Authors: Kelly Ilebode
CHAPTER 17
The trip to the Franklin Park Zoo didn’t take as long as Stephanous thought it would. Cassie had actually been a great backseat driver, giving explicit directions and turns. He did expect, at any moment, she was going to say that she was just kidding and ask to be taken somewhere else, but she did not. He could not ever remember going to a zoo as a child, nor ever wanting to. He couldn’t for the life of him figure out why this was so important.
Cassie stared out the window at all of the cars trying to find a parking spot. She couldn’t resist commenting. “Look, Stephan, at the number of people wanting to go to the zoo like me!” She stifled a giggle at Stephanous’s colorful language every time he just missed an open spot.
“Stephan, I am going to have to have a swear jar in this car if you keep cursing. This is a family friendly place. I am sure that many of the parents won’t appreciate your language.”
As he slammed on his brakes, he glared at her through the rearview mirror. But Cassie pretended to ignore him as she viewed the zoo map she had printed out before they left. “Maybe we should try the Zebra entrance instead of the Giraffe entrance,” she piped in a singsong voice.
“I am going to spank you if you continue being this happy,” Stephan growled. Moments later, he found an available spot, and quickly maneuvered in before it was taken. This was going to be a long, insufferable day as far as he was concerned.
Before he could even step out of the car, Cassie was already waiting for him to join her. She really did seem excited, as ridiculous as it may be. Taking her arm, he steered her towards the main gates.
She pulled away gently and chided him. “Stephan, I am not here for you to pull or yank around. I am not going to follow the normal path in there. The sooner you start to relax, the better off both of us are going to be.”
As she stormed ahead in a huff, Stephan felt duly chastised. She was easy as far as his life was concerned.
What was the big deal if he had to spend it at a zoo? As long as it made Cassie happy.
Walking a bit slower, he got in line next to her at the ticket counter and mulled over what he had just thought. Cassie’s happiness did matter to him, and he hadn’t even realized how much.
“That will be thirty-six dollars.”
Stephan stared at the ticket lady. Almost forty dollars to see a bunch of animals and Cassie was digging in her pocketbook for the money. Sakis told him she only made one hundred dollars a week, and she was willing to spend it on him.
“No, this one is on me, Cass.” Stephanous handed the lady the money.
“You don’t need—”
“I know I don’t, but I really want to,” Stephan responded. “I also want to apologize. I have been kind of a shit about the whole zoo thing, but you should be able to do whatever you want to do on your birthday.”
Her face brightened at his sincerity as she looked up at him. “Thank you! I appreciate that. This will be more fun than you think. You will see.”
“I highly doubt that, but let’s do this,” he muttered.
After an hour, Stephanous realized that he was actually having a good time. There was something about being surrounded by children who stared in awe at the many animals the zoo had on exhibit and Cassie kept him very much entertained the entire time. He looked over at her as she leaned against the fence of the giraffe exhibit while she spoke to a small child. Her genuine interest and animation kept the child attentive to whatever she told the young girl and he had to admit, it kept his rapt attention on her also. Cassie was changing him, and Sakis. She expected nothing from either one of them, but took whatever they gave her in complete gratitude.
Watching now as the sun bounced off her newly styled hair and impeccable makeup, Stephanous also realized that they were changing her also. Right now it was for the better. He frowned as he thought about their lifestyle. She had no idea who his employer was, and the pang in his chest made him also realize that he didn’t want her to know, but it was out of his hands. Cassie was highly intelligent. It wouldn’t take her long to figure things out. He could see the way Sakis looked at her. Heard it in his voice when he spoke to her. He would not let her go. There had never been anyone who he had ever allowed dare speak to him the way that she had and Cassie had no clue to any of this.
“Are you coming, scowly?” Cassie laughed.
Stephanous smiled. “I am not scowling, only thinking. There is a difference, you know.”
“Well, no work thinking now. It is my birthday, and if I am going to have one person blow me off, I can deal with it. I am not going to have the second one do it also.”
Stephanous’s look was sharp. “Here it comes,” he stated sarcastically.
Confused, Cassie stopped walking to look up at Stephan.
“Here what comes?”
“Just say what is on your mind and get it off your chest, Cassie. You are pissed Sakis went to work this afternoon, leaving you high and dry. Yes, I know you’re disappointed, but—”
As she jabbed Stephan in the chest, Cassie could feel the irritation rise up inside her. “Don’t, for a moment, think that you know me because you don’t, and don’t put words in my mouth.”
Staring at her incredulously, Stephan had to hurry to catch up to her on the path. She was angry. He grabbed her arm and swung her around.
“Don’t tell me that you are not upset. I can see it on your face.”
“I am upset, because you are ruining a perfectly good time by trying to cause waves.” Her fingers ran through her hair as she looked up at him. “Look, if you must know, I was disappointed this morning when Sakis told me that he was not spending the day with me. But, contrary to popular belief, I am not a child. Work is work and he has a large business. I am not naïve enough to think that he can take time off or cancel scheduled meetings because of me. We have only known each other for a week.” Cassie smiled brightly at Stephan. “I don’t have to work today, and Sakis gave me you for the day, so it is not as if I had to spend it alone.”
She sat on a bench that was set partially in the shade and watched as a giant peacock gracefully spread its wings when another bird slowly walked by it. Stephanous sat down next to her and contemplated what she had said.
“You asked me last week to trust you, Stephan. I am going to ask you to do the same thing with me.” Cassie paused.
“What do you mean?” Stephan stretched out his long legs in front of him; his arm went to the back of the bench behind her. The sun felt fantastic on his skin, and he thought of Greece. Sometimes he missed his country so much.
