RIA ♠
EPISODE •• FORTY •• SEVEN
THEME:RIGHT GUY ????
RIA POV ????
“Ria, meet Chad Efron the detective I told you about”
Ethan introduced a brown haired man to me. His hair was cut in a sas-sy style and a big chain dangling on His n£¢k.
He looked too stylish to be a detective. And not only that..I was meeting a detective in a bar and he was even the bar tender.
“Nice to meet you -“and
“Ria Robert. And it nice to meet you” I gave Ethan a confused look.
“Oh well -”
He leaned on the countert©p
“Sorry I’m dressed like this as a detective. I’m on a mission”
No wonder!
I relaxed
“pri-vate mission anyways. Some thvgs around here won’t let the customers coming in to enjoy their drinks..and sometimes they haras-s ladies too”
“So the owner of the sto-re hired you to catch them?”
“Yes..”
He poured a drink for Ethan
“Want some too?” He asked me
“No I’m fine.. Thanks”
“Let’s talk about your case”
“It about my parents”
“Yeah Ethan told me everything”
Chad started drawing circles on the countert©p.
“There’s a killer is in Idaho. The one who ordered the killings of your parents..and he is your uncle”
“Yes..my dad’s brother”
“Blood brothers?”
“Not really.. Steps actually”
“Have you met him?”
“No. but i’ve met his son”
“Perhaps do you know if his son is aware that his father killed your parents?”
“I doubt it”
It obvious Drake doesn’t know anything.
“He even offered to supply my sto-re with necessary materials”
He won’t have done that if he was aware that his father murdered my parents.
“What if his dad had s£nt him?”
“Well I don’t know if Frederick is aware that I’m alive”
Chad shook his head
“But what if Frederick has seen you on Tv?”
“I don’t know..but Frederick doesn’t know me”
We haven’t met and he never c@m£ to our place in Idaho.
“Good..but what if he s-en-ses some resemblance to your Parents”
I was silent
Could it be that Frederick now knows that I’m alive?
“Did you notice anyone following you around?”
“No”
“At your sto-re?…Like someone coming to act like a customer un-der disguise”
“My workers would have informed me if there was such -”
“What I’m trying to say is that – there is a possibility that Frederick is aware that you’re alive”
My heart beats ra-pidly
He might come after me again.
“I will be travelling down to Idaho to gather some information cause for now we have to work un-dercover”
“What do you nee-d?”
I asked
“Don’t be concerned about what I nee-d.. It should be what kind of people we’ll be nee-ding to put Frederick behind her? -” He paused
And continued after a second.
“Attorney and someone who was involved in the case six years ago..”
“Getting an attorney isn’t a problem but -”
“A detective..”
He cuts in
“I mean the one in charge of the case and a good attorney who will file in for reinvestigation while i work in Idaho”
“I don’t know the detective who was in charge of my parents case”
I looked at Ethan
“Ethan can I get his information?”
“Yes..but I don’t know if he still lives in Idaho”
“I will find him -” he pas-sed a small diary to Ethan.
“And the name of that witness”
“Okay”
Ethan jo-lted down in the notepad and gave it back to chad.
“Do you know if any of MML gang survived?” Chad asked
“I don’t know much about them”
He stared at me
“Tell me the names you can remember”
“Why?”
“One of them might be alive..probably In jail or a mental home”
“Three died in an operation…”
He pas-sed the note to me
I doubt it if anyone of the MML Gang is alive! Lucas and two others died..probably speedy or Kelly. I don’t know..I wrote down the names of the MML Gang…five in number. A notorious gang of Five.
“I’ll call you anytime I nee-d any information”
Ethan stood up and I did the same
“Thank You Chad”
“Anytime”
Then we walked out of the building.
“We didn’t discuss the payment”
I said to Ethan when he drive out of the driveway to the road.
“Don’t worry I’ll handle it”
“What about his feeding, flight and accommodation -”
“Ria..including that too”
“How much?”
