Tabitha's Guardian (15 page)

“You are just as bad as that woman!”

“I will teach you to say her name with
respect.”

“Never! I hate her for what she tried to do
to my father!”

“You had no right to spoil our plans! Do you
realize that I only get to see her once a month for an hour, and no
matter what, they do not bend the rules, even on her birthday. We
decided that you have to pay.”

He roughly shoved her up a flight of steps
and into a small, one-room apartment. “Put down that bag and take
off your clothing. I am going to beat you with a leather strap and
there is nothing you can do to stop it from happening.”

* * * * *

By the time Owen found transportation, the
vehicle carrying his wife was almost out of sight, and he was
terrified he would lose her. He pointed ahead and told the driver
to hurry as fast as possible. “My wife has been kidnapped,” he
explained, and while the driver raced to catch up, Owen got on his
communicator and called for help. He had no idea who the man was,
but he remembered how frightened she was in Hawaii when those two
men tried to kidnap her. She had to be terrified right now, and he
prayed that he was in time to keep her from harm.

His communicator rang and it was Jenson.
“Jenson, Tabby is in trouble. She fled the house, and by the time I
found her, a man was forcing her into a vehicle. We are giving
chase right now.” He listened to Jenson, and then answered, “Yes, I
have called the Law Officers. They are following my communicator’s
coordinates. The other vehicle is stopping. I need to break off
now.”

“Be careful that you are not seen before you
are close enough to keep him from harming our Tabby.”

“I will be very careful, Jenson.” He
disconnected, and told the driver to stop. The man was forcing
Tabitha out of the vehicle and then up a flight of steps and into
an apartment. It appeared he had a gun pointed at Tabby, and Owen
prayed that Tabby would remain calm and give him time to get up
there to help her.

* * * * *

Tabitha knew that if she allowed him to tie
her down that she would not be able to escape. She also needed to
keep her hand free so that when the right time presented itself she
would be able to defend herself. Owen was going to be furious with
her, and he would punish her severely for this. Her bottom tingled
at the thought of the spanking he was going to give her, and for
the life of her, she could not think of one viable excuse that
would work magic on his resolve. In fact, if she was totally honest
with herself, she should beg him to punish her!

“I told you to get undressed. Do it now,
bitch!”

“I do not undress for any man but my
husband; unlike that woman who undressed for you when she was
married to my father. What does that make her?”

“I told you, Glory loved me and she hated
him. She only married him for his money! And then she learned he
left everything to you!”

“Of course he did. That woman did nothing to
help him build up the business, but my mother did. Why would I not
inherit from them since I am their child?”

“I told Glory that she could kill you, but
she was so insistent on putting you in jail for the rest of your
life. That guardian was supposed to make your life so miserable
that you would end up in jail well beyond your twenty-fifth
birthday! He turned on Glory and did not give her the support she
needed.”

“My husband does not like liars. He is a
straightforward man who believes in right and wrong. You need to
give up this plan of revenge right now, or you will be the one to
suffer. If you go to prison too, and you will, you will not be
permitted to see that woman at all.”

“Shut up! Nothing is going to go wrong! I am
going to make you suffer a long time before I end your life. Just
know that I am doing this for my Glory. She will laugh when I tell
her how I made you suffer. Your nasty father beat Glory with a belt
until she could barely move. He did not face any charges, so why
should I face prison if I beat you raw?”

“My father did not beat that woman severely.
She is lying to you to fuel your anger. Yes, he did punish her, but
after all she did, lying to him, lying about me… He had every right
to hold her accountable. Lying comes easily to her, and she is
using you now to cause more trouble, and you are the one who will
pay the price. Not her. She will not care, either. As long as she
thinks she got her way, she will not care what happens to you.”

“Shut up!” he screamed at her. “I told you
to take off your clothes. Do it now!”

“What are you waiting for, Tabitha Tatiana?”
Glory’s lover pointed the gun at her and waved it carelessly.

