OBSESSED WITH TAYLOR JAMES (18 page)

                                                                                                                                                      
Chapter 14
           
 

The next morning Mario awoke first.  Taylor was sleeping
soundly next to him. He sat on the side of the bed deciding to let Taylor sleep
instead of waking her for work.  He shook his head listening to her light
snoring.  She would not be able to keep her mind on work suffering from a
massive hangover. 

He went into the bathroom to shower.  Turning on the
shower water to warm he went to the sink to shave first.  Dropping the shaver
on the floor, he kneeled down to get it from under the pedal sink where it
rolled.

He looked closely at the substance lying on the floor. 
Wetting his index finger, he dabbed the substance and held it under the light. 
It was particle dust from the plaster.  Mario turned up the hot water in the
shower.  The steam from the shower flowed upward to the ceiling revealing tiles
in the ceiling were slightly different in color.

“Maldita sea!”
He cursed quietly.

He rushed from the bathroom to the bedroom.  Closing the
curtains facing the bed, he searched the walls of the room.  The noise he was
making caused Taylor to shift on the bed, kicking off the covers to expose her
body clad only in skimpy underwear.  He continued to search conspicuous places
to hide a camera, trying to be quiet.  The light switches were flat on the wall
so that would not be a good place to hide anything.  He searched the lampshades
and perfume bottles on her dresser.  The picture frames and various
knick-knacks on shelves.  He came up with nothing.

Taylor sat up looking dazed.  “Mario, why are you making
noise?” She asked in a ragged dry voice.

He jumped on the bed pulling the cover over their heads. 
“Baby, did you replace any ceiling tiles in the bathroom lately?”

“What are you doing?” she asked trying to remove the
cover from over her head.

He put his finger to her lip to quiet her.  “Keep your
voice down.”

“What are you doing and why are we whispering?  Who is
here?”

“Taylor, cut it out and listen to me.  I’m dead
serious…think baby.  I know you’re dealing with a massive hangover but push
past it and clear your head.  Have you done any work in the bathroom or
anywhere in the house requiring you to hire workmen?”

“I haven’t done anything lately.  Why?”

“Promise you will stay calm when I say this.  Don’t jump
or scream; we have to stay quiet.”

 She licked her lips.  “You’re scaring me, Mario.”

“I know, and that’s the last thing I want to do, but I
believe you are being watched.”

“What? Who would want to watch me?” She asked. 
Scratching her head, she sighed when he lifted an eyebrow. “You can’t seriously
believe Dillon snuck in my house and installed cameras to watch me.”

“Who else is infatuated with you to the point of
obsession?”

She put her hand over her mouth. “Excuse my breath
because I know it’s bad, but what did you find in the bathroom?”

“Plaster dust on the bathroom floor.  I turned the on the
shower to let the steam rise.  There is a tiny hole in the ceiling; I found a
camera inside.  Baby, it’s directly over your shower.”

She looks as if a wave of nausea was rumbling in her
belly. “Did you find any cameras in here?”

“No, but I don’t suspect whoever is watching you is into
bathroom fetishes.  I'm guessing cameras are in every room of the house.”

She folded her legs holding onto her ankles.  “My God, I
walk around my bedroom naked. I do my womanly grooming in the shower.”  She
sucked in a frightened breath.

“What, do you remember something?” He asked.

“Baby, we’ve been spied on having sex.  What if we’re
being streamed across the internet?”

The heat was stifling under the tent of bedding.  He
rubbed his brows. “I guess we’ll both be answering questions about our new
career as internet porn stars.”

“This is not funny.  How are we going to find these
cameras and disable them?”

“You stay under the cover.  I’m going to the basement to
shut-off the power,” he said getting out of bed.

Taylor cocooned the bedspread around her and hopped to
the closet to get a robe; cameras or not, she had to brush her teeth. The
peeping pervert would get one last look before the curtain came down for good.

Mario located the electrical box pulling the lever
shutting power to the entire house.  He looked around the basement for any
obscure wiring.  Whoever installed the cameras knew their way around
electricity.  He dropped his shoulders remembering the window by the dryer.  
He cursed again. Damn it, the window! He pushed on it, but it did not open.  It
had been nailed shut.

He went upstairs.  Walking through the kitchen, he
noticed the window over the sink was new.  He shook his head continuing to the
second floor.

