Fictional Memoir | Chapter 5 …. (a work in progress)
The Finale: The Night They’ll Never Forget
Fait accompli
A gentle ocean breeze fluttered through the cabana’s curtains, startling Dennis and Bella out of a soul- stirring embrace. The kind that ignites a full body energy, rewires the brain, and sets the heart aflame like an imprisoned bonfire threatening to blow.
Dennis loosened his arms around her tiny waist as she lifted her head from his chest — moistened by her tears. He wanted nothing more than to ease her pain — release the pressure building in his loins, pulsating through to her heart.
Jaw clenched. “Bella, we can’t.” It was easier to mouth the words than shut off a firing electrical current.
She pulled him closer to explore. Dennis pushed her hair away from her face — held her head back. Captivated by her eyes, she drew him deeper into her being.
He kissed her forehead, eyes, and lingered softly on her full lips, then tugged her top down with his teeth — taking in a mouthful of her supple breast as he mapped his way south.
Flammable emotions mixed with guilt are the most combustible. They passed the point of turning back, but both knew it was dead wrong to continue.
Bella unbuttoned Dennis’ shirt to his waist, pulled it free from his pants. She kissed his chest — traced his brown nipples in a circular motion with the tip of her tongue. He moaned. No one had ever made him feel this way.
He lost every bit of the good sense he had left.
Dennis nudged her toward the couch — pulled her white bikini thong down. Translucent nectar glistened on the inside of her upper thigh. They fell on a white fluffy cloud of stolen moments and unpent desire.
Their bodies surfed waves of intense pleasure — rising, gliding, breaking towards the frothy shore.
A quick flash of rumbling thunder shot over the horizon — the shower of sweet, humid rain christened them. They lay spent for a moment in each other’s arms. “Did you see that D.?”
“See what?” He wanted the moment to last uninterrupted by ghosts of the present. Dennis could feel the energy change — the breeze shifted. He saw the shadow pass by outside, too.
The gods had spoken, but the devil basked in the sun.
“What time is it?”
“Almost five.”
“I need to go D. I’m going for a dip and then to the room to get dressed — I’ll call you later.” They kissed one last time, then she disappeared through the cabana’s curtains like a phantom.
Dennis grabbed his shirt and jacket, pulled his pants up, and took a long swig from the bottle of champagne. He wished he was dreaming. What was he thinking?
Zoe had fallen asleep for what seemed like two hours. She looked at her phone. It had only been thirty minutes. To her relief, there was a text from her dad… Let’s talk later. 😘
She went to the bathroom, ran cool water over a face cloth and refreshed her face. Then powdered her flawless complexion and puckered her lips for a smattering of red lip gloss.
Something about the action tempted Zoe to call Paul. He had never missed her birthday in the five years they had been together. It saddened her even though their love had been snuffed by time and circumstances.
She reminisced about the time they flew to the Dominican to meet his parents. They were beautiful, warm, and welcoming. They instantly loved her and thought an American Black girl who looked like them was just what Paul needed.
It didn’t take them long to see Zoe wasn’t keen on his domineering tendencies.
There was a light knock at the door. Zoe looked through the peephole before opening. “D., what are you still doing here?” He appeared a bit disheveled, with his shirttail hanging out — shoes in hand. He walked straight to the couch and plopped down, winded.
“Zoe, I fucked up.”
“What did you do now, D., and why do you look like you’ve been walking on the beach?” She noticed a dolphin tattoo on his left foot. Dennis, known for questionable decisions, especially about women. He was the biggest flirt — a real charmer. His female clients at the hotel loved him.
“I didn’t mean to Zoe. I just wanted to console her. Her husband’s a real asshole. We started fooling around in her cabana and couldn’t stop.”
“Who?”
“Isabella Paulo.”
“Oh, hell no. Tell me you didn’t — have you lost your mind?”
“I think so — I’m falling for her.”
“D., you know her husband has ties to the underground. He’s linked to the biggest criminal bosses around the world.”
“How do you know?”
“I can show you better than I can tell you.” She grabbed her laptop from the coffee table, clicked on a weird-looking app, connected to the dark web, and pulled up an official-looking document. Zoe’s law background served her well. A real sleuth, she knew how to find the dirt on anybody.
“Read.”
“Are you kidding me — the big twelve who supposedly run the planet?” Dennis sucked his teeth. “Zoe, I didn’t know you believed in conspiracy theories.”
“Need further proof?” Zoe, suspicious of Daniel Paulo since the newspaper article about his shady business dealings, started researching his background for fun and found more than she bargained for when she asked her dad to help her dig a little deeper. She let Dennis peruse her file for 15 minutes.
