Dictator s Daughter (5 page)

“You don’t know what you really like or want;
you mindlessly do what you’re told. You never question, you never
disagree, and you don’t have your own mind. I don’t want to reach
your age and realize I’m just like you.”

It was hard for Sean to ignore the insults
Ryan had dispensed, but he knew if he didn’t get off this topic
soon, he would find himself in a fistfight with his brother.

“So, what do you have in mind for a job?”
Sean asked through gritted teeth.

“Don’t know. I’m just looking at this
point.”

Sean let out a frustrated growl and threw his
hands up, “Oh, that’s just like you, all talk but no action. You
stir things up just for the sake of stirring. I’m outta here!” Sean
pushed his way out of the kitchen, through the swinging door
dumping him in the dining room.

Beyond the dining room in the living room,
Chandra sat on the couch opposite his mother. They were talking all
sorts of nonsense to do with the wedding. Sean could tell by the
way his mother was acting she wished for any reason to get out of
this conversation, and then she saw Sean.

“Oh, there’s Sean. I’ll just go tie into
those dishes.” She got up and hurried past him giving him a wink as
she whizzed by. Sean couldn’t help but smile.

He settled down next to Chandra on the couch
and listened as she rattled off many ideas and plans for their
wedding.

“I was thinking of mini crepes topped with
warm caramel apple sauce and a scoop of freshly made vanilla ice
cream, and to drink I…” her voice trailed off as Sean entered deep
thought mode.

He was still thinking about his conversation
with Ryan. He didn’t feel the same as Ryan, did he?
No,
he
convinced himself,
no, I help crossers and I enjoy doing it. I
make that decision all on my own.

“…favorite lemon-lime soda?” Sean registered
she was asking him a question.

“I don’t have a favorite.”

“Sure you do. Just think about it for a
second.”

“Seriously, I don’t. You pick.”

“Well, I think the punch would be better
with…” she trailed off again and Sean wondered to himself if she
ever got tired of talking. His thoughts went to Eli and his
condition. He had been out of the room for a few hours and should
probably be getting back to him.

Chandra must have read his mind, “Sean, what
is your new crosser like?”

“He’s quiet, doesn’t say much.”

“Why did he become a crosser?”

“I don’t know yet.”

“You said he was a young boy, how old is
he?”

“I don’t know his age, but he’s probably
fifteen or sixteen, he might even be younger.”

“Why do you think he crossed?” she asked
sweetly.

“He’s definitely running, probably from the
dictator like everyone else. He sure was beaten terribly before
arriving here.”

“Oh.”

Sean didn’t think much of Chandra’s questions
even though she hadn’t been very interested in his business before.
It was obvious that she wasn’t interested; why she would bother
asking he didn’t know.

Later on, Sean went up to his bedroom to find
Eli still awake. Sean changed into his tank top and pajama bottoms
in the bathroom. He climbed into bed, being careful not to bounce
too much. He knew Eli’s pain still lingered. Sean lay on his back
with his arms raised up and his hands behind his head.

“Your fiancée came over tonight?” Eli
asked.

“Yeah.”

“I could hear you two.”

“You could?”

“Well, she has kind of an annoying voice that
carries through everything.”

Sean agreed with Eli, but at the same time,
he knew he should defend Chandra. Instead, Sean decided to change
the subject, “How are your injuries healing?”

“Good.”

“Can you tell me about your family?” Sean
pried.

“No, I can’t.”

“But don’t you have parents who would be
worried about your safety?”

“No.”

“You don’t have parents?”

“I do, but I don’t want to talk about
it.”

“Oh, well, can you tell me why you had to
leave your country?”

“My life was in danger.”

“I don’t suppose you can say why?”

“I can’t Sean, I’m sorry,” Eli apologized and
Sean felt like a heel for pressing too hard.

“It’s OK, don’t worry about it.”

“I haven’t thanked you and your family for
helping me.”

“It’s not necessary, Eli, it’s what we
do.”

“Still, it’s more than I expected.” Eli said
in a quieter voice. “You have a good life here, Sean. Don’t ever
take it for granted.”

