Chapter 14: Locked Secrets
[I should clarify, killer as in important to Chastity and emotional…I know you were expecting Vic and Chas to have sex? Naughty.]
***December, years ago***
"No! It's not fair! You can't miss this one!"
"Chastity, we're sorry sweetie. We simply won't make it back in time. We'll plan ahead for your next concert okay?" Mrs. Tse smoothed her eight-year-old's hair lovingly. She knew how disappointed Chastity was, and she lamented having to miss another of her talented child's performances. Sometimes business got in the way, and her children suffered the most.
"Chastity, daddy will buy you anything you want when we get back okay? Special dinner too," Mr. Tse offered.
"No! I just wanted you to be there! New York, daddy. My first solo somewhere so big," Chastity sobbed. Her parents were jetting off again, missing her most important concert ever.
~
Dashing along the hallway towards her dressing room, Chastity couldn't avoid smashing into a boy who had just stepped out of his room.
"Why don't you watch where you're going?" Another boy was now standing there glaring down at Chastity.
"Are you okay? I'm sorry! I'm running late! Sorry!" Chastity addressed the boy she had actually run into, ignoring the punk next to him.
The boy inspected his violin meticulously and saw no damage. "Whatever." Hearing his indifferent response, Chastity hurried on, throwing another apology back at him as she did.
~
"What an incredible group of talented young persons we have assembled tonight. Our next performer is from the sunny state of California. At only eight years of age, she's already wowed audiences all over. Her amazing voice is sure to warm your hearts. Please welcome, Miss Chastity Tse."
Gathering her courage, little Chastity stepped out onto the massive and brightly lit stage with poise. She was in her element; performing came naturally. Under the pressure of the circumstance, Chastity was driven to practice longer, sing harder, and smile bigger. The hours paid off, and the little siren had just given the best and last performance of her lifetime. The audience applauded fanatically, and Chastity glowed in the rush of bliss. She had never sung so beautifully, so flawlessly.
From their location backstage, it was hard to see the face of the performer, but all of the sound came through with crystal clarity. "Vic, didn't she hit you earlier? Stupid girl."
"Yeah." Vic replied quietly, squinting to see the face.
~
"Chas?" Uncle Tse called. Chastity loved her aunt and uncle dearly, and they were practically her second set of parents. She pitied her Uncle for being unable to have children of his own but relished the attention he showered on her. They had willingly flown up to New York with her in her parents' absence. Tonight, Chastity expected to be receiving the usual ecstatic congratulations from her beloved aunt and uncle, but their ashen faces were scaring her.
"Chas, we need to go to the hospital." Uncle Tse said firmly.
"Why?" Chastity felt her uncle tighten his hand around hers.
Stepping into the white foyer of the hospital, Chastity felt the blood draining from her face. Ominous portraits of grim looking figures peered down at them from the stark walls. Something was horribly wrong, but no one had said a word to her during the ride over. Now she was being rushed down stark halls, listening to the clicking of her dress shoes along the tile. Coming at last to a closed door, Uncle Tse knelt down to face Chastity, putting his hands on her small shoulders.
"Sweetie, your parents flew over right after their conference. They wanted to see you sing tonight. It was such short notice…they were…no driver... New York roads are…icy, and they were… rush." Chastity felt her breathing stop as she let half the words sink in.
"Chastity, your parents had an accident. Your dad, he…was hurt very badly. I…you…you should probably go see your mother," Uncle Tse's voice was breaking as he spoke.
~
Just like that, Chastity's parents had departed from her life forever. Mr. Tse died in the ambulance, and Mrs. Tse passed away later that night. She was grateful that she was able to bid her precious daughter goodbye first.
"Be good baby. Listen to uncle and…auntie, they'll…take care of you…from now on. I…love…you. Watch over Dylan, he'll need…you. I'm sorry…sorry that I wasn't…won't be…I love you," Chastity's mother was whispering in labored breaths. She left her young children in the care of her husband's brother, and Chastity was in the room late that night when she died quietly. The alarms blared, havoc beeping erupted from various machines, and as it dawned on Chastity the reality of the situation she could do nothing but scream.
"Mommy!! NO!!!! Mommy!! I'm sorry! I'll be good from now on! Mommy come back!!! I'm so SORRY! NO!!!!"
***end***
"Chastity, Chas!"
"Nooo!!! NO!!!! My…fault!"
"Shhh, Chas it's okay. Wake up! What's wrong?" Vic had woken with a start this morning. Chastity was tossing violently in his arms, her body drenched in a cold sweat. She was screaming now, and Vic was trying to wake her from the nightmare. Panting, she looked around in a daze before falling back into his arms, sobbing quietly. Startled, Vic didn't know what to make of her reaction but tried to soothe her. This was unexpected. He figured she'd have a hangover, a migraine, maybe flush in embarrassment at being in bed with him, or be confused from a blank memory, but she had awakened this morning in screams, scaring him horribly. Eventually she quieted and fell back into a light slumber. Vic slipped out of bed and stood in a steamy shower, concerned about what had just happened. Was she upset about last night? Somehow he doubted she'd be brought to screams and tears over a kiss. What was Chas dreaming about?
