Nick was just sitting down to lunch when his cell rang. He and Sid were under the shade of an ancient oak tree in a small park opposite the old church they were helping to restore.
Instead of Lucy, as Nick had been expecting, it was Summer. She sounded nervous. “Nick, hi. Look, I thought you should know. Lucy’s gone to meet Johnny Ho.”
At first, Nick was unable to digest what she had just said.
“What do you mean ‘she’s gone to meet him’?”
“She said she can’t keep hiding. She wants to finish it.”
Finish it? What does
that
mean?
“Nick, I tried to talk her out of it.”
“When did she go?”
“An hour ago.”
“I don’t get it,” Nick said. “Why didn’t she let me know about this?”
For the past four days, Lucy had locked herself away on campus. She had spoken to Nick on the phone twice a day, and was keeping tabs on Johnny Ho’s movements via Aunt Akiko. She was going to hunker down until he had given up trying to locate her. That had been their plan.
Something must have happened
, Nick thought.
He’s threatened her family in some way.
“She said this was her problem,” Summer said, “and that it wasn’t fair to drag you into it.”
“She’s trying to protect me?”
“I think so.”
“Did she say where she was meeting him?” Nick asked.
“No. She didn’t want to get anyone else involved.”
Nick went quiet, a thousand scenarios rushing through his head.
“Nick,” Summer said. “She said she’d call later, and she asked me not to contact her. If you try, she may not answer.”
Summer’s voice was tender and Nick was suddenly reminded of her own strong feelings for Lucy.
“Okay. Keep me informed, will you?”
“Sure, Nick.”
There was a pause, then Nick said, “How was she when she left you?”
“In what way?”
“Scared? Worried? Excited?”
Summer hesitated before replying. “I’m not sure if I should be saying this, but well, you know she hasn’t been her usual self recently? Kind of preoccupied?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, once she’d made her decision to go and see him, she seemed much calmer. She looked, how can I put it? Almost relieved.”
Nick rubbed his eyes and exhaled slowly.
“Nick?” Summer said.
“Yeah?”
“Whatever happens, Lucy loves you. You know that?”
Nick wasn’t sure what he knew anymore, but he said, “Yeah, I know.”
“When she calls, I’ll contact you. Bye, Nick.”
Sid was leaning back against the tree, watching him attentively. “So?” he asked.
“You heard.”
“It’ll be okay,” Sid said. “She knows the guy well enough. She wouldn’t deliberately put herself at risk.”
Nick gazed across towards the church. “Unless he’s blackmailing her somehow.”
Sid put his hand on Nick’s shoulder. “I know it’s not easy, but she obviously thinks this is the best way to handle it.
There’s really nothing you can do right now. She’ll call. Try to put it out of your mind until then.”
Nick picked up his sandwich, looked at it, and then put it back down again. “I’m not sure if I can do that.”
He worked on auto-pilot for the rest of the afternoon. When it was time to pack up, he looked at the ornate wooden altar he had been working on all day, as if for the first time. They climbed into Sid’s Dodge Ram and headed back towards the city. They drove in silence for a while, then Sid said, “You know what day it is today?”
“Thursday,” Nick said absently.
“Pool night. Remember that?”
“Sid, I’m not up for it.”
“I drop you home; you grab a quick shower and then take the Green Line into town. I’ll meet you at Jenny’s at seven. Only Rob and Andy will be there. No assholes.”
“I don’t know. I’m really worried about this.”
“That’s exactly why you should come out and have a few beers. You’ve got your phone with you. It will feel a hell of a lot better than just moping around indoors on your own.”
“I won’t be much company.”
“We’ll just chill out, shoot some pool, grab a bite, and wait for the call together. We don’t have to tell Rob and Andy about it. What do you say?”
“Alright. You’re on, I guess.”
While they waited at a red light, summer rain tapped onto the windshield. Nick sat staring at his mobile.
Right now, Lucy is with Johnny Ho. The man who sexually abused her and pushed her to attempted suicide.
He tried not to contemplate the awful possibilities and clung on to the hope that she would call him later, safe and sound, with the news that it was all over and she was coming home.
After Sid dropped him off, and made him promise that he would show up, Nick checked the house for possible signs of a break-in. He checked each room in turn, lingering in Lucy’s for a moment, sitting on the bed where their affair had first erupted into passionate life.
Affair?
Was that what it was? Had Nick merely been an interlude in Lucy’s helter-skelter life and she was now being drawn inexorably back to her own people?
I love you, Nick,
she had said. Summer had confirmed it. That was all he had to hold onto. He made sure the padlock to the basement was secure but didn’t go inside, knowing that he would be drawn to her desk with her paintings and bondage toys.
Satisfied his home hadn’t been violated, Nick went up and showered, and an hour later he was sitting at a table in Jenny’s Tavern, waiting for Sid. He ordered a Bud Light and gazed around at the mostly empty bar. He was sitting just a couple of tables away from where they had all first met up, where Rob and Tanya, now engaged, had first laid eyes on each other, and where Jason had coveted Lucy.