“Never mind” he replied
My phone beeped. It was Ian!
“Won’t you pick up your call?”
“Its Ian”
I ru-bbe-d my forehead
I don’t want to lie to Ian about my whereabouts.. And at the same time I know Ian won’t be happy if I told him I’m with Ethan. It seems Ian doesn’t like Ethan. He gets mad each time I tell him Ethan dropped by at the sto-re to say Hi.
My phone st©pped ringing
Things would have been different if Ian knew about my past.
“Is he threatening you in some way?”
Ethan asked
“No..why?”
“He seems very odd to me..like Ian doesn’t want me around you. And for you..I noticed that you don’t want me to be at the sto-re whenever Ian was around”
“You’re mistaken Ethan”
Maybe he’s right!
“Can I ask you a question?”
I shook my head
“Is Ian your b©yfri£nd?”
“No”
“Well Ria…I un-derstand that you’re still trying to get over what Lucas did to you. But what if the right guy c@m£ along would you let him into your Life?..like will you love him?”
Am I mistaken or was there a note of jealousy in his tone.
“Yes” I answered honestly
“If the right guy c@m£ along” I completed
“So what would make him the right guy?”
I thought about it. And the image of Ian c@m£ to my mind’s eye.
“He’d have to be down to earth,considerate, kind,level headed, ethical,honest, fun to be with,unselfish,compas-sionate -”
“So if you find Mr Perfect you’d marry him?” He asked
“Yes..i’d consider letting him into my life”
“Well..it good to hear that from you after everything Lucas did to you”
Ian made me change my mind. He was able to make me accept that all men are different. Ian nice and kind nature towards me made me change my perspective about Men. I wonder if I would have accepted Ethan again if it was during that time I was afraid of being t©uçhed by a man.
♦••♦••♦••♦
LINT CORP
AUTHOR POV ????????
Drake made it to Lint Corp before 8:30pm and Ian signed the deal. He was happy that Ian signed the deal but he bec@m£ surprised when Ian asked him to sign a promissory note. It entails that he would never go near Ria or try to make a deal with her. He was taken aback when Ian insisted that he should sign the note. It wasn’t ha-rd for Drake to figure that Ian meant Business.
He could tell that Ian was de-eply in love with Ria Robert. Ian let go of his money ‘15%’ just to make him stay away from Ria.
He signed it. There was no nee-d to be around Ria Robert since Ian was de-eply involved with her.
And Drake wasn’t re-ady to lose his business p@rtner because of a woman.
“Come in”
Ian said when he heard a knock on his door
Ramsey walked in
“Excuse me Sir, a file was s£nt to you”
“Check it”
“It from an unknown source. And it says that.. You should be the one to check it. It was s£nt to you”
Ramsey completed
“Let me have it” Ian said
Ramsey handed him the tablet
“You can go”
He said to Ramsey
“Okay Sir” he bowed a bit before exiting the office.
Ian cli-cked and opened the folder.
And it wasn’t what he expected it to be.
“What the hell?!”
He said in ti-ght whisper after checking out the file. Nausea welled up in him,all the excitement he’d felt after Drake signed the promissory note all gone as if it had never been. He tossed the tablet on his desk,his pain so acute he was afraid he couldn’t st©p breathing. But he not only kept breathing, he took the tablet and transfered the file to his phone. He got out of the chair and rushed out of the office. He called to Ramsey that he was heading out.
Then he headed out towards his car gripping the keys ti-ghtly that they almost cut into his palms. He drove out of the garage and hit the main road.
It shocked him!
But it was all a lie!
She was a lie! And even though he’d never had her,his anger at what she hid from him.. Keeping it to herself was unbearable. He gr!pp£dthe steering ti-ghtly when he called her number and she didn’t pick up.
EPISODE •• FORTY •• EIGHT
THEME: FALSIFIED
IAN POV ????