Vic finished pulling on a white sweater over his khakis when Ken walked in. Glimpsing the weary look on Vic's face, he asked, "You okay?" Vic nodded slowly, and Ken left the subject stand.
"Is she still sleeping?" Vanness entered the room.
"Yeah."
"Deep in sleep?" Vanness inquired again.
"Yeah." Vic robotically responded.
"Good. Get your stuff out, I'm going to borrow her laptop. You remember seeing her email a program right?" Vanness was already making his way towards Chastity's bedroom. Gently lifting the laptop from her desk, he eased the plugs from it and returned to his room. Vic was seated at the desk with a CD in hand, and Ken held out a power cord. Once the machine was started up, Vic conjured his way to a locked directory. The screen was pale blue with the image of a water drop that rippled in the corner. In the middle, a small password box blocked any further entry.
"Any clue?" Ken asked him.
"It can't be very difficult to open. This is just her laptop," Vanness offered. The CD Vic slipped into the laptop now was a shimmering white with a minuscule music note adorning it. Opening the program, Vic started to input the parameters for the password search.
"Ten minutes. What's for breakfast?" Vic sighed, anguished inside.
When Vanness returned to the room with a mug of coffee and a muffin, Vic was already scrolling through Chastity's recently edited documents. Ken quietly sidled to check up on Chastity again. Vic explored the laptop's contents for a few brief minutes before shutting it down and erasing all traces of his usage with his program. He waited for Jerry to come upstairs before speaking to everyone about what he found.
"New piracy protection, anti-virus, revolutionary hacker diversions. Perfection." Vic was blunt and curt. For them, the situation was not looking any better.
"So, did you find enough of the write up to create an anti? What's she got on there?" Jerry asked.
"Nope. The password was easy to get, but she's clever. She worked on everything in bits and pieces, deleting here and there. Nothing fits together. Only those familiar with the program could make sense of the chunks. Chastity's been trained."
"Grrreat. Ken, go put that back. We'll talk about this in the car. Gotta go pick up Becca," Jerry replied dryly.
~
Chastity stepped out of the shower feeling refreshed and energized. She replayed the fuzzy events of the night past, the horror of the nightmare this morning, and she didn't know how she was going to face Vic today. That dream would haunt her now and again, and she was grateful Vic was there to comfort her this time. Explaining it to him, if he asked, would be difficult though. Tiptoeing downstairs, she decided to keep her hands, and hopefully mind, busy by making lunch. Chastity set a few skillets to warm and clicked on the stereo, keeping the music low. The guys had gone to pick up Becca, and Shelly and Kiki were still sleeping. Tossing salad expertly, she began humming happily and did not hear the kitchen door swing open.
"Isn't this something worthy of coming home to? Right out of Martha Stewart," Ken smiled at chef Chastity. She threw a cherry tomato at him and continued with her cooking.
"I'll bring these to your room. That's Chastity, I was telling you about in the car," Ken said to the beautiful woman who walked in behind him. He and Jerry headed upstairs with her suitcases. Chastity realized that Becca had arrived and pivoted around to greet her.
"Hey, I'm Chastity. It's very nice to meet you."
"Likewise. I'm Becca, Jerry's older sister. That smells really good." Becca moved closer to the stove, taking in the scent of grilled chicken.
"How was your flight? Did you have to spend the night at an airport?" Chastity grabbed a handful of forks and began setting the table. Becca helped by laying out plates and glasses too.
"It wasn't that bad. I stayed at a hotel nearby. Should we get everyone up? I'm starved."
"Nah. They'll probably sleep in. It's still early." Chastity poured them some orange juice and sat down next to Becca. She looked just like her pictures, but Becca was even more stunning in real life. She had an air of confidence, friendly aura, and plenty of elegance. She was statuesque like Jerry, with the same dark eyes, and her hair flowed to mid-back, slightly layered and glossy. Chastity was amazed by her beauty every time they met. They were alone in the kitchen now, and Becca's voice dropped to a whisper.
"Really though, how are you?"
~
[It's ironic I'm posting this today because I went to the hospital tonight. It was my first time @ Charity and first time in an ICU unit. Sigh. So to recap just in case I made it confusing: Chastity's current parents are actually her aunt and uncle. For those of you who read Through It All, there is a new chapter (21). I know it's hard to keep up with updates on Winglin. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, and as always, review please. Next chapter: will vic and chas talk about the night like normal ppl....or what?! ]
[I should clarify, killer as in important to Chastity and emotional…I know you were expecting Vic and Chas to have sex? Naughty.]
