Page 3 of Stolen Tutor

“Oh, hell no,” he chuckles, needing a moment to catch his breath. “So, he’ll be delivering his daughter to you willfully.” The wicked gleam in his eye matches mine.

“Yes.” The devil in my soul rests easy, knowing that revenge will be mine soon… and so will Lucy’s body.

Chapter Two

Lucy

I say goodbye to little Anna Leone, the one student I work with on a full-time basis at Apple Ridge School for Girls. It’s been a fabulous yet heartbreaking two months. Anna had just lost her parents less than four months earlier and had a learning delay. Although she’d gone through a lot, she’s a special young lady who had magically stolen my heart on day one.

“I’m going to miss you, sweet girl.”

Tears well up in her eyes. “It’s not fair. Why can’t you come home with me?”

“Because I work here. Your uncle and his wife wouldn’t like that very much,” I explain.

“He’s not married. Maybe you could be his wife, and then you could stay with us forever.” She’s so giddy that I hate to break it to her, but it’s almost impossible to make that a reality. I know nothing of her family except they’ve neglected her, leaving her to struggle with her grief and grades.

Her guard scoffs behind us as if I’m not good enough for her uncle. Probably because he’s wealthy. I hate that woman. Veronica Soto has been assigned to Anna since she was five years old and started here at Apple Ridge, and yet they don’t click at all. You’d think she’d care about Anna’s feelings or academics, but she’s just here to make sure the girl is still alive at the end of the day. I’ve never felt rage until I met this woman. Beating someone’s ass never struck me until her. Since then, I’ve been hitting the school’s gym daily, working on my conditioning in case I just snap on that woman.

I’m short and slender, filled with naturally lean muscle, and yet my hatred for Soto would let me take on that larger, five-eight woman who has at least sixty pounds of muscle on me. It shocks me at the level of violence she elicits from me, but it’s my new reality.

“He doesn’t date women like you,” she says. I’d ask, but I don’t give a crap who the man dates in the least.

“He’d love you,” Anna says, ignoring her guard. “I’m going to ask him to send you to me.”

“You shouldn’t do that.”

“Why not?” Soto challenges, eyes narrowing.

I grab Anna’s hands and hold them in mine. “Because I don’t want her thinking, we’re just going to have a happily ever after. Life doesn’t work like that.” Finishing my sentence, I stare at Anna. “You understand me, right?”

“Yes, I do,” she sighs. “But I’m still going to miss you.” I pull her in for a hug, but then Soto quickly yanks her away, and I huff. Still, I straighten my body and smile at Anna, who is my priority.

Perhaps I should call her uncle and inform him about her guard. Then again, he might feel she’s in the right and force me to keep my distance, which would break my heart.

“It’s only two months, sweetheart. We’ll see each other soon. You can always send me an email, okay?” I promise to her sweet face that looks so damn broken right now. Her chin wobbling hurts my soul right now.

“Okay.” She pulls away from her bitch of a guard and throws her arms around me for another big hug.

Quickly, I pull away and turn on my heel, leaving her. “See you next school year.” I rush away before I make promises I can’t keep to the little girl.

With my messenger back over my shoulder, I leave the small classroom I share with another teacher’s aide and head out to my campus apartment. As soon as the door to my studio apartment shuts, my father calls me from a private line he sent me last week, which I find strange since I have a cell phone. He says he has enemies as the town police chief, which means I could be in danger.

Our relationship is complicated or some would see it as simple. We really didn’t have one. From the age of five, I had had no real contact with him because he and my mother divorced and he moved across the country. He’d send his child support, but that was it for being a father until about four years ago, when I turned eighteen.

I’d gone into a four-year program to become a teacher. After finishing the program early, he’d gotten me a job here at this school, which I thought was the nicest thing he’s done in my entire life and has definitely helped repair our familial bond.

“So when do you finish up there?” I’ve already told him, but he doesn’t really listen to me, anyway. Maybe it’s the fact that I’ve never been important to him or that he’s just not used to keeping tabs on a daughter. Still, he’s at least trying, which I count as an improvement in our messed up past.

“I’m leaving in two days.”

“Good. It’s been a long time, but I hope we can build a bond when you return.” I roll my eyes at the lack of his enthusiasm in his voice. Could he sound more monotone?

“We can certainly try. Look, I have a meeting with the administration to go over my upcoming schedule. I’ll call you later.”

“Be good and stay away from bad men.” I raise my brow even though he can’t see me because the fucker has a lot of nerve when it comes to my relationships, or lack thereof.

There’s a rapid knock on my open front door. I could have sworn it was closed. A gasp catches in my throat as the director of the school approaches. He’s observed me more often than I cared to admit. Sometimes I get a funky suspicion that his observations have nothing to do with appraising my work. “Ms. Masters, may I have a word with you?”

---