Taken (Dark Desires 1)

“Natasha, I’m not mad.” Not at her. My brother, on the other hand I believe had had some scheme in mind all along. This was some twisted game on his part that I was caught up in.

When we were children he was the same way. Anyone he could manipulate was fair game and they often learned their lesson far too late only after Joshua had obtained some embarrassing piece of information or gotten them to humiliate themselves without realizing it until it was too late.

That was the reason he had a different last name. He wanted to hurt our parents who had done nothing but give him the same upbringing they gave me. But nope. Being a Reid was not good enough. He was embarrassed he said of the questionable labor practices, the land obtained overseas, just a lot of nonsense to make our mother cry. So he became Joshua Hewitt except on his credit cards and birth certificate and driver’s license that all still read Joshua Reid. He wasn’t forfeiting the family fortune. Just the chains that he imagined came with the name.

When I found that out I hunted him down at his apartment.

“Open the door, Josh.” I said, waving the elevator hop to get back inside and go back to the first floor. Joshua had acquired the penthouse at a nice, new building our father had bought. Staying close to the city was important to my little brother because so many of his associates lived under the rocks and in the shadows of the city.

“Well, this is a nice surprise.” He said through the door as I heard the locks click open. He answered wearing a pair of silk pajama bottoms. His muscular chest was bare.

“Hey big brother…”

I punched him square in the face.

“Do you know what you’ve done to your mother, Josh? Do you have any idea?”

“Put your hands on me again you son of a bitch and…”

Another blow to the side of the head. While he was dazed I wrapped him in a head-lock and was determined to squeeze and squeeze until the monster blacked out. But I didn’t. I couldn’t. I let him go and pushed him to the floor.

“You change your name in certain circles but you keep it the same to cash Daddy’s allowance checks. Do you see how pathetic that is?”

“I’m not as pathetic as a golden boy who can’t wipe his own ass without checking with his father first! At least I’m my own man!”

I started to laugh. I think that was what infuriated him the most. He stood there gasping, his hand at his throat just trembling with rage. In his eyes I didn’t see my brother. Truth be told there never was much behind his blue eyes but now they had gone to glass. Dead. When he stared at me I’ll admit I was sure he might kill me right then. But, nope. He still had a fear of his big brother and for that I was glad.

“If you come anywhere near me again I’ll have you arrested and thrown in jail.”

“So, does that mean you quit because you’re going to see me at work every day. Yes, if I were you, Josh, I’d quit. Make it easy on mom and dad and me and yourself. There isn’t any room for Joshua Reid Hewitt at the company.” I scoffed, rolling my eyes at his new name.

I was twenty-four when that happened. He was twenty-two. And even that ass-whipping didn’t change him.

>

Well, I shouldn’t say that. It made him hate me even more. But, even though my parents never kicked him to the curb like they should have, I respected their wishes to look out for him and keep him employed with the company. But, to show me he wasn’t leaving he collected his more than ample paycheck every two weeks plus his full insurance, paid vacations and all that jazz and was almost never in the office. At least, it was like that for a while. Then, I think he woke up the realization he may need to plan for his future.

He had the wool pulled over most of the employee’s eyes, hence Mrs. Ogawa getting Natasha placed as quickly as she did. He had lunches and Friday afternoon cocktails sent to the departments a couple times of the year. He never mingled with them but free beer got a guy a long way among the staff.

Joshua did manage to weave his way in with a good number of shareholders who would never vote him out. They had escorts sent to their hotel rooms whenever they were in town, drunk driving citations swept under the rug. My brother loved to have people owe him for something and now he had Natasha. What did she owe him I had to wonder?

I remember thinking of all these things in a matter of seconds when Natasha told me how she and my brother had met and what he had done for her.

“I wouldn’t be working at all. I wouldn’t have met you. I’m so confused, Marty. But please believe me when I tell you the last thing I ever wanted to do was cause a problem in your family.” She wiped her eyes with the paper napkin. “Oh my gosh, your mother would think I was a big slut. She’d never allow me in your house. I’m so embarrassed.”

I took a deep breath. Sure my heart was broken. But I couldn’t help but feel that Natasha was telling me this not because she had to but because she wanted to.

“You’re right, Natasha. You aren’t married to me or my brother or anyone else. You do have every right to go out with whoever you want whenever you want.

But…”

“But what, Marty?” she looked up at me with those beautiful blue eyes, pushing her long blonde hair away from her face. Her mascara had run just a little bit in the corner of her eyes and I thought she had probably never been this vulnerable in her whole life. The next words I chose to say could save her from herself or blow her apart like the dry leaves out on the parking lot surface outside the window we were sitting next to.

“But I hope you come to a decision soon. And if you believe it is what is best for you then I’ll be happy. Whatever you choose.”

Snapping out of my daydream I looked at Ray who was scratching his head.

“Marty, I gotta tell you that that is the dumbest thing you could have said. I’ve had the pleasure of talking with Miss Natasha Morgan more than once and she is waiting for you…not Joshua...you to tell her you love her. You want her and only her. You can see it in her eyes? Have you been working so hard for so long you don’t know that look in a woman’s eyes anymore? Because if that is the case, my friend, you need a lot more than a pep talk from me.”