I might pull out my gun and shoot him right on the spot. What if I can’t control myself? What if I can’t control getting revenge on my daddy’s killer?” Savannah said in between sobs.

  Troy moved back so they could look in each other’s faces. “Look at me.” Savannah wouldn’t. “Look at me. You’re not like him. You’re going to do the right thing. You’re going to talk to him. You’re going to use your skills to talk him into confessing. I have a one hundred percent . . . correction. I have two hundred percent confidence that you can get him to confess.”

  Troy moved away. His arms went up in the air. “Do you honestly think I would have you do this if I thought you couldn’t do it? If I were like him, he would be dead right now. I could have had one of my men take him out, and he never would have known a thing. See, Raymond thinks he’s smart, but he’s the type of guy who has other people do his dirty work. Because guess what? He’s not that good. He’s only good at giving orders, not executing them himself. You and I. We’re good. Any other woman would have cracked under the pressure you’ve been under, but you, girl, you’re a champ. Major taught you well. He would be proud.”

  Savannah pulled Troy back into her arms. “I’m a lucky girl.”

  Troy kissed her forehead. “No, I’m the lucky one.”

  “If you ever get tired of doing what you do, you could have a career in speech writing. That was a lovely speech,” Savannah teased.

  “You should be a comedienne in your second life, because you’re incredibly funny.” Troy then added, “And oh so sexy.”

  “One of us should be able to tell a joke, because, mister, your jokes are lame,” Savannah said.

  “I resemble that remark.” Troy laughed.

  Savannah didn’t. “See? That was corny.”

  By now, they had returned to the living room. Savannah faced her sisters. “It’s a go.”

  Asia stood up first. “Let’s do this.”

  42

  It didn’t take much to convince Raymond to meet her at her place. He was actually shocked to hear from her. He continued to play the role of the concerned uncle. Troy rode with them in Asia’s car, just in case someone was watching them and recognized his other vehicle.

  Savannah was amazed that she didn’t know anyone had been in her place. She was a stickler about things, and nothing seemed to be out of place. “Your people are good,” she told Troy.

  “I only hire the best,” he responded.

  “So what now?” Asia asked.

  “You all go about doing things as normal. I’ll make myself scarce. I’ll be upstairs if you need me,” Troy said.

  Savannah followed him up the stairs. She pushed him into her room and closed the door. She locked her lips so quickly around his mouth, Troy didn’t even know how to react. He allowed her to have her way with his mouth. She devoured each moan.

  “I want you so bad,” Troy said in between their kisses.

  By now, they were near the bed. Savannah pushed him on the bed and lay on top of him as their bodies ground together. The adrenaline rush was sending them both over the edge. The sound of the doorbell broke the trance.

  “Showtime,” Savannah said as she stood up and brushed herself off. She winked at Troy and left him lying across the bed on his back.

  “Uncle Raymond, I’m so glad you could come,” Savannah said as she hugged him.

  “You girls mean the world to me. I told you to call me if you need me.”

  Savannah grabbed his hand and led him into the living room, where Asia and Montana sat. They acknowledged him but didn’t show the same amount of affection as Savannah had.

  “Well, I don’t know where to begin,” Savannah said as she sat in the chair across from him.

  “I got time,” he said, looking at his watch.

  She looked at Montana and then at Asia. “We owe you an apology. I owe you an apology.”

  “Baby girl, I would have—”

  “No . . . let me finish. You tried to warn me. Warn us about Troy. Do you know that Troy almost got me killed? If I hadn’t gotten out when I did, you wouldn’t be talking to me right now,” Savannah insisted.

  Raymond balled up his fist. “I’ll handle Troy. You just leave him to me.”

  “I trusted him. He even tried to turn us against you. I don’t know how I could have believed the lies coming out of his mouth. Will you ever forgive me? Us?” Savannah asked.

  “This has been hard on you all. I don’t hold anything against any of you. Let me handle Bridges. He’ll no longer be a problem after tonight.”

