Broken Piece

Zero Piece

Callie was on to his game.

The charity event had been an eye opener. From the frumpy dress to the little stunt with Blaire Cod, it was obvious he wanted to publicly humiliate her in an eerily similar fashion to how her father mistreated their mother.

The not so secret affairs.

The snide remarks near open ears.

The parading her around like a show dog while simultaneously pretending she wasn't there.

She knew this game, she just couldn't understand why he would do to another woman what was done to his mother. Better yet, she couldn't figure out he even knew about what went down at these parties and events.

She supposed someone could have told him, maybe even it had even been mom herself. Still... why would he do this to her.

It had only been a day since the charity event and Davison had been acting odd. Usually on the weekends he would be either sitting on the couch watching sports or off doing god knows what, not hidden away in his office.

Callie didn't bother him, just shot weary glances at the door.

She sat at the formal dinning table doing a puzzle.

She heard the door open when she was halfway finished with her puzzle and glanced up quickly before looking away just as quickly when he emerged. She wondered was he upset because his plan had failed, she hadn't been embarrassed at the charity event...not anymore than she normally was. Sometimes she thought she didn't have enough shame left to be humiliated. Also, his 'thing' with Blaire only served to make her suspicious, and not hurt in anyway. She saw that as a difference between her and her mother, her mother had actually loved her father, so obviously she would be more hurt by any indiscretions by her husband then she would be.

As far as she was concerned, Davison and Blaire deserved each other. If he wanted to divorce her right now for Blaire the only emotions she would feel would be joy and a little irritation about the fact that she couldn't seem to get Blaire out of her life.

"Here," she looked up from her puzzle piece to see a cell phone being slid across the glistening wood of the table to her. She eyed the black device before looking up at the blonde man, a light frown on her face. His face pinched with annoyance. "Are you going to take it or not?" His fingers left the edges of the phone and balled up at his sides.

Callie didn't reach for the phone. "Why are you giving this back to me?"

"I'm not giving you back anything. This is a phone I've purchased for you, I have the passwords, I pay its bill, its really mine and I'm just allowing you to borrow it. This is a privilege and I reserve the right to take it back from you at any given time." He spoke in a clipped tone.

She hated the way he spoke to her like a child, he hated how he treated her period, but the patronizing really got to her. She still didn't reach for the phone. "And what are the rules? The rules so I don't get it taken from me?" She questioned slowly.

"You'll know when I take it." He began. "I added Anna and my own number into your contacts. I'm giving you this so when she drags you off places I have a way of contacting you and when you're grocery shopping and things."

That caught her attention as she picked up the phone. "You're letting me leave the house?" She asked in serious astonishment.

"You act as if I never allow you out of the house!" He snapped. She didn't flinch and instead just turned her body away, gaze on the phone. "Work is picking up, I don't have time to take you shopping once a week when I have much better things to do. So, I think I can trust this simple task to you."

(BP)

"Uh...Callie," Anna's voice was hesitant and subdued, which was enough to make her look up from the two melons she was trying to decide between. They were at a grocery store closer to Anna's house considering the lawyer was having a BBQ and that's where they were headed after their shopping trip.

Callie didn't have the faintest idea why Anna was doing her shopping at the last minute. Heck, she didn't even know about the BBQ until Anna showed up at the condo and dragged her out.

She looked at the red head where she stood holding a pineapple wrong next to a display of pineapples. "What's wrong?" She asked. Anna had an odd look on her face, her features were all crooked and twisted up. Callie couldn't help the snort of laughter that escaped her.

"This is serious, Callie!" Anna whined and stared at her until Callie was able to compose herself. "Do you think Davison is cheating on you?" She blurted.

Callie blinked hard. Was Davison cheating on her? That would mean they would have had to been in a committed relationship...so... no. "N-"

"I mean, because of the charity event and the blonde who was hanging off him like he was Tarzan or something... Also, I heard rumors but those rich people like to gossip and cluck like hens. So, I wasn't sure how much stock I should put into those rumors." Anna ranted.

"Davison is not cheating on me." Callie said as she picked a cantaloupe and placed it in the basket next to Anna. "Does that seem like something your friend would do?"

Anna frowned at the question. "No, of course not." She sighed loudly. "He's just been acting weird..." They started moving towards checkout.

They were quiet as they waited in line and Callie found herself asking herself why she didn't just out Davison, besides the fact that the three friends would obviously choose Davison over her any day of the week. She supposed it was because it would piss off Davison and there was no telling what he would do.

She also found herself feeling as if it would badly reflect back on her. She was after all, allowing herself to be treated in such away.

As soon as she stepped out of the car and onto Anna's driveway she could smell grilling meat.