His eyes widened as he clicked through tabs of legal documents. “Zoe, isn’t it illegal to possess a dossier of a high-profile businessperson?”
“Maybe, but the bigger question is, how are you going to get yourself out of this one D.?”
“I don’t know, but can I stay here for a few hours while you do your rounds? I don’t feel like going home and being alone.”
“Of course. Order dinner and relax.” She picked up her laptop, put it in the closet safe, snapped it closed, and air kissed Dennis goodbye. Before she walked out the door, she turned back.
“Hey D., that’s classified confidential information I shared with you. Please promise me it stays between us.”
“Of course, Zoe — I promise. No one would believe me, anyway.”
“Thank you. Make sure you hear the door securely lock when you leave. I have my cell if you need anything.”
Zoe worried as she pushed the elevator button on her way down to check on the Christmas party in the Molokai ballroom. Maybe she shared too much, even though she and Dennis were good friends and she trusted him.
She wanted to scare him into believing involvement with Bella was a horrible idea. Her mind raced from the 21st floor to the lobby.
At 7:30pm, the banquet staff looked like toy soldiers dressed in white, lined up at the three entrances to the Molokai ballroom. Ready on cue to serve Jake’s masterpiece culinary experience. Guests had already devoured the first two courses. Based on their animated behavior, the predinner spirits had kicked in.
Zoe decided all was well and headed toward her office to finish preparing invoices for the week’s events. When she passed by the front desk, Kayla motioned for her to come closer.
In a hushed tone, she said, “Leah’s here.”
“Thanks for the warning. Why?”
“Ownership said jump, and she said how high — how am I supposed to know? She’s been fiddling in the back office for almost an hour.”
Although it wasn’t unusual for the General Manager to be at the hotel on a weekend for a variety of reasons, it was odd since Leah had hurt her knee and left early.
“It must be important. I’ll be in my office for a little while. Keep me posted.”
“Okay, I will.”
When Zoe walked past the back office, she glimpsed Leah and Jake through the frosted glass door. She knocked and waved. They both jumped.
Wonder what’s going on there, she thought.
Jake had ignored his father’s lawyer all day. He couldn’t figure out why he kept calling or what could be so urgent. His mother was okay. He had talked to her earlier. He had no interest in his late father’s real estate dealings and didn’t want to be bothered. It was after 9:00 on Christmas Eve. He’d call him tomorrow.
The Island Gateway Christmas party was a tremendous success — Jake could finally exhale. Daniel Paulo clinked his water glass to signal a brief heartwarming toast to the hotel staff and sent a fifty-thousand-dollar tip in a white envelope — delivered by the banquet captain to Jake with a bottle of vintage Dom Perignon Brut.
Jake caught Zoe on her way from her office and invited her to have a celebratory glass on the beach patio. He popped the champagne bottle, filled the two gilded champagne flutes, and they toasted to her birthday.
Zoe excused herself to finish her MOD duties and turn in for the night.
At midnight, after Zoe thought her day was over, a call from Kayla at the front desk changed everything.
“Oh my god Zoe, there’s been a terrible accident.” Sirens blared in the background.
When the elevator door opened to the lobby, it was swarming with the Honolulu police, fire department, EMT’s and the media.
A reporter stuck his microphone in Zoe’s face. “Ms. Londyn, what happened here tonight?”
“I don’t know yet. As soon as I have any details, I’ll let you know.” She rushed past them to the front desk, where Kayla stood speechless. Colorless. A police officer walked up behind her.
“Ms. Londyn, I need you to come with me.”
“Yes, officer, what happened?”
“We don’t quite know yet, but since you are the Manager on duty, we’ll need you to see and possibly identify the body that washed up on the shore before we can move it. We’ll also need to ask you a few questions for documentation, too.”
Zoe could see Jake approaching out of the corner of her eye.
“Oh my god, identify a body?” Zoe almost lost her footing. The police officer held her arm. She had never been MOD when someone died at the hotel, although she’d heard horror stories from her colleagues.
“Would you mind if I remove my shoes, officer?”
“I suggest you do.”
They approached the covered body on the shoreline. The area had already been yellow taped. Party goers gawked from their hotel room balconies. The EMT pulled the white sheet back. Zoe’s legs buckled.
She covered her mouth with her hand to muffle the scream — fighting back tears. The woman’s neck had deep red, purple bruises, as if perpetrators strangled the life out of her. The police officer held onto Zoe so she wouldn’t fall.
“Ms. Londyn, do you know this woman?” Jake rushed to her side, ignoring police warnings to stop.
“Yes, her name is Leah Mano. She’s the General Manager of the hotel.”
Zoe collapsed into Jake’s arms.
© 2022 Toya Qualls-Barnette
Episodes 1–4