Sunday 'Sunny' Santos
After washing away my ruined makeup, brushing out my tangled hair and changing into one of Max's oversized T-shirts, I pad out of the ensuite bathroom and perch gingerly upon the edge of the plush canopy bed..
Shivers course through my nerves like the residual shockwaves of an earthquake.. The apparent after effects of an insane day slowly setting in..
How the hell did I get to this place?
Reluctant to relax, I lay down on my side, curling up into a ball, but I know there is no way I will be able to sleep tonight..
My mind races at a million miles a minute, replaying the betrayal over and over again in my head.. I just can't stop thinking about Javier and how strange he had behaved earlier today.. And now I know why..
'Ay, Sunny, Imma' take you out tonight.. Somewhere flashy, Chika, go on and you put on something sexy for your Papi, huh?' He'd said.
Oh and of course, like a fool, I had practically jumped at the predatory offer, thinking that for once, just once, Javier would treat me the way he always promised he would..
What an idiot I am..
Instead he had put a dagger right through the heart that had loved him..
My aching heart..
How stupid I had been to believe he was at all sincere.. Time and time again Javier would let me down.. Yet time and time again I would fall for his lies..
For so long I thought I needed Javi.. I had become reliant on his command and afraid of a world without him.. For so long I had loved him, waiting for him to love me in return..
Now, I am beginning to see that those dreams of mine were delusions from the very start.. I was foolish for believing in a man like Javi..
Or maybe I am just crazy for believing in love at all..
The lump in my throat refuses to subside as the tides of sorrow climb my sinuses and spill from my eyes.. Wet, salty streaks stream down my cheeks to dampen the comforter beneath me.. My body shudders and jerks and soon the throws of hysteria have me in their hold.. I cry so hard that no sound comes out, only gasping breaths and pathetic hiccups accompany the torrential downpour of heartbreak..
....
Over an hour, one meltdown and a thousand silent tears later, I manage to curb my misery just long enough to notice as my stomach growls and rumbles.. The pangs of hunger driving through my middle to leave a vast vacant feeling, quickly reminding me of the missed meal I had been promised..
-gggrrrrrlllllll-
"You want to take me someplace nice, huh?" I mutter angrily to myself, my rage renewed.. "Yeah, this is super fucking nice, Javi, thanks a lot- tu puta madre!" (Motherfucker)
God.. I'm still so angry I could scream and I'm so starved that I feel sick..
Sitting up with a hesitant glance towards the door, I wonder if I should test the boundaries of my welcome in The Loan Shark's home..
Am I a guest? Or am I a prisoner?
Perhaps I am a hostage? Or am I more like a pet?
This place certainly feels like a cage.. Whatever label is put on it, the end result is the same.. I'm not allowed to leave..
But my captor had certainly behaved as though he'd wanted me to be comfortable.. In fact the very room I now occupy exceeds the comforts of any place I've ever stayed.. The carpet is plush and creamy beneath my feet and the scent of fresh linen tints the air.. The fair oak furniture is waxed and polished, and the bedside lamp casts a soothing orange glow..
The whole apartment screams 'expensive' and I am fearful to touch anything at the risk of breaking it..
Under any other circumstances, living a place like this would be a dream come true..
Instead, I find myself trapped in a twisted nightmare..
My stomach groans again and this time the pains cause me to double forward, clutching at my turning tummy.. I haven't eaten a single thing since yesterday and my starving stomach won't be ignored..
-GRRRRRRLLL-
Tip-toeing over to the door, I jerk it open and poke my head out with a wobbly whisper.. "Hola? Max?"
The floorboards are cool beneath my bare feet as I step out into the hallway, checking both ways for signs of life.. "Maksim?"
The hushed bass of a distant voice draws me down the hallway towards the top of the staircase.. I press my back to the wall and edge curiously closer to the middle of the mezzanine that the Loan Shark stands beneath, pacing back and forth with his celly pressed to his ear.. "C'mon baby-girl, I need you... No, it can't wait.."
Crouching down and cocking my head to better eavesdrop on his very obviously private conversation.. I know it's wrong, even as I strain to listen to his low, rumbling tones, but my curiosity gets the better of me..
"Of course, whatever you want, Malishka.. Da.. Da.. I promise.." He coaxes whoever is on the other end of the line with a honey sweet coo and a clear affection.. "Spasibo.. See you tomorrow.. Dosvedanya, My Darling."
I listen as he disconnects the call and it isn't long after that before he begins pacing, muttering beneath his breath as if passing over some kind of mental checklist.. "Neeves, Ramsay, sixty six, one fifteen.. Draper, Crew, sixty seven, eight twenty two.. Bates Gunner, sixty eight, eleven fifteen..." Max crosses the living room and I duck behind the bannister, peeking over to watch as he reaches the corner bar and pours himself a crystal drink.. "Neeves, Ramsay, sixty six, one fifteen.. Draper, Crew, sixty seven, eight twenty two.. Bates Gunner, sixty eight, eleven fifteen..."
He repeats his bizarre mantra, practised and unburdened by his usual stutter, it is as if he has said those same words a million times over..
