Shattered (15 page)

Chapter
Nine

“That was a wise decision,” a cold, smooth
voice said behind me. I whipped myself around and felt my jaw drop
a foot. Robert Hunt was standing behind me in the train station,
his manicured hands tucked casually into the pockets of his slacks.
I looked around for his flunky body guards, and the man let out a
trilling chuckle. “I’m alone this time,” he said. “Some errands are
better taken care of without any witnesses.”

A deep, acidic feeling of dread began to well
up inside me as Robert sat down beside me on the bench. He looked
calmer than I’d ever seen him before, serene. His placid expression
only amped up my own fear.

“What are you doing here?” I asked him
bluntly.

“I came to see you off,” Robert said, “It
would have been awfully rude of me to send you away without my best
wishes, after all.”

“How did you know I was leaving?” I asked. “I
didn’t even tell—”

“I’ve been having you followed, naturally,”
Robert said, as easily as if he were describing the weather.

“Followed?” I echoed, “But...why?”

“I wanted to ensure that you were making the
right choice,” Robert said, staring into the bustling crowd, “And
you have. Good girl.”

“What choice would that be?” I pressed,
throwing caution to the wind.

“Whether or not to heed my warning, of
course,” Robert replied.

“Your warning...” I repeated.

“Well, my relayed warning, I suppose,” Robert
clarified. “I can’t be expected to lurk in shadows myself, after
all. My suit might get wrinkled.”

“It was you,” I breathed, “You sent
that...person...to wait for me in the dark.”

“Guilty,” Robert said lightly, “I’m glad to
see that my methods are so effective.”

“How could you do something like that?” I
asked, “That man could have killed me.”

“No one was going to kill you,” Robert said,
rolling his eyes, “What a dramatic little thing you are. My men
only kill with my permission. Now, if they had seen you leaving
Anderson’s apartment all dolled up for the next fight, then yes,
they would have killed you. But you’ve passed the test. You’re
leaving, I take it. That’s so much for the better. I don’t really
like picking off innocent young women, Kaela. Especially those with
such lovely figures as yourself. The world needs as many lovely
figures as it can get.”

I sat staring at him, struggling to take in
all he was telling me. “You were going to have me killed if you
thought I was staying with Anderson,” I said.

“That is correct,” he answered.

“And you decided to come here and reveal this
to me because...?” I prompted.

Robert swung his gaze my way for the first
time. A look of maniacal satisfaction, of smug, murderous glee, was
fixed up his face. “Think about it like this,” he told me, “I am so
confident in my ability to pick you off like a fly, without any
chance of repercussions, that I am comfortable with strolling on
down here after you and letting you know. Your life is so
insignificant that I can confront you in the most public of places
and reinforce my warning without a care in the world. I could kill
you tonight and sleep soundly. I am more concerned about what I’m
having for dinner than I am whether you wake up tomorrow morning.
If you get on your train like a good girl and never see Anderson
again, I’ll let you live in peace. But if you ever see him again, I
will know. And I will kill you.”

“But why?” I said softly, paralyzed with
fear, “Why do you want to kill me?”

“Because you are endangering my investment,”
Robert said.

“Anderson?” I asked.

“Obviously,” Robert said, “I have put far too
much time and resources in that boy for you to fuck it all up.”

“Is his fighting career that important to
you?” I asked.

Robert laughed coldly. “Of course not,” he
scoffed, “You don’t think I have any emotional attachment to the
kid, do you? He’s a race horse. I snatched him up when he was small
and bred him to be a champion.”

“You didn’t snatch him,” I said, “You took
him in when his parents were killed.”

“That’s one way to put it,” Robert said,
“Another way is that I had those lowlifes killed and got two
potential prize hogs in the process.”

“His father was your friend,” I said,
aghast.

“That’s what Anderson believes,” Robert said,
“And it’s a bold faced lie. His father was a broke, miserable
failure who came to me for a loan when Anderson was born.
Eventually, when it became clear that my loan would never be
repaid, I decided to accept my payment in the form of Anderson and
his brother. The interest being the parents’ lives, of course.”

“That’s horrible,” I breathed.

“That’s business,” Robert said, “You see, I
had just cooked up this fantastic scheme to build my fortune. I’d
been buying up fight clubs for years, building my network. The New
York ring was my crowned jewel. But still, even taking a cut of all
the money that went through the clubs was small change compared to
what a prize fighter would bring me. I’d been training the boys for
years, but I couldn’t figure out a way to get them interested in
the underground scene. The younger one was never good enough, of
course. He never pulled his weight. That ridiculous boy assumed
that I’d be willing to send him off to college on my dime. I didn’t
take him in so that I could be a piggy bank. But just as he was
packing up to go, I had a stroke of genius. I’d killed off the
parents already. Why not use the little brother as a sacrificial
lamb?”

“You...You killed Toby?” I asked, my chin
beginning to quiver.

“Not directly,” Robert said, waving away my
question, “I did, however, pit him against the most ruthless
fighter I could get my hands on. The man had already killed three
in the ring. I figured that my chances were good. Even if the kid
had just slipped into a coma for the rest of his life, it would
have been good enough motivation for Anderson. He just did me one
better, is all. It couldn’t have gone better. Anderson took the
bait hook, line, and sinker. And before I knew it, my club had a
new champion to publicize. He had no idea that the clubs belong to
me, of course. He has no idea what my profession is, exactly.”

