Parallel lines, p.1
Parallel Lines, page 1
PARALLEL LINES
NADIA VANDERS
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, events, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Text copyright © 2024 by Nadine van der Starre writing as Nadia Vanders.
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
Published by Black Mirror Press, Amsterdam.
www.nadiavanders.com
ISBN: 9789083464404
eISBN: 9789083464497
Book cover design by ebooklaunch.com
“An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.”
- Gandhi
AUTHOR’S NOTE
This story revolves around the horrors of organized crime and includes detailed depictions of addiction and substance abuse, parental abuse, human trafficking, on-page death and murder, torture, (gun) violence, grief, and mental health struggles.
Reader’s discretion advised.
ONE
DAVINA
OCTOBER 2022
JOHNSON’S COFFEE, LOWER MANHATTAN, NYC
Sometimes, Davina wished it was legal to kill her ex.
But it wasn’t, so for years, she sat back while he butchered her happiness and patience with a jagged fucking knife. Nobody was perfect, but most people were at least decent enough to fit into a judgmental society.
Not him, unfortunately. Tatsuya continued to rain on her parade, letting his downpour of misery drench her.
The mix of noises in the bustling café triggered her nerves, and she let go of the coffee cup when the veins in her hand rose to the surface. She had been at the exchange point ten minutes early and even convinced her ride to wait for her, thinking she would hand over Sadie to him at 4 p.m. sharp. When her phone chimed, she snatched it from the table and looked at the screen.
AMANDA
I’m not going to be late because of you. Be outside in two minutes, or I’m leaving.
Sweat broke from her palms as she wrote a reply.
DAVINA
If he doesn’t show up, I won’t have anyone to watch her. Sorry.
Those two minutes passed like she expected they would. Still no Tatsuya. A crying child and a colleague who had taken off without her were just two of the pending consequences.
Great.
Sadie and Davina had been there before, both let down as he yet again failed to show up. Handling disappointment had become one of her talents, but the broken promises were taking their toll on Sadie. Her once carefree, happy child was now a mere shadow of that. Besides the absent laughter and suppressed smiles, she asked questions Davina didn’t have an answer for. She looked at her watch and sighed. He was over fifty minutes late, and if history had taught her anything, it meant, yet again, he wasn’t going to show.
“Mommy, why isn’t he coming?”
The knot in her stomach was drawn tight by the flaring disappointment in Sadie’s eyes. She shifted in her chair when tears started prickling behind her own. She couldn’t cry. Not in front of her daughter.
“Something came up. You’ll see him next time.”
“You promise?”
“I promise,” she replied, pressing soft kisses on her daughter’s head. She took after her father with locks dark as onyx and irises the color of rich hazelnut. Sadie snuggled up against her, and Davina snatched her phone from the table. There was one more dreaded call she had to make.
The lump in her throat was impossible to swallow as she dialed Chief Thill’s number. No lousy excuse would justify missing her night shift. She didn’t breathe until it went to voicemail, and she hung up without leaving him a message, convinced that this wasn’t something she could dump into the man’s inbox. Before placing the phone on the table, her thumb loomed over Tatsuya’s number. The chances of him answering her call were close to zero, but trying it one more time wouldn’t hurt.
“The person you are trying to reach is currently unavailable. Please try again later.”
‘‘Fuck,” she hissed under her breath, but still loud enough for the family sitting next to them to notice.
“Mommy!” a young blonde girl with pigtails yelled as she pointed in their direction. “That lady said fuck.” The obnoxious look in her tiny eyes was a blend of judgment and the attitude nobody should wish to see in their child. Considering the mom’s formidable glare, the apple hadn’t fallen far from the tree.
“Come on, we’re going home,” Davina whispered to Sadie, buttoning both their coats. Outside, the rain beat down on the canopy roof, a typical but unpleasant part of autumn in New York. As she continued to call Tatsuya, she scanned the stores across the street, hoping to find a place that sold umbrellas.
“Yes?”
Caught off guard by the unexpected sound of his voice, she reached for Sadie’s hand and exhaled a deep breath into the mild autumn air.
“Is that all you have to say, Tatsuya? Where the hell are you?”
A wave of anger flooded her stomach when he huffed.
“Are you dumb? I told you I wasn’t sure if I would make it,” he sneered.
If only she’d seen his colors for what they were, instead of the appealing bright ones her naive sixteen-year-old-self had painted him in. Sadie was the biggest blessing she’d ever received, but it would be a lie to say that the fantasy of having a different father for her child hadn’t visited her. Life would have been easier, more enjoyable.
“Do you always have to be so rude?” Davina said as she slowed her step. A disarray of anger-infused words was gathering at the back of her throat. It took her a couple of deep breaths to hold them back. “You promised you would pick her up at Johnson’s Coffee at 4 p.m. We’ve been waiting for you for fifty minutes. I missed my shift because of you.”
