Fate's Cry Read online

  “Why are you concerned? You don’t even know me.” Kelsey refused to accept his answer.

  “Truth be told, Kelsey, you have sad eyes. Frankly, I am intrigued by you.”

  “You don’t know me!” She raised her voice, instantly annoyed. She didn’t want him to notice her “sad eyes.” Who did he think he was anyway?

  “Are you not hungry? You better eat that pizza before it gets cold.”

  Kelsey continued to glare at him. Finally giving up, she grabbed a few slices. “Are you going to have any?”

  “No, I just ate,” he answered as he sat down on the sofa.

  “Why do you keep bringing food here? And why are you coming so late at night? Even the other night, what were you doing walking around so late?” She couldn’t stop herself from asking the questions that had been on her mind.

  “What were you doing walking around so late?” Damien asked the same question.

  “I asked you first. What’s your full name anyway? I don’t make it a habit of having strange men in my apartment.”

  “Clearly,” he said. “Yet, you made an exception with me. Not a wise move, Kelsey. You don’t know a thing about me. I could be a serial killer for all you know.”

  “Do I need to be afraid?”

  “Are you afraid?” he asked.

  “Stop answering my questions with questions,” Kelsey yelled. “And to be honest, yes, a part of me is afraid. I don’t know if it’s because you act mysterious or because Tom hates you. Either way, do I need to be afraid of you?”

  “You should always follow your instincts, Kelsey. But, no, I don’t plan on hurting you. At least not tonight.”

  When Kelsey flung her head up to meet his gaze, she caught him smirking. Apparently, the mysterious Damien liked to tease as well.

  “Sit down, Kelsey. You are making me nervous,” he interrupted her thoughts.

  Rolling her eyes, she lowered herself onto the chair next to the sofa. “Tell me about yourself,” she finally said.

  “You first.”

  “There’s nothing to me. This is it. What you see is what you get, Damien. Now, stop avoiding my questions. What’s your last name?”

  “It is just Damien,” he slowly answered, a slight frown forming on his forehead.

  “What? What do you mean? Everybody has a last name. Why aren’t you telling me? Are you wanted by “America’s Most Wanted” by any chance?”

  This made Damien laugh. Kelsey couldn’t believe he was actually laughing. “I do like your sense of humor, Kelsey.”

  “You’re impossible!” she said, exasperated. “What type of accent is that anyway? You talk strange.”

  “Strange? How do you mean?” Damien frowned, seeming baffled.

  “Like almost too proper. Nobody talks like that. Where are you from?”

  “I have been all over the world, to be honest. Maybe I picked up a bit of an accent from everywhere?”

  “I see you’re planning on remaining mysterious. Whatever, Damien. To be honest with you, I’m glad you’re here. I’ve been going crazy, isolated like this. I need to get back to work before I truly lose it.”

  “You are young and beautiful. Surely you have lots of friends. Why not invite them over to keep you company?” He turned toward her, but remained sitting on the sofa.

  “I have no social life. I’m a loner, and I prefer it that way. So, nope, no friends have visited.” Kelsey stood back up and hopped back to the kitchen for a drink. “Do you want anything? Beer? Water?”

  “No. I am good,” he answered. “I am going to be heading out anyway.” He stood back up and strolled to the door.

  “You literally just got here fifteen minutes ago,” she said, puzzled once again by his behavior.

  “Yeah, I have to go now. Is it okay if I return tomorrow?” Damien stopped at the door and turned to wait until Kelsey hopped to him.

  “Um, I guess so. Do you want to come during the day, though? Maybe you can stay longer.”

  “No, I work,” he answered abruptly.

  “I meant after your work.” Kelsey sensed that he was becoming uncomfortable.

  “I work until very late. I can only come by at night.” He seemed irritated, as he scowled.

  “Well, shit! You don’t have to come at all. Please don’t feel obligated!” She was feeding off of his energy and was also becoming annoyed.

  Damien sighed. “I will see you at ten tomorrow night.” He opened the door and disappeared down the hall.