I waited patiently for Ria’s return. She wasn’t at the shop when I c@m£ in and Mrs Elise said she went out with Ethan. And that made me even angrier.. She didn’t pick up my calls because she was with Ethan.
Then I saw Ria coming into the sto-re with Ethan behind her and despite everything,just the sight of her made me ache. When Ria saw the look on my face, the smile on her face disappeared in an instant.
I’m sure she wasn’t expecting me to be here at this time.
I went to her without a word and caught her by her upper arm before she could think of what to say or do. I pu-ll-ed her behind me but she didn’t move that much..I looked and saw that Ethan was holding her other hand.
“You shouldn’t -”
“Stay out of this..” I cut him off of his intended statement.
“Don’t worry Ethan”
She muttered and he let go
Everyone stared at us
I pu-ll-ed her back into her office and closed the door behind us. I let her go and she looked up stunned at the change in the face of the man who had being nice to her. Now my eyes were cold and my expression ti-ght.
I could hear her breathing
I pu-ll-ed my hands back and pushed them into my pocket
“We’re going to talk right now,right here” I said
My voice ba-rely above a whisper, low and rou-gh.
“And I want to know who else knows about what we are to discuss..I want the truth…agreed?”
She didn’t even know what she was agreeing too but she nodded
“Yes..okay”
She said and would have reached out to make a contact with me but my words st©pped her.
“Now tell me whatever it is you’ve been hiding from me”
“What?” Her forehead crea-sed
I know she won’t open to me. And I’ve had enough of it!
I waited long enough for Ria to loos£n up with me and tell her past. And if she wasn’t re-ady then..I will gladly help her out.
I brou-ght out my phone
“Ian -”
I silenced her with my f!nger
And pla-yed the file s£nt to me.
It was a recording!
Whoever s£nt this to me must know a lot about Ria.
And I have no idea who s£nt it to me!
The de-ep voice began
“Hey Mr Ian Bryant,why are you wasting your time helping Ria Robert? Well it seems you don’t know who she really is..her true colors. I will tell you who she is now so you will stay away from her or else you might end up losing everything you have,your company and your family… Everything you worked for all your life. Ria Robert is capable of destroying you. She was the blind girl I used to know in Idaho..she was 16. Everyone knew Ria Robert the extraordinary blind girl. Smart,dangerous and being desperate to see the world..she sle-pt with many men just to get money. And she worked for a criminal..a notorious criminal named Lucas. He is the gang leader of MML. A gang of Five. And Ria Robert was his S-x toy.. You know what it is to be a S-x machine. He offered to pay for her surgery and so she gave him her b©dy in return and he went to her anytime he wanted to plea-sure himself. She was with him for months has his S-x machine..and she had a baby in the process. She lost the baby..no they never wanted to have the child so Lucas ab-orted it. And somehow she left town with another man and probably moved to Chicago. Ian Bryant I can go and on to tell you more about Ria Robert. She isn’t someone you should be with.. She will ruin you and Ria doesn’t deserve someone like you. So I advise you stay away from her..completely. Don’t get charmed by beauty. I’m just trying to help you cause I can see that you are a good man. A word is enough is the wise”
Then it ended
She was someone’s S-x machine,she had a baby and ab-orted it..she gave herself to several men..No wonder she didn’t tell me about her past.
RIA POV ????
My heart sank. This wasn’t true! Someone faked a story! And where did he get it from?
Now he knows I was Lucas S-x machine. And my worst fear was realized.
It was my fault! I should have explained it to him before he received the recording.
Everything in that recording was a lie.
There was no forgiveness. Ian won’t un-derstand me even if I tried to explain.
The hatred in his eyes was clear.. Very clear and every bit of it was strong.
“Can I explain?”
He uttered a profanity that rocked me,then he ground out.
“Forget it I don’t nee-d to hear more lies”
“No,the truth..I’ll tell you”
“Do you know Lucas or not?”
