Kynedi Chapter 6

I couldn’t remember the last time I dreaded something as much as I dreaded what I was about to do. I would’ve canceled if I could’ve thought of a legitimate excuse, and it wouldn’t have greatly disappointed my son. However, I knew it would crush Cassius if he didn’t get to go to his session at Maggie’s Moppets. He loved those. He was in his element when he was with horses. As much as I wanted to avoid Tiernan, I wouldn’t deny my son.

I drove as slowly as possible after I picked him up from school. I wouldn’t make us late, but most of the time, we got there early. I wanted us to get in and get out. I’d thought of a reason not to stand there and talk to Tiernan. Pulling into the parking lot, I saw him right away. He was standing outside the stable doors, scanning the lot. I found a spot and parked. It was further away from the stables than I typically parked, but I could feel the intensity of his gaze all the way out here. I turned to look at my son. He was undoing his seatbelt and reaching for the door handle.

“Hang on a second, Cass. Today, Mommy is walking you over to Mr. Tiernan. Once you guys start, I’ll be in the car. I have work to do.”

He looked puzzled, but thankfully, he only nodded and said, “Okay, Mommy. Can we go?”

“Yes, of course.”

He was out of the car so fast I had to hurry to get out and over to him before he took off running. He tugged impatiently on my hand. I was walking too slowly, I guess. Tiernan stood there waiting for us. Every step I took felt like I was going toward something that would change me forever. It was ridiculous, but it was a feeling I couldn’t shake. When we reached him, I let Cassius greet him.

“Hi, Tiernan, what’re we doing today?” His excitement was evident.

“Hi, Cassius, it’s good to see you and your mama.” I knew he was looking at me, but I pretended to be searching in my purse. He continued, “I have something different planned for us. Why don’t we pick a horse? Then I can show you.”

“Yeah!” Cassius said.

It was time for me to hightail it to the car. “Cass, remember, I’ll be in the car. When you’re done, I’ll come back to get you. Just wave from here, and I’ll be able to see you.”

“Okay. Let’s go, Tiernan.” He grabbed Tiernan’s hand and tugged—more voluntary touching. He kept surprising me with how comfortable he was with Tiernan and even some of his family.

“Kynedi, I need to speak to you. Please stay here until I get him set. It won’t take more than five minutes.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. O’Sheeran, but I have work I have to do. I’ll be working from my car. I don’t have time to talk.”

“Kynedi, don’t be this way.” I heard the demand underneath the softness.

“I have no idea what you mean. I’m working. If I have any chance of getting to bed before the wee hours, I need to work on transcribing. I’m sorry. I can’t talk.”

I still avoided his eyes. I stood there waiting to see what he would say. Much to my surprise, he sighed and said, “Come on, Cassius, you’re gonna love this.”

It wasn’t until he turned his back that I lifted my head and watched them walk off. Not wanting to get caught if he turned back, I only did it for a few seconds, and then I hustled back to my car. It was hot and sticky. July in Florida always was. I got in and turned on the car so I had some air conditioning.

The company I was transcribing for had issued me a laptop. It came in handy now. I fully charged it before leaving, so it should last. I opened it and got my program up. I didn’t need my earphones here, so I increased the volume and got to work. I had to balance it on my lap and the steering wheel, which was awkward, but I made do. I wasn’t typing as fast as I could, but it was better than standing with Tiernan and stressing over what he might say.

I’d been going over Saturday for the last three days. The crux of it was I didn’t want him to know how stupid and pathetic I was. How I’d been so taken in by a man, an evil one to boot. It was humiliating and not something I wanted people to know. When I left that bastard, I never wanted to think about him or hear his name again. I tried to leave all the pain behind, but that didn’t happen. Tiernan asking about him had made my defenses go up.

I was absorbed in listening and typing so much that I didn’t notice anyone had walked up to my car until there was a tap on the window. It startled me so much that I let out a small scream and jumped. My gaze clashed with the intense blue one of Tiernan. I wanted to groan. What was he doing here? He was supposed to be with my son. Had he left him alone? Anger and worry hit me. I rolled down my window.