***December, years ago***
"No! It's not fair! You can't miss this one!"
"Chastity, we're sorry sweetie. We simply won't make it back in time. We'll plan ahead for your next concert okay?" Mrs. Tse smoothed her eight-year-old's hair lovingly. She knew how disappointed Chastity was, and she lamented having to miss another of her talented child's performances. Sometimes business got in the way, and her children suffered the most.
"Chastity, daddy will buy you anything you want when we get back okay? Special dinner too," Mr. Tse offered.
"No! I just wanted you to be there! New York, daddy. My first solo somewhere so big," Chastity sobbed. Her parents were jetting off again, missing her most important concert ever.
~
Dashing along the hallway towards her dressing room, Chastity couldn't avoid smashing into a boy who had just stepped out of his room.
"Why don't you watch where you're going?" Another boy was now standing there glaring down at Chastity.
"Are you okay? I'm sorry! I'm running late! Sorry!" Chastity addressed the boy she had actually run into, ignoring the punk next to him.
The boy inspected his violin meticulously and saw no damage. "Whatever." Hearing his indifferent response, Chastity hurried on, throwing another apology back at him as she did.
~
"What an incredible group of talented young persons we have assembled tonight. Our next performer is from the sunny state of California. At only eight years of age, she's already wowed audiences all over. Her amazing voice is sure to warm your hearts. Please welcome, Miss Chastity Tse."
Gathering her courage, little Chastity stepped out onto the massive and brightly lit stage with poise. She was in her element; performing came naturally. Under the pressure of the circumstance, Chastity was driven to practice longer, sing harder, and smile bigger. The hours paid off, and the little siren had just given the best and last performance of her lifetime. The audience applauded fanatically, and Chastity glowed in the rush of bliss. She had never sung so beautifully, so flawlessly.
From their location backstage, it was hard to see the face of the performer, but all of the sound came through with crystal clarity. "Vic, didn't she hit you earlier? Stupid girl."
"Yeah." Vic replied quietly, squinting to see the face.
~
"Chas?" Uncle Tse called. Chastity loved her aunt and uncle dearly, and they were practically her second set of parents. She pitied her Uncle for being unable to have children of his own but relished the attention he showered on her. They had willingly flown up to New York with her in her parents' absence. Tonight, Chastity expected to be receiving the usual ecstatic congratulations from her beloved aunt and uncle, but their ashen faces were scaring her.
"Chas, we need to go to the hospital." Uncle Tse said firmly.
"Why?" Chastity felt her uncle tighten his hand around hers.
Stepping into the white foyer of the hospital, Chastity felt the blood draining from her face. Ominous portraits of grim looking figures peered down at them from the stark walls. Something was horribly wrong, but no one had said a word to her during the ride over. Now she was being rushed down stark halls, listening to the clicking of her dress shoes along the tile. Coming at last to a closed door, Uncle Tse knelt down to face Chastity, putting his hands on her small shoulders.
"Sweetie, your parents flew over right after their conference. They wanted to see you sing tonight. It was such short notice…they were…no driver... New York roads are…icy, and they were… rush." Chastity felt her breathing stop as she let half the words sink in.
"Chastity, your parents had an accident. Your dad, he…was hurt very badly. I…you…you should probably go see your mother," Uncle Tse's voice was breaking as he spoke.
~
Just like that, Chastity's parents had departed from her life forever. Mr. Tse died in the ambulance, and Mrs. Tse passed away later that night. She was grateful that she was able to bid her precious daughter goodbye first.
"Be good baby. Listen to uncle and…auntie, they'll…take care of you…from now on. I…love…you. Watch over Dylan, he'll need…you. I'm sorry…sorry that I wasn't…won't be…I love you," Chastity's mother was whispering in labored breaths. She left her young children in the care of her husband's brother, and Chastity was in the room late that night when she died quietly. The alarms blared, havoc beeping erupted from various machines, and as it dawned on Chastity the reality of the situation she could do nothing but scream.
"Mommy!! NO!!!! Mommy!! I'm sorry! I'll be good from now on! Mommy come back!!! I'm so SORRY! NO!!!!"
***end***
"Chastity, Chas!"
"Nooo!!! NO!!!! My…fault!"
"Shhh, Chas it's okay. Wake up! What's wrong?" Vic had woken with a start this morning. Chastity was tossing violently in his arms, her body drenched in a cold sweat. She was screaming now, and Vic was trying to wake her from the nightmare. Panting, she looked around in a daze before falling back into his arms, sobbing quietly. Startled, Vic didn't know what to make of her reaction but tried to soothe her. This was unexpected. He figured she'd have a hangover, a migraine, maybe flush in embarrassment at being in bed with him, or be confused from a blank memory, but she had awakened this morning in screams, scaring him horribly. Eventually she quieted and fell back into a light slumber. Vic slipped out of bed and stood in a steamy shower, concerned about what had just happened. Was she upset about last night? Somehow he doubted she'd be brought to screams and tears over a kiss. What was Chas dreaming about?
