Chapter 10 - Obsessed

Him!

The one person I dismissed because they were going to be family. But there is no doubt in my mind that they are together. Walking down the street hand in hand is a giveaway. How could I have been so stupid? How could I have missed this?

I need a plan. I need to somehow extract this man from Danil's life. Danil needs to know that their relationship cannot last. He needs to know that this Domenico is not right for him. I need him to know that I'm the only man on this planet that can make him happy.

I watch as Dom and Danil leave the bar. I thought that they would be heading off somewhere together, but they didn't. They separate, and I see Dom walk away with his sister. She came here today, but I also remember seeing pictures of her on his social media, so I knew who she was. Now. Now is my time for action.

Feeling like the universe is on my side, I race over to my truck, which I got back from the garage this morning, and pull on some gloves before climbing in. My intention was to move some belongings from my apartment to a storage unit. But using the truck to get Danil is a much better idea. I grab the balaclava next to me. It had been part of my kit for watching Danil for a while. It is so much easier to stand in the shadows and not be seen if your face is shrouded in black. Now I need to put it on to make sure that my face is obscured from the New York traffic cams.

That's the good thing about New York traffic, people are so obsessed with getting to their destination they don't always pay attention to vehicles around them. I just need to not rush or draw attention to the truck.

Pulling the truck into traffic, I make my way over to the bar, hoping that Dom or Alessia weren't able to park close. I quickly scan the sidewalk and see nothing. Shit. Have I missed them? I thought I had been quick getting to the truck, but maybe I was too slow.

Fuck! I yell, hitting the steering wheel with frustration.

But I keep moving forward, keep looking, and that's when I spot them. They are further away than I thought they would be, but it is one hundred percent them. Relief fills me and I trail them as best I can, but the traffic is moving quicker than normal, and I have no option but to pass them. I am not able to do a U turn, so my only option is to turn at the next light and hope I can pull over somewhere close to the intersection, so I can see them pass.

Luck seems to be on my side. At the next light I turn left and there is a space to park. I pull in, cut the engine, and keep looking in my side mirrors for any sign of them. I can't believe my luck when they turn onto the very street that I'm parked on, and quickly duck down so they don't see me.

Giving it a minute or so, I sit back up and look to see if I can tell where they are heading. When I spot the parking lot up ahead, logic tells me they are most likely parked there. But if they go in there, I know that I am going to lose them. I don't have a clear view of the exit here to pick out the car as they pull out, and I also have no idea what direction they would be going. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I think I remember reading about a family restaurant uptown, and if that is where they are heading, they would need to come up the street. Which would mean my truck is facing the wrong direction.

Getting out of the truck, I pull off my balaclava and follow Domenico and Alessia to see them going into the parking lot. I lose sight of them, so I pick up the pace. I need to see them getting into the car to be able to follow it.

Being as discreet as possible, I look around the lot, but I can only see Domenico. There is no way that I can go into the lot and risk being seen, but I need to at least see if I can spot what color car they are in. That's when I spot the female attendant, and walk over to the booth, making sure to keep my back to Domenico.

"Excuse me," I say. "Were you working this morning?" Giving her my most charismatic smile.

"I was, yes," the attendant confirms.

"So you remember the couple that just returned to collect their car?" Again, trying to act as nonchalant as I can.

"Yes." The attendant is sounding a little hesitant now, and I am guessing the warning bells are about to be set off in her head. "Why?"

I fake a sob and croak out, "Cheating." And it works like a charm, she looks in the direction of Domenico and I see the scowl on her face.

"With him?" the attendant asks. "How horrible."

I fake another sob and will tears to form. "Not her. Him," I mumble out. "He's cheating with her. He told me he was gay." And I suddenly turn away, pretending to be embarrassed. "Sorry," I mumble. "He keeps telling me she is just a friend, but I know he is lying." With as much anguish as I can muster, I turn around and look at the attendant. "Can you just tell me the color of the car she is driving? I know I shouldn't, but I just want to follow them. Get a photo on my cell. I need proof."

I watch as the attendant ponders my question, and I can see her debating everything in her head. I try to keep my face as neutral as possible. I really need her to believe my little act as the scorned lover and give me the information that I need.

"Look," the attendant starts, "I'm not supposed to, but I've been where you are. Ex-boyfriend cheated on me with my best friend." And I can hear the hatred for these people in her tone. "She was driving a white Nissan, but that is all I can give you."

Yes! And I cannot believe that she gave me the car make, too, this is more than helpful. Pulling her into a hug, I tell her thank you, and it is probably the most honest thing I have said to her.