“What are you doing here? Where’s my son? Did you leave him alone with the horse?” I practically was shrieking by the last one. I lightly tossed my laptop in the passenger seat and grabbed the door handle to get out. When my feet hit the ground, I was yelling at him.

“How dare you leave him alone! He’s a little boy. He isn’t safe to be with them alone.” I slammed my door shut and started for the stables. I was getting Cassius and taking him home no matter how much he wouldn’t want to go. I made it three steps before I was halted by Tiernan’s hand on my arm. I swung to face him.

“Let go of me. I’m getting my son, and we’re leaving.”

“Calm the hell down. Cassius is fine. He’s not alone.”

“Oh, so you left him with a stranger. You know he doesn’t do well with them.” I tugged to get loose, but he held me fast. His grip didn’t hurt.

“Kynedi, stop. Cassius is with my daid. He wants to show him some things. Since he was my main instructor growing up, I know Cassius is in excellent hands. Daid won’t let anything happen, and Cass is delighted to have him work with him. You and I need to talk.”

“I told you. I have work to do. I can’t.”

“And I say that’s bullshit. You’re avoiding me because of Saturday. We need to work this out. There’s no need for you to be this upset with me. I merely want to make sure the two of you are safe. Why’re you so upset about it?”

I couldn’t talk about it. I knew I was overreacting, but I couldn’t stop it. Shame was growing. Tiernan was a nice man. I wasn’t stupid enough to imagine he was interested in me as more than Cassius’s mom. His including us in dinner and inviting us to his family commune were extensions of that. He was devoted to making Maggie’s a success. However, I couldn’t share my past, even if that was all Tiernan was or would be. If I did, he’d never look at me and Cassius the same again.

“Mr. O’Sheeran, I think it’s best if we keep this a professional relationship. You’re working with my son. I appreciate it. That does not mean we need to be included in other activities or to socialize. From now on, it’s strictly conversations about Cassius and his riding lessons.”

He narrowed his eyes at me. I fought not to fidget. After a tense minute, he let go of my arm. “I see that talking to you right now isn’t the best course. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll see how Cassius is doing with his lesson. When he’s finished, I’ll bring him to you.” He abruptly turned on his heel and walked off.

Tears smarted in my eyes as I watched him go. Stupid, why are you crying? He’s doing what you asked, I lectured. When I got in the car, it took a few minutes to be able to get back to work. I got even less work done. I couldn’t stop thinking about Tiernan and how everything had gone to hell.

If things were different and I was a different woman without my past and one of equal standing as Tiernan, I’d be more than happy to spend time with him and dream that there could be something more than friendship come out of it. But that was a fool’s dream in my situation. I knew it, and I refused to let myself and my son get hurt. Cassius had enough heartache and pain in his young life. He didn’t need more.

An hour and a half later, I saw Cassius coming toward me. Only he wasn’t with Tiernan. He was with Cormac. I pasted on a smile and got out to say hello and make sure Cass got in the car and buckled correctly.

“Hello, Mr. O’Sheeran, thank you for walking him out. I heard you two were working together today. I hope Cassius behaved himself.”

“He was a perfect angel. He’s a delight to teach. He absorbs everything. And please, call me Cormac. I was disappointed you couldn’t join us. Cassius did so well.”

“I know, but I have a lot of work to do, and I’m up against deadlines. Well, again, thank you. We don’t want to keep you. I need to get him home, fed, get his homework done, and then go to bed. Have a great evening.”

He studied me for a couple of seconds before he smiled and nodded. He didn’t simply walk off. He opened the doors for both of us. I remembered this was where his son got his manners. We waved as we pulled away. For a second, I thought I spotted Tiernan watching us from the dark interior of the stables, but a second glance told me no one was there.

We got caught in traffic on the way home. By the time we got there, it was a race to get dinner done, his homework finished, a bath completed, and then a little playtime before he was tucked into bed. As soon as he was down for the count, I was back to working at the kitchen table.