“Taylor, where are you?” He asked not seeing her in the
bedroom.

She came out of the closet dressed in jeans and a cotton
shirt. “Here I am.  What did you find in the basement?”

“Nothing, but I’m not an expert at looking for hidden
cameras.  You had the window nailed shut in the basement?”

“Yeah, I did.  You told me to do that.”

“Yes, I did.  Who installed the window in the kitchen?  I
asked if you had any workers in the house.”

She paced the quiet bedroom.  With no power to run the
central air, the light humming of the unit stopped.  “Sebastian replaced the
window.”

“Who the hell is Sebastian?”

“He’s my neighbor across the street.  The builder I told
you about. He saved me the hassle of calling someone to fix the window the
neighborhood kids broke.”

Mario beat his fist against his forehead, frustrated.
“Yeah right; I remember.  He is a builder who had access to your house.  Why
didn’t you tell me any of this?”

“Mario, I was here when he installed the window.  I sat
in the kitchen and watched him do it.  He didn’t go anywhere else in the
house.”

“Did he do the window in the basement?”

She chewed her lip folding her hands together. “Yes! It
took him five minutes to do it.  He was not down there long enough to do
anything else.”

He went to the bed laying on his back staring at the
ceiling.  Taylor opened the curtains to let in sunshine.  The sun’s rays
bounced off the ceiling fan’s gold base.  He rose to stand on the bed and
fiddle with the fan.  “There is a camera hidden in the ceiling fan.” He
attempted to pluck it from the base with his finger.  “These things are small
and may not need electricity to power them.”

Taylor rubbed her arms.  “So the snake could be watching
us now?”

He nodded. Let’s go,” he said gathering his shoes and
shirt.”

“Mario, shouldn’t we call the….”

He hurried over to where she stood and pinched her lips
together.  “We’ll talk in the car.  I don’t know if these damn cameras carry
sound or not.”

*****

The laptop closed when the screen went black.  The
intruding eyes lost the feed to all cameras instantly.  The intruder got up
from the desk and walked to the shrine holding the items lifted from Taylor’s
house.  Fingers brushed across the red bra and panties pinned to a white satin
pillow.  The wine glass with the lipstick imprint of Taylor’s perfect lips lay
protected in a clear glass box.  A plush towel she’d used after a shower lay
folded in a plastic bag.

Anger grumbled in the belly of the intruder.  The
boyfriend had discovered the cameras cutting off the viewing of the desired
object.  Clenching a fist, the intruder pounded it against a stiff leg deciding
the boyfriend had to go if he continued to interfere.

*****

Seated in the car, Taylor finally let what was happening
sink in. “This is not Dillon, Mario.  He couldn’t change the battery in my
car.  There is no way he could install cameras in my house.”

“I’m not convinced it isn’t Dillon.  But humor me, who
else could it be?  What other person have you cut loose who isn’t taking it
well?”

She shook her head missing his sarcasm.  “I haven’t had a
serious boyfriend in years.  I don’t even know where he is these days.  I have
to call the police, Mario.”

“Yes, call them.  They need to know what is going on.”

Taylor’s eyes shot to Mario’s face. “What if a client is
behind this?”

“Do you suspect any of your clients could be stalking
you?”

She grimaced. “Not likely.  I deal with heads of
corporations.  None of them would be interested in me personally.”

“Baby, you never know what is on the mind of a sick
individual.”  He shifted his weight in the bucket seat to face Taylor. “The
person we are dealing with knows where you live and has been in your house
before.”

“Wh-what do you mean?”

“A couple of weeks ago, remember?  I stepped in a wet
spot on your carpet.  It smelled like wine.  Taylor, We had wine with dinner
that night but did not take it upstairs with us.”

“The scumbag was watching us then?  I am not going back
in that house. I will stay with Sabrina until I find a place, but I’m done.”

“You will stay with me so I can keep an eye on you. 
However, we have to go in one more time and look for anything missing or moved
out of place.”

“Missing? What would be missing besides me if I don’t
leave?”

“I’m talking about personal belongings of yours.  Taylor,
voyeurs take keepsakes from their victims.  He has been in your house before
watching you on camera.  He has taken something of yours, trust me.”

Taylor frowned shaking her head. “I’ve been taking stuff
to your place when I spend the nights with you. I don’t know what could be
missing or just left at your house.”

