Seeing Red (37 page)

“We have a big problem then because I will fight for
her like I’ve never fought for anything else my whole life. I’m
giving you this chance, but I won’t wait around forever.” With
those final words, Alexander walked to Jill, helped her to her
feet, and dragged her to the dance floor with a proprietary hand on
her lower back. It was a ballad.

“Xander! I almost spilled my champagne.”

“Sorry.”

He grabbed her waist and pulled her closer. He could
sense Oliver looking at him.

“You really are a boorish oaf! You manhandled me to
this stupid event, and now you grab me and pull me to the dance
floor. You could’ve asked, you know.”

“Would you have said yes?”

“Probably not.”

“Because you didn’t want to dance or because it was
me who was asking?”

“The latter.”

“Why do you hate me so much, Jill?” He looked her in
the eye. His demeanor was softer than a minute ago.

“You know that I don’t hate you. I don’t know why we
argue so much. It’s like we are in a constant game of tug-a-war and
no one ever wins.”

“Can we call a truce, at least for tonight?”

“I can do that. I’d like that, actually.”

“Thanks, babe.” He kissed her cheek and held her
closer. “I haven’t seen that necklace in years. That’s from here,
from the island, right?”

“Of course, it’s from here. You don’t remember
giving it to me? You left it on my bed after you threw the one I
found in the ocean. We were like nine years old. It’s probably my
most valued possession. Every time I wore it I thought about you
throughout the years, I would take it out and look at it and felt
you were close by. It reminds me that, even when you’re a total
ass, you’re also sweet and caring.”

“Oh yes. That’s right.” He lied. He had no idea what
she was talking about.

“It’s so special to me. It’s one of the reasons I
love you. By the way, you look very handsome tonight. Did I tell
you earlier while I was having my tantrum? You look wonderful. I
like your hair short like that.” His bad-boy tousled demeanor was
at odds with his dapper tuxedo.

“Thank you. You are stunning, but I think I already
told you that.”

They continued dancing even after the song ended and
another ballad began. He held her close and her head rested on his
chest. Even with her heels, he towered over her.

“Xander, I’m sorry for giving you such a hard time
about tonight. I just really didn’t want to be here, but I guess
it’s kind of nice to get all dressed up and have some fun.”

“It’s cool. No need to apologize. You just wanted me
to carry you. Just admit it.” She gave him a little punch to his
shoulder. They continued dancing in silence until the song
ended.

“May I cut in?” said Oliver.

***

Jillian

“No. You may not.” She thought Alexander was joking
until she saw the look on his face and heard the low growl. He took
a step closer to his brother. He was truly angry and it surprised
her. What was this all about? Oliver also looked upset: two giant
men dressed in tuxedos, inches from each other with intimidation
written all over their faces.

“Hello. Hello. May I have everyone’s attention?” The
voice came from the stage, luckily breaking the awkward face-off
between the twins. An older gentleman in his late 60s stood on the
stage in a white tuxedo jacket with a black bow tie and a heavy
Italian accent. Jill noticed Heather across the room talking to a
handsome man wearing a classic black tuxedo. Even from across the
room, Jill could see Heather was flirting.

“I’m very happy to have you all here today. We are
here to celebrate the groundbreaking of my new luxury hotel and spa
here on Rota Island. I hope you are all enjoying your stay so far.
Most of you arrived this morning and have not had a proper tour of
the island or of the resort. Behind me,” he pointed behind him to a
huge screen that showed slides of the hotel and the beautiful
beaches that Jill, Oliver, and Alexander remembered so vividly,
“are some of the spectacular views you will become familiar with in
the next few days.”

After twenty minutes of talking and showing slides
about the new resort, he said, “We are also here for a very special
reason. When we began breaking ground on this land, we found
remnants of items that belonged to the passengers of the dreaded
flight that crashed on this island over twenty years ago. We also
found their makeshift sleeping quarters and dining area. It was
like finding the remains of a deserted ancient civilization.” He
then turned around and showed clips of what they found.

