Angel's Curse (16 page)

When we both looked up and our eyes met I thought I recognised him, and saw a glimmer of recognition in his eyes as well.

“Hel, is that
you?
”

I felt the blood drain from my face. No one had called me that in years. Not since I’d run away. I studied the face again — a little bit older — weren’t we all — but the features were still the same.

“
David?
”

“It really is you, Helena, after all these years?”

He didn’t know whether to kiss my cheek, hug me or shake my hand. I was glad my hands were full and held the bags out in front of me to make it awkward for him to hug me or lean in to kiss me. Why the hell would he try to do that anyway?

“I tried to find you for a couple of years,” he said.

“
Why
would you do that?” I asked dryly.

People were pushing past us, complaining that we should stand to the side to talk and not in the middle of the footpath.

“There’s a coffee shop a couple of doors down. Please, I have a lot of things I need to tell you.”

I tried to look indifferent. “David, what could you possibly say that might interest me?”

“I know what they did to you …”

My mouth dropped open and I quickly shut it again. Okay, I wasn’t expecting that.

“So now you’re looking for absolution?” I asked curtly.

“No. I just want to explain,” he said.

“Fine. I’ll give you ten minutes.”

We walked back up the street to the coffee shop. David ordered a short black for himself and a skinny cap for me, not that I was going to drink it. When the coffees were ready we sat in a booth at the back of the coffee shop, me and my bags on one side, David on the other.
Ding, ding, round one.

He sighed and fidgeted with his fingers, not looking at me.

“When you ran away, my parents were devastated. I thought it was because they loved you more than me, and I was
glad
you were gone at last. I thought things would go back to the way they were before you came,
but no,
they fostered another girl — a nine year old.”

A cold shiver ran up and down my spine and I tensed, a grimace on my face.
That poor kid, I hope she fared better than me.

“They fostered
another
girl?” I asked through clenched teeth.

David took a sip of his coffee. I drummed my fingers on the table top impatiently.

He set the cup back on the saucer slowly and deliberately, keeping hold of it between his hands, to still them.

“Yeah, only she wasn’t scared of confined spaces like you. She preferred an institution to what my parents put her through.”

I decided to play dumb. “What do you mean?”

“It’s okay, Helena, I know everything now. I know
why
they loved you so much. I know why I was banished to the bungalow.” He was whispering now, staring into this coffee. “I know why you traded the only commodity you had, that you knew you could bargain with, to get me to dance with you.”

“Oh,” I said.

He looked up at me, sadness and regret in this eyes.

“
Oh!
After what you’ve been through and the way I treated you on top of it, all you can say is
oh?
”

“What do you want me to say, David?” My voice was hard and cruel, my eyes cold and flat. “How horrible it was, how trapped I felt, how I wished I was dead? The only thing that kept me going was the dancing and if that meant having to trade sex with you to be able to dance, so be it.”

“Shh, keep your voice down,” he cautioned me.

I looked around. If anyone was listening they weren’t making it obvious. It was he who was feeling guilty. I had nothing to hide, nothing to be ashamed of.

“So what happened to the other girl?”

“Within a month she called the police and then everything came out, including their abuse of you. My parents are in prison now. They’re due to be released in four years’ time. They keep applying for parole and get knocked back every time. She — the girl, she’s in her late teens now — attends every parole hearing and gives a statement on how it affected her life, and continues to do so. She’s a drug addict now, so the panel is very sympathetic to her plight, and I’m
glad
of that. I don’t want them to release my parents,
ever.
I don’t know how she has the courage to go there every year and do what she does.” He shook his head. “She’s a strong person, better than me.”

What did he want me to say, that it was okay because he didn’t know what was going on? I couldn’t and I wouldn’t.

“Had it already started when you came to me to dance?” he asked.

“Long before.”

“Then why did you come to me and offer what you did, knowing I hated you for all the wrong reasons?” He sounded confused.

“I wanted to dance, I
needed
to dance. I didn’t think you’d agree unless I could provide you with something you didn’t have. My body was my bargaining chip. It’s not like you declined my offer,” I snorted.

“I never told anyone this, but I was a virgin before you,” he whispered.

“I know.”

“Was it
that
obvious?” He seemed shocked.

I laughed softly, “Well,
yeah!
”

David laughed as well. I’d never heard his laugh before and it contained a nervous edge to it, like he could never really let go.

“Well, it was nice catching up and
reliving
old times,” I said, sliding out of the booth, “but I really must be off.”

“No, wait,” David said. There was something in the urgency with which he said it that made me sit back down.

“I tried finding you, for a couple of years. I wanted to make it up to you — all the wrong that had been done — if I could.” He sounded genuinely sorry for what had happened.

I shrugged my shoulders. “Shit happens.”

“Yeah, it does, but it shouldn’t happen to little kids,” he sighed.

He looked at my hands, tapping the table top again.

“You found someone, hey?” He used his head to indicate I was wearing a ring. “You’re happy now?”

I slid my hands under the table in my lap and twisted the wedding band round on my finger.

“Yeah, I found someone, and I
was
happy for a time.”

“But not now?” he asked. I shook my head. “What happened?”

“He died.”

“I’m sorry. I can’t imagine how that must feel. If my fiancée died, I don’t think I could go on without her.”