“Hmm, true.  What is easier to take other than clothing
items?”  He snapped a finger. “The wine glasses?  Do you remember washing both
of them?”

“You’re right. I remember only washing one wine glass. 
Come to think about it, I haven’t seen my red lacey underwear I purchased from
my trip to Italy.  Did I leave those at your place?”

“I don’t recall, but will look for those later.”

Her cell phone rang startling her. “It’s work,” she said
answering it.  “Good morning, Lynda.”

“Good morning, Taylor.  Are you coming in this
morning?  Mr. Cartwright has been calling for you.”

“No, I will not be in today. I have a power failure at
the house. Did he say what he wants?”

“Not to me.  He asks you call as soon as you arrive. 
I’ll send him an email that you won’t be in today.”

Taylor rolled her eyes upward. “I have a feeling I know
what he wants, Lynda.  Can you do me a huge favor and work on getting my files
in order for all current cases I’m working on; it will make the transition
easier for the next attorney.”

“Taylor, what are you talking about?”

She switched the phone to her other ear. “Lynda, I
suspect the rumors have already circulated around the office concerning me. 
There is a good chance I won’t return to the firm at all.  I want you to know
you have been a valuable assistant, and I’ve enjoyed working with you the last
five years.”

“I’ve heard but don’t pay attention to the rumors,
Taylor.  I know you are a good person and take your job seriously.  Anyhow,
wherever you go, please let me know if you need an assistant.  I’d leave here
in hot second.”

Her eyes leaked tears as Mario rubbed her leg comforting
her.  “I might take you up on that.”

“I’m going to go before I start crying like a baby. 
FYI, Mr. Stevenson has not shown up either.  If I see him later, I will let him
know you won’t be in today.”

Taylor’s tears cut off. “Dillon isn’t in the office?”

“No one has seen him since yesterday around noon. 
Maybe that is what Mr. Cartwright wants to talk about with you.  He knows you
two are friends.”
 

“I haven’t spoken or seen him since early morning
yesterday. Lynda, will you call me if he doesn’t show up at all today.”

Mario reversed out of the driveway before Taylor could
hang up the phone. “We’re going to pay Dillon a visit at home.”

“Mario, we can’t bust inside his home and demand
anything; we’re not cops.”

“And he’s not the NSA. Spying is illegal for common
folks,” he said tooling the Mercedes down the street.

                                                                                                                                                      
Chapter 15
           
 

Dillon sat in the attic of his home flipping through his
journal.  His headache was easing from the pill Kelly had given him, but his
heart weighed heavy with sadness.  As he looked at the pictures of happier
times in his life, the tears ran down his face.

The secret crush he held for Taylor started the first day
he laid eyes on her and never ended.  They were kids, but he knew he had
special feelings for her from an early age.  He recalled her smile and the
twinkles her light brown eyes gave off when she introduced herself at the
playground.  They were both nine years old, and her family had just moved into
the integrated neighborhood.

Once he discovered girls aroused his libido, Taylor became
the object of him satisfying himself in private.  When he was old enough to
date, he only wanted Taylor, but so did every other teenage boy in his school. 
Taylor blossomed into a beautiful young woman with a personality to match her
womanly assets. No other girl in his high school held a candle to her.

He always a day late when he mustered the courage to
approach Taylor with the subject of them being a couple. The first time he got
the nerve to ask was during their first year of high school.  Taylor was in a
relationship, but a rocky one, with a member of the football team.  When it
ended, she was too distraught to talk about being in a relationship with
another boy.  He didn’t push himself on her out of fear of destroying their
friendship.

He tried to give her subtle hints of his attraction to
her throughout high school, but Taylor didn’t see him as a love interest only a
good friend.  It didn’t matter they shared many interests such as both wanting
careers as attorneys.  They also enjoyed scary movies and rollercoasters.  And,
once they found love and marriage, they wanted large families.

His heart shattered when she would talk about her dates
to him.  Not able to deal with other men being with her, he set his mind to
make Taylor love him, however, possible.  During senior year, she called it
quits with her long-time boyfriend.  He figured his chance had finally
arrived.  They’d spend the whole night together talking.  He was there for
her.  She opened up letting him comfort her.  It was a night he would never
forget only Taylor didn’t see it as memorable and went on to make plans to
attend college out of State.

