ChapterTen
WALSH
It’s late, and I haven’t heard from Nadia since this morning. I was going to pick her up from school, but she hasn’t answered any of my texts. I waited outside, but she never showed, so I waited for Kyle to come home. After looking in his room and in the pool house, I find him in the game room blasting music while he plays Xbox.
“Hey,” I say when I walk in, but he doesn’t look up or turn down the music.
I’ve tried to give him as much freedom as I can, but he always abuses it. On top of that, he’s flat-out disrespectful, no matter how hard I try to have mature conversations with him. I’ve done my best to show him what responsibility looks like and what hard work can truly build, but he’s more interested in the fast track to wealth and doing whatever the fuck he wants.
“Kyle!” I say louder, and he rolls his eyes as he pulls off his headphones.
“What?”
“Did you see Nadia at school today?” He rolls his eyes again and flops back on the couch.
“She left early. Something about falling down the stairs, I don’t know.” He shrugs and then narrows his eyes on me. “Why are you so interested? I saw you dropped her off at school today. Her family is loaded. Did they hire you as a chauffeur?” He laughs at his own stupid joke.
Nadia fell? Is that why she’s not answering her phone? Could she be hurt? Now I’m beginning to worry, and I’m pissed off that this little shit is getting his kicks off making fun of her.
“I guess I’m just not the kind of asshole that leaves her alone with no way to get home.” The dig is low, but it’s a direct hit, and now Kyle is scowling.
I don’t have time to sit here and listen to him. I’ve got to check on Nadia and make sure she’s okay.
“At least I’m not an old man chasing after barely legal pussy.” Kyle’s words have me stopping in my tracks just as I reach the door. “If you’re that desperate for a fuck, I could have given you the names of girls that actually put out.”
Slowly I turn around, and the stare I give him contains the full force of my wrath. He must sense the change in the room because he sobers and then swallows hard.
“For the short time you’ve got left in my house, you’ll watch your fucking mouth.”
He’s silent for a long time, but eventually, he nods, and I walk out of the room. I hear him mumble something under his breath, but I can’t take the bait. I’m too fucking pissed to deal with him right now, and it’s on top of my worry for Nadia and if she’s okay. This might be breaking all my rules, but I would do it over and over again for her.
By the time I drive over to her house, it’s dark, but I don’t take any chances and park down the street. I know that this is insane, I know that this is so wrong on so many levels, but I’m beyond reason, and I have to see her. If something is wrong with Nadia, I don’t know what I’ll do.
When I get to her house, I see there are lights downstairs and from the street, I can see her sister and what must be her husband in the living room watching television. I look to the second floor and I see a window with a light on that looks like a bedroom. Walking down the side of the house, I see there’s a trellis that I can climb that will take me straight up to it. There’s a small voice in the back of my head telling me this is a bad idea, but I ignore it and begin to climb.
As soon as I make it to the top, I take a quick peek and see it’s Nadia’s room. There’s no mistaking the uniform draped over the chair, and I see her bookbag on the floor next to it. Taking a chance, I push on the window, and to my surprise, it’s unlocked. I really need to talk to her about home safety, but that’s for another time.
When I climb inside, I glance around and see the door on the other side of the room is cracked. I hear water running, and it sounds like the shower is on. Slowly I make my way over and nudge the door open a little more. In front of me is Naida, completely naked behind a wall of glass while she soaps her body. Her lush curves and wet tits are begging me to drink from them. I’m so fucking hard watching her touch herself that it’s not until she turns around to face the showerhead that I see the scrapes and bruises along her back.
“Who the fuck did that to you?” I say, louder that I intended to.
Nadia shrieks as soon as she hears me say it, and then she turns around and sees me standing there. She shuts off the water and quickly grabs a towel, but I’m rooted to the spot.
“Walsh,” she hisses as she looks behind me. “How did you get in here?”
Outside her bedroom door, I hear her sister call out. “Nadia? Are you okay up there?” Footsteps are coming closer, and Nadia panics.
She pushes past me and closes the door to her bathroom, but I can still hear her sister checking on her.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Nadia tells her. “I almost slipped in the shower.”
“Gosh, you are so clumsy. We’re going to have to get you some of those old lady grippers to go in there.” Her sister is sweet in how she’s teasing her, but I can’t help but think she’s right. “Isn’t one fall enough for today?”
“Uh yeah.” Nadia sounds like she’s nervous, and I wonder if her sister caught it too.
“Are you okay?” her sister asks, confirming my suspicions.
“Yeah, just tired and ready for bed. Thanks for checking on me, but I’m really tired.”
“Okay, well, just let me know if I can do anything for you. And your new phone will be here tomorrow, so don’t stress about breaking your old one. It was time for an upgrade anyway.”
Nadia laughs nervously before she tells her sister goodnight and then locks her bedroom door. A heartbeat later, she swings open the door to the bathroom, and it’s like she’s still shocked to see me standing there.
“Walsh, what are you doing here?” she whispers.
“I had to make sure you were okay.” I reach out and tug on the edge of the towel. “Now tell me how you got those marks, and then I’m going to kiss them better.”