Vic finished pulling on a white sweater over his khakis when Ken walked in. Glimpsing the weary look on Vic's face, he asked, "You okay?" Vic nodded slowly, and Ken left the subject stand.
"Is she still sleeping?" Vanness entered the room.
"Yeah."
"Deep in sleep?" Vanness inquired again.
"Yeah." Vic robotically responded.
"Good. Get your stuff out, I'm going to borrow her laptop. You remember seeing her email a program right?" Vanness was already making his way towards Chastity's bedroom. Gently lifting the laptop from her desk, he eased the plugs from it and returned to his room. Vic was seated at the desk with a CD in hand, and Ken held out a power cord. Once the machine was started up, Vic conjured his way to a locked directory. The screen was pale blue with the image of a water drop that rippled in the corner. In the middle, a small password box blocked any further entry.
"Any clue?" Ken asked him.
"It can't be very difficult to open. This is just her laptop," Vanness offered. The CD Vic slipped into the laptop now was a shimmering white with a minuscule music note adorning it. Opening the program, Vic started to input the parameters for the password search.
"Ten minutes. What's for breakfast?" Vic sighed, anguished inside.
When Vanness returned to the room with a mug of coffee and a muffin, Vic was already scrolling through Chastity's recently edited documents. Ken quietly sidled to check up on Chastity again. Vic explored the laptop's contents for a few brief minutes before shutting it down and erasing all traces of his usage with his program. He waited for Jerry to come upstairs before speaking to everyone about what he found.
"New piracy protection, anti-virus, revolutionary hacker diversions. Perfection." Vic was blunt and curt. For them, the situation was not looking any better.
"So, did you find enough of the write up to create an anti? What's she got on there?" Jerry asked.
"Nope. The password was easy to get, but she's clever. She worked on everything in bits and pieces, deleting here and there. Nothing fits together. Only those familiar with the program could make sense of the chunks. Chastity's been trained."
"Grrreat. Ken, go put that back. We'll talk about this in the car. Gotta go pick up Becca," Jerry replied dryly.
~
Chastity stepped out of the shower feeling refreshed and energized. She replayed the fuzzy events of the night past, the horror of the nightmare this morning, and she didn't know how she was going to face Vic today. That dream would haunt her now and again, and she was grateful Vic was there to comfort her this time. Explaining it to him, if he asked, would be difficult though. Tiptoeing downstairs, she decided to keep her hands, and hopefully mind, busy by making lunch. Chastity set a few skillets to warm and clicked on the stereo, keeping the music low. The guys had gone to pick up Becca, and Shelly and Kiki were still sleeping. Tossing salad expertly, she began humming happily and did not hear the kitchen door swing open.
"Isn't this something worthy of coming home to? Right out of Martha Stewart," Ken smiled at chef Chastity. She threw a cherry tomato at him and continued with her cooking.
"I'll bring these to your room. That's Chastity, I was telling you about in the car," Ken said to the beautiful woman who walked in behind him. He and Jerry headed upstairs with her suitcases. Chastity realized that Becca had arrived and pivoted around to greet her.
"Hey, I'm Chastity. It's very nice to meet you."
"Likewise. I'm Becca, Jerry's older sister. That smells really good." Becca moved closer to the stove, taking in the scent of grilled chicken.
"How was your flight? Did you have to spend the night at an airport?" Chastity grabbed a handful of forks and began setting the table. Becca helped by laying out plates and glasses too.
"It wasn't that bad. I stayed at a hotel nearby. Should we get everyone up? I'm starved."
"Nah. They'll probably sleep in. It's still early." Chastity poured them some orange juice and sat down next to Becca. She looked just like her pictures, but Becca was even more stunning in real life. She had an air of confidence, friendly aura, and plenty of elegance. She was statuesque like Jerry, with the same dark eyes, and her hair flowed to mid-back, slightly layered and glossy. Chastity was amazed by her beauty every time they met. They were alone in the kitchen now, and Becca's voice dropped to a whisper.
"Really though, how are you?"
~
[It's ironic I'm posting this today because I went to the hospital tonight. It was my first time @ Charity and first time in an ICU unit. Sigh. So to recap just in case I made it confusing: Chastity's current parents are actually her aunt and uncle. For those of you who read Through It All, there is a new chapter (21). I know it's hard to keep up with updates on Winglin. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, and as always, review please. Next chapter: will vic and chas talk about the night like normal ppl....or what?! ]