But what does it mean?
Rethinking my intrusion, I crawl backwards in retreat to return to my room, when the floorboard underfoot lets out a low groan..
Shit..
My nose scrunches up with a wince..
"Zayka?" Max calls after me.. "Is that you?"
I consider saying nothing for a brief moment, but what good would it do?
"Si Senor.." I squeak in guilty admission, slowly rising to my feet to peer down at him on the ground floor.. "It's just me.."
Folding his hands into his pockets, he pierces me with that frosty, midnight stare.. "Do you need something?"
"I was just-" I choke up on my words, unable to get them out... Javi always used to hate it when I expressed a need for anything, even simple things like what we'd be having for dinner could spark an argument that would end in a black eye.. "I was a little-"
"Yes?" He purrs patiently, motioning with two fingers crooked for me to join him..
"Hungry." I peep, and my stomach, as if to prove my honesty, decides on that moment to gurgle greedily..
-grrrrrlll-
But my feet still move towards him, almost of their own volition.. He draws me closer with his come hither beckoning and I am oddly powerless to his pull..
"Well now-" He watches me descend to the foot of the stairs.. "We can't have that." When I finally reach his side, Max pulls out his phone and begins tapping away with a focuses crinkle forming between his dark brows..
"What are you doing?" I ask..
"Feeding you.." He stops, glancing up in concern, as if I might be some kind of aberration.. "You eat pizza, right?"
"Sure.." I nod, and add with a small smile.. "As long as there's no pineapple involved.."
I've always hated pineapple.. The acidic sweet and sour taste ruins everything it touches..
But Javi used to insist on it as a topping.. I actually began to wonder if he even liked it, or if he just enjoyed watching me suffer.. Perhaps it was a little of both..
Max scrunches up his nose in amused disgust.. "What kind of monster do you think I am?"
The smile slips from my face andI lift my gaze to meet his, an arctic tempest dancing within the midst of his eyes.. Not all monsters are deformed, scaled beasts.. Some of them lure in their prey with beauty and sweetness..
Is that what this is?
A trick?
A trap?
Devouring his attractive appearance, my focus skims downward to appreciate the angular cut of his jaw and the deep olive tan of his complexion.. Once again, those angry gnarled scars winding viciously around his neck, draw me in.. Hypnotic patterns crossing in scarlet slits across his throat.
"What happened to you?" The breathy inquiry leaves my lips before I can contain it, but I wish I could suck it back out of the air as soon as it is said..
He grimaces, turning a shoulder on me to refresh his drink.. "It's-it's just a little parting gift, f-from an old friend." With the tick of his tongue he stutters softly, sighing to himself afterwards in quiet disappointment..
"No friend would ever do something so terrible." I shake my head, refuting his answer..
Narrowing a squinted sapphire gem in my direction, Max shrugs with a quiet chuckle.. "Who else could get close enough?"
Considering his question, I pause to ponder the people in my life who might have had the opportunity to slit my throat.. "l don't know maybe family?"
"My brother didn't do this.." He snaps quickly with a gruff growl of irritation..
"Or perhaps a lover?" I lift my chin out of curiosity to find myself pinned between the bannister and his beautiful blue eyes.. "Is that who you were talking to just now?"
Javier had certainly twisted the knife he plunged into my back, so it is entirely feasible an ex girlfriend could have done that kind of damage.. She'd have to be completely crazy of course.. But I've met my hair share of lunatics in this life..
Max appears to swallow his irritation at my probing personal questions, a dark scowl turning down the corners of his lips.. "You're 0 for 2, Zayka.."
"Oh.." I swallow thickly, as my nervousness returns.. "But, if it really was a 'friend' who gave you those scars, does that mean you forgave him? Otherwise, wouldn't they be an enemy?"
How could somebody forgive such cruelty?
"Mmh.." Max grunts, a distant glaze in his eyes as he scowls.. "Something like that.."
"I'm sorry.." I wince..
"What are you sorry f-for?" He shakes his head sending short and scruffy black locks tussling..
"I'm just- I'm sorry that happened to you.. A betrayal like that.." My eyes cast instinctively downward.. "It must have hurt.."
Slowly sipping his drink, Max considers me for a long moment.. "I might wear my s-scars on the outside, Zayka.. But what Navarro did to you, that cuts deeper than any of the shit I've seen.."
Ouch.. He's right..
I can still feel the bleeding wound in my chest where my heart had been ripped out.. "He sold me." I state flatly, hurt bubbling up in the back of my throat..
Max wavers a hand in gesture of disagreement.. "Loaned.."
"We both know Javi isn't going to pay.." I roll my eyes at the semantics of something so wrong.. "Face it, Max, you made a poor investment tonight.."
Max shrugs, that devilish grin pulling at one side of his mouth.. "I doubt that.."
"Then why did you buy me, Max?" I press, determined to understand exactly what it is he wants from me.. "Why am I so important to you?"
"Because--" He sighs, taking a slow, looming step closer to me, bringing with him the sweet scent of brown sugar and black leather.. "You're going to be my wife, Zayka.."