"I see they grew impatient and started without me." Anna said as she rolled her eyes. Callie forced a smile, still distracted. She started for the items in the back of the care. "No, they'll do the heavy lifting, like God intended."

Callie laughed even though she couldn't tell if Anna was joking or not, it was like that with most things concerning Anna.

They headed towards the house, veering off the walkway and moving around the house towards the back. Stepping through the gate to a wooden fence, they stood inside Anna's medium sized backyard. Anderson, Davison, and Peter stood around a heavily smoking grill sipping beers like some sort of stereotype.

"We're back!" Anna called as she started up the patio stairs. "And there are bags in the car!"

"How can you be late to your own BBQ?" Peter asked with a playful scoff. He shot Callie a friendly smile.

Callie gaze went to Davison who was looked at her with an annoyed expression before looking away and back down at the grill he was manning. "I see you brought my wife." He said sardonically.

Feeling bold, maybe it was the heat getting to her or maybe he had officially drove her mad, maybe it was even the petty pushing buttons part of her, the part that rarely even appeared but usually did at the worse times, but whatever it was, it made her approach Davison, stand on her tip toes and place a 'coy' kiss on his cheek.

He his snapped to look at her so fast sure was sure he had hurt himself. He stared her down, but she felt a sense of smugness at the clear surprise and suspicion on his face and she was sure her face showed it.

His eyes narrowed a bit and she tilted her head innocently in response. His chin raised, and his eye brows twitched before a stiff smile spread across his face.

"You didn't know I was coming?" She asked, completely interrupting him when she noticed his lips part to speak.

His jaw clenched as he looked back down at the grill and flipped a couple of the sizzling burgers. "Nope, I assumed you had cleaning to do and wouldn't be able to make it."

Anna suddenly appeared and pressed a bottle of water into Callie's hand. "Since you don't drink," she rolled her eyes. She turned to Davison. "And you really were going to leave your wife in the house cleaning while you went out?"

Davison waved his spatula around carelessly. "She likes to stay in. I don't force her to do anything she doesn't want to do...Like a good husband."

"Oh, like you were being a good husband at the charity event allowing that bottle blonde to hang all off you?" Anna questioned. Callie quickly looked at the red head in surprise, she hadn't thought she would actually bring it up.

"Anna!" She hissed.

"You should really mind your business, Anna." Davison shot his friend a sharp look.

Anna matched it. "I'll always call you out on your s**t, Davison! You know that, that's what good friends are for."

"Good friends don't butt into their friend's marriages trying to cause s**t!" He shot back, letting the lid of the grill fall closed.

"Excuse me?" Anna asked, clearly not backing down. Callie quietly sighed, though she was a bit fascinated. She didn't think Callie could get angry at Davison.

"Anna..." Peter chimed in hesitantly.

"No, shut the hell up, Peter," she dismissed the man who put his hands up defensively. "He embarrassed his wife at that event, meaning he embarrassed himself, you, and the company you both worked so hard for, but I'm the one trying to start s**t?" She threw her hands up in exasperation. "This is not the Davison I know! Is it the one you know? I don't recognize this asshole!"

"Can you go one day without being dramatic, Anna, just one f*****g day!" Davison scoffed.

Callie honestly didn't know what to say, so she said nothing. She simply watched the friends go back and forth. What was she going to do? Defend, Davison...she couldn't nor did she want too.

"The chicken is ready!" Anderson appeared from the sliding glass door with a tray full of boiled chicken, diffusing the tension with his sudden appearance. Callie hadn't even noticed he had left. He seemed to notice the tension with the way he stopped abruptly and looked around at everyone. "Did something happen?"

"No," Davison was the one to speak up surprisingly as he looked away from Anna, lifting the lid to the grill again. "Bring them over." He said tightly. "Callie, can you make that barbeque sauce you usually make...please?" He gritted out 'please'. Callie looked at him in surprise.

"Uh, yeah..."

Anderson grinned big, seeming to let whatever tension he originally felt go. "Yes, Cals famous, barbeque. I dream about that s**t!"

"I recommend you stop dreaming about my wife, Aye." Davison threw over his shoulder.

"I said I dream about her barbeque sauce, calm down, cave man!" Anderson sat the tray down next to the grill. And smiled at Callie.

"Come on, Callie," Anna spoke grabbing her arm, "I'll show you where everything is." She shot Davison one last angry but regretful look before starting to pull Callie towards the house. "Oh, and can someone go get the f*****g bags out the car! And when I say someone, I mean one of you, hell, maybe even two of you!"