“You’re engaged?” I asked.

“Yeah. We’re getting married next year.” His eyes lit up. He was really in love with this woman. I wondered if she knew about his family’s past.

“That’s nice,” I said.

“Say, I’m having lunch with her today. Why don’t you come along?”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Please, at least let me buy you lunch and show you that I didn’t turn out to be half as bad as I used to be.”

“Can’t you let it go?” I asked abruptly.

“No, I can’t,” he sighed. “It haunts me day and night. I know I can’t make it right, but can I make peace with you? I promise I’ll never bother you again if that’s what you want.”

I rolled my eyes. Some people just wouldn’t let things rest.

“Fine. What time and where?”

David scrawled the restaurant name and address on a serviette and handed it to me.

“The booking is under my name, for one o’clock.”

“Fine,” I said again, and popped the serviette into my pocket before sliding out of the booth and leaving.

I didn’t look back to see if David was watching me. I kept on walking and didn’t stop until I was back at the hotel.

The same woman was at the front desk, looking even more tired than when I’d left. She handed me my card and I headed up to the room.

I sat on the couch and pulled the serviette out of my pocket —
Above the Rise, 350 Lexington
. I’d never been there before and wasn’t even sure where it was. I held out my hand and a street directory appeared. I flicked through the Ls until I found Lexington then flicked back to the right page and grid reference. It was about a twenty minute walk from the hotel. I had at least an hour and a half before I needed to leave.

I headed to the bathroom with some of my purchases and put the shampoo, conditioner and soap in the shower, and the body lotions, hand creams and makeup in the vanity drawers and cupboards. The shower was turned on, hot and steamy before I’d even opened the shower door, and my clothes disappeared as I stepped in.

I took my time in the shower and slowly dried myself before styling my hair. I applied a small amount of makeup, so my face looked light and fresh. With a towel still around me I walked to the living room window. There was heat haze in the distance. It was unseasonably warm, so I chose to wear a sleeveless dress with a wrap and flat, open-toed sandals — a respectable woman having lunch with her respectable friends.
Hah! That’s funny!

At twelve thirty I packed a few things, including Death, into a small clutch purse, and left to walk at a leisurely pace — taking in the sights — to meet David and his fiancée. I wondered what she’d be like, and couldn’t find any one picture in my mind that seemed a suitable match for him. I didn’t even know why I’d agreed to meet him for lunch. Did I need closure as much as he did? Surely we wouldn’t discuss the sordid details of our past lives in front of his fiancée?

I arrived at Above the Rise five minutes early. David and his fiancée were already there, and they both stood up as I approached the table.

“Helena, I’d like you to meet my fiancée, Kiana. Kiana, Helena and I grew up together.”

She held out her hand and I shook it.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Helena. David talks so little about his past.”

Any wonder,
I thought.

Kiana was about my height, with a bit more meat on her bones, long black hair that hung down to her ample breasts and large, brown eyes. She wore a sheer white blouse tied at the waist over a crop top, and three-quarter length pants with sandals.

“It’s nice to meet you, Kiana. That’s a very pretty name.”

“Thanks. It’s kind of a family tradition. The eldest daughter on my father’s side is always called Kiana. I think I’m about the twenty-third Kiana,” she said, rolling her eyes and smiling. Her smile revealed dimpled cheeks.

We sat down, David and Kiana on one side — close together and holding hands — and me, alone, on the other.

“Your family must go back a long way,” I said.

“Yes, they do.”

“Shall we look at the menu?” David asked.

“I’m sorry, I can’t have anything to eat here,” I said. “I’m on a special diet — doctor’s orders.”

“Are you okay?” Kiana asked, sounding concerned.

I brushed aside her concern with a wave of my hand. “Yeah, it’s nothing. Just have to watch what I eat.”

If only you knew the half of it!

“Sorry, I need to go to the ladies,” Kiana said. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

When she turned her back to me I could see, through her sheer blouse, an unusual tattoo on her lower back.
Very unusual indeed!

“I think I’ll pay a visit there too,” I said, picking up my purse and following Kiana.

When the door to the ladies closed behind me I quickly checked to see if anyone else was in there — one door was closed. Kiana went into a cubicle and locked the door. I washed my hands, slowly and meticulously. The other lady come out, washed and dried her hands and left. Kiana was still busy, doing whatever it was
her kind
did.

“I know what you are,” I called out, leaning against the cubicle door.

“What do you mean?” Kiana asked.

“I know you’re not exactly human, or mortal.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she scoffed.

“Don’t play dumb with me. I know what that
tattoo
on your back is. What did you tell David it was? He must have asked why the scales were raised.”

“It’s just a plain old tattoo with a medical grade plastic implant under the skin to give a raised ridge detail. Pretty fancy, I know, but that’s all it is.”

“Then you won’t mind if I take a closer look?”

“Not at all,” she said and flushed the toilet.

I took a step back and retrieved Death from my purse, holding it behind my back. When Kiana came out I stepped up behind her and held the knife to her throat.

“So this would only cut away flesh, and not remove a varakiana’s scale?”

Her face went white and I thought she was going to throw up. It was all the proof I needed that I was right. I sheathed Death and closed my purse. Her name made perfect sense now — Kiana, short for varakiana.