He asked
“Ian -”
“Do you know Lucas?!” He yelled
“Yes”
Tears..I could feel them on my cheeks but I couldn’t st©p them.
“Is everything in here is true?”
I closed my eyes
“Ian plea-se Let me -”
“Is Ethan aware that you were with Lucas?”
“Yes” I answered sincerely
“But Ian it not -”
“St©p.. There’s no point in talking” he said
“After all,you never wanted me to know your past”
His words dropped to a flatness that was almost as painful to hear as the anger had been the moment before. He left nothing in the wake.
“Ian,plea-se -”
“No”
The single word was flat but Jarred me all the way to my soul. He didn’t want to hear anything I had to say.
I felt the pain in my heart, it was harsh – cutting de-ep. Ian was leaving me.
“I’m so sorry for not telling you -” I said
But it was too late
He spun on his heel and left.
He closed the door carefully,no slam..no jamming action. It was just a shut.
“I’m sorry”
I whispered to the closed door.
It was late.
I should have told him when I had chance.
The door opened and the hope that Ian had come back was dashed when Mrs Elise and Ethan stood there.
And that terrified me.
“What happened?” She asked
She looked troubled and I doubted she heard what we discussed.
I bit my lowerl-ip
She c@m£ to me
“Ian..found out about my past ..he knows I was Lucas S-x slave”
Then she closed her eyes.
Ethan ran his freehand in his hair
“How did he find out?”
I swallowed ha-rd and the tears sli-pped down my cheeks.
I bit my l!pha-rd
“I don’t know..he only pla-yed me a recording”
And I managed to tell them what I heard on Ian phone.
“I tried to explain to him that it wasn’t true but he didn’t give me the chance. He thought I was going to lie to him..and now he doesn’t want to see me”
Elise moved and hvgged me.
I clung to her..like I was holding my mother who could make things right.. But things couldn’t be right. They wouldn’t be right.. Ian hate me.
“It okay”
“No it not going to okay this time Mrs Elise..he believed everything in that recording”
That’s it?
That’s it. He just believed it! And he never thought if it was possible for a blind girl to go around slee-ping with me as if she could see.
“You’ve been throu-gh a lot..I’m sure you will get throu-gh this too..”
“I don’t think so..i’d never been throu-gh this – loving someone and seeing that someone sl!paway and not being able to do anything about it”
I said in a snifle as I closed my eyes. I had certainly gotten Myself into a mess this time.
I drew in a shaky breathe still trying to come to term with the words from Ian. I thought I didn’t nee-d Ian in the picture,but I totally forgot how accustomed I had grown to having him in my Life.
I thought sadly
It was my fault!
I should have woman up and tell him everything.
Why was I even scared?
I was only concerned that he would leave me..but I didn’t think of how he would feel if he finds out I was hiding things from him and I even told Ethan who I just met about it.
Now he left.. Without looking back. I could ha-rd ly blame him for his decision. He’d looked aggressive. And sad when he Left.
He must think of me as a who-re..or Slut and what was wringing in my heart in painful spasm was the memory of his expression when he had looked at me just before he’d walked out. And In addition to hiding my past, angering him..I was pretty sure I had hurt him. And that had never been my intention.
I would have to talk to Ian.
I opened my eyes and Ethan wasn’t in the office anymore.
“I should talk to Ian..I nee-d to explain to me that it wasn’t true”
“No” Mrs Elise said as she stood back
“Give him some time”
“Time? How long?”
“You can talk to him tomorrow”
I placed my palms on my face and made a promise to myself. No matter what happened,no matter how things went from now on,there would be no more secrets. I’d talk to Ian tomorrow, l@yeverything out, explain it to him,I will do everything I can to make him un-derstand where the old Ria Robert had been coming from. Ian would know who Ria Robert really was..I won’t hid anything. And whatever happened after that was up to Ian.
“Okay?” Mrs Elise asked
I nodded
Tbc