"Yes mistress, right away, madam!" Peter said with a joking bow. "Come, Aye, before she gets the whipping stick!" He patted the other man on the shoulder before they both headed around the house.

Callie glanced back at Davison before Anna pulled her into the house, seeing he was watching the go.

(BP)

Callie added another spoon full of coleslaw to her plate, surprised at how well Anna had made it. Anna simply didn't strike her as the type that knew how to cook or do anything domestic really.

"You're not the only one that can cook?" Anna smirked at her, as if she had read her mind. Callie laughed. "My coleslaw is world famous!"

"Yeah, almost as famous as your beef stew...not everyone has the talent to cause horrible stomach pains, give you the runs, and somehow make you throw up an odd green substance." Davison said with a snort from where he sat beside Callie at the picnic table they were all sitting around. The other guys laughed.

"Screw you, Dee!" She said, no real venom in her voice. It seemed the bad blood between them had faded or been put behind them for now. Callie had even noticed the apologetic looks they had shot one another.

"A green substance?" Callie questioned.

"He's making stuff up, Cals." Anna denied.

"He is not," Anderson chimed as he mockingly shivered. "I still cannot eat beef stew to this day."

"I can't eat any kind of stew!" Peter said. "Or beef!"

"You're eating a hamburger, Peter." Callie laughed at the man. He looked down at his plate and picked up his half eaten burger and stared at it in horror.

Anna scoffed. "Fine, I won't cook for you all ever again." She reached for her coleslaw. "I'll just take this inside and feed it to the neighbor's dog tomorrow!"

"No!" The three men shouted simultaneously as Callie laughed.

Anna huffed with a big smile on her face. "Thought so, you ass holes."

"Speaking of assholes, the charity event was a big success I take it?" Anderson asked. "I heard it was." He sipped his beer.

"We did well enough," Davison shrugged, "raised a lot." He nodded.

"Yeah, we ended up exceeding our goal by 20%. It went well." Peter added.

"Well, while I was there...I felt bad about having to leave early but my father acts more and more like a child every day. Anyway, while I was there I heard you may have Callie to thank for that."

Callie nearly choked on her baked beans. "What?" She coughed as she reached for her bottled water. Had her to thank? All she did was follow Davison around awkwardly.

"Yeah, most of them claimed to know you since you were a child. They went on and on about how much they liked you." He said.

Callie felt sick. "They're lying." She blurted. Those people were liars, they've hated her guts for simply existing, just as they had hated her mom. "They just think I'll reveal some dirt on them to Davison and they wouldn't be able to get what they want from Kindness Co. then." She said quietly. "Maybe they did donate more because of that...we do like to throw money at problems in these circles." She bit her lip as she though of her mom and the nasty stuff most of those people had done to her.

"Whatever the reason, we were a big hit. And if it was because of you Cals, thank you very much!" Peter said as she laughed, obviously attempting to lighten the mood.

"That blonde seemed to know you as well? What's the story with her." Anna spoke up. Peter groaned, and Callie wanted to as well, Anna was obviously not going to let it go.

Callie could have pretended not to know what she was talking about, after all, it wasn't as if there was only one blonde at the charity event. But she didn't think Anna would let it go that easily.

Davison had stiffened at her side but remained silent.

"Oh, Blaire?" She asked with a weak voice. Anna merely blinked at her from across the table. "Well, we've known each other our whole lives."

"So, you're friends?" Anna asked.

"No...not even...she's hated me our whole lives." She glanced at Davison who glanced at her at the same time. She tried to read his expression, but he looked away. "We were friends in high school for like two months my sophomore year, but really it was a cruel joke." She didn't want t

o talk about it beyond that, but now that she had started talking, she couldn't stop. She laughed self deprecatingly. "It was a guy our freshman year that supposedly liked me or something, but she liked him, and I guess she was upset he didn't return her feelings. She took it out on me by devising this plan where she pretended to be my friend. I would say she 'made' me do a bunch of stuff I'm not proud of, but really, I chose to listen to her and I chose to do those things. In the end, my need to be accepted by her and everyone ended up hurting a lot of people including myself. And at the end she humiliated me and made me completely rethink who I was." She shrugged as if she couldn't careless, but the truth was far from that. That time in her life had been bad, and the years of harassment from the other girls at Johnston Prep was horrible. Almost as bad as Davison's torments. When she realized everyone around the table was quiet, she decided not to look at them and instead laughed again. "High school sucks, huh?"

"I said she was a b***h from the moment I saw her!" Anna declared. "She just has one of those faces!" She glanced up at Anna in thanks. "Stay away from her, Dee, she's trying to use you to hurt Callie."

Davison sighed. "Can we not get into this again, Anna?"