Jill gasped and put her hand over her mouth. She
couldn’t believe it was all there after all these years, and she
couldn’t believe she was seeing it again, and she really couldn’t
believe she was seeing this on a ten-foot-tall screen in front of
strangers. It seemed like an intimate part of her was being
exposed.

She grabbed Alexander’s hand and held on as if it
were a lifeline. As they showed one slide after another, memories
started flooding back. The twins were flanking her, were standing
like statues. She looked up at Alexander and he was watching,
expressionless. Then she looked up at Oliver, who stood on her
other side, and she saw what seemed like a flinch as they showed
slide after slide.

She let go of Alexander and wrapped her hand around
one of Oliver’s arm in an effort to comfort him. She knew he was
hurting. She didn’t want to see anymore, at least not today and not
in front of everyone. Oliver pulled her in, and she buried her head
in Oliver’s chest. He caressed the back of her head, all the while
watching the slide show. When the lights were turned back on, she
let go of Oliver, straightened up, ran her hand down the side of
her dress, smoothing it down, and quickly composed herself. She
knew all eyes would be on them. Jillian was glad the lights were
dim throughout the slide show.

“So it’s with great pleasure that we’ll be
constructing a memorial for them. It will be a place that gives
tribute to the heroes that emerged from the wreckage and allowed
them to survive for twelve years. It will be a place where the
family members of those that did not survive can go to pay their
respects, and it will also show how they lived during their years
on the island. So without further ado, I’d like to introduce you to
the only three living survivors—Ms. Jillian Stone and Oliver and
Alexander Jacobs.”

Everyone clapped and cheered. Jill was frozen, but
Alexander grabbed her hand and led her up to the stage. He stood at
the podium flanked by Jill on one side and Oliver on the other.

“On behalf of my brother, Oliver, and the lovely
Miss Jillian Stone, I’d like to thank you all for coming tonight. I
speak for all of us when I say we were very surprised when we found
out about Mr. Amico’s plan for the resort and even more surprised
and grateful for his plan to build a memorial. It’s truly
humbling.” He kept holding her hand and absently caressing the
inside of her wrist with his palm. “Many of our loved ones,
including my parents and Jill’s mother, died on the island or on
impact. It’s touching that we will now have a place to pay our
respects. Those years on the island were trying years, but we were
kids, and as kids we remember only the positive things. I,
personally, have mostly wonderful memories of this island.” He
looked down and kissed Jill on top of her head, which caught her
completely off guard. “We are also very excited to go through all
the items Mr. Amico’s team found and look forward to helping them
sort things out. These slides were the first we’ve seen of the
island since we left, and they brought back a lot of unexpected
memories. So we thank you all for coming, and we especially want to
thank Mr. Amico and his team. I’m sure we’ll see many of you around
the resort this week. Please, enjoy the rest of your evening
everyone.”

Jill was frozen. Everyone clapped and Alexander
stepped down, but Jill was completely immobile. Her eyes locked on
the far left corner of the ballroom where a man that she couldn’t
completely see clapped, his eyes locked on hers.

She couldn’t see him clearly because of the
distance. But, somehow, she understood at that precise moment why
she had been so nervous about coming to the island and coming to
this party, particularly. This time it wasn’t a dream; it wasn’t a
vision; it wasn’t a glimpse or a premonition. It was real. He was
here. Rocco Taylor, the redheaded man, was here.

She was nervous because Rocco had been nervous, and
she felt exactly what he had been feeling. And at that exact moment
in time, when everyone clapped and their eyes met for the first
time ever, his anxiety subsided, causing Jill to relax for the
first time in weeks. Yet she was frozen because, for the first time
in her life, she saw her father.

If I could give you one thing in
life, I would give you the ability to see yourself through my eyes.
Only then would you realize how special you are to me.

-Helen

Jillian

“Jill, babe. This really isn’t a good time.”
Alexander whispered into her ear. He looked at Oliver for help.
They both knew how Jill became when she went into one of her
visions, and standing in front of a room of over 300 people was
definitely a bad time if ever there was one.

