Incite Me

Chapter 31

When Roberta cancelled on me later that afternoon, I wasn't at all surprised. Dorian, on the other hand, didn't take it as well as I would have imagined.

"I'm sure we'll have plenty of time for tea dates with your Mother." I followed his frantic gaze as he paced back and forth in our hotel suite.

"I really thought she meant it when she agreed to meet with you. This whole thing is a mistake. I shouldn't have brought you here in the first place." Dorian scratched his stubble and sat on one of the settees by a big window overlooking a beautiful Manhattan skyline.

I went to sit next to him and reassuringly placed my hand on his lap. "I'm glad you took me with you. Now I can see what you need to go through to prove yourself worthy in the eyes of your mother. Michael seemed nice though."

He nodded and threw a short glance towards me. "I don't know how he's putting up with her."

"You can't really choose who to love."

"True..." Dorian skirted my eyes and added, "I'm going to grab a long shower before we head out in two hours."

I knew he needed his space and it would have been selfish to ask him to stay with me so I planted a peck on his scruffy cheek and disappeared into one of the bedrooms, leaving Dorian alone in his thought.

It truly pained me to see him suffer like this. I would have moved mountains and crossed oceans for him but if giving him space means I'll understand him more - so be it.

Sprawling across a big king-size bed, I pulled my cell out of the handbag and scrolled through several missed calls and texts. One of the texts were from Jack. Unwillingly, my heart skipped a beat with the sight of his name on the screen.

"Hi Sam! Hope you had a safe flight. I can't wait to see you tonight. As a friend, of course. -J-"

Debating whether to reply to his message, I've decided to first check the rest of the missed texts.

Rolling on my stomach, I propped the elbows on my sides and held the cell right in my face.

"Call me ASAP!"

Anna's message read. She probably can't decide what dress to wear on her dinner date with Frank. That would have been the case if she didn't try to call me at least five times. "Something's up", I thought to myself and hit 'CALL'.

Anna answered instantly. "Sam, where the hell have you been?!" Her screeching voice sent unpleasant shivers down my spine.

"What's the matter? I'm in New York, remember?"

"Yes, yes! Listen! My friend Deborah said her neighbour Liam talked with this other guy and he said he saw Daniel." She blurted the words so quickly, I lost it at the second name.

"Slow down and start again."

"Deborah said... Ah, whatever. Daniel was spotted in Compton this morning. Daniel!!" She spat out under her breath.

For a second, I thought my heart will stop beating as it hit the floor with a loud thud in my eardrums.

I bolted on my feet and without thinking, locked myself in the room. I then ran to the windows and closed all blinds just in case.

"Daniel? How the fuck did he got out?" I whispered into the cell, looking around myself.

I knew as long as I was with Dorian in a random hotel suite, there was no real threat to my life but I couldn't let the smallest thing go unnoticed.

"I googled him and there was one article about his father, the detective." Anna spoke quickly, "they were boasting how well his son was doing. Volunteering and shit."

"Daniel doesn't have any siblings as far as I know." I felt my voice tremble. I bit my bottom lip to make sure I wasn't dreaming. And I wasn't.

"If I was you, I'd stay away from Compton for some time. If he can't find you, he'll go back empty handed."

"Anna, he lives in New York. I'm no safer here than in Compton." A single tear slid down my cheek.

"This is so fucked up..." She exhaled and I heard her rattle her keys on the other side of the line, "I'm flying over to New York today."

"No, you don't have to."

"I want to!" She exclaimed rather harshly and added, "I'll call you when I'm there," before hanging up.

I felt the entire life flash before my eyes. When the stinging sensation in my spine numbed to some extent, I went by the window and opened the blinds. Afternoon sun was still high in the sky and the city looked like a busy beehive. In an hour, I'll have to smile and act as if nothing's happened. I'll have to tell Dorian about it but how? I didn't want him to cancel on his parents but I knew well - I won't be able to hide my worries. It's just a matter of time until Dorian finds out what's really going on.

A knock on the bedroom door made me wince in utter paranoia.

"We need to get ready, Samantha." Dorian's voice seemed calmer.

"Yes, of course." I stuttered, pressing the cold palms against my twisting stomach.

"Samantha?"

"Just a second." I breathed in and swung the doors open where he stood with a towel around his perfectly ripped waist.

