Contempt of a Great Man (Part 4)

I felt the anger rushing through my body and I clenched my fists. If Steven wouldn’t have appeared behind the door, I would have flung my entire body at John and punched him until my fists bled.

“Mr. McCall,” John yelled, never taking his eyes off me, “we have a visitor.”

My cousin suddenly appeared from behind me and slipped past me into the room. He handed me a glass of water and then faced John.

“Yes, my cousin Meg decided to pay me a visit this morning,” he said as he looked at John and then Steven, “I don’t believe she’s feeling very well.”

John nodded and rose from his seat. He shuffled past the desk and walked towards me. He stood about three feet away from me and stuck his hands in his pockets. It took everything in me to not reach over and strangle him. I hated the fact that he was so charming and relaxed while I was so miserable. I hated how the previous night met nothing to him and everything to me; it made me crumble into a heaping mess while leaving John unaffected.

“Did you have too much to drink last night?” John asked as he leaned back on his heels, “I thought I saw you leaving with Mr. Chase. You two were getting quite cozy.”

I stepped back and looked at my cousin who was now glaring at me. I didn’t know who Mr. Chase was, but I could tell that my cousin didn’t approve of him.
“Mr. Chase is not the type of man you want to associate with,” John advised me as he walked towards the door, “He’s always taking women up to his apartment on the 12th floor. I’m sure you can remember the lion on the door.”

I looked at my cousin to see if what John said was true and, by the look on my cousin’s face, I knew it was. The last thing I needed at that moment was my cousin’s disapproval. Unfortunately, all I could see in my cousin’s eyes was embarrassment and rage. I knew that he was afraid about what John thought of him now.

“Well Mr. McCall,” John said as he walked out the door and turned around to face us, “I’ll let you take care of your cousin. Steven and I have to go sort out some business matters somewhere else anyways. I do still need to talk to you though. Will you be available tonight?”

“Yes,” my cousin responded and quickly glanced at me, “I will. And thank you for being so considerate of my cousin’s condition.”

John smiled and said, “It is no problem. I hate it when young women get taken for fools.”

My mouth instantly dropped opened and I was seconds from screaming. At that moment, however, Steven walked past me and my mouth suddenly closed. Alone, John was a weak pretty boy. With Steven, John was an indestructible giant.

My cousin and I followed John and Steven into my cousin’s living room. John stopped and turned around to face my cousin and I. Steven walked past John and held the door opened with a well-defined arm that could surely crush me within a second.

John smiled his crooked smile again and said, “I hope you feel better Miss.”

I glared at him for a few moments and replied, “I will.”

John smiled wider and nodded his head. He then turned around and walked out the door that was being held open by Steven. Steven looked at me and then walked out the door. I stood motionless for a few moments, just looking at the closed door.

My cousin broke the silence, “Meg, I don’t know what happened last night, but for your own good, I don’t think you should come here anymore.”

I slowly turned to look at my cousin. I knew by the look in his eyes that he didn’t care about my wellbeing nearly as much as he cared about his reputation. He wanted me to stay away from his apartment not because he was worried about me, but because he was worried about what I would do next to ruin his status with John.

I realized at that moment that I could not tell my cousin about what happened the previous night. I knew that if I told him, it would only push us further apart. There was no way that he would believe me over John. Evidently, John offered my cousin something that was worth more than family.

Without looking at my cousin, I said, “I won’t come here again.”

My cousin smiled and responded, “It’s the best for you.”

I looked down towards the ground trying to shield my disbelieving face. As I looked down, I noticed a lion pin on my cousin’s cufflink. I began to think that my cousin had more invested in knowing John than just his reputation. However, I was too sore and tired to do any deeper thinking.

“Can I use your bathroom before I go?” I asked as I kept my eyes on his cufflink.

“Sure,” he replied, “but I need to go to work in about fifteen minutes and I don’t think it would be a good idea if you stayed here by yourself.”

I rolled my eyes, “I’ll be done in ten minutes.”

“Ok,” he said, “well the bathroom is the second door on the right.”

I passed my cousin without saying another word as I made my way to the bathroom. I looked at the expensive pictures decorating my cousin’s walls and I began to get even more disgusted. My cousin was becoming more and more like John the longer I was around him.

I finally reached the bathroom door and opened it slowly. At that point, I wasn’t surprised to see the elaborate decoration adorning the bathroom walls. I closed the door and pivoted to face the mirror.

I looked in the mirror and saw my puffy red eyes, tear-stained cheeks, and ruffled messy hair. People had always said my best feature was my youthful face. As I looked in the mirror, my face no longer looked youthful, it looked roughened and aged.

I knew John didn’t mean to do it, but he made me older and wiser. I was no longer a naïve girl; I was now a complex woman who wanted revenge. John didn’t know what he made; he was a scientist who made a monstrous creature. I was the creature and the scientist would never forget that he was the one who made me.

<<<<<<Go to http://www.writing.com/main/view_item/item_id/1506714 for the next part of the story>>>>>>>