It might be time to take a vacation soon
. To the average person, they looked like any young couple spending an afternoon together. They would be completely unaware that he had a gun tucked in his back and one strapped to his ankle.
“I have spent my whole life bouncing from one home to the other, not knowing how long I was going to be with that family, or whether or not they were going to treat me kindly. Many of them, I knew, had me just for the money that the state paid them for having a foster child. Sometimes I would stay a month, sometimes a year. When it came time to leave and move on, they would sit me down and tell me some kind of lie as to the reason why I had to go. For many years, the hate burned inside me.” Cassie stared down at her clasped hands. “It was a teacher at one of the high schools, when I was a freshman, who seemed to see what I was becoming and he pulled me aside one day to have a talk. He never knew the impact he made on me that afternoon.”
Instinctively, Stephan touched the back of her head, before running his hand down her hair to offer comfort.
“What did he tell you?”
“He told me to shake it off and to not allow circumstance to control me because it was out of my control. The only thing I had was myself, and if I gave all of that power to the negativity, then I had nothing left to give. He wanted me to forgive everyone and every bad thing that I had been through and start fresh, from that day going forward. He was right, you know. As young as I was, I understood, and from that moment forward, I forgave. Not that I liked it, but I no longer wanted anyone to control me. I started to speak my mind. Learning how to tell the truth and not hurt people with the words. I no longer made excuses as to why my grades were bad, or threw temper tantrums. By the end of that semester, I was a straight-A student. I even worked on changing my Vermont accent, because I knew deep down in my heart that I was going to escape from that world to find a better one.”
“Just like that.” Stephan thought of her assault. He didn’t believe for a moment that she forgave her attacker.
“Just like that, Stephan. My grades improved, my attitude improved, and I started to look forward to my future instead of dreading it. The teacher was right. I was in control of my destiny. I couldn’t and still can’t control what other people do, but I certainly can control how I react or how much energy I give them. Hell no, I can make decisions on my own. It was and still is a very empowering way to live.”
“So, that is why you are in Boston.” Stephan was in awe of her.
“Yes, and that is why Sakis working today bothered me, but I was able to let it go. It is out of my control, and I took the lemons and made lemonade with lots of sugar.” Cassie’s smile was genuine as she looked deeply into Stephan’s eyes.
His stomach did a somersault with the look she gave him.
Knowing what he found out about her past, he knew that it couldn’t have been as easy as she said and he had so many questions.
“You had it rough then? Do you want to tell me about it?”
She rose and pulled him up to his feet. “I do not. What I want is to finish checking out the zoo.”
Stephan was disappointed, but was grateful for the small amount she revealed to him.
Squeezing her hand gently before letting it drop to his side, he had to tell her how he was feeling. “Cassie, thanks for sharing with me. I won’t presume to know what you are thinking next time. You’re pretty great, you know.”
Laughing, she cheekily flipped her hair over her shoulder. “I know, and don’t you forget it.” She nudged him to start walking. “Do you know that I was terrified the first time I saw you, Stephan? You looked so mean, and tough….Who would have known that you are the biggest teddy bear around?”
Stephan groaned dramatically. “Please don’t share that information with anyone!”
The rest of the afternoon flew by and Stephanous was actually sorry to have it end, but he had received a text from Sakis, saying he was almost done with work. “We need to head back now.”
Cassie followed as he led her back to the vehicle. She looked forward to seeing Sakis and anticipated he would have a great evening planned for her.
They had almost reached the car when Stephan heard an engine revving and then the squeal of tires. Looking behind him, Stephan had only seconds to react and shoved Cassie hard, out of the way of the speeding vehicle. Caught unaware, her head struck the side of their car hard as she fell to the ground. Blood began to pour down her face and partially blocked her vision. Stephanous was bent low, his gun drawn as he moved quickly to her side. Throwing open the door, he picked her up and literally tossed her into the backseat. The other vehicle was nowhere in sight. He slid in to the driver’s seat and gunned the engine, furious at himself for letting his guard down.
CHAPTER 18
The black Range Rover zipped through the traffic. Stephanous was careful to stay within the speed limits; he tested the boundaries of proper driving but he really couldn’t afford to get stopped right now. As he mentally calculated the distance to Chestnut Hill or the Ritz Carlton, he chose the privacy of Sakis’s residence.
The less eyes on them the better.
Glancing quickly in the rearview, he caught sight of her sitting motionless: her head was back and her eyes closed as she pressed the fabric he had thrown at her against her wound. The front of her shirt was soaked in blood and he had to remind himself that head wounds bleed a lot. Stephan felt it was just superficial, but he wouldn’t know until the doctor took a look at her. Thankfully, Stephan was able to get Sakis’s personal physician on the first try. It was a great relief to learn the doctor was near the house and would probably be there before them.
“How are you holding up back there?” he asked worriedly.
“Oh, just another day in the park with me,” she stated weakly. “Which hospital are we going to?”
Stephanous didn’t like her pallor, nor her unusual quietness, but he did have to admit, someone like her was probably trying to process what just happened. He was more than sure that she would make up for it in the end. “I am taking you to Sakis’s house in Chestnut Hill. He has a private doctor who will look at you and determine whether or not we need to make the trip in.”
The gate was open; the guard detail stood on either side of the driveway when they arrived. As he checked the rearview mirror, he was relieved to see that her eyes were still closed. At least he didn’t have to answer questions about the extra personnel. Speeding down the long driveway, he pulled in front of the main door. He left the vehicle running as Stephan grabbed her up into his arms as if she weighed nothing.
Cassie was mortified. “I can walk, Stephanous.”
“Shut up, Cassandra,” he snapped back.