I tried to look as if nothing had happened but I figured Dorian knew me too well to be able to tell the difference between my calm and frantic gaze. The paleness of my complexion has given me no other choice but to tell him the truth.

Taking a step closer to me, Dorian pinched my chin between his fingers and lifted my face up. "Look at me. If this is to do with my mother, I assure you, you won't need to speak to her if you don't want to. She can be..."

"It's not that." I cut him off breathless. "D-Daniel..." The name froze in my dry throat, "Daniel was looking for me in Compton."

Dorian let go of my chin and stumbled backwards, "Daniel!?" The disgust in his face was unmistakable.

"Anna called, she's flying over tonight."

"How in the God's name did he get out of jail? That son of a bitch should have been locked up for years to come." He paced in front of me.

"You tell me." I went to sit on a couch by the window. "Surely, we can do something about it, can't we?" The need to believe everything will sort itself out was greater than the reality of what was yet to come, knowing Daniel's capability and taste of revenge.

"Give me a second." Dorian threw a reddened stare towards me then hurried to one of the bedrooms.

I looked down at my hands - they were shaking uncontrollably. Why does life feel the need to take away all the happiness once I find it? If this is karma then I give up on hope involuntarily.

Slowly, I stood up and dragged my feet to the wall separating the main room from the bedroom. Pressing myself against cold marble tiles, I listened to Dorian talking with someone on his cell.

"Bring your men to the mansion in an hour. I know there will be security, Jack, but please, do as I say. Call Boris and Alexander, we'll need some extra men at the door. And make sure the security cameras are up to standard. I'll see you in an hour." There was a short pause before Dorian added, "and Jack. Make sure they're armed and well-equipped."

Dorian marched back to the room, clenching on his cell. The fact that Dorian called Jack meant he was panicking. And what did he mean by armed and well-equipped? My mind couldn't process everything so quickly at the time.

"Samantha, go get dressed." Dorian's hoarse voice echoed in my ears. "We won't let that motherfucker ruin our lives. We'll put an end to his poor existence if we have to but he's no threat to us. To you. Do you understand?" He cupped my face into his hands and pressed his forehead to mine. The heat his naked body radiated could warm several freezing people but somehow, I still felt as if my body went into a state of frosty shock.

I nodded and felt a tear trickle in the corner of my eye. Hold it together, Sam! You're not alone!

"Now, let's get ready."

"Okay." I bit my bottom lip just before Dorian's luscious lips sucked into mine with quite a force.

The flutter deep in my abdomen was either from the kiss or the feeling of unconditional protection Dorian offered. Either way, I was able to breathe just a little easier for a second, knowing I've got him by my side.

***

"What time is Anna landing in New York?" Dorian asked on our way down to the lobby.

I fixed my mini-black-dress and twisted the heel of the five-inchers into the shiny linoleum underneath my feet in a confined elevator space. "At eight tonight."

Dorian firmly placed his hand on a small of my back and bowed his head towards me. "I'll have someone to pick her up from the airport then escort her to the mansion."

"You don't have to. She can catch a cab."

"No." His voice had a note of demand in it. "No one close to you is catching cabs in this city or anywhere else for that matter. We can never be too careful."

"Okay." I said, biting my tongue, unable to look at Dorian.

I couldn't help but feel like a chaotic cause to everything bad that happened in our lives. It was all my fault! The feeling of helplessness crawled down my skin, dampening my eyes momentarily.

"Hey." He whispered in my ear, "Let's try and enjoy this evening as much as we can, ok?" Dorian's ocean stare pierced me with reassurance.

"We'll try." I admitted and looked up at the descending number panel above the sliding elevator doors.

We stopped at the eighth floor and a tall slim woman stepped to stand with her back at us. She sported a brown cropped bob and large sunglasses. I had a horrible feeling of unease as soon as the elevator doors slid shut.

"Beautiful day, isn't it?" The woman said without turning back at us.

I looked up at Dorian with my brows arched in surprise. His arm hooked around my waist even tighter.

"Yes it is." He answered politely with an obvious hint of apathy towards the woman.

When the elevator was almost at a halt, the woman turned at us with a wide grin curving her lips. "You have a great day, lovebirds."

Before we could say anything else, the doors opened and she hurried down the lobby. My heart skipped a beat as soon as I realised how familiar the woman looked.

"It's..." I felt out of breath all of a sudden.

"It's Cynthia. Daniel's bitch." Dorian's face became pale as a sheet of paper.