He looked at his cell and saw that it was still a quarter before seven. He finished his beer, ordered another, and called Summer who picked up straight away.
“Hello?” she said breathlessly. “Have you heard anything?”
Nick’s heart sank. “No,” he said. “I was hoping you had.”
“Nothing,” Summer replied, sounding equally disappointed. “I’m getting worried.”
“I’ve had enough of this,” Nick said. “I’m going to call her.”
“I already tried. She’s on voice mail.”
“Shit. Something’s wrong here.”
“God, Nick. I hope she’s okay.”
Sid turned up just as Nick rang off and, looking at Nick’s gloomy expression, said, “Not good news, I take it.”
“Lucy’s off the radar,” Nick replied. “Damn, I feel so helpless.”
“Hang in there, buddy. It’s going to work out fine.”
When Rob and Andy arrived, there wasn’t much else to do but wait. They ordered up pitchers of beer and plates of burgers and fries, and put their names up for the weekly pool knock-out. It had been several weeks since Nick had last done this and had it been under different circumstances, he might have enjoyed himself.
He let himself get eliminated from the competition early and he sat at the table alone, watching the others play. As time went by, his drinking pace sped up along with his sense of foreboding. He gazed around at the now-crowded tavern. Most of the patrons were young single men, but there were plenty of couples about too. Nick thought back to the many nights he had spent here before Lucy came along. Being single had never really bothered him before, but now he physically ached for her presence.
Eventually, the others were knocked out, and they sat around chatting contentedly, with only Sid aware of Nick’s growing angst.
Unable to stand it any longer, Nick tried Lucy’s number and to his relief, he heard her familiar ring tone.
When she picked up, Nick cried, “Lucy! Are you alright?”
There was a silence at the other end.
“Hello?” Nick said.
He heard somebody chuckle.
“Who is this?” Nick asked, his stomach knotting up.
“Hey, Nick,” said Johnny Ho. “How you doing?”
Chapter Thirty-One
Nick stood up so fast he knocked over his beer glass.
“Where’s Lucy?”
“She’s with me, of course.”
“I want to talk to her.”
“Are you sure about that? You might not like what she has to say.”
The knot in Nick’s stomach got tighter. “What do you mean? Is she alright?”
“She’s fine. A bit sore, but as you know, she likes that.”
Aware that the others were watching him, Nick moved away towards the exit.
“What the hell have you done to her, you son-of-a-bitch?”
“Now, now, Nick,” Johnny Ho mocked. “You know what Lucy’s like. She needs a father figure. Someone to discipline her when she misbehaves.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Come on, you think I don’t know about you and her? She told me all about it. Your punishment sessions. That’s the problem, though. You just weren’t hard enough on her. A girl like Lucy needs to feel totally dominated. She always had the upper hand with you, and that simply wasn’t enough for her. All those games she invents? She craves absolute subjugation, and I can give her that. ”
“Are you saying she’s gone back to you?” Nick asked incredulously.
“Why do you think she agreed to meet me today?”
“That’s bullshit! She’s been hiding from you for over a year. She told me you’re sick in the head!”
“Maybe I am, Nick. But so is Lucy. We were made for each other. Pleasure and pain. She may not love me, but she is intoxicated by me. The moth flew too close to the flame, and now she can’t leave.”
“I don’t believe you,” Nick said, his voice almost a whine. “You’re holding her against her will.”
Johnny Ho sighed. “Well, I guess you’ll just have to hear it first hand then. Lucy, Nick wants to talk to you.”
There was a pause and then Lucy said, “Hello, Nick.”
“Lucy! What’s going on?”
“I don’t know how to tell you.”
“Tell me what? Where are you?”
“At Johnny’s place. I’m okay.”
Her voice sounded a little woozy.
“Did he get you drunk?” Nick asked.
“Hmm? Look Nick, I’m a bit confused at the moment.”
Nick’s insides did a somersault. “What are you telling me?”
He heard Lucy take a deep breath. “What Johnny told you is true,” she said. “I had forgotten about the power he has over me. If I hadn’t come to see him, then we’d probably have been okay. But I did, and now it’s too late.”
“So it’s over, just like that?”
“I do love you, Nick,” Lucy said. “But I need what Johnny has right now. It’s impossible to explain. Just try to understand…”
Johnny Ho came back on. “Lucy’s got to go now, Nick. Don’t bother calling again. She’ll be ‘tied up’ for a while.”
The line went dead and Nick just made it to the men’s room before throwing up in the toilet.
This is impossible!
he thought.
I was so sure she was mine. How could things have changed so quickly? He must have some kind of hold over her. Oh shit! He’s probably fucking her right now!
These thoughts whipped around and around as Nick sat in the stall, tears running down his cheeks.
“Nick? Are you in there?” Sid called out.
Nick pulled off some toilet tissue and dried his face.
“Yeah. Just give me a minute. I’ll see you back at the table.”
“Okay,” Sid said uncertainly.
After a couple of minutes, Nick went out and washed his face. He looked at his puffy, red eyes in the mirror and took a deep breath. His mind was a swirl of emotion. He walked in a daze back to the table and sat down heavily. Sid, Rob and Andy looked at him anxiously.
