“We can go twenty rounds, I wouldn’t change my answer,” Thaddeus replied. “I’d do it again.”
“Glad to know where I stand,” Robbie said in disgust. “Can you at least tell me why she did it? Why did she lie to me?”
“To push you away,” Thaddeus answered. “It worked so well, you believed it so easily.”
Robbie would have spoken but Thaddeus’s cell phone rang interrupting them. Excusing himself, he stood up and moved to the windows to answer it. Robbie sat back and listened to the one-sided conversation.
“Anything,” Thaddeus asked.
“Alright, come home, my love. Zan misses you. I’ll have others go looking.”
“No, I don’t think she’s at Aledeus, Olivia has strict orders to call.”
“Really, I don’t think she could defy me this time.”
“Fine, come home. There’s someone here you can talk to. He will make you feel better.”
Hanging up, Thaddeus turned to look at Robbie. “Athena is on her way, she has been trying to find Zoe. This is hitting her hard; I think it’s because she doesn’t know how to help Zoe. Please stay, have tea and dinner with us. The family will be glad to see you.”
“The family?” Robbie asked with a frown.
“Oh yes. Gabriella, Kenny, Jessica and Danny are here, it’s a full house. You’ll fit right in,” Thaddeus answered with a small smile.
******
Athena came home an hour later in a flurry of activity. Holding Zan’s hand tightly after a series of kisses, she hurried toward the terrace in the drawing room where she could hear laughter and the sound of glasses. Smiling, she stopped at the terrace doors when she saw Robbie standing with Danny and Kenny in the yard. Drinking in the sight of him, her heart calmed down as though there would be nothing to worry about anymore. Just seeing him sharing a joke with the rest, was enough, she thought.
Picking up Zan, she hurried along the cobbled path, rushing to the three men.
Kenny noticed her first and moved to take Zan from her. She insisted on carrying him and he was getting heavy. Twirling him up, Athena was free to just stop and stare at Robbie.
He smiled at her. “You’re beautiful as always, Aunt Athena.”
“Oh Robbie,” She rushed forward to hug him. “It’s so good to see you. It’s so good, really good.”
“Aunt Athena, how come I don’t get a greeting like that?” Danny asked. “What did you do Robbie?”
“Shut up, Danny. This is my son too; don’t give him a hard time.” Leaning up on her toes, she kissed Robbie’s jaw, and pulled back to study him, holding his hand. “And what have you been doing with yourself? You’ve lost weight. This is not good. You’re to stay here for a while, I’ll feed you.”
“Aunt Athena,” Robbie grinned kissing her cheek. “I’ve missed you.”
“And I you,” she said sincerely. Squeezing his fingers, she sighed. “I wish you’d come a few days earlier, you’d have found what you’re looking for.”
“Did you talk to the aunties and uncles?” Kenny asked, placing Zan on his shoulders for a horse ride.
“Yes,” Athena sighed. “They haven’t seen her. I don’t know where else to look. It’s harder because all her bank accounts haven’t shown any activity so it’s definitely not a hotel.”
“I don’t understand where else she could have gone,” Robbie said. “This is her home.”
“There has been a lot going on,” Athena said automatically, everyone in the house knew the situation; it didn’t occur to her to hold her tongue. “Zoe’s been stressed with the whole Steve Harden thing, and having Julia around, I should have seen it coming.”
“Steve Harden thing,” Robbie asked. “And if you mean stressed by our break up, she started it.”
“You’re the tip of the iceberg,” Athena joked. “No offence intended.”
“The tip, what’s worse than leaving me at the altar?” Robbie asked perplexed.
Athena stared at him, and then said, “Zoe is running from her past. She needs to be cornered so that she can deal with it.”
“What past? I’m confused even more,” Robbie admitted. “What the hell is going on here that I’m missing?”
Silence fell among them and Robbie glanced at Kenny in question. Kenny sighed and gave Athena an apologetic look. Putting Zan down, he said, “I’ll tell him.”
“If you think its best,” Athena said, taking Zan’s hand, to Robbie she said. “Don’t think too harshly of us, we’ve had no choice but to lie to you.”
