The Wrong Sister

The next day, Dr. Lacayo didn’t return to see me as promised, and this had me worried. Had she decided to back out? Had Lisa gotten to her somehow? Call me insanely paranoid, but I realized that if Lisa really wanted to, she could probably plant a bug in my room somehow. That way, she could always know what I was discussing with other people. The only one to see me that day was Lisa herself. Unfortunately, she never took a day off from visits. She was as devoted to visiting as she was to being abusive. I had actually fallen asleep in dire need of a nap because nightmares had kept me awake the night before. I woke up to find her staring at me from where she sat just a few feet away. She sat with one leg crossed over the other. One forearm rested on the arm of the chair, while her other elbow rested on the opposite arm, her chin in the palm of her hand. She gazed at me thoughtfully. Was that also a hint of regret I detected? I sat up slowly, warily. “I fucked up,” she said in a matter-of-fact tone. “I admit it. I fucked up.” I was surprised to hear her admit this, although I was unsure of her sincerity. My first thought was that she was only saying it because she wanted something from me. Abusive people often manipulate their victims with kind words. I knew that. If Lisa ever truly did care about me, it was probably back when I was still up north, maybe a few months after moving down with her. She rose from her chair and stepped toward the bed. She looked smoking hot, as always. She wore jeans, black boots, and a royal blue sweater under her leather jacket. Her hair was back in a braid, not something I saw on her very often. A few loose curls framed her beautiful face. Her dark, distinct features still had a way of turning my legs to rubber. “But why?” I dared to ask. “Why did you do it?” Her shoulders slumped, and she exhaled a sad sigh. “I don’t know. I only know that I’m truly sorry.” “Has this happened before with others?” Her reluctance to answer was all the confirmation I needed. Lisa was no doubt a regular abuser. The only thing I didn’t understand was why no one mentioned it beforehand. I just couldn’t believe that Stacey didn’t have at least a small clue as to her sister’s dark side. I also couldn’t believe Stacey would ask her to promise to take me if anything happened to her—or that she would accept such a promise. Maybe she only agreed because she didn’t expect to die. No one expects to die, especially twenty or thirty years before they should. I wanted to understand Lisa, though I didn’t understand why. We were over. Period. There was no way in hell I could go back to her. When the pit bull attacks once, it can always attack again… at any time. “I’m very sorry, Shaylin. That’s all I can really say.” I stared into her dark eyes, searching for any possible truth, but she was hard to read. “How do I know I can trust you?” She shrugged. “You’ll just have to see. I know it’s asking a lot, but I don’t know what else I can tell you.” “Do you still love me?” “Of course I do. Why do you ask?” “Lisa, don’t you think that’s kind of a stupid question? Violence isn’t love.” “That’s like asking an alcoholic or a drug addict if they still love their mother. Just because they’re not perfect doesn’t mean they don’t have feelings.” I mulled her words over. She had a point, though I still wasn’t sure I believed her. It wouldn’t matter in the end if she was lying or not, because I wasn’t going to stick around one minute longer than necessary. “I would like a chance to make it up to you.” I gazed up at her again. Oh, that gorgeous face. That hot body. What she did to me in bed… No! I would not let lust keep me from doing what was best for me. But I also knew I couldn’t tell her what was on my mind. Sorry or not, there was no way she was going to let me go. I wasn’t going to give in easily either, and I had to come off as just as challenging, or she might grow suspicious. “I don’t know, Lisa. You’re asking an awful lot of me after what you’ve done.” “What else can you do?” I saw the evil reemerge behind her challenging eyes. “Well, I’m an adult. I can do what I want. But you might get your chance to show me you can treat me well if you play your cards right.” That’s it, I told myself. Keep up the bravado. “I’m in charge now, Detective. I make the rules, and you play by them.” “Oh, is that so?” she said with a hint of a smile. I wasn’t sure if she was amused, turned on, or pissed off by my new tactic. “Indeed, it is so.” She stared at me steadily, body unmoving. “We’ll see about that, Mrs. Winters.” Definitely pissed. Ok, so if a little bravado wasn’t working, I could always try crazy. “One of my conditions is that you remain handcuffed at all times while you’re around me.” She gave me the biggest WTF look anyone had ever given me. “If you’re handcuffed, I’ll feel a little safer