Racing back to the truck, I pull the balaclava back on and make a U turn in the road. Ignoring the beeping protests from other drivers, I pull up on the opposite side of the road. There isn't anywhere for me to park, so I double park and turn my hazards on, kinda wishing that I had opened the back so I could pretend to be moving in or out.

The lot must be a lot bigger than it looks like on the street, because I still have to wait a minute or two, before I see a white car coming out of the exit and driving up the street. As the vehicle gets closer, I see Alessia behind the wheel, which isn't ideal for the plan that has been forming in my mind.

I want to remove this man from Danil's life, and the best way to do that is to permanently remove him. With him out of the picture, I could perhaps step in. Become that friend who consoles him through his grief. It might take time, but Danil's feelings would eventually change, and we can be together, as we should be.

I wait for a few of the cars to go past, and when there is a big enough gap I pull out. My eyes are watching the Nissan. I know that I am going to need to time this just right. Wait for the car to turn. If I can hit it with enough force, I should get the desired outcome. Alessia will just have to be collateral damage.

After traveling straight for a few blocks, I watch the Nissan move over to the left lane and indicate that they are planning to turn. The road is clear in front of me, and as I see the Nissan turn, I floor the truck, making a direct hit. I can barely feel it in the truck as I race past, but when I look in the side mirror, I can see the Nissan has flipped over, smoke billowing from it.

But seeing the car in that condition isn't enough. I need to see them remove the bodies. I also need to dump this truck. The ‘accident' will have been caught on the traffic cameras. At the next intersection, I make a right turn and slow down. I try to blend in with the traffic, driving a few more blocks before parking the truck up a side street.

I consider setting the truck on fire, but that would draw too much attention. At the moment, it is away from the main road, and hopefully it will take the cops a few days to find it. I just need to dispose of my gloves and balaclava, but I can do that on the way back to the scene.

Taking a deep breath, I resist the urge to run. Someone running on the street this close to a major incident could draw attention to themselves, and I don't need that. This is a walk and blend in with the crowd situation. I need to get back there and witness firsthand what I did. What I did in order for me to be with Danil.

With me having to walk it takes me a lot longer than I want to, to get back to the scene, not to mention stopping to give the homeless man I spotted my gloves and balaclava. It guaranteed I wouldn't get caught. The streets are busier than I thought, but soon I can hear the sirens and can see blue flashing lights. The police look to have cordoned off the scene, but as I get closer, I can see that quite a crowd has formed. Everyone wants to witness the carnage I have caused. It's just that the crowd is stopping me from witnessing my triumph.

I squeeze and push my way through the crowd till I get to the tape, where I see a cop standing guard.

"What happened?" I ask, pretending to be shocked at the scene.

I watch as the policeman looks over his shoulder at the scene unfolding and I look at where he is staring. I hadn't spotted it when I first arrived, but a man is kneeling on the ground, and I see him doing chest compressions on someone, but from this distance I can't be sure if they are male or female. Not that it matters.

My plan worked.

Chest compression means that someones heart has stopped. The person is dead.

"Road traffic accident," the policeman says, drawing attention back to him.

"Looks bad," I reply.

"It is." And there is a solemn tone to his voice.

I need to get close to the scene. I need to know who is lying dead on the ground. I need to see firsthand what I have caused, and then I need to get to Danil. I am sure that he will be aware of what is going on. He is going to need friends around him more than anything.

I shuffle back through the crowd and make my way closer to the scene. The whole street is cordoned off, the police will be trying to preserve as much evidence as possible. I should be fine, but I might just go back and wipe down the truck. Make sure that there is nothing in there that can trace it back to me.

I don't trust rental companies. Hell, I don't trust most companies that can use personal information, which is why a while ago I bought myself the truck. I don't use it often, usually only when I need to move stuff. Objects that are extremely personal to me but that most people, I think, would find strange. Most of them are linked to my time watching Danil. It was a huge amount of money, but it saved me having to rent one all the time, and today, having quick access to a truck was just what I needed. But it means that if the truck is found it will be easily traced back to me. I will need to go back later and move it, after dark once the streets are quiet. No one can find that truck.

This plan is great, completely foolproof. I don't think I could have planned it any better.

The crowd has thinned out, and as I move to the front, I can see why. From this position I have a clear view of the person on the ground and the man working on them. There are red stains all over his white shirt, and there is no mistaking the red all over his hands. Blood. There is blood everywhere. The sight is a wonder to behold, a true artists dream. Its perfect, all too damn perfect. But I can also see from here that the persons hair is matted with blood, making it look dark, but there is no mistaking that the person on the ground is female. Shit. Alessia, not Dom.

Where in the hell is Dom?

