Episode 003
1353 Words
“Glimpses of the Past”
Sienna’s POV
Sienna, you're not collateral, he remarked harshly. "You are—". He stopped himself; his jaw tightened as though the words were too dangerous to say.
"I'm what?". I objected, approaching closely. My body shook with a mix of terror and defiance, my heart hammering.
His hand went to my wrist; his hold was strong but not unpleasant. "You're not collateral," he said, his voice lower now but his anger burned more brilliantly. "You are the reason I am ready to gamble at all."
The air between us changed to buzz with unsaid conflict. My breath stopped and I detested how much he changed me, how much I wanted to believe him in spite of all.
"Domino..." I murmured, but the sound of my phone buzzing sliced across the moment like a razor.
Pulling it from the bedside table, I felt fear collecting in my gut at the sight of another unidentified number.
Dominick's jaw contracted. Respond to it.
Though I hesitated, I touched the button and turned on the speaker. "Hello?"
Distorted and mechanical, a voice permeated the space. "You're still breathing. Great. How long, though, will that last?
From my palm, Dominick grabbed the phone, his composure breaking. Demanding "Who is this?" he asked.
The voice chuckled, frigid and ominous. Tick-tock, Carlisle. You cannot keep her permanently safe.
The line came dead.
My chest heaving, I looked at him. " Who was that? What do they wish for?
Dominick remarked bitterly, throwing the phone on the bed. "Power," he said, "Control." Same thing they have always yearned for.
"And what about me?." My voice broke, the terror I had been stifling at last erupting. "I asked not to be involved in this."
He moved forward, hands clutching my shoulders. "Sienna, you are right now part of it. Whether or not you find it appealing. And let me be damned if I let them harm you.
His intensity unsettled me, but there was something unquestionably consoling about the way he stared at me—as if the only thing that counted in the world.
My voice a little above a whisper, I said, "I'm not sure if I can do this."
You can, he said with great conviction. "You are stronger than you believe. And since you won't be doing it in company.
Though the delicate moment was broken downstairs by the sound of breaking glass, I wanted to believe him.
Dominick grabbed his revolver from the nightstand and hauled me behind him like lightning. He told them to "stay here."
"No," I murmured, terror flooding me. "I'm not trailing behind while—
"Sienna," he snarled, his voice more exact than I had ever heard. "Stay. Here.,"
Footfall crashed through the home, and my heart felt as though it may explode from my chest. Dominick left me alone in the stifling silence after slipping out the door.
Every moment seemed like eternity. I heard muted voices, floorboard creaks, then nothing.
"Domineck?" Inching approaching the door, I murmured.
The door swung open and a masked man leaned over me as I groped for the handle.
The man snarled, grabbed my arm, then found you.
Screaming and struggling against his hold, I found he was too powerful.
"Let her go!," From behind, Dominick's voice boomed, then the loud gunshot c***k.
The man sank to the ground, his hold slackening as he dropped. I staggered back, running afoul of Dominick's chest.
His arms encircling me, he murmured, "It's over." But the conflict in his voice indicated he disagreed.
Dominick grabbed his phone from his pocket and started furiously calling as the invader laid asleep.
He muttered, low and anxious, "We have a problem," into the receiver.
My head racing, I fixed a glance at the body on the floor. But my phone buzzed once more before I could probe what he meant.
This year it was a video.
I hesitated, pushing play with shaky fingers.
Last night, the television showed a blurry video of Dominick and me in his office. The caption under it froze me to the bone:
"Secrets don't lie dormant. Tick-to-ck.
As the blood poured from my face, the phone slid from my grasp and crashed to the ground.
"Dominate...," I crooned with a scarcely discernible voice.
He grabbed the phone and watched the video, his jaw tightening. His gray eyes darkened, a tempest building inside. "Damn it."
" What does this mean?" My chest thumping with anxiety, I asked. "How did they come upon that footage? And with it, what do they intend?
Dominick tightened his hold on the phone, white knuckles. He said with closed teeth, "They're playing a game." They want to shake us and cause us paranoia. Additionally, it's working.
The video kept running, the sound off but the image clear—myself in my office, the turmoil of yesterday night, the moment he sheltered me with his body.
"This is not only about me, is it?" With a trembling voice, I asked. "They're aiming at you; I'm the leverage here."
Dominick nodded with a dark look. "They know destroying me fastest comes from hurting you."
His cell buzzed in his pocket before I could reply. He took it out, his brow wrinkling as he perused the message.
"Carlisle, the clock is ticking. To keep her safe, how far would you travel?
Under his breath, Dominick swore, clearly frustrated. He started phoning right away, pacing the room like a caged animal.
Reaching for his arm, I stopped him midway through a step. "Who are you calling?"
He responded sharply, "My head of security." I'm not running any more risks. Someone outside your door will be there around-the-clock.
I murmured, "Dominick," pushing him to turn to face me. That is not going to stop them. Ten steps ahead already, whoever this is.
He fixed me, his face softening just a little. "Then I'll take them down before they reach you."
I shook my head, annoyance boiling under. "You cannot fight this by yourself! You cannot keep passing for unbeatable!
"Watch me," he snarled, eyes ablaze with will.
Before I could argue, the house once more resonated with broken glass. This year it came from the balcony.
Dominick spun with his revolver already in his hand. His voice stern, he said, "Stay behind me."
Not hiding, no, I am not! I objected, moving forward.
"You have no decision, Sienna!" He snapped, his voice shaking with an emotion I could not identify.
Every stride weighty with stress, we headed toward the sound. The room was shockingly empty, but the curtains billowed from the open balcony doors.
"Show yourself!!" Dominick barked, his rifle pointed exactly at the shadows.
From the corner came a slow, sarcastic clap. A black man appeared, his face hidden under a hood.
"Bravo, Carlisle," the man replied, his voice smooth and mocking. "You speed more than I would have predicted."
" Who are you?" Dominick persisted, his pistol steady.
The figure laughed. "Let's say I am the one deciding how long your small wife stays breathing."
At the hatred in their remarks, my blood ran cool. "What do you want from us?” Overcoming my anxiety, I managed to urge Dominick to move forward.
The man slanted his head and slightly moved his cowl to expose a pair of sharp, steely blue eyes. "From you? Not one thing. Coming from him? They signaled Dominick. "Everything".
Dominick shot a warning shot, the bullet zipping past the shoulder of the figure. "You have five seconds to leave my house before I stop trying to miss."
The person did not waver. Rather, they dug into their pockets and pulled out a tiny flash drive. They dropped it between us on the floor.
"What's that?," asked Shaking in my voice.
"Evidence," the man said in a vague manner. Of who Dominick Carlisle actually is.
Dominick froze, his face a mask of rage. "Leave Now."
Their laughing cold, the man turne
d back toward the balcony. Carlisle, Tick-tock. The game is just getting started.
They vanished into the evening with that, leaving us startled quiet
- Writer