The time flew by. The next thing I knew, I was raising my head and checking the clock. It was ten o’clock. A tap on my door distracted me. Immediately, I thought of Mrs. Lafferty. Sometimes, she’d come up and knock when she needed something. I told her to call rather than go up and down the stairs, but if it was after eight, she claimed she didn’t want to chance waking up Cassius.

I tried to work out the kink in my back as I walked to the door. I stifled a yawn as I opened it. I knew I made a terrible mistake the moment I did. The door came flying open, and I stumbled back. I cried out as a masked man barged into the apartment. I took off running for Cassius’s room. What an idiot. I should’ve looked. Normally, I would, but my head was all messed up.

I didn’t make it far before my hair was grabbed, and I was yanked backward. I landed on my ass on the floor.

“Bitch, don’t run. Do as I say, and I won’t have to hurt your little boy. I want your money and jewelry. Don’t get any ideas about yelling or calling for help. If you do, I’ll slit both your throats,” the man told me. He was holding a wicked-looking knife in his hand. I gulped. No way would I go against him.

“Get up,” he snarled.

I stumbled to my feet. “I don’t have any jewelry. I have a little bit of money in my purse. That’s it.”

“Get it, and don’t try anything,” he snapped.

I went to the side table where my purse was. I got out my wallet. I opened it and took out the cash, which wasn’t a lot. I handed it to him. He looked at it and sneered. “Is this all you got? There has to be more.”

“There’s not. Look around. We don’t have a lot. What money I have is in the bank, and it’s not a bunch.”

“Come with me. Show me your room,” he ordered.

My heart sped up. Oh my God, was he about to rape me? He had me by the hair again, so I had no choice but to take him there. He went through my closet, dresser, and the small jewelry box on my dresser before he believed I had nothing of value. Anger came off him in waves.

“I saw him. I saw that big fancy Range Rover. There’s got to be something around here. He was with you and the kid. Who was he?”

Registering who he meant when he mentioned the Range Rover took a second. When it did, I wanted to cry even more. “It was a guy who teaches a horse riding program. My son has been going to his stables. He stopped by one day. He doesn’t live here. I don’t pay for the program. It’s through my son’s school. I’m telling you, I have nothing valuable except a TV, my laptop, and a small stereo in the living room. Take them.”

I kept praying that Cassius wouldn’t wake up. God knows how he’d react. Suddenly, I was flung forward. I screamed as I landed on my bed. My scalp hurt from where he’d jerked on my hair. I went to roll over, but he landed on top of me. His hot breath washed over my neck.

“I guess if you don’t have money or jewels, you’ll have to pay me in a different way.” He laughed and then began tugging on my clothes.

I went wild. I squirmed, kicked, and tried to punch him. His hand got near my face, and I bit him. He swore and backhanded me. The good thing was he lifted himself off me to do it, and I was able to flip onto my back. I’d fight as long as I could to put off the inevitable. Maybe I’d get lucky, and a neighbor would hear and call the cops. I was so into fighting him off everything else was an undistinguished hum in my ears.

My shirt ripped as he yanked on it. I had a bra on, but still. I raked my nails down his exposed arm, drawing blood. He pinned me to the bed and wrapped his hands around my throat. His eyes, the only thing visible with the mask, glared at me. He began squeezing, and I was fighting to get air.

“I’m gonna kill you, bitch, then I’m killing your son.”

More panic and fury filled me at his threat to hurt Cassius. I groped blindly on the mattress. He’d laid down the knife to choke me. Adrenaline raced through me when I felt it. Without another thought, I grabbed it and then stabbed his side. He let out a howling roar of pain, and his grip tightened on my throat. Things were getting darker. I stabbed again. I felt it sink into him, but I didn’t know where or if it would kill him. Just as things were about to go completely black, I swore I heard voices yelling, but I couldn’t be sure. It might just be wishful thinking.