30. Getting Late
“Mom, are you enjoying yourself?”
Kathy’s mother Heather panned her phone towards the seaside.
“Of course, I am! I can’t believe me and my friends won a trip all the way out to Hawaii. It’s beautiful out here!”
Kathy laughed. It had been over two weeks since her mother suffered from an accident from the stairs. She was only in her mid fifties and running an orphanage with her business friend.
“Well don’t get sun burned.”
“Oh, you worry wort, I’ll be fine, there’s a really great physio therapy place nearby and…”
Kathy listened to her mother as she quickly made herself some breakfast, which consisted of toast and coffee. She was a seventeen year old student working part time at Hulio’s café. With a talent of art she wished to work for a gallery someday and sell her work. However art school cost money and she knew she had a long way to go, before she achieved her goal.
“That’s great Mom. Oh, I gotta go don’t want to be late for work.”
“Work, don’t you start work after 6pm on a Friday night?”
“I do, but Hulio needed me today since one of the staff called in sick yesterday. I’m also covering for her shift today.” Katy explained.
“Ok sweetie, I’ll see you after two weeks.” Heather smiled and wore her sunglasses, as she relaxed on the sun bed, then ended the call.
After locking up, Kathy walked down her steps of her porch and got to her old beat up Honda civic ride. As she drew closer, she realised both of her front tires were punctured.
As she took a closer look. She was stunned to see three slashes upon them. Did someone slash her tires with a knife? She drew her fingers upon the deep slashes. They were all an equal length and had the same depth to each stroke.
“What the heck?”
“Good morning Kathy.”
Kathy whipped her head around, startled by the sound of a man’s voice from behind her.
“Jeez!” She took a step back looking at the sudden stranger.
The man was tall around 6ft2. He towered over her short height of 5ft2 easily.
“Sorry to startle to you.”
The man in a dark grey suit, removed his dark aviators and looked down at her with his whiskey brown eyes.
“H-how do you know my name?”
“Because your mother asked me to watch over you.”
Kathy was stunned. Her mother had gone away to business trips before thanks to the orphanage making sure that the kids went to a good home. Kathy had stopped accompanying her mother when she turned fourteen. She was perfectly capable of staying alone when her mother returned back from her business trips within three days. Her mother would never ask a stranger to look after her either.
Kathy laughed out amused, and gave him a an odd look. The stranger shot her a pleasant smile after hearing her laugh at him.
“Listen Mr…”
“Matteo.” He introduced.
“Ok Mr Matteo with no last name, I’m not twelve years old and I don’t need a baby-sitter to look after me.” Kathy said in her low key sassy tone of voice, making him smirk.
“But you do, especially when your mother is all the way out in Hawaii.”
Kathy raised a brow. Who was this clown?
“How do you know about her being in Hawaii?” Kathy asked in her curious tone of voice.
“If you get in my car, I can tell you all about it?” Matteo spoke with a slight foreign accent to his tone.
Was he Italian?
He kind of looked like one, with his tan olive skin and dark looking hair. Kathy couldn’t help but find him somewhat attractive.
Kathy looked at the car he pointed out. It was a dark car with the windows tinted. Something didn’t feel right.
“Get in the car Kathy, I’m not going to ask you again.” Matteo said in a strict tone of voice, making Kathy’s heart beat rise a notch.
“Oh? I’m actually getting late for work so I need to go.” She backed away from him very carefully after getting suspicious about him damaging her tires.
“You’re right, I’m getting late for work too.” Matteo nodded his head in agreement.
He then grabbed her hand and pulled her close making her crash towards his chest.
Kathy went of fright mode and jerked away, but didn’t let her escape from his iron grip that easily.
“Stop what a-are you dd-doing?” Her tone was laced with confusion and fright, with the way he held her close.
“My job is to kidnap you.”
Her heart escalated with panic, when he spoke dipping his head closer to hers, and took in her scent. What was he?! A sex trafficker?
“NO!!! AHH!!! HELMMM!!!”
Matteo twisted her body around fast so her back was to him. He placed wet cloth over her mouth and Kathy attempt to flee from him failed, when she breathed in the chemical, he doused the cloth with.
“Nnnmmm…” Kathy’s body went limp like jelly. Her blue eyes drooped heavy with tiredness and closed.
Matteo picked her up over his shoulder and walked away with her.
Meanwhile back Hulio’s diner…
“God damn it!”
“What’s the matter boss?” Kiran asked with a tray in her hands, passing by his office.
“That little brat Kathy hasn’t called.”
Just like Kathy, Kiran had skipped her class at college and decided to help out at the diner the whole day, since Hulio had promised her an extra day off work for her holiday which was coming up in a couple of months.
“Odd, that’s not like her?”
Knowing Kathy over the past few months, Kiran knew she was a good girl. She had a high punctual rate than most of the staff members at the diner and she always made sure to call in sick.
“Whatever, I’ll deal with her once she shows up to work, It’s a busy Friday and three people have called in sick and I don’t want to my diner to be understaffed tonight.”
“Want me to call Hana and check if she’s free?” Kiran said, knowing they were far too understaffed tonight.
“Yes and I’ll call Rose if she’s available too.” Hulio said quickly. Kiran nodded and closed the office door to shut out the noise from eating crowds outside the hall.
She was just about to call Hana, when suddenly her phone rang out.
“Hello?”
“Hey Kiran, I hope I’m not disturbing you?”
“No, I’m on a short break. Shoot, what’s up?”
“If it’s ok with you can I pick you up tonight after work?”
“Umm…Seth I’m really busy tonight.”
“Ok, how about tomorrow night?”
“May I ask why?”
“I need to show you something. It’s important, I can’t discuss this over the phone.”
The way he sounded over the line, sounded urgent and important.
“Sure, I’ll be free by 8pm tomorrow?”
“Great.”
Seth cut the call and Kiran wondered what he wanted to show her.