  Four

  True to his word, Damien continued to come every night during the week. At first, he would only stay a short amount of time. As each day passed, though, he began to stay longer. Some days, he even appeared relaxed and smiled more. Occasionally, he would treat her with his sexy laugh.

  Kelsey herself was feeling more comfortable around him. Although he remained secretive, she looked forward to his visits every night. She couldn’t remember the last time she looked forward to anything.

  Their discussions, however, remained on neutral topics—until a week later.

  “Kelsey, where is your family? Are you alone?” Damien surprised her with the questions.

  “Where’s your family? I don’t know anything about you.”

  “Stop. That is my trick.” Damien smiled and reached for her hand. Squeezing it, he softly said, “I want to know. I want to know everything about you.”

  Kelsey didn’t pull her hand away, enjoying the touch. She noticed her heartbeat increased while his strong fingers caressed her hand. When her gaze fell to her tiny hand in his large one, she noticed an unusual ring on his ring finger. It was an antique ring, and the details on the design were breathtaking.

  “What a beautiful ring. Where did you get it?”

  Damien pulled his hands away. “It is part of my clan…err, I mean, my family. It’s a family heirloom.” Damien took a deep breath and touched Kelsey’s cheek. “Tell me why you have those sad eyes, Kelsey.”

  Kelsey glanced away, not wanting him to see the pain hidden beneath them. Damien turned her face toward him, forcing her to look at him.

  “I know there is some deep ache there, Kelsey. I can feel it. It might help you to talk about it.”

  “No! No, it won’t!” Kelsey yelled, her eyes tearing up. She sprung up in frustration and leaned against the wall. “Fine, you want to know? My mom, brother, and sister died because of me. They all died, Damien. They died in a fire. It happened on a Halloween night five years ago. I was a selfish bitch. Even though they begged me not to go out that night, I didn’t care. I wanted to have my fun at the parties. I didn’t even give them a second thought.” The tears were soon rolling down her face. “Some guy I met—I didn’t even know who the hell he was—drove me home. I was drunk and strung out, and I didn’t even understand all the chaos around our apartment building. Finally, when I got closer, I realized the building was on fire. An accident they said. A random electric fire from another apartment.” Kelsey covered her face, remembering that horrible night. Losing all control, her body shook violently as the sobs took over.

  Strong arms seized her and carried her back to the sofa. Holding her close in his embrace, Damien whispered, “It’s okay. Not your fault. Let it all out.”

  “It was my fault.” Her voice quivered. “My mom couldn’t help them because she was disabled. She was dependent on her wheelchair, and my brother and sister were too young. They must have been terrified. If I was there, I may have been able to get them out.”

  “Or you could have died as well,” Damien whispered.

  “I would have welcomed it. At least I would have comforted them and held them in my arms. But living like this…knowing my selfishness cost them their lives…” Kelsey’s voice trailed off as she buried herself deeper into Damien’s chest. “I have died a slow death every day since I’ve lost them.”

  Her body shook as the pain consumed her.

  “No, Kelsey. I promise you, it was not your fault. You were not supposed to be there. You must stop blam
ing yourself.” Damien held her tight in his arms as he caressed her back, trying to make her understand. As she tortured herself with agonizing sobs, she felt soft lips kissing her tears away.

  Kelsey’s hysterical sobs eventually settled to quiet weeping. All the while, Damien continued to whisper soothing words while tenderly kissing her face. She suddenly became acutely aware of their close proximity and instantly felt the heat that was rising.

  Caught up in the moment, Damien’s lips found hers, and immediately, her heart raced. As if realizing what he was doing, Damien jerked away and stared down at her.

  Without saying a word, the two were unable to look away, lost in their own emotions. When Kelsey saw Damien’s eyes darken, her heart skipped a beat. Damien’s gaze shifted to her lips, and without intending to, Kelsey licked them.

  As if losing some inner battle, Damien grabbed her face, and his lips found hers once again. This time, they were not tender kisses. Instead, they were filled with passion and urgency.