Tabitha looked at him and said in a calm
voice, “I have told you I am a married woman; I do not take off my
clothing for any man but my husband.” She was not sure that
angering him further was a good idea. He could snap and shoot her,
but Tabitha was pretty sure he wanted to make her suffer more than
he wanted to kill her. If he came close enough, she could disarm
him and then make a run for it.

“Glory said you were always spoiling
everything, Tabitha Tatiana. I shall not permit you to do that here
and now. Either you take off your clothing, or I will do it for
you, and then I shall have you before I whip you!” The crazy glint
was back in his eyes again.

“That woman was the one who tried to spoil
everything for my family. I am glad she is in prison for the rest
of her life and not a threat to good, trusting people.”

“I hate you!” He flew at her, completely in
a rage, and Tabitha waited calmly, timed her kick just right and
sent his gun flying out of his hand. The gun discharged, but she
did not worry about that. She still had to deal with his rage. He
screamed, calling her a ‘bitch’, and Tabitha kicked him as hard as
she could between the legs. He immediately dropped to his knees,
and then passed out cold from the pain.

* * * * *

When the gun fired, Owen felt his heart fill
with dread. He ran as fast as he could to get to his precious
Tabby, only to have the door open and she came flying out and down
the steps, almost colliding with him.

“Tabitha, are you hurt?” he demanded, holding
her away from him so he could examine her for blood.

“I am fine, Owen. Thank goodness you are
here! I tried to pay attention to the streets, but I am hopelessly
lost! The man who kidnapped me was that woman’s lover!”

Owen did not have to ask whom she meant by
that woman. That was how his Tabby referred to Glory all the
time.

The law officers arrived next, jumping out
of their cars and training their guns on Owen. “I am the one who
called for assistance, Officers. I am Representative Owen Patrick,”
he introduced himself. “This is my wife, Tabitha.”

“Are you all right, Madam?” one of the
officers asked in a bit friendlier tone of voice while his partner
was checking Owen’s identification.

“I am fine now. The man upstairs kidnapped
me in front of the fabric warehouse. I believe his mind snapped,
and he blamed me for his lover’s imprisonment. I kicked his weapon
out of his hand and it discharged. Then, I used another kick to
disable him so I could escape. I found my husband rushing to my
aid, and then you arrived to help. Thank you so much for coming so
quickly.”

Owen went on to explain the history of the
situation, and the officers took the cursing kidnapper to await a
hearing. Owen and Tabitha were told they would be notified when
their testimony was needed, and Owen thanked them again for coming
to their aid. Once they were gone, he looked at his little wife and
said, “You need to turn on your communicator and call Jenson. He is
probably worried out of his mind by now.”

Tabitha did not argue, but did exactly as
she was told. Her parent answered immediately, and the worry was
translated in the way he greeted her. “Tabby?”

“Yes, Daddy. I am safe now. I will explain
everything to you this evening. I am so sorry you worried about
me.” She paused to listen and then said, “Owen is right here,
Daddy. He witnessed the kidnapping, called the law officers, and
ran to my rescue.” She listened again, and then smiled. “I love
you, too, Daddy, and I promise I will explain everything this
evening.” They said goodbye to each other and then she looked up at
Owen. “I know I am in big trouble with you, darling, and I will not
fuss or argue or try to beg off a punishment because I know it is
earned.”

“Let us go home, Tabby,” Owen said, taking
her hand. He called for a driver, and soon they were on their way.
Tabitha was still clutching her large shopping bag, and in spite of
all that had occurred, she knew she had everything she wanted. Even
if she were soundly spanked for her disobedience, she would still
have the fabric she had been begging to purchase.

“Tabby, are you all right?” Janice asked as
soon as they walked in the door.

“I am fine, Janice. I was foolish, but
everything is fine now, and we shall have our freedom back now. You
might as well leave, Horace. There is no further need of your
services.”

“I think you owe the man an apology for
sneaking out of here behind his back,” Owen said, his tone of voice
warning her he wanted no argument.

“Did you not tell my husband that I left
because you fell asleep?” she asked with a smile.