  “This little reunion has been nice, but I have to get to work tomorrow,” Asia said.

  Montana stood up. “Me too. Love you, Uncle Raymond.”

  Savannah watched them each hug him.

  “You girls be safe now. Don’t worry about a thing, you hear me,” he said.

  “We won’t.” Asia winked before walking away.

  A few seconds later, Savannah heard the front door close. Part one of the plan had worked. Now that she was alone with him, it was now on to part two. The house phone rang. She picked it up. She said, “Uh-huh. Are you sure? . . . No. I don’t believe you. . . Look, until you can get me some concrete proof . . . lose my number. . . In fact . . . don’t call me. I’ll call you.”

  Savannah turned back around to face Raymond. “That was a crank caller.”

  “Now, Vanna, I can tell when you’re lying,” he said.

  “You got me. That was Troy. He’s such a pest.”

  “Like unwanted pests, he will be eliminated,” Raymond responded.

  Savannah’s smile faded. “Now that we’re alone, there’s something I want to ask you.”

  Raymond leaned back and crossed his leg. “I’m all yours.” He looked at his watch. “Well, for at least the next thirty minutes.”

  Savannah sat across from him. “It won’t take that long,” she promised. “Troy’s a liar. That’s been established, right?”

  “Right.”

  “I’ve been thinking. The day I found Dad, there was no sign of an intruder. In fact, the door was locked. Whoever killed him had to have known him, because there was no way he would have gone out without a fight. I read the police report several times, and there was no mention of a struggle.”

  Raymond uncrossed his leg and sat up. “Baby girl, I don’t know if I like where you’re going with this conversation.”

  Savannah leaned forward. “You might not. But hear me out. Dad didn’t have too many friends. You were the only one besides the neighbors that I knew of, and I know the neighbors didn’t do it.”

  “Are you accusing me of killing Major?”

  “You said it, I didn’t,” Savannah responded.

  Raymond stood up. “My patience is thin, so I better leave.”

  Savannah ran and blocked his way. “No, you’re going to look me in the face and tell me you did not murder my father.”

 
; Raymond pushed her out of the way. Savannah almost stumbled and fell. He reached to help her up. “Don’t. Don’t touch me ever again!” she shouted.

  “Look, this conversation is going nowhere. You want to know what happened. Do you really want to know what happened?” he said as he pulled out a weapon.

  Savannah was startled. She backed up and ended up falling back on the couch. She turned her body to face Raymond. A chill crept up her spine as she stared into a set of darkened eyes that revealed more than words.

  His tone confirmed he was no longer pretending to be nice Uncle Raymond. “You couldn’t leave it alone, could you? Montana and Asia have not only lost their father, but they’re about to lose an older sister.”

  Savannah shouted, “You bastard! We trusted you. How could you? You knew he was all we had. He wouldn’t have turned you in, and you know it. He loved you like a brother, and this is how you betrayed him.”

  “Betrayal? Major betrayed me in the worst way. I was the one who recommended him to The Agency, and he had the nerve to question me. Me.” He looked around as if he had an audience. “If it hadn’t been for me, The Agency would be just another useless agency that the government is funding. See, Major’s problem is he had little dreams. Me, I want it all. How do you think I’m able to live in the neighborhood I live in? Not from the money the government pays, that’s for sure. Major couldn’t understand that. I tried to cut him in on the deals many times, but he wouldn’t have it.”

  “My dad was an honorable man. Something I wish I could say about you, but can’t,” Savannah blurted out.

  “You’re your father’s daughter. Like him, you went snooping around. He wouldn’t stop until he had solid evidence, he told me. I mean, how bold can you be? He thought he was untouchable. He thought our ties were enough to protect him. But he was wrong.”

  Savannah said, “The Agency’s motto is to serve and protect citizens from terrorists and anyone who means people in this nation harm. It did not say serve, protect, and kill people you deemed guilty.”