“You should mind your manners, Sofia,” he said as he reached out and gripped my arm.
“Let me go,” I shouted. I attempted to bite his hand when he covered my mouth.
“Bitch!” he shouted and smacked me across the face. I fell to the floor and raised my hand to my sore cheek as tears pooled into my eyes.
“I see what Joaquin likes about you.” He bent down and grabbed my chin then squeezed.
“He’s going to kill you,” I muttered as he pushed me down on the floor, pulled out a switchblade and traced it across my cheek down to the top of my dress.
I vainly tried to push his hands away.
“Then, I should make my time worthwhile.”
“Get the fuck off me, you bastard,” I screamed as I kicked my legs to force him up off me.
“My men wanted to take you for themselves; I said you shouldn’t be touched. Are you going to make me change my mind?”
He stood up and placed the blade back in his pocket.
“Joaquin will kill you if anyone touches me.”
He smiled and walked toward the door. I pulled myself up from the floor and watched as his henchman came to the door, and they whispered back and forth.
“Would you like something to eat, Sofia?” he asked.
“I want out of here now.”
“That’s not going to happen. I suggest we become acquainted with each other since you’ll be here for a while.” He smirked as the door closed behind him.
I ran to the desk drawer to look for anything that could help me get out of here. The entire room only held a bed, tv, and boarded-up windows with bars. Why was this happening to me? I cried and cupped my face, sat down on the bed and was thinking of my family when the door opened again, and two of his men walked in with their guns.
“Get away from me!” I screamed.
Ring! Ring!
“Shit!” Sweat beads ran down my face, and my heart was racing fast from a nightmare of being held captive on a boat. I glanced around my room as I calmed my breathing.
Ring! Ring!
I picked up my cell phone.
“Hello,” I said groggily.
“Are you all right?” Joaquin asked.
I checked the time, and it said two am. I’d never had nightmares growing up, but this felt so real.
“It’s two am, Joaquin,” I responded, wondering why he was calling so late.
“I couldn’t sleep,” he said.
“That makes two of us.”
“You want me to come over?”
“No.”
“Baby.”
“I promise I’m fine, just a little nightmare.”
“I’m coming over,” Joaquin spoke. It sounded like he was getting out of bed.
“Joaquin, stop worrying. I have work in the morning.”
“Then, I’ll drive you, sweetheart,” Joaquin insisted, and I smiled.
“You’ll probably drive me and stay with me all day.”
“I don’t see a problem with that,” Joaquin stated.
“The problem is that you can’t fix everything.”
“I won’t bother you; I’ll even sleep on the couch,” he joked, and I knew that would never happen.
“No, you’ll stay home, and I will talk to you later. Goodbye,” I said then hung up the call.
…
The next day I was looking at my calendar and emails with Cassidy before I headed home. Cassidy typed on her computer as I read over my schedule and poured myself some water.
“Sofia! Sofia!” Cassidy yelled out, and I realized I was making a mess as water spilled over the glass.
“Sorry.”
“Are you okay?” Cassidy questioned.
“Huh.”
“You seem distracted,” Cassidy mentioned, and I stood up, walked to the bathroom and grabbed a paper towel to clean up my mess.
“I had a nightmare last night.”
“You want to talk about it?” Cassidy asked, and I shook my head no.
“No, Joaquin wanted to come over and talk, but I’ll be fine.”
“If you change your mind, let me know.”
“Thanks, but work is all I need,” I replied and tossed the towels in the trash and continued to read over what I needed to get a handle on before my career got overshadowed by my personal life.
Two days later.
