“Get down on the ground and don’t move,” he said in an urgent whisper. He went to the closet and flung it open.
I reached for the bedside lamp and turned it on. “What’s happening?” I asked. I threw the covers back and scrambled to the ground. Caleb threw something at me and it collided with my chest. He’d given me clothes.
“Put those on, now!” Caleb said. He was climbing into a pair of pants, buttoning them urgently. He fumbled with a box before he got it open. He removed his gun and cocked it.
Adrenaline pounded in my veins. Something bad was about to happen.
“Abra la puerta!” Celia shouted from the other side of the door. She was in a panic of her own and I didn’t know what to make of it.
Caleb rushed toward me and slid onto the floor, I wrapped my arms around him, pulling him close. His hands dug into my wrists as he pulled me away. Something cold and hard made its way into my hand. I looked down and saw Caleb’s gun.
“Get dressed, stay here. I’ll knock two times before I come in. If anyone else comes into this room, you fucking shoot to kill. Do you understand?” he said.
My panic made me deaf and blind. I didn’t understand. I had no idea what Caleb was trying to tell me. He stood and tried to walk away. I grabbed on to his leg, “Caleb! Don’t go, don’t leave.”
“Do what I tell you!” he shouted and pulled free with so much force I was afraid my arm had come out of its socket again. Caleb was at the door before I could catch him again. He held a big knife at his side and stood to one side of the door. He unlocked it slowly.
Celia burst into the room, but she didn’t have a chance to say anything before Caleb grabbed her around the neck with his arm and put the knife to her throat. She struggled, but Caleb subdued her quickly and held her still.
“What’s going on?” he snarled.
“I came to warn you,” she said, “Rafiq and his men are here. They’re downstairs with Felipe. They want to see you.” Celia’s hands held tightly to Caleb’s forearm around her throat. “Por favor,” she sobbed.
“Caleb, let her go,” I sobbed. “She came to warn us.”
Caleb squeezed Celia’s throat until even her sobs couldn’t escape, “We don’t know, Kitten. She could be here to separate us.”
“You’re going to kill her!” I urged. I didn’t believe Celia would sell me out, but I had no reason to believe she wouldn’t. I raised the gun in my hands, “Let her go, Caleb. I’ll keep her here.”
Caleb stared at me. His eyes weren’t his own and reminded me more of an animal than a man.
“Please, Caleb. Let her go,” I begged.
Slowly, Caleb’s arm around Celia’s throat loosened and she collapsed on the floor, sobbing as she held her throat. I looked up at Caleb and saw the horror in his eyes as he looked down at Celia.
“What’s the plan, Caleb?” I said to refocus his attention. As much as I liked Celia, I liked living even more.
Caleb nodded as he fisted a handful of hair at his nape, “I need to go meet them.”
“You can’t! What if they’re just waiting to kill you?!”
“If everything is as Celia says, then there’s no reason I shouldn’t go downstairs?” Caleb went down on one knee and held the knife to Celia’s throat.
“No,” Celia pleaded, “Felipe sent me to warn you.”
“Why would he warn me?!” Caleb insisted.
“Felipe knows what’s been happening between the two of you and hasn’t said a word to Rafiq. He doesn’t want to deal with the fallout. You’ve been here for months, instead of the few days, Rafiq, originally promised. The last thing he needs is bloodshed in the house,” Celia cried. She rubbed at her throat; it was red, but the damage seemed relatively benign. She could speak clearly and there weren’t any bruises.
Caleb stood, “You stay here with her until I get back.”
This was my worst nightmare come to life. Caleb was going to walk out the door and never come back. I just knew it. “Caleb, please don’t go. Let’s leave. Right now.”
“I’ll get her out if there’s trouble,” Celia suddenly offered. Caleb and I stared at her incredulously. “There are passages in the walls. Felipe had them built in case we needed to escape. I’ll get her out, I promise.”
“Why would you?” Caleb asked. He seemed to be coming around toward Celia.
“Not for you,” she spat. “I don’t want her to suffer.”
Caleb nodded, “Thank you, Celia. I’m in your debt.”
“If anything happens to Felipe, I’ll be sure to collect,” she said.
“Understood,” Caleb whispered. He grabbed a shirt from the closet and put it on. “The library?” he asked. Celia nodded and with that, Caleb left the room.
I wanted to scream. Caleb was gone and he’d left me to fend for myself. He’d panicked and perhaps threatened Celia when he didn’t have to.
“Why would you bang on the door?” I asked Celia. She sat on the floor, rubbing her throat and wiping tears from her eyes.
