13. Alex

CHAPTER 13

The dinner party was a roaring success. I can tell by how happy Kase is in the days that follow. The hate fuck threesome afterwards caught me off guard, but I think I won that one too. I'm not sure what got into him or what caused the anger in him but he's been different since then. He doesn't keep her in the box for long anymore. Every day her time out becomes longer and longer. It becomes concerning to me. I don't like it. Unless he feels like he accomplished what he set out to do and doesn't need to lay down the law anymore. He mentioned the guy filming her at the dinner and it may have satisfied his need to send her a message.

I get into the shower and let the warm droplets flow over me. I hear Kase in the bedroom, but I don't know what he's doing or whether he's coming to join me. The door closes and I assume that he has business to take care of or that he came to fetch his keys or something else that he needed. My phone rings and I leave the shower to get it. I'm expecting a call from Singapore about the progress of a new deal.

"Alex." I answer.

The voice on the other end doesn't stand on ceremony.

"Where's my money?" He asks.

"Look, I told you I don't have your money right now, but I will. You just need to give me some time." I answer. I need to get this guy off the phone before Kase returns.

"Look, if you don't want me to tell your boyfriend how his father really ended up as fish food. Then you'll get me my money pronto, I'm giving you a week."

"I'll get you your money. Kase can never know that I'm the reason the Russians upped their initial asking price and caused the deal to go south. Vince! Vince!" He'd already hung up. "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!" I scream into the empty phone before hurling it across the room. I go back and finish my shower. I try to think of a way out and asking Kase is not an option. I turn the hot water faucet lower and lower until I'm standing in a freezing shower. Lowering my heart rate and centering myself. I turn the hot water up after a minute and finish my shower. I hear Kase's car leave as I turn the shower off. I dry myself in record time and get dressed so that I can leave. I need to figure out what I'm going to do next. I can't let the man I love discover that I'm the reason his father was murdered. I need to retreat and plan. I add up all my assets in my head so that I can arrange a second mortgage on my apartment in Manhattan. I might be able to raise what Vince is asking but the problem with guys like that is, once they have you by the short and curlies you're on the hook for life. No, I needed a permanent remedy for the Vince problem. Growing up on the streets, I had to learn what it takes to survive. My mom and dad were perpetually strung out, and in and out of jail, leaving me with no choice but to be smart and ruthless to survive. Not for me, the private schools and birthday parties while Kase and that bitch downstairs enjoyed. I had to fight and fuck for everything that I have. I'm not about to let some lowlife opportunists take it away from me now. I need to call in a few favors and then figure out if Vince told anyone else before I take him out. I pull on my jacket and head out. I'm half a mile away before I think to myself, maybe patience isn't the best approach with Kase either. While I'm taking care of Vince, I might as well take that bitch out too. She's becoming an unnecessary hindrance to what I want. I can see it in his eyes, no matter what his lips say. She's got to go. But I can't kill her, or at least I can't make her murder obvious. No, I think our Orla is going to take her own life and free herself from this hell she's living. Everyone involved will believe that she chose to die rather than be subjected to a life of pain and degradation, well, the degradation part will be our little secret. She'll just leave a note saying she couldn't live in a loveless marriage any longer and didn't want to disgrace her family with the shame of a divorce. Kase will be happy because her father's misery and guilt will never end. His father will be avenged and her family, well they will just have to suck it up. After all they got her into this and her blood will be on their hands.