His face turned an angry red. “You are the
worst client I have ever tried to protect!”

“Is that what you call it? You were rude and
intrusive, and your attempts to get me alone were not welcomed.
When you made me unlock my door, you still sat there and kept your
eyes on me, even when I assured you I was safe in my room. When you
fell asleep, I left… mostly to get away from you and your unwanted
attention. Go now and hope that my father doesn’t report you for
sleeping on the job. If I were given an evaluation form, I am
positive you would not like it when I wrote how uncomfortable you
made me.”

“That is enough now, Tabitha Rose.”

Tabby looked at Owen and then said, “I will
go upstairs and put away my fabric, Owen. Please excuse me.”

“Is what Tabby told me true, Horace? Were
you asleep on the job?”

“There was nothing to do while she was in
her sewing room. I tried to get her to come downstairs where I
could watch her properly, but she refused and kept the door shut
but for a scant inch.”

“And you were not concerned with watching
Janice?” Owen was beginning to believe his wife had reason to
dislike the guard hired by her father.

“She was sleeping in her room. I knew she
would be safe.”

“I think you went too far, Horace. You were
not hired to torment Tabby. She was permitted to be anywhere in
this house. She is not a child who needs to be supervised.”

“No, she is a beautiful woman and he was
constantly fantasizing about her, Owen,” Janice told him. “Please
make him leave now.”

“You heard the lady, Horace. Leave now. Do
not return. I will be sure to let your agency know your services
were too intense with the ladies in this house.”

“Too bad that guy did not bring your snooty
wife to her knees!” Horace slammed the door behind him, and rushed
past Jenson in his hurry to get away.

“What was that all about?” Jenson asked his
fiancée and son-in-law. “And where is Tabby? I have plenty of
questions for that one.”

“Horrid Horace went to sleep on the job
today, Jenson, and Tabby sneaked out because she was tired of his
creepiness.”

“What are you talking about Janice?” Jenson
was truly perplexed.

“That terrible man was using Tabby to
fantasize,” she stated bluntly. “He made us both uncomfortable, but
at least I could go to my room and get away from him. He did not
give Tabby that same right. He opened her bedroom door without
knocking one day, and she was convinced that he was trying to catch
her dressing!”

“Why did you not tell me this?” Jenson asked
angrily.

“Both of us told you we did not like him,
but you and Owen did not take our complaints seriously. Tabby
reached her boiling point today. If Horrid Horace had been working
within the normal guidelines, Tabby would never have run out like
that, but he pushed her mercilessly. He kept yelling at her and I
thought my head was going to split in half. Tabby took mercy on me
and finally left her door unlocked and told him to be quiet. He
stared at her constantly, and she hated it.”

“She did not tell me this.”

“She tried. So did I. You were too busy
insisting we needed protection, and that Horace was highly
qualified.”

“I am sorry. It is no wonder that Tabby was
behaving like a child this morning.”

“That does not excuse my actions, Daddy,”
Tabitha said as she rejoined them. “I was so wroth with everything,
and so frustrated, that I simply needed to get out of the house and
do what I wanted for a change. I had a driver take me to the fabric
warehouse, and I selected everything I have been dreaming of for
the last several weeks. I had just finished paying for everything
when that man put a gun to my back and rushed me out of there and
into a waiting vehicle. He gave the driver directions, and then
closed the glass window between us and the driver for privacy.”

“When did you find out who he was?” Owen
asked.

“When he called me Tabitha Tatiana. Only one
person ever called me that.”

“This was Glory’s doing?” The pain in
Jenson’s eyes was very real.

“Yes, Daddy, I am so sorry. She was
manipulating this man into hurting and killing me to see you
suffer. Obviously, it did not work. I am here safe and sound, at
least until my husband gets me alone for a while, and I am sure he
will have plenty to say about my actions today.”

“You behaved badly, daughter. You could have
been killed!”

“I know, Daddy. Luckily, you made sure that
I learned self-defense, and I was able to apply those lessons to a
real life situation this day.”