The Finest Line

The Finest Line

Catherine Taylor

Published by Catherine Taylor at
Smashwords

Copyright 2012 Catherine
Taylor

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CHAPTER ONE

Mairead Kavanagh woke up on a
hardwood floor and tried to remember where she was. There was
sunshine streaming through the partially drawn curtains of large
windows. One of the several sleeping bodies, scattered throughout
the room, was snoring loudly. Bottles, glasses and overflowing
ashtrays littered nearly every flat surface.

She remembered arriving at the
high rise apartment the day before. Like many others on the Gold
Coast beach it was impressive and reeked of money. There was at
least one pleasant memory of standing on the balcony watching the
sun sink below the horizon. Now there was only gloom and the smell
of body odour and alcohol.

She wanted to leave but she had
no idea how to get back to her own apartment, and she felt far too
ill to move. A little more sleep might help shift the fog of the
drugs and alcohol in her system.

She thought of her comfortable
bed back home in New Zealand. What she wouldn’t give to be there
now, safe in her pretty pink bedroom with her teddies keeping watch
at the end of her bed. Even the bed where she was staying would
have been preferable to the floor, but it was all she had right
now.

Yielding to her exhaustion, she
curled up on her side and closed her eyes. Sleep was just claiming
her when she was disturbed by someone touching her arm. Rolling
onto her back, Mairead looked into the grinning face of some
vaguely familiar man.

“There you are,” He seemed very
pleased to see her, “Hullo Kiwi girl.”

Mairead remembered being
attracted to him. In the light of day he was still striking but the
dramatic blue eyes were now bloodshot and the thin line of blond
hair on his upper lip and chin were now just part of stubble.

He was older than her by several
years but there had been some form of interaction between them. She
remembered him stuffing her bra with money.

She smelt his alcoholic breath
as he spoke, “Time to pay the piper baby,”

His hands wandered up her arms
and down her body to the ridiculously short skirt she had worn.
They slid up again bringing the skirt with them.

Mairead pushed him away. “Fuck
off and leave me alone.”

“You made the deal darling,” He
whispered, “Five thousand dollars in exchange for that tight little
virgin snatch.”

“I did no such thing,” Though
she flinched at some familiarity in his words. “Please Mike, just
leave me alone.”

His face grew stony. “It’s Mark,
you little slut, but don’t worry, it doesn’t bother me what name
you want to scream out while I’m fucking you.”

He pushed her back to the floor
and pulled his body onto hers. When she tried to get him off she
discovered how weak she felt. He pinned her arms to the floor and
his face hovered over hers.

Mairead tried not to show her
fear. “Would you please fuck off? I must have the money somewhere.
I’ll give it back.”

“Only one payment I want from
you sweetheart.” His knee pushed down painfully on her thighs
forcing her legs to open. Summoning her strength, she bucked and
kicked violently only to be slammed down again.

“Easy baby,” Mark grinned as he
studied her. “You really are quite stunning aren’t you? Mairead...
rhymes with parade. I like that.” He smirked and then spoke very
softly into her ear. “What I won’t like, Mairead is if when I ram
my cock into that sweetness between your legs, I find out that you
really aren’t a virgin.”

He brought her wrists together
and held them in one hand while the other went down to the button
on his trousers. “I hate disappointment. I may have to keep
searching until I receive satisfaction.”

“Please, please don’t do this,”
There was no hiding her terror as her tears erupted. Her cries got
louder as his hand moved between her legs. His fingers were digging
into her, grasping her briefs. With one pull her they were ripped
from her.

Somebody loomed behind him, “Get
the fuck away from her.”

Mark was launched from her.
Mairead lay on the floor looking up at the ceiling crying loudly.
Slowly she began to curl up and slide back against the wall,
hugging her knees to her chest. Through her tears she could see
Mark being picked up and thrown to the floor again by someone else
she recognised.

Joshua Mason was young, handsome
and apparently very strong. For the last few days he had been her
constant companion, introducing her to the party life of the Gold
Coast. He had asked nothing of her and stayed out of her way while
she flirted with every other man. Only now did she realise how much
he had looked after her.

Mark started to get up holding
his hands up. “Josh, you really don’t want to do this.”

Josh slammed his fist into his
face and Mark went down again. This time he stayed down.

Mairead was still sobbing when
Josh knelt beside her. “Are you alright?”

She was about to nod when her
stomach lurched heavily. She was just able to turn her head away as
dark vomit launched from her mouth. Terrible pain seized her head
and the disgusting smell took her breath away.

Josh hovered over her, “Bloody
hell Mairead, I told you not to fucking drink with that shit.”

Fresh tears ran down her face.
“Am I going to die Josh?”

“You just need some fresh air.
I’m taking you outside.”

Mairead felt strong arms go
under her body and lift her. She shook her head. “Not outside. Not
like this.”

“I’m just taking you out on the
balcony.”

There was no strength left in
her. She closed her eyes and relished the feel of Josh’s strength
and comfort, knowing that her tiny frame would be no challenge to
him.

Bright light stung her eyelids,
but the sweet fresh air filled her lungs and it seemed as if she
was only breathing for the first time in hours. She felt herself
lowered onto something soft. When she opened her eyes, Josh was
adjusting a beach umbrella to shade her. The sight made her feel
terribly ashamed.

Josh grinned as he sat beside
her. “Better?”

Mairead nodded and then looked
about. She was lying on a sun bed on the balcony. Through the clear
glass railing she could see the sparkling blue ocean horizon and
hear the cry of seagulls. The height afforded little other sight or
sound.