“Chill, Five-o. Tomorrow. Same place, same time.”
The degrading nickname was just as infuriating as his demand and the cocky tone of his mocking voice. Becoming a police officer had been a difficult road, and he always made sure she knew he didn’t respect it one bit. She sighed and glanced down at Sadie.
“Actually, no. I don’t think that will work.’’
Tatsuya paused, his voice several shades darker when he asked, “What do you mean?”
To him, it might have been vague, but to her, it had been clear for longer than she cared to admit. She recalled the many nights she had been left at home with a screaming infant, her tiny head reddening as Davina tried to comfort her while fighting off the exhaustion. How he used to vanish for days on end, dissolving into thin air, his phone going straight to voicemail.
He always came home at some point, until one day, he didn’t.
Sadie had been three months old when Tatsuya last set foot in the apartment they shared in South Manhattan, far away from her parents. Not to apologize or to fix what he had broken, but to pack his stuff.
“We aren’t doing this anymore.”
“Doing what?”
“You should find yourself a lawyer. Visitation can’t continue when you’re this unreliable. It’s not healthy for Sadie.”
He went quiet. It was a kind of silence that hovered like the calm before the storm, one that would rage until nothing but chaos remained. She knew how it would end, and she didn’t plan on sticking around to watch it unfold.
“I'm coming to get her tomorrow, and I swear to God, I won't need your permission,” he said flatly. His voice was an echo of the chained temper tantrum sizzling underneath its surface.
“Are you deaf? What is it you don’t understand? You have no rights! You are never around. I—” Beep, beep, beep. He had hung up before she had a chance to finish her sentence. Davina’s jaw went rigid as she pulled Sadie’s hood up. She would have to deal with this later. The first priority was getting her daughter home.
After reassuring Sadie once more that everything would be okay, she hailed a cab that had stopped at the traffic light. Inside the vehicle, Davina rested her temple against the window and waited for her daughter to complain about wet socks, hunger, or whatever else could bother a seven-year-old. Instead, her child stared through the fogged window at traffic dashing by, unresponsive to her mother’s hand cupping hers.
‘‘I’ll run you a hot bath when we get home. Mommy won’t be going to work today. How about we order some pizza?”
Sadie zoned out with big, glassy eyes. Something had just rooted itself in her young mind, but before Davina could ask, the young girl blurted it out.
“I don’t think Daddy loves me anymore.”
A pang ripped through Davina’s chest and settled in the pit of her stomach, where it swirled and expanded.
“Don’t say that,” she whispered, grazing her fingers past her daughter’s cheek. When there was no response, she unfastened her seatbelt and wrapped her arms around Sadie. Everything within her wanted to say the words the young girl desperately needed to hear. That her father would surely come around and that one day, he, too, would feel like home to her. But the time of empty promises had gone. The only thing she had to give was herself.
“I will always be here. I promise.”
Sadie’s stiff posture didn’t stir in her mother’s embrace, her hands limp when Davina took them in hers.
“That’s a lie. You’re never there. You’re always working,”
For the rest of the ride, they were bound by overpowering silence.
DAVINA’S APARTMENT, SOUTH MANHATTAN, NYC
Five hours later, she shoved aside their half-empty pizza boxes and leaned against the counter. Once Sadie was fast asleep, it was time to do the chores she had postponed, but the impending doom paralyzed her. The chief hadn’t returned her call, but she knew she wasn’t in the clear. Without a doubt, he’d confront her with her unprofessional behavior, and she would have to churn up more absurd excuses in an attempt to fix it.
A deep sigh left her chest. The idea of losing her job made her palms grow moister by the second. She had accomplished significant things within the NYPD for someone her age, and it had earned her a spot in the Young Talents Detective Program. That would all go down the drain if her ex continued to cause trouble.
She sucked in air while thinking back to her past fuck-ups, and released her breath once she counted them on one hand. Her eyelids fluttered beneath the weight of fatigue. When she reopened them, she remembered it.
Behind her stock of dish soap and laundry detergent stood an unopened bottle of wine. It came from an exclusive winery in Spain called Dominio de Pingus, a gift from her grandparents when she graduated from the police academy. It should have been long gone, along with all the other bottles she had thrown out the day she kicked the habit. She’d saved it for reasons that now evaded her.
She pulled the bottle from the back of the cupboard and poured herself a glass. The deep red liquid licked the walls of crystal as she swirled it around.
Don’t do it. It’s not worth it, the desperate voice in her head pleaded at her.
It was in vain.
An intense longing woke from its slumber, her thoughts no longer under her control. Semi-sweet and crisp acidity spread across her taste buds as she swallowed.
Just one sip. I can’t lose my job. How will I make ends meet? Alright, two.
The thought of Sadie growing up without a father made her release a frustrated groan.
Small sips turned into gulps, and in less than half an hour, she found herself staring at a near-empty bottle before she burst into tears. She wiped at her eyes when her vision blurred. That was her first drink in over thirteen months, and now, her sobriety had left quicker than she had obtained it.
