The RunAway Model

XII. Promises Made, Promises Broken

Theo ordered her to dress up for dinner that evening. He picked her dress for her and she grudgingly obliged because of two things: one, she was not willing to test his patience the second time that day, and two, she had to eat a proper meal.

His eyes roamed over her when she reappeared from the bathroom wearing the layered dark blue chiffon dress and Desiree suddenly grew conscious of the kind of tension between them that she didn't want to experience. She pushed and locked it inside the deepest part of her mind, reminding herself that the man she was with on the night Jamaica was killed was nothing but an idea. He was not Theo, the man who bought her to use for his own personal gains.

Just like tonight.

There was no doubt in her mind that their dinner would not only be spent chewing expensive meat.

"I won't be surprised if someone ends up dead tonight," she muttered under her breath as he opened the door.

His dark eyes looked at her for a few seconds, flicked toward her lips and back to hold her eyes once more, and said, "Why? Planning to stab someone in bed again?"

Desiree's jaw clenched and her nose flared. She squared her shoulders and walked out the door. "If you really believe I killed Jamaica, you should have just given me to your disgusting brother because I think I am better off dead right now," she spat out, walking ahead to end their conversation. She couldn't help the tears that rolled out of her eyes and she angrily wiped them with the back of one hand.

Focus. You have to focus and be alert. You're on your own now. You have to survive. She talked to herself because if she didn't, she might just take her chances overboard. And she was at the brink of doing just that.

*****

Theo had to be extra cautious that night. Not only because it was his first time to do this kind of job, but also because Desiree had the tendency to cause quite a bit of trouble. She had already done so earlier and she could very well do the same thing again.

There were quite some people on the deck that night, all dressed nicely for the dinner. A live jazz band was playing at one corner while everyone made acquaintances with their fellow cruise goers. Theo had never been on a cruise because he never found it to his liking. To be trapped on a ship for the most part of the journey was a total social disaster for him. He could be charming to clients, but he had his limits. He couldn't stay on a ship with the same people for weeks.

But this one he had to do because his stupid brother had been reckless in the past and now he was a hunted man again.

Desiree turned toward to him with a questioning look when they reached the entrance of the dining place. He didn't know where they were supposed to sit so he just took her hand and guided her to the concierge who, by some unknown protocol, recognized them and pointed them to their table.

He noted Desiree's cautious state and he ignored it. His eyes scanned the deck for the person he was looking for. He easily found him because of his companions. The two young white boys looked exactly alike. They both looked like any normal eight-year-old twins by the way they were dressed, but their actions told Theo otherwise. Their movements were out of the ordinary as they observed everything with awe. For a moment, he thought the man should have used a different cover, one that could easily be believable and natural-looking. But then, nobody on the deck seemed to care at all. Everyone had their own things to worry about at the moment and the most pressing one was the selection of food.

The man sitting with the twins looked up from his menu and caught Theo's eyes. He gave a small nod and Theo answered with one. He noticed the man's gaze involuntarily wander to the left and he followed its trail. Theo's eyes landed on a Chinese couple sitting across each other, both smiling and talking without a care to the world.