“And what would you call that profession?” I
asked coldly.

“Power,” he answered simply. “By whatever
means possible.”

“How has Anderson not figured this all out?”
I asked.

“God only knows,” Robert laughed, “The boy
isn’t exactly sharp, is he? Toby got all the brains. He probably
would have figured everything out, too, given enough time. Good
thing he was finished off in a timely manner. That would have been
awkward, to have killed him myself. I thought it was much more
discreet to let it happen naturally.”

“Naturally?” I hissed, “You set him up. You
had their parents murdered. You raised Anderson to be a super-human
fighter at the expense of his entire family. Everything he ever
loved. You call that natural?”

“Someone’s got a little spunk after all,”
Robert smiled. “That’s good. I like a girl with spunk. I’m actually
rather relieved that I don’t have to kill you, after all. I hate
killing beautiful women. It seems like such a waste. But now that
you know what I’m capable of, what I’m willing to do in order to
keep Anderson right where I want him, I’m sure you’ll be a good
girl and stay the fuck away.”

“You’re a monster,” I told him, throwing
caution to the wind. “You’re the lowest, most cowardly excuse for a
man I’ve ever met.”

“And you are a disposable collection of
fuck-holes that is no longer my problem,” Robert said, standing up
and brushing off his suit. “Have a safe trip, Kaela. And remember,
if I see you back in my arena, I will have you killed. And make no
mistake, it won’t be a quick death, either. If I’m going to have my
men kill such a sexy thing as you, I’ll instruct them to make good
use of you before you’re dead.”

He gave me a sinister, haunting smile, and
turned on his heel. I watched him fade away into the crowd,
disappearing before my eyes. My mind was racing, my heart rattling
against my rib cage, threatening to burst. I had no idea what to do
next. Never in my life had I felt smaller or less capable. This
man, this person that Anderson had trusted more than anyone on the
planet, was responsible for orchestrating every hardship that
Anderson had ever faced.

I had to tell Anderson what was going on. I
had to tell him everything I’d just learned. But how could I ever
get close enough to tell him without putting both our lives in
danger? I tried to imagine what I would say to him, how I could
possibly break the news that his entire life had been a lie. Would
he resent me forever, if I came bearing such ghastly news? Would he
tell me I was a liar, and send me packing forever? Or would he
believe me, and come to terms with the deceit he’d been living
in?

Shakily, not knowing where I was heading, I
stood up from the bench. As I straightened up, I realized with cold
fear that I’d begun to hallucinate. There, standing behind a tall
pillar, was Anderson. Or at least, that’s what my eyes were telling
me. Surely, it wasn’t really him. There’s no way he could have
known where to find me. There’s no way he could have followed me to
the train station. I imagined that I saw him lift his hand and wave
to me, flagging me down. He wasn’t more than ten feet away. I
rubbed my eyes feverishly, but he was still there when I looked
again. I made my way slowly forward, not trusting my own
perception. As I approached, I began to grow apprehensive.
Anderson’s features were utterly set, rock solid, unreadable.

I drew up before the apparition. He looked
down at me impassively, his face frozen. With a trembling hand, I
reached toward him. I gasped as my fingers closed around hard
muscle.

“It’s you,” I said.

“It’s me,” he answered.

“How did you know I was here?” I asked.

“I was in the neighborhood,” he said once
again.

“Did you...” I started fearfully.

“Did I hear?” he asked, “Is that what you
were going to say?”

I nodded.

“Yes,” he said, “Yes, I heard.”

“How much?” I asked.

“Everything,” he said. “Every single
thing.”

I grabbed his hand with both of mine and
brought it to my lips. There was nothing I could possibly say to
begin making things OK. I could only stand there in the shadowy
corner and offer him my love. It wasn’t much, but it was the best I
could do.

“What happens now?” I asked, looking up into
his stony face.

“I don’t know,” he said quietly. “I just
don’t know...”

We stood still amidst the sea of people that
was Penn Station. Foot traffic flowed around us, yet to me,
Anderson and I were the only people on the planet. I looked
searchingly into his eyes, trying to see past the icy barrier that
had risen there. I couldn’t begin to comprehend what he was
thinking. After everything that Robert had revealed, Anderson must
be reeling. I wanted to make everything better, I wanted to make
him happy. But I couldn’t bring his family back. I couldn’t give
him a second childhood. I could only be there for him as best I
could.

“We can’t stay here,” he said finally.

“No,” I agreed, “I’m sure Robert’s men are
lurking around.”

“Listen,” Anderson said, looking intently
into my eyes, “There’s a hotel three blocks from here. I need you
to go there and wait for me.”

“OK,” I said.

“I won’t be there until tonight,” Anderson
went on. “But you’re going to lock yourself in that room until I
get there. I’ll have the rest of the plan for you then. Pay with
this,” he said, thrusting a few hundred dollar bills into my
hand.

“OK,” I said, “I trust you.”

“I know,” he said, kissing me on the
forehead. “Now go.”

I didn’t look back at Anderson as I hurried
away from Penn Station. If he said he had a plan, I would trust
him. I felt like a lost little girl as I picked my way through the
crush of humanity that surged through the train station. I had only
just begun to accept my new reality, and already it was crumbling
away beneath me. I’d all but given up my old life for the fantasy
that Anderson occupied. But now, his entire world was fading into
fiction, too. We were nothing but two lost souls now. But at least
we were in it together.