John Francis

“Mind if I sit down?”

Squeezing her eyes shut, she nodded her head ‘yes’, she did mind. He answered her silent nod.

“Too bad.”

She opened her eyes at the scrape of the chair and saw Richie staring at her, the look in his eyes a mixture of disbelief, disappointment, and anger.

“What the hell are you doing, Amanda?” He kept his voice low, but from the tone it could have been a shout.

Her throat was so dry she couldn’t have answered him if she had wanted to and she didn’t want to. She was having a nightmare and she was wide awake.

Stalling, her mind racing, she took a drink of her tea and carefully repositioned the glass. Richie waited impatiently.

“Richie … I … I can’t tell you.” Her voice was a whisper full of pain.

Nearly grinding his teeth as his anger threatened to bubble over, his voice was low and heavy.

“What can’t you tell me? That you’re married? That you’re a liar and a thief? A fraud? Which one? Which one can’t you tell me?”

A completely shocked look on Amanda’s face had Richie suddenly looking at her even more sharply, but he was prevented from further interrogation as Ava, with Heather at her side, approached the table.

“Dad, mom’s here.”

Richie looked up at his ex-wife and then stood.

Amanda had frozen when Ava had spoken to Richie, but her eyes were drawn back to him as he rose.

Richie caught her eyes, not breaking contact even once as he spoke.

“I’ll be right back. Heather, can I talk with you for a minute?”

Heather murmured her assent and drew Ava back with her as she and Richie walked several steps away.

Amanda watched them for a moment, shock still fogging her thoughts, and then the paralysis broke and she quickly reached for her wallet.

Telling Ava to wait, Richie took Heather’s arm and gently tugged her a few feet further from their child.

“Heather, I need to talk with that woman. I promise I’ll call you later, but I need to go right now.” He nodded towards the tables as he spoke and Heather turned to see Amanda throwing down bills on the table.

Richie’s intensity had a small frown starting on Heather’s face, but she quickly saw that for some reason what he was asking was very important to him. She nodded.

“Okay, go. I’ll tell Ava.”

Richie nodded gratefully, smiled, stopped once to kiss Ava’s cheek and strode towards the woman quickly walking away.

A few long strides had him at her side.

Amanda’s breath stopped as she felt a hand clamp down on her elbow.

Richie pulled her to a stop.

“You and I are going to talk.”

~~~

Richie kept a hand on Amanda’s arm as they entered her hotel. She tried to go into the bar, but he pointed towards the elevators and she dropped her head slightly as she realized he wanted to go to her room.

Amanda flinched when the door to the room slammed behind her. She still had her back to him when he spoke

“Now talk.”

Amanda sighed, shaking her head back and forth as she turned to him.

“Richie, I had to leave. I can’t tell you why, but I had no choice. Please just accept that.” Her voice was pleading with the man standing so solidly in front of her, his arms crossed at his chest.

The flat contemptuous tone of Richie’s voice shocked her again.

“Bullshit. Fucking bullshit. I want what you took and I want an explanation. DO YOU HEAR ME?!” His voice rose and he moved to tower over her.

Frozen for a moment at the implied threat of Richie’s voice and movements, Amanda could only look at him with wide eyes and an indrawn breath. Then what he said fully penetrated her confusion.

“What I took? What do you mean, what I took? I just took a few clothes and this…” she held her arm out for him to see the bracelet.

“I’m not leaving this room until you give me the rest. You don’t deserve it.” He stared at her and if he had hit her she would have been less surprised than at the look she was seeing in his eyes.

“Richie, I didn’t take anything.”

Contempt narrowed his eyes.

“Right. Just like you’re not married, just like your husband is dead, just like months of lies you never told.”

Pain crossed Amanda’s face.

“No, not like that. It seems I am married.”

Richie’s mouth rose in a sneer as he mocked her.

“It seems you are married…”

Amanda’s hands fisted at her sides.

“I didn’t know!” Her voice rose, even as it began to tremble.

Richie shook his head, an incredulous look entering his eyes.

“Jesus, you’re still doing it! You’re still lying!”

Amanda stood there silently as his words battered her.

“Tell me why you did this.” He waited as he saw her once again shake her head.

“No.”

The sneer on his face hardened the beauty there.

“You fucking bitch.”