Death didn’t seem so imminent
anymore and Mairead smiled weakly at Josh, “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Mairead bowed her head. “Why
after the way I treated you?”

“You didn’t treat me badly.
You’re not my girlfriend... remember?”

She remembered how she had told
him that she was out of his league and he should consider it an
honour that she trusted him to entertain her. She hated herself so
much sometimes.

Josh’s grin widened. “It was an
honour Mairead. You’re beautiful and funny... and a little
wild.”

“I’m an idiot. If it wasn’t for
you...” More tears erupted and Mairead felt Josh take her hand.

“You’re not an idiot. That
arsehole had no right.”

“Who the hell is he?”

“Mark Lewis. His old man owns
this whole building and this is just one of many places Mark camps
out at.”

“He’s a friend of yours?”

Josh seemed uncomfortable. “Our
paths cross from time to time. I use to work for his father who’s
an even bigger arsehole.”

Mairead reluctantly asked, “So
what exactly did I do to Mark?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Josh
told her firmly, “Just stupid shit. I’ll give him the money back
when he sobers up.”

“He said five thousand
dollars.”

“It doesn’t matter,” He grew
agitated. “Never should have brought you here. Too busy trying to
impress you.”

Mairead studied the pleasant
face in front of her. “You know, you’re kind of good-looking.”

“I’d say the same to you,” Josh
grinned. “But at the moment you got really red eyes, snot running
out your nose and you kind of smell.”

Mairead laughed weakly. “Joshua
Mason. You really know how to flatter a girl. I could almost see
you being my exclusive boyfriend.”

Josh jumped to his feet and drew
his Android from his pocket. “Now I just know when you sober up
that you are going to deny having said that so I’m going to get
proof.”

Mairead yawned as she watched
him tap the apps on his device. Her body was growing heavier,
nausea was returning and her head was fogging up again. She
struggled to keep her eyes opened. Josh knelt beside her and held
the screen towards them.

“Right, say that again. I’m
getting this on video.”

Mairead took the device from him
and held it up to her face. “Joshua Mason. Would you do the honour
of being my boyfriend?” Her stomach lurched again as dizziness
flooded her brain. “Oh god, I feel sick.”

Josh jumped up. “I’ll get you
some water.”

Water sounded great. Her mouth
was feeling like sandpaper and perspiration was running down her
face. Her heart rate had increased and she had never felt so weak.
The fog in her head was thickening and aware of Josh’s device in
her hand, she put it down on the sun bed hoping it would not fall
off. It was her last thought as she passed out.

When she opened her eyes again
the blue sky had been replaced by a ceiling that was moving above
her. Her soft sun bed had become hard and she was completely
horizontal. She tried to move and failed.

“Leave me alone. Let me go.”
Mairead screamed and struggled against the restraints that held
her. A woman leaned over her and smiled.

“Try not to move, dear. You have
an IV in your arm.” The woman spoke calmly, “We’ll have you at the
hospital very soon.”

Mairead whimpered. “What
hospital? Where is Josh?”

The woman smiled but didn’t
answer. Mairead lay back and looked to the side. She was in the
hall of the apartment building. Strangers were staring at her as
she went by. Police and men in fluorescent coveralls were running
past her. People were shouting, their voices swirling with the
density of the fog. She knew that she was about to pass out again
and didn’t fight it.

During the next fleeting moment
of awareness, someone was removing her clothes. Mairead shook her
head. “I don’t want that. Not yet. Josh, please get these people
away from me.”

He didn’t come and Mairead knew
that she was naked and fingers were touching her body. When she
tried to cover herself, her arms wouldn’t move. Tears rolled down
the sides of her face. “It’s not supposed to be like this.” The
darkness came again.

A crushing pain in her arm woke
her and this time Mairead was alert enough to see a nurse taking
her blood pressure.

“Where am I?”

The nurse didn’t answer until
she was removing the cuff, “Well hello there. I didn’t think you
were ever going to wake up.”

Mairead angrily repeated her
question.

“You’re in Brisbane Hospital and
you’ve been here two days now.” The nurse reached over and pushed a
button on the wall behind her bed. “The doctor is going to pop in
and have a look at you and I’ll be able to tell him that you’re a
little grumpy but doing very well.”

Before Mairead could speak the
nurse was gone. Looking about her, she was relieved to see that she
was in a private room with its own bathroom. Two leather recliners
sat in each corner, a flat panel screen television was mounted on
the wall in front of her and a landscape portrait hung on the
wall.

Something was missing. There
were no cards or gifts wishing her well. During her last stay in a
hospital, after a gymnastics accident, her room had been filled
with flowers, stuffed animals, cards and balloons. Their absence
made her feel terribly lonely.

The door opened and the nurse
had returned with a tall Indian man in shirt and tie. He smiled as
he approached the bed.

“Good to see you awake Miss
Kava...” He looked down at the folder in his arm. “I am terrible at
pronouncing names.”

“Mairead Kavanagh.”

His smile was annoying. “I have
never heard of anyone called Mairead. Where does that come
from?”

Nothing however annoyed her more
than small talk. “It’s Irish. Now what the fuck am I doing in
hospital?”

His smile vanished at her
abruptness. “You overdosed on a cocktail of alcohol and drugs and
were severely dehydrated when they brought you in. You’re very
lucky, Miss Kavanagh. A less healthy person may not have survived
this. Despite your binge, your fitness levels seem to be
exceptional.”