“I know, and I don’t.” Sean’s thoughts
centered on the age of his crosser and his ability to examine and
interpret his surroundings in comparison with other lousy
environments. How does a kid this young come to understand these
kinds of things?

“So what does Chandra look like?” Eli
asked.

Sean was a little taken aback with this
question. “Well, she’s pretty, blond hair, blue eyes, healthy
body.”

“She sounds hot.”

Sean laughed, “Yeah, she is. What kinds of
girls do you like, Eli?”

“Not blond.”

“That’s it?”

“I personally like a girl with a brain.”

“Hey, that’s not nice, Chandra has a
brain.”

“Sorry, I just mean if I had to take looks up
against brains, I’d go brains any day.”

“Oh, I guess I feel the same way,” Sean said
in a yawn. He also thought a nice set of ‘cupcakes’ never hurt
either.

**********

Dr. Randall stopped by the next day to
evaluate Eli and Sara asked Sean to run some errands during the
doctor’s visit. This gave Sean the opportunity to visit Chandra at
The DoubleScoop.

“What are you doing here?” Chandra asked
him.

“Good to see you, too.” It wasn’t exactly the
response Sean thought he’d be getting from her.

“Last time you stopped by, it was to invite
me to come over because you were free. So is that it? Are you
free?”

“No, sorry. I wanted to see you and I was out
on errands…isn’t it ok that I want to see you?”

“Well, of course it is. Hey, I’m going on
break in five minutes, can you stick around?”

“You bet.” Sean sat in a corner booth giving
him an unobstructed view of the parlor. He always seated himself in
the best visual vantage point ever since his father taught him how
to be observant. ‘Never put your back to the enemy,’ Paul had said.
Chandra came over and joined him.

“So, tell me about Eli,” Chandra blasted him
with the question.

“What? Whoa, where did that come from?”

“Sean, we are going to be married in just a
few months and you’ll be telling me all this stuff then, so why not
now?”

“Well, there isn’t anything to tell at this
point. I don’t know anything.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“What’s not to believe?” His eyebrows came
together as he questioned her motives in his mind.

“There must be something you can tell me,”
she said in her sickeningly sweet voice.

Sean’s hair on the back of his neck stood on
end. His pulse quickened and he couldn’t ignore the feelings of
trepidation he was experiencing.

“You know what? I’ve got to go; I forgot I
needed to pick up some other supplies. Come over tonight and we’ll
talk.” He hoped his sudden departure wouldn’t raise alarms, but her
insistent questions put him into a tailspin. She never took this
much interest in anyone else, not even him.

Once Sean was back in his truck and driving
through Slaterville, he allowed his mind to contemplate the
possibility Chandra, his fiancée, might be a spy.

After Sean left the parlor, Chandra exited
out the back door and opened her cell phone. She dialed the number
and waited for the other end to be answered.

“Yes,” a low rumbling male sounded through
the phone.

“It’s me. I want to know why you haven’t done
anything yet.”

“Done anything about what?”

“You know, I found her and she’s still there.
No one has even tried to grab her. I want to know why.”

“That’s not your job or your concern. You
were paid for information, and that’s where your involvement
ended,” he was losing patience with her.

“There’s a new one, a teenage boy. Are there
any rewards for a missing boy?” she asked hopefully.

“None I’m aware of. I’ll keep you posted.
Keep your position in the home and pass on any changes,” his voice
exuded power and control.

“You know I will.” She closed her phone and
ended the connection.

Sean knew Chandra wouldn’t miss dinner for
anything. He informed his mother Chandra would be joining them and
then went up to his room to check on Eli. He sat at the small
table, reading the newspaper.

“How did your doctor visit go?” Sean
asked.

“Good.” Eli stated.

“Good?” Sean was tired of all the one worded
sentences.

“Good,” Eli restated.

Sean walked into the bathroom and splashed
water on his face and wiped it off with the towel. Between
Chandra’s suspicious behavior and Eli’s lack of volunteering up
information, Sean felt out of control; not that he ever had control
to begin with.