because then you can’t punch me out. You could have killed me, you damn fool, you know that?” “But if I’m handcuffed, I could still kick you.” “Yeah, I remember how good you are at that, too.” She smirked. “So then I should be in shackles too, shouldn’t I?” “I will decide your fate from here on out,” I said, wishing I felt as brave as I was trying to appear, hoping Lisa found me unnervingly crazy all of a sudden. Crazy enough to rethink “making things up to me.” She continued to study me, head cocked to the side, but still as hot as ever. “You really are a good little actress, you know?” I tried not to let my concern show. There really was no fooling this bitch any more than there had been with Stacey. Lisa stepped up to me, eyes so dark they were nearly black. “Let me tell you something, girl. You’re not only the hottest little pussy to grace my comfy sheets—and probably the smartest—but you definitely should consider teaching acting to kids in addition to singing.” “Yeah, well, that wonderful voice coach has been neglecting her students, thanks to you. Now, do you want to make things up to me or not? I’m through arguing. I don’t want to fight with you anymore.” The bitch remained calm, though her eyes were cold as ice. She shrugged casually and said, “Who says we’re fighting?” “How’s my rat?” I asked, determined to change the subject. “Fine.” “How do I know you even have him?” A look of hurt and anger crossed her sharp features, and her perfectly tweezed eyebrows began to knot. “You’ll just have to come home and see him for yourself, Shay.” Damn. This bitch was just as sexy even when she was angry. “Ok, I admit it. Yes, I have my own admission to make. You’re hot. Totally smoking hot. No one I’ve ever been with has been nearly as hot as you, including your beloved sister. And never have I had such a compatible sex partner.” A slow smile spread across her face, and I swear I felt myself begin to blush. “With my other partners, I wanted it once a week and sometimes even once a month, if that. I could do it with you every single day, though.” Lisa was still smiling seductively, flattered by my words. Sex was definitely a subject to use to get on her good side—the one thing she never failed at. “But that’s not enough for me,” I continued. “I wanted very much to work through this, but I can’t live my life being afraid of you, no matter how many times you make me cum so hard that my clit throbs like my pulse.” Lisa giggled. “I see the creative writer in you shining through, alright.” “Creative way of putting it or not, it’s the truth, Lisa. I can’t have the violence. You’re way stronger than me. You could easily kill me without meaning to.” Lisa’s expression turned thoughtful and serious. “I realize that, sweet pea, and I promise never to make the same mistake again. I can’t live my life never making mistakes, but the one thing I’m not in the habit of is repeating my old mistakes. I won’t hurt you again, honey.” I wanted so much to believe her, but I wasn’t naïve or stupid. She could believe every word in that moment, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t explode on me again in time. It may take several months, like the first time, but I’d heard enough stories to know it almost always happened more than once. I couldn’t let the promise of something so good-looking and so powerful in bed distort my perception of reality. She brushed a lock of hair out of my face. “Let’s just get you better and out of here. Then we can chat some more, go for a stroll on the beach…” She leaned in closer, lips brushing the crook of my neck. “…And I can take care of that lady berry between those sexy legs of yours all you want.” I would have been cooing and melting like overheated wax under ordinary circumstances, but nothing was ordinary with us anymore. I still had to do what was best for me and get the hell away. I wished I could see her locked up as punishment for harming me, but I had to settle for just getting away and sparing my own ass from further abuse. I tried to smile as she stood back up to her full height. Her dark eyes bore into mine, almost drilling them with their intensity. They were intense, observant, but also dead-looking. “Ok, Officer, you’re on. One thing first, though.” “What’s that?” “You’re going to tell people the truth.” She froze, almost as if she were confused. “You got everybody believing that I was attacked and that I cut myself. You’re going to tell people that you’re the one fully responsible for every single cut, bruise, and bump.” “And how do you expect me to do that?” she asked, voice slightly challenging. “You have a voice. Use it.” She smiled smugly, as if to say, we’ll see about that. “Anything else?” I shook my head, and she left the room that day with me wondering… had she finally bought into my act? Or did she still know just how full of shit I really was?