A Surprise Favor – Chapter 17

The house is quiet when we arrive. I expected a noisy and vibrant atmosphere with people cooking and hanging out, but the kitchen is empty.

“I’m heading out to the beach,” Lia says over her shoulder. She strips off her shirt and there’s a bathing suit top underneath. Always prepared, that one.

Nina dumps her bag in a chair in the living room. “I’m going to head out for a walk. I’ll check out the surrounding houses and see if I can figure out how that guy got in last night.”

She grabs a hat from the kitchen table, waves, and leaves.

Well, okay then. Where is everyone else?

I yawn as I walk through the house and find Marcelo outside, sitting in one of the shaded pool cabanas. His eyes are focused on a datapad, his brow furrowed in concentration. He looks a bit gloomy, a marked contrast to bright and sunny weather.

“Hi, you,” I say, approaching his chair.

He pushes the datapad against his chest and looks up at me. “Ms. Skylar, I didn’t hear you return.”

“We just got in. Mind if I sit?” I gesture to the chair next to him.

“Please.” His response is somber, and it ticks my danger meter.

Still, I sit in the chair, kick off my sandals and put my feet up, relaxing into the cushion. Yes, this is a vacation.

Marcelo sits up and brings his bare feet to the stone deck.

“I’m going to leave in a few hours and return to Ossun,” he says, resting his datapad on his knees.

“Oh no. Is something wrong?” I use my hand to shield my eyes from the sun and squint at him. Something is definitely wrong.

“You haven’t been looking at the news, have you?”

I swallow hard. Anxiety locks its jaws around my chest, making it difficult to breathe.

“No. Saif told me to stop looking at the news after the OEN mess.” Deep in my heart, I know I should pay attention to what people are saying about me on the duonet. Vivian ignored it, and it didn’t do her a damned bit of good.

Marcelo taps at his datapad and turns it to me. The peppy news anchor looks like he’s stepped out of a dark closet and didn’t realize he’s wearing five shades of purple.

The news anchor’s face contorts into a grimace. My stomach twists into a tiny ball.

“Rumors are swirling that Skylar Kawabata, daughter of renowned businesswoman Fusako Kawabata, stands accused of space ship piracy in the Duo Systems,” he announces with a sickening smirk.

This can’t be happening. How could I possibly be connected to something like… space piracy? I actively fight against piracy!

“Several ships have gone missing in the last week while Ms. Kawabata has been in Playa Paloma on Laguna in the Californikus System. Sources inside her circle say she’s hurting for money since her mother served her with papers in a legal fight to repossess her ship and garnish her wages. Stealing ships and selling them on the black market could be her backup plan to pay for the expensive lawyers she’ll need to fight the lawsuit.

“But those close to Ms. Kawabata, including her cousin, Vivian Kawabata, have suggested these rumors may be an attempt to discredit her family name and take away from their accomplishments. It is a shame such allegations have been brought against such an esteemed legacy.”

I can feel my cheeks burning with embarrassment and fear.

“That’s not all,” Marcelo says, tapping on his datapad again. “There are a dozen stories this morning that have cropped up and need to be dealt with.”

He shows me the datapad again. This time it’s an excerpt from a text story about how I’m selling Athens Industries trade secrets to its competitor, Cosmas, Incorporated.

I gasp and pull away, willing the text to change to something, anything else. I cannot have Athens Industries, Renata and India Dellis, angry with me. That’s a death sentence.

With a shaky finger, I scroll down until I see a quote from Renata Dellis’s publicity team. “We have no comment at this time, but we’re looking into the matter.”

I cover my mouth with my hand. Marcelo swipes again. This time it’s another video with that bitch Cenobia Senna Snow at the helm. She can barely contain her glee; she bounces in her chair as she reports.

“News from Laguna is that Skylar Kawabata has joined forces with disgraced former military commander, Nina Correa. They’ve been seen together on more than one occasion in Ciudad Paloma, and our sources have found the two at the Lee family villa at Playa Paloma. After doing some digging around in the underground forums, it appears Ms. Correa and Ms. Kawabata are leaking sensitive military plans and strategies to the Californikos Intelligence Agency, possibly endangering the lives of countless soldiers and civilians.”