I woke up refreshed today knowing I would be leaving the hospital. Joaquin came in last night to spend the night on the couch after my parents left. Neither of them spoke to him and the tension could’ve been cut with a knife. Doctor Johnson came back yesterday afternoon and explained that all the tests came back fine, and I was clear to head home, but I still needed to rest and take things slow. I was too far along with filming and recording my album to stop the momentum. I asked Chauncey if he could come to my apartment to run through some songs together and Cassidy would be coming over to figure out a plan for my schedule. Social media was nonstop about my shooting and the reason I was in the hospital; some people said I was pregnant or having cosmetic surgery. I wanted to curse Joaquin out for bringing all this drama into my life. Nurse Naomi helped me out of the wheelchair and Joaquin assisted me into the car. I looked up front and saw Hugo was driving. My eyes peered at Joaquin and he assured me Hugo could be trusted, but we thought the same thing about Leonardo and look at how that turned out. The car door closed after Joaquin slid inside and helped me with my seatbelt. He grasped my hand as the car turned into traffic.
“Did they find Leonardo?”
“He’s nothing to worry about,” Joaquin said, then lifted my hand to press a kiss to my palm.
While he was with me last night, we mainly watched tv and avoided talking about the events that occurred on the boat. I knew it was coming, though, and my stomach clenched in dread.
“He never touched me,” I blurted out and waited for his response.
“I know.”
“I prayed that you would save me, and things would go back to normal.”
“Things would never be normal, Sofia, once I stepped into your life.”
“I see that now.”
“Do you have regrets?” Joaquin asked as he cupped my chin to stare into my eyes.
I shook my head no.
“I love you, but we need to talk about where things go from here,” I responded, sitting back against the seat as he picked my legs up to massage my feet.
“We move forward together, starting with you moving in with me,” Joaquin spoke and my eyes widened in shock.
“What are you talking about?”
“I want you to move in with me.”
“Do I have a choice?”
“Sweetheart, you always have a choice, but it’s for your protection and my peace of mind.”
“You prefer we live together,” I stated.
“Yes. Gael found a few places we can go check out this weekend,” Joaquin replied as the car stopped in front of my apartment building. I saw Cassidy and Chauncey standing outside.
“What are they doing here?” Joaquin asked as he helped me out of the car.
“I wanted to record some songs. I still need to work, Joaquin,” I fussed, pushing him out of the way to walk ahead of him.
“Sweetheart...Sofia, stop walking,” he demanded and I stopped.
“Are we interrupting?” Cassidy asked.
“Yes,” Joaquin said.
“No, come on up and we can get started.” I ignored him and walked them through the lobby and to the elevator.
“How are you feeling, Sofia? I heard about what happened,” Chauncey asked.
“Still tired but recovering slowly.”
“Glad to hear it, and what about your boyfriend? Is he cool with us being here?” Chauncey inquired.
“This is my home,” I said as the elevator doors opened and we stepped off. I walked to my door and unlocked it, sighing in relief at the instantaneous comfort I felt just stepping inside. Feelings of being back home in my own space did something to me. I took a seat on the couch, picked up the pillow and held it against my chest.
“Should we order food? I know you're not up to cooking,” Cassidy questioned.
“That’s fine, but tell me about Edward. Any news on him?” Cassidy started to answer when Joaquin stalked inside and glared at me.
“Come talk to me,” Joaquin said.
“I’m busy,” I responded.
“Sofia, if you expect to have a peaceful evening you need to come and speak with me right now,” Joaquin said. I rolled my eyes and jumped up and marched to the back of the apartment away from Cassidy and Chauncey.
“What do you want?”
Joaquin pulled me into his chest, and I hugged him back automatically. He brushed his lips against my shoulder blade, up my neck and down my cheek toward my lips.
“Stop fighting me, sweetheart, I only want the best for you.”
“Do you love me?” I questioned.
“Yes. What kind of question is that?”
“Then tell me about Edward.”
He sighed and removed his hands from around my waist and sat on the edge of the bed.
“I plan on killing him if I see him,” he said and shrugged his shoulders like it was the simplest thing in the world.
“Baby you can’t kill him.”
“Are you defending him?” Joaquin shouted.
“No, are you crazy? Listen, I want more than anything to see the bastard dead, but he’s a very important person. Let the police handle him.”