Wondering why Athena would tell him that, Robbie waited patiently as Athena headed back to the house.
He turned to Kenny and asked, “What?”
“I can’t tell you the whole story,” Kenny said. “It’s hers to tell, what I will tell you are the basics.”
“Who is Steve Harden?” Robbie asked first, not sure he wanted to know.
Kenny decided ripping the bandage off fast was better.
“Zoe was raped and assaulted by Steve Harden when she was only sixteen. He almost killed her.”
It didn’t seem possible, but the crashing noise in Robbie’s ears felt as though the earth was breaking in half, then splintering into small pieces underneath him. Had he really heard Kenny right? It didn’t seem possible.
“What?” Shaking his head, Robbie turned to Danny.
Knowing that Robbie was asking for confirmation, Danny nodded his head in agreement with Kenny.
The pain in Robbie’s heart was deep, he couldn’t breath. Beautiful Zoe with her dimples, raped? Tears filmed his eyes and he turned away from the two men, sucking in air, he searched for control.
Kenny touched his shoulder and the control slipped. His fist connected with Kenny’s jaw. Savage emotion raged in sea green eyes. Robbie turned away and let out a harsh cry that made Kenny step back.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Robbie demanded. “Why!”
“She made us all promise. She was afraid you’d not look at her the same way.”|
“I love her,” Robbie said shaking his head. “How could she—
“She didn’t want pity,” Kenny said with a wince. “She didn’t want to spoil what you two had.”
“So she broke me instead,” Robbie said so quietly Kenny barely heard him. It hurt that she hadn’t trusted him with such a thing. It hurt so much more than her leaving him for some guy.
“Robbie—
“What is making her run away from home?” Robbie asked swallowing his rage down.
Danny answered, “Steve Harden is due for parole, and she’s supposed to attend the hearing in November to stop it.”
Robbie turned to glare at them. “What is wrong with the lot of you? Can’t you fix it? She’s living in Greece, that bastard shouldn’t be able to touch her!”
“Do you think we’ve been sitting around with this? Harden is one cunning bastard. If he comes out Robbie, he will sweep her through the press like a rug. Believe me, he is slimy and very smart. Besides, she’s not the only one who will be a victim now; he has children we have to protect,” Danny said fiercely.
Robbie cursed. “No wonder she’s running. You are all a bunch of idiots for keeping this from me. My God, when I get my hands on that woman, I’m going to shake sense into her.”
“Robbie,” Danny started.
“Shut up!” Robbie said, angrily. “I need to get away from here right now. This is a lot to take in and I am not sure whether I shouldn’t just walk away. But how can I? Those scars on her wrists are the one truth she did give me, right? Damn it, we have to find her fast, before she decides she has nothing to lose. God damn it! What the fuck were you thinking?”
Kenny watched as Robbie stalked off.
Athena rushed out a few minutes later, her expression expectant, when she didn’t see Robbie she frowned.
“He left,” Danny said. “He’s not pleased.”
“I wouldn’t be,” Athena said. “W
ell, if he cares, he’ll be back. I really hope you can convince him to help us, if he doesn’t return.”
“I don’t think you’ll have that problem,” Kenny said. “Robbie will come back.”
*****
Zoe was raped.
Robbie couldn’t bear the ugliness that came with that statement. He couldn’t stop the visuals that quickly followed the words. The replayed in his head like a darned movie. He was now sure that he could in fact commit murder if given the chance. He could kill the bastard who’d violated Zoe like that without remorse or hesitation. Calmly cut the man’s throat with a knife and watch him bleed to death.
Clenching his fists, Robbie stared at the bar counter and wondered how hard it would be to plan it.
“What’s up?” Tevin asked coming to take the bar stool beside him.
Robbie jerked his head up to look at his friend, shaking his head; he reached for the glass the bartender had placed before him.
Swallowing the amber liquor allowing it to burn down his throat, Robbie said, “Zoe’s in shit.”
“What does that mean?” Tevin asked, with a roll of his eyes. “Is there no end to the drama with this woman? What’s happened?”