I’m going to be sick. This is court martial material.

“Our contact at the Brazilianos military has said they’re looking into the matter, and they have no comment at this time.”

“Certainly didn’t stop her from dragging my name through the mud.”

Marcelo reaches out and puts his hand over mine, giving it a comforting squeeze before removing it again. He looks into my eyes with a mix of pity and understanding before looking back at the screen.

“There are more, unfortunately. Several stories about how you’re smuggling drugs and weapons, how you’re cheating on your network…” He waves his hand in a circle. “You get the picture.”

Marcelo sighs and shuts off the datapad. “It’s okay,” he assures me. “You’re innocent until proven guilty, and I will not let this kind of situation stand.”

“You know none of that matters, right? The rumors are enough to sink me for life.” I stand up and look out over the pool area. The sun is still bright in the sky and people in other houses are going about their vacation activities, unaware of what’s happening here. It’s surreal, like my life doesn’t really exist.

Marcelo touches my hand. “Don’t go just yet.”

I sit back down, though I’m dying to release this nervous energy somehow. A run? No, I don’t exercise. A scream fest? Someone will hear me.

“Maybe it will help if we got to the truth of the matter,” he suggests gently, guiding me away from my fears with rational thought. “I’ll leave today for Ossun where I’ll speak with some of my contacts about how to stop these stories from surfacing.”

I nod, barely attached to reality. How can I even stop something like this? The media and the lies are out of control. They’re a swirling storm, ripe with high winds and dangerous lightning. Tomorrow, they’ll turn around and tell people I’m half-alien, and I eat babies for breakfast. The sad part is there are people out there that would believe it.

Marcelo stands up, determination in the turn of his lips. “Don’t worry,” he says before laying a hand on my shoulder. “We’ll sort this out and make sure they hear the truth.”

“Thanks. I know we will.” Lies. We’re fucking doomed. My mouth forms a thin line as I make silent promises to myself to be positive about this, even if I want to cry, stomp, and scream, but it doesn’t work. I want to run, hide, die. “Do the guys know about this?”

He nods once. “It was Saif who brought it to my attention, and Takemo has been deathly silent since he found out.”

Ugh. I need to talk to him. This is a situation that could potentially destroy him, my reputation, my life, my career, and I’m powerless to stop it.

“Kalvin?”

Marcelo laughs. “That man lets just about everything roll off his back. I don’t know what you did to him in the desert, but he’s one-hundred percent loyal to you. If you told him to find who made these stories, he’d go to the end of the galaxy and back searching.” He squeezes my shoulder and lets go. “I’m only worried about Declan because his career means a lot to him, and we can’t afford to lose him right now with the court case coming up.”

“Right.” Just as I was beginning to feel a connection to him, this happens. He may be gone for good if I can’t convince him these stories are fake, that I’m not this person. “Are you leaving now?”

“After lunch. I’m going to go pack.”

The door shuts behind Marcelo, and I’m left alone with my doubts. How can I make this stop? Who do I talk to? What can I do to end this? The anxiety and fear are an anvil on my chest, pushing me to panic, and I promised myself I wouldn’t. Pile this on top of having to tell Kenzie to stay away from Kalvin, and I’m lost.

This is stress I don’t know how to deal with. No wonder Vivian blew up so many times. She stopped eating, stopped sleeping. I have to hold myself together. As much as I love her, I don’t want to end up like she did in those last days before the auction. She was a wreck.

I can’t be a wreck. I have to start a new shipping business, build a network, and stop my family from self-destructing.

Taking a deep breath, I try to steady myself, but my hands shake and my heart races. I need to find some way to blow off steam or… something! Anything!

I’m about to melt down.

What can I do?

I look back towards the house.

I’ll go inside and I’ll figure it out.

One thing’s for sure, I should not melt down in public, even with the anti-drone field up. I’m better off inside.