This whole business of housing crossers was,
for the first time, stressing him beyond measure. Here he was,
twenty-four, engaged to a possible spy and caring for an abused
teenager who rarely said anything; it was enough to make him crazy.
Was this what his life had come to? Was Ryan so far off base about
not wanting to become Sean?

Sean stormed out of the bathroom and exited
his bedroom. He bee-lined it to the wood pile in the back yard and
picked up the axe. He’d take out his frustrations on the
twenty-four inch logs; it had to be symbolic somehow.

Log after log, Sean swung his discontent
away. He piled the wood against the house according to size and
chopped some more. After awhile, Sean took off his sweat-soaked
shirt and threw it toward the back door. The crisp air froze on his
damp skin, and yet it felt exhilarating at the same time. He swung
the axe harder and with more power. His frustrations ebbed and
muscle exhaustion took over. His breath was coming in pants and
heaves. If nothing else, it was an excellent way to work out, Sean
thought.

Sean placed both his palms behind on his hips
and arched his back, pushing his chest forward to stretch. His chin
reached up toward the sky but stopped abruptly when his eyes met
the pair staring at him from the upstairs window.

Eliwese quickly moved away from the glass
with her heart racing and a nervous flush rushing up her cheeks.
She couldn’t believe herself for gawking at his body; what’s more,
he caught her. She was determined not to let that happen again. She
wrestled in her mind with what exactly she didn’t want to happen
again; was it the gawking part or the getting caught?

She admired his strength but worried about
the anger he was clearly dealing with. She knew some of the
frustration was directed at her, but she didn’t know where the rest
of it came from. Perhaps his fiancée had made him mad. She wished
she could talk more to him, but she always risked sounding too
female.

Eliwese sat down at the table and fanned her
face with a magazine. The sight of his bare chest and rippling
muscles glistening in the sunlight had her wondering if she would
be able to lay in bed with him and resist the urge to touch him.
Every night, when he climbed into bed with her, she couldn’t
breathe. Now, she’d have a mental image of his masculinity in its
full glory to battle with too.

Sean didn’t know what to think. Why would Eli
be staring at him? But, it was more than that; Eli’s expression was
one of awe and longing. Sean shook his head to clear out his
obvious misconceptions. He was working himself up over a misread
facial interpretation he only saw for half a second. Perhaps Eli
was admiring Sean’s muscular body, dreaming of one day having
stacked muscles too.
Yeah, right.
That was not the look Sean
saw. He’d seen lust.

Sean showered downstairs and made himself
presentable for Chandra. She arrived in a happy mood and behaved
wonderfully all night. Not once did she ask about Eli, or why Eli
might have crossed the border and it helped Sean relax. Now he only
needed to figure out what to say to Eli when he went to bed.
Catching Eli watching him was disturbing to say the least. But how
should he handle it?

Sean had escorted Chandra to her car and
kissed her goodnight before climbing the stairs to his room. He
found Eli lying on the bed, wearing the all too familiar high
necked jogging suit. Sean walked past Eli and to the bathroom to
change clothes.

Once Sean settled into bed, Eli turned to him
and asked, “Sean, can you tell me about some of the defectors
you’ve housed?”

Red flags went up all around Sean. This was a
trademark question of a spy. Questions like these would give
information of how long the safe house had been in operation and
the people who had actually fled from Rendier. Sean’s hair on the
back of his neck stood up and his skin prickled; that was twice in
the same day!

He proceeded carefully. “Well, most are on
the run, most fear for their lives and they’ve usually done
something to upset Victor Rawlings.” Sean felt he hadn’t given up
any crucial information with the comment.

“Well, that was vague.”

“What were you expecting?”

“A little more detail maybe.”

“I guess you’re just as disappointed as I
am,” Sean stated and looked over at Eli.

“What?” Eli asked.

“Well, I’d like to find out more about you
and your life, but you have your reasons for not telling and so do
I,” Sean said with the hope Eli would volunteer up something of his
past, but no.

Instead, Eli switched topics, “Do you like
living in a country which has a democratic government?”