Taylor had set her sights on attending Penn State after
graduation.  It wasn’t his first choice for college, but he was going wherever
she was going to be near her.  He’d never dropped the plan to get Taylor to
fall in love.  At the last minute, she attend Howard University instead of Penn
State, with that, ended his quest to get her to marry him before embarking on
their legal careers.

It didn’t take him long to resume his obsession with
Taylor once they were reunited at the law firm. He would often find himself
daydreaming about her in the middle of the day.  He fantasized about tasting
her full lips and running his fingers against her soft skin.  Even though he
was in a relationship with Kelly, and she would come along with them on movie
nights, he made sure to sit between the two women.  He had to have his Taylor
fix, and it didn’t matter his current girlfriend was in the room.

He closed the book shoving it aside.  It was over.
Everything was over.  The news he received from the doctor about the tumor
growing in his brain explained a lot of what was going on with him.  Why he’d
ruined his relationship with Taylor and possibly why he treated Kelly the way
he did.

The tumor was operable, but one hundred percent recovery
the doctor could not guarantee.  Kelly advised him to have the operation, and
she would take care of him if the operation failed.  He didn’t want to burden
her with taking care of an invalid if the operation left him a vegetable.  He’d
rather die first. And that was a possibility if he didn’t make a decision soon.

Hearing a ruckus outside, he got off the floor looking
out the window.  A man and woman were standing in the yard arguing with Kelly. 
“What the hell…” he said leaving the window.

Outside he confronted a heated Mario yelling at Kelly. 
“Leave her alone, Mario!” He shouted.

Mario fixed his gaze on him and charged after him,
slamming him against the front door. “You took to spying on Taylor as a hobby?”

“What are you talking about?  I’m not spying on anybody!”
Dillon grabbed Mario’s wrist trying to pry them away from his neck.

“We found the cameras in her house! You planted them so
you could watch her.  You sick motherfucker!”  He spewed drawing back his fist
to punch Dillon.

Taylor grabbed his hand before it could make contact with
Dillon’s face. “Don’t hit him, Mario.  We’ll call the police and let them
handle it!”

“Let me go, Taylor.  I’m ending this bullshit once and
for all!”  He growled.

“Please! If you hit him, that doesn’t make you the better
person, Mario!”

Kelly ran from the house holding the phone. “I’m calling
the police! I want you both arrested for trespassing.”

Mario kept Dillon in place and fumed at Kelly. “What about
your boyfriend?  Are you going to tell the police he is spying on Taylor? I
guess you are okay with that?”

“He isn’t spying on anyone! He has been home since coming
from the emergency room last night.”

“Mario, please let him go,” Taylor begged tugging at his
hands. “It’s not Dillon doing this.”

Mario released Dillon.  He slumped to the ground.  Taylor
kneeled down beside him. “Why were you at the emergency room?”

He didn’t say anything or look at her.  Kelly rushed over
to him holding him in her arms.  “He has a brain tumor.  He could die, Taylor.”

She stood straight backing away from him “What?”

Kelly’s face reddened.  Streaks from her makeup stained
her face from her tears. “Yeah, your boyfriend could have killed him, if he’d
hit him.  Go away and leave us alone.  This is what you wanted, and now you
have it.”

Taylor scanned their faces.  They both looked to be under
great stress.  She believed Kelly was being truthful and not covering up for
Dillon. “Kelly, I never wished him an illness.”

“Me neither.  I was willing to take care of him even
though he loves you, but he won’t have the surgery…”

“Kelly, shut up,” he shouted at her.

“No, I won’t shut up.  She should hear this.”

Taylor watched Mario storm to the car and lean against it
pouting.  She would deal with him later. “I want to hear it.  Kelly, tell me,
what has to be done to remove the tumor.”

“The tumor is growing slowly.  They can remove it, but
recovery of all his motor skills isn’t guaranteed.”

Taylor asked swallowing.  “And, if they don’t remove it?”

“He will die as the tumor grows and takes over his
brain.”

She looked down at Dillon. ”Dillon, have you talked to
your parents.”

He shook his head. Kelly brushed strands of hair away
from his face. “He doesn’t want them to know.  No one else knows but you and
Mario now.”

Taylor blinked letting tears fall down her face.  “I
can’t deal with this and everything else going on in my life.  I can’t,” she
said walking away and over to Mario.

Mario welcomed her in his arms. “I’m sorry, baby.  I’m so
sorry.”

