Chapter Two — A Name She Should Forget
859 Words
The next morning, Cathy woke with a strange heaviness in her chest.
She couldn't explain it.
She had slept badly, disturbed by fragments of a dream she couldn't remember.
Except for the eyes.
Those dark, unreadable eyes.
She immediately sat up.
"No."
The word escaped her before she could stop it.
She pressed her palms against her face.
It was ridiculous.
She had seen a stranger for perhaps thirty seconds.
A stranger she would probably never see again.
So why had his face followed her into her dreams?
Cathy got dressed quickly and headed toward the chapel.
She needed prayer.
She needed silence.
Most of all, she needed to forget him.
---
Anthony hadn't forgotten her.
He sat at the breakfast table in his private residence, staring at a report his associate had placed before him.
"Cathy."
The name was printed across the top.
He read everything.
Her background.
The convent.
Her charitable work.
Her education.
Her connection to the religious community.
Anthony leaned back.
"That's everything?"
"For now."
"Find out more."
His associate hesitated.
"Why?"
Anthony slowly looked up.
The question was a mistake.
"Because I asked."
"Understood."
The man left.
Anthony picked up the photograph attached to the file.
Cathy.
She was smiling.
Not the guarded expression he'd seen yesterday.
A genuine smile.
Something about it irritated him.
He couldn't remember the last time someone had looked that peaceful.
His world had never allowed peace.
Anthony placed the photograph face down.
He had no business being interested in her.
She belonged to a world completely separate from his.
But the thought didn't stop him.
It only made the obsession worse.
---
Three days passed.
Cathy thought the strange encounter had finally faded.
Then she saw him again.
She was leaving the community center when a black car stopped at the curb.
Her heart immediately recognized the man who stepped out.
Anthony.
She froze.
He looked at her.
Neither spoke.
Then he walked toward her.
"You remember me."
It wasn't a question.
Cathy tightened her grip on her bag.
"I've seen you before."
His lips curved slightly.
"That's not what I asked."
She looked away.
"I have somewhere to be."
"Of course you do."
She turned to leave.
"Cathy."
She stopped.
Her name sounded different when he said it.
Too familiar.
Too intimate.
She turned back.
"How do you know my name?"
Anthony stared at her.
"I know many things."
A chill ran through her.
"That's not an answer."
"No."
He took one step closer.
"But it's the only one you're getting."
Cathy studied him.
There was something dangerous about him.
She could feel it.
Not because he threatened her.
Because he didn't have to.
"You shouldn't be here," she said.
"Neither should you."
"This is my work."
"And this is my city."
She frowned.
"Your city?"
Anthony smiled.
"Something like that."
Cathy shook her head.
"I should go."
"Why?"
"Because I don't know you."
"You could."
The words caught her off guard.
She stared at him.
Anthony's expression remained calm.
But his eyes were watching every reaction.
"You shouldn't say things like that to me."
"Why?"
"Because they're inappropriate."
"Because you're a religious sister?"
Her face tightened.
"Yes."
He nodded slowly.
"I know."
"And yet you keep talking to me."
"Yes."
"Why?"
For the first time, Anthony seemed to struggle for an answer.
Then he said,
"Because I can't seem to walk away."
Cathy's heart skipped.
She hated that it affected her.
She hated even more that some hidden part of her wanted to hear it again.
She stepped backward.
"Don't."
Anthony's eyes narrowed.
"Don't what?"
"Make this something it isn't."
"And what is it?"
"Nothing."
She turned away.
Anthony watched her walk down the street.
He could have stopped her.
He didn't.
Not yet.
---
That evening, Cathy sat alone in the chapel.
She had been there for almost an hour.
Her Bible was open.
But she hadn't turned a page.
"Why am I thinking about him?"
She whispered the question into the silence.
There was no answer.
She closed her eyes.
Anthony's voice returned to her.
I can't seem to walk away.
She opened her eyes quickly.
"No."
She stood.
"This cannot happen."
She walked toward the altar.
"Lord, I chose You."
Her voice shook.
"I won't allow anyone to come between me and You."
But deep inside, Cathy already knew the truth.
Anthony had not entered her life by accident.
And whatever was beginning between them...
It would not be easy to stop.
---
Across town, Anthony stood at his bedroom window.
His associate approached.
"She's not what we expected."
Anthony didn't turn.
"What do you mean?"
"She's genuinely devoted to her faith."
"I know."
"And she wants nothing to do with our world."
Anthony's expression hardened.
"That doesn't mean she wants nothing to do with me."
His associate remained silent.
Anthony finally turned.
"Find out where she'll be tomorrow."
"Anthony..."
"Tomorrow."
The man nodded.
Anthony looked back toward the city.
He knew Cathy was a boundary
he shouldn’t cross.
But boundaries had never stopped him before.
And this time, the danger wasn’t coming from his enemies.
It was coming from his own heart.
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