  Kelsey tried to think rationally, but she was helpless as she fell into his spell. Incapable of resisting him, her lips opened to deepen their kiss. She could hear his breathing increase as he pulled her hard against him. Trying to catch her breath, she clung to him, disoriented. In the back of her mind, she knew he was losing control as his desire rose. But, the part that was captivated by his spell wanted more, and she was unable to pull away.

  Before she could stop him, Damien abruptly ripped her shirt, exposing her breasts, now covered only by her black, lacy bra. Shocked, she tried to shove him off, recognizing that Damien was reaching the point of no return.

  “Damien, wait…” Kelsey whispered, her words muffled with failed attempts to slow her breathing.

  Damien lifted his head, his gaze dropping to her breasts. With his chest rising and lowering, she became aware of the dangerous aura around him. Clenching his jaw, he tore the entire shirt off of her, bringing his head down onto her chest.

  “Wait, Damien.” Kelsey tried to bring him back to reality.

  Instead of stopping, his lips and tongue found her breasts, and he sucked hard through the lacy fabric.

  Kelsey knew she should try to resist, but she lost all fight as her body betrayed her, and a moan escaped. Somewhere deep in her mind, she sensed that something about Damien terrified her. Although a part of her knew everything was wrong about this moment, the other part of her didn’t want him to stop.

  Damien continued to devour her as he ripped her bra off. Once her breasts were revealed, he simply stared at them for a few seconds.

  Powerless, Kelsey remained lying there, waiting for his next move.

  Slowly, Damien lowered his face and inhaled deeply, as if he couldn’t get enough of her scent. As his lips found her bare breasts, Kelsey’s moans increased.

  Never desiring any man like she did Damien, she ignored her feelings of unease. The way he was making her feel, it didn’t matter that they had just met last week. It didn’t matter that he had been secretive, and she didn’t even know his last name. It didn’t matter that he kept showing up late nights, never showing himself during the day. The only thing that mattered to her was she had never wanted anything more than Damien.

  When she heard the pounding of the bedroom door and Tom’s hissing and growling, some small part of reality began to sink in. Damien must have heard him as well because he shoved himself away from Kelsey abruptly. As the horror of reality sunk in, he staggered back a few steps. Kelsey drifted back down to earth and grabbed her ripped shirt to cover herself.

  “I…Kelsey, I…damn.” Damien tried to speak, but was unable to complete a full sentence.

  She stared down at the floor, humiliated by her actions. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

  “No! It’s…no, Kelsey! Thank God your cat hates me so much that he made the noises from the bedroom. I never meant for this to happen. I am the one who is sorry.” He attempted to explain. Grabbing his coat, he rushed toward the front door.

  “Wait,” Kelsey managed to say. “What’s going on? You’re leaving?”

  Without turning around, he replied, “Yes, Kelsey, I must leave now.”

  Jumping off of the sofa, she hopped after him. “Wait, Damien.” When she reached him, she continued, “I know things got out of control, but why are you acting like we committed some horrible crime?”

  Swinging the door open, Damien stepped out. Without giving her a backward glance, he said, “Take care of yourself, Kelsey.”

  Five

  The next day, Kelsey woke up more confused than ever. She admitted things got a bit out of control last night between Damien and her. Still, his behavior afterward was even more bizarre. Determined to confront him when he arrived that night, she decided she would force him to discuss the incident.

  Rehearsing all day exactly what she wanted to say, she waited with nervous anticipation for the knock on the door. She didn’t want to feel bad about what happened. Yes, it wasn’t her typical behavior. As a matter of fact, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d even kissed a guy. The only thing she knew was it felt good. He awakened a part of her that had been buried for a long time, and she refused to feel guilty about it.

  The knock never came. Kelsey waited up until three in the morning, staring at the door. Why didn’t he come? Was the incident from the previous night that upsetting to him?

  With a heavy heart, Kelsey gave up and crawled into her bed. That night, she didn’t sleep at all, wondering what had kept Damien away.