Finally Sid asked, “Is she okay?”
Nick nodded wordlessly.
“So when is she coming back?”
Nick let out a shuddering breath, and said, “She isn’t.”
***
The pool competition had ended and Jenny’s Tavern was beginning to slow down. By the time Nick had finished explaining about Lucy’s previous life, they had gone through another two pitchers of beer.
“I still can’t believe it,” said Rob, shaking his head. “She was so into you.”
Nick stared at the bubbles rising in his glass, “Maybe I misjudged the whole thing. I mean, it was a really weird relationship. At first, there was no way we could have sex unless she got me angry first. I was so pussy-struck that it didn’t matter to me how she wanted it, as long as it happened.”
“I don’t blame you,” said Andy.
“But I really think she was changing. There were times when her defenses were down, and she was so vulnerable and childlike. She said she loved me and I believed her.”
Nick looked around at his friends through stinging eyes. “I’m sorry, guys; I’m acting like a wuss.”
“Hey,” Sid said. “I’d be feeling the same way.”
“So this guy, Johnny Ho.” said Rob. “Is he for real?”
“As far as I know,” Nick said. “He certainly looked it when I met him.”
“I mean, this guy really is a killer for a crime syndicate?”
“That’s what Lucy told me,” Nick said, her name sticking in his throat.
“Holy shit,” said Rob quietly.
“Got myself into one this time, didn’t I?” Nick tried to smile.
“Why would she want to go back to a guy like that?” Andy asked.
Nick shrugged. “It’s a power thing, I guess. An aphrodisiac.”
Rob shook his head. “I still think there’s more to this than meets the eye. Everything was okay up until yesterday, then suddenly she wants to go back to this abusive piece of shit that doesn’t even love her?”
Nick winced inwardly, and Sid said, “Beer’s empty. Another one?”
It was almost twelve and Nick said, “Look, I really appreciate you guys helping me drown my sorrows, but I know you’ve all got work in the morning.”
“Fuck that,” said Rob, slapping him on the shoulder. “We’re here for you, buddy.”
“Tell you what,” said Sid. “Screw the beer. Let’s have something stronger. What do you suggest?”
“Something to help me forget,” Nick said bitterly.
“Like a Long Island Iced Tea?” asked Andy. “That’ll do the trick. Remember at the night club when Jason tried to get Lucy drunk…?” His voice trailed off. “Sorry, Nick.”
Nick stared at him.
Long Islands.
The day after the night club, when they were eating Chinese food, he had told Lucy some people called Long Island Iced Teas a date-rape drug, because if you drank enough of them, they induced total memory loss, and she had told him a friend of hers was once drugged by a hypnotic drug.
“Andy,” Nick said. “What do you know about a mind-control drug, something beginning with ‘s’?”
“Scopolamine?” Andy said.
“That’s it,” said Nick. “It turns you into a zombie or something, takes away your free will.”
“That’s right,” said Andy.
“So how does it work?”
“Well, it’s a tropane alkaloid drug which affects the M1 receptors…”
“In English,” Rob interrupted.
“Okay, well it’s used legitimately for the treatment of motion sickness, and it’s an active ingredient in a few other medicines, but in large doses it can render a person into a completely submissive state. The CIA experimented with it as a truth serum, and it has gained notoriety in South America where the borrachero tree that produces scopolamine grows wild. It’s colorless, odorless and tasteless and according to reports, compliant victims have assisted in their own rapes, given away their money and possessions, even their babies. The biggest problem for the authorities is that the drug blocks out all memories afterwards, so the perpetrators can never be identified. ”
Nick was nodding slowly.
“So you think Lucy’s been drugged?” Sid asked.
“Well, it would explain her sudden change of heart.”
“That’s a bit of a stretch, isn’t it, Nick?” Rob said delicately.
“Maybe not. She told me about this drug once. She said her friend was a victim. I think she was referring to herself.”
“Christ,” Sid said quietly. “But even if it’s true, what can you do about it? You don’t know where she is, and even if you did, the guy’s a fucking mobster.”
“You could call the cops,” said Andy. “Tell them you think she might have been abducted.”
“They’ll probably think I’m delusional,” Nick said.
“What about her parents?” asked Sid.
“Her mother’s off the scene, and she’s not talking to her father. But she does have an aunt in Porter Square that she is close to. She might know where Lucy is. Sid, I’m calling in sick tomorrow, will you cover for me?”
“Of course. But if you find out where she is, don’t do anything crazy, okay?”
“I just want to make sure she’s alright,” Nick said standing. “You know, for the past couple of months, everyone has been advising me to fight for that girl. If she’s in trouble, then that’s exactly what I’m going to do.”
After promising Sid he would let him know what he planned to do, Nick left Jenny’s Tavern and headed for the station. His mind drifted back again to that Sunday when he’d thought he had lost Lucy to Jason. Over the phone, he had apologized for abandoning her at the night club and she had asked for his assurance that he wouldn’t do it again.