“Damn it Tevin, listen to me. Zoe’s kind of trouble is serious,” Robbie said. “I was so caught up in my embarrassment, I didn’t figure it out. She would never cheat on me. I know that.”
Tevin paused. “Okay, lay it out.”
“She’s missing and her family is trying to find her. Some shit happened in her past and it’s come back to haunt her.”
“What kind of past would be that bad? Unless she killed someone,” Tevin joked, trying to ease the tension in Robbie.
“No, someone tried to kill her,” Robbie said, his gaze glowering. “I could have lost her without having ever met her.”
“Jesus,” Tevin gasped. “I was just joking with you.”
“And I’m not,” Robbie snapped. “Believe me, Tevin, I wish I were. Damn Castilles have been keeping it a secret. That might be the reason Zoe’s so fucked up.”
“What!” Tevin said his eyes wide, making the bartender look up. Tevin got off the stool and threw a couple bills on the counter, grabbing Robbie’s arm, he said, “This isn’t the place for this. Come on.”
Back in the penthouse, Robbie told Tevin everything, when he was finished, silence filled the living room. Tevin got up and paced to the windows staring down at the beautiful gardens.
“She will be fine; you just need to find her,” Tevin said.
“What am I supposed to say, when she didn’t even want to tell me about it?” Robbie asked with a sigh. “We lived together three years Tevin, she never said anything. Hell, I couldn’t have guessed it.”
“It’s not something that comes up during dinner, Robbie. ‘Hey honey, here’s your plate of noodles, by the way, I was raped’,” Tevin shook his head. “Cut her some slack. I’m sure it’s a hard thing to deal with. No wonder she is so tight lipped about her personal life when it comes to the press. Do you know no one has ever printed anything about her childhood?”
“She’s never told me anything about it,” Robbie said quietly. “I tried to ask once; she gave me vague answers and promptly changed the subject.”
Tevin turned to meet Robbie’s gaze. “She left you because she was protecting you Robbie. If this guy gets out, and you two are together, the situation would affect both of you.”
“Don’t you think I know that?” Robbie cursed. “Zoe is impossible. I’m the one who’s supposed to do the protecting. Why would she do this? What now?”
“We’ll go back to Villa Thermopolis. In fact, you should stay there until this is solved. I’ll stay here to keep the press from probing too much.”
Robbie nodded, and stood up running a hand through his hair. “This stays between us Tevin, don’t tell the others.”
“You don’t have to ask,” Tevin said.
******
“Mum, something’s happening with Zoe, right?” Sarah Girgorio asked her mother that evening before dinner.
They were in her mother’s room, and Sarah sat cross legged on the bed playing with Julia’s cell phone.
“Why do you say that?” Julia asked, turning to study her daughter.
Julia was aware that the situation in the house had not gone unnoticed by Sarah. The girl saw too much, unlike Terry who was happy to spend the day at the beach or with Alain when he was out there.
“Just because,” Sarah said, her gaze sliding to look at her mother. “Aunt Athena has gotten really tense, she’s not as happy as she was when we first came. Aunt Gabby is also not smiling much these days. Uncle Thad is always on the phone and Danny and Kenny don’t spend time with us.”
“It’s not because they don’t want to,” Julia said gently. “They are just worried.”
“Is Zoe alright?” Sarah asked. “She’s so cool, but I think she doesn’t like me and Terry.”
“Why would you say such a thing?” Julia stood up and walked over to sit beside Sarah on the bed. “She didn’t say anything to you, did she?”
“No,” Sarah said, looking away. “I just feel it. It’s the way she’ll look at us. I mean she’s amazing with Zan, but with us, it’s harder for her.”
Julia frowned, and ran a hand over Sarah’s dark hair. How could she not notice something like that? It was hard for Zoe to look at her, why would it be easier with the twins?
“Sarah, don’t worry about it. Zoe is struggling with something very hard. You’ll see when she comes back, she’ll be okay.”
“Are you sure, Mom? Is there something we should know?” Sarah asked, turning on the bed to look at her mother. “I don’t know you are also stressed.”
“Of course I am, my sister is worried. Zoe is family,” Julia said.
