26

Nothing Ma’am. They both took deep breaths and let their faces go blank.
Do you want to talk about it, Ms. Lea ? A small smile tugged at Mahalia’s full lips.
He talked to you, didn’t he ?
Who Ma’am ? Mahalia set some water on the stove to boil and then pulled out an array of vegetables from the fridge.
Carter.
Mr. Stephens and I talk quite a bit Ma’am. There was an undertone of mocking in the woman’s voice.
I stepped over to the counter and grabbed the bags of carrots and celery. How would you like these cut ?
Just in slices. Mahalia glanced at me from the corner of her eyes as she picked up an onion. He really does like you Ma’am.
I skinned the outer layer of carrots into the trash, So I hear.
What about you Ms. Lea ? How do you feel about him ? Mahalia peeled the onion and began dicing it.
I shrugged my shoulders as I ignored my subconscious’ reminder of the events and resulting emotions from this morning.
He murdered a man in front of me and took me from my home.
Mahalia stopped and turned to face me, all playfulness gone and seriousness taking it’s place. You know why he took you, but have you asked him why he killed that man ?
I squirmed under the intensity of Mahalia’s gaze. No.
Ms. Lea, I know more than I should about a lot of things in this house. My husband, Henry, and I do not discuss what we see or hear. But I will tell you, if Mr. Stephens killed a man, he had a very good reason for it.
I felt my emotions start to waver as I spoke quietly, My sister was murdered in front of me when I was seventeen. I couldn’t stop the man. I choked back a sob as a tear slid down my cheek before I could stop it. She was only fifteen, I whispered and looked to Mahalia as I continued, What reason is ever good enough to take someone’s life ?
Oh, Ms. Lea. I, I didn’t know. Mahalia pulled me into her and spoke soft and gently, No wonder you’re trying to protect yourself with that sassy attitude you have. She smoothed my hair back and tilted my chin toward her face. But, I can assure you, Mr. Stephens isn’t just some cold blooded killer. He does what he does to protect us ; his family, his employees, and his businesses.
She stepped back and held me at arm’s length. He’s protecting himself as well, Ms. Lea. That cold exterior that he has is not easy for someone to crack and no one has ever managed to make him a blabbering fool, but you, you have managed to do just that.
She looked me over and smiled softly, brushing away my tears as she spoke, Do you know that he is risking everything he has because of what he feels for you ?
I slowly shook my head. I knew that I could be used against him, but I hadn’t really thought about the true risk he was taking by feeling for me.
He is. He see’s something in you, under all your sassiness. Give him a chance, Child. Look under what he shows the rest of us for who he truly is. You just might be surprised at what you find.
I felt more confused than ever and asked the one question that had been weighing heavily on my mind since speaking with Darrell last night, How can someone like me ever fall for someone like him ?
Listen to your heart, Ms. Lea. It will never lead you wrong.
I nodded once and pondered the advice Mahalia had given me. We worked in silence for a long while as we chopped, sliced, and diced the vegetables.
What are we cooking ?
Mahalia chuckled, You did ask me that earlier, didn’t you ?
I nodded, Yes.
Well, you know the saying since the cat’s away, the mice will play ? She stirred the vegetables into the large pot of boiling water.
I nodded again.
Everyone here loves a good stew, except for Mr. Stephens.
So you decided that since he is gone you would treat everyone.
Yes.
Well then, let’s play. I laughed lightly, Are there any desserts that he doesn’t like that the rest of the house does ?
Lewis and Leon both cleared their throats and spoke up, Mahalia’s World Famous Banana Pudding.
I scrunched my nose up.
Ah yes, the banana pudding. Mahalia walked to the intercom and pressed a button.
Yes ?
Mr. Johnson, I am in need of some items for desert.
A smacking sound came from the intercom, Please tell me it’s banana pudding night.
I chuckled at the desperate plea in the man’s voice as Mahalia nodded, Yes Sir.
There was a slight pause, Oh thank the heavens. What do you need Mahalia ?
Bananas, Nilla wafers, and vanilla pudding.
You got it my dear.
Must be some special sauce you put in it. I looked back at Lewis and Leon. The men were practically drooling.
Mahalia and I continued working on the stew as it took a lot to cook for fifty people each night.
Darrell came through the doors a little while later followed by Henry.
Thank you, Mr. Johnson, Love. Henry placed a quick kiss on Mahalia’s cheek before turning toward the spot Mahalia was point to, You can put it all there.
The men off loaded the bags onto the counter and left, leaving Mahalia to cook the pudding while I sliced the bananas and then layered them in a two large catering sized pans with the Nilla wafers.
I left the kitchen a little before five, cleaned up, and changed into the powder blue dress and accessories that were laid out for me. I made my way to the dining room and took my seat, listening to the oohs and aah’s as the pudding was put on the table.
We finished the meal and I made my way to my room, changed into my pajamas, and climbed into bed.
But sleep was not forthcoming and I restlessly tossed and turned as steel blue eyes and soft, hot kisses teased and taunted me in my dreams.
Carter’s P. O. V.
The intruder was good, leaving no visible evidence of his identity. But Tony was better. He had been able to trace the server that had been used to hack into the system at the Hong Kong house and then access the cameras to the cafe where the intruder had worked from and put a face to the user of the IP address that came up.
Once we knew his identity, we were able to locate the shady brothel he was holed up at and waited patiently for the opportunity to catch him alone. Even after being beaten and bruised, he had refused to cooperate and was now cuffed to one of the chairs in the cabin of the plane.
We had been in Hong Kong for a little less than a week and I was ready to get back home. We were in the air and about four hours from landing at our private airport, but I was restless and pacing steadily, ready to put a bullet in the intruder’s head, but I needed to know who he worked for before disposing of him.