I have to fight the urge to lift the tape and run across the road to see if I can find Dom. I scan the scene, but I cannot find him. Damn. I took too long to get back here. I should have ignored my instinct and run back here. Maybe I would have been fortunate enough to have seen Dom being placed into a body bag. God, that really would have been the icing on the cake.

"Its so sad," I hear someone mutter behind me. "I hope the other person is okay."

Other person!

These people had to have been here from the start, and I try not to turn around too fast. I need to act like a horrified person, not someone happy that this carnage has unfolded.

"Other person?" I question, trying to sound surprised. "Another soul was involved in this? How awful."

"Oh, yes dear," the woman states. "A young gentleman. We think he was in the passenger seat. The fire service got him out of the car pretty quickly and whisked him away, but it didn't look good."

"Oh, how awful," I state, edging my voice with as much sadness as I can muster.

"Oh no," the woman exclaims, and I can even see her eyes mist up with tears as I turn back in the direction the woman is staring.

The man who had been working on Alessia has stopped. I think there is a collective gasp from the crowd around me. All of them willing the person to live, well, all of them but me. The expression on his face says it all, and when a policeman comes over, he shakes his head no. I know. Alessia is dead. Maybe I should feel sad that I have killed two people today, or potentially killed two people, but I am not. It was a necessary action, because he will finally be mine. There will be no further distractions.

I need to get moving. I need to strike while the iron is hot, I need to find Danil. I need to check that he is okay. I need to be there for him. Danil needs to remember that I was there for him from the start. It will make his love grow quicker for me.

"I hope they find whoever did this," the woman says again.

"Definitely," another member of the crowd says in agreement.

"Did you see what happened?" I ask, and I have no idea where I am finding the energy to keep calm, but I am. These people still just see me as the shocked bystander.

"Yes," the woman says, her voice trembling. "I think it will haunt me for the rest of my days."

The urge to shake this woman and scream into her face just tell me what the fuck happened is hard to push down, but I manage it and I just stand there, hoping and waiting that she is going to elaborate on what she saw.

"The car that poor dear was driving in, was making the turn and then out of nowhere this truck appeared. We have no idea where it came from. And it hit them with such a force that they flipped over, and then the truck sped off. Police are speculating that the driver was drunk. Swerved lanes, might not have even noticed that he hit the car."

Oh, I could jump with joy at this information. Drunk driver; but she said ‘he'.

"Wait, ‘he'? They know it was a man?" I question.

"Well, the police haven't said that, but if you ask me, only a man could drink and drive and cause this much heartache. I hope they throw the book at him."

This woman is right, it was a man who caused this, but for love and not heartache.

Giving the scene one last look, I bite my lip to hide the smile I can feel as I watch them carefully pick Alessia up off the ground and place her into a black body bag, then onto a gurney. The man is still kneeling on the ground, I don't think he has moved at all in the last five minutes. But I need to get moving. I need to find Danil. Need to make sure that he is okay. He has to be around here somewhere; we aren't that far from the bar.

I move out of the crowd and walk down the street and that is when I spot him. He is sitting on the edge of the sidewalk just outside the cordoned off area. His head is in his hands and even though I cannot see his face I know it's him. I think he might be shaking, too, and I know, now is my time to act.

Walking across the road, I stand in front of Danil and crouch down in front of him.

"Danil," I say softly.

His head snaps up to look at me, tears are streaming down his face, but I notice his eyes widen in surprise at seeing me. This is a good reaction.

"What are you doing here?" Danil whispers, his voice sounding broken.

"I saw the commotion," I explain. "What happened?"

"There was an accident."

"I can see that," I say, and I rub his legs in a way that I hope he finds comforting. Something a friend would do, when seeing another friend in distress.

"It's Dom and Alessia," Danil mumbles, breaking down in tears, and I instantly move so that I am sitting next to him on the sidewalk. I wrap my arm around his shoulders, draw him into me, and just let him cry.

Danil's body next to mine feels so good. This is the first time that I have ever had the chance to hold him like this. I have dreamt about it, but this is better than what any dream could conjure up. I can feel his muscles just beneath the surface of his clothes. They are tense, but that is due to him shaking. The next time they are tense in my arms I hope to be making him scream my name, but that is getting a little ahead of myself.

"What can I do?" I ask the top of his head, and God I want to kiss it, like you see in the movies when they are comforting someone, and right now I hate the fact that I can't.

"No idea," Danil says back as he breaks my hold to look at me. I steal my expression, now is not the time to give anything away. "Dom was taken to the hospital and Alessia is…." Danil's voice breaks.

"Danil, I am so sorry," I say, moving to hold him tighter. "I think Alessia has passed."

Danil sobs harder in my arms and I just keep holding him.

"I'm so glad you're here, Rory," Danil states, and this time I cannot stop the smile forming on my face.