Oliver grabbed one hand and Alexander the other and
pulled her down the stairs. “She’s kind of walking. I don’t think
this is . . . you know . . .” Oliver whispered.

“I know. She has a different look in her eyes. Come
on. Hurry. Let’s sit her down before anyone notices.”

The applause continued as they walked down the stage
and back to the table as waiters began serving dinner. When she was
seated, the brothers stared at Jill for a minute before Oliver
lightly shook Jill. “Baby, are you with us?”

“That was a lovely speech, Xander.” Just like that
she snapped out of it.

“Um . . . thanks? What just happened? What were you
staring at?”

“Nothing, I don’t know what you’re talking
about.”

“Are you tired?”

“No. Why?”

“Because I think you were in one of your
trances.”

“No.” She shook her head. She was confused as to
what happened between the end of the speech and the way to the
chair. “No. I, um . . . I thought I saw someone, but it was
nothing.”

“Jill?” Oliver was about to ask something, but
Heather was walking back to the table with a big smile on her face,
and Jill stared at Oliver strangely.

“Hey y’all, miss me?”

“Hi, I saw you flirting with that guy over there who
can’t keep his eyes off of you.” Jill said as they both looked
towards the guy and caught him staring at Heather. They both
giggled.

Oliver and Alexander looked at each other,
questioningly but didn’t say anything about what had just occurred.
Alexander didn’t let go of Jill’s hand until dinner was set in
front of her. Jill kept looking around but didn’t see her father
again.

“What are you looking for, Jill?” Heather asked. It
was that obvious.

“Um, nothing. Dinner’s great, isn’t it?” Change of
subject time. Dinner was delicious. After being stuck in what
seemed like an endless cycle of fast food sprinkled with Heather’s
super-healthy cardboard food, a meal consisting of filet mignon and
lobster was a real treat. But, dinner was interrupted at least two
dozen times by strangers coming by to introduce themselves and
shake their hands. It was the purpose of the gala, after all.

Meeting the guests of honor was just par for the
course, and they accepted it with grace. Mr. Amico came by at one
point. “It pains me that we have not had a chance to properly meet.
I look forward to speaking with you three in a more intimate
setting. I will have my secretary call you and set up a private
dinner sometime this week.” His smile seemed genuine and reminded
Jill of a pudgy kind-hearted quintessential Italian grandfather.
“But today, we have fun
capice
?” He smiled brightly, kissing
the tips of his fat little fingers. “And my dear,” looking at
Jillian, “my friend and business associate would like to speak with
you privately. He will call you tomorrow evening. He asked me to
tell you that you looked lovelier than he could ever imagine but
that he had to go to attend to a pressing matter and was unable to
stay to speak with you personally.”

“W-what friend?” She stuttered, already knowing that
answer.

“My business associate, Rocco Taylor.” He bid them
good evening and left.

“Shit.” Heather whispered, surprising the others
with her cursing.

“Rocco Taylor? The multi-billionaire Rocco Taylor
wants to meet with you privately? I wonder why?” Alexander said as
Jillian started turning visibly pale. Oliver was going to say
something, but Jill shook her head side to side very
inconspicuously so that only he noticed and he shut his mouth.

“Who knows?” Jill lied and tried to fake a smile.
“There is a dessert table over there. There are fruits and a
decadent display of chocolates and pastries.” Jill got up and
walked over as she said it, trying to deflect the conversation or
at least somehow distract them from the inevitable argument that
was about to ensue.

“I’ll bring you something,” Oliver said, walking
away with Heather, giving Jill time to explain things to
Xander.

“Thanks, Oly.”

“If I had done that,” Alexander pointed to Oliver,
“brought you dessert, you would have complained that I was being
high-handed.”

“That’s not true.” And then she thought about what
he said. “Well, maybe.”

“Jillian, tell me what’s going on. You’re acting
really weird—weirder than usual. You froze on the stage and now
you’re kind of acting all jittery. Back in the room, you started
saying something about your father. Does this have something to do
with him? Why do I feel like I’m the only one that doesn’t
know?”