“I didn’t want them to come looking for you. Felipe barely stopped Rafiq from coming up here himself,” Celia said calmly.
I felt the gun, warm from my hand, and wet with sweat. “Caleb says Felipe’s been watching us. He said you’ve been watching us. Why would either of you help?”
“Fel
ipe trusts no one, Kitten. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, but Felipe means more to me than you. I love him, but he’s an opportunist,” she said.
My head was spinning, “Did you really come to warn us, Celia? Is Caleb walking into a trap right now?” I tried to sound contrite. I tried to appear like a friend, asking for another friend’s advice, but truthfully, I wondered if I had it in me to shoot Celia if I had to. The answer terrified me.
“I swear I came to warn you. As far as I know, Caleb is meeting his friends and nothing more. The worst thing you could do right now is panic,” she said.
I saw the pleading in her eyes and my instincts told me I could trust her. I wasn’t sure my instincts were worth a damn, but the alternative left me cold. Celia was right, I was panicking. If Rafiq had wanted us dead and nothing more, he could have gunned us down in our sleep.
“I believe you,” I whispered and set the gun down on the bed. Celia’s eyes cut to it, but she remained in place. I started to put on the clothes Caleb had left for me.
“What are you doing? Get undressed. If they come up here and find you wearing Caleb’s clothes they’ll know you were planning to escape,” Celia said.
“What if something happens and I need clothes?”
“You won’t need them, Kitten. I promise. The danger was in Rafiq finding you both together in a compromising situation.”
Again, I believed her. Perhaps, I would believe anyone who told me I had no reason to kill, and no reason to suspect the worst. Perhaps, Celia was telling the truth. I chose to believe the less horrific of the two. I quickly removed the shirt I had just put on.
Abruptly, there was a knock at the door. “Celia?” asked a male voice.
I reached for the gun.
***
Caleb struggled for calm as he approached the door to the library. Tucked into the back of his pants and sheathed was his large hunting knife. He wondered for a moment if he was doing the right thing by meeting with Rafiq. He had hoped he could convince him their plans for revenge could still prove fruitful without sacrificing Livvie. He still hoped for that particular outcome, but having Livvie in the house, was less than ideal.
Upstairs, Livvie was vulnerable. If anything were to happen to him he knew she stood little to no chance of escape. Caleb had fucked up, plain and simple. He had let his emotions get the better of him and he’d acted rashly with Celia, who perhaps would sell him and Livvie out the moment the opportunity presented itself. For all he knew, she already had.
There was only one way to find out though, and Caleb was determined to see things to their conclusion, one way or the other. He opened the door and stepped into the library. Four sets of eyes turned to greet him and they belonged to Felipe, Rafiq, Jair, and Nancy. Each of the men had a drink in hand and sat near Felipe’s desk chatting about benign things. Nancy knelt at Rafiq’s side, her eyes on the floor. She trembled slightly, and Caleb wondered if it was fear or cold causing it, but didn’t care either way. Caleb breathed a sigh of relief, but still felt worried about the situation upstairs. He hoped Livvie could keep her head and not do anything drastic in his absence.
“Khoya! Were you sleeping? You look exhausted,” Rafiq said with a smile.
“I was,” he said cautiously. “I wasn’t expecting you so soon.”
Rafiq eyed him curiously. “Why would you? I told you I wasn’t sure how long it would take to resolve the situation.”
Caleb often neglected to take into account Rafiq’s political ties to the Pakistani government. From time to time, his job as a military officer took precedent over his more illicit activities. In those circumstances, not even Caleb knew what Rafiq was involved in and he’d never really cared. If Rafiq wanted to maintain separate lives, it wasn’t Caleb’s place to meddle.
“I thought you’d contact me, is all. If I’d known to expect you, I would have greeted you at the door,” Caleb said without bite. Rafiq let Caleb speak candidly in private, but in public, there was a protocol to be followed. Rafiq was older and as Caleb’s mentor and former guardian, in a position commanding respect. To publicly disrespect Rafiq would be folly of the worst kind.
Rafiq smiled, “No worries, Khoya. You’re here now and so am I. Come,” he gestured toward another chair, “have a drink with us.”
Caleb managed a smile, “Of course, but let me go upstairs and put on some shoes first. I wasn’t sure what to expect and I rushed.” What he really wanted to do was go upstairs and give Livvie some relief.
“Where is Celia?” Felipe interjected. His tone was light and jovial, but Caleb saw the way his eyes narrowed and his mouth twisted.
“Upstairs with Kitten, I didn’t want to leave her alone,” Caleb offered, with a warning glance of his own.