Her temples pounded as sharp images of the angry chief circulated in her mind until a familiar knock disturbed her. Once, twice—short but loud. Not expecting visitors, she raised an eyebrow.
“Coming,” Davina muttered, and she stumbled through the dark hallway to open the front door. She paused and peered through the peephole. Under the corridor’s bright fluorescent light, his pale face almost looked translucent, with slick tattoos disguised under his dark clothing. Izuna. A vague memory of texting him drifted in her mind between all the other events of the day.
“Great,” she said to herself as she opened the door. The slur in her voice had been unmistakable, and the sharpness in his gaze confirmed it hadn’t slipped his attention.
He arched a dark eyebrow at her before he entered and slid past her. Davina stabilized herself against the wall, her eyes trailing him as he made his way into the kitchen. He looked at the empty bottle and back to her, not a sound coming from him besides his calm, even breath. She held his gaze and prepared to defend herself against his accusations but sagged her shoulders in defeat instead. Any excuse would be pointless, anyway. What was there to say? I’m sorry. I tripped and fell into a pool of booze and swallowed it by accident.
“You’re home early,” he finally said.
Davina huffed so hard that the remaining wine spilled over the rim of her glass.
“That’s because I didn’t work today.”
She glanced up at him again. Two stern eyes looked back at her. Despite being fraternal twins, Izuna and Tatsuya were polar opposites. Tatsuya was trapped in the emotional rollercoaster that was his head. Always at full speed, soaked in adrenaline and anger and gasoline, ready to explode or implode at any time, destroying his surroundings or himself.
She pictured Izuna as an eerie lake, so still that it was unnerving. There were no furious currents to drag you along. You just never knew what was lurking in the inky depths. What they did have in common, though, was their eyes. They were dark and haunted, swirling with hues of burned wood and charcoal.
Just when she was about to wrap her icy fingers around her glass, Izuna snatched it.
“What happened?” he asked.
“Nothing.”
He pulled the glass away when she attempted to retrieve it.
“You said there was something you needed to discuss, so here I am,” he spoke calmly, tipping the remaining wine into the sink.
She regretted asking him to come. But even though she didn’t fear Tatsuya, his threat was to be taken seriously. If he really planned on kidnapping Sadie, Izuna was the only one capable of stopping him.
“Your failure of a brother, Izuna,” she replied, emphasizing his name.
“He didn’t show up?”
“Would I be here if he did?”
The noise of the ticking clock was excruciating as he moved to the open window and grabbed a lighter from his pocket.
“What was the reason?” he asked, sparking his cigarette. She stared at the smoldering ashes as they burned, his lips parted to let out the smoke. He made it look so effortless, as if it couldn’t strike him with terminal lung cancer.
“He didn’t give me one.”
Unless you knew how to read him, it was easy to miss the tiny sparkle of discontent in his eyes. Izuna’s composure was made of ice and steel, but she could have sworn it had just cracked.
“How’s Sadie?”
Sober Davina would’ve lied. Drunk Davina couldn’t.
“Upset. We waited at Johnson’s Coffee for over fifty minutes.”
Izuna drew another inhalation of smoke before he reached for two glasses and filled them with water. “Drink,” he said, sliding one toward her.
She dipped her chin and reached for the glass.
“He said that he’s coming to get her tomorrow, whether I agree or not,” she said, toes curling in her socks at the mere thought.
He emptied his own glass in a few mouthfuls and placed it on the countertop, a little rougher than necessary.
“Did he?” Izuna took one last drag of his cigarette before putting it out in the ashtray. She stared at her fingernails when he pushed himself off the counter. “We’ll see about that.”
As he walked past her, his hand brushed her shoulder.
“Go to bed, sober up. Sadie will be up early,” Izuna said, and heat rushed to her ears when he addressed the elephant in the room. “I’ll take care of Tatsuya. And don’t worry about your career. I’ll get you a nanny,” he added.
Davina remained quiet as he left the kitchen and headed for Sadie’s room. He often kissed his niece good night, even when she was fast asleep.
“Yes. You always make everything right, don’t you?” she mumbled as the front door slammed shut. Seconds later, she was alone once again, forced to contend with her demons. She’d broken her promise, not just to herself but to Sadie. Her phone’s screen lit as an email came through. A new event had been added to her working calendar.
Meeting scheduled with Chief Thill, 9 a.m. — October 27th.
Chestnut locks cascaded over her face as she laid her head on her arms. She had expected to be called into the office first thing in the morning, even when the chief was on leave for two weeks due to a family emergency. Instead, he’d scheduled a meeting on his first day back at work, obviously eager to deal with her himself. No matter how much she wished to deny it, it was more than evident.
This was far from over.
TWO
IZUNA
OCTOBER 2022
YANAKI TRAP HOUSE, THE BRONX, NYC