*****

They drove in silence as Taylor sobbed.  Although mad at
Dillon to the point of never wanting to talk to him again, she didn’t want him
to die.  She wiped her nose. “Where do we go from here now that you realize
Dillon is not out to harm me?”

Mario shook his head.  He was upset for charging after
Dillon.  If Taylor hadn’t intervened, he could have killed Dillon had he hit
him. “I was wrong about him.  I acted an ass, and I owe him an apology.  But in
my defense, he was acting weird and gave me reason to believe he could stalk
you.”

“He told me about the headaches and I wouldn’t listen to
him.  I threw him out of my office without letting him explain he was sick.” 
The tears returned. “I’ve known him since I was nine.  He is part of my family;
he can’t die and leave me.”

“Taylor, I understand you are upset about Dillon and my
heart is breaking knowing I can’t fix that for you.  However, we have to
concentrate on you right now.  You are in danger, and until we find the person
responsible for installing the cameras in your house, you are my first
priority.”

“Concentrate! I don’t have anything to concentrate on,”
she yelled at him. “I don’t know who the hell, is after me or why.  I mind my
own freaking business. I don’t lead men on at bars or parties.  So, whoever
this person is, is someone I don’t know.  How many times do I have to tell you
that?”

“Okay, Taylor,” he said calmly.  She was beyond upset and
teetering on the edge of collapsing.  You should eat and get a little rest
before we go to the police.”

“I don’t want to eat, rest, or call the police yet.  I
want a private investigator.  I want this asshole caught and brought to me so I
can fucking rip his guts out with my bare hands!”

His hands tightened around the steering wheel.  “Get
real, Taylor! This is not a joke! Whoever this person is knows your routine
well enough to get inside your house any time of the day or night.  He is
taking small stuff working his way up to getting you.  I understand what is
happening in your life is building you with enough rage to kill someone, but
don’t be a fool—this person is more dangerous than you, and will not hesitate
to kill.”

Her eyes burned into him.  “How do I know it isn’t you?”

The car swerved with her question. “What? You honestly
think I am stalking you…seriously! Why would I do that?”

“None of this started until I got involved with you. You
have distrust issues, and clearly, you have a problem with Dillon and me being
friends.  You have been trying to get him out of my life since we started
dating.”

“Do you hear what you are saying?  Why would I need to
stalk you? We are dating.”

She didn’t answer but yanked on the door handle. “Pull
the car over and let me out, Mario!”

“I’m not going to let you out of the car while you are
behaving like a mad woman. We’ll be at my place in a minute, so chill.”

Punching him repeatedly on the arm, she screamed, “Let me
out now!”

“Taylor, quit hitting me before I crash the damn car!” 
The car swerved as he tried to control her hands and steer at the same time. 
Hitting a bump in the road, Mario couldn’t control the vehicle and jumped the
curb slamming into a tree.

The air bags deployed instantly. Taylor touched the
stinging on her forehead; blood stained her manicured nail, and she tasted the
metallic substance seeping in her mouth.  Unbuckling the seatbelt, she tried to
open the door but it would not open.

She looked over at Mario.  His head was slumped against
the airbag deployed from the steering wheel; he was bleeding from the head. 
“Oh, my God, what have I done? Mario, wake up!” she yelled shaking him.  He did
not respond.

“Help!” She screamed banging on the window.  People on
the street ran over to assist but couldn’t get the doors open.  Her heart raced
with fear as she tried to locate a pulse on Mario’s wrist. “Dear God, please
don’t let him be dead…please.  I didn’t mean what I said,” she cried.

Again, she tried to wake him. “Mario, get up! Don’t you
die on me!”  A man yelled through the window the fire department was on the
way.

Minutes later a fire engine was on the scene with
firefighters working to get the driver’s side door open.  A firefighter freed
her first. “Ma’am, are you okay, can you get out of the car on your own?”

Blood from her head dripped on her white shirt staining
it. “I can’t leave my boyfriend.  Please help him.”

“We’ll get him out.  We have to get you out first.  Give
me your hand.”

She resisted the firefighter’s assistance and fought with
him.  “I can’t leave him. This is my fault!”

Tired of fighting with her, he picked her up and carried
her to an ambulance.  Taylor sat on the gurney watching the firefighters work
to free Mario from the wrecked Mercedes Benz.