2 – Pride and Deceptions

2 – Pride and Deceptions

New York

Sarah opened her door to find Gabriel standing behind a vase of white roses and a box of pizza, bad as she felt this odd sight brought a small smile to her face. "Hi Pez. Can I come in?" Sarah waved him in and closed the door behind him. "Thanks, I was going to call to send my condolences but I figured you might not answer the phone." Handing the flowers to her Gabriel looked around. "I see I've been beat to the punch."

"What?" Sarah furrowed her brow then saw him point to her kitchen table, on which lay a vase of yellow roses. Confused, she placed the white roses in her living room then went to her Kitchen. Beside the vase lay two envelopes. Both had the words 'To Sarah' written on them, one in a solid masculine hand, the other in a flourishing script. Opening the one written in script Sarah was annoyed and slightly surprised to find a letter and a plane ticket from Irons.

Dear Sarah,

I must express my deepest sympathies for your untimely loss. I know what it is to have something dear wrenched away from me. Know that if you ever need anyone to speak to, or if you just wish for a quiet place to grieve my door is open. I have included plane tickets to California for the funeral knowing how little the police force pays.

Yours always,

Kenneth Irons

P.S. Vorschlag (and I) have felt your loss keenly, if you ever wish to return to your position here you need only ask.

Sarah's face showed her obvious disgust at the letter, noting how Irons was trying to capitalize off of Jake's death, as well as how he said 'some thing' rather then 'some one'. Muttering the word 'pig' under her breath Sarah opened the second envelope that she presumed was from Ian.

Sarah,

I know your pain is keen, but don't succumb to it.

I felt the same way once.

Good luck.

Ian

The note was brief, and it reminded Sarah of the last note she'd received from him. Although it contained no expensive gift, Sarah welcomed it ten times more then Irons false sympathy.

"Ah hem," Turning around Sarah remembered Gabriel. "Have you had dinner yet? Or would you like me to go next door with this pizza and tell them I'm a delivery boy." Sarah smiled gently, it didn't quite reach her eyes, and only then did Gabriel see how much death truly shadowed her.

***

New Zealand

Onica listened to the crash of the waves upon the sand and the orchestra playing somewhere up the beach, staring up at the stars she decided that the night was so romantic she could die from its beauty. She had been here barely a month and already the graceful splendor of the ocean and the night and captured her, holding her in its thrall.

"Amazing isn't it?" Onica heard behind her a voice that she'd listened to every night for the past two weeks. As she nodded assent the owner of the voice strolled up and sat beside her. The two had met by accident; she had found him asleep on the sand while high tide offered him a blanket of crashing waves. After that they had met after sundown everyday as if by mutual agreement. They would talk for hours, but neither pried into the others past or even asked for a name. Both seemed to have a keen understanding of pain and an all too real sorrow. In each other they'd found a friend, someone with whom they could sit in silence and stare out into the stars.

"Why lift the veil dividing

The brilliant courts of spring-

Where gilded shapes are gliding

In fairy colouring-

From age's frosty mansion,

So cheerless and so chill?

Why bid the bleak expansion

Of past life meet us still?"

The words came unbidden to Onica's mind and as she spoke them they became part of a game they played. When they wanted to discuss something they would quote a piece of prose or poetry and the other would guess at what they were thinking, sometimes the answers were so off and so amusing that they fell into laughter or amusement. But tonight Onica studied the profile of the blond haired man beside her and saw that he understood both her meaning and her mood.

"You're talking about memory." His voice was low, shadowed by his own past. "About the pain it brings." She nodded; the emotion of this poetical darkness had a type of yearning, and a demanding for the lifting of veils.

"Tonight reminds me of love, and of betrayal." Onica stopped, remembering how for a long time those two emotions had been her closest companions. "Sudant tacita præcordia culpa." A small mirthless laugh was brought on by the quote, and Onica knew she had said something that struck a chord.

"My heart does sweat in its unspeakable guilt, because I was supposed to betray her… and in the end I almost did."

***

Kenneth Irons clung tightly to Ian's arm the injuries he had been dealt by Callie made physical therapy inevitable, but his pride refused to let anyone but Ian and his doctors see him struggle like this. Bitterly he thought how Callie would enjoy his pain, something he instantly regretted because of the surge of anger and emotion it brought up, emotion deprived him of the concentration he needed to continue, and slowed him down considerably. "Enough!" Seeing his mood Ian immediately brought Kenneth back to his wheelchair, knowing how he hated his helplessness. "At this rate I'll never be ready for the conference." Ian only stood still his eyes downcast, knowing that in his current mood Irons would never be pacified. "Maybe you should go… you know the business well enough. Or maybe I should send Sarah. If only she hadn't gone running back to her damned police work!" The last sentence was laced heavily with Sarcasm, but Ian knew the truth of the emotions behind it. Giving Irons time, Ian waited for the temper he'd built up to disperse. He would try again, it was that will to succeed that had gotten him where he was, and he wasn't about to give up any time soon.

***

Luka stared at his computer screen, and at the email he'd received long ago. It had taken him a month to figure out that she didn't return to her side because she couldn't, then two weeks to build up the nerve to open her email, a week later, he finally decoded the encryption's. Now it was too late. By the time he had finally been able to write Callie, he had found that she'd canceled her email account and left no other way for him to reach her. It had been a difficult four months for him, both in terms of business and life. The manor had felt empty without her, and work had taken its toll without her reassuring smile and ingenious plans. The deal with Vorschlag had gone on, but on a much smaller scale and all meeting had been dealt with through representatives, neither CEO feeling comfortable in the others presence.

Luka's watch beeped, reminding him of his lunch date. He knew something important was up, all three of his brothers, Carlo, Gorgio, and Giulio from had left their businesses in the capable hands of their wives and come looking for him. The brothers were close to be sure, but they would never have left Palermo and Sicily, all at once unless it was something urgent, and urgent in his family literally meant life or death.

***

Ok, as with the previous story in this series I have no beta reader. When I'm done I read it over once or twice so you'll have to forgive any typos. And oh yeah, wheel's within wheels… that's a pretty accurate description of my writing. I just hope that when I reach the end everything comes together for the reader.