Authors: Sylvia Hubbard
“You don’t think I couldn’t? Look how big your hands are to mine. You don’t think I should be a little fearful?”
“I am a man, who is only human. I don’t hurt people I care about and I especially wouldn’t hurt my friends. Don’t ever fear me, Skye.”
She nodded. “I won’t make any promises.”
He nodded. “Can I ask a favor?”
“We’re friends, that is allowed.”
“Look at me. The eyes are keys to the soul. Your soul is one I want to be close to. I need to see it to understand you better.”
Slowly with a lot of effort, she moved her eyes to the deepest cinnamon eyes. He did want her to look at him, it showed clearly through his eyes. Quickly she lowered her head afraid she would start those hallucinations again. Reaching across the table he gently lifted her chin, until her eyes met his again.
“What happens once you understand me? Will you go away?”
“Never. You’re stuck with my friendship for life. When I give my hand of friendship, it’s not just something I want on a whim. I have associates and business relationships for that. When I offer friendship, it’s because I want to be the ear you use, the shoulder you lean on, and the company you need when you just want company. In turn, I will only ask for the same. Your eyes are extraordinary.
You never knew your parents at all or any relatives?”
She shook her head. “Never. I don’t even know my birthday. I just celebrate it in January, because that is when I was turned over to the state.”
“Does it bother you sometimes? Knowing you were abandoned?” he asked his deep voice filled with concern.
She knew he only asked to find out more about her, but she wasn’t sure if she wanted him to find out everything about her, because once he did his attention would turn elsewhere, even though he said it would not. Yet, to deny him information when he asked so honestly as if feeding him this would only make him want to know more, made it hard for her to deny him, so she knew she would tell him anything he wanted to know. “No, not anymore. I mean as a little girl, I dreamed of waking up one day and my parents came knocking at whatever foster home I was at to take me away. I use to scream when they told me I’d be moving to a new home, because I thought the more homes they moved me to, the harder it would take for my parents to find me. As I grew older, in my teen years, I would just wish for even one parent to come. A mother or a father, then I would just want an aunt, grandfather, someone, anyone.”
Her voice faltered a little, and she used the opportunity to sip a little water. “As soon as I turned sixteen, I went to the judge and received my independence. I’d been doing word transcribing for a while and my foster father had been taking every nickel and dime I made. I stopped looking for any semblance of family after I went to Chicago where it all started, but no one had any records I could get to. Everything was private as if no one wanted me to find out who created me, so I went on with life, but . . .”
“But what?” he asked eagerly enthralled by what she was telling him.
She leaned on the table, raising one hand up to rest her chin on the end of her palm. “As all girls, I wish for that something of a father to come into my life and be there. Dr. Welch in Davenport came close to it, but there is nothing like the real thing. My greatest wish from when I was a little girl is to walk down the aisle on my wedding day to the man I will love forever and look beside me to the man who has loved me from the beginning.” She blinked away the pain. “It’s just a dream, I guess. Only a dream.” Then she muttered under her breath, “I’ve been having a lot of those lately.”
Meeting Thaddeus’s eyes again, she wondered what he was thinking and if he had heard her last comment. He looked doubtful.
“I’m not sure what to say. I am unsure how to take this all.” She softly touched the top of his hand and smiled comfortingly.
“Listen. Just listen.” Small ripples of pleasure surged through her fingertips, up her arm and through her veins. She wondered had he felt the same from her touching him, but didn’t ask.
The waitress broke the electricity between the, when she brought their food over. Skye withdrew her hand.
“Thank you for having lunch with me,” he said when the waitress left.
“It’s no problem. It’s what friends do.”
“I must admit all of this is very new to me. I’ve never had a female friend. Not even in high school.”
“Will you be out of town long?”
“I’m traveling with a good friend of mine to Ohio to meet a lawyer about some personal business. We’ve been working on finding someone for about three years.”
“Would that be Thomas Blair? I typed the letter last week.”
“Yes it would be Thomas Blair. I’m mostly traveling with him for support. The mother of the child just died and finally released some vital information. We’re going to search around and hope he finds what he is looking for.”
“With all the time you put into it, I hope so too,” she said wishing him well.
“You mentioned something under your breath having a lot of dreams. What did you mean by that?”
She flushed embarrassed to know he’d been paying close attention to her. “I’ve been having these dreams about being with someone. As wild as I know my imagination can be, I know I could never imagine something so clear. Like I’m really there.”
Thaddeus heart began to beat faster, but he put the thought that raced through him behind. Impossible! Skye could not be part of Fats ring. Never could she be. “Do you do it often?”
“Every once in a while.”
“May I be so bold to ask whom do you have dreams about?”
She hid her blush biting her lips fighting the flush covering her whole body. “It’s no one,” she quickly lied. “After my assault at a young age, I stopped dreaming.”
“Stopped dreaming?” he frowned. “And recent events in your life have made you start? Could it have been the move?”
“I thought of that option to. Taking this step in my life was scary, but I knew it was something which had to be done.” Her voice faltered wanting to elaborate more about the trouble she believe she could be in, but decided maybe next time she would.
“It’s confusing, but I want to make the best of this decision.”
He took her hand in his and lightly brushed her knuckles with his lips. “I believe you have.”
She gently took her hand away and changed the subject. As they ate, he noted everything about her, without seeming too obvious.
Could she be apart of Fats ring and not know it? He wanted to know desperately, yet he didn’t want to press her remembering how Dr. Johnson said the fragile state of mind they could be in. His Skye?
He couldn’t fathom the thought, but remembering how the Case looked and his Skye he was becoming more aroused by the minute.
Deciding to separate the two in his mind, he concentrated on Skye. He wanted to get too much of her, so he could get just enough, but it seemed the more things he noted about her, the more he wanted to be with her, know about her, make her happy.