Leaning forward, she caressed her daughter’s jaw. The thought of seeing Sarah suffer through what Zoe was going through, made her stomach roll with nausea. It couldn’t be easy for Gabriella to watch what was happening to Zoe. Hell, it wasn’t easy for anyone.
“Sarah, I love you very much.”
“Mum,” Sarah looked up at her mother in surprise, “that bad, huh?”
Julia smiled. “I’m just telling you that so you know we are here because we need to be. Give Zoe some time, she’ll come around.”
Pulling Sarah into a hug, Julia added to herself. “She has to.”
****
Chapter Eighteen
‘…Breathing hard, she ran down the first flight of stairs and then he grabbed her ponytail. The pain was so much when he pulled on it, but she wouldn’t stop. She couldn’t stop. He pulled harder and she lost her footing. He let go of her hair and she tumbled down the stairs, hitting the carpeted ridges hard all the way to the bottom. A scream escaped her lips as pain seemed to explode everywhere. In her ribcage, her stomach, her hips, her head, trying to catch her breath, she pushed herself to her feet.
‘…must keep going,’ she thought.
Hurrying into the living room, intent on the phone, she held on to the couch, trying to out maneuver him. Reaching for the phone she almost had it, but he was already on her. Pulling her back roughly, and throwing her viciously, she fell hard on a glass table, it broke…she was crawling…trying…trying…she had to keep trying…The piercing pain from glass cuts, he kicked her and she fell down, he reached down and pulled back his fist to hit her, she screamed…
“Zoe.”
She sat up fast, opening her eyes to escape the nightmare and came face to face with Olivia Zandross.
“Bad dream,” Livia soothed gently pushing sweaty hair out of Zoe’s face. Moving the tangled blankets away, Livia pulled Zoe into a hug.
Zoe sighed and leaned her chin on the older woman’s shoulder. Breathing in and out to steady her shaking body, she bit down on the fear ruthlessly, clinging to reality by letting her gaze move over the familiarity of the room. The comfortable couch on the wall
with its forest green design, beside it to the left, a pair of terrace doors covered with a pair of sheer white curtains. The vanity table right after, cluttered with tubes, pens, papers and other knick knacks. The rumpled bed with its light green blanket and now tangled white sheets.
Lifting her head, she watched as Livia reached for a glass of water from the bedside table. Handing it to Zoe, Livia said, “The medicine is not working.”
Sipping the water, Zoe sighed again. “Oh yes it is. Sleep is what the meds are giving me. The dreams are part of my sleep these days.”
“We should call Sylvia—
“No,” Zoe cut her off placing the glass on the bedside table. Sliding her feet over the bed, she said, “No need to worry her.”
“We can make her promise not to tell where you are,” Livia cajoled.
She was well aware of Zoe’s need to hide away from her family, but the nightmares were getting worse.
Zoe shook her head. “Its alright, I’m fine.”
Glancing at the clock on the table, she realized she’d only been sleeping for three hours.
“It’s two in the night,” Livia pointed out, “we both know you’re not going to sleep anymore. I can’t leave you like this.”
“Livia,” Zoe said with a small smile. “You need your rest.”
Reaching for her robe at the foot of her bed, Zoe pulled it on and stood up.
“Are you sure?” Livia asked, her gaze moving worriedly over her young charge.
No matter what age Zoe was, she’d always be the young girl Master Thad had brought to her eight years ago. A girl with memories that could make grown men cry and women kill. Sure, Zoe was older now, but she was still too skinny for Livia’s liking and the past was unrelenting.
Zoe, aware that Livia would spend the night up if allowed, reached for the older woman’s hand. Giving it a squeeze, she led Livia to the door.
“Please stop worrying about me, Livia, and go get some rest. I won’t forgive myself if I keep you up,” Zoe urged, “go rest.”
Livia shook her head, clearly unwilling to leave, but because Zoe had her pride, Livia leaned in and kissed her dimpled cheek. Letting herself out, she closed the door quietly and headed to her room.
Alone, Zoe sank into a couch aware that sleep was far away and wished for a bottle of wine.