David and I decided we would go to the meeting.
"What if it's a trap and he tries to kill us? I think we should bring security; I can handle myself, but you would need help." David had been anxious since we made the decision. I could tell he was scared.
"I don't believe Willis would kill us. He wants us on his side; if not, he would have killed us when he killed our fathers. We don't want him to know that we are on to him. Let him think we are as naïve as he believes. We need him to give us some answers, a motive maybe. He needs to believe that he is manipulating us—,"
"I still think we should have security with us. We can't just walk in there knowing there's potential danger and having no protection! If you think he would suspect, we can lie, tell him that we bring security with us everywhere we go, and make him think it's innocent. I just won't risk putting you in danger."
"I know the risk. If I didn't, I wouldn't have come for your advice, your help. I knew my father was murdered and I am certain your father was too. You don't have to worry about me, we're not kids anymore. Besides, if we were, you would be the one needing protection. You were such a baby, always crying over every little thing."
"And you always came to comfort me. That's why I did it so much; not because I needed it. Most of the time, I was faking, you just thought I was crying."
I couldn't help but laugh, "Faking! David, you were bawling! All the time!"
"No, I was not!" he said as he started chasing me around the garden. We were playing like children; I would go one way and David would go the other, trying to cut me off. Before he could grab me, I would sprint the other way, dodging his attack. But, at last, he caught me, and we fell onto the bright, velvety green grass, laughing to our hearts' content. We lay on the grass, looking up into the clouds. David had his arm under my head so I wouldn't have my hair dirtied by the soil. He used his hand to hold his head. We lay close to each other, in silence, like we wanted to savor the moment we were having.
"David, do you think we're doing the right thing? Should we just discard our ideas and leave well enough alone?"
"I think we're doing what we should; what we are obliged to do in honor of our fathers. If we're wrong, we will lay it to rest. If we're right, and we find something, we'll be set free with the truth, and others will deal with the consequences. Right now, we can't trust anyone. We don't know who was involved and who wasn't."
David's eyes were filled with compassion and love; the joy I found so familiar warmed my heart and eased my nerves. But I also saw the pain. I knew how he felt, all the pain he was trying to hide.
One of David's maids calls us into the house. "This came in the mail; it's addressed to you Sir, and one is for you Miss, this one was sent this morning as well, but from your home address," she said as she handed us our mail. I looked at the envelope, searching for who it was from and what it could be about. I must admit, I assumed it was condolence letters, or bills, something along those lines. The letter was from John Willis. The envelope had "URGENT" printed on the front in red ink. This letter read as follows:
Dear Ms. Dean,
Again, I write to you in good health, and I hope this letter finds you likewise. Getting to the point: I know from the last letter; that I requested you have a lunch meeting with me on July 15th at 3:00. If it is not too inconvenient for you, I would like to reschedule our meeting for July 16th at 3:00. I have other business matters that are forcing me to reschedule. I hope to see you soon.
Your friend in life and death,
John Willis
"Do you notice that Willis ends every letter with 'your friend in life and death'?" David asked in a suspicious voice. He looked at his envelope; it had the exact same word "URGENT" printed in big, bold, red ink. It was too from John Willis, but his read a bit differently:
Dear Mr. Savien Jr.,
I am writing to you as a reminder that we will have our meeting at 3:00 tomorrow. As you know I am a very busy man and will be even busier very soon. It has also come to my attention that you have reunited with Ms. Jesse Dean. I am also aware that both of you decided to come to the meeting together. To be frank, I would prefer you to come alone. I want our meeting to be "man to man". I hope to see you soon and in good health.
Your friend in life and death,
John Willis
David had a serious look on his face. He looked at me and came close, so close, I could feel his breath on my neck. "Someone is a spy." He grabbed my arm and we started towards the estate. He took me to his office.
His office was almost exactly like his room. I had a tall ceiling with an enormous chandelier with what looked like a thousand crystals hanging from it. There was a bookshelf for a wall and a big cherry wood desk in front of it. A fireplace was on the wall across from the desk. David sat on the couch in front of the fireplace. I went to sit next to him. I could see he was in deep thought and that I had to pull him out of it.
"How does he know that we are back together; how does he know that we wanted to go together?"
"He might have someone spying on us, watching from afar—"
"No. There's someone here giving him information. We need to leave. But where? Where is it safe?"
"For a start, we could go to my estate. Once we're there, we can think a bit more with our minds more at ease."
"What if there's someone there too?"
"We won't know until we get there."
David nodded and looked at me with worry in his eyes. I smiled as a way of comforting him and he smiled back. The next day we packed some essentials and headed to my estate. When we got there, David and I both looked around in horror. There were the bodies of my servants everywhere, all dead. Blood flowed in my little pond as someone's body floated. We walked into the house cautiously and discreetly, so as to not make our presence known to whomever did this, if they were still there.
The house was in such disarray. The dining table was broken, and someone's body was on it. My fireplace had a little decorative spiked fence in front of it; one spike was bent towards the right piercing a head on both sides. I stood frozen, unable to breathe. The smell of blood and death filled my nostrils. I hadn't noticed that I was gripping David's shirt until he took my hand and turned me around so that my face was in his chest, shielding me from the gruesome scene. I wrapped my arms around David's waist and cried. I screamed and I cried until I could feel nothing.
David called the police, and after answering a few questions, we left. I was quiet on the ride back to David's home. In a way, I would say I was numb; I didn't hear anything, I didn't see anything but the darkness. I felt like I was in a black room, alone. That is until David squeezed my hand again. He looked at me with worried eyes, eyes that somehow made me feel safe. He scooted closer to me, wrapped his arm around my shoulder, and gently pushed my head into his shoulder, allowing me to rest. This comfort felt good. I snuggled in closer, and before I knew it, I was asleep, but not for long. I woke up still in David's embrace. David's heartbeat had a calming rhythm. He was so calm, and collected; I envied that. How could he be so composed, like this was normal or like this meant nothing? Then suddenly, I felt the slightest hiccup. I looked up and saw David; crying. He was looking out the window, lost in thought and in sadness. Tears streaked his face. I squeezed his hand gently, but enough to get him to look at me. His eyes were starting to redden from the crying. As I looked at him, I remembered the little boy I used to play with every day. I wiped his face with my sleeve with every bit of gentleness and gave him a comforting kiss on the cheek. He in turn laid his head on my chest. I adjusted so that we were both comfortable and held him. I took his hand and he squeezed. I could feel him start to cry more into my chest. Every hiccup sent shivers down my spine.