  When the morning came, Kelsey knew she needed to get busy again. If she didn’t, her depression was going to come back with vengeance. This time, she couldn’t take the chance since Halloween was just around the corner.

  She had a doctor’s appointment later, and she begged him to allow her to go back to work. Luckily, he agreed she could start putting her foot down as tolerated because it was healing nicely.

  Once home, Kelsey went on a cleaning spree. She wanted to keep her mind away from Damien and Halloween. The busier she stayed, the better.

  Against her will, Kelsey found herself getting ready, anticipating Damien’s visit. By ten o’clock, she was staring hard at the door, willing for the sound of the knock. But once again, she fell asleep, disappointed.

  Kelsey returned to her job the following day. Even though her ankle was sore, she was thankful she could bury herself in her work. By the time she arrived back to her apartment, she was exhausted, but she didn’t mind. She welcomed it. Knowing in her heart Damien was not going to return, she lounged around until she fell asleep watching TV.

  Somehow, Kelsey got through each day, but her pain continued to torture her. Damien was a nice distraction while it lasted. He had disappeared from her life just as mysteriously as he had appeared. He could be a married man for all she knew. Maybe that was the reason why he had stopped coming, especially after the events from the other night. Since he had been out of the picture, though, Kelsey fell back into the same dark place.

  Although she had managed to stay away from the rooftop, her need to return there kept increasing. She knew going back there would be her doom. As Halloween was getting closer, Kelsey’s nightmares became so bad, she would wake up screaming in the middle of the night.

  When the day finally arrived, she was thankful it was on a Saturday. That way, she wouldn’t be going anywhere near her work and be tempted to go to the rooftop of the museum. Even though it was a cold, brisk day, she purposefully stayed busy. She went grocery shopping and even watched a movie at the theater. As soon as she arrived home, Kelsey went to sleep early. She just needed to get through the night.

  “Kelsey, help us!” Ryan screamed.

  “We need you, Kelsey. Where are you?” Tori begged.

  “I’m coming!” Kelsey yelled. “Hang on. I’ll save you guys!”

  “It’s too late, Kelsey.”

  She heard her mother’s voice. Kelsey turned to look for her. Where were the voices coming from? Why couldn’t she see anybody?

/>   “It’s not too late! I’m coming for you!” Kelsey screamed, desperate to reach them.

  She ran toward the voices, but everything was pitch black. She couldn’t see anything.

  “I’m so scared, Kelsey,” Ryan cried.

  “Don’t be scared, Ryan. I’m almost there!” She tried to reassure him, but she was now panicking. She had to reach them in time.

  Oh my god, the heat was too much. It was getting unbearably hot.

  “Ahh, it hurts, Kelsey!” Tori screamed. “You can’t help us!”

  “I can help you. Please, tell me how to reach you! I’m coming.”

  She heard the screams. The horrible screams of terror and pain. No, no! Please, no!

  “I told you not to leave us. It’s too late. This is all your fault!” Kelsey heard her mom yell before she, too, joined the others with the agonizing screams.

  Feeling completely helpless, Kelsey screamed, “No! No! Don’t leave me! Please, don’t leave me!”

  Frantic, Kelsey ran wild. The tears rushed down her face, but she didn’t care. She had to find her family. She had to save them.

  The smoke was getting to her, and she was beginning to feel lightheaded. Terrified she would faint before reaching them, she kept running.

  “Talk to me! Don’t you give up! Tell me where to find you!”

  Silence.

  “Mom! Tori! Ryan! Somebody, please talk to me!”

  Silence.

  “No!” she screamed.

  Kelsey’s eyes flew open, her breathing erratic. Frantic sobs consumed her. When she noticed she was in her apartment, she cried, “No, no, no!”

  Tom jumped on the bed, rubbing against her.

  Through her hysterics, she was incapable of catching her breath, her chest squeezing the life out of her. Jumping out of the bed, she made it to the bathroom. She splashed cold water on her face with trembling hands, hoping to shake off the nightmare.

  But the terrifying screams echoed all around her apartment.