This was crazy he knew, sitting here having lunch with her. He didn’t know if he could have just come into town and not see her.
Not after they had made so much progress last night.
When they were paying for the bill together, she asked, “I don’t mean to waste what little time you have.”
This time he put his finger to her lips to stop her. The movement was erotic and sweet at the same time. “Don’t ever think you are a waste of time to me. If you were, I would let you now, don’t you think?” As he spoke the tip of his finger traced the bottom of her lip. When he realized how intimate the touch was, he drew away instantly regretting what he had done.
She nodded stiffly trying to ignore the madness of emotions she was feeling. “As friends, I believe you.”
“No matter how important I am to the world around us, when I make time for you, it means I want to be with you. I know I am not obligated, nor am I forced. I want to be here.” Bad timing happened at that moment when his cell phone went off. To further his bad luck, it was Craig’s contact telling him Craig needed to see him immediately at the apartment. Cursing under his breath, she already knew this meant he had to leave.
“I understand,” she said, really meaning the words as she stood up. He followed her to her car feeling like an idiot. First, he said he wanted to be with her, and then he had to leave when his phone went off. It didn’t look good for the home team.
“I’ll try to call you before I leave tomorrow night,” he promised. “Mind if I call you late?”
“No. It was a nice lunch... Thaddeus.” She outstretched her hand. “Till the next time?”
“Promise. If you feel like talking any time, you can call me over at the River Place apartments. That’s where I’m staying for now.”
“Sure.” Getting in her car, she took a deep breath wondering if she should be making a big deal about his work coming first. She was very understanding because she would do the same if it concerned her business.
Instead of going home, she went to the library to look through some more information on the doctors and TAC Enterprises. About five she found the connection between them, when TAC donated over half a million dollars to the study on GHB which Dr. Porter was in charge of. Now all she needed was to put the drug inside her of and Dr. Porter’s secret study together. She was sure there was some law breaking taking place and charging whom ever with a crime would suit her just fine. She only wanted to stop the doctors before they injected more unsuspecting women.
She pulled up in her driveway to see Dr. Himes and Dr. Porter standing on her doorstep. It looked as if they were just getting there and looked please to see her. Warily she got out the car making sure she stuffed the papers she had made copies at the library deep in her purse hoping they wouldn’t see.
“You didn’t come in for you appointment, and we were worried,” Dr. Himes explained.
“So you make house calls? Should I be honored or scared?”
“Both,” Dr. Porter said seriously. “May we come in to speak with you, Ms Patterson?”
Their eyes spoke volumes and she had a feeling denying them would lead to more trouble.
“Yes.” She allowed them to follow her in the house. Putting her purse on a coffee table double-checking the closed zipper she offered them something to drink.
Dr. Himes said nothing, but Dr. Porter asked for a cold tea. Returning to see them with the paper from her purse she became highly upset. Skye grabbed the papers out of Dr. Himes hands.
“How dare you!” she screamed furiously.
“How dare we? How dare you put your nose where it doesn’t belong, Ms Patterson?” Dr. Porter pointed to the television where they had put a tape in showing hallway video surveillance on the second floor of her walking down the long aisle at the medical center dated yesterday peeking in the windows of each door.
“I-I was lost,” she quickly lied. “I needed to use the bathroom. I didn’t see anything.”
“Would that be why you’re looking for connections between Fats Coleman and us?” Dr. Himes asked nodding to the papers she gripped to her chest. “You may have not seen a lot, but we think you know enough.”
Dr. Porter turned her around to look at him. “Maybe even too much and if Dr. Carter know how much you know . . .” He left the subject open.
“We want you to keep your mouth shut for your sake, Ms Patterson. You can’t afford to open your mouth to anyone,” Dr. Himes warned her from behind as her eyes were locked with Dr. Porters'.
“You’re a beautiful young woman, Ms Patterson.” Dr. Porter cupped her cheek. His palms felt cold and sweaty. “I have worked decades to make my drug perfect and I will not have you make the last years of my life miserable behind bars. Do we make ourselves clear?”
She nodded slowly too terrified to speak.
Dr. Himes turned her towards her. “It won’t be just us making the threats either if Dr. Carter ever finds about just how much you know. The money and the people funding this project are dirty. Real dirty and they have ways to make people like you disappear.”
Dr. Porter pried the can of ice tea out her hands and opened it.
“Good day, Ms Patterson.” He sipped the drink down and placed the can back in her hand as he followed Dr. Himes out the door.
Her legs buckled under her in terror. What had she gotten herself into? Rocking in trepidation, her mind scrambled for what to do next. With it being Saturday afternoon, she wasn’t sure if she could do anything.
‘Stay calm,’ she told herself. If only that were possible, then she would be able to live her life as if nothing had ever happened.
Coming to Detroit had been a bad thing, she concluded, but she would have never met Thaddeus if she had not come here. This was not the time to think about him . . .
Maybe it was. Maybe she ought to let him know.
Tomorrow, she decided. Tomorrow when he called she would let him know everything. Right now she needed to be ready for anything. Getting up from the floor of her living room, she went to the front door and turned the dead bolt lock. Skye went straight upstairs and packed an emergency bag with extra clothes and food, plus traveler’s checks she had left over from her trip to Detroit, important papers and extra cash. She made a copy of the files and reports she had been researching and stashed all this in the bag as well. Once she was done with that, she went in her backyard and stashed this in the doghouse that came with the house. Trying to work that night was difficult, but soon she opted for a long bath at eight and bed. Too high strung, she reluctantly took a Valium promising herself she would toss them away in the morning. The idea of getting hooked on them made her nervous, but just tonight she would have to take them in order to get any kind of rest.