“Sofia, putting the police on him would be a piece of cake. I want him dead now.”
“Joaquin.”
“No more talking, you need to rest, and I have to leave and handle some business,” Joaquin said.
“Are you coming back tonight?” I inquired while I tugged at my earlobe nervously knowing that Edward would be dead soon and it was all my fault.
“I am so don’t be long. I want you in bed resting.”
“I promise.”
“Perfect, I’ll leave Alex and Hugo here with you.” Joaquin’s eyes implored me not to fight him on getting revenge.
“Okay.”
He stood and kissed me again and left the bedroom. I followed behind and saw Hugo and Alex already at the door.
“Cassidy, can you order enough food for Alex and Hugo as well please?” I asked and she nodded in answer.
“Joaquin, don't forget what we talked about.” He smiled as he strolled out of the apartment as Alex and Hugo stood at the door watching us.
“You guys don’t need to stand. Take a seat or something.”
“Boss wants us by your side at all times,” Hugo mentioned.
“Hugo, please it makes me nervous.”
“We’ll be outside, call us if you need anything,” Hugo stated.
“Thanks.”
“Okay, so that was the director. He put a hold on the movie until you’re fully recovered,” Cassidy commented, and I kicked off my shoes and laid back on the couch.
“First thing I need Cassidy to do is to get my schedule updated. I want to get back to work.”
“What about Edward?”
“Fuck Edward, that motherfucker was in on trying to kidnap me.”
Cassidy and Chauncey both gasped in surprise.
“Sofia, you can’t be serious,” Cassidy said.
“Serious as a heart attack.”
“I can’t believe he would do something so vile,” Cassidy stated, wiping away a tear before it fell down her cheek.
“You're not the only one, but Joaquin told me the guy that kidnapped me had help.”
“So, Edward wanted you dead. For what reason though?” Cassidy questioned.
“That’s some crazy shit, man,” Chauncey responded.
“Chauncey, you haven’t been around my personal life the way Cassidy is, but Edward wanted me and I rejected him.”
“So he decides to plan a kidnapping.” Chauncey wrung his hands in front of his body.
“I don’t know what he thought he was doing, but he’s fired now.”
Hugo peeked through the door holding a bag of food. Cassidy took it from him and put everything on the table and I stood up to get plates and utensils from the kitchen. I picked up some bottles of water since I was still recovering and needed to be alert without alcohol in my system. I passed Cassidy and Chauncey the water, she gave me a plate of ribs, baked beans, mac and cheese, and greens. I had my cheat days and it started today until filming started back up.
“I never knew how much I needed this until now,” I muttered as I stuffed my face with more baked beans.
“I know you may not think I’m good enough, but what about me managing you?” Cassidy asked.
“That’s a lot of responsibility, Cassidy.”
“I mean I already help with so much now. I think I can handle more,” Cassidy said.
“She helps with the concerts, way more than Edward ever did,” Chauncey responded.
“Am I still set for Expressive Designs? I know I missed the launch because of the mess with Joaquin.”
“Yeah, I just told the owner you had a family emergency pop up a few days before the launch,” Cassidy said.
“Great, put in a call and set a meeting for later this week.”
“What about your album?” Chauncey asked.
“Push it back, everything that Edward is behind I want removed,” I demanded then took a bite of the short rib.
“What do you think of a photoshoot and interview letting the world know you’re back?” Cassidy asked.
“That’s fine, do the shoot with a magazine that’s friendly to us.”
“I have some songs I wrote that I haven’t given to anyone else,” Chauncey stated, gulping the rest of his water.
“Let me hear them.”
“The demo starts a little slow, but it picks up.” Chauncey hit the button on his computer and a smooth melody came through. It sounded more jazz and blues rather than old school R&B. I bobbed my head to the lyrics of a woman singing about not needing love anymore and coming into her own.
“I like that, I would want the second verse a little harder.”
“That’s fine,” Chauncey stated.
I grabbed my phone, and checked social media as we continued talking about new changes.