One Year Later
Marcus helped load the last canvas onto the truck and saw the packers and movers leave with his latest art collection. With his biggest exhibition coming up, he was expecting a grand sale of all his paintings. Now that the paintings were dispatched to New York, it was time for him to get ready to leave the house where he spent a year, remembering his Cara. After she disappeared from her life that fateful night, his entire world had turned upside down. His granny died the next day, he severed all ties with his mom and left New York, and came to Long Island to look for Cara. Although her family had no idea of her whereabouts, he hadn’t given up hope. He wrapped up his exhibition and moved over to his Southampton beach house where he had made memories with Cara. Every fortnight, he visited her family to ask about her whereabouts. However, it took him six months to realize that they wouldn’t leak any information to him about her. Cara didn’t want him to find her! It shattered him totally and he tried ways to cope with his broken life.
Heartbroken and dejected, he started his latest art series, Frozen In Time. It was a series of silhouette paintings against gorgeous backdrops he made remembering the times he spent with Cara. He tried his best to bring to life the precious memories they shared together, at Davis Island. After the mega-success of his last series, he hadn’t taken a break. Although his PI wasn’t successful in finding any information about Cara, he tried in his own way but it seemed as if she had vanished from the face of the earth. His mom and Maria started living with Lucas and he hardly ever visited his brother, keeping himself busy with his work. It took him six months to complete the collection. Now that he had to return to New York, his heart filled with dread. He didn’t want to face his mom again. Thankfully Cassie had moved on with Bryan and was all set to marry him but Marcus had already broken ties with his best friend years back. He wasn’t interested in their lives at all. His heart and soul were with Cara and he still cried himself to sleep every night thinking about her.
Locking up the house, he walked out to his car. Ben Duncan opened the gates and he drove away after a small wave in his direction. It was the only communication they had. Marcus had gone into a shell and hardly spoke to a soul the whole day, staying locked up in the house with his memories and his paintings. It was a lonely life but he seemed to be happy waiting. Waiting eternally for his Cara!
He drove with a grim expression remembering the last time he had driven Cara to New York with him. Those were such happy days. If only he could turn the hands of time. Switching on his radio, he tuned it to the hot favorite FM radio station to listen to some popular numbers. It had been a year since he had listened to any music!
He smiled hearing a rap song that was being aired, making him tap his fingers on the steering wheel. It boosted his mood a little and he relaxed as he drove. His phone buzzed with an incoming call and he reduced the volume to check his phone. It was a call from Mr. Warnock and he decided to call him later. Increasing the volume, he found to his disappointment that the rap song had ended but a melodious strumming of a guitar had replaced it. A new song had started it seemed. Suddenly a soulful voice hit him, choking his throat as the singer sang the most beautiful song he’d ever heard.
Open your eyes, Can you see me?
I whisper your name, can you hear me?
I reach out to you, can you feel me?
I think of you all day, have you forgotten me?
Yet I love you wholeheartedly,
I still belong to you completely,
My heart beats for you continually,
‘Coz I will always love you unconditionally,
Love you unconditionally,
Love you unconditionally.
Open your arms, can you hold me?
I call out for you, can you find me?
I’m lonely without you, do you miss me?
I’m lost and blue, have you forgotten me?
Yet my heart still beats for you foolishly,
I will always cherish you totally,
I’ll always wait for you breathlessly,
‘Coz I still love you unconditionally,
Love you unconditionally,
Unconditionally.
As the song went on, Marcus knew whose voice it was. He could recognize that voice from anywhere! It was Cara’s voice! His whole body trembled with hope and longing. It seemed as if she was singing only for him. He was so lost in the song that hearing the radio jockey’s voice suddenly jolted him back to reality. He realized that the song was by someone called Rohesia Carys whose number, Love You Unconditionally was topping the world music charts for a while now. She seemed to be a celebrity singer with already ten hits to her name in such a short span of a year. Marcus sat with his jaws dropped to the floor. Rohesia! Who was she? Why did her voice sound so much like Cara’s?
Deep in thought and totally confused, he switched off the radio and drove on with a frown on his face. Maybe after a year, his mind was playing tricks with him. He didn’t know of any Rohesia. It would be better if he stayed away from things that didn’t interest him. He couldn’t wait to reach New York and keep himself neck-deep in work.
Once he reached his art gallery, he didn’t have time to breathe being busy setting up for the upcoming exhibition. It was nearly midnight when he finally went to his empty apartment. He had the entire place renovated for Cara and now facing it all alone made his heart constrict with pain. Was he doomed to live such a lonely life? His phone buzzed with an incoming call from Lucas.
“Yes, bro,” he said tiredly, knowing what this was all about.
“It’s almost midnight, Mark. Where are you? You were supposed to be here for dinner,” he reminded him in a displeased tone. Marcus sighed since he had never agreed to go to Lucas’s house for dinner in the first place. Why couldn’t he just let it go?
“I got held up at the gallery, bro. I grabbed a pizza with the guys there. So go off to sleep, maybe we’ll catch up some other time,” said Marcus, trying to avoid him. Lucas sighed knowingly. This has been going on since the day granny died. The gap between Marcus and their mom was widening and Marcus made no attempts at reconciliation. He still considered his mom responsible for Cara’s departure as well as granny’s death.
“Good night, Mark. Call me when you’re ready to come over,” he said. After he disconnected the call, Marcus showered and went to sleep. It was then that the soulful voice of Rohesia filled up his mind and heart, lulling him to blissful sleep. It felt as if Cara was with him, close to his heart, sleeping there right beside him.
For the next few days, Marcus was extremely busy with his art exhibition. With the press hounding after him, he didn’t have a moment of respite. His paintings had been a huge hit and they were selling for millions making his photographs flash across newspapers, magazines, television shows, everywhere. “I think I have a fever coming up strong. I’ve got a splitting headache as well,” said Marcus, unable to take it in at all. It was 8 o’clock at night and there still was a crowd in the gallery but he just couldn’t stay back any longer.
“Why don’t you go home and rest, Mr. Donnelly. We’re all here to handle everything,” said Mr. Warnock. Marcus wasted no more time. He drove to his penthouse and popping a pill into his mouth, he lay down to rest his throbbing head. However, after an hour he was startled out of bed by the incessant buzzing of his mobile phone. He groaned with agony seeing that it was Mr. Warnock. So much for handling everything in his absence! He tried to ignore the phone call and go back to sleep but it seemed as if Mr. Warnock wouldn’t leave him in peace. After the tenth call, he accepted it reluctantly.
“What’s up now? Can’t it wait till tomorrow, Mr. Warnock?” he asked impatiently.
“Sir, actually I wanted to tell you that a customer wants to…” started Mr. Warnock hesitantly.
“Give him what he wants, Mr. Warnock. You aren’t selling my paintings for the first time, are you? I’ll deal with it tomorrow morning,” he said.
“It’s a she,” he corrected him but he had already disconnected the call.
Mr. Warnock sighed and stared hard at the woman in disguise with dark sunglasses covering her eyes and a scarf over what looked like a wig. It was clear that she was a celebrity under disguise considering the number of bodyguards all around her and the media and fans going crazy outside the gallery for her. He watched while the marketing team made the deal and sold all the paintings to her. However, he was flabbergasted to see her wiping her tears as she stood in front of each of the paintings. Who was she? Why did she buy them all?